NINTENDO UNVEILS GAMECUBE AT SPACEWORLD!

The moment gamers and loyal fans of Nintendo have been waiting for with bated breath has arrived! This weekend, Nintendo of Japan unveiled what could be their best system of all time, The Gamecube. Having gathered all the reports for the Spaceworld, Video Gamer X, is very pleased with what Nintendo has done and is planning. All those favorite Nintendo classics will be reborn by the master Miyamoto's vision. The Nintendo GameCube Presents itself as a very worthy canvas for legendary game designers like Myiamoto to bring the legends alive. Miyamoto dazzled audiences as he poured 128 high polygon count (About 700 per Mario) Marios onto an area where each one acted independantly of the other, showing the capability of the GameCube proving Nintendo will be capable of matching head to head with anything rival Sony or Microsoft plan to offer. Nintendo commented by saying GameCube is not about playing DVD Movies or "just another console" but rather a family machine, a theme from Nintendo's roots with the Famicom (Family Computer), and the unit's design, although not as stealthy as the Playstation 2, is designed to be something that you want to play games with, and that anyone of all ages can identify as a video game machine.

Gamecube hardware is formidable indeed. The cosmetics of the unit to me as an older gamer appear a little odd, but I understand Nintendo's reasoning behind adding the handle. Some of the odd colored ones like the Hot Pink and Purple colored systems are... well... weird, and look like "your little sister's lunchbox." The pictures of gamecube are a little deceptive, it's not as big as it looks. I first looked at it and worried that the unit would be a big towering box over my other systems, but as it turns out it's very diminuative in size. And, PRAISE THE GAMING GODS Nintendo finally decided to mosey on over to Disc Storage Format. Matsushita has developed a hybrid DVD High density disk that's smaller than a CD or DVD, along the lines of a MiniDisc. This format will hold approximately 1.5 GB of game data, as much as 3 CD ROMS! As well the GameCube will support a 64 MB Flash RAM Card as well as an 8MB Memory card, that will act as a supplement to store game files as well as game saves on. The GameCube has been made with connectivity to the internet in mind for the future but Nintendo doesn't seem to be focused on this aspect at the moment.

Nintendo also showed the controller and button configuration of the GameCube controller. One thing you'll notice, as I did, was that it seems to be like this hybrid evolution of the N64 Controller and the Playstation Dual Shock Analog controller. At first glance, I though it a little odd, but I took a good look and it looks like it just might work out. You'll notice that many of the buttons are more ergonomic and curved about the pivot of a gamer's thumb. The Z-Trigger has been moved off the bottom of the controller design to the upper portion behind the R-Button. GameCube will also have the capability of using a wireless attachment for the controller ports. I can personally attest to how much I wish Sony or Dreamcast would have done this. Sometimes seeing that black line of a controller cord draped over the front of your TV all the time is just damn annoying while you're playing a game. I personally care for the black one most because some of the others look like something I might get from the "FisherPrice" aisle of the Toy Store.

Among the Screenshots divulged by the otherwise tight lipped Nintendo were some actual shots of A GAME CUBE Version of Zelda! Featuring a battle between Link and Ganondorf, it was literally a dream come true with Link rendered in his full glory. It was said that this little demo was thrown together kind of quickly so this of course is probably not a valid representation of a finished product, rather, something the programmers scratched up for Spaceworld. Think of what THE REAL GAMECUBE ZELDA is going to be like! It will be beyond Awesome! A sprawling Hyrule unfolds before you. No more confined spaces like Zelda 64, just wide open exploring and pure adventure as the Legendary Knight destined to save Hyrule from Ganon and his minions.

Holy crap, that's awesome. It does a veteran gamer's heart good to see Link lookin' that detailed. Just think only 10 years ago he was nothing but a collection of dots and sprites on the screen, and now he's like a living human being. Amazing! Simply Amazing!

Some other games Nintendo gave sneak peaks at included Rouge Squadron 2, Luigi's Mansion, Too Human, and best of all Metroid! Yeah, you heard me right METROID! It's been along time since I said that word as being an actual game in the making but their finally doing it, and the game from the looks of just two screenshots I've seen of it, will be beyond anything we've experienced before with the series. There were also hints and rumors about a possible contemporary remake of Kid Icarus! Whoo boy, it looks like the Nintendo of old might just return to bring back the glory days, but, like anything time will only tell if the GameCube can withstand the competition of Dreamcast, Playstation 2, and the as of yet mysterious X-Box.

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