N-Banter Edition 13: A Revolution Revelation
Column by Jeff Van Camp

Edition: 01-08-2006

Two minds...one column. Two motives...one goal. Two editors...one conversation. You have now entered a dimension unlike any other. This is N-Banter.

This edition of N-Banter, being the first of 2006, is going to be a bit different. The following is a conversation I had with a guy I used to play Tribes 2 (PC) with way back in the day. Our topic of discussion: the Revolution. Enjoy.

Aitro: When is the Revolution coming?

Jeff: I'm guessing late 2006. In time for the holiday season.

Aitro: I think the revolution might suck.

Jeff: Hah. Anything's possible.

Aitro: The controller looks dumb.

Jeff: Looks can be deceiving. It's going to come down to the games and whether they use all of the awesome features of the controller.

Aitro: There arent many good games on the GameCube anyways. Mario, Zelda, and what Resident Evil.

Jeff: Sure there are. There are quite a few fun games that have hit the Cube. The GCN is a very different machine than Revolution though. Theyre targeting different markets.

Aitro: The Cube is like for kids though. Well, comparing it to the Xbox and PS2. Im assuming the Rev will be the same

Jeff: In perception sure. Games like Mario and whatnot are very accessible for kids so Im sure they might skew a bit young, but that means nothing. Nintendo has always been a company that creates games for all ages. The fact that I, a 21 year old, am still a very big fan says something.

Aitro: That there is still a kid inside you?

Jeff: No, that I like good games. Nintendo makes good games. End of story, really. That's why they're still around. I think that if you actually looked at the numbers, a lot of people who have bought a GCN are either families with parents who remember the NES or people like me who are longtime fans.

Aitro: The only truly awesome game that came out for a Nintendo console is GoldenEye. I respect that game.

Jeff: GoldenEye was great. I loved it. But if that's the only good Nintendo game, then there are very few games you must like at all on any system.

Aitro: That is true. I rent games for the storyline. There are few that i own and play often. I can see why families would buy a Cube over an Xbox, little violence. They want to protect their children.

Jeff: The difference between the Revolution and GameCube is that Nintendo is not going for the same exact audience as Microsoft and Sony this time around. They are going to have a cheaper console and are actively trying to court fans, as well as non-gamers. Nintendo would like the Revolution to be a console that a grandparent, 20-something, teenager, and kid would play together. I think it's a great goal. We have to remember that we were all kids when we started gaming. So to criticize Nintendo solely for appealing to children is hypocritical. Even if you disagree with Nintendo on some of the choices it makes, you have to admit that at least it's trying something new. More than you can say for Sony or Microsoft at the moment.

I'm actually really excited at how awesome First Person Shooters may play on the Revolution. Some are saying it's better than a Keyboard/mouse configuration.

Aitro: A lot of the Nintendo games are getting a little repetitive, how many god damn Mario games are there now.

Jeff: I agree. Completely. I can't stand Mario Party. Not since the second one. There are plenty of games I don't play anymore. But there are plenty more that I enjoy.

Aitro: The same would go with other systems to though, Final Fantasy, fucking like 15 Final Fantasties.

Jeff: Heh, yup.

Aitro: When are they going to bring Duck Hunt back? Games with guns were awesome. Area 51.

Jeff: Well Revolution will be completely backward compatible. Meaning that you can download old NES, SNES, N64 games onto its internal memory and play them.

Aitro: But you need a gun to play Duck Hunt.

Jeff: Well no. Not anymore. I believe the top of the revolution controller has a light gun thing on it. So all controllers will be equipped with a light gun. With a standard like that there will probably be a lot of shooting games.

Aitro: Ugh. Same thing again. Protection of children.

Jeff: Hmm?

Aitro: Plugging a gun into your console and shooting at the screen is/was awesome.

Jeff: Yeah and I'm telling you that the controller can do that even without a gun attachment. That means that more games will be able to use the functionality. It's a good thing.

Aitro: That isn't fun though. Holding the gun is the fun part. Not a controller.

Jeff: The controller is also upgradeable cheaply. If a game like Duck Hunt or whatever wanted the controller to be a gun, they could make an attachment that shaped it like a gun.

Mockups of possible light gun attachments

Jeff: Those are three different mockups I found on the net. Stuff like that could ship with the game relatively cheaply (or so Nintendo says) and you just plug it into the back of the controller. The system will come with a nunchuck style add on from the get go which gives you an analog stick.

The Nunchuck attachment.

Aitro: Is that the controller on the top of the gun you attach?

Jeff: Yeah the controller is plugged into the top of those attachments.

Aitro: That makes sense. I don't know about that controller and joystick thing though.

Jeff: Yeah Ive seen some awesome ideas. I saw one drawing of a steering wheel attachment.

Aitro: I can't even play games with a joystick and keyboard at the same type. If they were together like in the Xbox/PS2 controller, easily. So do you just mash one button instead of the typical four?

Jeff: For some games you could even hold a Revolution controller in each hand, having two sensors. There will also be a classic style controller shell that will look more like a regular controller. If Nintendos smart, it will ship with the system too, along with the nunchuck one.

IGN Mockup of the shell

The shell might look something like this. This is a mockup. Or it could (and likely will) have a standard configuration like the Xbox and PS2.

Aitro: So do you play the controller how it's picture or can you play it uh horizontal?

Jeff: Oh, you can tilt the controller on its side and play it horizontal too. That might be good for say a racing game or something. Also an easy way to play old NES games.

Aitro: Interesting. You are full of pictures.

Jeff: Yeah I'm googling like mad. Want to see the video showing people using the controller? Nintendo showed a video when they debuted the controller.

Aitro: Not really.

Jeff: Okay, whatever. Haha. Shows a lot of stuff. Fun.

Aitro: What is that other Nintendo thing. Uhthat really small Game Boy?

Jeff: Game Boy Micro. Its just a small stylized Game Boy Advance.

Aitro: Do they want you to lose it?

Jeff: Haha, I didn't get one. They are pretty cool looking though. I wanted them to pack an MP3 player with it. If they did that, I would have thought about it.

Jeff: Watch this. It's all exaggerated movements and stuff of course, but there is a lot of cool things it could do.

Aitro: What is this?

Jeff: A video. Its the only Nintendo released Revolution video. They're finally going online too. I'm not trying to say it's going to kill or destroy any other console. I'm just saying that if Nintendo makes the right games (it's very capable) and markets it correctly, it could be a very big success and a great step for video games.

Aitro: Yeah, maybe it could.