billservo's Full Review: Nintendo GameCube White Console
With the release of the Gamecube (GC) yesterday, the final salvo against the PS2 has been launched. Having lost their first battle with Sony this is an important console for Nintendo. The Gamecube finally abandons Nintendo’s highly lucrative cart business for a disc-based platform- the decision to stick with carts on the N64 is arguably what kept it from enjoying the success that the SNES had.
Physically, this is Nintendo's quirkiest design. The GC is shaped into an almost a perfect cube, except for a handle on the back for those who want to "cart" their GC around. Time will tell how well this system will respond to being treated like a portable but it does seem to be meant for it. At only 6" across and deep it's surprisingly smaller than its competition and noticeably lighter.
Aesthetically, Nintendo went for a retro-futuristic look. This is most apparent from the system's UI itself. While the PS2 and Xbox put on futuristic lightshows and state-of-the-art menuing systems, the GC uses a simple cube animation when powered on accompanied by old sounding bleeps and blips. System settings are even displayed with LED styled fonts. Again, to the outside this look is continued with perfectly squared corners, but with inlaid rounded controller ports and etched detail on the cube faces. Other than that, there's very little detail to the casing, unlike the rigid PS2 or the X-styled casing of the Xbox. To keep the GC from looking completely out of step with its competition there is a bright orange light, which emanates from the CD door when turned on.
Keeping to Nintendo's earned reputation, the GC comes off basically looking like a toy. Even from the inside it seems Nintendo still isn't committing to shedding this image. While the Xbox and PS2 try harder to integrate themselves into the A/V cabinets of gamers, the GC seems content to stay on top of the TV in the kids' room. The GC doesn't include DVD playback and supports high-resolution displays only up to 480p with the purchase of the Component video cable. Digital output for sound is still questionable since media shots of the Component cable show no additional connectors besides those used for video. Aspect ratio formatting for HDTV owners is also absent from the system itself, but may be turned on from within games. The end result of all this is that HiFi geeks are going to feel more at home with an Xbox or a PS2.
Gaming purists should not be discouraged, though. When it comes to actual gaming the GC means business. Like the N64, Nintendo gave the GC four controller ports for instant multiplayer ability. The front of the box also has two ports for memory cards to handle game saves. Underneath, the GC has several peripheral ports. These ports are etched out to completely house whatever devices Nintendo may produce for the system. As of now the only such devices planned are a 56k modem or broadband adapter. While Xbox went for out-of-the-box network capability for broadband users only, the GC may have made the smart move by allowing modem users to also get online, albeit at an additional cost.
Gamecube’s strict focus on gaming not only sacrificed DVD playback, but also the need for full sized CDs. Games are pressed on DVD technology based discs about half the size of normal DVDs and CDs. While the proprietary CDs cannot hold as much information as a DVD Gamecube games will likely not sacrifice any game content beyond actual video playback since no games have yet to exceed DVD capacity and many still easily fit onto one CD. During play the drive itself is quiet, much more quiet than the PS2 drive (although fan noise is slightly louder than the PS2) without the rumbling some high-speed drives have.
Some may be put off by the exclusion of DVD and standard size discs, but what Nintendo does focus on is gameplay itself. In fact, Nintendo begins controller development at the beginning of the system design process to ensure that a gamer’s interface to the game world is as seamless as possible. The Gamecube controller is proof of this. While the controller is smaller than the Xbox or PS2 controller the ergonomics behind it are simply unsurpassed. The molding of the controller itself is perfectly contoured for a stable grip. The awkward middle prong from the N64 controller has been removed and an additional analog stick replaces the c-pad on the right side of the controller. The select button, a relic from the “1 Player/2 Player” days, has also been removed leaving a single Start button in the middle of the pad. The standard 4-button configuration has also been altered. The A button sits squarely on the right side of the pad surrounded by the X and Y buttons. The B button sits to the opposite side of the A button. The buttons have a distinct look and feel and are rubberized for a better grip. The shoulder buttons have also been replaced with triggers. The triggers have a more rigid movement than Dreamcast, similar to the Xbox controller offering a higher degree of control of movement for players. Nintendo’s also improved on this design by introducing a “click point” for the triggers when they have been fully depressed. The tactile feedback of this controller cannot be understated- this controller responds to you as much you do to it. The one fault this controller has is the placement of the Z button. Formerly the only trigger on the N64, the button sits right above the right trigger on the shoulder. There is no symmetric button on the right shoulder making it feel awkward. The index finger movement required to get off of the trigger and onto the button is also costly.
Another shortcoming is the length of the cord (sorry, pun not intended). It’s by far the shortest cord of all the competition 1st party controllers. It wouldn’t be that big of a deal except that Nintendo plans to market the Wavebird wireless controller soon. There may be a connection here.
But these are small faults of an otherwise brilliant controller. Some reports of the controller incorrectly claim it to be flimsy due to its size. I willingly tried to break the controller apart with my bare hands this morning. This is not a controller you have to worry about destroying- I didn’t make a dent. Future accessories will even allow use of a Gameboy Advance as a controller in order to take advantage of its LCD screen.
Gameplay during Rogue Squadron 2 was insanely intuitive. The controller stood up to repeated button jamming and remained responsive throughout. The increased stiffness of the analog stick also offered a little finer control than the N64 stick could.
On screen, games are brilliant. While the Gamecube couldn’t produce as crisp a picture as the Xbox, graphics are still superior to the PS2. Lighting effects outshine the PS2 efforts but again fall short to the Xbox. However, the Gamecube handily renders a wealth of on screen polygons fluidly. Even with multiple high detail textures the GC is able to keep consistent framerates, a problem seen with a few Xbox launch titles (although this is often as much a fault of the game as it is the system). Multiple explosions featuring particle effects impress easily and match what the Xbox has shown so far. Down to the specs, the Gamecube doesn’t perform at the same level as the Xbox, but it puts up a respectable fight nonetheless. Anti-aliasing appears to be better here than on the Xbox, and definitely better than the jaggies you’ll see on most PS2 games. Practically speaking, though, the big three consoles are all too close to pick one over the other based on graphics alone.
What you do base a console purchasing decision over is games. This is where Nintendo has Microsoft beat. Famous for its first party titles, Nintendo counts on getting gamers that have to play the next Mario, Metroid, or Zelda game. While none of these were available at launch, expect to see a few of them in the coming year. But in the short-term, the launch line-up is weak at best. For the first time a true Mario game is missing leaving a Luigi game to carry the system. While Luigi’s Mansion carries some of the same spirit as Mario platformers before it’s certainly not a must-have title. Rogue Squadron 2, while visually stunning, is another Star Wars repeat. Another sequel, Wave Race: Blue Storm is also available, but will have a hard time capturing even racing fans. Other big titles, Madden 2002, Crazy Taxi, and Tony Hawk are available on other systems leaving Nintendo with only Star Wars and Luigi’s Mansion as the two exclusive heavyweights. There’s just simply not enough originality to carry the system for now.
Future line-up looks better, especially with the full support of all the big publishers: Konami, Capcom, EA, Activision, and Sega to name a few. This is something that Microsoft can’t claim right now.
Even with the support of third party publishers, though, the Gamecube can’t offer the gaming experience that a PS2 can for the hardcore gamer. For households with younger gamers, however, the Gamecube is almost the default winner, thanks to its lower price and exclusive titles. Anyone who doesn’t need to play the next Mario, Metroid, or Zelda will do just fine with a PS2, but once those titles hit shelves Sony may need more than another Final Fantasy to keep its place at the head of the console pack.
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