Nintendo Likely to Go Software Only, Says Zynga Board Member

[Vivi22]

Um, I'm sorry, but that's not the way things actually happened. Gamers didn't abandon Nintendo. Third party developers did. And they abandoned them because Nintendo thought they were untouchable, stuck with expensive cartridges lacking in storage space, and still charged hefty licensing fees to use them, not to mention spending years censoring games on their system.

Well, both of those things happened, I would say, and the one fed into the other. Licensing and hardware issues were a motivator for some developers, but largely it was a matter of seeing the growth of the PS1 user base.

Thing is that customers don't just jump ship for no reason. There needs to be game there for them to buy or some other selling point barring that. I seem to recall that the first few years of the Playstations life weren't really all that impressive. It had the benefit of coming out first and being 3D, so maybe some people switched because of that, but it was also known to suffer from technical issues and long load times. Luckily for Sony, it wasn't long before heavy hitters like Square were making their biggest franchises for it. That brought a lot of gamers. And yeah, some developers may not have been 100% behind it until FFVII came and blew everyone away, but they were still developing some big titles for it. Let's face it, the Playstation didn't really take off until companies like Capcom and Square were releasing titles like Resident Evil and FFVII. Gamers weren't flocking to it en masse until the games were there, and there were some big names showing a lot of support because Sony was simply offering the better development environment for them.

It just so happens that that support, combined with things like cheaper games for the end consumer, resulted in a runaway success that I don't think anyone could have predicted.

 

[Revnak_v1legacy]

No one has said that the Wii didn't sell well. Can people stop bringing this up.

YES, WE KNOW THE WII SOLD WELL.

There's more to the conversation than sales. Stop being simple minded. The Wii burned alot of people who now have no intention of buying a WiiU. Can you not discuss that since sales numbers aren't really in dispute?

Why did you just quote me? I'm talking about the 3ds and trying to correct someone who said it sold "poorly" then picked up in sales a "little" when infact it is the fastest selling console in the world. Oh, and I don't really like the wii. I don't like the 360 or the ps3 either for that matter. I hardly play console games and will be playing them even less in the near future.

Here's why:

Wii. Failure.

You weren't JUST talking about the 3DS which BTW is just another gimmick. People want good, NORMAL games on the 3DS and most could care less about it's gimmick. Same an be said about the Wii and the WiiU.

You think it is just a gimmick and you do not like it. People have bought 17 million of the damn things, though I don't think that the 3d is necessarily the reason why.
You also could go ahead and call me out as a Sony fanboy using the same out of context quoting method that you did right there. Seriously, you are strawmanning like a ************.

Reported!

I never called you a fanboy, I just ask that you talk about something besides sales since that isn't in dispute. Then you go and do it again in this post "oh the 3DS sold 17 Million". Why would I care about that when we are talking about the gimmick of the 3DS?

Because that's not what I'm talking about and that's not what he was in the sentence I quoted him in. He was talking about sales figures and he was very wrong about them.
Personally, I owned more games for my wii than my 360 (my wii games were almost all stolen sadly) and played them more until the past two years where I started to play the 360 more. Now I really just play LoL and soon will become addicted to steam. Every console this generation has dissapointed me with lackluster gimmicks and experiences. Many people have been more upset with Nintendo than any others and that is their right, but I honestly thought they were only as bad as everybody else. I think that the WiiU could do poorly, but that remains to be seen. I don't make guesses about this kind of stuff, I just comment on what I do and do not like. Personally, Nintendoland looks fun. Personally, the screen controller looks fun. However, nothing has yet to make me want to go out and buy it on release like Twilight Princess did.
Also, the way I used ************ was not a dirrect insult but instead an exaggeration of how much you are strawmanning me. More simile than labeling. You really need to learn a thing or two about context.

What gimmicks did the 360 and PS3 that weren't inspired by Nintendo's gimmick?

You say the screen controller looks fun, go play a DS or 3DS to get your fill of it.

I did like them and I want to play the on the bigger screen. And if you're going to just say that Kinect and move don't count, then really my biggest complaint is just that nothing made me want to play them. Few worthwhile exclusives on consoles that are in the end just inadequate PCs. I want a real living room experience with my video game console, and fps #198 does not supply that for me. To be honest, wii sports felt more like a console game to me than anything else that came out on any console this generation.

 

[Epona]

It's not really worth noting that consoles that had competition didn't sell as well as the NES, that was really the only game in town.

The NES had competition too, in the Master System and various less known formats.

You're missing the bigger picture, in that Nintendo have always been bleeding customers in the console market. Until the Wii.

LOL @ The Master System being any real competition for the NES.

I am saying that what you call the bigger picture really isn't noteworthy at all. The SNES was a success and people will still tell you today that it was an an amazing console. It's games still hold up better today than many current gen titles.

The N64 is where it all began to fall apart for Nintendo because their competition was offering third parties a better platform. Nintendo still hasn't managed to hang on to the third parties because they aren't making consoles third parties want to develop for.

 

[Epona]

No one has said that the Wii didn't sell well. Can people stop bringing this up.

YES, WE KNOW THE WII SOLD WELL.

There's more to the conversation than sales. Stop being simple minded. The Wii burned alot of people who now have no intention of buying a WiiU. Can you not discuss that since sales numbers aren't really in dispute?

Why did you just quote me? I'm talking about the 3ds and trying to correct someone who said it sold "poorly" then picked up in sales a "little" when infact it is the fastest selling console in the world. Oh, and I don't really like the wii. I don't like the 360 or the ps3 either for that matter. I hardly play console games and will be playing them even less in the near future.

Here's why:

Wii. Failure.

You weren't JUST talking about the 3DS which BTW is just another gimmick. People want good, NORMAL games on the 3DS and most could care less about it's gimmick. Same an be said about the Wii and the WiiU.

You think it is just a gimmick and you do not like it. People have bought 17 million of the damn things, though I don't think that the 3d is necessarily the reason why.
You also could go ahead and call me out as a Sony fanboy using the same out of context quoting method that you did right there. Seriously, you are strawmanning like a ************.

Reported!

I never called you a fanboy, I just ask that you talk about something besides sales since that isn't in dispute. Then you go and do it again in this post "oh the 3DS sold 17 Million". Why would I care about that when we are talking about the gimmick of the 3DS?

Because that's not what I'm talking about and that's not what he was in the sentence I quoted him in. He was talking about sales figures and he was very wrong about them.
Personally, I owned more games for my wii than my 360 (my wii games were almost all stolen sadly) and played them more until the past two years where I started to play the 360 more. Now I really just play LoL and soon will become addicted to steam. Every console this generation has dissapointed me with lackluster gimmicks and experiences. Many people have been more upset with Nintendo than any others and that is their right, but I honestly thought they were only as bad as everybody else. I think that the WiiU could do poorly, but that remains to be seen. I don't make guesses about this kind of stuff, I just comment on what I do and do not like. Personally, Nintendoland looks fun. Personally, the screen controller looks fun. However, nothing has yet to make me want to go out and buy it on release like Twilight Princess did.
Also, the way I used ************ was not a dirrect insult but instead an exaggeration of how much you are strawmanning me. More simile than labeling. You really need to learn a thing or two about context.

What gimmicks did the 360 and PS3 that weren't inspired by Nintendo's gimmick?

You say the screen controller looks fun, go play a DS or 3DS to get your fill of it.

I did like them and I want to play the on the bigger screen. And if you're going to just say that Kinect and move don't count, then really my biggest complaint is just that nothing made me want to play them. Few worthwhile exclusives on consoles that are in the end just inadequate PCs. I want a real living room experience with my video game console, and fps #198 does not supply that for me. To be honest, wii sports felt more like a console game to me than anything else that came out on any console this generation.

Kinect and Move were gimmicks but those gimmicks only exist because of Nintendo's motion control gimmick.

Wii Sports is fun, sometimes but it's not something you'll spend 100 hours with. To say Wii Sports felt more like a console game that any major franchise (TES, COD, FF, etc...) makes no sense to me at all.

 

[Revnak_v1legacy]

No one has said that the Wii didn't sell well. Can people stop bringing this up.

YES, WE KNOW THE WII SOLD WELL.

There's more to the conversation than sales. Stop being simple minded. The Wii burned alot of people who now have no intention of buying a WiiU. Can you not discuss that since sales numbers aren't really in dispute?

Why did you just quote me? I'm talking about the 3ds and trying to correct someone who said it sold "poorly" then picked up in sales a "little" when infact it is the fastest selling console in the world. Oh, and I don't really like the wii. I don't like the 360 or the ps3 either for that matter. I hardly play console games and will be playing them even less in the near future.

Here's why:

Wii. Failure.

You weren't JUST talking about the 3DS which BTW is just another gimmick. People want good, NORMAL games on the 3DS and most could care less about it's gimmick. Same an be said about the Wii and the WiiU.

You think it is just a gimmick and you do not like it. People have bought 17 million of the damn things, though I don't think that the 3d is necessarily the reason why.
You also could go ahead and call me out as a Sony fanboy using the same out of context quoting method that you did right there. Seriously, you are strawmanning like a ************.

Reported!

I never called you a fanboy, I just ask that you talk about something besides sales since that isn't in dispute. Then you go and do it again in this post "oh the 3DS sold 17 Million". Why would I care about that when we are talking about the gimmick of the 3DS?

Because that's not what I'm talking about and that's not what he was in the sentence I quoted him in. He was talking about sales figures and he was very wrong about them.
Personally, I owned more games for my wii than my 360 (my wii games were almost all stolen sadly) and played them more until the past two years where I started to play the 360 more. Now I really just play LoL and soon will become addicted to steam. Every console this generation has dissapointed me with lackluster gimmicks and experiences. Many people have been more upset with Nintendo than any others and that is their right, but I honestly thought they were only as bad as everybody else. I think that the WiiU could do poorly, but that remains to be seen. I don't make guesses about this kind of stuff, I just comment on what I do and do not like. Personally, Nintendoland looks fun. Personally, the screen controller looks fun. However, nothing has yet to make me want to go out and buy it on release like Twilight Princess did.
Also, the way I used ************ was not a dirrect insult but instead an exaggeration of how much you are strawmanning me. More simile than labeling. You really need to learn a thing or two about context.

What gimmicks did the 360 and PS3 that weren't inspired by Nintendo's gimmick?

You say the screen controller looks fun, go play a DS or 3DS to get your fill of it.

I did like them and I want to play the on the bigger screen. And if you're going to just say that Kinect and move don't count, then really my biggest complaint is just that nothing made me want to play them. Few worthwhile exclusives on consoles that are in the end just inadequate PCs. I want a real living room experience with my video game console, and fps #198 does not supply that for me. To be honest, wii sports felt more like a console game to me than anything else that came out on any console this generation.

Kinect and Move were gimmicks but those gimmicks only exist because of Nintendo's motion control gimmick.

Wii Sports is fun, sometimes but it's not something you'll spend 100 hours with. To say Wii Sports felt more like a console game that any major franchise (TES, COD, FF, etc...) makes no sense to me at all.

Those are not the center of a family's entertainment, they are the center of a person's entertainment. They are PC games on bad PCs.

 

[Epona]

No one has said that the Wii didn't sell well. Can people stop bringing this up.

YES, WE KNOW THE WII SOLD WELL.

There's more to the conversation than sales. Stop being simple minded. The Wii burned alot of people who now have no intention of buying a WiiU. Can you not discuss that since sales numbers aren't really in dispute?

Why did you just quote me? I'm talking about the 3ds and trying to correct someone who said it sold "poorly" then picked up in sales a "little" when infact it is the fastest selling console in the world. Oh, and I don't really like the wii. I don't like the 360 or the ps3 either for that matter. I hardly play console games and will be playing them even less in the near future.

Here's why:

Wii. Failure.

You weren't JUST talking about the 3DS which BTW is just another gimmick. People want good, NORMAL games on the 3DS and most could care less about it's gimmick. Same an be said about the Wii and the WiiU.

You think it is just a gimmick and you do not like it. People have bought 17 million of the damn things, though I don't think that the 3d is necessarily the reason why.
You also could go ahead and call me out as a Sony fanboy using the same out of context quoting method that you did right there. Seriously, you are strawmanning like a ************.

Reported!

I never called you a fanboy, I just ask that you talk about something besides sales since that isn't in dispute. Then you go and do it again in this post "oh the 3DS sold 17 Million". Why would I care about that when we are talking about the gimmick of the 3DS?

Because that's not what I'm talking about and that's not what he was in the sentence I quoted him in. He was talking about sales figures and he was very wrong about them.
Personally, I owned more games for my wii than my 360 (my wii games were almost all stolen sadly) and played them more until the past two years where I started to play the 360 more. Now I really just play LoL and soon will become addicted to steam. Every console this generation has dissapointed me with lackluster gimmicks and experiences. Many people have been more upset with Nintendo than any others and that is their right, but I honestly thought they were only as bad as everybody else. I think that the WiiU could do poorly, but that remains to be seen. I don't make guesses about this kind of stuff, I just comment on what I do and do not like. Personally, Nintendoland looks fun. Personally, the screen controller looks fun. However, nothing has yet to make me want to go out and buy it on release like Twilight Princess did.
Also, the way I used ************ was not a dirrect insult but instead an exaggeration of how much you are strawmanning me. More simile than labeling. You really need to learn a thing or two about context.

What gimmicks did the 360 and PS3 that weren't inspired by Nintendo's gimmick?

You say the screen controller looks fun, go play a DS or 3DS to get your fill of it.

I did like them and I want to play the on the bigger screen. And if you're going to just say that Kinect and move don't count, then really my biggest complaint is just that nothing made me want to play them. Few worthwhile exclusives on consoles that are in the end just inadequate PCs. I want a real living room experience with my video game console, and fps #198 does not supply that for me. To be honest, wii sports felt more like a console game to me than anything else that came out on any console this generation.

Kinect and Move were gimmicks but those gimmicks only exist because of Nintendo's motion control gimmick.

Wii Sports is fun, sometimes but it's not something you'll spend 100 hours with. To say Wii Sports felt more like a console game that any major franchise (TES, COD, FF, etc...) makes no sense to me at all.

Those are not the center of a family's entertainment, they are the center of a person's entertainment. They are PC games on bad PCs.

So let me see if I understand you. If a game is single player (ie, not meant for family entertainment) then it is a PC game?

 

[Revnak_v1legacy]

No one has said that the Wii didn't sell well. Can people stop bringing this up.

YES, WE KNOW THE WII SOLD WELL.

There's more to the conversation than sales. Stop being simple minded. The Wii burned alot of people who now have no intention of buying a WiiU. Can you not discuss that since sales numbers aren't really in dispute?

Why did you just quote me? I'm talking about the 3ds and trying to correct someone who said it sold "poorly" then picked up in sales a "little" when infact it is the fastest selling console in the world. Oh, and I don't really like the wii. I don't like the 360 or the ps3 either for that matter. I hardly play console games and will be playing them even less in the near future.

Here's why:

Wii. Failure.

You weren't JUST talking about the 3DS which BTW is just another gimmick. People want good, NORMAL games on the 3DS and most could care less about it's gimmick. Same an be said about the Wii and the WiiU.

You think it is just a gimmick and you do not like it. People have bought 17 million of the damn things, though I don't think that the 3d is necessarily the reason why.
You also could go ahead and call me out as a Sony fanboy using the same out of context quoting method that you did right there. Seriously, you are strawmanning like a ************.

Reported!

I never called you a fanboy, I just ask that you talk about something besides sales since that isn't in dispute. Then you go and do it again in this post "oh the 3DS sold 17 Million". Why would I care about that when we are talking about the gimmick of the 3DS?

Because that's not what I'm talking about and that's not what he was in the sentence I quoted him in. He was talking about sales figures and he was very wrong about them.
Personally, I owned more games for my wii than my 360 (my wii games were almost all stolen sadly) and played them more until the past two years where I started to play the 360 more. Now I really just play LoL and soon will become addicted to steam. Every console this generation has dissapointed me with lackluster gimmicks and experiences. Many people have been more upset with Nintendo than any others and that is their right, but I honestly thought they were only as bad as everybody else. I think that the WiiU could do poorly, but that remains to be seen. I don't make guesses about this kind of stuff, I just comment on what I do and do not like. Personally, Nintendoland looks fun. Personally, the screen controller looks fun. However, nothing has yet to make me want to go out and buy it on release like Twilight Princess did.
Also, the way I used ************ was not a dirrect insult but instead an exaggeration of how much you are strawmanning me. More simile than labeling. You really need to learn a thing or two about context.

What gimmicks did the 360 and PS3 that weren't inspired by Nintendo's gimmick?

You say the screen controller looks fun, go play a DS or 3DS to get your fill of it.

I did like them and I want to play the on the bigger screen. And if you're going to just say that Kinect and move don't count, then really my biggest complaint is just that nothing made me want to play them. Few worthwhile exclusives on consoles that are in the end just inadequate PCs. I want a real living room experience with my video game console, and fps #198 does not supply that for me. To be honest, wii sports felt more like a console game to me than anything else that came out on any console this generation.

Kinect and Move were gimmicks but those gimmicks only exist because of Nintendo's motion control gimmick.

Wii Sports is fun, sometimes but it's not something you'll spend 100 hours with. To say Wii Sports felt more like a console game that any major franchise (TES, COD, FF, etc...) makes no sense to me at all.

Those are not the center of a family's entertainment, they are the center of a person's entertainment. They are PC games on bad PCs.

So let me see if I understand you. If a game is single player (ie, not meant for family entertainment) then it is a PC game?

Not necessarily. It could be a mobile game. Consoles are for living room entertainment. For parties and families. It makes no sense to own a console for single player games outside of expense issues or for the console's exclusives.

 

[Epona]

No one has said that the Wii didn't sell well. Can people stop bringing this up.

YES, WE KNOW THE WII SOLD WELL.

There's more to the conversation than sales. Stop being simple minded. The Wii burned alot of people who now have no intention of buying a WiiU. Can you not discuss that since sales numbers aren't really in dispute?

Why did you just quote me? I'm talking about the 3ds and trying to correct someone who said it sold "poorly" then picked up in sales a "little" when infact it is the fastest selling console in the world. Oh, and I don't really like the wii. I don't like the 360 or the ps3 either for that matter. I hardly play console games and will be playing them even less in the near future.

Here's why:

Wii. Failure.

You weren't JUST talking about the 3DS which BTW is just another gimmick. People want good, NORMAL games on the 3DS and most could care less about it's gimmick. Same an be said about the Wii and the WiiU.

You think it is just a gimmick and you do not like it. People have bought 17 million of the damn things, though I don't think that the 3d is necessarily the reason why.
You also could go ahead and call me out as a Sony fanboy using the same out of context quoting method that you did right there. Seriously, you are strawmanning like a ************.

Reported!

I never called you a fanboy, I just ask that you talk about something besides sales since that isn't in dispute. Then you go and do it again in this post "oh the 3DS sold 17 Million". Why would I care about that when we are talking about the gimmick of the 3DS?

Because that's not what I'm talking about and that's not what he was in the sentence I quoted him in. He was talking about sales figures and he was very wrong about them.
Personally, I owned more games for my wii than my 360 (my wii games were almost all stolen sadly) and played them more until the past two years where I started to play the 360 more. Now I really just play LoL and soon will become addicted to steam. Every console this generation has dissapointed me with lackluster gimmicks and experiences. Many people have been more upset with Nintendo than any others and that is their right, but I honestly thought they were only as bad as everybody else. I think that the WiiU could do poorly, but that remains to be seen. I don't make guesses about this kind of stuff, I just comment on what I do and do not like. Personally, Nintendoland looks fun. Personally, the screen controller looks fun. However, nothing has yet to make me want to go out and buy it on release like Twilight Princess did.
Also, the way I used ************ was not a dirrect insult but instead an exaggeration of how much you are strawmanning me. More simile than labeling. You really need to learn a thing or two about context.

What gimmicks did the 360 and PS3 that weren't inspired by Nintendo's gimmick?

You say the screen controller looks fun, go play a DS or 3DS to get your fill of it.

I did like them and I want to play the on the bigger screen. And if you're going to just say that Kinect and move don't count, then really my biggest complaint is just that nothing made me want to play them. Few worthwhile exclusives on consoles that are in the end just inadequate PCs. I want a real living room experience with my video game console, and fps #198 does not supply that for me. To be honest, wii sports felt more like a console game to me than anything else that came out on any console this generation.

Kinect and Move were gimmicks but those gimmicks only exist because of Nintendo's motion control gimmick.

Wii Sports is fun, sometimes but it's not something you'll spend 100 hours with. To say Wii Sports felt more like a console game that any major franchise (TES, COD, FF, etc...) makes no sense to me at all.

Those are not the center of a family's entertainment, they are the center of a person's entertainment. They are PC games on bad PCs.

So let me see if I understand you. If a game is single player (ie, not meant for family entertainment) then it is a PC game?

Not necessarily. It could be a mobile game. Consoles are for living room entertainment. For parties and families. It makes no sense to own a console for single player games outside of expense issues or for the console's exclusives.

That's a pretty radical view. I can only disagree. Single player games are all I have ever cared about.

 

[Revnak_v1legacy]

No one has said that the Wii didn't sell well. Can people stop bringing this up.

YES, WE KNOW THE WII SOLD WELL.

There's more to the conversation than sales. Stop being simple minded. The Wii burned alot of people who now have no intention of buying a WiiU. Can you not discuss that since sales numbers aren't really in dispute?

Why did you just quote me? I'm talking about the 3ds and trying to correct someone who said it sold "poorly" then picked up in sales a "little" when infact it is the fastest selling console in the world. Oh, and I don't really like the wii. I don't like the 360 or the ps3 either for that matter. I hardly play console games and will be playing them even less in the near future.

Here's why:

Wii. Failure.

You weren't JUST talking about the 3DS which BTW is just another gimmick. People want good, NORMAL games on the 3DS and most could care less about it's gimmick. Same an be said about the Wii and the WiiU.

You think it is just a gimmick and you do not like it. People have bought 17 million of the damn things, though I don't think that the 3d is necessarily the reason why.
You also could go ahead and call me out as a Sony fanboy using the same out of context quoting method that you did right there. Seriously, you are strawmanning like a ************.

Reported!

I never called you a fanboy, I just ask that you talk about something besides sales since that isn't in dispute. Then you go and do it again in this post "oh the 3DS sold 17 Million". Why would I care about that when we are talking about the gimmick of the 3DS?

Because that's not what I'm talking about and that's not what he was in the sentence I quoted him in. He was talking about sales figures and he was very wrong about them.
Personally, I owned more games for my wii than my 360 (my wii games were almost all stolen sadly) and played them more until the past two years where I started to play the 360 more. Now I really just play LoL and soon will become addicted to steam. Every console this generation has dissapointed me with lackluster gimmicks and experiences. Many people have been more upset with Nintendo than any others and that is their right, but I honestly thought they were only as bad as everybody else. I think that the WiiU could do poorly, but that remains to be seen. I don't make guesses about this kind of stuff, I just comment on what I do and do not like. Personally, Nintendoland looks fun. Personally, the screen controller looks fun. However, nothing has yet to make me want to go out and buy it on release like Twilight Princess did.
Also, the way I used ************ was not a dirrect insult but instead an exaggeration of how much you are strawmanning me. More simile than labeling. You really need to learn a thing or two about context.

What gimmicks did the 360 and PS3 that weren't inspired by Nintendo's gimmick?

You say the screen controller looks fun, go play a DS or 3DS to get your fill of it.

I did like them and I want to play the on the bigger screen. And if you're going to just say that Kinect and move don't count, then really my biggest complaint is just that nothing made me want to play them. Few worthwhile exclusives on consoles that are in the end just inadequate PCs. I want a real living room experience with my video game console, and fps #198 does not supply that for me. To be honest, wii sports felt more like a console game to me than anything else that came out on any console this generation.

Kinect and Move were gimmicks but those gimmicks only exist because of Nintendo's motion control gimmick.

Wii Sports is fun, sometimes but it's not something you'll spend 100 hours with. To say Wii Sports felt more like a console game that any major franchise (TES, COD, FF, etc...) makes no sense to me at all.

Those are not the center of a family's entertainment, they are the center of a person's entertainment. They are PC games on bad PCs.

So let me see if I understand you. If a game is single player (ie, not meant for family entertainment) then it is a PC game?

Not necessarily. It could be a mobile game. Consoles are for living room entertainment. For parties and families. It makes no sense to own a console for single player games outside of expense issues or for the console's exclusives.

That's a pretty radical view. I can only disagree. Single player games are all I have ever cared about.

It isn't really. Consoles have very little that they do better than PCs, but being good for group entertainment is among them. Cost is really the only other reason. I suppose simplicity of operation as well.

 

[Heart of Darkness]

You weren't JUST talking about the 3DS which BTW is just another gimmick. People want good, NORMAL games on the 3DS and most could care less about it's gimmick. Same can be said about the Wii and the WiiU.

Since a lot of people are using the word "gimmick" like it's a bad thing, let me take the time to enumerate a lot of different gimmicks that have come about specifically during the video game era (c. 1960- ) in rough chronological order:

-Arcade Gaming
-Local/Hotseat Multiplayer
-Trackballs
-Joysticks/Analogue Sticks
-Steering Wheel Controllers
-Input Buttons
-Light Guns
-Home Console Gaming
-Detachable/Interchangeable Controllers
-Game Cartridges/Interchangeable Games
-8-bit games
-Game Packaging/Manuals/Misc. Swag
-16-bit games
-Splitscreen Multiplayer
-Multiple Save Files
-Handheld Gaming
-32-bit games
-Music Players
-Disk formats
-Memory Cards
-Rumble
-LAN/Network Multiplayer
-3D (Polygonal) Games
-64-bit games
-Backwards Compatibility
-Microphones/Cameras (Add-ons/Peripherals)
-DVD Players
-Gyroscopes/Accelerometers
-"HD" Gaming
-Online Matchmaking
-Blu-Ray Players
-Movie Streaming
-Social Hubs
-Achievements
-Motion Controls
-DLC/Digital Downloads


Also, you do need to define what a "normal" game is, since the market is *gasp* always changing. If the market remained static, we might as well still be playing games like [a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spacewar!"]Spacewar![/a] and [a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tennis_for_Two"]Tennis for Two[/a] on monochromatic displays on college mainframes designed specifically to play those games, since they were some of the first video games to ever actually exist.

 

[The White Hunter]

to be honest, this is no surprise to me... i mean the wii was a flop in the long run, and the WiiU is so "weak" spec wise, that it does not even force microsoft or sony to rush their next gen consoles out the door

The Wii? A Flop? Please get your facts straight. While the Wii hasn't done well the past fiscal year, every previous year it out did its competitors. Personally, I am not a fan of the Wii (Apart from one or two RPGs on the platform), however I can still see when a product was a hit or not. The Wii was a hit. With the news of the Wii U, Wii sales have dried up (as all console sales have) while people wait for the new consoles.

I think the reason the wii didn't do so well last year is primarily the fact that everybody and their granny has on.

There are THREE of them in my house for gods sake. Mine actually gets used occasionally, though I'll admit my mound of wii games is very limited. Only 17 games if I recall and they are: donkey kong country returns, new super mario bros wii, super smash bros brawl, metroid prime 3, red steel 2, resident evil 4 wii, resident evil archives, COD4, medal of honor heroes 2, sin and punishment successor to the skies (Fuck yes.), wario land the shake dimension, super paper mario, xenoblade chronicles, goldeneye, mario galaxy 2, mario all stars (was a christmas gift i never asked for, i'm well aware that it should have more games in it).

None the less I'd say my wii has been worth owning as there are some truly stellar games on it. A lot of people may trope about them stamping out the same mario game over and over, but frankly those people should drop their hate and enjoy a top quality platformer, something very rare this generation

Less hate, more games.
I'm kinda looking forward to the Wii U, I'll wait a year or so for it to acquire a decent library though. Just like I have with the 3DS, which I'll be getting ina few months.

 

[Heart of Darkness]

SNIP

You forgot to mention analogue sticks. I'm not that old, but even I remember when Nintendo released the N64 with an analogue stick. PSX fanboys were convinced that it was a stupid idea, and that the good old D-pad was all we needed to play games. Then Sony released the Dualshock controller, and all of a sudden analogue sticks became the medium standard.

Ah, true, I did forget those. I kinda just lumped them in with joysticks in my head since they serve the same basic purpose (8-directional movement).

 

[Heart of Darkness]

SNIP

You forgot to mention analogue sticks. I'm not that old, but even I remember when Nintendo released the N64 with an analogue stick. PSX fanboys were convinced that it was a stupid idea, and that the good old D-pad was all we needed to play games. Then Sony released the Dualshock controller, and all of a sudden analogue sticks became the medium standard.

Ah, true, I did forget those. I kinda just lumped them in with joysticks in my head since they serve the same basic purpose (8-directional movement).

RAAARRR!!! Joysticks are far superior to analogue sticks!! Joysticks require you to use your whole hand and wrist, like a real gamer should. Analogue sticks just use your thumbs. GIIIMMMMIIIIIICCCCKKKK!!!!

The sarcasm here is palpable. Palpable enough for me to cry "Gimmick!"

What's next, games with emotionally involving storylines and plots? Those'll never catch on. Just give me a gun and a bad guy and let me shoot him in the face; that's all I need from my games.

 

[Pinkamena]

I don't mind if they do. I have never bought any of their products anyway.

 

[viranimus]

Translated: Im someone else who REALLY likes apple entirely too much and think it should have EVAREEFING!!!!

Nintendo will never give up on hardware as long as they are still viewed as the predominant hand held maker. It might be possible to give up on console hardware, but they will pretty much always have their hands in hardware.

 

[Brett Bowling]

I'd rather see Nintendo go all hardware instead of software.
I like their little gizmos like the DS, I just wish they design them to comfortable in the hands of human beings.

Nintendo needs to stop pandering to the pinscered crab people market.