hm... very thoughtful (and thought provoking) article.

as a person who enjoys both major types of games the article talks about (the "narrow" HD and the "expansive" SD, to be crass) as well as many more types of games (like small indie projects and high-concept meta-games like S&SW:EP), i never really thought about the weight of consumer expectation and how it affects the industry's ability to move flexibly between graphical styles.

while i think that the author somewhat underestimates the pace at which development tools will catch up with technological benchmarks (and therefore allow small developers the ability to make big, complex, AND pretty worlds), i do acknowledge that the industry has been heading down the road of Hollywood unsustainability for quite some time now.

Guys it is so bad, if its true..  That means also wii U will come without this special nintendo patent of blu ray disc? It will be discless? lol

Woah, calm down... he said that BOTH will be available.  They are introducing digital downloads (which is why he was talking about it so much, because it's new for them), but regular, hard-copy packaged games will still be available.  lol, I admire your ability to converse on a forum in your second (or third? how many do you speak?) language... it must give you a few scares every once in a while, though!

Always nice to hear that Miyamoto-San is cooking up something new... I guess new characters could mean a new franchise, or some new faces in an existing one.

I guess we'll have to see what becomes of it...

I'll be pretty happy if I can just get persistent access to social networking features (chat/messaging) via the touchscreen, during games and whatnot. Realistically, given Nintendo's (even recent) history with online functionality, and given the generally reliable premise that the service will be free, I can't expect miracles of networking bliss!

Now... if I'm shooting for the stars here, I would love jump in/out features to be supported, spectator modes for everything, unified leaderboards/stats accessible from friend's profiles, etc.

I certainly agree with the sentiment of the OP. It would increase my own sense of positive expectation if very small snippets of teaser artwork, or perhaps cryptic tweets, were slowly-but-steadily released to the webernet to keep us uber-fans salivating. I think that this kind of info would also do good things for the marketing of the system at large (speading awareness of new and intriguing gaming concepts to pique curiosity), while allowing Nintendo to keep their oh-so-precious focus on games.

I do agree, of course, that the ultra-high-expectation crowd is an ultra minority right now. My brother, to judge by the amount of money that he has spent on Nintendo products, would certainly seem to be a big Ninty fan... but he frequently has to be reminded about what the WiiU even is when I bring it up in conversation... for the majority of gamers, it seems that the system really isn't on the radar at this point.

I suppose this could be used to support both sides of the argument. On the one hand, lack of awareness about the product might mean that Nintendo doesn't have to worry about frustrated expectations (because they don't exist). On the other hand, lack of awareness about the product might mean that Nintendo really ought to work on generating some real buzz. Of course, one could always argue that the best time to do that is, in fact, a couple of months before release...

I guess the title of the topic is broad enough to post usage ideas for games... right?

I'm thinking...

- tablet screen for endoscopy in surgery games (or robot/nanoprobes fixing circuitry or spying) while the main screen can keep an eye on vitals...
- LOVE the build management in rts games (or minimap/unit grouping management) idea
- LOVE the persistent sniper-scope idea (oddly enough, this also allows for the most precise aiming possible, given that there would be the sticks for movement and camera as well as the controller positioning for pinpoint aiming on-screen, potentially eliminating the complaints with both bounding boxes and fixed-center dual-stick or mouse aiming... though the whole system of movement together might prove disorienting or overly complicated)
- tablet player controlling a gunning turret on a vehicle, while the main screen player drives/flies
- dashboard for complex simulators, with flipable switches and pushable buttons represented on the tablet screen.

They do need a generic First Person Shooter, I agree.

Sarcasm, anyone?

... but really, I think the OP was talking about a game that filled the function of Halo (solid, complex mechanics, cool visual styling, and a decently rich narrative structure with the opportunity for deep lore). Uncharted does SOME of this for the playstation (the basic mechanics are a bit unpolished, the play is a bit linear, and there's very little opportunity for lore), as does killzone, infamous, and god of war... but I think that a lot of sony's difficulty (other than prohibitive price) has to do with the lack of that one title that really nails all three aspects.

I agree that Nintendo needs this. Their internal focus has always been on play mechanics - which really makes sense as a bedrock starting point for game design. But to really capture nerddome in its entirety (I'm not talking about the so-called "graphics whores" or kids that just want to look cool, here), you need a world that offers everything in one package.

I agree that Retro is currently the best candidate to do this, from many angles... but I have yet to see them foray into the realm of a truly new IP...

I LOVED this game on the 'Cube.  It was intense, it was intriguing/compelling on every level, it was expansive (multiple playable characters over centuries of timeline, and it all worked well... amazing!), and it was pretty innovative, too.  This would be a great 3rd party exclusive to have in Ninty's pocket.

As the article points out, of course, Silicon Knights needs a LOT of hand-holding.  I believe them when they say that Epic screwed them over a bit when Too Human was in development... but unless Nintendo is working with them directly on every level during development (like they did with the first one), I'm not sure that the final product will be worth the wait.

Hardcore gamers tend to care less about graphics then casual gamers. While some specialize in a single genre, they typically have fairly diverse taste in games, frequently playing a wide variety of games from different genres. They'll often seek out obscure and older games, based on word of mouth or positive critical reception. Hardcore gamers put good gameplay above all else, and don't mind if a good game has poor (or even nonexistent) graphics, sound, characters and plot.

I like this a bit... probably because I feel like it allows for multiple definitions of greatness in a game.  But 'graphics' is another one of those vague terms - 8-bit-style pixel art can be beautiful or ugly just like any other art style, and I prefer to play beautiful games (even old ones, or text-based adventures with clever and engaging narration) rather than ugly ones... so I don't entirely agree with the "gameplay above all" mantra as it is here defined... I think all of those "unimportant" things have to factor into a holistic idea of "gameplay"...

As far as "hardcore" goes... I think Nintendo, when it says that it wants back hardcore gamers, pretty much only means that they would like to have some customers that actually buy games.  They're a business... *shocker!*... and they need to have a platform that encourages developers to produce games by offering the reasonable expecation of profit.  Millions of households own a Wii + exactly one game (WiiSports)... millions more own a Wii + a few shovelware games that they thought would be fun at parties.  This really does not encourage developers to make games for a platform.

Perhaps we personally find "bloody" games distasteful, or believe that CoD offers a very simple and uniteresting gameplay experience.  Perhaps we have some sort of Freudian complex surrounding impressive visual prowess and would rather not allow the people who enjoy such games to be elevated by the title "hardcore" - which suggests a certain prestige or prowess or dignity or good taste or whatever... but I think that ultimately none of that matters to Nintendo when it says it wants the hardcore gamer back.  I really think that all they're saying is "please, people that buy games, come back and buy those games on our platform, so that we can continue to sell consoles and thereby have the income to continue making the games that WE want to make".

yeah... all of these "standards" seem really, really arbitrary. For Nintendo's purposes I really do think they just mean "people who will buy lots of games". Why would they care about whether or not a person is psychologically affected by their friends' choices, or knows how to disassemble and reassemble a PC in a minute and fifteen seconds flat?

to be honest, everybody here (including myself, I know, I know) sounds like a blowhard every now and then when pushing their definitions and opinions about what gaming is all about... and I think there's a big lack of self-awareness when people turn up their nose at "kids who only play games for x or y silly reason". What, like you REALLY know what you mean by "gameplay is all I care about"? Like you never find yourself enjoying a game that a hundred million 8th graders also happen to like, just because THEIR reason for liking it is the cool poster with the guy holding a really big gun? Come on...

That's like pretending that you don't enjoy fast food or junk food, simply due to the fact that fine cuisine is "better". Better for what? For complexity? For skill of composition? For profound possibilities of reflection and existential bliss? Sure. For quick energy? For facilitating social interaction? For comfort? For excitement? Maybe not.

Also, what's with the tacitly accepted disparagement of "violence" in games, and the somewhat bigoted insinuation that violence is something only "Americans" like? Um............ last time I checked, "violence" was a staple of the industry. I don't think that Mario crushes his enemies in the spirit of peace and goodwill. If people are somehow arguing that "sanitized" violence - violence that is disguised as non-violence by clever puffs of smoke or the absence of blood - is somehow not violence... well then that's a different discussion.

"americanized-militaristic-mindless"?  I don't think that's a very descriptive title as far as the behavior sets you are objecting to... it sounds like some political rhetoric is getting mixed up in your otherwise very careful analyses... also, it's kind of offensive to me as an American.

If you mean that the kind of gamers that like games such as CoD are accustomed to rapid killstreaks, twitchy or knee-jerk play mechanics, and simple structures of play, then I could understand what you are saying... but I'm still not sure about which of those elements you find objectionable.  Are you saying that you would prefer the Metroid multiplayer to differ from one of these (or similar areas) in terms of mechanics?

Or maybe do you mean the social ettiquette of players on many of these types of games?  The swearing, trash-talking, whining, threatening, belittling, and berating of new or inexperienced players?  I could also understand that objection... do you want a kinder, more polite and more inclusive "crowd" for social gaming?

I agree that the best use of multiplayer for a Metroid game would be for co-op... I would really like that... though I also get the point about Prime being so successful due to its sense of loneliness and isolation.  A versus mode would have to include some of these great ideas about complex maps with world enemies, or interesting objectives and puzzle-solving elements included.

I really don't understand the term "mindless" as it is commonly being used on these forums, and I don't think that it has proved a very helpful term.  Many gaming enthusiasts from across the world have been rather devoted to games that feature simple, repetitive processes which demand little higher-order thinking.  I find "militaristic" similarly unhelpful, as I doubt that it is being used technically.  If we're simply talking about a fascination with the military and/or military operations, then I don't see the problem.  Cultures across the world and throughout history have been fascinated with (and even glorified) the military, and many great games (not talking about CoD here) have used this fascination as a foundation.  If you find CoD itself to be irreverent toward life, misleading in its politics, or dangerous in its sanitization of violence, then I might see a productive dialogue (and I might agree with you).

Well, Nintendo and Google already do work together (on the ES operating system, at least), so it's not so farfetched a rumor as it might seem... still, it's my understanding that the controller itself only streams content (not generates it), so I don't think that the "tablet" itself will run an OS.

I would personally love to see Nintendo team up with a marketplace like Android to provide media content... that would mean a lot more content with a lot less burden on Nintendo!

^ Nollog nailed it people. He didn't mean the consoles havnt been announced, he meant they havnt announced which consoles ue4 is meant to operate on.

Grammitically, he didn't need to say "intended" and "aimed". It makes that sentence confusing, especially when being read.He should have said, "the platforms this is intended for have not been announced."

or... "we have yet to announce the platforms for which this is intended"... if grammatical precision is absolutely paramount anyway, i agree that nothing conclusive was said...

but hey, in relation to the whole frustration regarding "the games industry" and DLC... I realized not too long ago that I actually ended up paying $90 for Gears of War 3, after adding the cost of the DLC season pass to the original cost of the game... so yeah, I get the point about feeling a bit hustled. But you know what? I'm actually ok with it. I appreciate that games are expensive to develop and publish, I like all the bells and whistles that come with high production values and traditional packaging, and the slow feed of extra content is welcome to me. The digital/new media age has spoiled me a bit, but at the end of the day I am still a fan, and fans of all stripes have always been ready to shell out ridiculous amounts of cash for overpriced merchandise!

Also... I remember paying $70 for a game on many occasions during the "good old days" of gaming (talking SNES here)... and that was in 1992 dollars!

... yeah, I think what made the original Starfox and SF64 so amazing was the presense of the big, interactive action set pieces and the frenetic action (things which have all become kind of staples of AAA game production in recent years). I'm not sure that Nintendo could stick with the original formula and end up with the kind of mind-blowing experience that fans are begging for, if only because that kind of experience has become so common.

The cinematic feel of the first two games seems important - the sense that these big, gorgeous worlds are just coming at you, and making you react to events with speed and precision. This doesn't require the game to be "on rails", I suppose (originally, my favorite level from SF64 was Katina), but it does require a certain kind of cinematic, action-oriented pacing. The RPG/Adventure elements always felt like an awkward departure from this core, to me, and left me feeling that I was playing a different (albeit somewhat interesting) franchise.