Wii U specs

[tbone8ty]

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/20...e-wii-u-really

GPU: The Wii U's graphics processing unit is a custom AMD 7 series GPU. Clock speed and pipelines were not disclosed, but we do know it supports DirectX 10 and shader 4 type features. We also know that eDRAM is embedded in the GPU custom chip in a similar way to the Wii.

First, the positives. Where the Wii U outdoes the current generation is in RAM and GPU. The Wii U has, effectively, twice the RAM available to games that the Xbox 360 and the PS3 each have. And we hear much praise of the GPU.

"The Wii U is a nice console to work with because it's got so much RAM in comparison [to the PS3 and Xbox 360]," another Wii U developer, who wished to remain anonymous, told us. "For E3 we simply dumped the whole game into memory and never once used the disc after the content was loaded from it."

It is the RAM in combination with the GPU that means Wii U games have the potential to outshine Xbox 360 and PS3 games. Indeed, according to one source, the Wii U version of his company's game will be "the smoothest console version".

I guess CPU could of been better

not bad though cant wait to see some good games that take advantage of it

[zanzabar]

i cannot help but think that it needs more than 512MB+512MB (being the1st one out means that MS and sony will jump on them and do more so i was hopping for 512MB+1GB), but i am looking forward to the move away from motion controls.

edit- it looks like nintendo is making progress, the wii u pro controller is used in the new gamestop fifa13 ad

[kam03]

i cannot help but think that it needs more than 512MB+512MB (being the1st one out means that MS and sony will jump on them and do more so i was hopping for 512MB+1GB), but i am looking forward to the move away from motion controls.

edit- it looks like nintendo is making progress, the wii u pro controller is used in the new gamestop fifa13 ad

The Wii U has 2 GB memory. 1 GB of memory will be available for games, while another 1 GB will be available for the Wii U operating system and background applications.

[zanzabar]

The Wii U has 2 GB memory. 1 GB of memory will be available for games, while another 1 GB will be available for the Wii U operating system and background applications.

so is it not 512MB+512MB, is it 1GB shared or or what and how much can games use from the OS for their benefit, dose that power the second screen with no added ram use from the game cashe or what.

[Manicdan]

Wii had something that everyone wanted, Wii U i dont think will do that this time around, but will have those games people loved in great image quality.

will they start to take over some of the CoD market? just a little i think, but not much. gamers now are much more in tune with new consoles and are many will just wait it out until the next gen. hardcore nintendo fans however might like that they get all their favorite games (who dosnt love a good mario cart), but also like that they can quite well enjoy the latest FPS. unless ps4/nexbox (my name dont steal it!) are able to offer something really cool that makes the typical console cash cows insane.

[endlesszeal]

I think Nintendo has done great. It's priced reasonably, good features and a solid line-up of games for everyone. I particularly find the TVii feature interesting.

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2409681,00.asp

Integrates Hulu, NetFlix, etc..., but also can control your DVR and allow live social-networking i.e. chatting with people about current football game.

For me, it's a fair extra $150 for an "upgraded" Wii, as the current Wii is selling for $150. Being a JRPG and fighting game fan, I was super upset that Sony took out the emulation chip for the PS2. Having access to previous gen hardware and video games make this a very reasonable price.

[Cold Fussion]

I thought the reports from a couple months to a year back were that it was to be based off of the 48xx series?

[tajoh111]

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/20...e-wii-u-really



I guess CPU could of been better

not bad though cant wait to see some good games that take advantage of it

Just to be clear. This is not the modern day 7 series as in radeon hd7xxx. Rather, it is r7xx or hd4xxx based... Which is why it is stuck in direct x 10.

Make me worried that ps4 and xbox 720 are really going to only use 66xx or not going to push the envelope like last gens console hardware(The xenon in the xbox was x1900 class based which was current gen at the time, and the rsx was based around a 79xx based hardware before the 88xx series came out). Console hardware is going make make computer graphics suffer from the get go I have a feeling this generation.

[Tim]

Pretty cool for Nintendo, but bit dissapointing on the GPU front. DX10, really? Then again, what they can do with the outdated hardware in PS3 and 360 is impressive enough so this should be a lot better in that regard.

PS4 and 720 better have DX11, otherwise it's 8 years of crippled console ports for PCs.

[tajoh111]

Pretty cool for Nintendo, bit dissapointing on the GPU front. DX10, really? Then again, what they can do with the outdated hardware in PS3 and 360 is impressive enough so this should be a lot better in that regard.

PS4 and 720 better have DX11, otherwise it's 8 years of crippled console ports for PCs.

It still is however even if you take into account old hardware. When wii u rumors popped up last year. The rumored GPU was a 4670 class GPU. Those rumors appears to be right. The 4670 was entry level in 2008 and isn't that much a step up in what was in the xbox360 and ps3. At most 40 percent faster. If wii U becomes the lead development platform for next generation, look for console ports to look like crap.

[Darakian]

I wonder if the memory is unified like the 360 or separate like the ps3/wii. If it's unified I can half see a game fitting in memory, but if it's discrete then it's gotta have more then 512/512. Also it should be noted that this will support no version of directX, it simply has directX like features. It should be measured in opengl revisions.

[SKYMTL]

The issue with this console is the frankly ridiculous controller. I don't know about you guys but my XBox and PS3 controllers have taken an absolute beating, particularly when my small cousins come over. I just don't see how that screen-filled, expensive controller is going to stand the test of time. Not only that but it looks completely the opposite of ergonomic.

[zalbard]

Pretty cool for Nintendo, but bit dissapointing on the GPU front. DX10, really?

DX10 is okay, actually, feature-wise. Tessellation can be resource intensive, and doesn't seem to improve current games much.
Compared to DX9, DX10 is a much more modern API, further targeting more efficient use of modern hardware. It should be sufficient for a "family" console. Hope it has enough raw performance, though, that's going to be more important.
And I am quite happy about memory size. It will mean much better textures and larger areas, which is great.

[kam03]

The issue with this console is the frankly ridiculous controller. I don't know about you guys but my XBox and PS3 controllers have taken an absolute beating, particularly when my small cousins come over. I just don't see how that screen-filled, expensive controller is going to stand the test of time. Not only that but it looks completely the opposite of ergonomic.

You can purchase a pro controller if it's an issue.

pro-controller.jpg

Also you should demo the controller, it's actually very comfortable to hold and very light.

[kam03]

No ones knows the spec of the GPU, its all speculation atm.

If you look at the video below you can see the main screen which is running at 1080p @ 60 fps and the tablet screen running at the same time, which can be a good indicator on the GPU having some raw power.

[deathman20]

Thats pretty slick that you can play like that on the gamepad and console at the same time.

[WeaponX]

Sorry, not impressed, I'll wait for the next REAL consoles...

[Hornet331]

Sorry, not impressed, I'll wait for the next REAL consoles...

have fun waiting, MS console morphs into a media center from all the tings you hear (and probably even goes arm) and sony is not going ot risk anything with the money lose they suffer... also vita is sinking like a rock.

[crash5s]

Just to be clear. This is not the modern day 7 series as in radeon hd7xxx. Rather, it is r7xx or hd4xxx based... Which is why it is stuck in direct x 10.

Make me worried that ps4 and xbox 720 are really going to only use 66xx or not going to push the envelope like last gens console hardware(The xenon in the xbox was x1900 class based which was current gen at the time, and the rsx was based around a 79xx based hardware before the 88xx series came out). Console hardware is going make make computer graphics suffer from the get go I have a feeling this generation.

You forget a console can do a lot more with less, it's not a gimped and crippled platform like the PC is. A console doesn't have to deal with bog windows, and you can code directly to the hardware. Those are massive advantages. I wouldn't worry that much.

[Tim]

DX10 is okay, actually, feature-wise. Tessellation can be resource intensive, and doesn't seem to improve current games much.
Compared to DX9, DX10 is a much more modern API, further targeting more efficient use of modern hardware. It should be sufficient for a "family" console. Hope it has enough raw performance, though, that's going to be more important.
And I am quite happy about memory size. It will mean much better textures and larger areas, which is great.

Some good points to think about, thanks.

[crash5s]

have fun waiting, MS console morphs into a media center from all the tings you hear (and probably even goes arm) and sony is not going ot risk anything with the money lose they suffer... also vita is sinking like a rock.

vita is sinking like a rock because apple is stealing everyones lunch money on the portable side. If you like gaming, the ipad/phone/pod are all godsends. Most of my favorite companies, capcom, snk, konami, square-enix, caveco, all put out their games on IOS. And it's great stuff. I have zero reason to own another mobile platform when my phone plays most of the games I love to play.

[Manicdan]

vita is sinking like a rock because apple is stealing everyones lunch money on the portable side. If you like gaming, the ipad/phone/pod are all godsends. Most of my favorite companies, capcom, snk, konami, square-enix, caveco, all put out their games on IOS. And it's great stuff. I have zero reason to own another mobile platform when my phone plays most of the games I love to play.

sony did have a good idea about making phones compatible as if they were PSP1 devices (some compliance thingy).
they should have simply done that with the vita, where your phone must have a few extra buttons and a certain level of graphics that basically means, portable console first, phone second. that way people would be able to get a vita, for a very low cost because the rest is subsidized by a cell phone contract. they share so many similar parts, it would be like 100$ on top of a regular phone to make it vita-ish.

[Hornet331]

vita is sinking like a rock because apple is stealing everyones lunch money on the portable side. If you like gaming, the ipad/phone/pod are all godsends. Most of my favorite companies, capcom, snk, konami, square-enix, caveco, all put out their games on IOS. And it's great stuff. I have zero reason to own another mobile platform when my phone plays most of the games I love to play.

No not really nintendos platform still sells like mad, hell even the recently launched larger 3DS sells double the units per week then the vita. The first and biggest problem of the vita was "no games", just like the ps3 in the start. Also you seriously implying a touch device comes even closely to a real button/dpad.. yeah..
While phone gaming eats somewhat into the mobile gaming share, thats usually for the "ultra" casual stuff where you don't need proper input controls anyway.

Also capcom you favorite company... uhn....

[crash5s]

No not really nintendos platform still sells like mad, hell even the recently launched larger 3DS sells double the units per week then the vita. The first and biggest problem of the vita was "no games", just like the ps3 in the start. Also you seriously implying a touch device comes even closely to a real button/dpad.. yeah..
While phone gaming eats somewhat into the mobile gaming share, thats usually for the "ultra" casual stuff where you don't need proper input controls anyway.

Also capcom you favorite company... uhn....

Nintendo will always move units because of nintendo titles. Zelda, Mario, Metroid, Smash, Mario Kart = prints money. Plus some other Asian centric games.

And it's not "ultra casual" by any stretch, that's a myth made up. Final Fantasy, Chrono Trigger, Pheonix Write, X-men, Double Dragon, Death Smiles, World Ends With You, Sonic are not ultra casual. All of these things used to be on portables and a reason to own them, now they are on your phone. Quibbling over a dpad is silly. They work well enough without it and you can bluetooth a controller to them and even run them off your TV if you want.

[Hornet331]

They work well enough without it and you can bluetooth a controller to them and even run them off your TV if you want.

Thanks for proving my point.