Or in simpler terms, when the Playstation 4 and Xbox 720 (not real names, hypothetical), will the Wii U still hold up as far as technical capabilities go?
It's an interesting question, considering that the last early console launch (early meaning a fair while before competitors) was the Dreamcast, and that sure didn't compare to the Playstation 2/Gamecube/Xbox on a tech level.
If it doesn't, should Nintendo delay the console to see what their competition offers up first? If so why, and if not why not?
Or in simpler terms, when the Playstation 4 and Xbox 720 (not real names, hypothetical), will the Wii U still hold up as far as technical capabilities go?
I doubt it. From what I've heard, the Wii U will be 50% more powerful than current gen Xbox/PS3 consoles. That's really not all that much of a leap ahead of 5 year old hardware. Although Sony claim that games still aren't pushing their current hardware to it's full capabilities.
My theory is that as hardware gets ever more powerful, it's going to be harder to tell the difference. It won't be like the days of going from 16-bit systems to 3D graphics, or later from blocky CG graphics to rounded organic forms. I think a lot of games will look much the same, and you'll only really tell the difference when you go up next to a wall or an object and the textures are still as high-res as ever. Maybe we can expect more sophisticated lighting effects and texture pop-in to be less of an issue. How much will the average person notice?
On the other hand there've been rumours of 'Avatar quality' graphics, and if that's the standard to be met, the Wii U might struggle to keep up. My suspicion is that gaming companies will have difficulty delivering that standard. Avatar cost half a billion dollars, and I think for the average game, the economics will hit a brick wall well before that.
Artistically a game can look good despite technical limitations. There's games from 20 years ago that still have appealing design and are nice to look at. There's games from this year that manage to be unintentionally hideous. It's really about working creatively within the limitations of the hardware. Even if the hardware specs of the Wii U fall well short of the competition, I fully expect Nintendo will have the artistic capability to deliver games that look gorgeous despite leaner hardware.
I am not hugely into comparing graphics on consoles because when it comes down to it developers can find creative ways to work with graphical limitations.
With that said, I believe that the WiiU's processing power will be like a halfway point between the current gen and next gen consoles. Keep in mind the things that Audacity stated, most people may not notice the slight difference in the consoles ability to render realistic graphics. Also, when you boil it down, companies exist to make money. Nintendo is releasing the WiiU two years before the PS4 and so-called X-Box Next will be on the market. The "inferior" tech coupled with a two year head start could make room for a substantially lower price tag than the other consoles. Not to mention WiiU's innovative controller(s) giving it an advantage, unless a certain company copies Nintendo again (cough, cough, SONY!)
I honestly think that anybody who plays games just for the graphics or calls a great game shitty because of it's average graphics is an idiot. This isn't trying to look at an art sculpture. It's about the damn gameplay. That's what video games are all about.
Anyways, I think Nintendo will delay the WiiU just because it's Nintendo. Everytime they hype something really massive, they usually release it like 2 months after the original deadline.
Whether or not we care if graphics capabilities make or break a console, there are likely millions of people who do. So sadly, as a result, we would have to take in consideration the appeal of the populations to judge. And with gamers being such a fickle group, I'm sure it could just as easily be considered modern as it could be considered obsolete. Simply, it's a matter of taste rather than how much work is put into the console or it's hardware specs. We as a people decide if it is visually appealing, not statistics.
This being said, if Nintendo could work towards improving their online multiplayer capabilities, it could lessen the contrast between it's service and the seemingly more modern services of Microsoft and Sony.
Speaking of which, when I always explained the Wii to my friends, I used a bit of figurative language. The Wii is like a feeding trough and we are the pigs, the games the mush inside. The pigs rushed to the trough at the launch for Wii and were busy tearing to shreds the food because they were hungry. But, once some realized they were full, they went back to go take a nap and play some Xbox. Others kept on eating because they weren't leaving until the food was gone, and in the process ate some of the lesser sought after chunks. Some pigs came late, and by random probability, ate bad mush or good mush, more often bad. Not to mention, the trough was suitable to eat out of in the beginning when all the food was stacked high in it, but now it is difficult to reach down into the trough and grab food because of the way it was made and that the food has sunk down to the bottom.
The farmer, Nintendo, could get his pigs fatter by doing the following: putting more good tasting chunks in the food to outweigh the bad tasting ones, and could fix the current trough so that you don't have to reach all the way to the bottom to get more mush.
I honestly think that anybody who plays games just for the graphics or calls a great game shitty because of it's average graphics is an idiot. This isn't trying to look at an art sculpture. It's about the damn gameplay. That's what video games are all about.
graphics aren't everything, but they do matter. If they don't, then what do we need new consoles for in the first place? If I'm gonna devote large amounts of time to a game, I prefer it to be visually appealing. Then again, in my view what makes graphics good can be more down to design than technology.
Just the same, I hope there will be a noticeable visual difference between Wii U and current-gen. It will help a lot of people justify the purchase.
