Xenoblade Chronicles X (8.0) Review
"It’s an experience reserved for dedicated players who have the patience and energy to unearth its greatest treasures."gamespot.com impressions phantom_leo
Xenoblade Chronicles X (9.0) Review
"This is one of the more interesting reviews I've done as of late because I know Xenoblade Chronicles X will be divisive."destructoid.com impressions phantom_leo
Kimishima vows to support existing Wii U owners
“What I want to do, I think our first job right now is to make sure that the customers, those 10m customers who have a Wii U at home have software to play. And we need to make sure that they are..."mcvuk.com gamingeek
Pokemon Picross (8.0) Charming! Review
FREE to play --BUT-- has an ingenious spending cap. Read the review for details!destructoid.com impressions phantom_leo
Eurogamer Rainbow Six Siege review
"Ubisoft seems torn between a typical big-budget release and a more focussed multiplayer shooter, and the rift often shows"eurogamer.net impressions gamingeek
So if more people in your family have a portable you can daisy chain them together for even more power?
Also called by me.
gamingeek said:
Also it seems the box works with the cloud and that you can lend other people the resources of the supplemental gaming device - over the internet. Doing this racks up points for you which you can be rewarded for like game discounts and other stuff. And on the same token you can borrow time from someone elses box over the internet when you play.
This I don't believe. Either it's just part of the patent they don't intend to use, or it refers to local 'sharing' where one household owns multiple portables. And I don't believe that either. Nintendo wouldn't release a console of which the actual power is so dependent on how many other devices you own. They'll use the portable for the stuff displayed on the portable itself, akin to if the WiiU pad would have had it's own cpu and gpu instead of being a dumb client the base console streams to.
The supplemental game device could also connect to Wii U next year to give owners boosted performance.
That would be a stroke of genius (and again, what I thought the WiiU would be to the Wii back when it first was released). Don't know if that would be technically possible though: a handheld device running off an internal battery that would add enough oomp to the U for it to be able to compete with the PS4/Xbone?
Just visited some toy stores / electronics stores, and Nintendo sure has ramped up Amiibo production lines in time for the Christmas season. There are huge stacks of previously rare amiibo EVERYWHERE.
And I don't believe that either. Nintendo wouldn't release a console of which the actual power is so dependent on how many other devices you own. They'll use the portable for the stuff displayed on the portable itself, akin to if the WiiU pad would have had it's own cpu and gpu instead of being a dumb client the base console streams to.
No, it might not even be a portable. More like a console upgrade device and the console would run all games regardless but with each additional box, each developer could offer tiered performance enhancements for their game. NX1 i.e NX + 1 supplemental box boosts the resolution. NX2 i.e NX + 2 supplemental box = improved resolution + doubled frame rate etc.
Or even when PS5 and XB2 launch a new supplemental device that significantly boosts power. A new 32x?
Western devs would eat that shit up.
SupremeAC said:
That would be a stroke of genius (and again, what I thought the WiiU would be to the Wii back when it first was released). Don't know if that would be technically possible though: a handheld device running off an internal battery that would add enough oomp to the U for it to be able to compete with the PS4/Xbone?
It wouldn't run off an internal battery. I imagine a modular dock which the supplemental device slots into and runs off the mains.
GAF are also speculating that the boxes can act like mini-local servers meaning less lag because you connect to more local machines and it keeps online free because it defers running costs onto the consumer - when someone else is remotely using your box. But then you get paid back for the time you've lent your box in the form of discounts and free stuff.
Witcher 3 is going to beat out Fallout 4 and MGS this year? Hmmm.
This was obvious the second Witcher 3 reviews hit. Story Story story. Many people believe it's the best rpg ever made.
Fallout 4 is the game of the year imo right now. MGS comes in 2nd thanks to the fucking lame ending, and then a toss up between Bloodborne and Witcher 3. Where will Xenoblade fit?
Nintendo's NX: Another Verse in the Company's Love Song to Apple?
-Jeremy Parish
One of my favorite trainspotting projects over the years has been watching the way Nintendo hardware takes cues from Apple's machines.
< snip>
Back in the early '90s, Apple produced a laptop called the PowerBook Duo. The computer itself was remarkably humble; in an era where computer makers worked vigorously to cram as much hardware as possible into laptops, the Duo stood apart for its apparent deficiencies. While it shared the same rugged, shell based on Sony's revolutionary design for the PowerBook 100 as the rest of the PowerBook line, the Duo had a smaller screen and lacked certain niceties, including the all-important diskette drive. In effect, it was a stripped-down PowerBook, trading away power and features in favor of a compact size.
What distinguished the Duo 210 and its successors from modern bare-minimum systems like the MacBook Air was the fact that the Duo's limits weren't defined by its innards. Rather than include a disk drive, it featured a custom docking port that allowed it to plug into a special desktop housing capable of expanding its potential.
The DuoDock essentially resembled a desktop PC minus a processor. The CPU's role was served by the Duo laptop, which could plug into the DuoDock and turn the shell into a fully functional computer. Not only did this grant Duo users potential access to a full-sized keyboard, a proper mouse, media drives, and more, it also expanded the capabilities of the Duo. The DuoDock included a separate graphics card that allowed the laptop—whose native screen was relatively low-resolution and limited to greyscale—the visual features of a proper computer, with better pixel resolution and full color.
In short, this is precisely the hardware model being talked about as the format Nintendo purportedly plans to use for the NX. And it's a great idea. How great would it have been if the cramped New 3DS version of Xenoblade Chronicles had been a game you could plug in to a dock to enjoy the same game, except with the visual sheen of Xenoblade Chronicles X?. Forget crossplay or Transfarring (R.I.P. Kojima Productions); this would be the same game, played on the same system, but with features and visuals appropriate to its current format? If NX does take the Duo approach—and I hope it does—it would be, in effect, the Wii U concept done right. And, of course, it would be one more checkbox for my ongoing Apple/Nintendo parallels list.
The whole attach this thing to console for more power idea is kind of odd and possibly stupid. In what way is this going to make anything better? So you have to have this device hooked up to play certain games that need the extra power? Seems more like a corner cutting solution where this is the only way they could do it if they wanted to make some kind of hybrid system. As otherwise the main console would be more expensive.
Sounds dangerous though. Its going to be another bizarre development environment where developers may say "yeah....I think we'll just make smaller games on here & make the normal stuff on the other consoles". We'll see when they show it off 7 months from now.
No, it might not even be a portable. More like a console upgrade device and the console would run all games regardless but with each additional box, each developer could offer tiered performance enhancements for their game. NX1 i.e NX + 1 supplemental box boosts the resolution. NX2 i.e NX + 2 supplemental box = improved resolution + doubled frame rate etc.
Or even when PS5 and XB2 launch a new supplemental device that significantly boosts power. A new 32x?
Western devs would eat that shit up.
It would fragment the market. It would do away with the ease of access to console gaming. It would be confusing to customers. Most importantly, it would prevent Nintendo from selling the same game to you every other 5-7 years.
No meaningfull expansion hardware has ever been released for a Nintendo console, the extra Ram pack for the N64 excluded. Despite all home consoles featuring various ports to allow exactly that (not sure if WiiU has any though).
I don't believe it. It's not because the patent shows a wire, it'll be a wired setup. I'm sticking with my initial idea: a portable that functions as the WiiU's Gamepad and has it's own cpu and gpu, enabling multiplayer without straining the home console too much and effectively using one pillar as a troyan horse to sell the other.
The whole attach this thing to console for more power idea is kind of odd and possibly stupid. In what way is this going to make anything better? So you have to have this device hooked up to play certain games that need the extra power? Seems more like a corner cutting solution where this is the only way they could do it if they wanted to make some kind of hybrid system. As otherwise the main console would be more expensive.
Sounds dangerous though. Its going to be another bizarre development environment where developers may say "yeah....I think we'll just make smaller games on here & make the normal stuff on the other consoles". We'll see when they show it off 7 months from now.
Exactly. But this would be circumvented if each home console was sold with a portable as a 'controller' and the portable would only be in charge of what is being displayed on its own screen.
The whole attach this thing to console for more power idea is kind of odd and possibly stupid. In what way is this going to make anything better? So you have to have this device hooked up to play certain games that need the extra power?
In N64 Expansion pack terms I don't think it will be required for certain games like Perfect Dark or Majora's Mask, but will be more like Turok 2 and Hybrid Heaven which boosted graphics performance i.e resolution in those cases if you had one. If there are games that require the supplemental unit then I suspect they would be in the minority rather than the majority.
Being able to daisy chain units - assuming they are handhelds incentivises people to buy more handhelds and gives free benefits to those who would have bought a handheld(s) regardless.
Also if they are sold separately it means you can have a traditional powerful console as powerful or more than the PS4, then if you+ the supplemental unit - which could have a second GPU to pair, more RAM and multiple CPUs on top of that making it a pretty beefy combo. Remember that story from the WSJ recentely where the eyewitness said the NX demo couldn't even run (at 60 fps) on a modern PC? Most modern phones have at least 2 to 4 CPU units plus at least 1-2GB more RAM, usually a decent HDD, mine has 32GB.
The supplemental game device could also connect to Wii U next year to give owners boosted performance.
This is kind of what Ive been suspecting for a while. If they went that route Wii U owners aren't left with a dead investment, and people thinking about buying one wouldn't hold off to just wait for an NX. Plus you could sell an entirely new bundle to non Wii U owners.
Though in my craziest ideas, it's actually a dongle that works with the PS4 and turns the whole console into a long overdue unified system.
In N64 Expansion pack terms I don't think it will be required for certain games like Perfect Dark or Majora's Mask, but will be more like Turok 2 and Hybrid Heaven which boosted graphics performance i.e resolution in those cases if you had one. If there are games that require the supplemental unit then I suspect they would be in the minority rather than the majority.
Being able to daisy chain units - assuming they are handhelds incentivises people to buy more handhelds and gives free benefits to those who would have bought a handheld(s) regardless.
Also if they are sold separately it means you can have a traditional powerful console as powerful or more than the PS4, then if you+ the supplemental unit - which could have a second GPU to pair, more RAM and multiple CPUs on top of that making it a pretty beefy combo. Remember that story from the WSJ recentely where the eyewitness said the NX demo couldn't even run (at 60 fps) on a modern PC? Most modern phones have at least 2 to 4 CPU units plus at least 1-2GB more RAM, usually a decent HDD, mine has 32GB.
Yeah I don't see this happening man. The thing is, the portable and console markets are very different. Most people I know who game don't give two shits about portable gaming unless they're just killing time on their phone. How is this going to improve the actual console games, assuming this is what it seems? I mean, you attach a few extra controls or whatever to the machine and what? Now its going to be like playing a PC game on ULTRA settings? Take them away, and now you're on MEDIUM settings? I don't know.
The whole idea sounds more like something that has zero to do with normal console games, and is more something that will be great for portable games...or people that would rather play portable games on a console. Not the other way around. In terms of normal console games I don't see how this would be any advantage.
The supplemental game device could also connect to Wii U next year to give owners boosted performance.
This is kind of what Ive been suspecting for a while. If they went that route Wii U owners aren't left with a dead investment, and people thinking about buying one wouldn't hold off to just wait for an NX. Plus you could sell an entirely new bundle to non Wii U owners.
Though in my craziest ideas, it's actually a dongle that works with the PS4 and turns the whole console into a long overdue unified system.
Give the Wii U added performance for what though? The one game its getting next year?
No meaningfull expansion hardware has ever been released for a Nintendo console, the extra Ram pack for the N64 excluded.
I hate posts like this that say one thing, whilst quickly excluding something that immediately contradicts their statement.
I don't know if the supplemental device will be a handheld or not, the patent does not mention the word handheld in it anywhere.
Gamecube had the GBA Player BTW and it was cool shit. N64 had the DD. It wouldn't fragment the market if it offered enhancements, not as an option that excluded people. Like a PC game that can run on a low spec PC and a High spec one, it still runs. Most people wouldn't get multiple units but there would always be some crazy sucker who makes headlines daisy chaining up multiple units.
And if NX does launch mid-cycle then it's going to need a way to power up once their competitors launch during NXs mid-cycle.
SupremeAC said:
Exactly. But this would be circumvented if each home console was sold with a portable as a 'controller' and the portable would only be in charge of what is being displayed on its own screen.
What you are describing is lame, you can already use your fricking 3DS to control a Wii U game. And you'll probably be able to use the Wii U controller on NX too.
Might as well have a powerful console, a normal controller and have the mobile unit docked for more GPU, RAM and CPU power.
Give the Wii U added performance for what though? The one game its getting next year?
First of all it has 4 games coming out next year, not one.
Second, it's not for added performance for Wii U games, it's so it would be able to play NX games. If everything was equal would you rather pay $150 to upgrade a current console or buy a new one for $300?
It's not as ridiculous of an idea as it used to be. One of the major reasons for needing a new console is that games outgrow the physical media they're on. But current media seems to be doing okay, and let's face it we're going more and more digital every year. We just need bigger hard-drives now.
First of all it has 4 games coming out next year, not one.
LOL....my mistake. All I can think of is Star Fox and Zelda.
Well that would be cool if it could play NX games but shit, if that's the case that's 10 million people who don't need a new console. Plus..it would need to be the best expansion to console ever.
![[amazon.com]](/cache/favicons/amazon.com.ico "amazon.com")
Random GAF speculation:
The supplemental game device could also connect to Wii U next year to give owners boosted performance.
This was obvious the second Witcher 3 reviews hit. Story Story story. Many people believe it's the best rpg ever made.
Also called by me.
This I don't believe. Either it's just part of the patent they don't intend to use, or it refers to local 'sharing' where one household owns multiple portables. And I don't believe that either. Nintendo wouldn't release a console of which the actual power is so dependent on how many other devices you own. They'll use the portable for the stuff displayed on the portable itself, akin to if the WiiU pad would have had it's own cpu and gpu instead of being a dumb client the base console streams to.
That would be a stroke of genius (and again, what I thought the WiiU would be to the Wii back when it first was released). Don't know if that would be technically possible though: a handheld device running off an internal battery that would add enough oomp to the U for it to be able to compete with the PS4/Xbone?
Just visited some toy stores / electronics stores, and Nintendo sure has ramped up Amiibo production lines in time for the Christmas season. There are huge stacks of previously rare amiibo EVERYWHERE.
No, it might not even be a portable. More like a console upgrade device and the console would run all games regardless but with each additional box, each developer could offer tiered performance enhancements for their game. NX1 i.e NX + 1 supplemental box boosts the resolution. NX2 i.e NX + 2 supplemental box = improved resolution + doubled frame rate etc.
Or even when PS5 and XB2 launch a new supplemental device that significantly boosts power. A new 32x?
Western devs would eat that shit up.
It wouldn't run off an internal battery. I imagine a modular dock which the supplemental device slots into and runs off the mains.
GAF are also speculating that the boxes can act like mini-local servers meaning less lag because you connect to more local machines and it keeps online free because it defers running costs onto the consumer - when someone else is remotely using your box. But then you get paid back for the time you've lent your box in the form of discounts and free stuff.
Fallout 4 is the game of the year imo right now. MGS comes in 2nd thanks to the fucking lame ending, and then a toss up between Bloodborne and Witcher 3. Where will Xenoblade fit?
From October:
http://www.usgamer.net/articles/nint...-song-to-apple
The whole attach this thing to console for more power idea is kind of odd and possibly stupid. In what way is this going to make anything better? So you have to have this device hooked up to play certain games that need the extra power? Seems more like a corner cutting solution where this is the only way they could do it if they wanted to make some kind of hybrid system. As otherwise the main console would be more expensive.
Sounds dangerous though. Its going to be another bizarre development environment where developers may say "yeah....I think we'll just make smaller games on here & make the normal stuff on the other consoles". We'll see when they show it off 7 months from now.
It would fragment the market. It would do away with the ease of access to console gaming. It would be confusing to customers. Most importantly, it would prevent Nintendo from selling the same game to you every other 5-7 years.
No meaningfull expansion hardware has ever been released for a Nintendo console, the extra Ram pack for the N64 excluded. Despite all home consoles featuring various ports to allow exactly that (not sure if WiiU has any though).
I don't believe it. It's not because the patent shows a wire, it'll be a wired setup. I'm sticking with my initial idea: a portable that functions as the WiiU's Gamepad and has it's own cpu and gpu, enabling multiplayer without straining the home console too much and effectively using one pillar as a troyan horse to sell the other.
Exactly. But this would be circumvented if each home console was sold with a portable as a 'controller' and the portable would only be in charge of what is being displayed on its own screen.
In N64 Expansion pack terms I don't think it will be required for certain games like Perfect Dark or Majora's Mask, but will be more like Turok 2 and Hybrid Heaven which boosted graphics performance i.e resolution in those cases if you had one. If there are games that require the supplemental unit then I suspect they would be in the minority rather than the majority.
Being able to daisy chain units - assuming they are handhelds incentivises people to buy more handhelds and gives free benefits to those who would have bought a handheld(s) regardless.
Also if they are sold separately it means you can have a traditional powerful console as powerful or more than the PS4, then if you+ the supplemental unit - which could have a second GPU to pair, more RAM and multiple CPUs on top of that making it a pretty beefy combo. Remember that story from the WSJ recentely where the eyewitness said the NX demo couldn't even run (at 60 fps) on a modern PC? Most modern phones have at least 2 to 4 CPU units plus at least 1-2GB more RAM, usually a decent HDD, mine has 32GB.
This is kind of what Ive been suspecting for a while. If they went that route Wii U owners aren't left with a dead investment, and people thinking about buying one wouldn't hold off to just wait for an NX. Plus you could sell an entirely new bundle to non Wii U owners.
Though in my craziest ideas, it's actually a dongle that works with the PS4 and turns the whole console into a long overdue unified system.
Yeah I don't see this happening man. The thing is, the portable and console markets are very different. Most people I know who game don't give two shits about portable gaming unless they're just killing time on their phone. How is this going to improve the actual console games, assuming this is what it seems? I mean, you attach a few extra controls or whatever to the machine and what? Now its going to be like playing a PC game on ULTRA settings? Take them away, and now you're on MEDIUM settings? I don't know.
The whole idea sounds more like something that has zero to do with normal console games, and is more something that will be great for portable games...or people that would rather play portable games on a console. Not the other way around. In terms of normal console games I don't see how this would be any advantage.
Give the Wii U added performance for what though? The one game its getting next year?
I hate posts like this that say one thing, whilst quickly excluding something that immediately contradicts their statement.
I don't know if the supplemental device will be a handheld or not, the patent does not mention the word handheld in it anywhere.
Gamecube had the GBA Player BTW and it was cool shit. N64 had the DD. It wouldn't fragment the market if it offered enhancements, not as an option that excluded people. Like a PC game that can run on a low spec PC and a High spec one, it still runs. Most people wouldn't get multiple units but there would always be some crazy sucker who makes headlines daisy chaining up multiple units.
And if NX does launch mid-cycle then it's going to need a way to power up once their competitors launch during NXs mid-cycle.
What you are describing is lame, you can already use your fricking 3DS to control a Wii U game. And you'll probably be able to use the Wii U controller on NX too.
Might as well have a powerful console, a normal controller and have the mobile unit docked for more GPU, RAM and CPU power.
First of all it has 4 games coming out next year, not one.
Second, it's not for added performance for Wii U games, it's so it would be able to play NX games. If everything was equal would you rather pay $150 to upgrade a current console or buy a new one for $300?
It's not as ridiculous of an idea as it used to be. One of the major reasons for needing a new console is that games outgrow the physical media they're on. But current media seems to be doing okay, and let's face it we're going more and more digital every year. We just need bigger hard-drives now.
Back to Fallout 4 for me...must get this done so I can start Xenoblade 2 tonight.
LOL....my mistake. All I can think of is Star Fox and Zelda.
Well that would be cool if it could play NX games but shit, if that's the case that's 10 million people who don't need a new console. Plus..it would need to be the best expansion to console ever.
There's also the Atlus SMT x FE game, and Miyamoto said Pikmin 4 is coming. So yeah...it's going to be a busy year.