Nick: My initial response to the controller announcement was surprise. We've been expecting something "revolutionary" from Nintendo but I really couldn't believe they were trying something so unconventional, something so different to the way we currently play games. I was worried.
After reading the hands-on impressions and thinking about the controller for a while I began to see just how much potential it possesses. For the last couple of years I've been waiting for something new and exciting to hit the hobby and this is it.
The new approach developers will take to game creation will open all types and variations of game play we cannot even imagine at this time. Hopefully we'll not only new genres but also the reinvigoration of some of the classic series that have become Nintendo standards.
I still have some worries, mainly about 3rd party support, but I'm sure Nintendo has put some thought into the matter and has a plan.
Marc: Like everyone else, I was extremely shocked when I first saw the controller. There I was late at night waiting for the first pics of the Revolution controller to be revealed on the net to find out it was a remote control for my TV! Two buttons! What the...
But then, I told myself: wait a minute! So, you can actually play games with that thing? Well, apparently you can! And the more I read about it and watch the video, the more I am inclined to say that Nintendo has one of the greatest controllers ever created and that, if used well, it could make for one of the best videogame experience ever. If Nintendo's doing it then I don't think I should be worried at all.
Kaleb: My initial reaction was very similar to what most other people were thinking, that is to say, what the hell?
I didn't understand the controller at first. In fact, I thought it was a step backward. The two first critical thoughts that entered my head were, a) so maybe that's why Silicon Knights left, and b) third-party support on that thing is going to be nonexistent.
These concerns, of course, went away when I thought about the potential of the thing. Once I got used to the concept of change, I understood that it was a step forward, and more than that, actually revolutionary.
The fact that it operates like a mouse in 3D space is brilliant. It's going to make controller functions that previously took a lot of buttons to carry out much simpler and more intuitive and it's going to both revitalize tired genres, e.g. point & click adventure games/FPSs, and possibly create new ones.
The possibilities are huge. The device has potential like none of us can yet comprehend.
And you know what? If anyone can exploit a device with this much potential, Nintendo can.
I for one cannot wait for this thing to hit shelves. It's going to blow your mind.
Saul: I was.........confused. Really, I didn't know what to think when I first saw the Revolution controller. Everything became a little clearer when I saw the trailer video displaying different ways to use its unique abilities, and I finally came to grips with it when I saw the mockup that demonstrated how the Revolution controller could potentially be inserted into a more conventional shell. This setup, in my mind, created the best possible controller I could conceive, since it incorporates the incredible 3d mouse feature with a more standard button layout. It's not clear to me why Nintendo would go with the one-handed version as the default, but I'm sure once games are shown, I'll better understand their motives. All said, I'm very excited about playing around with this truly innovative interface. Now my only fear is that third parties will create a few niche mini-games (similar to some DS titles), and that the more epic and more mainstream games will once again not be prevalent on the Nintendo console.
Justin: At first in all honesty I would have to say I was rather "emotionless". I just didn't know what to think or feel, I felt sort of like, "Eh?" But of course that stems from the concept being so strange to me at first. But then when I finally got to reading all the information, how it will work, how it can work, I was truly becoming dumbfounded.
By dumbfounded I mean I was very pleasantly surprised. I'd always hoped that the Revolution controller would feature a bit more human interactivity than we've ever seen, and its come pretty close to just that. I've always wanted more than just button pressing when it comes to interacting with my games, so it seems Nintendo has indeed delivered on my wishes. Now if they just market the concept well enough and attract those vital third party developers, they will have hit a home run next generation. Changing the way we play videogames indeed.
Kaleb: Yeah, they certainly weren't BSing when they said it would revolutionize games. They came through on that claim.
Marc: I like the fact that this controller makes it possible for you to really feel as if you were in the game as it detects your movements and can recreate them. Like for an adventure game with sword fighting, you can do the moves yourself instead of just pressing a button and having the character do all the moves for you. It will make the games more realistic as it will remove repetition which we are all used to as characters always perform the same animations over and over.
Since it detects every movement you do, even if you have less buttons on the controller you can map everything onto different movements that you can perform with the controller making it compatible with nearly all types of games.
Saul: Actually, I think that it's the "shell" that will make this controller not only compatible with third party games, but make third party games much more fun to play on Revolution than on the competing consoles. If the controller has the button functionality of the competitors (with the WaveBird shell), then the added 3d pointer function will serve to enhance and add a layer of immersion not possible with the other controllers. All that, without having to cramp developers with a lack of buttons. I've yet to understand why the same technology couldn't initially be offered in a more conventional controller design.
Nick:As Marc was saying, I think the controller can help immensely with immersion. While I'll think it has to be thought out and used properly the controller can now act like an object, rather than just a plain controller.
I also think the controller can make playing games easier. Instead of toggling through items we can now just point at an on-screen menu. With football games we can just flick the controller toward the receiver we would like to pass to or draw a running backs path on the screen while he's running. It takes away that extra second we spend thinking on controller buttons and allows us to focus on the game.
Kudos to Nintendo for taking a big chance. Although the GameCube didn't sell as many systems as the PS2 and X-Box, Nintendo still managed to profit. Instead of just releasing a GameCube with better graphics for the easy buck they're trying to give gamers something new and exciting. I think it almost automatically makes it more interesting than the PS3 and X-Box 2.
Marc: I think the only problem will be with gamers who are used to standard controllers and aren't ready for such a drastic change. I read lots of posts on message boards about people saying it was too much different than what we have right now and that they didn't think the controller was a smart move.
It seems like it's a love it or hate it situation so Nintendo will have to prove them that it is indeed the best thing to happen to videogames as they have a lot of people to convince.
Nick: Yeah, definitely. The community seems to be split. A lot of gamers just simply don't want a change, they enjoy games the way they are now, in a way it's understandable. Others, like me, are looking for something a little different.
If there was one mistake Nintendo made during the announcement it was not making it clear that the Revolution will be capable of playing conventionally controlled games. Info came out later on about a "shell" that would look similar to a standard controller.
After reading the hands-on impressions and thinking about the controller for a while I began to see just how much potential it possesses. For the last couple of years I've been waiting for something new and exciting to hit the hobby and this is it.
The new approach developers will take to game creation will open all types and variations of game play we cannot even imagine at this time. Hopefully we'll not only new genres but also the reinvigoration of some of the classic series that have become Nintendo standards.
I still have some worries, mainly about 3rd party support, but I'm sure Nintendo has put some thought into the matter and has a plan.
Marc: Like everyone else, I was extremely shocked when I first saw the controller. There I was late at night waiting for the first pics of the Revolution controller to be revealed on the net to find out it was a remote control for my TV! Two buttons! What the...
But then, I told myself: wait a minute! So, you can actually play games with that thing? Well, apparently you can! And the more I read about it and watch the video, the more I am inclined to say that Nintendo has one of the greatest controllers ever created and that, if used well, it could make for one of the best videogame experience ever. If Nintendo's doing it then I don't think I should be worried at all.
Kaleb: My initial reaction was very similar to what most other people were thinking, that is to say, what the hell?
I didn't understand the controller at first. In fact, I thought it was a step backward. The two first critical thoughts that entered my head were, a) so maybe that's why Silicon Knights left, and b) third-party support on that thing is going to be nonexistent.
These concerns, of course, went away when I thought about the potential of the thing. Once I got used to the concept of change, I understood that it was a step forward, and more than that, actually revolutionary.
The fact that it operates like a mouse in 3D space is brilliant. It's going to make controller functions that previously took a lot of buttons to carry out much simpler and more intuitive and it's going to both revitalize tired genres, e.g. point & click adventure games/FPSs, and possibly create new ones.
The possibilities are huge. The device has potential like none of us can yet comprehend.
And you know what? If anyone can exploit a device with this much potential, Nintendo can.
I for one cannot wait for this thing to hit shelves. It's going to blow your mind.
Saul: I was.........confused. Really, I didn't know what to think when I first saw the Revolution controller. Everything became a little clearer when I saw the trailer video displaying different ways to use its unique abilities, and I finally came to grips with it when I saw the mockup that demonstrated how the Revolution controller could potentially be inserted into a more conventional shell. This setup, in my mind, created the best possible controller I could conceive, since it incorporates the incredible 3d mouse feature with a more standard button layout. It's not clear to me why Nintendo would go with the one-handed version as the default, but I'm sure once games are shown, I'll better understand their motives. All said, I'm very excited about playing around with this truly innovative interface. Now my only fear is that third parties will create a few niche mini-games (similar to some DS titles), and that the more epic and more mainstream games will once again not be prevalent on the Nintendo console.
Justin: At first in all honesty I would have to say I was rather "emotionless". I just didn't know what to think or feel, I felt sort of like, "Eh?" But of course that stems from the concept being so strange to me at first. But then when I finally got to reading all the information, how it will work, how it can work, I was truly becoming dumbfounded.
By dumbfounded I mean I was very pleasantly surprised. I'd always hoped that the Revolution controller would feature a bit more human interactivity than we've ever seen, and its come pretty close to just that. I've always wanted more than just button pressing when it comes to interacting with my games, so it seems Nintendo has indeed delivered on my wishes. Now if they just market the concept well enough and attract those vital third party developers, they will have hit a home run next generation. Changing the way we play videogames indeed.
Kaleb: Yeah, they certainly weren't BSing when they said it would revolutionize games. They came through on that claim.
Marc: I like the fact that this controller makes it possible for you to really feel as if you were in the game as it detects your movements and can recreate them. Like for an adventure game with sword fighting, you can do the moves yourself instead of just pressing a button and having the character do all the moves for you. It will make the games more realistic as it will remove repetition which we are all used to as characters always perform the same animations over and over.
Since it detects every movement you do, even if you have less buttons on the controller you can map everything onto different movements that you can perform with the controller making it compatible with nearly all types of games.
Saul: Actually, I think that it's the "shell" that will make this controller not only compatible with third party games, but make third party games much more fun to play on Revolution than on the competing consoles. If the controller has the button functionality of the competitors (with the WaveBird shell), then the added 3d pointer function will serve to enhance and add a layer of immersion not possible with the other controllers. All that, without having to cramp developers with a lack of buttons. I've yet to understand why the same technology couldn't initially be offered in a more conventional controller design.
Nick:As Marc was saying, I think the controller can help immensely with immersion. While I'll think it has to be thought out and used properly the controller can now act like an object, rather than just a plain controller.
I also think the controller can make playing games easier. Instead of toggling through items we can now just point at an on-screen menu. With football games we can just flick the controller toward the receiver we would like to pass to or draw a running backs path on the screen while he's running. It takes away that extra second we spend thinking on controller buttons and allows us to focus on the game.
Kudos to Nintendo for taking a big chance. Although the GameCube didn't sell as many systems as the PS2 and X-Box, Nintendo still managed to profit. Instead of just releasing a GameCube with better graphics for the easy buck they're trying to give gamers something new and exciting. I think it almost automatically makes it more interesting than the PS3 and X-Box 2.
Marc: I think the only problem will be with gamers who are used to standard controllers and aren't ready for such a drastic change. I read lots of posts on message boards about people saying it was too much different than what we have right now and that they didn't think the controller was a smart move.
It seems like it's a love it or hate it situation so Nintendo will have to prove them that it is indeed the best thing to happen to videogames as they have a lot of people to convince.
Nick: Yeah, definitely. The community seems to be split. A lot of gamers just simply don't want a change, they enjoy games the way they are now, in a way it's understandable. Others, like me, are looking for something a little different.
If there was one mistake Nintendo made during the announcement it was not making it clear that the Revolution will be capable of playing conventionally controlled games. Info came out later on about a "shell" that would look similar to a standard controller.
Recent Features
- Exclusive Interview: Deca Sports Wii (Nintendo Wii Interview) » NintendoSpin talks with Hudson about its upcoming casual sports game. Find out why they think you'll have more fun figure skating than you'll want to admit to your friends. Exclusive screenshots inside as well.
- The Five DS games that you should get this Christmas (Nintendo DS Editorial) » Three off-the-shelf titles and two imports that you just shouldn't skip.
A special article by Mykas A. - NintendoSpin Recommends Multiplayer DS Games (Nintendo DS Editorial) » Tired of playing your DS alone? NintendoSpin gives you our top multiplayer DS game recommendations.
- Left Hand, Right Hand (Miscellaneous Editorial) » No, they're not the same.
- Interesting DS titles released in October (Nintendo DS Editorial) » Monthly article by Mykas A.
What Nintendo DS games released in October should you look for? - Interesting DS titles released in September (Nintendo DS Editorial) » Monthly article by Mykas A.
What Nintendo DS games released in September should you look for? - Interesting DS titles released in August (Nintendo DS Editorial) » Monthly article by Mykas A.
What Nintendo DS games released in the past month should you look for?
