UPDATE to my previous article here.
Over the course of the day, several new pieces of information have been revealed about the Wii 2.
First, it appears Nintendo will not be concentrating on 3D HDTV sets with the Wii 2. This is not a surprise, considering less than 1% of HDTV sets offer compatibility with 3D technology. Nintendo didn’t focus on HDTV sets with the Wii and they are not focusing on 3D HDTV sets with the Wii 2. Plus, using 3D technology has a negative impact on graphics, since it requires additional processing.
Second, the controller of the Wii 2 will apparently be some form of tablet technology. In other words, it will be similar to an iPad, but it will have buttons on it. This is going to be one of the big surprises that will be unveiled at E3. I know I'm already looking forward to seeing this!
Finally, the Wii 2 appears to offer hardware performance very similar to what is currently seen in the Xbox 360. The Xbox 360 uses a 3.2Ghz triple-core CPU along with a custom GPU from ATI. The Xbox 360 GPU shares many similarities with the R500 and R600 series of PC graphics cards from ATI. The R600 series assimilated many of the custom Xbox 360 technologies such as eDRAM technology and the Unified Shader architecture. This shows how far ahead of its time the Xbox 360 GPU was, since PC graphics cards didn’t see those features until 2007. The Xbox 360 hardware includes 512MB of Unified RAM and 10MB of eDRAM.
According to reliable sources, the Wii 2 will be based on a custom triple-core PowerPC processor from IBM. The Wii 2 will also probably be using an AMD graphics processor offering performance similar to an ATI 700 series graphics card. The Wii 2 will also include 512MB of RAM. This means the Wii 2 hardware will be virtually identical to the Xbox 360, which will make ports to and from the PC and Xbox 360 very easy and very inexpensive. It appears the Wii 2 will probably have the hardware edge over the Xbox 360, but it seems as though the high-end PC will remain king of graphics.
Compared to the PS3, the Wii 2 is very different. The PS3 uses 512MB of Non-Unified RAM, and is based on an outdated Non-Unified architecture. The overall design of the PS3 shares nothing in common with the Wii 2. The PS3 hardware has a reputation for being difficult, time-consuming, and expensive to program, since it is not based on standard PC technology that developers are familiar with. Ports to and from PC and Xbox 360 games often result in the PS3 version having graphics that aren’t as good as their counterparts. The same can be said about multiplatform games released simultaneously for PC, Xbox 360, and PS3.
This trend looks to continue for the PS3. In fact, it appears there is a risk that the situation will become even worse for the PS3, since the balance beam will be tipping even further away from the PS3. The Wii 2 will carry a lot of weight with third-party publishers looking to reduce development costs. Multiplatform games will be virtually identical on the PC, Wii 2, and Xbox 360, while the PS3 versions will probably offer a lower level of performance than ever. Developers aren’t going to want to hold themselves back from doing the best things possible on PC, Xbox 360, and Wii 2, just to keep the PS3 happy. The main areas that will be affected in multiplatform releases are resolution and frame rate.
Nintendo appears to have done an excellent job in the design and concept of the Wii 2. The hardware and features included in the Wii 2 have already generated a lot of hype due to the fact that they will be optimized to work with HDTV sets and home theater surround sound. This year’s E3 really will be one of the most exciting in a long time. I believe it will be particularly interesting to see how Microsoft and Sony respond to this announcement from Nintendo. Personally, I predict a price drop of at least $50 from both of them.
