edotherocket 0 Report post Posted September 19, 2005 More responses from developers and the media. Dave Perry's response is interesting: Michel Ancel Game Designer, Ubisoft Creator of Rayman, BG&E and King Kong I feel just like a child with a new toy, opening millions of new doors of possibilities. More than an improvement, this way of playing is creating a new dimension. It’s simple, when Nintendo unveils its hardware, every member of the team starts imagining crazy ideas. It’s opening their minds. The fact of adding 3D gestures as the way of communicating with the game is just the perfect kind of innovation that can bring new games to new gamers. To me, it can bring the consoles what the mouse brought to the PC at it time. It’s a 3D pointer with rotation information! Now, you're going to handle virtual objects, make recognition signs. It’s closer to the way we act in real world, that’s why it’s going to be mass market. I’m sure that people will go crazy given the ability to interact so easily with virtual worlds. I’m just mad about it! Lorne Lanning President/Creative Director, Oddworld Inhabitants An interesting innovation for the “small handed” segment of the market. Hopefully a larger version will be available for the larger hand endowed audience that is likely to be more carpal tunnel prone. Chris Cross Game Design Director, EA LA Personally I’m excited about the new controller. It seems like it will be intuitive for most and a very cool alternative to the “standard” control paradigm. If we assume game design starts with the interface, try to imagine what new genres might pop up. I can’t wait to get one in my hands and try it out. Realistically for the first couple years most developers will be adapting their old games to fit this interface with only a couple really taking advantage of it. Give it a couple game cycles and we should see some interesting stuff at E3 '07. I haven’t been this excited since Sony put a second stick on their controller. Cary Brisebois Technical Director, Radical Entertainment The Wavebird was second only to the Sony controller… I think that it is going to start getting really hard to make games that rely on the old standard configuration of face buttons fit with this model. It was tricky enough with the one fewer button on the Gamecube controller. Cross platform games may not be the model for Revolution. As Napoleon would say: “Yikes.” Chris Mitchell Game Designer, Radical Entertainment A lot of incredibly addictive arcade games can be moved into the living room now. Go to any Japanese arcade and you'll see people playing fishing games, dog walking games etc, and they're fun largely because of the interface. Traditionally those sorts of games have not translated well on consoles but now there's a whole body of existing and proven casual genre games that can be done by us. Des Hinkson Senior Designer, Radical Entertainment Revolution controller = casual gamer paradise. A lot of people are really intimidated by buttons. Console controllers are scary things that make you look dumb if you don't know which button to press. I remember my frustration at switching from Nintendo to Sony and having to look for the Triangle button, Circle button, etc in Parappa the Rapper and it took time and dedication to feel comfortable with the controller. My wife is not a gamer, heck she doesn't even use the TV remote proficiently, preferring to use the numbers instead of the channel up and down keys. I think Nintendo have been watching the people who put down the controller too quickly and the people who play with their tongues out and tilt their controllers to get that extra bit of corning control. Revolution means people can have fun more immediately and we can hook them on that fun without the time and dedication needed to learn how to use a traditional controller. Cliff Bleszinski Lead Designer, Epic Games It seems as if I Nintendo has found a modular way that they can take the best of the location-based entertainment/arcade experience and bring it home to the user. So all of those games you loved physically interacting with in the arcade – the drum game, the fishing one the, uh, poke your friend in the eye one….can really come to life in the living room. I haven’t been able to hold or use it yet so I’ll refrain from any further judgment until I get hands on as that’s what really, truly matters – feel! David Perry President, Shiny Entertainment I've been fielding interview questions on this new Nintendo controller for a while now, and besides the obvious stuff, I've been personally hoping for Nintendo to offer custom game interfaces. Meaning when a developer designs a game, they can very easily design their own interface at the same time. Their interface component would then (at a very low cost) be included in every game box. (Imagine a small "interface' block that clips in the front of a normal controller.) The main controller (not looking like a remote control) would be designed so you simply plug in the component that came with the game. Nintendo talked about controllers having too many buttons and turning off non-gamers. Fair point, but if they honestly have a problem with too many buttons, then this solves that too. For example, on the faceplate that comes with a simple game, they could actually get rid of all unused buttons by not replicating them. If however I want a more complicated game with 10 buttons and a throttle slider on the faceplate for a Mech game, no problem. This solution covers many needs. The faceplate can also contain artwork (for that game) and tips, like "FIRE" written under the fire button. Trust me, that will help newbie gamers! Can you imagine how excited, and then let down I felt when I found out Nintendo nearly delivered this! I feel a lot of innovation in the original arcade games was increased by the freedom of designers to create new interfaces for their game at the same time. Think Pacman vs. Tempest vs. Missile Command vs. Star Wars vs. Lunar Lander. All radically different but the interface definitely added to the fun. After toying around with this Revolution remote control, and after fighting my grandparents off it, my prediction is that people will be looking to buy a "normal" controller to plug in. So thanks Nintendo for trying. I actually respect the effort a lot! People that know me, know I love big thinking and I LOVE innovation, but I still dream of the day when hardware manufactures stop trying to surprise game developers and actually invite a group of them to brainstorm on the hardware. It would be a great marketing scoop for them (being designed by the top ten game designers in the world), but it would also deliver a bloody cool console / controller. Oh well, just five more years and we can try again. Tommy Tallarico President, Tommy Tallarico Studios Executive Producer/CEO, Video Games Live Nintendo has always prided itself on innovation and this controller is no exception. I think this move by Nintendo will secure them the uniqueness they seek. The only way that a new console will succeed is if they have third party publisher support. My only concern is that developers and publishers may have a difficult time in developing software for a single platform (which this controller ultimately forces them to do). Many publishers rely on multiple platform products in order to make the next gen console leap. It will be interesting to see how much support the Revolution gets compared to the PS3, 360, PC and let's not forget the current systems which will still have at least two years of life left in them. Chris Melissinos Chief Gaming Officer, Sun Microsystems This is why I love Nintendo. Just when people think that innovation is dead and game design/implementation is becoming a barren wasteland, the House of Mario does something so off the wall that people stand up and take notice. What other game hardware company would have the guts to release a controller that looks like a TV remote? No one but Nintendo. Not only do I believe that the controller will help usher in a new generation of game design, I think the Revolution has a better chance of succeeding than most analysts and critics believe. The combination of their "motion centric" controller, deep catalog of content spanning 20+ years and kick ass next generation games, puts Nintendo is in the best position to broaden the market and bring those gamers, who stopped playing, back to the television with their family in tow. I want to thank Nintendo for not maintaining the status quo, for constantly pushing the industry to rethink how games can be implemented and, most importantly, for reminding us that how we play is just as important as what we play. The Media Matt Casamassina Editor, IGN Gamecube I'm very pleasantly surprised -- thrilled, even -- with Nintendo's Revolution controller. Like so many others, I was skeptical. I figured the Big N would deliver gamers a modified Wave Bird with tilt-sensory functionality and perhaps little more. But what we got instead is a device that more or less abandons the traditional control fundamentals that Nintendo itself helped pioneer. I mean, the Revolution's input mechanism has the potential to reinvent the way we all play videogames and if Nintendo executes on the unit's potential, it could bring about the most intuitively manipulated videogames to date. These are the types of innovations that in my mind are worthy of the console's codename. What also makes the Revolution controller unique is that it does not come with limitations. Just because it enables a new type of 3D motion interactivity does not mean that it sacrifices traditional controls. Gamers looking for more conventional controls will be able to insert the Revolution pointer into a Wave Bird-like shell, in which case a more familiar layout becomes available. Better yet, the pointer's motion sensory functionality remains active. With the DS, I think Nintendo dipped its toe into the future of gaming. With Revolution, it's finally plunged headfirst into the waters. If the Revolution controller is ultimately as intuitively used as it looks to be, Nintendo may finally prove to consumers that the definition of next-generation games needn't be limited to prettier graphics alone. Demian Linn Reviews Editor, Electronic Gaming Monthly It's a risk, but it's a smart risk. If Revolution launched with just a conventional controller, it'd offer competitive graphics and Nintendo first-party games—in other words, it'd be in about the same position GameCube was in this generation. But now, Revolution may appeal to more casual or even non-gamers, along with core gamers who are looking for a genuinely new gameplay experience. If Nintendo can really bring a large chunk of non-gamers into the fold, it would be huge—but that’s a big question mark. Nintendo has always excelled at making its games just feel right from a control perspective, and I’m sure its first-party games are going to do some amazing things with the new controller. Not so sure about third-party publishers. The DS has attracted some good third-party exclusives, but Revolution titles will require a much bigger investment. I hear Nintendo will also offer a "sleeve" that you can slip the main controller into, which will allow for a more traditional button layout; that is absolutely necessary, and it better come in the box. I’m all for innovation, but there’s no need to reinvent the wheel, throw the baby out with the bathwater, or...well, I can’t think of another cliché that works here. Revolution owners are going to love their gyroscopic rhythm-action-fishing games or whatever, but that doesn’t mean they won’t want to play Splinter Cell again. Dave Halverson Editor-in-Chief, Play Magazine This is the sort of window for innovation that could start a micro-industry all its own. In a market place so dictated by big brands and stodgy retailers that great games tank miserably on a regular basis, a true alternative that focuses on great gameplay over great hype is exactly what we need. That said let’s hope 3rd parties don’t take the low road and squander the opportunity. In any case this puts Nintendo in a class of its own operating outside the well beaten path of Sony and Microsoft. This controller together with an affordable price will surely start a revolution. Tom Russo Director of Games Editorial, G4 Media If the motion-sensing functionality is as robust as Nintendo’s promotional video leads us to believe, this controller may become the pivot-point that swings gaming back into the collective conscience of the nation. Why is “Pac-Man” the first game that comes to mind to so many casual gamers? It might have something to do with the fact that in 1980, a simple, single stick was all that was needed to give a wide audience of players a unique, cutting-edge, gameplay experience. Adding more buttons, triggers, and analog sticks to our controllers over time has created barriers of entry to the market, and has divided the casual players from the enthusiasts. In making this motion-sensing functionality a stock system feature, the company has challenged the industry, perhaps for the first time since the rise of Street Fighter II, to think outside a six-button configuration. Nintendo deserves commendation for its bold “less is more” approach, and may ultimately get the credit for righting the evolutionary path of interface design in interactive entertainment. My personal congratulations to Mr. Iwata and his team -- now please, show us the damn games already. David S J Hodgson Freelancer (formerly of EMAP UK, Gamefan, Gamers Republic and incite) Personally, I’m pleasantly surprised, and was enticed by the promotional video. But I’m great at forming opinions based on news I skim through and forum posts I chortle at. Later I find the information out to be at the very least “quite inaccurate”, and at the very most “wildly inaccurate and possibly libelous”. So I’ll hold off until I’ve juggled one of these in my own, slightly sweaty hands. Until then, I shall plug in a Sega fishing controller into my Dreamcast, and play Soul Calibur with it… this is the best way to experience an approximate aspect of the Revolution controller’s functionality outside of Nintendo’s inner sanctum. Credit: Next-Gen.biz Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Invictus 0 Report post Posted September 20, 2005 More responses from developers and the media. Dave Perry's response is interesting: David Perry President, Shiny Entertainment I've been fielding interview questions on this new Nintendo controller for a while now, and besides the obvious stuff, I've been personally hoping for Nintendo to offer custom game interfaces. Meaning when a developer designs a game, they can very easily design their own interface at the same time. Their interface component would then (at a very low cost) be included in every game box. (Imagine a small "interface' block that clips in the front of a normal controller.) The main controller (not looking like a remote control) would be designed so you simply plug in the component that came with the game. Nintendo talked about controllers having too many buttons and turning off non-gamers. Fair point, but if they honestly have a problem with too many buttons, then this solves that too. For example, on the faceplate that comes with a simple game, they could actually get rid of all unused buttons by not replicating them. If however I want a more complicated game with 10 buttons and a throttle slider on the faceplate for a Mech game, no problem. This solution covers many needs. The faceplate can also contain artwork (for that game) and tips, like "FIRE" written under the fire button. Trust me, that will help newbie gamers! Can you imagine how excited, and then let down I felt when I found out Nintendo nearly delivered this! I feel a lot of innovation in the original arcade games was increased by the freedom of designers to create new interfaces for their game at the same time. Think Pacman vs. Tempest vs. Missile Command vs. Star Wars vs. Lunar Lander. All radically different but the interface definitely added to the fun. After toying around with this Revolution remote control, and after fighting my grandparents off it, my prediction is that people will be looking to buy a "normal" controller to plug in. So thanks Nintendo for trying. I actually respect the effort a lot! People that know me, know I love big thinking and I LOVE innovation, but I still dream of the day when hardware manufactures stop trying to surprise game developers and actually invite a group of them to brainstorm on the hardware. It would be a great marketing scoop for them (being designed by the top ten game designers in the world), but it would also deliver a bloody cool console / controller. Oh well, just five more years and we can try again. Credit: Next-Gen.biz <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Dave Perry is out of his mind if he thinks interchangeable controller faceplates for every game would be a good idea. Imagine how much hassle it would cause. "Oh, I'd love to play this game again, but I lost the buttons for it somewhere. Oh well." - "Ready for some multiplayer? Did you bring your controller with the special faceplate?" "Uh, no. I don't own this game, so I don't have the faceplate." "Oh well, you can watch me play then." I guess he doesn't like having to use his imagination to think up the possibilities of an actual innovative controller, he'd rather just fantasize about jamming as many buttons onto a controller as possible and trying to think up uses for each one. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Brian Report post Posted September 20, 2005 I showed the video to one of my brothers and he absolutely loved it. He's an amateur fighter and he loves the idea of using the controller to punch, jab, hook, kick and what-not for boxing and UFC games. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LJSexay 0 Report post Posted September 20, 2005 I'm really curious as to how this controller feels, so I did a little more search, and here is some conceptual designs of possible shells for future Revolution use.. again, conceptual: ... the wheel one is krazy Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
AndrewTS 0 Report post Posted September 20, 2005 Hopefully it means we'll get some good gun games for it. Duck Hunt Revolution doesn't sound that thrilling to me. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ChrisMWaters 0 Report post Posted September 20, 2005 Hopefully it means we'll get some good gun games for it. Duck Hunt Revolution doesn't sound that thrilling to me. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> You kidding? I'd LOVE that. Also, for the gun, that could be a boon to some FPS games. Res Evil Revolution? And that wheel one for driving games is cool too. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
