N-Sider Q&A
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December 15th, 2000
Hello there guys,
First of all I would like to congratulate you on the outstanding work you've been doing so far; I just have a humble question for you... Is the any possibility that SquareSoft might lunch any major title (i.e. Final Fantasy) on Gamecube ??? and what about a Metal Gear Solid title from Konami to Gamecube ???
I know that a lot of people would like to see something like this happen, but since the competition is really tight and also the playstation 2 is out there, now we see that many software companies are making there title on PS2.... I'm a prime time Nintendo Fan, but PS2 has got me out my nerves. Is there any final answer for this, or at least a close one.
- Henry A.
Pete: No final answer. The Square situation is really beyond anyone's guess. There's definitely no gauruntee of Square titles on the Gamecube or GBA, at least early on, so if you enjoy their games you might be forced to look elsewhere.
We're not certain about MGS2 either. Matt over at IGN has said that he's heard that MGS2 was planned for the NGC, but he hasn't heard much on that for a while now. The XBox will be getting a version of MGS2, so that might increase the chance of Konami going full multiplatform with the title.
As you wrote in your fantastic article "Mario Cubed",
"You'd think after all these years that Mr. Miyamoto would be running out of ideas, and just in case he is (which is about as likely as Battlefield Earth II)"
Well, BattleField Earth II was actually confirmed a few months ago(source: darkhorizons.com), and John Travolta is still in it! (he's very excited) but still, I'm sure Miyamoto will NEVER run out of ideas!
keep up the good work at n-sider
-Adrian
Pete: Wow, you'd think they'd learn after the first one tanked so badly...
Hi I got a couple of questions. Do you think Resident Evil Zero will be renamed to Resident Evil Alpha like Street fighter? Have you guys heard any rumors at all about a new Punch Out! for NGC or GBA? Should I preorder my GBA now? What games will the GBA most likely launch with in the US? I know Megaman Exe is a launch game and so is Silent Hill, I think. And probably Mario Kart and Konami Wai Wai Racing and Castlevania in Japan. How about here? And of course, Have you guys heard anything about a new Mario platformer for GBA? Mario Land 5 or something?
-AL Rosado
Pete: Resident Evil Alpha is a possibility; it certainly would keep with Capcom's Alpha/Zero title scheme for the Street Fighter series. We've heard nothing about a Punch-Out for Gamecube or GBA. It probably wouldn't take too much work to beef up the Super Punch-Out engine for the SNES and add new fighters, however.
As for pre-ordering a GBA, I'd suggest you wait for Nintendo to give a solid US release date and price tag. For the GBA launch expect Mario Kart Advance to be the flagship game, unless of course Nintendo has a Pokemon game there as well -- which they probably will. For the US launch, hopefully Nintendo will remember to bring over Napoleon, Fire Emblem: Dark Shrine Maiden, Golden Sun, Tactic Ogre Gaiden, and Game Boy Advance Wars in the process.
I know that G-Cube isnt gonna play DVD's. Thats one out of the millions of things I know about it. But this is my question. Is there gonna be a add on to G-Cube so it can play DVD's and if there is how much will it be???
-BioHazard123
Pete: Well anything is possible for the base Gamecube unit, but I seriously doubt it. The standard Gamecube probably won't play movie DVDs at any time during its lifespan. Matsushita/Panasonic is releasing a DVD-capable Gamecube model in Japan that plays movie DVDs on top of Gamecube games. Matsushita has no plans to bring this "DVD-capable" Gamecube model to North America at this time, however, but perhaps that will change.
hello,
well I was just wondering if you knew if the analog stick on the NGC will be loose and crappy like the dual shock 1 & 2. I hope its not. Because then it will turn into the thing no one uses, just like on PS. Also, how many polys do you think will be the max developers get out of the NGC. I have heard that POSSIBLY Dinosaur Planet might be moved onto the NGC. Do you think ths will happen.
-DaNtHeMan
Pete: No idea about the Gamecube analog stick, but it's not like the N64 stick was without its faults either. Hopefully Nintendo get the best of both worlds. The max poly count for Gamecube? In game, I'm guessing it'll be around 20 million polygons per second as a roof with a decent amount of effects. Dinosaur Planet? On Gamecube? We wouldn't know anything about that...Seriously, however, I think the IGN boys are onto something. Don't expect to see Dinosaur Planet and possibly a few other titles on the N64.
Is there going to be a panasonic hybrid(a gamecube that plays DVDs)? Why doesn't nintendo release its 2 new systems, the gameboy advance and the gamecube, sooner?
-Hobbes589
Pete: Yes, there will be a Gamecube model from Matsushita (Panasonic) that plays DVD movies. As stated above, it's only scheduled for the Japanese market at this time. With the Game Boy Advance, Nintendo probably could've gotten the machine out this year in Japan at least. Given the fact that the GBC is still strong and the demand for the GBA will be *huge* when it comes out, Nintendo is ensuring they'll have enough machines to meet most of the demand. 24 million GBAs is obviously incredible. With Gamecube, the hardware is complete but the software simply isn't ready to go yet. On the bright side, I think Nintendo will meet their projected release dates with ease.
I have a few questions and comments. Lets say you are playing on your gamecube and use your wavebird controller and in the next room your brother has a gamecube too and is playing with a wavebird. Since RF can go through walls will signals get mixed up?
Also, RF signals are way better then infra-red but in keyboards like the Logitech it uses in more advance RF signals then the gamecube wavebird controller and if you type like 80 words a minute or press a whole bunch of commands ( al a FPS heated battle) it doesn't quiet receive all the commands. will this be a problem if you are a real button masher?
Also the gamecube is small, but yet it has a handle? why? cause it's for kiddies to carry. Also it going to release in purple. why? because kiddies like the colour. The controller is way smaller then the n64 one. why? cause it is for kiddie hands. The gamecube is releasing with a rugrats game. why? cause it for kiddies.
I think Nintendo is trying to have the best of both worlds when they have games like :eternal darkness,Shadowman,conkers bad fur day, RE:2 but still have games like rugrats and so on.
You never know if Nintendo works hard they can support all the needs of mature gamers and have kiddie games as well. please answer back,
P.S : all your info is so original keep up the good work.
-Anonymous
Pete: No, I'm quite sure the RF signals with the Wavebird controller will not get mixed up. Even though Nintendo will not confirm it directly (the same way they won't confirm Metroid on Gamecube), I'm quite confident Nintendo is using the Bluetooth wireless RF technology in the Wavebird controller. Bluetooth enables electronic devices to interact with each other. This includes things like cell phones, PCs, PC mouse/keyboard setups, etc. The idea is to have a completely wireless electronics environment. From what I understand of Bluetooth technology the mixing up of signals isn't something to be worried about.
The Gamecube design might skew to a younger demographic, but then again Nintendo is probably also trying to market the Gamecube as a fun leisure product. It's not meant to be a DVD player, remember. For what its worth movies like Toy Story 2 and The Grinch take in more money than films like The Matrix and Fight Club. A big part of that is because they manage to appeal to all audiences, including adults. That's what Nintendo is going for, and it's a smart strategy. The game market does not need another set top box.
As for the software lineup, we already know Wave Race Cube, Star Wars: Rogue Squadron 2, Too Human, Perfect Dark 2, Resident Evil Zero, SSX: Special Edition, Madden NFL, and Thornado are slated for the machine with Kobe Bryant NBA, Retro NFL, and Eternal Darkness being other likely titles. I'd say that's a pretty significant chunk of software that appeals strongly to the older market, wouldn't you?
Oh God Nintendo better not be so dumb as to only release the NGC in purple. What's with those overseas people anyway? Just like when Pete D. and I and the Nintendorks had THOUSANDS AND THOUSANDS of signatures from people saying that we wanted the Perfect Dark cartridge to be SILVER (even had a nifty mock up photo of it). But NOOOO, apparently silver cartridges cause epileptic seizures or something (*cough*). I always thought yellow was that culprit. Anyways, silver black or bust. Let them have their fairy purple along with their 'naked ass smacking shower day'. Those crazy Nintendo people...
Jay Cole. The Man.
Pete: Haha, I'm glad someone remembers that silver cartridge Perfect Dark petition. The official word from Nintendo is that Gamecube is still coming in the multiple color layout, but Nintendo has not confirmed which colors will show up in certain territories. It's a safe bet that the hot pink Gamecube will never see the light of day in North America...
Will the 64-megabyte memory card function identically to the 4-megabit card? If so, why would Nintendo even bother with a 4-megabit card in the first place? I mean, its like picking between a 2400bps modem and a 56k modem nowadays.
Of course, this is probably one of those questions that can't be answered until late 2001, when we actually get our hands on a Gamecube :)
-Matt Crews
Pete: The 4MB memory card will be availible because it will be dirt cheap. Panasonic's SD Cards are quite pricey at the moment but they do offer a lot more freedom for dynamic game data and such. The 64MB SD Card retails for about $180 right now. Of course expect that price to decline sharply in a year as even larger SD Cards become availible, but it still might be more than what most people will be willing to pay in order to simply save their game progress.
Hey,
In your "64-bit Era" article I noticed you mentioned a Nintendo development house based in Canada. Do you have any more detailed info on it, namely where it's based?
-Matt H.
Pete: Nintendo Software Canada is based in Vancouver, B.C., which isn't too far of a drive from Nintendo Software Technology Corporation (NSTC) in Seattle. We'll try to get more info on NSC soon. Between NSTC, DigiPen, Nintendo Technology Development, and now Nintendo Software Canada, Nintendo is going to have a powerhouse of western software/hardware talent.
Well, that's all the time we have for this round. Have a good weekend everyone!