Originally Posted by DJZen
They had a hope with the DS. At least you can see right off the bat how the new features are fun, but it's still a very familiar design (especially to anyone who's seen a Game & Watch). This, however, is going to alienate EVERYONE who's not already a Nintendo fanboy. Think about it. Sony fans will be laughing their heads off when they see this. There's no way they'll be won over. Xbox players will... umm.... well they'll have Halo I guess. Casual gamers (non-dedicated gamers who play for a while and don't give a darn for brand loyalty) have already shown they prefer Playstation, and this new controller will only confirm it for them. They'll look at it and say "gay" and go right back to PS3. Old schoolers will apparently feel right at home with the sideways NES style layout, but really, how many games will be designed with that in mind? This controller will be awful for sports games, I just can't see anyone wanting to play Madden on this system anymore.
Its strengths will lie pretty strongly in gimmick games. Sure, you can get a "shell" to use an old style controller, but you know that that won't be well recieved, and everyone who gets a Revolution is probably just going to buy one of those anyway. This reminds me a lot of the XaviXport, where the only real way to play more games is to buy the proprietary controller for them. This makes each game that much more expensive.
I'm NOT a closed minded gamer. I'm neither a new school mainstream gamer nor am I an old school traditionalist who poo poos everything that's come out since Super Mario Bros. 3. I gave the DS the benefit of the doubt and even supported it in spite of it being the unpopular system. As far as I'm concerned, however, this could well be the nail in the coffin for Nintendo as a console manufacturer. I know it's still early yet, which is why I say could well be and not is going to be. However, Nintendo has lost a LOT of footing ever since the PS1 came out, and they've been losing more and more with each new generation of consoles. This isn't going to be a popular move on their part. Right now, Nintendo needs to focus on their market research a little more and see what real gamers really want. They're REALLY pidgeonholing themselves with this one. If they survive, I'll be elated. If they somehow manage to come out on top (good luck, going up against 2 of the biggest names in electronics IN THE ENTIRE WORLD!), I'll be revelatory. However, right now, it really seems like Nintendo up and shot themselves in the foot...