The small Japanese Wii
The system is tiny.
It is the size of two DVD cases stacked on top of each other.
Yeah, think about that.
The Wiimote (the controller) is pretty freaking brilliant.
This is the wiimote (on the right) with the "nunchuck"(on the left) attachment.
"Wiimote"
Completely different from any controller ever made before. What does it do?
First off, the system knows where the controller is in 3D space. It knows how far it is from the screen. I knows what the orientation of the controller is. The wiimote has a speaker in it as well. This little speaker will be used for something they call "Depth of Sound." For instance, if you shoot an arrow in a game, the sound will originate in your hand in the controller, and then when it hits its target on screen, it will come from your center channel of your surround sound system.
Even the nunchuck attachment is more than just an analog stick. It also houses an accelerometer. When you move it, it can determine how fast it has been moved (though it is incapable of knowing where it is).
So what does this all mean? Well, it means that the Wii might make the ultimate party machine. Getting a bunch of people standing up swinging the remote to simulate hitting a tennis racquet, or playing air-drums, is actually a possibility. Pointing with the remote and shooting at the screen as well is a possibility, imagine shooting with the trigger, and then swinging the remote to perform a melee attack... yep, all possible. Pretty damn cool.
Is it going to replace current controllers and kill off the competition? Hardly. There are definitely new things that can be done with the controller, new experiences, and crazy whacky fun to be had, but it is hardly something that can replace a standard controller for serious competitive gaming, or even long play periods. I mean, sure, they say gamers don't get much physical activity, but this wiimote is certainly not going to suddenly make gamers love physical exertion. Good for parties, not good for clan matches.
In fact, this has spawned a whole new concept. The Wii is being viewed as the ultimate "second" console. Hence the creation of the term "Wii60" which is a combination of the names Wii and Xbox 360. I mean, heck you can even buy both machines for the cost of 1 PS3.
But not all is perfect in the wii small world of wii.
The machine is, without a shadow of a doubt, seriously underpowered when compared to the big boys X360 and PS3.
In fact, it is little more than a souped up Gamecube in a smaller case. A little bit more RAM, a little bit better GPU, a higher clocked CPU.
If you were looking for "next generation" graphics to go along with the new nifty controller... the Wii will not be able to provide. It will not even support HDTV in any way, shape, or form.
But it will be cheap. All rumors hint of a $200 price point, which would be a record low price for a launch system.
Nintendo knows they can't compete with the huge money backing that Xbox and Playstation have, so they went in a completely different direction, one so different that they aren't even considered competition but more of a companion system for whichever of the "standard" consoles you might choose.
Very smart of Nintendo, and in the end, we win because we get to play something new, even if it doesn't have the flash and sparkle of crazy eyepopping graphics.
For the tech heads out there, who like me, would be scratching their head as to how the hell the system can figure out where the remote is in 3D space, well, it is finally known.
There is a sensor bar that you place below or to the side of your TV. Of course, everyone knows that to determine an object's location, you need at LEAST 3 points (and that's only for 2D); "Triangulation." You'd need an additional point on another plane for 3D.
But there are only TWO points here... the bar, and the remote itself.
Well, it turns out that the bar is about a foot long, at both ends of the bar are a series of IR TRANSMITTERS. That's right, transmitters, not receivers. The entire time I had attempted to tackle the problem assuming the wiimote would be doing the transmitting, but it isn't.
The wiimote instead has a IR detecting CCD camera. The camera "looks" at where you are pointing the remote, and when it sees the two "points" of the sensor bar, it can measure the distance between the points to determine distance. Factoring that it knows what angle the remote is at, and can determine height (at least relative to the sensor bar). And voila, a very simple, inexpensive, and IMO brillant solution to determining relative location. Good stuff!
I'm definitely looking forward to picking one up. Even if we look like silly retards jumping around the house with it.
It is the size of two DVD cases stacked on top of each other.
Yeah, think about that.
The Wiimote (the controller) is pretty freaking brilliant.
This is the wiimote (on the right) with the "nunchuck"(on the left) attachment.
"Wiimote"
Completely different from any controller ever made before. What does it do?
First off, the system knows where the controller is in 3D space. It knows how far it is from the screen. I knows what the orientation of the controller is. The wiimote has a speaker in it as well. This little speaker will be used for something they call "Depth of Sound." For instance, if you shoot an arrow in a game, the sound will originate in your hand in the controller, and then when it hits its target on screen, it will come from your center channel of your surround sound system.
Even the nunchuck attachment is more than just an analog stick. It also houses an accelerometer. When you move it, it can determine how fast it has been moved (though it is incapable of knowing where it is).
So what does this all mean? Well, it means that the Wii might make the ultimate party machine. Getting a bunch of people standing up swinging the remote to simulate hitting a tennis racquet, or playing air-drums, is actually a possibility. Pointing with the remote and shooting at the screen as well is a possibility, imagine shooting with the trigger, and then swinging the remote to perform a melee attack... yep, all possible. Pretty damn cool.
Is it going to replace current controllers and kill off the competition? Hardly. There are definitely new things that can be done with the controller, new experiences, and crazy whacky fun to be had, but it is hardly something that can replace a standard controller for serious competitive gaming, or even long play periods. I mean, sure, they say gamers don't get much physical activity, but this wiimote is certainly not going to suddenly make gamers love physical exertion. Good for parties, not good for clan matches.
In fact, this has spawned a whole new concept. The Wii is being viewed as the ultimate "second" console. Hence the creation of the term "Wii60" which is a combination of the names Wii and Xbox 360. I mean, heck you can even buy both machines for the cost of 1 PS3.
But not all is perfect in the wii small world of wii.
The machine is, without a shadow of a doubt, seriously underpowered when compared to the big boys X360 and PS3.
In fact, it is little more than a souped up Gamecube in a smaller case. A little bit more RAM, a little bit better GPU, a higher clocked CPU.
If you were looking for "next generation" graphics to go along with the new nifty controller... the Wii will not be able to provide. It will not even support HDTV in any way, shape, or form.
But it will be cheap. All rumors hint of a $200 price point, which would be a record low price for a launch system.
Nintendo knows they can't compete with the huge money backing that Xbox and Playstation have, so they went in a completely different direction, one so different that they aren't even considered competition but more of a companion system for whichever of the "standard" consoles you might choose.
Very smart of Nintendo, and in the end, we win because we get to play something new, even if it doesn't have the flash and sparkle of crazy eyepopping graphics.
For the tech heads out there, who like me, would be scratching their head as to how the hell the system can figure out where the remote is in 3D space, well, it is finally known.
There is a sensor bar that you place below or to the side of your TV. Of course, everyone knows that to determine an object's location, you need at LEAST 3 points (and that's only for 2D); "Triangulation." You'd need an additional point on another plane for 3D.
But there are only TWO points here... the bar, and the remote itself.
Well, it turns out that the bar is about a foot long, at both ends of the bar are a series of IR TRANSMITTERS. That's right, transmitters, not receivers. The entire time I had attempted to tackle the problem assuming the wiimote would be doing the transmitting, but it isn't.
The wiimote instead has a IR detecting CCD camera. The camera "looks" at where you are pointing the remote, and when it sees the two "points" of the sensor bar, it can measure the distance between the points to determine distance. Factoring that it knows what angle the remote is at, and can determine height (at least relative to the sensor bar). And voila, a very simple, inexpensive, and IMO brillant solution to determining relative location. Good stuff!
I'm definitely looking forward to picking one up. Even if we look like silly retards jumping around the house with it.
posted by Gigaflop at
6:35 AM
2 Comments:
i'm not being too serious here. but it crossed my mind: what a mean title. i wonder if you'd have named it differently if your roomie was japanese. of course, i mean no offense at all =)
back to topic...
i was wondering, in the new generation of wireless controllers, why is the "nunchuck" wired? (besides the obvious nunchaku usage) wouldn't two separate, one-handed devices permit a bit more freedom? and if you really wanted to use them as nunchakus, there could be an optional wire attachment.
By
Anonymous, at 11:51 AM
The Wii is both Small and Japanese. It is a perfectly factual topic. Amusing to say the least though, and no, if I had a japanese roomate, I would probably have made it worse.
The problem is, I imagine, for Nintendo, is keeping costs down. Adding wireless to the nunchuck adds weight, complexity, necessitates another battery. Imagine that you have 4 sets of these, that would be 8 wireless signals (which is more than blutooth can handle), in addition to managing 8 batteries.
I agree, would be cool, but just not worth the cost/complexity. I think they made the right decision given current technological limitations.
By
Gigaflop, at 1:14 PM
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