No Wiimote on Wii2?

[darksnowman]

http://www.cubed3.com/news/9211/1/Nintendo_to_Ditch_Controller_for_Wii-2?

 

Despite the rampant success of Wii, Intel claims that Nintendo already has plans for the system's successor and that the controller as we know it will be ditched completely. Nintendo itself has stated that obviously its research team is constantly working on new ideas, but microchip manufacturer, Intel, believes it has the answer to what is up Nintendo's sleeve.

 

"We imagine some future generation of [Nintendo's] Wii won't have hand controllers. You just set up the cameras around the room and wave your hand like you're playing tennis."

- Justin Rattner, the company's chief technology officer.

 

Intel is currently in negotiations with the big three, Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo, in order to show them what it has to offer for the next set of home consoles after missing out this time round to IBM.

 

The current claim is that Intel's latest model of microchip can carry out one trillion calculations per second, which is much more advanced than IBM's Cell processor, with its 'mere' 256 million calculations per second!

 

Ok so its speculation and looks like Intel trying to grab some attention but does anyone think this is likely? I dunno, as gamers we're used to having a controller of some sort so to completely remove it could totally ruin things. A combination of this camera-type set up and the Wiimote could be the way to go?

[ShadowV7]

At this moment in time I honestly don't know what can happen. I mean it is a possibility and all. I like the standard controls cause you can sit down on a seat and not move and it's comfortable. But with cameras and such yea it'll be fun but will people keep at it? The games would be limited. Not as if you can use your right arm to control Samus' right arm or jump in the air like Mario.

 

Technology just isn't at that stage yet so we need to wait and see what gets made.

[Slaggis]

It might just be an "option" for games for something. Though, they are probably just guessing what nintendo might do. It's too far away to know yet.

[James McGeachie]

Modern day Nintendo seems intent in making every new piece of hardware they put out have a new input method, which can only really go so far though as when they eventually reach full ACCURATE motion control, there's nothing beyond that.

 

The camera idea sounds like a variation of the eyetoy though which really isn't too hot. There'd be no physical sensation from any of your actions if you weren't holding anything at all.

[McPhee]

Modern day Nintendo seems intent in making every new piece of hardware they put out have a new input method, which can only really go so far though as when they eventually reach full ACCURATE motion control, there's nothing beyond that.

 

The camera idea sounds like a variation of the eyetoy though which really isn't too hot. There'd be no physical sensation from any of your actions if you weren't holding anything at all.

 

Mind Control?

[James McGeachie]

They have a form of "mind control" just now which registers brain activity and is sort of the equivalent of a button press. I don't think the full thing is really truly possible though...unless it used devices which could just as well kill you as they could offer a quality gaming experience....

[Shino]

MEGATON!!! (this brings back memories)

 

Anyway, if anything the Wii as shown us that controllers can't go too unconventional without dismissing completely some game genres. I reckon they'll stay with the Wii's overall idea and add some crazy twist to it.

[Wesley]

I read an article about Intel being in talks to sell their chips to the big 3 and this quote was used entirely different. They didn't claim they knew what Nintendo, rather that they thought gaming was going to go in that direction.

[Zechs Merquise]

I'm not sure this means anything at all. I actually don;t know what Nintendo will do next, it's going to be a tough call even for them. A graphically enhanced Wii would no doubt be the safest option. The problem Nintendo have got is the Wii has become as big a name and brand as Nintendo itself. So I should imagine Wii will contiinue to be the name of the console.

[AshMat]

I don't reckon Intel really know much. At this early on it's all speculation and prototypes. You can't say what will go into the next generation.

 

EDIT: While we're at it

MEGATON!

 

Do you think this time round they will gvie us something that actually makes toast?

[Tellyn]

I wouldn't really like cameras to be used. Part of the charm of the Remote is it feels like you're using whatever you're using in the game, because you have something physical and you've got rumble feedback and sounds from the speaker (like in Tennis). I wouldn't be happy at all with cameras, because you're losing a lot of immersion right there.

[bmoose]

Yeh I agree with what Tellyn said. All I hope for in the next console is a perfected version of the Wiimote, where the type of gesture really matters and you can't cheat just by waving it around or whatever. I think they can make it more complex than just triangulating its position relative to the sensor bar.

[darkjak]

They have a form of "mind control" just now which registers brain activity and is sort of the equivalent of a button press. I don't think the full thing is really truly possible though...unless it used devices which could just as well kill you as they could offer a quality gaming experience....

 

There are allready games controlled by brain activity, allthough I think that they are very simple. The ones I've heard of were namelly for completelly paralysed people.

I don't really think that Nintendo will do any of that though. My guess is that there'll be an improved wiimote that uses a normal camera, and no sensor bar. Why? Well, basically because then you'll be able to make more acurate moves.

[Guest Maase]

What? Are they already thinking in the Nintendo Wii 2?

 

Damn, i did buy it now :'(

[Emasher]

Remember Nintendo said that the Wii and DS are going to probably have a life longer than the standard 5 years. So by then We will probably have processors that are alot faster than 1 trillion calculations a second.

 

And by then maybe nintendo will give us a virtual boy 2.

[Guest Maase]

Remember Nintendo said that the Wii and DS are going to probably have a life longer than the standard 5 years. So by then We will probably have processors that are alot faster than 1 trillion calculations a second.

 

And by then maybe nintendo will give us a virtual boy 2.

 

YAY!!! More 5 years without spending too much money ^^

[Zechs Merquise]

I wouldn't really like cameras to be used. Part of the charm of the Remote is it feels like you're using whatever you're using in the game, because you have something physical and you've got rumble feedback and sounds from the speaker (like in Tennis). I wouldn't be happy at all with cameras, because you're losing a lot of immersion right there.

 

Agree totally. I think the Wii mote makes things more immersive and is a great substitute for a racket, a bat a sword etc. I'm not sure you could get that great feeling from just waving your arms around.

[AshMat]

Surely without any form of controller and it all being hand motions it would feel very.. eyetoy?

[blender]

If you have more than one camera, you can produce a 3d model of the human and so it will be much! better than eye toy. hOWVER, If the soul purpose of the wand is vibration, then it will truely be a sex toy

 

I think it could be good technolgy for the next genation. Imagine a sensor bar which has two cameras attached rather than just two infra red LEDs

 

intel want to sell fast chips. image processing takes a whopper of number crunching compared to the low dimensional motion detector data. BTW... the power of the PS3 could probably do this already. I mean image processing is what it is good at (unlike 3d graphics rendering)

[Emasher]

Gaming with-ought anything in your hands would just feel plain awkward.

[blender]

imagine if the game could analyse the object that you are holding and render it in 3d as a weapon. you could get cardboard cutouts of new controllers on the back of shreddies. i am sure there would be vibrating standard controllers as well.

[mcj metroid]

well i dont think we will be using the wiimote forever.. I can imagine a much more advanced version of eyetoy but not with a camera.. imagine a motion sensative strap.. just put it around your fingers and put your hand in the shape of a gun and fire............now please don't ask how teh fuck it will work i'm guessing my arse off here.

[tapedeck]

well i dont think we will be using the wiimote forever.. I can imagine a much more advanced version of eyetoy but not with a camera.. imagine a motion sensative strap.. just put it around your fingers and put your hand in the shape of a gun and fire............now please don't ask how teh fuck it will work i'm guessing my arse off here.

 

No, I MUST know how this works

 

It sounds like the shiz, until you start strangling yourself hehe.

[DCK]

Meh, doubt they have much of an idea what Nintendo's really going to do. Though the camera thing is a good idea and probably will come back in some form or another (tracking motion in 3 dimensions will redefine interaction yet again after all), the system could probably use a device that is 100% accurate in motion tracking (the Wii2Mote) and have some buttons for interaction. I imagine it's very hard to implement such elementary things like walking around or selecting an item based on just registering movement.

 

Also, I doubt Intel will be much of a player on the next next-gen market. IBM's PowerPC architecture, with its RISC instruction set, provides a relatively more efficient architecture for games (and is therefore used in all three current consoles). Even if the companies do decide to go for an x86-based central processor because of its advantages in power consumption and heat dissapation, like Nintendo probably would like, they are probably better off contacting AMD because not only do they produce power efficient x86 CPUs, they are also the owner of graphics chip manufacturer ATI (creator of both the 360 and Wii graphics components), and will probably be advantageous when things like implementation of a graphics chip on the central processor ("AMD Fusion", it's called) itself come into play, which is something we can expect by 2011. I personally hope Nintendo chooses for a x86-based system by AMD, as not only does its Fusion technology make for an incredibly high efficiency for graphics in small, quiet systems, it also makes it far easier for developers to develop for Wii, as it means that it'll essentially be a regular PC, much like the original Xbox.

 

Lastly, I don't think the Wii will last more than five years, simply because by 2011, the Xbox 1080 and PlayStation 4 will be there with control methods to compete with the Wii.

[Guest Maase]

Meh, doubt they have much of an idea what Nintendo's really going to do. Though the camera thing is a good idea and probably will come back in some form or another (tracking motion in 3 dimensions will redefine interaction yet again after all), the system could probably use a device that is 100% accurate in motion tracking (the Wii2Mote) and have some buttons for interaction. I imagine it's very hard to implement such elementary things like walking around or selecting an item based on just registering movement.

 

Also, I doubt Intel will be much of a player on the next next-gen market. IBM's PowerPC architecture, with its RISC instruction set, provides a relatively more efficient architecture for games (and is therefore used in all three current consoles). Even if the companies do decide to go for an x86-based central processor because of its advantages in power consumption and heat dissapation, like Nintendo probably would like, they are probably better off contacting AMD because not only do they produce power efficient x86 CPUs, they are also the owner of graphics chip manufacturer ATI (creator of both the 360 and Wii graphics components), and will probably be advantageous when things like implementation of a graphics chip on the central processor ("AMD Fusion", it's called) itself come into play, which is something we can expect by 2011. I personally hope Nintendo chooses for a x86-based system by AMD, as not only does its Fusion technology make for an incredibly high efficiency for graphics in small, quiet systems, it also makes it far easier for developers to develop for Wii, as it means that it'll essentially be a regular PC, much like the original Xbox.

 

Lastly, I don't think the Wii will last more than five years, simply because by 2011, the Xbox 1080 and PlayStation 4 will be there with control methods to compete with the Wii.

 

Now you're scaring me :\

 

More 5 years and then i have to buy another one -_- (One year later)