So IGN has launched their Revolution channel, at last. With it, they’ve brought some insider news to the public. Here’s what they know (allegedly):
- Developers are currently working with “GameCube-based kits” that resemble “a souped up Xbox”. They still don’t have final specifications for Revolution’s ATI-developed graphics chip, codenamed Hollywood.
- HD is likely an impossibility due to the insufficient RAM capacity, which is needed to display high-res textures.
- Revolution will likely top out at 128MBs of RAM or less. One of the sources claimed: “same as GameCube plus an extra 64MB.” Another studio said the on-board 512MBs of flash memory could be potentially tapped into, but not relied upon.
- Studios are very intrigued at the possibilities of the controller.
- Developers are waiting for the finalization of the GPU, Hollywood, to find out if the Revolution will be more than just a juiced up Xbox.
- Ubisoft is indeed working on a Revolution first person shooter, with “a level of aiming precision unavailable in traditional console shooters.”
- Developers have been told by Nintendo that the launch target for Revolution in America is Thanksgiving week 2006.
What can we deduce from this? Well, first off, it’s too early to know how Revolution will look like when we have it next to our TVs. Essentially, aside from the controller, it doesn’t exist yet. Second, developers are more concerned with the controller’s possibilities than the visuals the system can produce. I assume the graphics will be focused on once the final chip sets are in their possession. At the moment, it’s all about the core of the game. That, my friends, is how game development should always be.
[Source: IGN Revolution]