Nintendo today unveiled some closely-guarded details of its next-generation video-game console, code-named Revolution. The sleek and sexy piece of hardware is set to arrive in stores sometime in 2006, promising to define the term "all-access gaming."
"We will show the world what a next-gen system can be," says Nintendo president Satoru Iwata. "Revolution marries the strongest heritage of innovation to the future of gaming. With backward compatibility and the ‘virtual console’ concept, the stylish, compact body provides maximum gaming power. It will not only take home entertainment into another dimension by expanding the definition of video games, but it also will give you access to the great history of gaming.”
While Nintendo’s GameCube is the most compact of the current generation of consoles, the Revolution will be even smaller, approximately the size of three standard DVD cases stacked together. Like the PlayStation 2, the system is designed to lay flat or sit up on its side.
Gamers will also find 512 megabytes of internal flash memory (with SD card expandability), wireless controllers, two USB 2.0 ports and built-in Wi-Fi access for networked gameplay. Driving the system is “Broadway,” a processing chip developed with IBM, and “Hollywood,” a graphics chip set from ATI.
Revolution will also be backward compatible with all games currently available for GameCube. Rather than having a disc tray, the machine will feature a single, self-loading media bay that accepts the 12-centimeter optical discs for the new titles, as well as GameCube discs. An optional self-contained attachment will also allow the machine to play DVDs.
What Nintendo is calling its "secret weapon" is Revolution’s downloadable access to 20 years of fan-favorite titles originally released for Nintendo 64, the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) and even the really old-school Nintendo Entertainment System (NES).
Nintendo is confident that Revloution will play a major part in widening the audience for video games, appealing to hard-core fanatics, casual players and people who don’t even consider themselves gamers.
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