We should really just stop having prediction threads.

Why, does this seem like an unrealistic prediction to u?

1. Iwata has made many statements that hint at such a thing being possible.

2. But what's the point of having two separate forms of media if they are trying to make all games compatible with either device?

1. Iwata said nothing that sugested such a thing. he hinted at same architeture on two separate devices, each with it's own games. This fusion thing is nothing but baseless predictions.

2. Because the media has nothing to do with the game itself and cartridges are better suited for handhelds (besides having better compression and handhelds games being naturally smaller).

Writeable storage is alot more costly than a mask ROM.  There is a huge markup and premium for something that is indefinitely reuseable or can be erased and repurposed.  Remember when CD-Rs first came out they were 10x more expensive than a press molded disc.  Same reason the latest greatest capacity SDXC cost 10x more than the next size down instead of double.  Not because they cost more to make either. They don't. Writeable memory is always going to have a "usefulness tax" on it regardless it's actual production cost.

64 GB mask rom with like 512k of serial Flash would be doable.   Back in the day RAM size was limited to the amount of address space dictated in the memory map of the cartridge and # of A/D lines assigned, but with a serial bus protocol you have no such limitation and could use as big or small a Flash as required.

This.  And solid state media should have a capacity equal to or greater than any other readily available media to completely remove any doubt, blame, or bias on the media.  I promise if you had 32 GB max SD cards vs 50 GB BluRay somebody is going to bitch about it and draw up N64 comparisons and theres always going to be that hate and bias.  If you have 64 GB SD cards while everyone else is using 50 GB BD ROM, and the SD cards are 120 MB/sec vs the BD 25 kbps (that sustained random access transfer rate tho) nobody will be able to open their mouth to talk shit about Nintendo making bad decisions "again".  There would be absolutely no argument against "cartridge vs disc" when the cartridge is the same price, infinitely faster, and higher capacity.  Doesn't even have to be writeable because the competitions BD ROM isn't writeable either.  Even if the cart is a dollar or two more you can sell it as more convenient, faster, less space on the shelf, smaller console with less noise, etc.

If all they've got these days is Madden, Call of Duty, and Angry Birds they can keep that crap on Xbox and iPad and leave Nintendo out of it.

I'll keep my Nintendo with Nintendo, Monolith, Square, Namco, Atlus, NIS, etc.  You can have your "AAA" mainstream shovelware Activision, EA, and Ubisoft, I don't want them. :D

$12 your cost

$9 Walmart's cost

$5 Samsung/etc's cost

$3 fab plant cost

etc.

And thats flash.  

Divide by 10 for mask ROM. 

Then double the capcity to 64 GB to leave absolutely NO ammo for cartridge naysayers.

See... Flash production is all about profiting from ... Flash.  The media itself is the commodity that is being sold for huge markups.

With games you are profiting from the software, not the physical media, so the media will be mass produced as cheaply as possible and reduced to almost nothing to minimize operating costs.  Unlike flash where it's the reverse where the media itself is monetized as much as possible.

No I was referring to final fantasy, street fighter, megaman, chrono trigger, contra, castlevania, metal gear, bomberman,  the franchises that have their roots in Nintend that Sony claimed..

Lets think about this.  We don't write DLC to BD ROMs on Wii U, PS4, or XBO do we?  Same thing.  Nothing changes.