Addressing the Wii U Rumours: How Powerful Is the Wii U?

BNBGAMING’s Editor-in-Chief Martin Watts dissects the latest rumours concerning the Wii U’s tech specs and argues why high-end graphics and advanced processing power aren’t necessarily the key to success.

[Cyb3r]

If the WiiU is less powerful than current consoles then howcome the Zelda tech demo running on the console look better than anything I have seen of PS3 and 360?? Was the tech demo fake or something?

[PopRocks359]

No it wasn't fake. People should look up the videos of it on YouTube. Nintendo showed people that the demo was in real time; they could shift the camera around and change the lighting effects from day to night instantly and seamlessly.

Also there's a Wii U post here on N4G that has a video showing that the Wii U, based on the specs we know about, cannot possibly be weaker than current gen hardware. yabhero linked it below.

[browngamer41]

@Sidbar
Cool..even going off of what you said ten percent is still pretty low..ten percent was shown off and that includes the controller tech? Damn I can't wait to see what this beast is truly capable of then!

[PopRocks359]

I love that I got 3 disagrees for stating facts. Go figure.

http://www.youtube.com/watc...

^This video shows that the Zelda tech demo was real and in real time. They can shift the camera and change the lighting seamlessly.

http://n4g.com/news/974731/...

^And here's the video on the Wii U's specs that proved that it'll still be more powerful than current gen hardware.

[sikbeta]

@richierich

It's a demo dude, demos always look better than final games because they don't showcase much

O-T

Even if new rumors say wii-u is on par with PS360, I don't believe it, doesn't make sence, current gen tech is so freaking old is not even funny to discuss...

[Jazz4108]

About that video there was no system shown othe than a controller and while he was showing off the controller the game or cgi demo still was playing. Theo nly thing he could effect was the daytime nightime everything else was locked. Since there was no system shown this could of been done on a high end pc or a ps360. No proof in that video to back up the recent saying that the consol is not that powerfull.

[Shok]

No, it wasn't fake. It was running in a native HD resolution (can't remember if it was 720 or 1080) in real time, and in 60 FPS.

Reggie went on to say that they actually just quickly threw that demo together and that it only used 10% of the Wii U's power.

Epic came out last month and pretty much reiterated the same thing Reggie said, saying that they can do TONS more than the Zelda demo on just the Unreal 3 Engine.

[ChickeyCantor]

" 10% of the Wii U's power. "

He wasn't talking about power specifically he was talking about control input as well.

[Shok]

Wah? That really doesn't make sense, how does power equate into control input? Pretty sure he was talking about raw graphical capability.

[ChickeyCantor]

He was talking about full potential of the console. The strength of the console is the Wii-pad.

So far they, in it's totality, only showed SOME ideas for input and technical specs trough the zelda demo.

Reggie is a PR dude, not a tech guy. He probably just made that 10% up from different aspects. Even if he was just talking about technical specs, it would be a major let down if that's 10%. The fact there was no real A.I involved. No controlled character etc. This was a scripted scene.
( besides you CAN'T make an estimates on early dev-kits. so im not buying it, I mean his 10% just for tech-specs)

Remember how great Ps2 ingame cutscenes looked compared to actual gameplay? Thats because most of the processing powers were released from all the elements of A.I. and the likes. So I really hope those 10% aren't just a technical estimate from the Zelda/bird tech demo. I'm pretty sure he was talking about input as well.

The full potential of the console hasn't been shown yet. Including input.

His quote:
"I'd say of what we have shown? Maybe only 10%.
There is alot more to be shown from the games and the EXPERIENCES. But what we are communicating is this idea of 2 screens...How it can create new and different experiences".

Nintendo isn't going just for raw-power and will never promote that in such a fashion. They clearly avoid that question all the time by giving obscure answers like : "The developers are contempt with the console and won't be disappointed".

It's REGGIE we are talking about. Not some other snob from MS-Xbox trying to cater to some teenage demograph.
Reggie is a snob on his own, always dodging the bullet with some defense mechanism people tend to tag along with.

[Ck1x]

@sidar: Um, the reason that ps2 cut-scenes looked so good compared to the in game graphics is because those scenes were pre-rendered CGI's streaming from the disc. Not something that was ever done in realtime on ps2 at all!

[dark-hollow]

And this is only a tech demo probably made quickly without much optimizing on old underclocked models.

That mean main games through the years of the wii u will even blow the Zelda demo out of the water.

[jacksheen0000]

I have to agree with sidar. When you don't add AI, characters/objects, physics, etc to a Tech demo it means you're not getting the fullness of the console's processing power.

Also, the Zelda demo pre-scriped cut scenes rendering in real time doesn't really show off the real potential of the Wii U's graphic capability compared to actual gameplay.

So my questions is....

In the Zelda tech demo was Zelda fully controllable during the Demo? NO

Was the camera angle in the Zelda demo was fully functional? Partially it was.

Was there any other multiply character running around in the Zelda demo? No, Just One Big spider.

No need to go any further....

[dark-hollow]

Have you ever considered the amount of time and effort they put into a new console tech demo compared to a full game with way longer development time?

The demo could be made in haste to be ready in time for E3.

Don't believe me?
Look here:

http://www.youtube.com/watc...

Oh my what is that? Oh why it is a pre-rendred, non playable tech demo for the gamecube, link and Ganon fighting in a small dark room, no ai, no multiple NPCs, nothing!

Now let's look at twilight princess for the game cube:
http://www.youtube.com/watc...

Even when its fully playable, with multiple NPCs roaming the town and AI, it still BLOWS the tech demo out of the water!!!

So there is a high possibility that a fully rendered Zelda game that have more effort put into it and more optimized than a "demo" will looks better.

[sikbeta]

Based on what Gaf community says, it was an staged demo in which you can only move the camera and switch from night to day, no AI, no Character imputs and all that

Doesn't matter, I refuse to believe N went with the equivalent tech from 8 years ago, it's freaking nonsense imho XP

[Mr_cheese]

@richierich

Hogwash, the tech demo isn't better than anything you've seen on the 360 or ps3 unless you've not been playing many games. Killzone 2 and 3, gears of war, uncharted 2 and 3, skyrim.

The tech demo reminds me of fable and I think the graphics are on par with that.

The tech demo for the Killzone 2 was better. I'm not saying it doesn't look good and the console hasn't come a long way, but I'm saying it's not better than everything already out, going from the tech demo.

[ziggurcat]

it certainly looks amazing - a far cry better than nintendo's current system - but better than the PS3/360? that's debateable. i would argue that games like uncharted 2/3, killzone, demons/dark souls, gears of war, and forza look better than this tech demo.

before anyone clicks disagree - i'm not saying that the wii u's zelda demo looks like crap or that any other games for that system will look awful.

[Lucretia]

exactly, people who made the statements of it looking better than ps3 or 360 games obviously only owned a wii this gen

[Lucretia]

lol that zelda demo didnt have better graphics or effects than gears or uncharted/ god of war or halo. it was impressive and looked great but dont fool ur self. i didnt see realistic weather, water physics, dirty and character expressions or high detailed textures.

i dont think the wii u will be weaker but please lol dont blow it up

[mcstorm]

I am getting sick of people who keep talking about power. Since when has console gaming been about power? Games are not about how they look they are about how they make you feel when you play them. If power had anything to do with the sucess of a console then how come the ps1 out sold the n64 or why did the ps2 out sell the wii and xbox and how come the wii out sold the 360 and ps3?

The device is a games console and it is the games that make people buy the console not the power of the console. If your that bothered about power buy a pc every 12 months as consoles are less powerful than consoles.

But from what i have seen of the wii you i the zelda demo looked amazing.

[Dark_king]

you new to gaming are what,Its always been about power more power allows for games to be better.Not saying power makes a game great because it does not it allows a game to be greater.Power is always going to be important to core gamers.
But the masses just need something to keep there attention so power is not as important to them.However dont kid yourself if the game came out for two platforms that are equal price one with half the res of the other the masses will go for the one with more power.

[mcstorm]

Im not new to gaming ive been playing games since the nes days but i disagree the core do not go for power. They go for games they enjoy the most on the console that fits them the best. It has noting to do with which game looks better on which console. Look at this gen for example how many 3ds party games that look better on the ps3 have sold more than the 360 version? Plus from what you are saying if core gamers want the best looking version of the game they would all pickup the pc version. Again how many pc versions of a game have sold more than the console version of the game?

Yes it is nice having amazing looking games but this is the the main reason why people buy games. Look back at some of the best selling games this gen we have cod, mario kart, super mario bros, halo 3 and none of them are the best looking games then gen yet have sold more than the games of the same gore that have better graphics.

[Dark_king]

see your thinking of power as graphics like the masses do.There is so much more to a systems power then graphics.Ai,sound,and physics are also part of a systems power.Don't overlook these as a side feature a great fps needs great physics to be playable.Better physics require more system resources.
To answer your question lots of pc games out sell there console version.You just don't hear much about it.Mostly because there not those week 1 sells everyone cares about.There also discounted deals on places like steam that push sells long past the time a store would still have them in stock.
Again a system being more powerful doesn't make a great game just makes a game able to be greater.

[yabhero]

I saw this guy analyzing the WiiU specs... after wtaching that there no way WiiU could be weaker or on par, the CPU alone outclasses PS3 and 360 and that's been confirmed.
http://n4g.com/news/974731/...

[browngamer41]

I love it when facts are used on N4G..so rare around here when it comes to Nintendo.

[Mr_cheese]

official specs have been confirmed yet. Everything is speculation and guess work based on what 'insiders' are saying hence why article is still classed as a rumour

[Ima9er4Life]

The demo was runnin off of the ps3, no joke

[limewax]

No multiplat demos were running off 360/ps3

go back and watch the trailer that includes a guy using the wii-u controller to change the lighting and camera angle etc. That was not a ps3 controller so I have no idea where you got that from or your agrees

http://www.youtube.com/watc...

[awesomeperson]

I'm pretty sure it was sarcasm.

[-Ninja-]

I dont give a crap how powerful any of the next gen consoles are. As long as next gen isnt like this one (90% brown shooters and COD clones), then i'll be happy.

[shackdaddy]

I honestly think its gonna be the same. Shooters haven't seemed to die down at all.

[ozstar]

I dk. I think the shooter genre will implode if it continues to demand 200 million dollar plus budgets, and massive marketing, in order to achieve even minor success.

If all that's left is COD and Battlefield, and they make the majority of the gross, that genre is pretty much dead.

Syndicate, Mirrors Edge, etc. We'll see how next gen goes.

[AWBrawler]

Idk when this happened, i hope its a phase. you can't tell me you saw this shooter craze coming last gen. heck last gen gave us DMC 3, Kingdom hearts, Pikmin, Fire Emblem, Killer 7, Thirteen, Panzer dragoon orta, Jade Empire, Phantasy Star Universe, indigo prophecy, chibi robo, and so many wildly creative games.

Now everyone is waiting around for the next COD or shooter of choice

[Instigator]

With higher budget comes safer bets. Gamers seem starved for shooters and the template is pretty much "perfected", making shooters the safest one. The online boom didn't help, either.

Nowadays we have to look to the digital market for original games, but that one's almost overloaded with physics platform puzzlers.

[AWBrawler]

I agree cos i see games i wish i could play using buttons, but they are on the app store on my i devices.

The creativity is fading

[busytoad]

Stupid nintendo they screwed up the gamecube with a F*cked up controller,they made the wii a under powered motion device. i havent bought a nintendo product since the n64 and the wii-u looks like a i-pad wanna be. so sad nintendo so sad.

[TotalHitman]

I liked the gamecube controller, it felt great in my small hands. The most comfortable controller to date for me.

[LX-General-Kaos]

I'm sure everyone here has had enough of the rumors by now.. for all consoles. Everything we know so far for everything is %100 speculation. No need to cause anymore riots over this likely false info.

No matter how powerful the Nintendo Wii U consoles is, you can count on Nintendo to provide the console with a new generation of AAA exclusives. That is all that really matters when the dust settles.

E3 is about 2 months away. Until then we should all go enjoy our Nintendo games that we have available to us. Save all of the madness for the real discussion at E3 2012. Where we will have pure facts. There will be articles like this about everyday until then. You are wasting your time.

Rated E For Everyone

[mike1up]

Very well said, and I couldn't agree more.

[busytoad]

my money for next gen console is definatley going twords a ps3 if they keep the controller and a xbox if they keep the controller and make their console not red ring.

nintendo are sell outs all they want is money and they are doing all these gimmics/copying to get it.

word of advice to nintendo go back to a console with a controller not some lame i-pad wannabe.

[mike1up]

PS3... next gen... what?

Ummm you're about 6 years too late buddy, but good luck with that.

[busytoad]

ps4 son

[ozstar]

You're a fool if you believe MS and Sony won't copy this idea.

And you're blind if you also believe that MS won't prioritize Kinect 2 over Halo next gen.

[BitbyDeath]

Actually Sony did it first back in 06.

http://au.ps3.ign.com/artic...

Nintendo copied them, but i'm sure this will get overshadowed just like the Eyetoy being the first to do motion control.

[ozstar]

@BitbyDeath, wrong link

Huh? The DS for starters, and there has been touchscreen phones for a long time, and don't forget Atari

[BitbyDeath]

I thought you were referring to screens being able to interact with consoles.

EDIT: Link works fine for me, here's a quote from it.

"Players will have the opportunity to download specialized software that will allow them to turn their PSPs into a wing-view mirror to see what's happening behind you on the track. "

[jacen100]

@ busytoad you talk some crap . go troll in the 360 section again

[Ck1x]

I hate to tell you, but they all just want money! That's why they are in business for... You would be very naive to think that either Sony or Microsoft created consoles because they care about you for some reason

[CaptainN]

Where are you...the twilight zone? PS3 is not next gen so I don't know what your refering to with that line. Next you go on to say Nintendo are sellouts? Who exactly are they sellouts to? All they want is money you state......um what compnay doesn't? Doing all these gimmicks and copying. Really? Really? So the Move and Kinect weren't blatant copies of motion controls that Nintendo made standard? The controllers you love on ps3 and 360 aren't blatant copies of the snes controller layout? And as for the lame Ipad wanna be quote of yours...you do realize they have been developing their tablet controller for many years before Apple put them out for computing. Apple may have beat them to the punch, but Nintendo isn't making a portable computer, they are making a controller with extra input. Two different beasts. That's like saying the Ipad is just a giant DS because DS had touchscreens first.

[metroid79]

The tech demo's were the 1st tech-demo's in gaming history to be minipulated in real time,they were also on underclocked 1st gen dev-kits.

Epic were saying UE3.9/Samariton demo,could do better graphics than Zelda demo on WiiU,the WiiU has officially between 1gig/8gig of main RAM,ps3 has 256mb of RAM so in terms of texture res on a system with say 1gig RAM you could get 4x the texture detail,thats without the special Power7 cpu,Watson tech,EDRAM,its just in another league to be honest.

[Ck1x]

@metroid79: well thanks for presenting those facts of what the Wiiu is capable of because it means nothing in the end! Ps3's CELL chip equals the second coming of God and can do realtime raytracing, while producing graphics better than that of Toy Story 2. So no system ever will be able to surpass its power, as Sony truly made it future proof! (extreme, extreme sarcasm here!) just trying to channel all of the fanboys at once, to share some of the delusions with the rest of you all...

[bahabeast]

IMO i think even if the wii u is on par with current gen systems it will still sell.

1. all current gen systems are affordable to most gamers so everyone most likely has a ps3 and a 360 mabe even a wii.

2. People are just plain bored wit the current systems in terms of new ideas and something diff to look @ and play.

3. Microsoft and sony aint bringing nothing new for next year n half two yeas atleast.

good price and reasonable specs atleast ps360 level is a win for nintendo, with ninty million selling i.p's and a new way 2 play ur games believe it or not all of us mite be playing a wii u few months from now.

[jacksheen0000]

@dark-hollow

what you fail to realize is that when you add AI, multiply characters and objects, physic, fully functional play mechanics, etc it poses a huge challenge for the game developers to keep things running all together with out any slow down, frame rate drop, Pop-ups, etc. And when complication does arises,a game developer would be forced to make changes, and take away/drop framerate/use less polygons or graphics just to keep things running beautifully with out any hiccups.

That being said, the Zelda demo poses no real challenges for the Wii U's processing power.

Sounds familiar does it? Yes, you guess it! Optimization.

Nuff said.

[PopRocks359]

http://www.computerandvideo...

Valve's Source engine is big on physics and AI.

[ziggurcat]

we'll know how powerful the wii u (and the other two systems) is when nintendo releases the official specs.

until then, these sites need to stop speculating.

[Gigglefist]

"Editor-in-Chief Martin Watts dissects the latest rumours concerning the Wii U’s tech specs and argues why high-end graphics and advanced processing power aren’t necessarily the key to success"

...and yet this is what everyone attacked the Wii for lacking...

[BnBMartin]

Very true, but the Wii has also sold more than the rest.

Also, I agree with Ziggurcat (despite penning the article) - my article analyses the rumours that are incoming but as I state in it, far too often websites will either make rumours up or speculate as if what they're saying has an inkling of truth in it. I, like most people, won't believe anything until Nintendo tells us, although I imagine it'll be quite some time until they do!

[Gigglefist]

I was disappointed with the Wii, but I'm keeping an open mind for the Wii U. I truly feel Nintendo can pleasantly surprise me.

[chobit_A5HL3Y]

of course this is only 10% of what the wiiu is capable of lolz if any console maxed out in a tech demo this early on then it'd be pretty sad. as for the tech demo from that link. it doesn't look better than EVERY console game up to now. it's stylized well and looks great, but there's a difference. game looks great but not the best thign out on console right now.

[Pyscho_Mantis]

such lies here lol....

firstly the demo ran at 720p at 30FPS with no AA.
The textures were not great at all and most thing can be achieved on the ps3 or 360 except for maybe the lighting which makes a big difference.
Also remember that though it was real time, it was in a single room (no vast space), with one pre-scripted AI, was not playable (you cannot control link), and had no physics gameplay mechanics etc...

Basically it was not playable and so cannot be judged.

[hennessey86]

We will know when they tell us :/

[Awesome_Gamer]

Wii-U will be probably more powerful than PS3/X360 but it will still look very outdated when PS4/X720 gets released

[Klad]

No, The Wii U WILL be more powerfull & will have newer tech inside, just a quick reminder:

From IBM official website:

"The all-new, Power-based microprocessor will pack some of IBM's most advanced technology into an energy-saving silicon package that will power Nintendo's brand new entertainment experience for consumers worldwide. IBM's unique embedded DRAM, for example, is capable of feeding the multi-core processor large chunks of data to make for a smooth entertainment experience."

http://www-03.ibm.com/press...

THQ: “WiiU is just alot more powerful than current HD consoles it does 1080p very easy.”

Epic: “It will do things current HD consoles simply cant do its going to be a powerful box.”

Epic #2 "That Zelda demo was gorgeous and we can do even more than that "

Crytek: “WiiU devkits are very powerful,the specs are very good”

Vigil Games: “We had the game at the same level as high end pc version in a matter of days and a few lines of code got the game up and running on tablet in 5 mins.”

EA: "Wii U is not a transitional platform, it is a true next generation system."

THQ: http://www.zeldainformer.co...

Crytek: http://hearmiii.blogspot.ca...

http://www.technobuffalo.co...

Vigil Games: http://www.neogaf.com/forum...

EA: http://www.gigwise.com/news...

[JONESY6]

I am done with consoles. PC master race!

[Neko_Mega]

Well it wouldn't be a shock for it to look as good as PS3/360, if Nintendo wants to make alot of money. They are going to need to make the price for the Wii U be at a good spot right from the start.

I would think it would have been better if they just use the 3DS at the controller instand of using some another device.

[Ulf]

This article whines about how developers are complaining about the GPU muscle when they should care about gameplay...

...and THEN, the guy goes on to state that the Wii U's focus is to allow 3rd parties to port games to it.

WTH? Why do you *think* developers are whining about it, if its not as capable as the other platforms the game already runs on? It's because they're spending the majority of their time porting games to a system which can only hit 25fps, rather than 30fps, and then optimizing (or more likely CUTTING features across platforms) more than they would have had to on the other platforms. That time spent improving performance on the Wii U takes *away* from the time needed to implement cool, fun features.

Maybe it makes more sense now, as to why a dev would complain about a new system which is marginally *weaker* than a 6 year old system, eh?

[BnBMartin]

My article does not "whine" about Devs complaining about GPU muscle and I don't think the Devs are even doing anything - these are all rumours from unspecified sources! I was simply analysing the words in the statements that they gave.

Secondly, i do not state that the Wii U's focus is to "allow 3rd parties to port games to it". I say that "a console which can readily accept ports from other existing platforms helps". And it's fair to assume that given that games like Darksiders II and Assassin's Creed III are being released on the system. Again, I don't claim to know the answers, I'm simply analysing the rumours.

If you're going to argue against the article, that's fine - it's an opinion piece and that's what it's designed for. But for the love of God, actually take the time read it properly before writing a half-assed response. I wouldn't be surprised if you didn't even click on the link to it.

[DwightOwen]

"Addressing the Wii U Rumours:"

Stops reading.

[jacen100]

its gonna be a fair bit more powerful than current gen that will be good enough for me and millions others

[metroid79]

WiiU will have the most power Next-gen ps4/720 will be moderately powered,just like thst magazine that claimed 720 GPU will be moderate,because its packing in a Kinect with every console so don't expect a GPU on the same level as WiiU,PS4 has been said to be not much more powerful than PS3 so the only real Next-gen console is WiiU.

Next gen controls
Next gen graphics
Next gen gameplay
Next gen connectivity

WiiU is the only Next-gen console worth getting its got alot of new stuff and looks set to have the best/most diverse game line-up ever in gaming history,the best 3rd party support/games mixed with Nintendo's dominant 1st and 2nd party games this is a dream console.