Nintendo Revolution Controller Revealed!

[Vicman]

This is not an april fools joke. This is the actual thing.

http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3143782

The Revolution Controller Design Philosophy
"So why has Nintendo decided to brazenly break with tradition and the conventions of every other modern console in creating the Revolution controller? According to Mr. Miyamoto, it was part of a conscious decision to make something simple and straightforward enough to reach out to a new audience. "We want a system that takes advantage of new technology for something that anyone, regardless of age or gender, can pick up and play. [Something with a] gameplay style that people who have never played games can pick up and not be intimidated by. We wanted a controller that somebody's mother will look at and not be afraid of."






Folks, I'm sorry but Nintendo has lost it. Actual gamers aren't their focus anymore. It's all about non-gamers being their new audience. If there was ever a doubt that Nintendo can never regain what they lost and are purely focused on a niche market, this is proof.

[landstalkerx]

This is insane. No one wants to play video games with a controller that looks like a remote control for a T.V. Even a Genesis controller would be better than one of those.

[Vicman]

They just screwed themselves out of ANY serious multiplatform games.

How does anyone expect to play fighting games, sports games, first person shooters, driving games, action games, ANYTHING outside of overtly simplistic games with this thing?

So much industry hype over THIS? Give me a break!

[landstalkerx]

I don't see how it would cause problems for a first person shooter but as for the other genres go...

[Vicman]

First person shooters need quick reactions and good trigger fingers. When you're holding two pieces you can't put the needed pressure to run, swing around, shoot, dodge, throw a grenade, bash a guy in the head, and body roll all in near succession. Afterall there's no second analog stick, and only 2 buttons, 4 if you count that the analog attachment has a Z1 & Z2 button right underneath. FPS's were bad enough with an N64 controller, but at least you could get a firm grip since like all other controllers it was just one piece. This controller being essentially two pieces will make action gaming all the much harder due to balancing issues. Let alone that you're supposed move the remote around to aim with thus further confounding your ability to quickly multi-task in the heat of battle.

Nintendo's literally going backwards instead of forwards. Essentially supplying the original definition of revolution, to revolve, to come back to the begining.

[landstalkerx]

I see what you mean.

I just noticed that the analog stick looks exactly the same as GC analog stick. You'd think that they could at least come up with a new design for one of those.

[Vicman]

Here's a video of it in play: http://www.dagbladet.no/kultur/2005/09/16/443527.html

[GeckoYamori]

Gaming conservatives all over the world weep.

[StealthNinjaScyther]

I suppose the initial negative response isn't too surprising. I dunno, I really like it.

Seems the biggest gripe is that established game genres will have altered to be played with the thing. So what? Weren't a lot of these same people clammoring about how the industry isn't doing anything new?

I also don't see how the games would have to be simplistic to work with the controller. I don't really feel like extrapolating any of my ideas right now, but I can imagine games that using the seemingly limited control scheme could easily provide for a far more engaging experience than the current industry standard controller could provide.

My biggest concern is that the thing looks like it could be a little more ergonomic. It's a bit too square-ish.

[David J.]

I always had a feeling that gaming was going to 'evolve' to this.

Remember that PS2 commerical and it mentioned the Playstation 9?

[Vicman]

Take your TV remote and try fiddling with it like it was a controller. Can you NOT see how absurd it'll be to try and balance the thing in your hand while trying to do all sorts of things in all sorts of games?

The lack of ergonomics is just the start. Controllers should melt into one's hands not take precious time/focus away from the game. Sure goofy controllers like drums, maracas, guns, baseball bats, etc. are fun for certain types of games, but for regular games this is gonna be a nightmare. The half-baked ideas and the sheer of amount of impossibilities now unearthed by this controller really means that Nintendo is fine where it is and is focused on the casual/non-gamer.

Think you can enjoy a game of Street Fighter 3 on this thing? How about Virtua Fighter 4? Or any other non-simplistic fighting game for that matter. Just thinking about how established genres will work, and NOT have their control simplified or severely handicapped is a headache inducer.

There's such a thing as going too far in the 'innovation' camp and falling off the cliff into stupidity. Remember the power glove? The Super Scope 6? And other failed 'innovations'? This is a gimmick and will work for gimmick games. That's great as an add on but not as the main form of control. Anything intricate has now had it's controllability cut in half by the limits of this 'remote-controller'.

[Vicman]

Well it seems there will be compromise with normal controllers afterall. IMO that's good news:

http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=60917

Eurogamer: How is the controller going to work with games that aren't designed specifically for the Revolution - multi-platform titles and so on?

Jim Merrick (Nintendo of Europe): We're producing a classic-style expansion controller, based on traditional designs like the Gamecube controller. It's like a shell with a hole in the top into which you slot the freehand-style controller, and then you can play third-party ported games, and retro Nintendo games you've downloaded.

So there's that option - but even while it's inserted into the classic-style shell, the freehand controller will still be able to sense positioning and so on, so there are more options too.

It's something that's just as true for the DS - not every game uses the DS's unique features. But some multi-platform titles do, like The Sims 2 for example. We hope other developers will do the same and look at ways their multi-platform titles can make use of the Revolution's features.

[Drixxel]

I'd like to try playing with one myself before I make any crazy judgements, but damn.. this certainly is a shake-up. Not too far from what I expected, actually - I just had the impression that both halves of the controller would be more or less symmetrical, with an analog stick on each. I'm assuming that Nintendo have tested this design extensively, so I doubt it will genuinely be physically uncomfortable to hold in the way they intend.

It's definately out there. I'll try to keep an open mind..

[dementia]

They just screwed themselves out of ANY serious multiplatform games.

You know, the thing does have 4 gamecube controller ports.

[crazyjoedavola]

Both the system and controller are extremely ugly to me, and I don't see how the controller could be anything other than an abomination. Having said that, I will reserve judgement until it actually comes out and I can give it a whirl. I've been pleasantly surprised before and it might just happen again, but seeing Nintendo's track record of late, I'm not holding out a lot of hope.