My thoughts on the REAL Nintendo interviews.

:D

I recently saw two new interviews with Jim Merrick and Perrin Kaplan, and whether or not they are old, I'd rather not hear about it, I just want to discuss a few things about it.


"Q: Regarding the peripherals, has there been talk of price yet? The hobby is already becoming cost-prohibitive for many players, so the idea of having to purchase additional equipment to play certain games has many people concerned. How would you address their fears?

PK: Not yet, but again we aren’t really spending much time talking about the peripherals right now. As for price, I wouldn’t worry too much about that. Nintendo is focused on making the Revolution accessible to players, and the designers are keeping all of these concerns on their minds. We’ll release more information on the peripherals soon, but players really shouldn’t be concerned about price right now."


Well this is certainly good to hear. Perhaps certain peripherals can be included with certain new games. But at least they aren't going to be too expensive, which is always a good thing.


"Q: For our final question, because I know you are incredibly busy, is that with the four different colored lights on the controller signifying the player who is using the device, does this mean that the system will support a maximum of four players?

PK: What we are telling people right now is that four players can play on the Revolution, but what this means exactly we will unveil at a later time. We’ll have more information soon to come on this topic."


I find this comment quite interesting. Personally, I would not have even questioned the lights across the bottom. I just assumed they were to show which controller you had, and nothing else, but according to Kaplan, there's more to it than that. And it's coming soon ;)


"JM: Our official launch date is still 2006, and before we show the software, we want to make sure it's at a stage where you can understand exactly how it's going to work with the freehand-style controller - by actually playing the games. Without making a commitment, if I went to E3 2006 and didn't end up playing the Revolution, I'd be very disappointed... "


This certainly means the Revolution will be released AFTER E3, but that's really no surprise there. Good to hear that there will be playable Revolutions at E3 :) *wishes he could go*.


"Eurogamer: A lot of Nintendo's previous controller concepts have been adopted by your competitors. Are you worried they're going to nick this idea too?

Jim Merrick: "...Nintendo will aggressively protect its intellectual property."


It's good to hear they're taking this seriously. Apparently, if anyone tries to snag the idea, they'll at least try to take action this time.


"Eurogamer: How is the controller going to work with games that aren't designed specifically for the Revolution - multi-platform titles and so on?

Jim Merrick: We're producing a classic-style expansion controller, based on traditional designs like the Gamecube controller. It's like a shell with a hole in the top into which you slot the freehand-style controller, and then you can play third-party ported games, and retro Nintendo games you've downloaded.
So there's that option - but even while it's inserted into the classic-style shell, the freehand controller will still be able to sense positioning and so on, so there are more options too."

Well that clears that up. Third party ports are still going to be simple to pull off. This controller is like, the most ultimate customizable interface ever. O_o


"There are so many great new capabilities - the controller knows not only what you're pointing at, but exactly how far you are away from the TV, for example - and it's important that we get all these across."


I just thought this line was an interesting little factoid :P


"Eurogamer: Is the freehand-style controller your trump card, or have we got more exciting stuff to look forward to?

Jim Merrick: Let's just say we have more surprises in store."


All this, and there's still more in store. :)

I can't wait :D

EDIT: Forgot sources:

Perrin Kaplan interview

Jim Merrick Interview