Revolution Details

The Nintendo Revolution will be a sleek console that will come complete with wireless controllers, backwards compatibility and full online functionality out of the box, according to Nintendo.
Not to be outdone by Microsoft's MTV unveiling of the Xbox 360 and our exclusive report that Sony will reveal a near-complete version of the PS3 at next week's E3, Nintendo has decided to release the first official details of its next-gen machine.

Speaking to select members of the US mainstream press Perrin Kaplin, Nintendo of America's vice president for corporate affairs, described the Revolution as "very, very sleek."
She elaborated by stating that the console would sit horizontally, and compared its size to three DVD cases sitting on top of each other (about 5cm by 19cm). It's a huge departure from Nintendo's past console designs and signals a new desire to compete directly with Sony and Microsoft's slicker unit designs.

Other features confirmed for Revolution by Kaplin include wireless controllers and DVD playback. To allow for this new feature the console will use 12cm optical disks (that's the same size as a DVD-ROM) rather than the Cube's smaller proprietary disks.

Online play will be available out of the box and Nintendo will push this aspect of the Revolution extremely hard. More detailed plans about the Nintendo Online service are expected next week at E3, but wireless connectivity between DS and Revolution is also expected.

Perhaps most importantly for Nintendo fans, Kaplin confirmed that the Revolution would be backwards compatible with GameCube games. Microsoft is yet to announce whether you'll be able to play Xbox games on 360.

Kaplin also discussed new, next-gen games that would exploit high definition technology - clearly taking a lead from Xbox 360's emphasis on the 'HD Era'.

No further details about the console's release date, price, or much-debated gameplay revolution were revealed.

While numerous reports - including information passed to us last month - have suggested that the Revolution will not be present at next week's E3 in anything other than video form, these new official details suggest that we may see more of the console than expected.

Whatever happens, we'll bring you the news first.