Wii 2 is 'Project Café', says report - tech specs, controller details claimed

CVG - As if you haven't had enough today, the latest Wii 2 rumour report has emerged - and it's a big one, claiming tech specs and controller details for the not-so-secret-anymore Nintendo console.

French site 01net, which previously released the NGP specs long before any official announcement, has backed up widespread claims that Nintendo will reveal its next console at E3 this year.

[leapfrogger]

Something tells me that "as strong as the Xbox 360, but a bit more powerful" isn't going to be enough for most gamers in a few years.

[gaffyh]

The controller sounds incredibly weird. It looks like they are going to basically make a HD DS, with the controller being the touch screen, and that translating to the stuff on the TV.

[AAACE5]

I should go to McDonald's and order a Nin' Cafe Mocha... and see how they react!

On topic: This part just stuck out to me...

"'Project Café', and sports architecture similar to that of the Xbox 360, "but a bit more powerful".

It says the console will include a custom IBM PowerPC CPU with three cores, a GPU from the ATI R700 family with a shader unit at version 4.1, and at least 512Mb of RAM."

I was just thinking, this is very similar to the 360 and MS just announced a new disc format...

Call it wishful thinking, but could my dream of MS and Nintendo making a console together finally be here?

Doubtful, but I can dream... Kinect and the Wiimote would be kinda interesting!

EDIT: Forgot this part... It says...

"Late 2012 is the release date, and another "big surprise" about the console is set to be revealed at E3, the report concludes."

Anything's possible at this point!

[TreMillz]

the HD controllers was rumored since the early wii days. Sites claimed you would be able to switch the buttons around the screen and what not. Maybe Nintendo is actually going to go through with it this time.

[Baccra]

The Dreamcast/smartphone knock-off controller sounds like it'll cost more than the DS itself.

[darthv72]

just from reading this I can picture a nintendo branded 360 type of system with an ngp type of controller.

Are we so sure this isnt just an extended april fools joke?

If it were real then by 2012 it should have a minimum of 1gb of ram and a quad core power pc chip instead of a tri-core one.

[thats_just_prime]

it will stil be like a gen behind MS and $onys next gen systems. It also sound like they are targeting non gamers again.

I'm bet the next xbox runs off something like an i9 core and probably at least 2gigs of ram.

[ABizzel1]

@gaffyh

That's what I was thinking. It sounds like a DS which is now $99, so it may very well be DS minus a ton of other stuff the put in it.

Weird, but it should be able to work.

[nveenio]

"A bit more powerful than the 360" is the PS3, and if ANYONE tried to release the PS3 as a "new" console, people would be ticked... Scratch that...hardcore gamers would be ticked. The casual crowd will probably eat it up.

[HolyOrangeCows]

"Something tells me that "as strong as the Xbox 360, but a bit more powerful" isn't going to be enough for most gamers in a few years"

Just like Wii isn't "enough" today? I mean, it sucks that they went with so little power, but the industry is going to continue becoming more casual. Slightly more powerful than the 360 would probably work out great for Nintendo next gen.

I doubt Nintendo will deliver for my tastes, as they haven't for two generations, but a touchscreen console controller could be interesting. Then again, we've seen the controller screen gimmick before...it wasn't touchscreen but it was a screen none the less. Why would you want to look from the TV to the screen and back?

[MaxXAttaxX]

So... basically like a PS3?

[palaeomerus]

" "A bit more powerful than the 360" is the PS3, and if ANYONE tried to release the PS3 as a "new" console, people would be ticked... Scratch that...hardcore gamers would be ticked. The casual crowd will probably eat it up."

Nope. The PS3 is only slightly more powerful than the 360.

R700 family is a good bit more powerful than PS3 too.

While unusual, the PS3 wasn't anything special in 2006 when it launched despite all the marketeting to the contrary. Well, it was a blu-ray player too but that's about it. PS3 and 360 are both 2005-eque technology.

R700 was the fastest Card ATI had back in uh..like 2008 I think. So this will probably be able to handle games similar to current console games at 1080P at 30 FPS and some AA.

This description, if true, is of a console based on the graphics technology of a 2008/2009 gaming PC. I really think it should have more than 512 MB of memory though.

[AAACE5]

Power isn't everything!

Ps 1 and 2 were the weakest consoles in past gens, yet they were the best and sold the most!

Wii is holding the top spot right now, even though MS and Sony severely out power it, they are still fighting over 2nd and 3rd place!

Price also plays into it a lot as well.

[evrfighter]

Wow would it kill them to throw in at least 2gb of ram? So they lose a few dimes. Cheap bastards

[MaxXAttaxX]

There's a huge difference.

PS1 and PS2 may have been the weaker systems of their time, BUT they were WITHIN that gen's standards.
Wii is an entire gen behind when it comes to power.

[fr0sty]

I was initially excited for this console, but if those specs are true, count me out. Other than the GPU, it's weaker than the competition that has been on the market for 5 years now. That's no way to compete.

[Anon1974]

I don't understand why anyone is surprised by this. When the Wii released it was referred to in the hardware department as "Two GameCube's duct tapped together." It was by far the most underpowered of the consoles released and it sold like hotcakes.

Nintendo obviously wants to keep the price down again. Having a console slightly more powerful than a 360 makes sense to me. I mean, how many developers actually push the 360 to it's limits? Sure you could put out a kickass, hardware beast but if it bankrupts developers trying to use all those resources and it's priced out of the average Wii owners reach - what's the point?

[MaxXAttaxX]

The Wii is not in the same level, so it can't compete.
I have a Wii and it's just... different. A beast of its own.
If you say it's just a GameCube with motion controls and a cool interface, then you wouldn't be too far from the truth.

Don't get me wrong, I really like it. But there are only 2 real next-gen consoles.

[smoothdude]

Yeah, I mean if Sony and Microsoft don't intend to release a new system till 2014-15, then Nintendo will be able to compete. Maybe it is a test to see who they do against Sony and Microsoft.

[HardCover]

At first I thought to myself "Hm, that PC I bought months ago is much better than that...."

Then I remembered this is Nintendo and these people started as a toy company. They're making something fun for everyone, not just fun for the enthusiast.

I'm OK with this.

[moparful99]

Looks like I'm not buying yet another nintendo console.. They just keep dissapointing me... 512 mb of ram in 2012? Get with it nintendo!

[KotC]

Does Nintendo realy need anything other than a bit more powerfull 360. I mean look at the Wii in SD and we all still play it ugly graphics and all. IMO a Wii HD thats just as powerfull as todays HD consoles could serve Nintendo for a long time. Nintendo has never been known for pushing graphics. So IMO this is realy all Nintendo needs and the hardware would be cost effective. Nintendo isn't as rich as Sony or MS so they can't sink billions in the latest tech.

[DrVosknocker]

Where to start on this...oh well.

[Venoxn4g]

yeah, riiiiiiiiiight :) (about not being rich) ..

[SuperLupe]

I actually think this gen they made more money than MS and Sony together X 2..

edit: and dont forget, they've been making major money with their handhelds for decades now.

[KotC]

So you guys wouldn't buy a Wii HD that's just as powerfull as a 360 or PS3? Even if it was priced at say $350? I thought you guys were gamers.

[TheMysterion]

I think kotc means it's not a huge company like sony or microsoft. All nintendo makes is videogames. The other two are large corporations. And to every skeptic out there remember that you haven't heard the kiler feature yet.

It seems like the new system won't support motion gaming. This disappoints me.

[MostJadedGamer]

The thing is power is a lot more then graphics. Its physics, AI, the amount of stuff on screen, and too many other things to name.

That is why 3rd parties just put most of their games on the PS3, and 360, and not the Wii. The power difference was so great that it was either not possible to put those games on the Wii or it wasnt worth the trouble of trying.

So once again Nintendo will not only have a Last Gen console, but will also have almost no 3rd party support.

[NLGSean]

@ TheMysterion

It HAS to support motion gaming if it will be backwards compatible with the Wii... The system could have full Wii-mote support...

[Fat Onion]

maybe nintendo will come out with another system 2 years after PS4 that will blow away everything graphically....thats perhaps their game plan. I really dont care cause thats a long time from now. o well.

[A7XEric]

Definitely agreed. Nintendo is fucking retarded if they think they can release a system that is only marginally better looking (if at all) better looking than what is out right now.

I'd have no problem with the system being slightly underpowered in comparison to PS4/Xbox 720, but Nintendo can't keep putting last gen visuals on a next gen system.

[DrVosknocker]

Agreed, The CPU sounds fine, but it needs at least 2GB system ram (preferably 4GB, which is still cheap) and since they're sticking with ATi. At least a 6870 with 2GB ram, by the time it launches that will be cheap for an OEM also.

[ChickeyCantor]

"e, but it needs at least 2GB system ram (preferably 4GB"

FOR WHAT?

Are you a developer?
PS3/360 games run on 512mb (or less).

I know 4gb is a good thing, but they will just abuse it and rank up the price.

[turnerdc]

Yeah, they sure are retarded! I mean look what happened with them this gen! They're Wii was a complete failure, it didn't sell at all! Oh wait...yes it did.

[SephireX]

This is ridiculous if true. A console releasing in late 2012 only barely more powerful than a console that released seven years before it? I hope this is a joke or I no longer respect Nintendo.

[Trroy]

People said the same thing when the Wii was about to come out...

[turnerdc]

You're a little late with that argument. Started about 4 years ago. That's OK though, the hate train can always fit more people.

[krazykombatant]

LOL hate all you want, you certainly won't be missed. If the next ninty console is a bit more powerful than the 360 (which is essentially a ps3). I think that pretty damn good considering the graphics on a ps3. Remember these are just rumors. You need to consider the fact that nintendo IS NOT a high graphics game, and it's never been about 3rd party devs. Their first party characters carry their consoles. Don't like nintendo fine go and join the line of "hardcore gamers" which of late only seems to involve people that play shooters and hack 'n slash games.

[ProjectVulcan]

R700 could mean anything up to a Radeon 4890, or 800 shaders. 512mb RAM could also easily refer to just video RAM for example, so the machine could have 512 video and 512 system for a total of 1GB. A Radeon 4890 is no slouch even today, and is plenty faster than anything PS3 or 360 could do.

Even if the GPU is 'only' a 4770 class part, it would still be at least twice as powerful as 360 or PS3. Of course this means it will likely be vastly outpowered by any new sony or microsoft machine. It would mean however it would have the best console multi platform versions by a long way until the HD successors appear.

Something like a 4770 level performance would be capable of 1080p games, although the target resolution would suggest they would still be aiming for 720p.

[palaeomerus]

It would mean 1080P games at > 30 fr/s or possibly 60 FPS at 720P with lots of AA. It ought to look pretty nice.

[TheTwelve]

I said the DS would fail but the touch-screen helped to prove me completely wrong.

I said the Wii would flop but the motion controls helped to prove me completely wrong.

I keep thinking Nintendo doesn't have the money to hang with Sony and Microsoft but somehow they always do. Maybe they just get lucky. Maybe they know something nobody else does.

I would say that they have a fanbase that will buy anything but Nintendo products HAVE flopped in the past.

So who knows what will happen...I'm done guessing about Nintendo.

12

[fatstarr]

the Nintendo fan base is pretty die hard.
:D im glad im apart of it.

and im glad they are taking initiative to move to the next cycle.

[jjank11]

Its quite simple to explain. You sell something to the casual masses, that a hardcore gamer recognizes as a gimmick or as something not that viable for a hardcore gamer, and it sells well because it captures the casual sheeple.

I've enjoyed Nintendo products but the DS and Wii, for me at least, are horrible. The whole touch and motion things are gimmicks that are really only good for certain types of games, and very few at that. I remember playing Metroid 3 and how good the motion control was done, but even while I was playing, I kept saying to myself...I just want to use a damn regular controller already(i.e. xbox or ps3 controllers). Motion controls are not conducive for long episodes of gaming.

Nintendo has plenty of money to hang around. They need to put that to good use if they want to compete in the future. A slight upgrade over xbox or ps3 won't cut the mustard.

[fatstarr]

4700 gpu is way too weak -_-
its good to compete with the ps3 today
but the ps4 is gonna be epic.

Nintendo needs dual gtx 550s Minimum. and that card isnt that much to write home about.

they should take a page from sony and at least go future proof. but if this is the fabled system with the upgrade ability i might take back my comment.

[Arnon]

Sony's "future proof" plan cost them around $4-$5 billion and they lost more than they gained from the first 5 years of the PS2's life.

Nintendo has done nothing but be a success. Their products fly off the shelves and their games are some of the highest scoring titles of all time. Would it be cool if the next Nintendo console was future proof? Yeah, but I think Nintendo will do just fine.

[tmoss726]

Dual GTX 550s cost $300.....

[Trevonn]

@arnon during ps1 and 2 era nintendo were almost pushed out of console gaming

[RevXM]

@tmoss726

Wasnt a BD player 1200 bucks when the ps3 realeased and were like... 600?

They can make a console with very high end like stuff, because they can make money on it over time.

I can totally see Ps4 (If released 2012) with AMD 7000 series GPU or similar (about a year old card when the system launches) and a total of 8+ GB ram isnt unrealistic at all seing that even some GPUs have 3-4 GB RAM. For you who wonder what RAM can be used for, go play crysis (Hint destructable environments, open world, more stuff in it etc...)

This time I am sure Sony wont have brand new inhouse or partially inhouse developed tech like CELL and Blu-ray was. They might use both CELL and Bluray in their next system though but with much greater performance. Much upgraded versions of that hardware present in ps3.
Cell might just be there as a extra cpu even for the sake of B/C atleast, I hope.

IT wont be too expensive and they can hopefully afford a really fast SSD.
A mid range replaceable PCI SSD (740 MB/s read write? wich is mid range now in that cetgory) with some sort of TRIM function.

Well enough about Sony this is a Nintendo rumor article.

Im not impressed much by the hardware mentioned in the article. Yes it would beat the crap out of PS3 and 360, but it would be a 7.5 gen system really.

And a tri core CPU? Really XBOX 360 is the only system I know wich uses a tri core cpu.
I dont see why they would want a custom 3 core when they prolly get a slightly more powerful quad for the same price.

And the controller sounds weird.
Display? really?
I could see nintendo do it, but a large HD display on the controller?... what for?
It will be the most expensive controller in the history. Isnt it more likely to be a touch panel like the backside of the NGP rather than a HD display in that size?

And WII mote sensor on the Controller as well?
Sounds crazy to me.

Well thats my thoughts atleast.

[extermin8or]

@Arnon yh unfortunately their games do get high ratings despite the fact that most of the are the same games remade over and over and over for like the last 20 years -_-

[DOMination]

Might not be that more powerful than 360 but at least it'll get all the awesome multiplats that currently bypass the wii and make it a weaker proposition.

[xCaptainAmazing]

Seriously, go with Intel or AMD even. IBM's a reputable company for sure, but why wouldn't you go with where PCs/Macs are going right now? Developing games for the same architecture across the board is complete win, and I suspect the new offerings from Sony and Microsoft are less likely to use PowerPC.

Edit: Apparently they've been going with PowerPC so far because it is a RISC architecture which makes a bit more sense for a gaming machine than CISC. Then again, I would probably just go with a beefed up ARM processor like you see in mobile devices if the technology allowed it. Would make porting a dream probably, as it is also RISC based.

As a matter of fact, I'm putting my chips down right now. The next Xbox and PlayStation will use ARM CPUs.

[ChickeyCantor]

They bought some rights to the PowerPC architecture.( if im not mistaken)
PowerPC isn't bad, it actually has great performance. Unlike PC's, game consoles are dedicated to games.

Whether you use PowerPC/Intel or whatever, compiling code usually depends on the compiler itself.

Im not sure if each SDK comes with their own compiler, but I do know that most code is written in C/C++ ( or wrapped).

[xCaptainAmazing]

That would make sense I guess if they bought some rights to it. It certainly isn't a bad choice, I just feel that the others might try something new.

And yeah, I'm pretty sure everything is written in C/C++ with occasional Python and other scripting languages for certain small areas. I actually wonder if it comes with its own compiler, that would be interesting to find out.

I remember hearing rumours that some of them might have been eyeing Intel's Larrabee chip because it was a unified CPU/GPU? I think it turned out that the performance of these chips was kind of lacking, but the idea of a unified chip could also still be on the table.

It's interesting to think of what they'll end up using. With technology going so fast, and dedicated GPUs up into the 1GB of VRAM area already, will we see a console sporting anywhere up to 2GB? With equal or greater general purpose RAM? These devices are becoming far more multipurpose than they were in the past, so it could be necessary.

[ChickeyCantor]

I just hope it doesn't get way to much of a dumbed down computer ( concerning all new consoles in the future).

I mean its great they have all these wannabe pc features, but i hope they don't lose focus on what made these things great: GAMES.

I mean you can easily buy a mini-pc ( or whatever its called) for around 100~200 euro, hook it up to your tv and do all basics stuff with it.

[ReBurn]

PowerPC is a good call for a device like this. RISC architecture in a specialized device makes more sense than using a general purpose architecture like AMD / Intel.

I don't expect that you're going to see much scripting language use, though. Maybe, but what kind of applications would be suited for Python would there be?

[xCaptainAmazing]

That's what I thought, right. I see job postings all the time for game devs at my university, and for game engine positions there is always a primary requirement of C/C++, and sometimes a Python or other scripting language requirement as well. Not sure what it's used for (not everyone uses it obviously), but it seems to be effective in at least one area. I can't confirm what it's used for at all, maybe a small part of a database component for games that use it. Who knows. They're damn sure not writing large portions of there engine in scripting language though... for obvious speed reasons it would be suicidal.

[N4g_null]

This is funny the 512 is for the gpu fools ummm gamers sorry. No way in hell would I even be talking about it being powerful unless it was all SRAM. Now that would be over kill.

512 is the frambuffer limit for 1080 and an additional screen with a r700. 256 megs would be a waste to an r700. Around 800 shader units ring bus, yeah that's way too low.

Yet you can get 6 gigs for around $200 not gddr or SRAM but you get the picture.

I dont think any one has been under the hood yet and I only know about one system out of many different types being shown. Either way this should be fun. I havnt heard of the upgrading thing though. You know the r700 was basically made for sli configs right?

You know that actualy make sense now. It seems nintendo isn't telling every one the same info. They are so sneaky!

[N4g_null]

Go look up shader model 4.1. Better yet 4.1 OpenGL. It supports the latest open gl shader model. If it makes you feel better to believe it's going to have 512 megs of ram like the ps3 then knock your self out. Open gl 4.1 is pretty much like saying direct x 11.

I guess time will tell. It always does. Who ever gets this wring is going to look like giant haters when every thing is revealed.

[MostJadedGamer]

"New console to be 'a bit more powerful than 360'"

Just absolutely terrible. So in late 2012 they will finally release a current Gen console. Absolutely embarrassing.

[DigitalHorror81]

My sentiment exactly.

[ReBurn]

Sounds like it will be obsolete right out of the box. Well, not by Nintendo's standards, but compared to other hardware that will inevitably be releasing this will be underpowered pretty fast.

[green]

512mb of RAM for a 2012 console? Are they f*cking kidding me?

EDIT:2011 Mobile phones like the Motorola Atrix 4G and Samsung Galaxy S II have double that amount of RAM.

[NYC_Gamer]

that is weak as shit for any type of new 2012 hardware

[fluffydelusions]

Nintendo has never been about cutting edge hardware but at least they get 3rd party multiplats from ps3/360. But this all just rumor anyway...

[green]

@ plbelanger: I know that they have never been about raw specs compared to Microsoft and SOny but if you look at the Wii when it 1st came out, it was more powerful in every aspect than the xbox and the specs while not strong were kind of acceptable at that time.

But for today's standards, 512mb is criminally unacceptable when from the very 1st year the 360 and PS3 lunched, devs have been complaining about how only 512 of RAM has impacted development.

At least 1gig would be much much better.

[eagle21]

the rumor says "at least" in reference to ram....no conclusions were made guys. :)

[DrVosknocker]

I'm sick of people saying this. Up until the Wii they were ALWAYS about power. I guess Nintendo engraved that into young people's minds when the Wii launched. Nintendo has always had a more powerful machine then their main competitor. NES-N64..they tried with Gamecube. and N64 would have been beast if it had a CD-Rom

[TreMillz]

yes its weak but you guys are forgetting Nintendo doesnt add the latest specs to keep the price low.

Nintendo Console = Always affordable(for its time anyways)

[dktxx2]

4gigs of ram costs me, a consumer, about 50 bucks. A hardware developer can get get it cheaper, so 512mb would be a huge disappointment.

[ChickeyCantor]

Is that mobile phone Game dedicated?

I think people are putting too much weight on the hardware and compare it to other hardware which have multipurpose.

[DrFUD]

So they think they reveal it this year at E3, but then wait until the end of next year to release it.
That doesn't make sense.
So there will be 2 E3's before it releases.
If it gets announced this E3 it will come out this year or early next

[SonyNGP]

What's so weird about it?
The Wii followed the same pattern. It was mentioned in 04, announced in 05 and was released in 06.

IIRC, the PS3 did the same thing.

[Otheros00]

The ps3 was supposed to release in 05 but got delayed due to shortage of a component used in the ps3. The wii, don't know since they never said they were delaying it to 06. It doesn't make sense when the Wii was ready in 05 but got delay to 06.

[-Mezzo-]

So his is pretty much confirmed then.

[Ahasverus]

Slightly more powerful than the 360?
I'm out.

[nikola987]

How much money you have? :/

[Ahasverus]

Not enough to buy a (expensive) last gen machine when I buy my (expensive) next gen one ;)

[undercovrr]

I'm out too. If i'm going to spend money on a next gen console, it better be something that is actually Next Gen, rather than an improved 360. Here I was hoping that Nintendo would actually lead in technology with the next gen, but if these reports are true, than this is really disappointing for me. I'll have to see at E3, but i'm probably not going to waste money on this console

[theonlylolking]

Yup, nintendo got so much money from the DS and wii and they cannot even use that money to try being the lead in next gen console tech?

What I think should happen is sony and nintendo work together. Sony makes the console, nintendo gets all the money from the first party games like mario, zelda, etc... They would share some money from multiplat games, and sony would all the money from their first party games like, killzone, uncharted, etc...

Now that would be a unbeatable console.

[ChickeyCantor]

I find your comment funny considering it comes with a shader model( if the rumors are true) that is pretty much DirectX11.

[jizzyjones]

Its not 'next-gen' then is it really, lets hope its 'surprise' is a good 1.

[Drekken]

Makes sense being NIN has showed how they like to stay a generation behind with their hardware.

[undercovrr]

True for the wii, but definitely not true with previous nintendo consoles. Even the 3DS is a new step in 3D technology, so that is impressive on its own. And remember the Gamecube? The graphics were superior to both the xbox and ps2

[dylandurden]

Actually, Gamecube was more powerful than PS2 but it was inferior to Xbox.

But I agree with your statement, since N64 and SNES were by far the most powerful platforms in their generation, and GC was still the 2nd most powerful. It was only with the DS/Wii generation that they started favouring controls and other gimmicks over raw power.

[AWBrawler]

Nothing on the original Xbox looks like RE4, so it is arguable that Cube was most graphically powerful last gen.

Also that control sounds win, but I know its fake, unless of course the 3DS is our control and it comes with a Wii remote.

[Arnon]

Chaos Theory on the Xbox was by far, the nicest looking console game last generation.

Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory (Xbox)
http://image.com.com/gamesp...
http://images.slashdot.org/...
http://cubemedia.ign.com/cu...

Resident Evil 4 (GameCube)
http://static2.videogamer.c...
http://www.thunderboltgames...
http://www.thunderboltgames...

[BeckyLikesChocolate]

the xbox was more powerful than the gamecube. it was xbox, gamecube then ps2.

[AWBrawler]

I said it is arguable. But even I Agree there was no power greater than X last gen, but come on. that RE4 easily beats that Splinter Cell

[A7XEric]

Not true at all, that is only the case this gen. And to the other guy that replied, NO the gamecube was not more powerful than the Xbox, though it was more powerful than the PS2.

[Venoxn4g]

Cube was more powerful than first Xbox.. see gamecube exclusives, then talk .. :)

Starfox adventures, Luigi's mansion, REmake, RE:zero, MGS:twin snakes, RE 4, Super mario sunshine, DK:jungle beat and others

if you didn't know, Nintendo a lot of multiplatform games let to make like PS2 versions, but exclusives made look better than Xbox

[Emilio_Estevez]

Seems way too crazy, this thing is gonna be like $800. That doesn't make sense.

[Raven_Nomad]

Maybe Nintendo wants us to get second jobs to pay for it? My guess is $599 US dollars!

[NYC_Gamer]

it should not cost that much because the specs aren't ground breaking.my guess is the machine will cost 250-299.

[Daver]

yea it will be around 250-350$ if this article says the truth but the controllers will be expensive like the wii when it launched.

[dylandurden]

My guess is between 299 and 359, altought they won't go over 299 if they're smart.

[GodsHand]

Create a demand, and have very low volume/supply, and you could see pricing like that.

But I agree, Nintendo would be foolish to go beyond $300 price range.

[RyuCloudStrife]

what do you kind sir know about Nintendos next-gen console specs? all this is rumour not confirmed 512mb RAM is an estimate mostlikely it'll be a gig and its "significantly more powerful then 360 and PS3"

[tigertron]

If this is true then the only good news I can see is that it'll be backwards compatible with Gamecube and Wii games. Although that "high resolution" screen in the controller does sound interesting. I hope they give us a more conventional controller along with a motion controller (Wii mote).

[tmoss726]

The only thing that worries me when I hear that is battery life. But I mean as long as they got the rechargable/swappable batteries, then it's all good.

[Burning_Finger]

Nintendo's Motto

Less cost more profits.

[hoops]

This should have at least at minimum 1gig of fast memory.
If these specs are true, then the hardware is totally out of date already. Th GPU is said to be based on AMD's R700 which is the 4xxx series. That's already YEARS old.
They claim at least it will support shader model 4.1 which is a good thing, but based on this GPU, the Tessellation unit will be inadequate compared to GPU's out now.
It will be faster most likely than the other consoles but not by much.
If this is TRUE, then all I can say is Nintendo....WTF?

[Kroganwrex]

BUT NOT BY MUCH!?!? Are you MAD? The 4xxx series are generations ahead of what the 360 and ps3 are capable of. Some people know absolutely shit all and then spout nonsense on sites like this which spreads like wildfire and becomes perceived fact.

When the 360 and ps3 launched, they too had gpus which were already many years old and behind pc hardware.
Developing exclusively for r700 hardware would produce breathtaking results.

[Valk]

Seems lots of people on this site think the PS3 and 360 architecture was created just days before each console launched.IN all of these articles today people claim Ps3 and 360 have 5 year old parts in them. Cell was made back in 03 or 04, Iremember reading about it in Popular Science.

In one article you will see people talking about how PS3 hasnt peaked and they see more coming but in the next the very same people will claim that a console that is more powerful than PS3 is already outdated simply because its associated with Nintendo.

[El_Colombiano]

Kroganwrex,

I signed in just to say thank you. You seem to actually know what you're talking about, unlike most others in this discussion. Developing exclusively for the r700 would indeed produce insanely rich graphics.

[hoops]

"Developing exclusively for r700 hardware would produce breathtaking results."

No it won't based on 512 megs of memory and bandwidth if this is true.
First off we have no idea WHAT 4xxx series GPU it is. I HIGHLY doubt it's of he 4870x2 variety.
Second, to go with these rumors, the sources CLAIM that this so called NEW Wii will be just as powerful OR not as the Xbox360 and PS3.

"We have confirmed with multiple sources that this new home system is capable of running games at HD resolutions. There are conflicting reports, however, as to whether its graphics will be comparable to those on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 – meaning it could surpass or fall short of those systems."

http://www.gameinformer.com...

Third: There is no news on the CPU at all.
The biggest limiting factor here is 512 megs of memory. It's the largest factor right now for consoles holding back PC game development when making cross platform titles.
The 4xxx series is fine, however as I said (And you think I know little) The 4xxx series tessellation units are weak and almost of no use for games coming out or out (Metro 2033) using heavy tessellation.
Since I know nothing as YOU claim, why don't you mosy on down to Anandtech.com, Hardocp.com, Techreport.com and read about the 4xxx series comparison when using tessellation.
What's the point of releasing a "next generation" SYSTEM that will run tessellation half ass when most games coming out will use this extensively? That GPU wont even run ADOF.
The only decent thing from this RUMOR I can tell is support for 4.1 model shader protocol.
Otherwise, Nintendo could have at least went with a mid range 5xxx series GPU that has better shader efficiency and tessellation application use...ADOF capabilities.
If you THINK this will be a huge jump over the Xbox360 and PS3, you will be sadly mistaken when developer bitch abut small bandwidth and 512 megs of memory...IF these specs are TRUE.
You are correct that these GPU's are MILES ahead of the whats inside the PS3 and Xbox360, but honestly, Nintendo could have done better by going at least one generation behind in its GPU choice.
But like YOU claim...I know little....

[fluffydelusions]

I can't picture Nintendo coming out with a graphical beast anymore. They typically aim for family affordable prices and have been for quite some time. These specs don't surprise me at all and I always expected their next console to be about on par with 360/ps3. That said, graphics don't make the game and I'm sure mario, zelda, dk, will all look great in HD. They will also undoubtedly get multiplats that are available on PS3/360 too so that is a good thing. This new controller sounds like it will be the main selling point though. The other thing they really need to work on though is the online.

[house]

im not really surprised with the specs if they are real Nintendo has always been about the 1st party games Mario Zelda and dk and not top of the line hardware,

but like i have said before i really hope Nintendo starts focusing on new ips if they do i will have to think about getting one but thats a big IF

[Valk]

Really shouldnt get your gaming history from the back of cereal boxes.

Wii is the first and only console from Nintendo that wasnt one of the strongest of its generation.

You cannot judge their complete history in console making based on your limited experience with gaming. Yes this may be your first gen gaming but its not Nintendos so don't assume that what you see this gen is how it was always been.

[El_Colombiano]

The N64 was far more powerful than the PS1.

[fluffydelusions]

Yeah but the SNES came out 2 years after the Genesis and was only slightly more powerful. The n64 was strong but it was still cartridge based. GC and Wii are nearly identical from a hw standpoint.

[house]

this is far from my first gen of gaming i never said that Nintendo didn't make powerful consoles they have made powerful consoles with the n64 being stronger than the ps1 and the game cube being stronger then the ps2 all i meant is they never have had cutting edge specs like cd drive dvd drive or this gen blu ray drive, they had an add on (for the n64) but it never really took off.

edit: very good point snes was stronger only because it came out two years after genesis

[christheredhead]

create some great games and give me a decent online setup and i could care less about how powerful the system is.

sounds cool so far though. im interested to see how that touch screen control would work out.

[house]

i agree christhredhead they really need to get rid of the friend codes which i really thought the 3ds wouldn't have but sadly it did, this is there chance to start a revamped online system

[2EHO]

its blue ray! that the big surprise. so think about the games this machine will pump out. it basically going to be a slighty better ps3 with better motion controls and a crazy controller. nintendo is back. i know the guy said slight more powerful than 360... but others have said significantly more powerful than ps3. who should we believe.

[Valk]

It's sad that people like you actually think the storage device used will some how create better looking games. Even with Blu ray nothing on PS3 touches Crysis for PC and that didnt come on Blu ray

[Skynetone]

it was allways going to be 150 tech in a 300 bundle but i still thought it would have been more powerful

[barb_wire]

Think I'll wait for E3 to see if this is for real..

But as others have pointed out, that GPU is old tech, in fact in computing terms it's prehistoric.

Still, bring on E3 and let's see what is what..

[Kroganwrex]

Google r700, do your research before spouting bullshit like that.

[barb_wire]

2008 tech in a 2012 console.. pre-a-fucking-historic if you ask me. Nintendo should've put the R8 series in it..

but yeah, spout some more bullshit there

[El_Colombiano]

barb,

Stop spouting bs. The r700 series was fantastic and is generations ahead of what the current consoles have.

[N4g_null]

Barb just so you know the r700 does not support open gl 4.1 the 6-8000 lines do. You can't just claim you support something if the hardware can't do it plus the gpu is custom people are just saying it's close to a r700 possibly.

I would say it's a mobile version of the 6-8000 serious. What makes it cheaper is the lack of professional gpu pipes, double precision calcs are not needed.

[Veni Vidi Vici]

From the sound of it, it's looking like the console itself will be cheap but the controllers are going to cost over $100 each.

No thanks.

Also, the 360 is old as hell. The next Wii should be able to blow it out of the water in 2 years. If it's only slightly better, you can count hardcore gamers out again.

[christheredhead]

hardcore doesn't directly relate to the most powerful hardware. the current wii could have been hardcore if they made more new ips and setup a better online system. even more so if their multiplats were on par with 360/ps3. the wii is old tech but it still could have gone the core route but chose not to. console limitations are irrelevant until you can showcase games that work with the hardware.

[BabyTownFrolics]

not all gamers are tech whores, nintendo has their loyal fans and they will jump all over this, next gen does not have to mean latest hardware. Also enough with this hardcore vs casual gamer shit, we are all gamers and we go where the good games, only an idiot would purposely ignore nintendo just so they could keep up their imaginary hardcore gamer rep.

[firetaw]

a coffee machine for there next consoles? sounds yummy

[SuperStrokey1123]

I will wait to see something more concrete but certainly sounds interesting.

[despair]

6 inch touch screen on the controller? Plus all the buttons and sticks means its gonna be huge...hate big controllers. But if its more powerful than the current consoles and full HD support then I'm all for it. The price is the only thing(with all that hardware), I mean the second biggest reason for the Wii to sell that much was the lower price tag(first is casual crowd appeal).

I might actually be excited about a nintendo system since N64, if the rumors are true of course.

[bozebo]

512MB isn't quite enough RAM.

The controller sounds like a total joke. There's no way they'd put so many expensive components in it, unless they want to retail it for > $100 or something ridiculous and get forever hated by the gaming community. Controllers should always cost £35 or less.

Also, if it has all that crap then it will be annoying and cumbersome - it'd be like playing a handheld plugged into a TV. If it had proper handles then you wouldn't have enough reach for the touch screen - so it'd probably be rectangular-ish like handhelds. The buttons/sticks probably wouldn't be as good as a proper controller (though Nintendo haven't made one of them in a long time...)

[ABizzel1]

The controller could easily be under $100. It sounds like a DS, and the DS is $99. All they would do is take a lot of tech out of the DS and boom you have this controller which could easily retail for $60, same price as Wiimotes.

[bozebo]

DS retails at $99 so they can get rid of obsolete stock because the 3DS is now out (thought it has no games...).

Duh.

[ABizzel1]

Wrong DS has been $99 for over a year now at many retailers, and the DS lite was $99 for several holiday seasons.

It never cost Nintendo nearly as much to produce their consoles as they sell them. They want to make instant profit.

The DS is a handheld N64, how much do you think it cost to make a N64 with today's tech?

[2EHO]

nintendo only needs to do one thing to succeed. make a console that is comparable in specs that can bring in multiplat titles without developers having to sacrifice. if they would have done that this gen and made the Wii more powerful this gen would have been a wrap from day 1. so i do believe nintendo learned from their mistakes and will make this console powerful enough to stay in the game. also their are lots of rumors suggesting nintendo is making a console for life... that you just have to go and by the component to upgrade the specs. me personally i would like that... so E3 will the best it has been in years i expect.

[A7XEric]

If this thing is as underpowered as it appears to be, Nintendo is going to be in the same position they are in right now.

Right now, Microsoft and Sony can get away with not releasing a new home console for another couple of years. They are still moving units and a lot of people are very content with those respected systems. That 10 year lifecycle the companies talk about isn't really far out of reach.

Nintendo's hardware on the other hand, has aged much more quickly, and is in a position where they need to release a new machine because of how embarrassingly obsolete its tech is beginning to look.

[DiLeCtioN]

Doesn't sound Next Gen to me :/

[ATiElite]

Nintendo making a slightly more powerful 360 that can display all it's games in 720p is great.

So all games will have Alan Wake graphics but the awesome innovation of Nintendo game play! Since we are just using 360 left overs the system will be cheap so once again 80 million units sold at a PROFIT starting DAY 1.

This time around I see Nintendo making more core games and getting more multi-plats plus releasing their usual hit list of family and kiddie friendly fun.

[xtremegamerage]

2.1 Radeon HD 4800
2.2 Radeon HD 4700
2.3 Radeon HD 4600
2.4 Radeon HD 4300/HD 4500

Would depend on the version. 4300,4500 are very low end, 4600,4700 midrange, and 4800 higher spec.

Depends on configuration.

It's a big step up on the wii.

Just as PS3 is a big step up on the PS2.

xbox - 360 etc.

But for all we know, Sony/Ms will be releasing new consoles in 2012-2013. And they will be big upgrades again.

But for nintendo fans, it would be good news.

[Moerdigan]

Many Japanese developers aren't even using much of the potential of the 360 and PS3 hardware, except a few. So those games I enjoy probably won't see much benefit of taking a huge risk to making a game on a system that's so much stronger then current HD systems for a long time, save for a handful of the big Japanese publishers.

Maybe it's not a bad idea for Nintendo to be that stepping stones between PS3 and PS4 this time.

[Notagain]

And the Price of this is going to be 699$ with having a touch screen in each controller. Sounds like websites are desperate for hits. Don't any of them realize there is a World wide RECESSION happening with no sight in end.

[jneul]

Laughs oh dear who is seriously gonna buy this it will cost more than ps3 and xbox and tbh everyone I know with a Wii started upgrading to other consoles because Wii is weak.

[AWBrawler]

everyone i know with a PS3 or 360 barely ply there game

[bigjclassic]

and 2GB of RAM. 3DS, PSP and NGP (at least) will use 2GB of RAM as a pack in SD card format. Wii2 will use at least that for games.

[fatstarr]

ds's cost 40$ to manafacture about now. so imagine that as a controller and it should be good.
just invision a gba with 1 hd touch screen sounds good.

[Half-Mafia]

512mb RAM is a joke my iPhone has that much. the PS4 and Xbox 720 needs aleast 4GB RAM

[MikeTyson]

Who said it's going to be the "Wii 2"?

[AWBrawler]

idk Mike

I'm convinced it won't even have Wii in the title. It might even go back to being called Revolution

[Guard719]

I guess thinking on the official title is a concern because Project Cafe is kind of a turn off. I mean, least the 360 had Project Natal and it sounded mysterious. But Project Cafe? Did we run out of cool names to use? I'm going to think that this system will make your mornings and brewing coffee a little easier.

[pcz]

its smart for business because they can offer a 'next gen system' for a really cheap price. BUT it will mean wii2 gamers will still be far behind what will be on offer on ps4 and 720 (assuming sony and microsoft go for shear horsepower.)

so it will be like the wii all over again, but only in the next generation.

[jjank11]

The controller idea might be good if they can implement it. It could be a flip screen in the middle of the controller, when flipped makes 6 inches. Could easily incorporate regular control functionality if done as I said. Might be interesting to see if they had some type of AR type of implementation with the screen. But the power of the console itself will certainly have to be better than what is rumoured.

Hopefully the CPU will be good, but the problem that developers have had this gen has been with the RAM. If the PS3 and 360 had more RAM we'd see much better experience.

I'm hoping that the R700 architecture is just a rumour. That is about 3 years old already. The R800 or R900 architecture makes more sense for some future proofing.

Nintendo needs to focus more on the online part because that will make or break them in terms of multiplat games.

[Droid Control]

A bit more powerful than the 360?

Arh! I want POWER!
Its needs to blow the 2006 PS3 out the water or whats the point!

I huess the Wii2 is this gen and not the start of the next gen afterall

[TiKiMaN1]

Why is this not listed as a rumor? There is no way if Nintendo really wants to capture any hardcore market that they can get away with 512 MB of RAM. Talk about outdated when Xbox 3 or PS4 releases.

[playaplayer]

It would've been nice if they went with a quad core processor and at least a 5770 with 2 gigs of ram. That way they would've had dx11 and 1080p 60fps with a $300 price tag. By the end of 2012 a 5770 should be cheap as far as manufacturing costs. Hell there will be 8000 series graphics cards by the end of 2012.

[whitezagetsu71]

Off topic has any came up with a $ version for nintendo for when they do something "EEEEEEEEEVIL" like murder polar bears for cash like microsoft and sony did? .....cause you know how much M$ and $ony black holes feels pain when people type their company name in vain with a dollar sign $$$.. ^^

[PirateThom]

₦int€ndo

[whitezagetsu71]

I just got learned

[Xi]

this is a big miss by nintendo. With kinect and move, nintendo can't rely on a new gimmik to sell a consoles, especially since consumers know that MS or Sony can just patch their consoles with a similar device in the future.

The handheld sounds like a simple dumb client for the console, either that or it's gonna be the same as the gba-gc stuff.

[Masterchef2007]

A controller with a high rez screen now that is bizarre

[TheTruth89]

3 core? lol, fail

[DNAbro]

Were people honestly expecting this to be more powerful than the ps3 and 360? I mean you realize how that would actually cost? Seriously people actually think about nintendo's style before you post.

[MultiConsoleGamer]

Not even remotely true.

[PirateThom]

If the 512Mb of RAM is true, the thing is not just technologically irrelevent, it's going to, once again, lose out on third party support because "porting from 360" isn't going to matter one iota when developers are moving forward to the real next gen of consoles and demanding MORE POWER... there's phones with 1GB of RAM, no console releasing this year or the next few years should have LESS than 2GB and, honestly, 4 would be preferable.

[UnNaTuRaL1]

My dream system from Nintendo would have to be something like this. Think NGP being almost exactly the same graphically as ps3. They have said games are easily ported. So why not from Nintendo's perspective make a 2 for 1 type deal. You can play your Wii2 games on your big screen or load up your game on the controller and take it on the go with you and continue playing. That would be awesome to say the least. If the leaked specs are similar to that i dont think it would be all that hard to make a similar handheld as powerfull as the base system. seeing as the specs are on par with ps3/360 which is old tech now.

[Rahim92]

512mb RAM ? And this is Next Gen ?

[tunaks1]

enough of these dam rumors,
I will laugh if Nintendo's e3 has no talk of a new console.

I dont want one, and SS better release soon!

[sasuke99]

both ps3 and x360 are DOOMED!

Nintendo FTW!

[Agent_hitman]

Well to be able to avoid that, Those competitor should start designing their Console successor. but indeed if Wii 2 release, those current consoles are doomed Wii 2 has shader 4.1 similar to current PC graphics.

[TronEOL]

I don't get it, the PS3 and Xbox360 are still pumping up their games on the current consoles, and have yet to really hit any limit. They just optimize it more and more as time goes by (exclusives have, at least).

So even if Nintendo has a console that is slightly better than PS3 and Xbox360, it really doesn't mean anything as no developer is going to put that extra effort forward for just one console (besides Nintendo). So by the time Microsoft and Sony release their new tech, Nintendo's new console will just be the "Wii" all over again.

Sony's jump from Playstation 1-2-3 is proof of this. As is Microsoft's jump from Xbox-Xbox360 (although the original Xbox was capable of more, it was poorly supported). But I sort of see Nintendo's new role. They use now-old hardware to make super cheap consoles for more people with a new interface/control scheme. It'll definitely make the big wigs happy (along with millions of children and soccer moms). That's for sure.

[Trroy]

The point is that they get a couple year head start this time around. If the Wii 2 takes off like the Wii did, it'll be *very* difficult for 3rd parties to let Wii 2 development fall by the wayside, as Wii development did.

The Wii's major 3rd party issue was that, by the time it was obvious that the Wii hardware was hot, 3rd parties had already converted their major studios and franchises into HD development studios, with fully fledged HD engines.

If Nintendo can cement this generation into place with the Wii 2, while the 3rd parties are still using their current engines (making new engines costs HUGE amounts of money), they're in a LOT better shape, and MS and Sony will have a much tougher time moving gaming into even-more-expensive-dev-land.

The additional performance of the Wii 2 basically amounts to nothing other than "Wii 2 is best" from reviewers and public opinion. It doesn't actually need to make a difference, other than a slightly faster framerate here and there, to make the Wii 2 "the best" for a couple years.

[Agent_hitman]

Wow! Wii 2 has Shader Model 4.1, Well excellent for console.
I believe nowadays only PC can able to achieve that level of graphics, But for the upcoming Wii successor, it is indeed possible.

[tanoris]

nintendo is trying to reach out to hardcore gamers, well how when the graphics are only going to be (slightly better than the xbox360) sure it will look amazing with nintendo games like mario but when ps4/xbox720 come out theyll be left behind again and all the Multi plats will only come on on sony/microsoft. Nintendo should just get the best most amaizing tech they can for next gen

[ForROME]

LAME if this is their version of hardware 512mb? LAME

[Fat Onion]

Seems like it will be out dated b4 its even released.

[lizard81288]

hmmm...It does have me concerned about only being a 360+. the ps3 & 360 are HD and now the wii2...err Café, will also be in HD, so the difference in graphics shouldn't be that big of a gap anymore.

Nintendo has other areas to improve upon too, like online.

[Vip3r]

So Nintendo are repeating the same mistakes as this gen when they release the Wii with last gen graphics.

Good going guys...

[Guard719]

Project Cafe? Did video game programmers just simply run out of nouns to use? I mean, remember Project Natal? Project Cafe sounds like some kind of machine at a spa. Or maybe itll brew my morning cup of Folgers. At least Natal sounded mysterious.

[felix88]

If you want true HD and graphics, go for PC from the beginning, fags.

Can I have custom controls on console now ?

[esemce]

For all the money they have made from the Wii, nintendo are cheap ass bastards.

[boss_killa]

Remember guys Nintendo wants to sell their console at a profit (or atleast close to it) from launch so I wouldn't be surprised if their next console isn't as powerful as PS4 or Xbox 420. I'm guessing their console will be somewhere between the PS3 and PS4/Xbox 420.

I don't think those rumoured specs are set in stone. I have a feeling Nintendo will go with atleast 2 gigs of ram. I don't think they want to be in the same situation being so underpowered this gen.

Anything could happen this E3. I'm hoping Ninty go with a pretty powerful console that's not too expensive and will compete graphically next gen.

[teto83]

Nintendo dodge its dead by making the Wii the first motion sensing console and marketing it to kids/parents/pets. The low end entry level console has done more damage to their competition than all of EA crappy games and policies.

Nintendo now sees the miraculous lead it had in the market gets smaller with smartphones and tablets on one side and superior hardware (PS3)and light years ahead online services (xbox live), so they decide to release a console to port some FPS games to save face.

This is a bit sad, yet disappointing for gamers instead of advancement nintento is just keeping up.

[lizard81288]

new details:

Confirmed: Nintendo's new console will be at E3 2011

Confirmed by IGN Gameinformer and other sites, Nintendo will pre-announcement at the end of the month. The console will dispovel at E3 2011 days on June 7.

Some details revealed:

1 - The console is more powerful than the PlayStation 3.
2 - Publishers are developing games for it.
3 - The new console is compatible with the Wii software.
4 - Nintendo will unveil the new console at E3 in June 2011.
5 - It will support resolutions (QFHD) Quad Full High Definition, but early games will be 1080p only.
6 - You have a new control with with two analogs and Full HD screen touch.
7 - Full support for new: Unreal Engine 3 and CryEngine 3 Frostbite Engine 3.

Cover news sites IGN, Gameinformer and others.

Sources: Ign, Gameinformer.

[Update]

IGN's news director Jim Reilly just dropped a few bits of new information on the new Nintendo system's controller.

This new information came via Reilly's Twitter account. His first tweet said "There will be first and third party 'Wii 2' games at E3. No clue if they'll be playable."

This was quickly followed by two more updates, "Dual analog sticks on the controller. Can stream game content from the console. Not sure if it'll be full games, mini-games, or apps." and "New Nintendo controller allows players to stream entire games to the device from the console -- like a miniature television."

When some of his followers questioned the validity of the claims he responded, "No, I'm not trolling. Calm down. If it's on the site it's legit info we heard."

We checked the last update to the IGN story, and it echoed his comments about the game streaming to the controller, but did not mention the dual analog sticks or "Wii 2" games being at E3. We'll keep an eye out for further updates.

[extermin8or]

where are you getting this NONE OF ITS BEEN CONFIRMED UNTIL NINTENDO ANNOUNCE IT! for starters. Also the dea in itsekf could well be suicide for nintendo, I mean its going to be more expensive then the wii from the sound of it, and I can't see them jumping to being more powerful than the 360/xbox I mean none of nintendo's recent consoles have been known for power.... when I think about actualy adult gaming I do not think about nintendo... their market is the younger kids and their mums, when I was younger I had a gameboy, if they start making the console powerful the price goes up and I can't see them doing that as it will alienate many of the family's that have bought a wii also as my parents discovered after ignoring me, they bout my younger brother and sister a wii for their birthday a year or so ago and its never used... it was a complete waste of money infact I think my dad's used it more than them, my sister isn't interested and my brother saved and bought a ps3 which leaves the 6 year old using the wii occasionally lol I can't see people falling for a gimmick a second time and soo soon... I hope im not wrong

[lizard81288]

so far they are just rumors of coarse, but this is coming from multiple game sites. I just did a copy/paste.

The NGP had a ton of spec rumors too, and most of them were true.

[extermin8or]

true some were true but some of this seems so out of character for nintendo :p I mean despite them continually having a rage at casual gaming on smart phones tbh the wii is the same to the 360 and ps3 as the iphone is to the 3ds, psp,psp2 etc

[lizard81288]

[Original Story]

In the hours following our story confirming the existence of a new Nintendo console boasting high definition graphics, the rumor floodgates have opened. Numerous news outlets and website have published their own reports from unnamed sources in the game industry, each with slightly different intel. We've sifted through all the stories and have summarized them in this Rumor Roundup.

The Hardware
Most of today's information comes from an article published on the French website 01net.com via a story on Develop Online. As Destructoid notes, 01net was also the first to break the story on Sony's NGP handheld in advance of that announcement. The 01net story quotes a "very reliable" source who claims to have inside information on the technology powering Nintendo's next console. The original article was published in French, but user on the popular Gaming Age forums translated it and posted a bullet point summary. The report says the new console is codenamed "Project Cafe" internally and will be revealed at E3 2011. According to the source, the “CPU is a custom IBM PowerPC with three cores, GPU should be an ATI from the R700 family with a shader unit at version 4.1. RAM should be at least 512 MB." These specs are fairly comparable to the Xbox 360's internal architecture, but as Destructoid noted in its report, the 4.1 shader support would be an improvement over the 360's 3.0 shader support. These internal similarities would also make porting titles from the 360 to this new Nintendo console a much simpler process.

Kotaku's sources indicate the new console is powerful than other current-gen systems, but it's unknown if that just refers to the aforementioned improved shader support. IGN's report added one other important tidbit: its unnamed source said the system delivers full 1080p HD resolutions, which is welcome news to HDTV owners. IGN's sources also said that the unit is fully backwards compatible with Wii software. This jibes with Develop's claim that the unit "support[s] all Wii peripherals." French webiste 01net says that GameCube backwardscompatibility is also in the plans.

[lizard81288]

Kotaku's sources indicate the new console is powerful than other current-gen systems, but it's unknown if that just refers to the aforementioned improved shader support. IGN's report added one other important tidbit: its unnamed source said the system delivers full 1080p HD resolutions, which is welcome news to HDTV owners. IGN's sources also said that the unit is fully backwards compatible with Wii software. This jibes with Develop's claim that the unit "support[s] all Wii peripherals." French webiste 01net says that GameCube backwardscompatibility is also in the plans.

The Controller
Yesterday, we ran a story based on a CVG report claiming the new Nintendo controller has a built-in HD screen. Today, all reports seem to indicate that the screen is a reality, but there is some question as to whether it's HD or not. The 01net story indicated that there would be a screen, but that it would feature "sub-HD" graphics. However, it said that the screen will be a six-inch "one-touch" (as opposed to multi-touch) touchscreen.

The controller unit has been compared to "iPad with buttons" by Destructoid, but its report stresses that the screen is much less costly and doesn't offer the same level of "power or performance" as the iPad's touchscreen.

More conventional controller inputs surround the touchscreen: a d-pad, L and R bumpers, two triggers, and "possibly more." The unit has a front-facing camera and will also have motion controls. However, the Wii sensor bar has been integrated into the controller, so you would only need the controller itself for Wii remote functions.

The Disc
Like past Nintendo systems, the console is disc-based. In fact, Blu-ray.com has heard from a source that Nintendo is "considering" using Blu-ray (which Sony helped develop and currently uses in the PlayStation 3) as the system's disc format.

The Future
While all the above information is unconfirmed, most of the reports we've seen, including our original story, seem to agree on most of the leaked features and specs powering the new Nintendo console. It's extremely likely the unit will be revealed at this year's Nintendo E3 press conference. Most reports seem to concur that Nintendo is targeting a 2012 release, probably a mid-summer release in Japan and later in the year in the U.S. and western territories.

In addition, the 01net source said there was yet another "big surprise" regarding the unit and its feature set that has yet to leak, but refused to reveal it. In any case, these next few months look to be very interesting for Nintendo fans.

We'd like to reiterate that Nintendo has not released any official word on the new console, or confirmed any of our or other media outlet's report. There is often a "feeding frenzy" mentality that develops in the wake of a story of this magnitude, so it's entirely likely that at least some of the claims being presented are either wrong or significantly distorted.

[krazykombatant]

Interesting bit about nintendo considering to use blue-ray, which is extremely unexpected since they are usually against having to pay royalties.

[PS360PCROCKS]

I hope it has more than 512mb ram. That's what's affecting current consoles with resolutions. Please Nintendo, the GPU is fine, the CPU is kinda lame but for fuck sakes throw some more ram in it will make a huge difference and damn it's CHEAP!!!!! I'll pay $50 more to have 2GB

[fr3d0]

+1 for avatar

[SpLinT]

Honestly, I care for graphics BUT ONLY TO A CERTAIN EXTENT. A Wii HD will buy me over. Ive been wanting to play all these great Nintendo games but the PS3 has made me accustom to Pretty graphics and it makes me cringe at Wii graphics. A "slightly more powerful than xbox and ps3" is NOT gonna drive me away from playing Super Smash Bros 3 and The Legend of Zelda, Starfox, Samus, new Mario adventures with freakin Yoshi. etc.. (btw you dont need much 'power' to makes these games good, graphics is the only issue)

Of course, my opinion MAY change if a PS4 is announced showing something completely amazing within the next 2 E3s, making the Wii2 look "ugly" . doubt it though

[ufo8mycat]

More importantly.

Will the Wii 2 be a GAMERS machine as well? Or are they going to target non-gamers again?

[extermin8or]

well as the money is with the non gamers and with microsoft seemingly jumping on that bandwagon too I'm going to guess that it will be aimed at non gamers so I'll just go sit in the corner and wait for sony and or microsoft to announce their next console...

[extermin8or]

why is this not a rumour?? also this sounds like crap, if it isn't then its stupid, it sounds like they are basically making the controller half a DS or something... which means the controllers alone are going to cost a fair bit :/

[ElementX]

Even if the Wii 2 is only as powerful as a 360, it will still have great looking games!

[RevXM]

Compared to...?
The 6 year old 360? IDK about that.

But if this rumor were true.
It may get better visuals than the current consoles,
with its Radeon 4xxx, and equal CPU more or less (need s more details on the CPU) to 360 and 512Mb ram. It could run visuals better than Ps3 and 360.

But it would only be a little better than what WII should have been 5 years ago anyways.

I want new consoles and hopefully atleast one will be announced at E3 or later, maybe TGS this year. If there is one there got to be more.
I thought that Microsoft might be first out again thinking of how its been lately. Kinect, increased casual focus on the 360, then talking about graphics tech. The tech is not quite fit for the 360 though so a new system doesnt seem so far off even if Lionhead is denying it.

[CaulkSlap]

Once again producing a console 4 years behind in technology.

[fr3d0]

moar shovelware!

[noodi1349]

if it's 'Project cafe'

the surprise must be a MUFFIN BUTTON!

[krazykombatant]

Everyone keeps saying "OHHH this next nintendo console just won't be able to compete with Sony's and MS next console, because they will be EPIC!"... Hmmm ok ok, now IF the consoles from Sony and MS are gonna be epic and they're not gonna be a handicap to PC games. How expensive are they gonna be???? Don't say cheap because when the 360 came out I dished out $600 canadian dollars. In the use the ps3 was around $700 just for that damn console. What will the prices be for the next gen???? I'm sure there are some of you out there that have parents who are willing to buy whatever you nag for. However, for the rest of us, an $800-$900 console is simply too much, I live in the UK now and I don't even wanna think how much it would cost here or in other parts of the world. I think ninty is doing the right thing, by not going over the top with the price of their next console

[Bolts]

I'll buy one. But when they say HD, they better mean HD unlike the current gen of fake HD consoles. If it's not a true 1080p gaming machine then the deal is off.