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    Its Now March 2013 and DCEmu the Homebrew & Gaming Network is now 9 Years old. I actually started the sites back in 2002 but joined them under the DCEmu name back in 2004 when the site was foremost a Dreamcast Site, since then we have expanded and cover all homebrew scenes as new consoles come into play. To make sure the site gets back to what it does best i have merged the discussion forums and unmerged all the news forums, which for everyone makes for a better reading experiance, no one wants to search for PS2 news on a PS3 merged news forum because it takes ages to find it. Also this month we have launched new sites for PS4, GCW Zero and also an Open Source Handhelds website. Thanks for visiting DCEmu and please join in the discussion and remember if you are a coder then you can upload to our forum instead of using crappy internet upload sites.
  • Wii U News

    by Published on May 29th, 2012 22:41
    1. Categories:
    2. Wii U News

    "Nintendo has the most to lose or gain this E3. Their backs are against the wall," says Jesse Divnich.

    Nintendo

    www.nintendo-europe.com

    Nintendo of America


    In this analyst roundtable (following our look atMicrosoft and Sony at E3), we examine what is arguably the most important of the three E3 press conferences: Nintendo. The house that Mario built is no doubt going to do its best to steal the show. Everyone is eager to see what Wii U will really be like.
    Nintendo is facing intense scrutiny and has numerous questions to answer, and even with E3 the company may choose to deliberately not answer them all. Will Mario and Zelda both grace Wii U's launch? How much will Wii U cost? Can Nintendo strike a balance to retain its casual Wii audience while also attracting the core Xbox/PlayStation demographic?
    It's going to be a very interesting E3 for Nintendo. Here's what the analysts had to say:
    Jesse Divnich, EEDAR
    Nintendo has the most to lose or gain this E3. Their backs are against the wall as their hardware numbers have fallen below expectations in recent quarters--but it is a position they've been in before and I'd argue some of their best decisions came while under pressure.
    "Nintendo needs to demonstrate how Wii U will change gaming in a way that other systems cannot"
    Billy Pidgeon

    Nintendo is likely to put a big focus on all the third-party partnerships they have obtained for their Wii U line-up. My only concern with Nintendo at E3 is that they might cater too much to the core audience by announcing/showcasing a plethora of HD ports that are already in development for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. I think going head-to-head with the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 is a bad proposition. Nintendo has succeeded on their ability to go against the grain and create demand where there wasn't any before.
    And yes, I am more than positive that any HD Wii U port will each have Wii U specific features, but I don't foresee any of them being able to sway gamers who are already entrenched in these franchises on other consoles (Darksiders, Ghost Recon, Assassin's Creed, etc).
    I am sure Nintendo will give us the usual Nintendo IP love with numerous Mario and Zelda trailers, which the fans will eat up. Personally, I would prefer that Nintendo focus on why the Wii U can offer a superior differentiating entertainment experience.

    http://www.gamesindustry.biz/article...what-to-expect

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    by Published on May 29th, 2012 22:08
    1. Categories:
    2. Wii U News

    Nintendo's next generation console will not receive support from Epic's upcoming tech

    Nintendo’s next generation console will not be supported by the upcoming Unreal Engine 4, it has been revealed.
    UE4 is the next-generation of Epic’s very popular development engine. Its incompatibility with Wii U effectively locks Nintendo’s machine out of a wealth of third party multiplatform content.

    The confirmation came from SpikeTV host Geoff Keighley, who said on Twitter that Epic’s Mike Capps confirmed the news at GDC in March.
    Wii U will, however, be supported by the currently common Unreal Engine 3. But if UE4 gains the same popularity as UE3, Nintendo’s platform could once again struggle to court the same level of third party support and Microsoft and Sony’s machines.

    http://www.develop-online.net/news/4...supporting-UE4
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    by Published on May 23rd, 2012 23:21
    1. Categories:
    2. Wii U News

    The graphics of the Wii U version of Darksiders 2 are "at least as good" as the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions', developer Vigil has said.Game companies and developers are under strict orders not to discuss the Wii U in detail publicly, a directive that has led to speculation about the horsepower of Nintendo's Wi successor. Indeed one report from earlier this year claimed the Wii U was "not as capable" as the PS3 and Xbox 360.But with final developer kits now with engineers, and Nintendo just two weeks away from unveiling the final version of the hardware at E3, Vigil has insisted Wii U owners will see visual parity when it comes to multiplatform games."The visuals will be the same," associate producer Jay Fitzloff told Eurogamer. "It's still a work in progress. But I know, at least as good is the way to say it."In July last Vigil told Eurogamer it spent just five weeks in the run up to E3 2011 creating a working version of the action adventure game on Wii U. Then, Vigil said the Wii U had "plenty of horsepower", "so we're not going to have to make any visual concessions at all".At that time developers were working off of second generation Wii U dev kits - early versions of the console - and its horsepower was in flux. Then, game director Marvin Donald said, "If the Wii U turns out to be this ridiculously powerful machine, we will probably make changes to our budget and scope to take advantage of that." This hasn't happened."[Getting Darksiders 2 working on Wii U] is not as challenging as you might think," Fitzloff said. "Getting it working was not any issue on the Wii U. It's just the control scheme. It's new territory. It's a new frontier. The Wii, after a while, there's a lot you could have done with the Wii controls, but everybody kind of got into a groove, and it became, here's how you handle this or here's how you handle this. Now it's the wild frontier. There's no set system. You've got to think outside the box because there's no precedent."It's not getting the game working on the system. It's getting a cool control system that feels correct. And that's where we're at now."Vigil was even able to quickly get Darksiders 2 running with the Wii U controller, which can stream gameplay from the console."When we first got it up and running, you can have the game download to and run on the pad, and everybody was like, that could take a while, little worried," Fitzloff explained. "It took a programmer two lines of code and five minutes. Working with it is not difficult."Darksiders 2 will use the Wii U controller in obvious ways - for inventory and map use - but the impact of these "no brainers" on gameplay is, according to Fitzloff, huge."Any game would have their inventory on the controller screen," he said. "But even that little simple thing is a big difference because you never have to stop the game on the main screen. That will change people's perceptions because you've never had a game where you didn't have to."They take you out [of the experience], whereas this just goes."He added: "And you're talking about the low hanging fruit. You're talking about the easy stuff. The rest of it is where the challenge comes in. What do we do beyond that that makes it feel natural and integral?"One developer working on Wii U, who wished to remain anonymous, told Eurogamer Wii U ports will at best look as good as PS3 and Xbox 360 games. However, he indicated gamers will only see its true graphics capabilities with games built from the ground up for Wii U later in its life cycle.For its part, Nintendo has said its focus with the Wii U is gameplay, not graphics. "We do not focus on technology specs," Nintendo said in March of this year. "We understand that people like to dissect graphics and processing power, but the experience of playing will always be more important than raw numbers."

    http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/20...x-360-versions
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    by Published on May 21st, 2012 23:19
    1. Categories:
    2. Wii U News

    Twitter faux pas, fake, PR stunt or employee blunder? Who knows, but in the mean time there’s nothing to stop us speculating!
    This morning MCV revealed a picture leaked by a TT Games employee on Twitter that showed an altered version of the Wii U controller currently being used at the studio.
    However, users on the NeoGAF forum have, after consulting original design documents, discovered that the ‘new’ controller is actually more like Nintendo’s original design, suggesting the company has reverted to that after feedback from early testers.
    The changes between the two appear minimal (and can be seen clearly in this useful animated GIF) but could quite likely have a big impact on usability. The 3DS-style analogue nubs have been replaced with ‘proper’ analogue sticks – sources add that these are clickable like the sticks found on Xbox 360 and PS3 controllers.
    In addition, a slight rearrangement of the buttons makes everything a bit more accessible. It’s unknown if this current unit retains the curved rear of the second generation hardware or reverts to the flatter back of the first machine.
    What we don’t know, however, is what the two new mystery buttons are – if indeed they are buttons at all.
    As can be seen in the picture below, unlabelled square panels have now appeared below both the d-pad and on the lower right of the machine.
    Speculation regarding their role is rife as you might imagine. Some reckon it could be something to do with the device’s NFC tech, while others have even suggested they could mark the return of the infamous Vitality Sensor!
    Expect all these answers to be revealed at E3, which kicks off two weeks from today.

    http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/is-th...troller/096364
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    by Published on May 21st, 2012 23:09
    1. Categories:
    2. Nintendo 3DS News,
    3. Wii U News

    Nintendo’s E3 presentation will be broadcast on television channels and web services, the company announced today.
    Nintendo is offering what they’re describing as an ‘All-Access Presentation’ of next month’s press conference on Spike TV, MTV2, Youtube, Facebook, Twiter, and through e3.nintendo.com.
    "We don't want anyone to miss the energy and excitement of this year's E3 Expo," Nintendo of America's vice president of Corporate Affairs Cindy Gordon explained. "By offering different ways to tune in and follow all the Nintendo news, we aim to make fans all over the world feel like they're right there with us at the show."
    Both Microsoft and Sony previously confirmed broadcasting of various forms for their own respective press conferences.
    The Nintendo press event (which we highly expect to be Wii-U focused) will kick-off Tuesday, June 5th at 9 AM Pacific.

    http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/ninte...ference/096378
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    by Published on May 21st, 2012 22:55
    1. Categories:
    2. Wii U News
    Article Preview

    TT Games employee tweets image of revised tablet design, featuring proper analogue sticks.


    A member of staff at Maidenhead studio TT Games has tweeted an image of what appears to be a redesigned tablet controller forNintendo's upcoming home console, Wii U.
    The image, which has since been deleted but not before our vigilant friends at Nintendo Gamer took a screenshot, shows a broadly similar design to that unveiled alongside the console at E3 last year, with one major difference: the analogue controls, which were originally modelled on the 3DS circle pad, have been replaced with proper analogue sticks.
    The start and select buttons have been moved from under the screen to its right hand side, and the grey cable connected to the top of the controller closely resembles a 3DS AC adaptor. There are two new square buttons, too: one under the d-pad, and the other in between the power button and battery light.
    There's no suggestion that this is the final version of the controller - that, and the final hardware, will be revealed at E3 next month - but the inclusion of analogue sticks in particular suggests that either Nintendo or its licensed developers weren't entirely happy with the original design, pictured below.

    In January, Street Fighter series producer Yoshinori Ono said that the Wii U unveiled at last year's E3 was far from the finished article, saying the console had evolved since its unveiling and had "many unique possibilities". Nintendo has been known to be working on improving the console for some time, with reports last year claiming it was working on support for multiple tablet controllers, as well as improving RAM and processor speed.

    http://www.edge-online.com/news/new-...esign-revealed
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    by Published on May 21st, 2012 00:44
    1. Categories:
    2. Wii U News
    Article Preview

    We don't know much about the next Smash Bros for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U, but we know it's in the works.
    A new Smash Bros was first confirmed in at E3 last year, where Nintendo boss Satoru Iwata told E3 attendees that because the Sora development team was so involved in Kid Icarus: Uprising. Read between the lines and he's essentially admitted they haven't got a clue what the game will entail and desperately needed something to keep the hardcore Ninty fans from rioting.
    Sakurai later admitted 'shouldn't have been publicly announced' because development hasn't even started and won't do until Kid Icarus Uprising is complete. Now that franchise creator Masahiro Sakurai has kicked Kid Icarus: Uprising out the door and said he's not interested in sequel he's likely turning his attention to Nintendo's all-star brawler.
    So, we thought we'd pitch in with a few of our own ideas in the hopes of speeding the development process up, and because Nintendo we know Nintendo will definitely read this and definitely listen to everything we have to say....

    IDENTITY

    Smash Bros, by its very nature, is a bit of a hodge-podge of all things Nintendo. For many this mish-mashing of content is what attracts them to the series, but in recent years the charm has started to wear a bit thin.Maybe it's because we're old and cynical but these days we're having trouble ignoring the fact that Nintendo is essentially just dumping a buttload of assets into one place and then retooling it all to accommodate four characters beating the snot out of each other.
    It's undeniably awesome, but we think it could be so much better if Nintendo put in the time and effort to create a uniform aesthetic and re-imagine all the characters for the next game. We're a little bit bored of seeing the same Mario, Link and Captain Falcon model, albeit with better textures. We'd rather see a whole new take on Hyrule Temple, instead of the same one dusted off and cleaned up yet again.
    Characters like Toon Link and Mr. Game and Watch, which have their own unique visual style will certainly be tricky to reinvent but we have faith in Nintendo et al.

    http://www.computerandvideogames.com...e-want-to-see/
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    by Published on May 21st, 2012 00:40
    1. Categories:
    2. Wii U News
    Article Preview

    A patent filed by Nintendo in October of last year has just surfaced online, suggesting a neat feature for the Wii U. The patent outlines a feature in which the player can use the Wiimote to grab things from the television and transport them over to the Wii U tablet.

    In the example provided, the player is under attack from a UFO and uses the Wiimote to move a character from the TV to the safety of the tablet. Sounds like an interesting feature, though we're not looking forward to taking a bath in radioactive liquid so we can grow that extra arm to use all this stuff.

    http://www.joystiq.com/2012/05/18/wi...-and-dragging/
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    by Published on May 21st, 2012 00:15
    1. Categories:
    2. Wii U News
    Article Preview

    Excited for Nintendo's new tablet-esque controller? So are the kids in TT Games' QA department. An over-excited tester tweeted out an image of a slightly different Wii U slab than the one we laid hands onat E3 2011, teasing "look we what we have at work!" Answering the call does indeed reveal something worth looking at -- a somewhat wider looking Wii U slate featuring two full-sized analog sticks (as opposed to 3DS-like circle pads), a pair of unmarked button-like squares, and a new starboard home for the controller's plus and minus buttons.
    The tweet was summarily pulled, of course, but not before our friends at Joystiq nabbed a screenshot. Naturally, the rumor mill started right up, churning out speculation of developer specific slabs, early prototypes and late redesigns. The truth? We'll probably need to wait until E3 to find out, but we reached out to Nintendo for a comment all the same. We'll let you know if we hear anything more thanthe usual "Nintendo doesn't comment on rumors and speculation" line.

    http://www.engadget.com/2012/05/20/a...design-leaked/
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    by Published on May 17th, 2012 00:51
    1. Categories:
    2. Wii U News

    Free-to-play could be the go-to business model for next generation console software on PS4, Next Xbox and Wii U.
    That’s the impression given by Ubisoft in its post financials conference call.
    A surprising amount of focus was put on the next-generation consoles in the presentation.
    It’s interesting to think that publishers may be the ones to force platform holder’s hands this time. Traditionally publishers have been hesitant about the transition to a new wave of machines and, specifically, all the costs associated with that.
    But with the console market in free-fall we’re witnessing an unprecedented turning of the tide – now publishers are the ones who want fresh hardware, and their enthusiasm might be the final push needed to finally get Sony and Microsoft to play their secretive decks.
    Ubisoft management suggested that next-gen development is now well underway at the company. Indeed, seven launch tiles are planned for Wii U – and so far dev costs on each have been roughly in line with Xbox 360 and PS3 costs. That will be as big a relief as anything.
    As well as noting the next-gen’s power increase, Ubisoft also revealed that the internet and connected services will be a bigger feature than ever. The company also noted that both full game digital downloads and – maybe more surprisingly – free-to-play titles will form a central focus of the generation ahead.
    Traditional retail and distribution methods will not die out, however, but merely be supplemented by these new options.
    “We believe that F2P versions of Wii-U titles are in UbiSoft's plans for the coming year,” Baird Equity Research’s Colin Sebastian noted. “It appears that new consoles from Microsoft and Sony will also allow more integration of item-based transactions within games, including a free-to-play option similar to the model used in social and mobile games.
    “UbiSoft expects this to drive better monetization than what is commonly available in the current generation. We believe the F2P model on consoles, as part of a broad multi-platform strategy (phones, tablets, connected TVs) could drive a higher level of profitability per franchise.
    “In addition, developers of Facebook and Mobile/Tablet games may discover a new platform opportunity for their titles in the next console generation.”

    http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/ubiso...le-race/096124
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