The recently held ‘Iwata Asks’ has helped gamers get an in-depth view of the Nintendo Wii U GamePad. Members from the gaming company’s research and development team put together presentations which allowed users to understand the complexities that go into video display and capture for the devices.
Nintendo’s president Satoru Iwata iterated that even though most video game systems could afford to have some leeway for lag and to buffer their videos, the Wii U would not be able to afford that luxury as it is a skill-based gaming system. He added that to have any lag on the Wii U would be akin to the kiss of death.
Iwata went on to speak about the Mario game on the Wii U GamePad, saying that when users pressed the button Mario had to jump, if there was any lag in that operation then it would be fatal for the game. According to Iwata, this was a challenge nobody else has had before.
According to Nintendo, their video compression methods for the GamePad in some cases are superior to a connected HDTV. They have also overcome obstacles such the Doppler effect for a moving games controller. It was also noted that the GamePad had problems operating through thick walls, if not in the same room as the Wii U console.
Masato Ibuki from Nintendo’s product development team said that senior staff encouraged all newer employees to work on the Wii U saying that development is usually easier, and that they had a great opportunity with the project.
