Permission to Freak Out!
(Nintendo Shows It’s Revolution)
When the original Super Mario Bros came out in the 80s, you could watch newbies play and whenever they pushed the button to make mario jump, their hands would jump up in the air as well as if it would help their character jump farther. It was funny to watch and if you played the game long enough to stop doing it, you would immediately have a giggle at the next person who did it after you.
I could have never imagined that 20 years later that is how you would play the game.
The simplest observation is that Nintendo took the original NES controller, turned it on it’s side and added a gyroscope. Once you think about it though, it’s so much more. This controller knows where it is in 3D space and it also knows how far it is from the screen. With this in mind, ask yourself how will we play the next Mario Brothers on this? Or Zelda? Or Super Smash Brothers?
Nintendo showed a video of people using the controller in different ways. Holding as a sword to fight monsters. Using it to conduct an orchestra. Using it as a flashlight to illuminate the corners of a haunted house. Using it as a racket to play tennis. Hold two controllers for a boxing match.
On top of that, the controller can be customized in a number of ways. Here it is with an analog stick attached.
This looks like the perfect setup for a first person shooter. Move with the left hand, aim and shoot with the right. The possibilities here boggle the mind.
If Nintendo did anything today, it managed to take everyone by surprise. People have had plenty of time to submit their best guesses and gyroscopes were certainly talked about, but no one seemed to guess this.
Even better than that, the new console is still compatible with the more familiar Gamecube controllers and will play Nintendo’s entire game catalog all the way back to the NES.
Nintendo brought us the standard d-pad button layout, then shoulder buttons, then the analog stick, then rumble, then wireless, and now this. Will it be as successful? Will it be copied by Sony and Microsoft? Is Nintendo crazy or amazing or both?
The only question I have an answer to is this:
Will I buy this console the moment it comes out so I can play these brand new types of games?
Damn right.
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Comments (3)
Can you hold it sideways like an old controller? If not, it seems like it would be hard to hit the b button while moving with the pad. I’m sure Nintendo already thought about that though.
It does indeed look like an excellent controller for using a virtual sword/racket/vein-covered-dildo. The cord to the analog stick accessory seems a little short, if I’m going to wave a virtual lightsaber around with my right hand I’ll need a wide berth. The proof will be in the pudding the controller in my hand and seeing how badly I trounce the author of this blog at Super Smash Brothers.
Very exciting. I might have to uncharacteristically rush out and buy one.
I would assume you can hold the controller horizontally and it’ll work as an old school NES controller. The best part is this controller is completely aware of it’s position in three dimensional space, so it would know you are holding it that way.
IGN definitely has the best coverage. You can read about the demos they played with and how well they come off.
Hands-on the Revolution Controller
I was hoping that you could use the device like an old-school NES controller as well, but according to the Ninendo presentation, it looks as if they won’t be implementing it like that. Supposedly, the Revolution has controller ports for your GC controllers, so maybe their will be backwards-compatibility there. Also, I saw a photo that showed this new controller plugged into the center of a traditional analog styled controller. I believe they called the Classic Expansion Pack. Imagine the Dreamcast controller with the new Nintendo Revolution controller plugged into its memory card slot.