AfterDawn: News

Nintendo president: iPad is 'just bigger iPod Touch'

Nintendo president Satoru Iwata has given his response to last week's iPad unveiling, calling the device "a bigger iPod Touch," with "no surprises."

Additionally, Iwata denied rumors that Nintendo was working on an HD-enabled Wii and a DS with motion control. "I question whether those features would be enough to get people to buy new machines," he concluded.



Iwata also took a swing at 3D gaming, admitting he does not believe it will catch on, despite the success of films such as Avatar. "I have doubts whether people will be wearing glasses to play games at home. How is that going to look to other people?" he adds.

So far the main concerns critics have had of the iPad is the lack of multitasking, the continued lack of Flash-support, and lack of USB ports.

Written by: Andre Yoskowitz @ 1 Feb 2010 16:50

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• 17 comments

• bilen

  "I have doubts whether people will be wearing glasses to play games at home. How is that going to look to other people?" he adds. Of all the stupid motions the Wii has a person do, wearing glasses would be pretty low on the list.

  1.2.2010 16:59 #1

• jos22

  Originally posted by bilen: "I have doubts whether people will be wearing glasses to play games at home. How is that going to look to other people?" he adds. Of all the stupid motions the Wii has a person do, wearing glasses would be pretty low on the list.that true don't see who would care about being seeing wearing glasses playing games. also funny since Nintendo once proposed the virtual boy.
  think most people were disappoint with the ipad but this is apple in a few months ipad V 2 will be out.
  
  but dont see 3D having any future in video games just seems like a fad which has become over hyped with the avatar movie. unless some one develops a game which shows any benefit of using it I have no interest in it.
  
  as for Nintendo developing a HD console we all know that coming sooner or later.

  1.2.2010 17:16 #2

• nintenut

  The glasses are the least of 3D gaming's worries.

  1.2.2010 17:21 #3

• Ragnarok8

  Wait, what's wrong with wearing glasses to play games? It's not like people don't already wear glasses for vision, sunglasses etc (even outside their homes!).

  1.2.2010 19:15 #4

• xyqo

  Quote:Iwata also took a swing at 3D gaming, admitting he does not believe it will catch on
  Umm. Is this the same company that didn't think optical media, HDDs in consoles, HD gaming, online gaming and multimedia consoles would catch on.

  1.2.2010 19:27 #5

• samus250

  I think what Satoru Iwata actually meant was 'How is that going to look to the people who are not wearing 3D glasses?'
  
  I actually enjoy watching other people play, but if I don't have extra glasses then it's gonna look pretty crappy. Besides, aren't games already in 3D?

  1.2.2010 20:12 #6

• biglo30

  Welll atleast he was right about the ipad being just a big ipod touch.

  1.2.2010 22:18 #7

• lancerx

  Shut up iwata, you also mentioned back in 2003/2004 that online gaming was not important.

  2.2.2010 05:44 #8

• emugamer

  Originally posted by samus250: I think what Satoru Iwata actually meant was 'How is that going to look to the people who are not wearing 3D glasses?'
  
  I actually enjoy watching other people play, but if I don't have extra glasses then it's gonna look pretty crappy. Besides, aren't games already in 3D?lol....I think you are right. Looks like what he meant was lost in translation to some.

  2.2.2010 07:51 #9

• DVDBack23

  Quote:Quote:Iwata also took a swing at 3D gaming, admitting he does not believe it will catch on
  Umm. Is this the same company that didn't think optical media, HDDs in consoles, HD gaming, online gaming and multimedia consoles would catch on.But this is also the company that has sold 70 million Wiis and 125 million DS.

  2.2.2010 09:56 #10

• emugamer

  Quote:Quote:Quote:Iwata also took a swing at 3D gaming, admitting he does not believe it will catch on
  Umm. Is this the same company that didn't think optical media, HDDs in consoles, HD gaming, online gaming and multimedia consoles would catch on.But this is also the company that has sold 70 million Wiis and 125 million DS.Good point. They knew that all of those things would catch on, and they also knew that it would take some time. Why spend all the money competing? They grabbed all of the people who weren't ready to adopt just yet and made profits hand over fist, year after year, all the while, watching their competitors sell at a loss for the first couple/few years, stumbling with the growing pains of this new tech.

  2.2.2010 11:04 #11

• Josipher

  Quote:Quote:Quote:Iwata also took a swing at 3D gaming, admitting he does not believe it will catch on
  Umm. Is this the same company that didn't think optical media, HDDs in consoles, HD gaming, online gaming and multimedia consoles would catch on.But this is also the company that has sold 70 million Wiis and 125 million DS.than again, it is the company that didn't think optical media, HDDs in consoles, HD gaming, online gaming and multimedia consoles would catch on mate :)

  2.2.2010 18:24 #12

• DoomLight

  even if the ipad has usb ports. you'd probably need an APP to run the stuff u plug into it. but since u can't run multiprograms. im sure u'd get frustrated when u have to hit Home after plugging in ur webcam to use it in another program lol.
  
  of course im maybe overdoing it.
  
  anyway back on point. Nintendo is the last company to criticise a company for making rehashes of old crap over and over and over again.
  
  think of how many versions of gameboy were made, Gameboy, Gameboy Advance, Gameboy SP, Gameboy Mini, DS huge, DS light, DSi, DS LL, probably another DS next year. and they just use portable hardware of older systems. like 8bit nes to 16 snes to N64 which is what the current handheld system is using with ultra low resolution. come on Nintendo and President of Nintendo. use more Tact before u say something stupid, specially when its obvious to the rest of the world that the Ipad is a huge Ipod Touch.

  2.2.2010 19:31 #13

• emugamer

  The problem with Nintendo is that they seem to soley be focused on the bottom line. I have an affinity for the brand, but don't agree 100% with where they are going. Sony and MS are taking the super highway to get from point A to point B, while Nintendo is taking the scenic route. They'll get there eventually, and they'll make lots of friends and money along the way.
  
  At the same time, I think the iPad is a joke. So I agree with Iwata to some extent.

  3.2.2010 08:04 #14

• jdurden

  Thats F-ing hilarious, some are our users that are apple finatics are already pumped about it, when all of them have iphones, they just wanna spend $500 cause Apple made and new device. Don't get me wrong they make great products, but come on, commmon sense has to come into play somewhere.

  3.2.2010 10:42 #15

• zam100

  "a bigger iPod Touch," with "no surprises."
  
  Funny thing is that when I initially saw the iPad that's exactly what I thought. It looks like an iPod touch for Andre the Giant.

  5.2.2010 03:21 #16

• IguanaC64

  Regardless of the pot calling the kettle black...he's right.

  8.2.2010 10:34 #17