Nintendo Rep Apologizes For "Geeks and Otaku" Remark

[Andy Chalk]

Nintendo Rep Apologizes For "Geeks and Otaku" Remark

Nintendo Wii [http://www.nintendo-europe.com/]console.

blog [http://www.cubed3.com/news/10262], "This statement, especially coming from a marketing person, reeks of one of two things."

"A - Arrogance at a level that should make Nintendo - if this statement reflects the core of the company - very ashamed," he continued, or, "B - A marketing person who has no real clue about games and thinks she's (sic) being cute and coy by dissing the 'geeks' cause she thinks the mainstream loves them now. If this is the case, she really needs someone to sit her down and explain to her which side her fucking toast has been buttered on for years and will eventually get back to being buttered on."

In response to the furor, Fischer issued a statement to videogaming247 [http://www.videogaming247.com/2008/06/13/exclusive-nintendos-laurent-fischer-regrets-geeks-and-otaku-remark/], in which he expressed "regret" for the ill-advised remark. "I have huge respect for those who, like me, share a common passion for Nintendo and want to make it clear that I would never use and I didn't use this terminology in such a context or way to cause offense," he said. "I regret that this misunderstanding has created such offense and disappointment within the community."

Geeks and otaku reportedly remain disappointed by Nintendo's disinterest in developing a hard drive for the Wii.


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[fix-the-spade]

Isn't the Wii sd compatible anyway? That at the very least gives you 2gigs to play with, which is quite a few N64 games. Unless you're storing large amounts of music or movies on it the Wii doesn't really have anything that needs a hard drive, although the i-player function here in the uk might benefit from one.

I like that Jaffe assumed the Marketing man was a woman. That also makes the assumption that marketing people have genders...

 

[The Bandit]

Best finishing sentence ever.

 

[Lance Icarus]

I understand geeks, but otaku? What? Did the Wii suddenly offer anime on Wiiware?

 

[raigan]

Isn't the Wii sd compatible anyway? That at the very least gives you 2gigs to play with, which is quite a few N64 games.

Yes, except that it can't run games off of the SD card. Coupled with the fact that transferring games to/from SD takes long time -- in the case of "to SD", a REALLY long time, much more time than re-downloading them!

 

[Isaac Dodgson]

Best finishing sentence ever.

Agreed, ironically brilliant

 

[Oh-Wiseone]

What the hell is Otaku?

 

[TheMadDoctorsCat]

What the hell is Otaku?

Apparently something that only a geek would know. Oh, wait...

Yeah, what the hell is Otaku?

 

[ccesarano]

And yet every single one of those slighted fanboys will still show unyielding devotion to Nintendo.

Such is the way of the fanboy.

 

[Melaisis]

What the hell is Otaku?

Apparently something that only a geek would know. Oh, wait...

Yeah, what the hell is Otaku?

Otaku is a Japanese term used to refer to people with obsessive interests, particularly anime and manga.

Click zee link in the article, nubs.

Anyway! I have a thing for when PR reps do something atrociously wrong, whether it get be getting horribly drunk, or insulting their key audience. Its sadism (or at least schadenfraude) at its best.

 

[Nugoo]

While I feel vaguely offended by these comments, he's probably right. I guess my problem is that this guy is using that fact as an excuse not to put hard drives in wiis. It's like saying, "Only our historically biggest market would want this, so we won't do it." I guess all the people who were saying that Nintendo is abandoning the hardcore gamer were right.

 

[MizzyKwikkid]

what a douche. you would think they would hire people that knew how to keep their mouth shut.

 

[UpInSmoke]

what a douche. you would think they would hire people that knew how to keep their mouth shut.

Yeah,why doesn't Nintendo hire a Senior Marketing Director who can keep his mouth shut?

Oh. right...

 

[felixader]

And there we have an other example exactly how rigth it is that this audience, which kept alive Nintendo over the hardest times, is now absolutely ignored from Nintendo.

I would prefer to say:

Geeks and otaku reportedly remain disappointed by Nintendo's disinterest in developing SERIOUS OR AT LEAST GOOD SOFTWARE for the Wii.

 

[stompy]

Best finishing sentence ever.

True.

Anyways, for all the 'otakus and geeks' that Nintendo has insulted, 10 fanboys rise to take their place in the undead legion that is Nintendo's fanbase.

 

[JakubK666]

Non asians who use the word "Otaku" need to be fucking shot on general principal. >.<

Hey, it's okay I have two Asian friends.

 

[Arbre]

Non asians who use the word "Otaku" need to be fucking shot on general principal. >.<

Chill out.

 

[KevinR1990]

I like that Jaffe assumed the Marketing man was a woman. That also makes the assumption that marketing people have genders...

He probably saw the marketing director's name and mistook it for "Lauren". It's an easy mistake to make. Hell, I made the same mistake when I read the first sentence.

Still, I am astounded by Nintendo's sheer arrogance and condescending attitude toward the people that built it up for over twenty years. I can't believe that this man, who is supposed to be a spokesman for Nintendo, had the nerve to dismiss his company's loyal, longtime supporters as "geeks and otaku" simply for wanting a hard drive for their Wiis. My childhood memories of the Super NES and the N64 make me wish that Mr. Fischer's words are not truly representative of Nintendo's views toward non-casual gamers. Unfortunately, judging by the way that we have been treated by Nintendo since the GameCube days, I would have to say otherwise.

It pains me to say this, but Nintendo no longer cares about us. And why should they? They're making untold millions off of the casual market. What interest would Nintendo have in a few million loyal, old-school fans, when it's got tens of millions of little kids, soccer moms, and grannies lining up at GameStop and EB Games to purchase their wares? The answer: none. They're only making Zelda and Metroid games as fan-service to keep us from completely abandoning them - they know that the real money is in Wii Fit and its ilk. Nintendo's finally decided to embrace its wholesome reputation, rather than try to shed it like they did during the GameCube era. This move gave them victory in this round of the console war, but it did so at a high cost: it alienated almost everybody who stood by their side from the beginning.