American McGee: Only real next-gen is Wii [update 1]

He's right you know.

Even I must admit that is ludicrous. (this coming from a Nintendo fan)

American McGee, I'll listen to him after he makes a good game. (Alice was OK, but that was his best and it was just OK.)

"Nintendo will "capture the hearts" of gamers while "Microsoft and Sony stab each other in the neck" as they compete over market share."

HAha. It's funny, and true.

"Joystiq, I am tired of you anti sony bias. Go back to communist russia if you love you wii so much. God, how much is ninty sucking yoiur dick for all this made up news?"

Now that that is out of the way, good on him. That's exactly how I feel. Except the 360 is a vessel through which to push windows vista, and the ps3 is pushing blu ray. I'm rather happy with my 360, and i'm sure I will be with my PS3 before it succumbs to disc read errors, but the wii is the ony one doing games that couldn't actually be done before. And the fact that it only costs a fraction fo the other two? Icing on the cake.

Oh snap

Why is this statement so silly. What constitutes nex-gen is subjective not objective.

::pats him on the shoulder:: Good boy McGee...

Enter the fanboys...and LET THE FLAMING COMMENCE!

Never heard of him or his games. He probably thinks his hat is also revolutionary and next-gen.

"That's the way it was, and we liked it!"

Move over old man.

Guy makes a fair point, although I prefer the term 'new-gen' for Wii.

The flaming here will be insane, as I've said this many, many times and been flamed heavily for it.

I stand by it, though. The PS3 and the 360 offer nothing over the previous generation. Sure, everything is better, but nothing is changed. Have we really had a 360 game that couldn't have been done on the Xbox? Sure, it wouldn't have been done as well, would have had more loading, and would have been uglier, but it could have been done.
All we've really gotten is better physics and more characters on screen, but neither is mind-bogglingly different.

The Wii gives us new input, which will change the games drastically.
I will not say this makes the Wii better, nor will I say it will make the Wii a success or be anything more than a gimmick. But it makes the Wii more interesting on paper.


And I've done this a dozen times, but I'll repeat:
Nintendo to Super Nintendo - 4 more buttons. Allowed drastically different games.
Super Nintendo to N64 - 3D graphics and 3D input. Allowed drastically different games.
N64 - PS2/GC/XB - second 3D input, online, hard drive. Allowed drastically different games.
PS2/XB - PS3/360 - uh... what? What's new and not just improved? Nothing. Nothing at all.



Again, the Wii could damn well be a gimmick that runs dry in a week. But I have a hard time considering the PS3 and the 360 next-gen when they're just evolution of current-gen.

And that's the problem with these non-video game companies coming in. Sony has never been about innovation, they're using the same damn cheap feeling uncomfortable controller that they introduced a decade ago. Microsoft is the same way. Neither looks to bring anything new, they just want bigger and better. And they want to claim it's new when it isn't. Sega and Nintendo did this as their bread and butter and were constantly thinking of new things, outside the box so to speak. Constantly innovating.
Yeah, lots of things were dead ends, but not every innovation can be a success. Sega and Nintendo were willing to risk dead ends. Maybe it wasn't the best business model, given Sega being dead and Sony being so dominant, but it was the best for the consumer because it constantly gave us new things.

Honestly, all we're getting these days are GTA3 style games. San Andreas made me want to puke it was so repetitive. Saints Row is even worse. How much longer until the general public is sick of this?

He pretty much hit the mark on some of those statements.

I am an Xbox 360 guy. I think the Wii will look nice beside my 360 this Christmas especially at $250. But Im truly buying the Wii for Super Smash Brothers Brawl.

hmmmmm.....

Isn't it hard to state emphatically which system is "next gen" when I don't think "next gen" even has an official definition?

I'm glad to see innovation getting so much support, but before the numbers are crunched, it seems to me that statements like this are more wishfull thinking than true insight.

That being said, I do agree with one thing. I think he has a point that it MAY be to Nintendo's advantage to have Sony and MS fight each other. They will compete for "the prettiest" driving up costs and development time while Nintendo sneaks out sleeper after sleeper. Just a theory anyway.

Never even though about that, but he is right.

Maybe the cap is just too tight?

"Never heard of him or his games. He probably thinks his hat is also revolutionary and next-gen."

Man, the things you've never heard of could fill the damn universe. Doesn't make them less relevant.

In this case, though, American McGee is overrated, I'll agree to that. All he really has is Alice. He did significant work on Doom II, Quake and Quake 2, but those were team efforts. Alice is his only child thus far. And if you haven't heard of Doom II or Quake...

For the record, he didn't do Scrapland, just lent his name and some input.

I disagree with him. XBOX 360 and PS3 are next-gen. Wii is new-gen. :) It's a new way of playing games, not just looking at them.

Ok, so I'm buying into Nintendo's rhetoric. But if developers are getting excited about the Wii, then hopefully it will have a plethora of new and inventive games. If Nintendo builds a large library, it sits real pretty to win this console war. Largest library, cheapest price, largest market, a competitive advantage in offering something different than competitors... all these things are crucial to success for Wii.

In my mind, the only thing Nintendo has yet to prove is a decent online structure, which doesn't even need to be up to LIVE standards because it's free.

That first quote is a bit too much. I can see why a innovator would say something like that, but come on. I doubt the general public would feel the exact same way. Most people don't think of next-gen as being a complete redesign in the way you play games. They think of next-gen as improved graphics. The other quote is spot on. But I have not heard anyone who owns a 360 say that it wasn't next-gen.

Until I see his first Wii title, I am going to disagree with him. I hope he proves me wrong.

In many ways, the CURRENT generation wasn't next gen either. Between NES and SNES (or the equivalent generations for other companies), you see a shift from short one-sitting games to big broad games with complex stories. Also, better graphics. Clearly a next generation.

Between SNES and N64 (or the equivalent generations for other companies), you see a shift from 2D gaming to 3D gaming, which completely changed the way games were being played at the time. Also, analog controls (again?), and better graphics. Clearly a next generation.

What about N64 to Gamecube? Playstation 1 to PS2? What changed in gaming, other than the graphics? There wasn't anything new, aside from, MAYBE, the ability to include much much longer games, like final fantasies or MGS games. Not a huge difference between the generations besides the graphics though. You could argue that the controllers got better, but it was incremental from the previous generation.

So what about Xbox360 or PS3? Or Wii? All of them offer better graphics than the previous generation (though the Wii to a substantially smaller extent than the other two), but only the Wii and PS3 have new types of gameplay via the controller, and only the Wii completely incorporates it into the system.

I don't think the Wii is just the only next gen system of this round, I think it's the only next from the past TWO rounds of systems.

It's funny because even Nintendo says the Wii isn't a "next-gen" console.

By that same logic, the Wii is just a controller upgrade.

"I disagree with him. XBOX 360 and PS3 are next-gen. Wii is new-gen. :)"

I think you mean gay-gen?

Of course nintendo fans will say he is right and 360/ps3 ans will say is wrong. Its all childish if you ask me, its just a new controller which could happen on any system. Grow up people and just play your fav. system. I honestly cant stand the wii so far and i dont like what ps3 is offering. I prefer xbox live and the games they release and the whole community. if you prefer wii or ps3 then fine, go on with your lifes. but in my opinion this guy is full of it. Nintendo does not have any adult games coming that interest me and tell me 1 good/great racing game coming for wii. at least 360 has 2 so far and forza coming soon. also tell me 1 great fps nintendo has? xbox has too many to list. anyway who cares, grow up and play the games without being a fanboy

Next-gen is nothing but a measurement of time. Graphics, controller style, none of that matter in regards to whether something is next-gen or not. All that matters is what time frame it was released in.

Darryl: "'That's the way it was, and we liked it!'

Move over old man."


He's 34.

That's only "old" if you're 13.........

Every question I've ever had about you has just been answered.

I remember waaaaaay back (has it been 5 years??) when the Playstation 2 came out and I thought to myself, "This is next-gen?" For starters, the controller was exactly the same as the old PS1 controller. And the DVD playing ability was hardly next-gen as at the time DVDs were hitting mainstream in a big way.

I was never impressed with the Playstation 2, especially with the moniker of next-gen attached. Sure, at times, the graphics looked spiffy. But that was it. You had a CPU, GPU, and RAM upgrade to the original PS1, but no new way to control your games or interact with them. At the time, word was leaking of the Xbox, it's hard drive, ethernet and Xbox Live, and it's controller. Playstation 2 had no such buzz before its launch. Sony was riding on the Playstation name alone (much as they are doing now with the PS3). The somewhat next gen stuff didn't come till later for the PS2 (Eye Toy, hard drive, and online).

I agree with McGee. THe Wii is showing next-gen innovation. Next-gen shouldn't mean just a CPU, GPU, RAM, and stroage upgrade. It should be a new way to play all these games with snazzy graphics. Nintendo took the Gamecube and gave it a horsepower bump. While Xbox360 trickles backwards compatibilty out and Sony crams PS2 hardware into the PS3 case; Nintendo went and created an online distribution system for all their backlogged classics and added Gamecube compatibilty; and they will make money doing it.

The PS2 and PS3 failed to impress, and the 360 is tempting now (due to the $200 HD-DVD add-on), but the Wii will be my first choice.

ah, was beaten to it by Mosquito. I didn't mention XboxLive and probably should have... that IS a next generation innovation from the previous generation.

Improved graphics are a GIVEN. Computer technology gets better over time, so graphics get better over time. That's not the point, and shouldn't be the point, because if you're playing your system for 5 - 10 years, by the second half of the cycle, PC games will look so much better than console games it won't matter.

That's why the innovation of controls and gameplay are so important. If you're upgrading just because of the graphics, you're spending money on something that'll be obsolete in a few years. If the system offers you something unique, though, then you're investing in something that'll continue to offer you new experiences for its whole life.

If you really like graphics, you should be playing PC games. It's more expensive, but hey, you were going to pay $600 for your superfun graphics anyway, right?

the funny thing is his new game is just a gta clone with cel-shaded graphics, real innovation right there ;)

so the ps3 and 360 aren't next-gen because they are just a video card and processor upgrade but the wii is because it's a video card and processor upgrade plus a funky controller?

I don't think the "Xbox 360 offers nothing new" line is appropriate. Did you ever stop and think that maybe some of us like the games and controllers the way they are? For some people, no, that's why you buy a Wii. Because you want something new. Have you even tried any Wii games? For most gamers the answer is no. We don't have any idea how games are going to pull through in the long run. We may just get crap after crap and have Nintendo make the only good Wii games. A perfect example of this is the DS.

Lastly, I think a lot of blame needs to be put on developers and designers. They just aren't making great games. Maybe they are out of inspiration? I guess that's where the Wii comes in.

Huh, and I was certain we'd get a stupid comment out of a Sony fanboy with negative stars in the first five comments... one more bet I've lost in my life.

The silly thing about saying a system is "next generation" and the like is that the generations aren't really technological cycles so much as financial cycles. If it was simply technological cycles, I don't think you could call the Playstation and the N64 a part of the same generation, but we do because they were in the same financial cycle.

Of course, the term "next generation console" is an overused marketing term that has nearly lost all meaning at this point. It doesn't mean better, it just means newer. Talking about whether or not a coming system is really "next gen" is just doing the work of marketers at this point, but without getting paid (at least, I'm not getting paid for it).

Hey fellas one and all,

Despite Eurogamer quoting - the real story is actually on the CVG.com site at the following URL

http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=144515

We'll be publishing the full interview tomorrow. And the mag unfortunately doesn't exist anymore ;)

Who the heck is he? Why should I care what he thinks? I've never heard of him and I checked around and nobody I know seems to have heard of him either. Good try though! The Wee is a controller upgrade and the other consoles are graphics upgrades. The only thing is...Sony has the new controller AND the graphics. Microshaft doesn't have the new controller. I hope I made that clear enough.

Sony has a new controller?
Whats new about it, that hasn't been done before?

Well this comment shows just how stupid McGee is. The only thing Nintendo has going for them is the controller, which Sony and Microsoft will eventually copy(if not pelican or other controller makers will), and YES having a better processor and video card makes something next-gen, which the Wii is lagging behind in. The PS3 will not only be a gaming system but will allow you to use the internet(and LINUX!!!) that to me qualifies it as next-gen. The 360 is pretty much a xbox on steroids and has nothing new to offer that the xbox didnt have, but next gen just means its the next version of a console.

Sorry, John. I updated the post for ya.

"I think you mean gay-gen?"


yeah, lets use gay in a derogatory manner............fucking tool.

its small minded dicks like you who are holding gaming back ,its not about image its about the experience.

You know what I just realized? This guy looks like Dr. Poque.

"I hope I made that clear enough."

You made something clear alright. You're a noob.

While I don't necessarily agree with McGee, to invalidate him because YOU (or your noob friends) have never heard of him is childish. As a previous poster said, "You could fill the universe with the shit you don't know".

How many game companies have you started?

How many games have you made?

If NOTHING else, he's an industry insider and his comments count for something.

In short....address what he's saying....not who he is.

Does that make things clearer?

Rumor's out that the 360 will be packaging the HD-DVD add-on with WiFi to combat the PS3 this fall for $599. You heard it here first.

Mr. McGee is wrong...There are THREE next-gen, one of them being the Wii. Even if it is just a graphical upgrade (Which I don't see with the 360 considering their dashboard functionality is something new and fun to use for consoles...Whereas the orginal Xbox GUI wasn't nearly as intuitve or fun to use), I still think it counts (Even if the gameplay whore in me wants to pull my hair out).

However, being one that grew up on the good ol' NES, I'm just hoping the Wii will make a HUGE impact via sales and creative software (Perhaps even take a #1 spot in a territory). But like others said, this could very well be perceived as a gimmick by casual gamers so I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

I would feel better about the Wii if it had HD. I suspect the Wii will look as poor on my HDTV as my PS2.

Other than that, I am interested in what Nintendo will be releasing.

This might mean something if it didn't come from a complete hack. Alice McGee is the guy who thought to himself "Gee, Alice in Wonderland needs to be remade to the EXTREME" and then hasn't done anything since worth mentioning. He couldn't even make a playable game THIS generation, what makes him think he'll be any more successful in the future?

Attaching his name to the half-baked games he has produced, when far more deserving game makers could do the same, shows that he's just an attention whore. He thinks he's in the same realm as Miyamoto and Wright, when in reality his closest competition is Todd McFarland. Note to both: Stop sticking spikes on things. It's not cool any more, if it ever was.

[/soapbox]

No guy who doesn't think more power is better and is concerned about capturing hearts should be named "American".

Have any of you claiming the Wii is missing the graphical upgrade looked at screens from games MADE for the system? Sonic, SMG, SSBB, MP3, Rayman Raving Rabbids, and more, all these games look great. Ports will look only as good as the developers make them.

While I'm dissappointed that the Wii won't do HD, I'm not missing out because I won't have an HDTV for at least another few years (which means I'm not getting the most out of my 360 anyway). AND it's BECAUSE of the lack of HD that the Wii doesn't need super high-tech (and expensive) hardware to produce great visuals in SD. Ubisoft has said that Far Cry (which is a highly updated/changed version of the original game) will look BETTER on the Wii than the PC version did (which itself was much better than the XBOX version). The Wii will output AT LEAST twice what the XBOX did... so I don't see how it's not a graphical upgrade.

I agree that the 360 dashboard is very innovative and next-gen. But free online play excites me more than the dashboard. Non-proprietary memory cards (2GB for $50? Awesome!), wireless connection out-of-the-box (yes, I have a wireless connection - if you don't, buy the $30 USB-Ethernet adapter), and the ability to interact with games also excite me.

Different people want different things. If you love playing the 360 and/or are dying for the PS3, cool. But I've got my 360 for standard gaming, and I'll have a Wii for whatever it offers. I will thus be content.

As far as I'm concerned, the 360 dashboard is a much needed thing. The marketplace is also a huge upgrade. Being able to download demos and content at any given time is something I would not ever want to miss out on.

Jc, I feel the exact same way. I recently got an hdtv and it makes me realize why hd gaming is actually necessary. There is an undeniable lack in quality when you put non-hd games on a big screen. Hell, I actually play RE4 on my 27" sdtv so the jaggies don't drive me crazy.

I think the Wii has the potential to capture the hearts of everyone, not just gamers. That's what makes it so interesting and exciting. The PS3 & 360 is just better looking and don't have the ability to excite anyone that is not already a gamer. Everyone already knows that video games keep looking better over time. New games system = better graphics...nothing new there. It really wouldn't matter if a game system came out that could actually produce "Toy Story" graphics since everyone expects them to look like that one day. Only the people that keep up with the industry know what is exciting and cutting edge, but most everyone else could care less. However the Wii-mote is going to get some peoples attention. Gimmick or not it's going to raise a lot of eyebrows and make a lot of people want to try it. That's why there were such long lines at E3. People wanted to try it. You could learn everything new about the PS3 by watching a few videos.

Hahahaha, I love how comments like these get everyone so fired up over absolutely nothing.

Since no one can seem to agree what next-gen actually means, lets look at how its been used in years past:
The PS2 was called next-gen, the Dreamcast, the Gamecube, the Xbox. What did these consoles offer? Besides the Xbox, only graphical and power upgrades. Same with the NES to SNES. So by simple reasoning, the PS3 and Xbox360 are truly next gen, the Wii is not. Funny, Nintendo never said it was.

They've stated time and time again they are not going after the same territory the X360 and PS3 are, so why do people still argue like thats the case? If you hate the idea of the Wii, Nintendo doesnt care. They arent advertising to you, they left Microsoft and Sony to take care of the folks who prefer "more of the same", while they decided to venture off and try something new. Which is great; if the Wii succeeds, the entire industry can only benefit. If it fails, then its obvious that innovation isnt what people want.

Dont be so quick to preach the shortcomings of the Wii's controller, however. Take a look at the list of contributions Nintendo has made to gaming and you'll see a great majority of themc an be found on all current gen consoles; so its obvious Nintendo knows what they are doing. Best we can do now is wait and see.

All 3 are next gen. Why? Becuse these are completely new systems for each company. Equals automatic next gen.

People like to play around with the definition and what it actually means, but it's pretty obvious.

The differences between the 3 is the direction each company is going with their next-gen. When they define next-gen based on their own direction we have people on these blogs arguing over what next-gen really is.

Next Gen IS the PS3, the Wii, and the 360 as each one replaces it's company's previous console hardware.

Simple.

Hey, hey, hey now!! He's right you know. PS3 and XBOX360 are basically computers, so.......c'mon, let's not get fanboy written all over this one and agree with the guy.

Oh and darryl? Gay-gen? That was stupid. Or re-TART-ed because I know that's how YOU would spell it.