Rumor: Developers describe the Wii successor for 2011

by JC Fletcher { Oct 1st 2008 at 9:55AM }

Nintendo's upcoming (tomorrow!) media summit is a big mystery -- which is good, actually, or there'd be no point to holding a media summit to tell us about new stuff. Will they show off a new Wii console there? Most certainly not, unless Nintendo's plan to increase Wii availability for the holiday season involves convincing people not to buy a Wii.

It's a bit more likely that a new Wii will be revealed by 2011 than by ... tomorrow. What They Play's John Davison reports that some developers have already seen an early version of the next Wii, something they're unofficially calling the "Wii HD." According to these shadowy sources, the new console will include some kind of "local storage medium" and high-definition video output.

Davison cites Nintendo's skyrocketing research and development costs as evidence of this new console's development, but we don't even think that's necessary. There's no reason to believe Nintendo isn't readying the next console. What isn't so easy to determine is whether anyone has actually seen it yet, or if we're being told what we want to hear.

[Via Siliconera]

Tags: hard-drive, wii-hd

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Sonic_13 @ Oct 1st 2008 10:20AM

So the analyst is predicting the next Nintendo console's features based solely on R&D funding? I don't see how he can derive features from a budget.

Also if those features are true, which they almost certainly are (not a hard prediction to make), why would it require substantial increases in R&D budget? Seems like a normal budget allocation would do just fine since the next console is going to be more of a refinement (like NES to SNES) than an evolutionary leap (like GCN to Wii).

I'm also really surprised that they would be showing off the console this early. It doesn't make sense because developers should be focusing on games for Wii and not concerning themselves with a console launching three years from now.

Mr Khan @ Oct 1st 2008 11:26AM

It falls in line with what Iwata said, that the next iteration might be "less revolutionary" than the last

But that's how the industry works. Introduce a revolution, then refine it. Introduced scrolling 2D gameplay in the 3rd generation, refined it in the forth. Introduced analogue and 3D in the 5th generation, refined it in the 6th. Introduced motion in the 7th, refined it in the 8th

Also that they claimed it will still run on an IBM-ATI CPU/GPU combination for to lower dev costs and extend backwards compatibility, which makes a lot of sense.

WiiHD.net @ Oct 1st 2008 12:53PM

Refinement is even more popular in this specific generation of consoles. The number of minor sku changes for both the 360 and PS3 has been uber high, even though Nintendo's portable strategy usually gets it the most attention for minor updates. Drive size, ports, backwards compatibility, cpu, gpu, EVEN color (why are all those hardcore gamers who laugh at ninty so pysched for the all the pretty colors?) ... Microsoft and Sony have been having a hay-day with tweaks (not all of which have been *up*grades).

Aaron @ Oct 1st 2008 11:45AM

So let me get this straight. Nintendo scoffed at a 'local storage medium' and high def visuals this generation when both were plainly available to them, and yet we're supposed to believe Nintendo is including both in their next system.

That would be like admitting you made a mistake the first time around, which I don't believe they did.

Come on, this is how Microsoft "innovates." Nintendo is much smarter than this. When the next console is ready, it will impress.

CJLopez @ Oct 1st 2008 12:22PM

Het, its what they decided to do.

I mean, Nintendo always looking on giving us a new way to do things, no just keep on smashing buttons, so they went this way, they took the stackes and man they are swiming in gold. same goes for the DS. They could had made a portable GC, still decided that sensing the game was more important.

Dru @ Oct 10th 2008 10:34AM

Nintendo never "scoffed" at such ideas. They merely wished to take a different route. But as it is, they are still a company at heart. What they did with the Wii was they got a new, huge fanbase loaded for them. Millions of people who never played games now do. Step one, complete. Now they have to secure and hold onto their fanbase, while still keeping in stride with the "hardcore" gamers. Which would be step two, with this. It never was that Nintendo looked down on HD .. they just felt other things were more important, at the time. But why not have the best of both worlds, if you can?

Spencer @ Oct 1st 2008 11:53AM

They didn't "scoff" at high def visuals, they saw it, reasonably, as not practical, considering less then 20% of the marketplace had them at release, and honestly, spending a large chunk of money and increasing the development requirements exponentially for 20% of your users isn't a smart decsion, expecially when it'd raise the price of your system significantly, again for something most people at the time didn't have.

Now that they're more widely available, and the costs of taking advantage of it are markedly lower, lets roll.

and as for the storage medium... ...yeah not defending Nintendo here except to say GAMES CAN ALREADY ACCESS THE SD CARD PERFECTLY FINE: See Excite Truck. it is NO ONES FAULT AT NINTENDO'S that GH3 / RB don't have DLC. Sorry, it's not. Get over it. for the rest of the storage-stuff, yeah, it's Nintendo fault, but not the DLC issues.

CJLopez @ Oct 1st 2008 12:24PM

So, the Wii only have 3 more years of life huh?

Ok, thats fair, it would had been a 5 year cycle.

Ok, time to save money to buy this on release day (My firts console camping!!! Man i'm excited already, xDDDD, hope I get to see a Smash My [Insert Game Console Name] video recording)

wiibouy in england 101 @ Oct 1st 2008 12:29PM

NINTENDO DID WHAT SCOFFED DID THEY ARE YOU INSANE

nintendo scoffed nothing HD isnt graphics its a resolution video out AND HD IS STILL THE MINORITY... by 2011 it will be the STANDARD. oh look the standard tv resolution of the future 720p and the less used but available 1080p will be the global standard by 2011 also the hdmi digital age will be well and truly started. this is nintendo getting the ""TIMING RIGHT"" not getting the ""TIMING WRONG LIKE BILL AND SONY""

""AS THE SALES CLEARLY PROVE!!!"""

also by 2011 higher powered spec in a small low heat low power box will be more easily done with the latest die shrinks and super silicon on insulator ibm tech....

1tsram advances edram 1tsram advances ibms new custom edram ibm/ati/amds gpu cpu on a chip ideas

super upscale hd video out chips like latest dvd upscalers also a possibility....

sencer bar with sencer/motion camera/wiispeak all built in this exists i have a nintendo germany insider friend (no not a fantasy a reality)......

dual 1to1 wiimotes dual 3d mouse left hand wiimote/nunchuck hybred

right hand wiimote 2

all completely wirless

dual speaker dual rumble (1 each hand)

3d head tracking advaces

dual Broadway cpus 1mb catch each running 1.5ghz clock

dual 500mhz front side buses

500mhz hollywood 2 gpu with 16mb edram 1tsram

500mhz co processor hd chip (hd, scaling, filtering ,graphics co processed effects, AA)

64MB 1TSRAM DIE EMBEDDED FAST RAM DUAL 64BIT BUSES DUAL CHANNEL 500MHZ 1GHZ EFFECTIVE DUAL CHANNEL

512MB GDDR4 RAM 32 BIT DUAL CHANNEL 500MHZ 1GHZ EFFECTIVE DUAL CHANNEL

EMBEDDED FAST FLASH MEMORY AND CUSTOM STORAGE HOLOGRAPH DRIVE/OR TURBO FLASH DRIVE

HDMI OUT PUT

2011

IT EXISTS shush im not supposed to leak this shit

sn1per @ Oct 1st 2008 1:20PM

Uh, speak english please?

samfish @ Oct 1st 2008 3:04PM

What? Did RMC finally permaban you from GoNintendo?

You really do give Nintendo fans a BAD name, Wiiboy.

Mr Khan @ Oct 1st 2008 3:39PM

Usually has a good point, just severely needs to learn how to communicate.

Phiu-x @ Oct 1st 2008 1:24PM

That's it. I'm selling my Wii this holiday season, and for big $$$ too! Thanks for Nintendo lousy distribution.

I hate to do it, but I cannot wait for good games as this news (wether its true or not) will totally stop the innovation and 3rd party games flow.

At least I got to play Mario, Zelda and Metroid this gen which, you gotta to admit are the only reasons to stick to Nintendo for this gen. (all gen ???) After 2 yrs waiting for good 3rd party/graphics on the WII I'm now a graphic b*tch! Bring on the PS3! Oh, and no amount of The Conduit will change this. I'll take my SW:FU and COD5 fps doses elsewhere thanks!

Mr Khan @ Oct 1st 2008 1:45PM

It's 3 years down the pipe, though. Next year's lineup has a good number of quality 3rd party games lined up, and that's only for the first half of 2009.

Sonic_13 @ Oct 1st 2008 3:10PM

"I hate to do it, but I cannot wait for good games as this news (wether its true or not) will totally stop the innovation and 3rd party games flow."

Why in the world would this stop the innovation and game flow? Were people not expecting there to be another console after Wii? You say you're going to get a PS3, but there is already talk about the PS4. Therefore, by your logic, you're simply going to be buying into another (more expensive) system that is also going to cease to have good games. That would leave the Xbox 360 as your only option, but I'm sure that talk of the next Xbox will arise soon leaving you with no options at all.

Of course, while all of this is happening, game developers will apparently be sitting on their asses for the next three years, refusing to develop anything more for this generation of consoles because they want to save all of their ideas for the next gen.