Something strange is happening. If you avoid the forum trolls and fanboys and talk to people that can string two sentences together, you’ll find that there’s a groundswell of optimism for the Revolution. Mike at GGA thinks this “virtual library of games” can work:
However, then Nintendo dropped the bomb for me. “Virtual console.” The ability to play 20 years of Nintendo, Super Nintendo, and Nintendo 64 first-party (and hopefully third-party) games. Wow. Wow-oh-wow. This was what caught my attention. This is what I’m excited about with Nintendo’s new console, and I doubt I’m the only one.
No, you’re definitely not the only one. This may actually be a cool idea.
Amit thinks so, too
I’d like to slip in the theory that no matter what the Revolution promises to deliver, the fact that it plays every game Nintendo’s ever released is a revolution on its own.
And it’s not just the bloggers. Talking to my buddy today and he tells me that when he heard about the ability to download old games he decided that the Revolution would be his first console purchase of the next generation. And the game he was most excited about downloading? Earthbound? No. Super Metroid? Nope. Tecmo Super Bowl. Tecmo Super “Bo Frickin’ Jackson” Bowl. I hadn’t even thought about that one. There are so many games that could be available, it just boggles the mind.
It will be interesting to see what kind of library will be available. Will it just be Nintendo titles or do they maintain publishing rights to everybody’s games? There are some A-list games that are not Nintendo’s IP so I’m interested to know if I’ll be able to download Final Fantasy III or RC Pro Am. If they release the whole library, HOLY CRAP ON A STICK, watch out. And prices? If they are a buck for run-of-the-mill titles and five to ten bucks for A-list games they will make a killing. Killing. And what if they release games that never made it over here to the states? My brain hurts thinking of the possibilities.
This is some cool stuff.
Update: I forgot to mention this earlier – buttonmashing.com was linked by the L.A. Times here. I hope the Los Angelinos enjoyed their visit and that they come back often!