69 replies to this topic

[Dragon]

I just hope it makes toast.

Mmmm..... Nintentoast.... I hope it makes a 1UP sounds when the toast pops up!

[Gimbal]

Mmmm..... Nintentoast.... I hope it makes a 1UP sounds when the toast pops up!

Warp pipe sound when it goes in.

[Robotic Sunshine Commander]

i just keep keep seeing "yh of course it will be better than ps360 but not by much, thats just the facts." but there is nothing that proves this claim. it just frustrates me soo much!! where is this assumption coming from!!! all the evidense points to the wii u using 2010/2011 technology which is far superior to xbox360 and ps3

Quote this everywhere people deny its power ! honestly

[djlewe78]

The fact is nintendo wii u will be a diffrent beast to the ms 360/720 and ps3/ps4. When nintendo build a new console they use there wealth of experence to build something fun, and with the gamer in mind. They look at whats coming tech wise, and speak to devs about techniques being used in the next 5 years and build a machine not too powerful and too weak, which is perfect for 80% of gamers who dont give a flying fk about pc quality shadding, fps, etc i only have a wii n a 3ds so when i watch my mates playing crysis or mass effect on there ps3 i think it looks amazing as it is!!! So a machine with more power than that is more than enough for me, and be honest guys, its all we really need. Let microsoft and sony build there super machines but remember, if raw power is all u realy want, get a pc hub rigged up to ur tv and an xbox gamepad and u will have a machine NOW that will be better than the 720/ps4. But im happy with wiiu, all nintendos ips plus aaa 3rd dev games at a low price, no brainer really.

[3Dude]

We know its power 7 because ibm flat out said it uses p7 processor cores.

1. With the original press release, defining characteristics that only p7 contains and relating it to watson, which is p7 based.

2. 3 seperate occasions over the past year, ibms official twitter feed, ibmwatson, has confirmed its using power 7 core processor chips.

power 7 is not some impossible super chip. That's people who don't know any better confusing watsons processor chips, the power 7, with watsons power 7 package, which is the number of cores, arrangement, and support components.

The watson power 7 package is an 8 core socket linked to 32 processor nodes, a bazillion times. Its a super computer package, the chips NOT a super computer.

The watson PACKAGE draws 200+ watts, not the p7 processor.

IBMWatson has repeatedly said over and over again the wii u has the same exact processor chips on the watson, the p7 processors, NOT the p7 super computer PACKAGE that watson has.

P7 is a low watt low heat high performance processor core. Its performance gains come from effecient architecture , advances in edram technology (edram power/performance and sram speed and latency) Its perfect for a games console.

That being said, the wii u will NOT be a powerhouse console. The simple fact of the matter is, its too damn small. Technology does not exist today that can pit the power some of the people in here are expecting in a case the of the dimensions Nintendo gave us, and not have 100% garunteed catastrophic failures in thermal dissipation.

ie the console would melt.

[JaylisJayP]

The "potential" means very little. What matters is what Nintendo has shown thus far, which hasn't looked amazing. It's been said before, but Wii U's only chance to stand out graphically is with first party titles. While this gen is still going, Wii U will be getting ports that all look like the PS3/360 graphics tier. When next gen starts, Wii U will get the ports ported down to Wii U's graphical power, while 720 and PS4 will see games look much better.

I own a Wii and love Nintendo, and yes what I'm saying is just an educated guess, but the same thing happened with the Wii. You can make the argument that the differences won't be as dramatic this time around, which will likely be true, but there will still be a noticeable difference.

Nintendo would've been very wise to have at least 1 game at the launch or within the launch window that pushed what the Wii U could do graphically...but instead of preparing a Metroid or Star Fox, they throw out a 2D Mario game, which will look smooth and HD, but nobody will give the game a second look based on the graphics alone.

Hell even take Skyward Sword, a game that's already made, and give it an HD coat of paint or something.

I wish Nintendo would've focued on graphics. I have so little interest in the gimmick that is the tablet controller.

[Nintendustin]

Guys try to be careful with "facts" until they do actually become facts. A great word to use instead is "opinion."

[Desert Punk]

The lack of facts seems to be a license for some to predict a very high specification for the console but the leaks from developers indicate a console similar to current gen in performance. Yes they are only leaks but in the absense of developers saying the wii u will be many times more powerful than current gen it seems reasonable to expect something in line with those leaks. Again the CPU will need to be fully compatible with the original wii somehow as will the gpu. Its not sufficiently powerful to fully emulate the wii.

Consumers have already taught Nintendo by buying the original wii in such huge numbers that we aren't obsessed with performance and Nintendo like to make a good profit from their console. Its hardly going to be surprising to anyone if the wii u performance is towards the lower end of expectations especially in a time of recession.

I feel its a shame if the wii u does deliver current gen performance approx that many might be disappointed by this. I hope if this happens they will still consider buying a wii u. It looks to be a brilliant and imagnitive console and by supporting it we will get the Nintendo games we love like Zelda and Mario.

Whatever happens it will be massively superior to the original wii, a huge generational leap for Nintendo compared to the gamecube based wii.

[JaylisJayP]

Consumers have already taught Nintendo by buying the original wii in such huge numbers that we aren't obsessed with performance and Nintendo like to make a good profit from their console. Its hardly going to be surprising to anyone if the wii u performance is towards the lower end of expectations especially in a time of recession.

But have consumers also taught Nintendo in the last year that they grew extremely tired of a console that was significantly behind the times than its competition in the power department - and that perhaps they will be more careful before jumping in this time around? Perhaps, time will tell. I still own my Wii and actually played a game on it last week, Skyward Sword. I think I will always own my Wii because of how much I loved playing the Metroid Prime Trilogy and a few of the Mario games, plus I have about a half dozen well-reviewed third party exclusives that aren't worth $2 in trade-in, so I mine as well play them at some point. And I'll readily admit I bought into the hype and grabbed a Wii first chance I could get, and had some decent fun with Wii sports for a while, but over the last 3 years I've probably played 2-3 games on the Wii. I won't make that same mistake with the Wii U, at least certainly not at launch. I am not sold on the gamepad enhancing my core gamer experience at all, but that's another issue.

Thing is, and I know this isn't what Ninendo was going for again, but if I were the least bit excited about the Wii U proving to be a next-gen console in terms of graphics and power right out of the gate at launch, I'd be the first one lining up for a pre-order. That would be enough with Zombie U and NSMBU to get me onboard. But I already own a 360 and a PS3, I don't need another console on par with those graphics just for a couple good games right now.

[FreakAlchemist]

We know its power 7 because ibm flat out said it uses p7 processor cores.

1. With the original press release, defining characteristics that only p7 contains and relating it to watson, which is p7 based.

2. 3 seperate occasions over the past year, ibms official twitter feed, ibmwatson, has confirmed its using power 7 core processor chips.

power 7 is not some impossible super chip. That's people who don't know any better confusing watsons processor chips, the power 7, with watsons power 7 package, which is the number of cores, arrangement, and support components.

The watson power 7 package is an 8 core socket linked to 32 processor nodes, a bazillion times. Its a super computer package, the chips NOT a super computer.

The watson PACKAGE draws 200+ watts, not the p7 processor.

IBMWatson has repeatedly said over and over again the wii u has the same exact processor chips on the watson, the p7 processors, NOT the p7 super computer PACKAGE that watson has.

P7 is a low watt low heat high performance processor core. Its performance gains come from effecient architecture , advances in edram technology (edram power/performance and sram speed and latency) Its perfect for a games console.

That being said, the wii u will NOT be a powerhouse console. The simple fact of the matter is, its too damn small. Technology does not exist today that can pit the power some of the people in here are expecting in a case the of the dimensions Nintendo gave us, and not have 100% garunteed catastrophic failures in thermal dissipation.

ie the console would melt.

Why does everyone keep ignoring you when you give factual evidence of it using p7?

Edited by FreakAlchemist, 10 September 2012 - 06:56 AM.

[djlewe78]

The big selling point will be the branding of wii u and the games. Nintendo want to win over the millions of xbox and ps3 owners who ARE NOT tech heads! Not every 360 and ps3 owner knows whats inside there machine, they just know that the games look great and the online wworks for them. Nintendo needs to rebrand there new machine so it doesnt seem like old wii, maybe a new logo or name change wud have been a good idea, i know its too late but the problem is that xbox n ps users are happy with what they have, for 10 years they havent played mario or zelda so why wud they want it now even in hd? If u owned a ps3 wud u buy a new console that had the same games as u can buy with marginly better graphics aand a new controler and online set up, im not so sure, for me as wii owner i cant wait but im getting a massive upgrade, but are xbox n ps3 users gonna be lured to it, black ops 2 or not?

[3Dude]

The lack of facts seems to be a license for some to predict a very high specification for the console but the leaks from developers indicate a console similar to current gen in performance. Yes they are only leaks but in the absense of developers saying the wii u will be many times more powerful than current gen it seems reasonable to expect something in line with those leaks. Again the CPU will need to be fully compatible with the original wii somehow as will the gpu. Its not sufficiently powerful to fully emulate the wii.

Consumers have already taught Nintendo by buying the original wii in such huge numbers that we aren't obsessed with performance and Nintendo like to make a good profit from their console. Its hardly going to be surprising to anyone if the wii u performance is towards the lower end of expectations especially in a time of recession.

I feel its a shame if the wii u does deliver current gen performance approx that many might be disappointed by this. I hope if this happens they will still consider buying a wii u. It looks to be a brilliant and imagnitive console and by supporting it we will get the Nintendo games we love like Zelda and Mario.

Whatever happens it will be massively superior to the original wii, a huge generational leap for Nintendo compared to the gamecube based wii.

Wii functionality isn't an issue.

The cpu is wii compatable, as they all have power pc instruction architecure (ppc/power isa 2.6) which is always compatable with previous versions.

The gpu is a programmable shader environment with tons more pipelines than the wii. Emulating fixed function is incredibly easy.... If you have direct access to the chips architecture (something homebrewers dont have access too.)

Lets face facts, both ps3 and 360 emulated backwards compatability at some point in the various skus, and neither one of those systems had compatable cpus with their predecessors, it would have been easier to emulate cube games for both systems (all power isa instruction cores). And neither ps2 nor xbox is really THAT far behind wii.

The big reason wii emulation requires highish specs (not so much anymore) is the same reason the ds emulators need highish specs to perform full speed. Poor optimization and emulation, because its all guesswork.

Thats also why we see regular performance increases regularly with updated versions of emulators.

Theirs also an issue with an instruction modern ppc versions stopped supporting that needs to be emulated, but when you know EXACTLY what it is, like nintendo does, its a non issue to emulate.

The other reason, is because unlike the ps2 or xbox, both cube and wii used an unconventional and unavailable to pc consumers ram type, mosys 1tsram. Even in small quantities, this ram has huge bandwidth, its something very difficult to emulate.... A luxery homebrewers don't have.

Wii u is likely to continue Nintendos use of exotic high performance ram somewhere (cube/wii 1tsram, 3ds fcram, wii u? (ibms new edram that performs like 6tsram?) and even if it didnt, we already know it has more than enough main memory (at minimum a GB) to make up for it, and unlike homebrewers, nintendo has the exact information to perfectly emulate the wii.

Its not even a question of whether or not its powerful enough to run the wii.

Edited by 3Dude, 12 September 2012 - 05:48 AM.

[stupidvillager]

Hey 3Dude, what do you make of this..........http://semimd.com/bl...le-of-the-osat/.....Nintendo part is towards the bottom.

[3Dude]

Hey 3Dude, what do you make of this..........http://semimd.com/bl...le-of-the-osat/.....Nintendo part is towards the bottom.

I find it strange I cannot find a date.

IBM partnered with tsmc back in 2011.

hothardware.com/News/Global-Alliance-Intel-IBM-GlobalFoundries-TSMC-and-Samsung-Announce-New-Partnership/

I'm not sure the author was aware of this.

[Gimbal]

Guys try to be careful with "facts" until they do actually become facts. A great word to use instead is "opinion."

Guesses. Opinions are something different entirely.

[stupidvillager]

Looks like that article was posted on 7-31-2012. Its not just what the article is about, but mainly what the guy from Tezzaron says, since the author is just quoting him.

[Socalmuscle]

I can respect someones opinion but to me it sounds like you never need to buy another nintendo console if you are looking for graphical showcases. nintendo had one console (gamecube) where it really tried to push graphics and graphical showcases. the gamecube sold 21 million consoles worst selling nintendo console of all time. why would anyone think it would be profitable for nintendo to make a super power console just to showcase graphics? go back the last 3 generations the n64 most powerful, the xbox1 most powerful and ps3 most powerful didnt sell the most console they all lost by WIDE margins. so yes nintendo is doing the right thing the way they are desiging this console. one lets look back at the wii. i dont have the link (ive searched) but there was recently a developers praising how good the Wii CPU was and how crappy ps360 CPU's were. he stated in real world applications the Wii CPU actually was only about 30 percent slower than ps360. what messed the Wii up was its GPU. the fact that it didnt use the current architecture was the reason it couldnt get ports of ps360 titles. it would have been too much for developers to redue their engine to make it work on the Wii. Now comes the Wii U. nintendo has learned its lesson. they are using a decent CPU that uses very efficent architecture and a GPU that has ben MODERNIZED/CUSTOMIZED to feature up to date (2010-2012) architecture. the Wii U wont be the same as a Wii was the only reason nintendo wont get ports of nextbox ps4 titles is because that developer doesnt think there is a market on the Wii U for their game. lets get back to playing games.... this is one of the best launches in gaming history (if you or anyone get past what THEY want). p-100 looks very good and so different from anything else out there. cant wait to see what else the game has in stre. trine 2 looks really good (graphically), and AC3 looks great also. lets just get back to playing games and having fun. thats what nintendo does best and better than anyone else. and really the whole gamepad being a gimmick comment sounded like a major troll statement. if you or anyone ese doesnt like what the Wii U has to offer dont buy it... SIMPLE.

The NES was amazing when it debuted. Home console graphics never looked so good.

The SNES was technically superior to the Sega Genesis and was very graphics focused, even coming out with "unbelievable" graphics toward the end of its life with Star Fox, donkey kong country, and killer instinct.

Then the N64 came out and redefined game graphics with sgi tech. Nintendo was seriously pushing for power then. The most realistic graphics you could get. They were ahead of pc when it came out.

Then the GameCube. More powerful than ps2 and on par with microsofts expensive Xbox.

The only console in the history of Nintendo to not be very high spec was the wii, which was basically a hot rod GameCube.

The wii was the only Nintendo console ever to not seek the best graphics and the highest specs.

That was for one generation while Nintendo tried to figure a way to innovate (wiimote) and recoup financially (gcn and n64 were trounced in sales by their competitors).

It worked better than expected.

Now Nintendo is flush with cash and is looking to recapture a market it had abandoned with Wii.

They know that they can't get crazy or the system price will be prohibitive. But they also know gamers want high spec consoles and a variety of gaming choices.

This generation won't be crazy better than the last but it will be noticeable. And the wii u is leading that charge. Nintendo didn't create the wii u to have a repeat situation with the wii. That's one of the things they've taken pains to avoid while balancing the new consoles specs and point of entry price.

Edited by Socalmuscle, 10 September 2012 - 08:45 PM.

[Noonabites]

Guys try to be careful with "facts" until they do actually become facts. A great word to use instead is "opinion."

I'm sure you mean guesses, but otherwise, QFT. Debating is great, but let's not get heated until all is confirmed.

[3Dude]

The NES was amazing when it debuted. Home console graphics never looked so good.

The SNES was technically superior to the Sega Genesis and was very graphics focused, even coming out with "unbelievable" graphics toward the end of its life with Star Fox, donkey kong country, and killer instinct.

Then the N64 came out and redefined game graphics with sgi tech. Nintendo was seriously pushing for power then. The most realistic graphics you could get. They were ahead of pc when it came out.

Then the GameCube. More powerful than ps2 and on par with microsofts expensive Xbox.

The only console in the history of Nintendo to not be very high spec was the wii, which was basically a hot rod GameCube.

The wii was the only Nintendo console ever to not seek the best graphics and the highest specs.

That was for one generation while Nintendo tried to figure a way to innovate (wiimote) and recoup financially (gcn and n64 were trounced in sales by their competitors).

It worked better than expected.

Now Nintendo is flush with cash and is looking to recapture a market it had abandoned with Wii.

They know that they can't get crazy or the system price will be prohibitive. But they also know gamers want high spec consoles and a variety of gaming choices.

This generation won't be crazy better than the last but it will be noticeable. And the wii u is leading that charge. Nintendo didn't create the wii u to have a repeat situation with the wii. That's one of the things they've taken pains to avoid while balancing the new consoles specs and point of entry price.

The NES was amazing when it debuted. Home console graphics never looked so good.

The SNES was technically superior to the Sega Genesis and was very graphics focused, even coming out with "unbelievable" graphics toward the end of its life with Star Fox, donkey kong country, and killer instinct.

Then the N64 came out and redefined game graphics with sgi tech. Nintendo was seriously pushing for power then. The most realistic graphics you could get. They were ahead of pc when it came out.

Then the GameCube. More powerful than ps2 and on par with microsofts expensive Xbox.

The only console in the history of Nintendo to not be very high spec was the wii, which was basically a hot rod GameCube.

The wii was the only Nintendo console ever to not seek the best graphics and the highest specs.

That was for one generation while Nintendo tried to figure a way to innovate (wiimote) and recoup financially (gcn and n64 were trounced in sales by their competitors).

It worked better than expected.

Now Nintendo is flush with cash and is looking to recapture a market it had abandoned with Wii.

They know that they can't get crazy or the system price will be prohibitive. But they also know gamers want high spec consoles and a variety of gaming choices.

This generation won't be crazy better than the last but it will be noticeable. And the wii u is leading that charge. Nintendo didn't create the wii u to have a repeat situation with the wii. That's one of the things they've taken pains to avoid while balancing the new consoles specs and point of entry price.

Actually, the nes was universally reviled by hardcore gamers of the time for bringing graphics back a generation and being a, and I quote 'crap system for kiddiez'.

The commador 64 had been out for 4 years, was sold at every retail and toy store, sported more WAAAAYYYY more ram, for higher quality graphics, and was capable of larger, more involved games... and by the time the nes came out, had killed off the rest of the competition in a BRUTAL price war (commador had a sizable hand in the crash of 83). The c64 was at a comparable price range as the nes, and by the time the nes released had a huge library of games.

Something kids didn't care about however, as they saw nes demo units in stores, and found the games incredible fun. While.they found the involved, complicated games of the c64 confusing and boring.

So, nintendo released an underpowered system with games enjoyable for all ages... And destroyed the high end competition relying on a small 'hardcore' demographic of males aged 16-24.... Much to the dismay of that tiny yet incredibly vocal dudebro demographic, with a product that appealed to males and females of all ages.

By the time the nes released commador had their next gen system, the 16 bit more powerful than snes amiga 500 (a stripped down version of the amiga 2000 soley for playing games).

The only time nintendo DIDNT release an underpowered product was the n64 and the cube. The two de facto worst generations for nintendo.

Edited by 3Dude, 11 September 2012 - 04:19 AM.