Matt from IGN posts Revolution Specs

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I don't doubt the graphics will be great...but this will be biting you all in the ass when it comes time for those 'console crossover' titles. Resident Evil 5 will be on PS3 (I believe--correct me if I'm wrong), for example, and it will probably use so much horsepower that a version for the Revolution will be impossible without a lot of hack tactics. So the possibility of those third party games making it to the Revolution will be even more miniscule than they are now.

I'm not going to point out the irony of naming it 'Revolution' and having it be the technological underdog of the three, because they have the controller and hopefully they will do something interesting with that. I don't think they will miss the complete lack of post DX9 graphics anyhow. The games will look at least as good as the Gamecube's--though, like I said, the issue of multi-platform release is going to be biting people on the ass.

It's no secret that I'm no fan of Nintendo, so I see this as two ways. One is good, in my opinion, because it means that the games that use all of these high end features won't be able to be ported to Nintendo, which is good news for me (meaning more people will show an interest in the other machines if the developers are favoring them). But the other part of me dreads this, because now Nintendo Revolution is going to be to consoles what dial-up modems with 16 meg video cards were to the PC a couple of years back--a substandard serving as a lowest common denominator, holding back the progress of everything else out of sheer stubbornness. What I mean is, a third party game going to all three consoles will likely only be able to work as well as its Revolution version.

Hopefully neither of these happens, and things go well on all three fronts. But I don't see how this can be wise. The machine is barely an improvement on the Gamecube...though I can see how that is financially smart. I bet they are dismantling and refurbishing excess factory-built Gamecubes right now in preparation to make Revos en masse--hence the massive cost difference.

I'm sure it'll be good...but I still think (and not out of bias, but out of sheer fact-to-fact observation) that the next 5 or 6 years are going to belong completely and utterly to the Playstation3, and these specs would certainly be somewhat of a handicap to Nintendo early in the running.

I just doubt next-gen developers are going to want to limit themselves in order to accomodate these specs. Honestly I hope they're fake...they seem that way, at least. Even Nintendo can't be that ignorant of modern console technology.

Either way I see it, it's not a very big help to them. But it keeps the price down, which will move more units, which will keep them their jobs another year or two. They should just buy Sega and let Sega make the consoles...man...then it'd crush EVERYTHING else with ease.

That's a good point. What I see happening is that we are gonna see a lot less multi-crossover games next generation. Now this depends a lot on how much developers take to the Revolution's controller (it seems like lots of companys are liking it, but no one is really too sure yet), but I bet that there is going to be a lot more exclusive third party games for different systems.

I don't see multi-system games being developed with the Revolution in mind, and having the Rev become a lowest common denominator like you said. I'm willing to bet (as long as the rev's controller turns out to be all that it claims to be) that third-partys will spend the time to either make Revolution versions of there multi-platform games seperately then the PS3/360 versions, or (this one is more likely) creating completely different games for the Rev focusing on it's unique aspects. Nintendo has been really pushing the fact that development costs for the Revolution will be much cheaper than it's competitors, so that would allow developers to take the time and create separate games for the Revolution itself, since it won't be taking out nearly as much time or money.

Now of course, that all depends on how much developers like the controller. If they hate it, then they will simply ignore it, and third-party support will dry up much like the Gamecube. But It seems that Nintendo is gathering a great deal more support from third-partys than they did with the Gamecube, and if that is indeed true, than I bet a situation similar to what I just mentioned would appear. The significantly cheaper costs, and less time to create games would encourage developers to develop seperate games that utilize the Rev's aspects (or develop Rev versions of multi-platform games seperately).

Oh, and I also agree with you about who will win the next gen war. I think the Rev will do much, much better than the Gamecube, but unless it is absolutely mind-blowing, then the PS3 will probably end up on top once again. Honestly, I never really cared how the systems place. As long as I enjoy them personally then I'm satisfied, but I do know that the PS2 won last generation, and it's successor is poised to win the next one.

 

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No console company has ever been in the lead for three generations straight. If Sony can pull it off, I'll be surprised. As much as I hate to say it, my moneys on Microsoft to win this generation. They have almost a years headstart (The PS3's devkit isn't even completed yet [someone correct me if i'm wrong]), next-gen graphics, the nicest console controller ever released to date, the best console online service ever released to date and near infinite funds. I think Sony will have one hell of a time winning this gen.

I do want the revolution to win however. Cheaper costs for the developer, less developer time, a new controller (for better or worse), cheaper costs for the gamer... It's pretty much all about the money. I mean, the revolution is two times cheaper than the xbox 360 for gods sake. Oh... and downloadable NES, SNES, N64 and gamecube games?! Sign me up.

 

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I don't believe Gamecube games will be downloadable. You can pop in GC discs, however.

If the current published specs are true, then 512 MB Ram of internal storage memory isn't going to hold even 1 Gamecube game.

 

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I don't believe Gamecube games will be downloadable. You can pop in GC discs, however.

If the current published specs are true, then 512 MB Ram of internal storage memory isn't going to hold even 1 Gamecube game.

I can't remember the link now, but a recent interview had Iwata (i think it was Iwata) saying that you could expand the storage space with SD cards. He also said that you would be able to use the USB ports to connect additional storage devices to the Rev (in other words, a hard drive).

So ya, if you need the space for stuff, their certainly won't be a limited amount of it. I'll take a quick boo for that interview, shouldn't take too long to find.

*EDIT*
Found it, http://money.cnn.com/2006/03/29/commentary/game_over/column_gaming/index.htm

"The Revolution has 512 MB of flash memory, allowing for some initial storage space. The system also has a slot for SD memory cards, which are widely used in digital cameras and can hold a greater amount of data. Most importantly, Iwata mentioned, were the USB ports that are built into the Revolution "so practically any storage method can be used"."

 

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Thats good to hear, though kind of dissapointing that if we want to download a lot of big games (I suppose games fromt he n64), we'll need to buy an external harddrive or soemthing to that extent.

 

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Thats good to hear, though kind of dissapointing that if we want to download a lot of big games (I suppose games fromt he n64), we'll need to buy an external harddrive or soemthing to that extent.

Not necesarily, most N64 games are no bigger than like 30 megs, so you should be able to fit a fair amount on the internal storage.