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bobobologna on 02 April 2010
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ZenfoldorVGI said:
bobobologna said:
Ok, let me get this straight. People think that the 3DS will be powerful enough to render 2 viewpoints (needed for 3D content), at resolutions higher than most Wii games, and drive another screen that we haven't taken into account? This, from Nintendo?

I mean, really? Really? I will be absolutely floored if this is what Nintendo is planning on using in their new handheld.

Before this generation, Nintendo has always producted powerful and innovative hardware, and Sony has produced relatively weak and flawed gaming hardware. How quickly our perceptions can change. Did you know that the PS2 was graphically, the weakest console last generation?

No company has an advantage on how powerful their hardware can be. The PSP isn't advanced graphically due to proprietary technology, it's advanced graphically by dumping more money into each unit, and passing that bill onto the consumer. The question is, who can strike the perfect balance between affordibility to the consumer, accessibility to the developer, profit, and performance. I'll give you a hint. It's Nintendo this generation.

It'll probably be Nintendo next generation too. If Sony backed down from their "high-end graphics" stigma they've been labled with this generation, and produced a relatively weak machine with a great price that relied on exclusives, they would lose yet another advantage over the ever strengthening competition. Microsoft will always have a powerful machine. Powerful machines are popular in America, and MS isn't really out to win anything. They're just out to make sure Sony loses.

I'm well aware that the Gamecube was more powerful than the PS2.  I did afterall, own a Gamecube.  I've also never owned a PS2.  I've played Resident Evil 4 on both the Gamecube and the PS2, and I cry every time I have to play the PS2 version because I sold my Gamecube.  And I'm well aware that the N64 was more powerful than the Playstation.

But look at what Nintendo has been doing as of late.  The Nintendo DS and Wii are way behind the PSP and PS3/XBox360 in terms if pure graphical power.  And Nintendo has been pretty clear that they no longer think of graphics as the driving force behind the evolution of games:

http://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2010/02/25/nintendo-no-fear-of-competitors/tab/article/
"WSJ: Why don’t you enable your devices for high-definition graphics? Doesn’t that hurt demand over time?
Fils-Aime: When (lead developer) Mr. Miyamoto and the software development teams at Nintendo conceptualize a game that the current hardware can’t execute then that is our signal to begin thinking about the next-generation hardware. Simply making the Wii HD compatible doesn’t advance the gaming experience."

Of course, I could be wrong, and maybe Miyamoto and Nintendo think that 3D handhelds are going to be the next great thing, and maybe he has some amazing idea for a game that can only be executed on a 3D handheld with amazing graphics.  I guess we'll find out at E3.

EDIT:  Let me also add that distinguishing their systems, not with improved graphics, but with unique and innovative control methods has paid off in a really big way for Nintendo.  While the Gamecube and N64 weren't flops, they also aren't the sales powerhouse that the Wii and DS are.  So you tell me, do you think Nintendo is going to do an about face, and get into the race for gigaflops again, or will they continue to pave the way for new control methods and a unique approach to game/console design?