Nintendo Patents – Wiimote was for Gamecube
Friday, January 9th, 2009 at 11:53am by Will
The people over at Siloconera have been digging up information on patents recently in search of more information on the recent “Miyamoto” patent. However, Instead of finding more information about that patent they actually uncovered an old patent that had to do with the Gamecube that was filed on March 10, 2006. The patent was for what we know today as the Wiimote.
Although, it wasn’t being made for the Wii, it was being developed for the Gamecube. Now we have all have heard the saying at one point or another that “the Wii is an improved Gamecube” or “It’s Gamecube 2.0″ but I never really took that into consideration until seeing this patent. Do you guy’s think that the Wii is a semi improved Gamecube? or is it a better system overall? Does this patent change your outlook on the Wii at all?
January 9th, 2009 at 11:59 am
This helps me to go with the Wii is a “Gamecube 2.0″
January 9th, 2009 at 12:00 pm
Don’t mean to sound like a know-it-all, but I’ve actually known this for a year or two now. Although I would have liked to see the Wii with a BIT more power, I think Nintendo’s decision had more to do with realizing that the peripheral had so much potential that it deserved a completely new platform. No matter how revolutionary a peripheral is, it seems that game designers only end up making a handful of games that support it. Perhaps the technology wasn’t quite ready, too, pushing Nintendo to releasing the “new remote” with its next-generation console.
January 9th, 2009 at 12:10 pm
My assumption has always been the wiimote was in development during Mario Sunshine but just wasn’t there yet. Now thats one game that needs a Wii-Make.
January 9th, 2009 at 12:13 pm
Its hardware seems to be very much Gamecube 2, but the controls, online system, channels, VC, WiiWare, and especially its marketing make this console stand out as something completely different than a Gamecube.
January 9th, 2009 at 12:38 pm
I agree with David. The hardware is definitely Gamecube, but the basic design of the software isn’t.
January 9th, 2009 at 12:38 pm
And of course the controller, but I was taking that as a given.
January 9th, 2009 at 2:14 pm
“The Wii is a Gamecube 2.0?”
Of course it is. Nintendo revised their GameCube system by adding:
– more processing power,
– greatly improved online capabilities,
– more memory,
– some onboard storage,
– and (most importantly) a new control scheme…
They essentially took the basic GameCube architecture and then improved it across the board. What’s wrong with that?
January 9th, 2009 at 2:42 pm
I’d say those points are a bit misleading.
It wouldn’t be too hard to “greatly improve online capabilities” over the GameCube, with all 4 online games it had; Online multiplayer is still pretty much non-existent on the Wii. The downloading portion I’ll give you but that’s only about half the equation.
More processing power has hardly been realized. I can count on one hand game the games that I don’t think the GameCube could have handled.
More memory, that’s another slight improvement, and you really need to stress the “some” in “some onboard storage”.
The new control scheme I will give you but that’s kind of the point of the article, it was planned for the GC and basing it on Wii games alone, I think adding it to the GameCube wouldn’t be much of a problem. Plus even that is still somewhat of an unknown. 2 years later developers, including Nintendo, still don’t seem to really know where to go with it outside of “waggle” controls.
So yes, they did improve it across the board, but the depth of those improvements is where the discussion begins. Plus I think the point many are attempting to make is not that the Wii is GameCube 2.0, it’s more like GameCube 1.5.
January 9th, 2009 at 3:26 pm
This is not really a new discovery. It was known that the technology was originally intended for the gamecube.
I am glad they decided to put it on an all new console.
January 9th, 2009 at 3:58 pm
Saying that the improvements over GameCube aren’t enough and that Wii is really GameCube 1.5 (or “two GameCubes taped together”) is a fanboy argument mainstay.
Problem is, it really doesn’t matter to anyone except fanboys. There are two views that matter worth considering: from a consumer perspective, and from a business perspective. For consumers, if there are games are good on Wii, and if most people enjoy playing it, then who cares how much processing power it has? For business, if Wii continues selling like hotcakes, then why should Nintendo care either?
January 9th, 2009 at 4:16 pm
“Saying that the improvements over GameCube aren’t enough and that Wii is really GameCube 1.5 (or “two GameCubes taped together”) is a fanboy argument mainstay.”
Or….its a fact that can be proved with a simple chart pretty easily. lolzz
January 9th, 2009 at 4:23 pm
Exactly. Like the totally unbiased chart Sony sent out earlier this week pointing out how Wii and Xbox 360 are obviously inferior!
January 9th, 2009 at 4:54 pm
Not inferior, just different, and depending on your gaming desires, more expensive.
January 9th, 2009 at 8:55 pm
Of course its an improved Game Cube, the XBOX360 is an improved XBOX, the PS3 is an improved PS2 which is an improved PS, the SNES was an improved NES, the DS is an improved GBA, which is an improved GBC, which is an improved GB mcro, which is an improved GB . I don’t understand whats the big deal here, all systems are simply upgrades from their predecessors.
January 9th, 2009 at 9:30 pm
@DaveRage:
“Or….its a fact that can be proved with a simple chart pretty easily. lolzz”
I think people who call it a Cube 1.5 or 2.0 are missing the point entirely. The Wii is anything but a Cube 2. It’s a new game system entirely. Regarding power, perhaps it is only twice as powerful as the GC, but with regards to gameplay, it’s a whole new ballgame.
Want to see what a real “1.5″ system looks like? Check out what Sony and Microsoft have to offer. Let’s see that chart, Dave.
January 9th, 2009 at 11:27 pm
In all honesty, I miss a normal controller. I wish I could just use the motion controls without having to point the controller at the screen then.
January 9th, 2009 at 11:27 pm
Why argue the PS3 is obviously a PS2 with out the DVD player which is why it’s getting beat down like it stole some thing.
Seriously, Most of what the Wii is doing is not possible on the GC don’t believe me then go play one. The sad thing is they have not even started to push the thing till this year.
Another thing is they upgraded the Wii based on what consumers could pay rather than the PC video card model of taxing the Hardcore so that the normal people can but the same thing next year.
Another thing is online works alot better than on the GC. Hell you can even send email from your Wii with out using an internet based email client and mario kart would not even be possible or download-able games.
Hey but if it’s not enough for you, sorry about that so why are you not playing the systems that are built for what you want? Some people actualy like the fact that are console is different from our PC.
January 9th, 2009 at 11:44 pm
@Damien you can with motion plus+
January 9th, 2009 at 11:49 pm
@ HDmaverick
so it has been confirmed that you can use Wiimotion plus without the censor bar…?
January 10th, 2009 at 12:25 am
First of all. This patent was filed AFTER they revealed the revolution and just a few weeks before they changed the name to Wii. It should be pretty obvious that this patent application simply used the gamecube as an example of how the remote would work and wasn’t some “proof” of anything. That being said, OF COURSE this was conceptualized during the gamecube era. Miyamoto even said the ideas for the Wii were beginning as soon as the cube saw release.
With regard to the “cube 2.0″ nonsense, I would assert that even while the 360 are significantly more powerful than their predecessors, they are MUCH closer to them in functionality than the Wii is the cube. The only dramatic improvement of the 360 over the xbox is graphics. Look at a game like Halo 3 and compare it to Halo 2. Very little has changed. They are essentially the same game. Why? Because the capabilities of the consoles are almost identical. Oh, sure, the CPU/GPU is much faster, the HDD is bigger etc, but thats about it.
Same goes for PS3. It’s nothing more than a more powerful PS2. Only problem is, current models can’t even play PS2 games. And unlike xbox some 360s don’t even have HDDs. It’s like some of the SKUs actually went backwards.
Now we have the Wii. Admittedly, it’s CPU/GPU isn’t as much a leap, but none the less, the Wii is an improvement over the cube in pretty much every way. Better CPU/GPU. Faster/more RAM. Online functionality, wiiware, VC, channels, web browser, etc. Wireless out of the box, you could go on for hours.
Anyway, point being, the PS3 and 360 are MUCH closer to the functinality of their older siblings than the Wii is to the cube.
January 10th, 2009 at 11:07 am
I agree with Used Cisco.
This generation of consoles reminds me of watching movies.
On one side, you’ve got Rocky. When it’s times are tough, he improves himself by focusing exclusive on power and toughness. He comes back to ring swinging the same punches, but expecting to win because he’s stronger and more determined (despite not making any changes).
On the other side, you’ve got Daniel Larusso. After getting bullied and pushed around, he started looking for a way to overcome his challenges… but strength alone just wasn’t going to do it. Instead, he spent time with Mr Miyagi learning how to apply force to the areas where it matters most, eventually beating his oppressors at their own game.
So what happens when Daniel meets Rocky? Well, it could’ve gone either way… but in this analogy it looks like Daniel “wax on, wax off”-ed Rocky right out of the ring, overcoming power with skill. Nintendo has changed the market by making smaller technical upgrades , but being smarter about how/where they applied those improvements.
January 10th, 2009 at 2:07 pm
@ejamer,
Word.
And it sounds like your describing a “david and goliath” scenario, which is exactly what’s happening in gaming right now.
January 10th, 2009 at 7:03 pm
@Kyle
You’re missing the point. Wii Sports could have very easily been done on the Gamecube with an added peripheral like the Wiimote. Sure the software interface of the Wii is different, but its not software the Gamecube couldn’t handle.
I like the Wii as it is, but I certainly wouldn’t have minded shelling out $350 on it instead of $250 for some extra horsepower. Considering its current library of games look better on an SD set, than an HD set, it leaves a lot to be desired.
January 12th, 2009 at 10:29 am
As much as I like the Wii, I can’t help but feel I’m playing the gamecube with a new controller.
The system shouldn’t have just been developed for a controller but have been a huge leap forward. The graphics are somewhat better than the ‘cube but not by a whole lot. But they did a few things that should’ve been done with the game cube.
- Online, though not fully utilized and with a clunky friend system, more games could use better online and also allow for more game modes in some titles like Brawl and Kart. It get’s boring with a standard 2 minute team match on Brawl with anyone. Allow a host to switch it up or something.
- Graphics, while good, Nintendo should have definitely gotten a better graphics card than what’s in there right now.
and the system is not twice as powerful as the cube as the wii could render out MUCH better visuals than it does. The one main update between the two besides somewhat expanded online is the fact that it uses a larger medium for the games which bodes well for some epics like a new Zelda built for the system. But overall there isn’t much new from the cube to the wii.
And I think Nintendo is making a stupid move by saying they won’t release a new system unless it’s truly a new gameplay experience. That could take 2 years, or 5 years, or even 10 years for that to happen and by then the competitors will have adapted motion control to their systems, using Blu Ray Discs for their system with graphics that are insanely realistic. Nintendo should focus on rebuilding the wii with more horsepower on the GPU and CPU, at least that’s what I feel.