Got an HDTV? If you're sticking with Nintendo on the next console wave, it probably won't matter. The company's next console, still named Revolution, won't support the high-end 720 and 1080 resolutions of newer televisions or be the strongest gaming machine on the shelf. Late last year, Nintendo offered this official (yet automated) response to anyone who emailed the company about hardware power:
"High definition graphics look fantastic, but come at a price. To shine, high definition games must be played on high definition televisions, which aren't cheap. Games with high definition graphics are expensive to develop because they must be developed in both standard and high definition formats. Those development costs are passed on to you in the form of more expensive software. Finally, playing games with high definition graphics requires a system with loads of RAM and costly high-end graphics chips, both of which make it prohibitively expensive for most consumers."
Nintendo President Satoru Iwata has already stated the Revolution will retail cheaper than the Xbox 360 core system, which currently rings in at $300. If speculation is to be believed, the Blu-ray enhanced Playstation 3 could push $400 when it finally comes out. Both consoles fully embrace HD signals and will undoubtedly throw some intoxicating graphics around. But maybe performance over power will court victory back to Nintendo's doorstep - the DS is more than holding its own against the clearly tech-superior PSP. Affordability and ease of use worked for the handheld, so perhaps applying that winning strategy to a console will pay off.
