The good, the bad and the ugly from E3 2011 - Part 1: The Hardware

I, literally, have no idea where to begin. Being across the world and, let's face it, pretty much broke at the moment means I wasn't actually there. But, with E3 2011 just finished and having watched parts of it online and following up the news, there's a few things that caught my eye, a few things I'm particularly excited about and a few things that flew over my head. Let's break it down.

Hardware wise, not much was unveiled that we didn't expect, really. Nintendo had already unveiled their 3DS a few months ago, and with no new consoles in development (that we know of). Kinect and PS Move both came out months ago, so what could interest us? Well, turns out that both Nintendo and Sony had an ace up their sleeve, Microsoft either not bothering or playing their cards close at heart. After all, the rumoured X-box portable hasn't been properly denied yet.

Front

Sony unveiled their new portable console, PS Vita, previously codenamed NGP, sure to be known as PSV. Aside from the obvious hardware updates to their previous PSP, the PSV will offer full backwards compatibility with current and future PSP titles. 

Back

Furthermore, the PSV takes a few cues from the current portable behemoth, the Nintendo DS: the PSV will not only have a touchscreen this time, but, also, notice the backside. Yes, that's a freakin' touchpad, or arsepad, if you will. Just don't, for the sake of decency, call it a touchbutt or anything similar. It will be quite interesting to see what kind of games would utilize a touchpad on a handheld's ass, and this author has no idea what they could be. Sexy Beach, maybe? Who knows. With the addition of an extra analog stick as well on the chasis of the PSP, this just feels like Sony trying to one-up the DS. Overkill much?

Far more interesting, in my opinion, is the Nintendo Wii U, which, let's face it, sounds just like a curse word. We still don't know all that much about the new console (previously rumoured as Wii 2) in terms of hardware capabilities. From what I can gather, it will run a much better processor and graphics capabilities, which was the main complaint of hard-core gamers about the Wii, who viewed it more as a family console/toy rather than a proper gaming console. What really stands out and grabs the attention, though, is the controller.

Just look at that. It looks like the bastard child of an ipad, a DS and a PSP on steroids, doesn't it? It looks almost as ridiculous as the controllers of consoles such as the N64, the Atari 5200, the Sega Dreamcast (more on that later) and the original X-Box controller. 

The N64 controller. Abandoned,
because Poseidon wanted his trident back.

The Atari 5200 controller, also known as Gordon Gecko's other phone

The Dreamcast controller.

No joke here, it's enough of 

a joke as it is.

Contrary to popular belief, it was
actually smaller than the console. Barely.

                                              

                                                                                             

However, seeing the unveiling video for it more than makes those teasing, nay, fun-poking-bordeline-on-bullying thoughts go back in their mum's basement and cry their eyes out (watch it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4e3qaPg_keg ).

Most loved handheld ever

Damn it, I've gone and gave you the video that makes talking about it seem pointless now. Oh well, I shall not be deterred, in any case. Yes, it may look as if it plays like a glorified ipad, but honestly, think of the possibilities. A controller with a touchscreen that can and will be used for most games as inventory/stats/map? A clear nod to Nintendo's own DS, but a welcome one nonetheless. Seamlessly turning that touchscreen into the main screen when the TV is needed to function as, well, a TV? Touch capabilities that go way beyond of those of the DS in terms of gameplay (and the ever important coolness factor)? Doubling as an ipad when it comes to board games, video calls et al? I honestly haven't been this excited about a Nintendo product since the original Gameboy.

I know this phrase gets tossed around so much by hacks and enthusiasts alike that it's almost lost all meaning, but Wii U could revolutionize gaming in terms of just what is possible to do with it, if only it doesn't screw up. It seems that ever since Wii, Nintendo has embraced its new role as a family company much more than anyone had realized. Microsoft and Sony with Kinect and Move have only just catched up to Wii's welcoming disposition towards non-gamers, and Nintendo rushes forward to the next step, solidifying their claim to the family market. It still seems like more of a toy and less of a gaming console, somehow, but for what they seem to be aiming, it's the best thing to be.

I mentioned Dreamcast before, Sega's swansong, also known as the "best console never sold". While mid-to-end 90ies the 32-bit Sega Saturn, the Sony PlayStation (Sony being a newcomer at the time) and the 64-bit Nintendo 64 were duking it out for supremacy, with the PlayStation winning over the Saturn but not by that great a margin, the end of the decade was the worst timing ever for Sega. The Dreamcast was, technologically, so much ahead of the previous generation it wasn't even funny. Unfortunately, Sony waited. And so did the fans before buying their next console. By the time Playstation 2 came out, the Dreamcast was already so weakened it was K.O.ed almost instantaneously. Of course, by then a new challenger appeared, namely the Microsoft X-box, while Nintendo waited even more before presenting the GameCube, and by then it was too late. To survive, Nintendo later on had to appeal to the family gamer more than the hard-core one, who had turncoated over to PS2 or X-box by that time, but that's another story.

The internet being what it is, and everyone and their mother having an opinion, Wii U is already known in certain circles as Nintendo's Dreamcast. Doubts of its commercial success are already getting plastered on gaming websites, fears of Nintendo's ill timing in unveiling their next-gen console so much earlier than its main competitors. However, all those fear-mongers are either not in a possession of all the facts or, worse, choose to ignore them. After all, not all consoles to be released too early or too late failed, mostly by Nintendo themselves, coming to think of it: the N64 and the Gamecube, while not the best-selling consoles ever, still sold more than their fair share. And it pays to remember that Nintendo has a huge library of franchises that always had and probably always will sell like hotcakes. Unlike a huge majority of X-box 360 and PS3, Nintendo fans won't jump ship if the next iteration of their console just isn't up to par: they buy Nintendo consoles to play Zelda, Mario, Mario Kart. And so many more. And, since Wii, they buy Nintendo consoles to play with their families, their friends, they buy them just to have fun. Nintendo's core consumer demographic has shifted to the point it's in a category of its own.

Yeah, they may be unveiling their next step before the season starts. But they're also playing a whole other ballgame as well, so they can make whatever damned schedule they choose.

Yes, you can, cute baby rodent thingy. Next part will be about the games of E3. Stay tuned.