Gamespot has a very interesting report from Shigeru Miyamoto's keynote speech at the 2005 Digital Interactve Entertainment Conference.The Nintendo chief revealed the Revolution still has a surprise in store for us, and that's it's related to the controller in some way. No other details were forthcoming about exactly what it is however, with Miyamoto leaving us to guess until the company reveal their surprise next year.
A clue perhaps might be found in the overall theme of his speech - it mainly concerns the complexity of video game interfaces and reiterates Nintendo's strategy of expanding the audience out beyond core gamers.
Miyamoto gave a history of Nintendo controllers, pointing to the SNES controller as the most complex, partly due to the popularity of Street Fighter II at the time. He revealed the focus on ease of use was a factor in the design of the GameCube controller, as well as the Nintendo DS's simple stylus-based interface; Miyamoto commented that the DS had won over a new audience of female 20 something gamers.
With Revolution, the goal is to expand the audience to the entire family through the living room:
Miyamoto revealed that the Revolution's controller is purposely shaped in the form of a TV remote because it's something that everyone in the family would touch. He hopes the controller will introduce a more effective and fun way to play games. As an example, he pointed out that its Nunchuck add-on can be used for first-person shooters. Players would use their left hand to move, and their right hand for actions.
Miyamoto: Revolution still has secrets
"Father of Gaming" Gives Thumbs-up to Nintendo Controller
Microsoft's Prototype "XWand"
Nintendo "Futurna" Concept Images
Epic VP Disses Revolution
Nintendo to attempt simultaneous launch
J Allard Disses Nintendo Controller (10 Oct)
Nintendo Reveal Revolution-ary Controller (15 Sept)
Poll: Which Next-Generation Console Will You Buy?
Discussion >>
