Nintendo's new revolutionary controller

[Millie]

It could be a stroke of genius or a complete disaster. Won't know until I try it. I will say this: I think it's a design flaw that the two directional pads (analog and digital) are on opposite sides. It's intuitive to have directional pads on the left side of the controller. Both should be on the left, one below the next. You can't uncondition 20+ years of video gaming tradition by switching the side of the d-pad.

[Runnen]

Well, from what I read, GameCube controllers will be compatible with the Revolution, so you can always use them to play some Revolution games.

Also, the two buttons way down on the "Remote Controller" are apparently meant to be used when you use the controller horizontally to play old games, meaning the controller then has the D-Pad on the left and A / B buttons on the right like an old NES controller.

Nintendo did mention that there would be other types of controllers available and that you could insert the "Remote Controller" into other controllers and STILL be able to use the Motion Sensors, etc etc..

I think this is a brilliant concept, but risky. By doing this and making it work, Nintendo will successfully pull itself from the Nintendo / Sony / Microsoft competition and I expect a lot of people to simply tell themselves : So I'll take the Revolution and then .. either PlayStation 3 or X-Box 360..

Good move by Nintendo.

[Sithro]

It can be really good, or really bad.

I hope they come out with a star wars light sabre game... It'll be the first star wars game I ever buy. :P

I will probably get it, though... If it's the right price.

[Zehn - Vhex]

Reminds me of the old NES rpg controller which was just a circle with the D-pad on one side and A - B - Start - Select on the other. Was kinda nice actually since it allowed you to eat, read strategy guides, make maps, take notes, etc...etc...while playing. Came in handy for game slike wizardry and whatnot. Was really awkward though for any other game, especially ones that required reflexes.

[Itzena]

Picture this...Jedi Knight 3 with the controller as the hilt of the lightsaber.

[Sithro]

Originally Posted by Itzena

Picture this...Jedi Knight 3 with the controller as the hilt of the lightsaber.

That's what I'm picturing.

[huh]

Innovation is always good. It might not work out perfectly for Nintendo but it’s good that one of the major gaming companies isn’t afraid to move away from the proven formula and take risks.

Some great games and ideas will probably come out of the use of this controller, I just hope that more developers are willing to take a risk and develop games that can’t really be ported to other systems and it wont be all nintendo software.

Either way, Nintendo has balls.

[Cybsled]

Props to Nintendo for thinking outside the box. When you truely think about it, controllers for major consoles have fundamentally been the same since the 80s. It takes some major guts to tackle an idea like this.

Nintendo are marketing experts, however, so I'm sure they will put out some games that give people teh wood...A Star Wars game that makes use of this for lightsaber combat is very very likely, IMO. This controller will be godlike for FPS games too. Move/strafe with the analog, and aim/turn with the motion sensors in the remote unit.

I guarantee you if this succeeds, MS and Sony will try to emulate the idea themselves.

Btw, in other Nintendo news, Square is porting FF4 (FF2 US) to the GBA in the fall. That owns...plz port FF6 and Chrono Trigger, thx.

[Szlia]

I am curious about the definition and the reaction time.

Another big problem is that making a game that uses the system basicaly means it cannot be ported to another plaform easily. That might scare developpers. On the up side, the machine is suposed to be dramatically less powerfull than the PS3 and Xbox360, so making game will be also dramaticaly cheaper (but still not really cheap though :/ )

[Runnen]

As I said, the Revolution is supposed to be compatible with GameCube controllers, and there ARE other controllers for Revolution beside the "Remote Controller"... and the Remote can be inserted into these other, more conventionnal controllers..

I definately don't see any games not released on Revolution because of the "special controller", but rather I see games on all platforms with ADDED bonus on Revolution to make use of the nifty controller's possibilities..

[Usha Starchild]

Guys, you should read the artcle posted on 1up before you judge the controler.

The controler has 2 sensors that are places near the tv and it is tracked in realtime 3d space. You can move the controler front and back to zoom in while playing 1st person shooters, they had an example of a fishing game where u fish just by moving the whole controler.

This controler is amazing.

Read this

The Revolution Controller Basics: What The Hell Is It?
The controller for Nintendo's upcoming Revolution home console system is a cordless remote-control-like device designed to be used with only one hand. Two small sensors placed near the TV and a chip inside the controller track its position and orientation, allowing the player to manipulate the action on screen by physically moving the controller itself. For example, you could slash an in-game sword by actually swinging the controller from side to side, turn a race car just by twisting your wrist, or aim your gun in a shooter by pointing the controller where you want to fire.

DEMO: METROID PRIME-TIME
Nintendo saved the best for last. This was the first section of the GameCube game Metroid Prime 2: Echoes, retrofitted to be compatible with the Revolution controller and its analog add-on piece (the "Nunchaku" set-up mentioned earlier). As on the Cube the analog stick controls movement, but instead of holding down a button to look around, you simply point the other controller in the direction you want to aim.
IMPRESSIONS: At first, I was standing up and swinging my hand all around to aim - and my arms got really tired really quick. But once I sat down and relaxed, resting my hands on my legs as I would with a normal controller, everything clicked. It wasn't perfect yet - the Revolution controller functionality had just been added recently and wasn't bug tested or polished, so every so often the view would "spaz out" for a couple seconds - but it was enough to get me excited. As odd as it may look holding the two separate controller pieces, one in each hand, looking around felt incredibly natural, even more than my preferred PC-style keyboard-and-mouse setup. I have to wonder about precision and speed in multiplayer games, but for a more deliberate single-player game like Metroid Prime - and the series is already confirmed for an appearance on the Revolution - this setup already has huge potential.

Read the article. This controler is gonna rock. I want someting like it for the PC NOW

[Xarpolis]

THE WAND OF ODIN!!!

[Remfin]

On the up side, the machine is suposed to be dramatically less powerfull than the PS3 and Xbox360, so making game will be also dramaticaly cheaper (but still not really cheap though :/ )

You mean Nintendo is telling the truth instead of marketing-speak. Remember, the PS2 was "100x more powerful" than the PS1 pre-launch also...Nintendo has been saying 2-3 times more powerful as a conservative figure, and I'd peg the ps1->ps2 (which had the same hype as the ps2->ps3) as about 2-3 times myself

[Angry Amadeus]

Originally Posted by Remfin

You mean Nintendo is telling the truth instead of marketing-speak. Remember, the PS2 was "100x more powerful" than the PS1 pre-launch also...Nintendo has been saying 2-3 times more powerful as a conservative figure, and I'd peg the ps1->ps2 (which had the same hype as the ps2->ps3) as about 2-3 times myself

If there's one truth in videogames it is that fat people play them.

Fat people don't want to flail their arms about.

Unless they're reaching for french-fries: then it's appropriate.

DDR + PowerGlove(tm) = Fat Unhappy Gamers - Look Yonder

Ta,

[Cybsled]

I dunno about you, but half the people playing DDR are overweight.