Nintendo's press event is taking place on June 7, and all our questions about the company's upcoming system (codenamed Project Café) and games will be answered. Or at least most of our questions. Nintendo has done an admirable job keeping the specific details about the system quiet, but we have a few guesses about what we're going to see, and what it means for the company.

So buckle up and get ready for some rampant speculation that will have to do until we get the real story. I think we can safely say...

...the system will be able to display high definition graphics

The Nintendo Wii was launched on November 19, 2006. Since that time, the price of high definition televisions has taken a nose dive, standard definition television signals are unloved, and now it's hard to find a television that doesn't output a resolution of at least 720p. We're past the point where a high-definition image is optional, and Nintendo knows it. We're also past the point where putting together a system that is powerful enough for HD is expensive.

While Wii sales are down, the system and the games have been tremendously profitable for Nintendo. Now that more powerful hardware is less expensive and HD displays are the standard instead of the exception, it's time for Nintendo to saunter in and say hello. The gaming giant is rarely interested in blazing new technological trails as much as it wants to put existing, low-cost technology to use in interesting ways. I think we can expect an HD image, but I don't think we're going to see anything that's going to blow the 360 and PS3 out of the water, and the next-generation systems from Microsoft and Sony will almost certainly be more graphically advanced.

...the controller will be a major draw

Everyone seems to be saying that the Project Café controller will include a good-quality touchscreen for controlling certain aspects of the game and giving information to the player, and that makes a whole lot of sense. Playing Ocarina of Time on the 3DS has been amazing due to the bottom screen's ability to handle inventory and mapping functions without removing you from the action. Giving every player their own private screen is a great idea, and the possibilities for gameplay use are limitless.

Heck, at EA's offices we watched as someone played Real Racing 2 on the iPad 2 connected to a TV via the HDMI adaptor. The action was shown on the television, and the iPad 2 was used as a motion-controlled steering wheel that showed a map of the track and your car's speed. This is an experience you can have now with a game that has already been released. Real Racing 2 works well, and it shows the merit of a controller that includes a screen.

Will the controllers feature some form of motion control? We think so. Will they be expensive? That's a big question. Nintendo loves to stress the social aspects of its systems, but if the controllers are more than $50 apiece it's going to be a hard sell to get four players hooked up at the same time without breaking the bank.

...online play isn't going to be great

I can never tell if Nintendo doesn't understand online play, or just doesn't care about it. The company's online stores tend to be unintuitive and frustrating, and with friend codes being mandatory, playing against someone is always a pain in the rear. The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 both have great online stores and systems, and it's even easy to play against friends on many iPhone games. Nintendo has yet to ship a system with a compelling online plan.

I'd be very surprised if that changed with Project Café.

...the price is going to be affordable

Nintendo insists on selling its hardware at a profit, even if it's a slim one. The Wii was launched at a lower price than both the 360 and the PlayStation 3, and that strategy paid off. The 3DS launched at a higher-than-expected price, and it's not selling in the numbers Nintendo was hoping for. With that slightly bloody nose, let's hope that Nintendo has been reminded of the importance of price.

Nintendo also hit the jackpot by offering an entire experience with the Wii. You put down your $250 and you got a system, the controller and the nunchuk, as well as one of the best games for the system with Wii Sports. The system was easy to set up, you already had a game to play, and that game did a wonderful job of showing off the motion controls. If Nintendo can launch Project Café for a price that's under $300 with one of the nifty controllers and a game, they're going to be in the killzone for a big launch.

...it won't be in 3D

OK, this is obvious, and I'll admit I snuck it in here for an easy win. That being said, Nintendo has done nothing but heap scorn on 3D in everything but the 3DS since the portable was announced, and that stance won't change for this new system. It's unlikely the screen in the controller will be 3D due to the tight viewing angle the 3DS technology requires.

We'll know soon enough

We'll get our hands on the new system at E3 and I'll be at the press event handling the liveblog, so once the system is announced, tell me what you'd like to know about it, and I'll test those things when I get some hands-on time with it. Whatever happens, it's very exciting to know that we're days away from new hardware being shown, and the fact that we know it will be playable makes it even better.

Listing image by Photo illustration by Aurich Lawson