So at the Tokyo Game Show last night, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata unveiled the closely guarded controller for the company's 2006 Next-Gen console, Nintendo Revolution.

http://cube.ign.com/articles/651/651301p1.html

The main body of the unit looks markedly like a cross between an iPod and a remote control while the "optional" analog stick attachment (which can be used by lefties AND righties) adds a more "conventional" flair to the piece. Mind you, I've JUST started reading about it, but I'm not sure how I feel. If anyone's going to push such a radical redesign, it's Nintendo. They've already shown that they can turn novel ideas into successes (just look at the DS), but they've also jumped the gun and floundered with their innovative ideas before (think Virtual Boy). There's no question, of all the next-gen systems the Revolution is the ONLY one I know for a fact I'll be buying, but I'm curious as to what others think about this controller. Is Nintendo really forging ahead, or are they sealing their fate as being a "niche" product? How will this affect the way we play games? Will third parties even bother porting to the system, or will ESPN Madden (Insert whatever other licenses EA locks up) 2010 be Microsoft/Sony only?

EDIT: So, instead of replying to my own post, I'm going to edit this one...

The main controller unit is interesting in a few ways (this comes after more reading up on it).

First, it's got motion sensors in it, which isn't a shock, since Nintendo was patenting a gyro mechanism a year ago. People pretty much figured that this would be a feature of the new system. The intent here is that if you're, say, playing Zelda, you can swing the sword yourself or if you're playing a baseball game, you can swing the bat. Part of me thinks this is awesome and part of me thinks Nintendo got yelled at by the Japanese government and they're trying to encourage exercise through gaming., ala Dance Dance Revolution.

Second, if you flip that sumbitch horizontally, you have the classic D-Pad B, A setup from the NES. This'll make it super-easy to use with the downloadable 8-bit games Nintendo's promising. The back has a "B-trigger" which is exactly like the N64's "Z-trigger", so when you use that along with the add-on analog stick, you have something approximating the N64's controller... even then, though, you're lacking the C-buttons. I'll be curious to see how that works out.

I'm curious as to the longevity of a gaming session using this controller. I know that, after a while, I start to hold my current controllers closer to my lap, mostly because I don't like sitting with my arms outstretched. I don't know if that's going to be completely possible now. On the positive side, if someone pisses you off during a match of Super Smash Brothers, you can swing the analog stick like a pair of nunchukus and bean them real good.

One clip that Nintendo showed last night indicated that some platformers would make you flip the controller up to jump and push it left or right to move... that feels vaguely like what the Power Glove did and that wasn't all that fun. Then again, it's years later and the technology has improved.

One thing's for sure... this is going to be a GREAT party system. Kick back a few beers, get some friends, and try swinging your virtual baseball bat. Hilarity WILL ensue. IGN's already reporting that the creator of Samba De Amigo is supposedly in love with the controller. I like where that leads.

ONE MORE EDIT: I've just had a realization. This is the first time Nintendo's plan really clicked for me. I don't think they've concerned at this point about third-party ports. This is where they price themselves cheaper than the competititon, let Sony and Microsoft fuck each other over, let gamers buy either an XBox 360 or a PS3 for their "regular" games, and buy a cheap, cool Revolution for the "novelty" and the Nintendo licenses. Hell, that's why the system itself is so compact. It'll fit nicely on a shelf next to either of the other two consoles.

Syd Lexia wrote:

The fact that the controller shows absolutely no regard for third party companies really disapponts me. I'm sick of seeing games like GTA, Silent Hill 4, Castlevania: Curse of Darkness and Mortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks that get releases for Sony and Microsoft but not Nintendo. I don't expect Nintendo to be the #1 console, but I think companies ought to feel compelled to release their fucking games on Nintendo's consoles. I'm not very confident that'll happen with this time.

Rockstar would be CRAZY not to put GTA on Revolution. Imagine gamers everywhere using the controller to pantomime "Kill the hooker and take your money back".

Valdronius wrote:

Depneding on how long the cord is from the analog controller, you could just lean back in your recliner, arms on the armrests, and play away. If you had one of those chiars with a built-in fridge and toilet, you'd never have to leave. Promoting exercise my ass.

Hmm... you make a good point, but I'm thinking more in terms of the baseball game example, or even sword fighting. Nintendo's gonna make you get more than just your thumbs going someway, somehow. One clip they showed indicated a motion sensitive fighting game might be a possibilty. That... just won't work. I've got 18 years martial arts experience and I've played that motion sensitive arcade boxing game you see in movie theaters and whatnot. Throwing actual legit punches just doesn't work. You have to throw strikes that fall within a certain movement range to even register a hit. That being said, I better be fucking able to swing a lightsaber in some future "Star Wars" game. Oh God, I better.