Fri, Dec 07, 2012 | 13:41 GMT
Iwata Asks: Wii U GamePad prototype was two WiiMotes taped to a monitor
The latest edition of Iwata Asks – in which Nintendo president Satoru Iwata quizzes his internal development teams – focused on party game Nintendo Land and the GamePad’s conception, revealing a crude early prototype that consisted of a monitor, two WiiMote controllers and a shit-load of sticky tape. See it below.
Sexy no?
The Iwata Asks session saw Iwata being handed the above prototype before asking the team about it, and stating that it led to the development of Nintendo Land.
Katsuya Eguchi, general manager – software development department entertainment (Christ!) analysis & development division, said, “We used this prototype and two Wii consoles to run simulations for Wii U. EAD isn’t a hardware department, but a ‘handicraft team’ knowledgeable about hardware makes stuff like this.
“One of the staff members expressed a desire for a game that would gather Nintendo’s franchises into a single spot and each franchise would have something to do with the others. It was quite a grand concept. But we were like, ‘How do we bring them all together?’ We didn’t take it too seriously.
“But when we tried to figure it out in front of all the prototypes, we thought, ‘If we did that, it just might work,’ and very slowly, moved forward in that direction.”
So it just goes to show that simple things can often lead to bigger innovations in the industry. For example, did you know that Angry Birds was spawned form a game of conkers?
(It wasn’t spawned from a game of conkers.)
Cheers Eurogamer.
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Posted in: Nintendo, Wii U
Tags: Iwata Asks, Nintendo Land, Satoru Iwata
8 comments
#1
monkeygourmet
07/12/12, 1:46 pm
I love seeing stuff like this!
#2
Dave Cook
07/12/12, 1:47 pm
@1 same, gives you proper insight into the development process/R&D
#3
ManuOtaku
07/12/12, 1:51 pm
So it was like the new prototype sony is showing for the dualshock, with the two moves on it and that is detachable, man sony and nintendo think alike they should merge at one point
#4
Dave Cook
07/12/12, 1:52 pm
@3
‘Sontendo’?
‘Nintony’?
#5
ManuOtaku
07/12/12, 1:54 pm
#4 Dave i prefer nintony is more “kiddy”, for my inner kid
#6
monkeygourmet
07/12/12, 2:01 pm
@2
I love how honest Nintendo is with it too!
It always looks like:
‘Well, we had some old shit lying around, strapped that on there, added that, snapped a bit off a power glove, inserted that on their and bobs your uncle! ‘
In fact the guy who invented the Gameboy loved to recycle tech, it seems like the process continues. I like how they squeeze so much out of the tech before they move on!
#7
SnowyFack
07/12/12, 3:21 pm
Amazing device!!!ahahah
#8
Cobra951
07/12/12, 3:50 pm
2 wiimotes with the guts from 2 nunchuks attached, all glued to that monitor. Haha! I would love to know the story behind how they arrived at the idea. Was it just a shotgun approach, and that one hit the target?