Thu, Jul 07, 2011 | 09:57 BST
Gearbox: Wii U a “stop-gap” between current and next-generations
Gearbox co-founder Brian Martel has said Wii U is a “cool” intermission between the current and next-gen cycles of hardware.

In an interview with IGN AU, Martel, who’s company is working on a Wii U version of Aliens: Colonial Marines, called the introduction of the hardware a “stop gap.”
“Right now we’re still finding out what kind of final tech specs the Wii U is going to have,” he said.
“But we like the system a lot; we think it’s going to be a really cool stop-gap in between this generation and the next generation. We think it’s really smart of Nintendo, and the fact that as a platform it’s a lot more capable for hardcore first-person shooter-style gaming – for us that’s fantastic.”
Martel said that the developer was most excited about what it could do with the tablet controller.
“So the obvious thing for us is that we can do the motion tracker [on the controller screen], or the sentry gun information – all that kind of stuff. That stuff is really sexy for us. Getting the information off the screen and onto this device is a fantastic idea, right? So can we have a HUD-less environment? Yeah, probably. That would be fantastic, right?”
Colonial Marines launches in 2012.


8 comments
#1
Christopher Jack
07/07/11, 10:12 am
“a “stop-gap” between current and next-generations”
Like the Wii was? PASS!
#2
Lounds
07/07/11, 10:57 am
Don’t no but I love the Idea of Hudless game and the info on the tablet screen
#3
The_Red
07/07/11, 11:20 am
@ 1
Wii wasn’t a “stop-gap”. It was GameCube with gimmicky motion controls. Wii U’s touch controls aren’t for every game but they can be more than a gimmick if used properly (since they have precision and won’t need pointless waggle).
#4
manamana
07/07/11, 12:47 pm
I dunno. A game without HUD can be nice *sometimes*. But to take a glimpse at Screen, say at Gears while reloading, is absolutely necessary. Or the energybar from Crysis2. Some Healthbars dito. Maybe the developer find a workaround like in Dead-Space – a stellar example of how to integrate such things, imo.
#5
Christopher Jack
07/07/11, 12:48 pm
It was much more powerful than even the original Xbox, it just didn’t have many quality games to show it. Sure people will now come out & defend it by mentioning Super Mario Galaxy & what ever-fact is, they aren’t very powerful games, may look decent but that’s art design, not technology.
#6
elisio
07/07/11, 12:55 pm
The Wii “much more powerful” than the original Xbox? Now that’s funny.
#7
Clupula
07/07/11, 1:07 pm
The last stop-gap system I remember was the 32X. We remember how well that worked.
#8
Dannybuoy
07/07/11, 1:08 pm
That’s assuming consumers want a stop gap. Why not wait for the real next gen?