Updated:Nintendo Considering Smartphone Games, Restructuring
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Tell that to Motofumi Iguchi. Stock holders forced him out before he could even have one game under his belt. Just because it's Japan doesn't mean it's impossible. Just means it's unlikely, and in Nintendo's case you're only interested in the opinion of one group of shareholders. The rest have to submit to their will.Aiddon said:
Does this really shock anyone?
Nintendo hasn't been pushing out very many first party games. It has next to no third party support. And they're doing it on a stagnant system thats caught in a loop of "No one is developing for Nintendo because no one is buying the WiiU, no one is buying the WiiU because no one is developing for Nintendo."
They've been doing this crap since the GameCube. They used to have third party support marketed, so their fairly lax release schedule of first party hits, like Metroid, Mario, Kirby, etc. was forgivable. The N64 was the same way - the games were killer, and they had good third party support.
Then they decided to go with mini-DVD's for the GameCube, which held less data. Third party developers started dropping off. It was slaughtered. Then the Wii came out. Despite 'Winning the console war' for that generation, the Wii did not outsell the PS3/360 on games - and while it had a few party game hits, the end of the Wii's life was not glorious, with almost no major releases in the final stretch of its life.
And now what do we have? A console with a poor name that had a poor marketing push. The Wii U makes it appear as though its just an upgraded peripheral for the Wii - while its anecdotal evidence, I knew some gamers who didn't know the Wii and WiiU were completely different systems. That should make a marketer cringe.
Then, after the system came out, it offered NOTHING. Literally. The launch titles were tepid, and after that, there were no big name system sellers for almost a year. Then the big roll out of games was an HD remake of a Zelda game and a new Super Mario Brothers game.
No Metroid, no new Zelda, no outreaching to GameFreak for Pokemon. No Kirby, no Smash Bros (yet), no Star Fox, and none of the popular spin offs (like Paper Mario). AND, ON TOP OF ALL OF THAT - they 100% decided to go after their CORE fans YouTube channels. Keep in mind, these are people who are doing FREE marketing for you. And you're saying "Naw, we're gonna monetize that shit."
Nintendo has been heading the way of Sega lately. They made some great games, but the formula is getting tired. The 3DS is the only thing keeping them relevant - and thats only because their only competition are either Smart Phones (which lack solid controls for most games) and the Vita.
If they want to get back on track the need to make some damned good games, treat their community with respect, and stop sitting on the franchises they have stockpiled while milking 3 of them to death. They need to improve their relations with third party consumers, and they need to get some real damned internet support.
Nintendo hasn't been pushing out very many first party games. It has next to no third party support. And they're doing it on a stagnant system thats caught in a loop of "No one is developing for Nintendo because no one is buying the WiiU, no one is buying the WiiU because no one is developing for Nintendo."
They've been doing this crap since the GameCube. They used to have third party support marketed, so their fairly lax release schedule of first party hits, like Metroid, Mario, Kirby, etc. was forgivable. The N64 was the same way - the games were killer, and they had good third party support.
Then they decided to go with mini-DVD's for the GameCube, which held less data. Third party developers started dropping off. It was slaughtered. Then the Wii came out. Despite 'Winning the console war' for that generation, the Wii did not outsell the PS3/360 on games - and while it had a few party game hits, the end of the Wii's life was not glorious, with almost no major releases in the final stretch of its life.
And now what do we have? A console with a poor name that had a poor marketing push. The Wii U makes it appear as though its just an upgraded peripheral for the Wii - while its anecdotal evidence, I knew some gamers who didn't know the Wii and WiiU were completely different systems. That should make a marketer cringe.
Then, after the system came out, it offered NOTHING. Literally. The launch titles were tepid, and after that, there were no big name system sellers for almost a year. Then the big roll out of games was an HD remake of a Zelda game and a new Super Mario Brothers game.
No Metroid, no new Zelda, no outreaching to GameFreak for Pokemon. No Kirby, no Smash Bros (yet), no Star Fox, and none of the popular spin offs (like Paper Mario). AND, ON TOP OF ALL OF THAT - they 100% decided to go after their CORE fans YouTube channels. Keep in mind, these are people who are doing FREE marketing for you. And you're saying "Naw, we're gonna monetize that shit."
Nintendo has been heading the way of Sega lately. They made some great games, but the formula is getting tired. The 3DS is the only thing keeping them relevant - and thats only because their only competition are either Smart Phones (which lack solid controls for most games) and the Vita.
If they want to get back on track the need to make some damned good games, treat their community with respect, and stop sitting on the franchises they have stockpiled while milking 3 of them to death. They need to improve their relations with third party consumers, and they need to get some real damned internet support.
First off, Nintendo consoles hardly sell on Pokemon. Handhelds? Yes. But I haven't heard of people rushing out to get the new Pokemon Colosseum. And Kirby? Really? The Wii didn't have a Kirby game on it for a long time, and sold well. The Wii also never even had a Star Fox game. Also, considering how well the last Metroid game went over, you can't fault Nintendo for wanting to wait a bit on a new Metroid. You don't follow up an extremely divisive game quickly, at least if you want to sell systems with it.Rabid_meese said:
I can see your point about going after Youtube channels, but you are making it a black vs. white scenario, with the big bad Nintendo cracking down on the heroic martyrs of Youtube, rather than the more iffy scenario in reality. Reviews with some gameplay, that's good free marketing. But cracking down on Let's Plays is a different scenario. The LPers aren't trying to screw over Nintendo. But it's hard to market a story or setting as a selling point when people just go online to get it for free. That's where the issue lies.
Well, serves them right for expecting consumers to buy into hollow gimmicks with few to no real games twice in a row.
But even with the smartphone announcement, it appears they're sticking to their existing model and are targeting the casuals.
Given how Nintendo burned a LOT of "core gamers" last generation (myself included), that's probably the only avenue they have left.
Nintendo needs customers more than they need to be chasing chicken-littles on youtube.
Especially those that help create exposure for them in a world of increasingly competing media.
But even with the smartphone announcement, it appears they're sticking to their existing model and are targeting the casuals.
Given how Nintendo burned a LOT of "core gamers" last generation (myself included), that's probably the only avenue they have left.
It doesn't change the fact that, legal right or not, they're biting the hand that feeds them.thebobmaster said:
Nintendo needs customers more than they need to be chasing chicken-littles on youtube.
Especially those that help create exposure for them in a world of increasingly competing media.
A loss of $335M...while extensive, can be easily covered by the $14B pool of money they have.
Listen up Nintendo, I love my WiiU but it's not selling because most people don't even know what it is...I think the first problem was when you named it the WiiU...it sounded like an add-on to the Wii instead of a new system.
Bring out a sequel to Majoras Mask that includes Majoras Mask HD remake and I'll buy 10 copies
Listen up Nintendo, I love my WiiU but it's not selling because most people don't even know what it is...I think the first problem was when you named it the WiiU...it sounded like an add-on to the Wii instead of a new system.
Bring out a sequel to Majoras Mask that includes Majoras Mask HD remake and I'll buy 10 copies
You make a terrible gimmicky console, fail to advertise it, and then fail at both first party games and third party support you are gonna lose money Nintendo. Maybe this little wake up call will convince you to go back to being a company I can support.
I mentioned an outreach to GameFreak because, well, it makes sense. GameFreak has never developed a Pokemon game for the main console (Stadium/Colosseum/XD/Battle Revolution were developed by outside companies), and yet holds the number 2 Nintendo franchise to Mario. If they made a real game (rather than a battle sim) for the Wii U, it would sell consoles.thebobmaster said:
I'm aware no Star Fox games were released for the Wii - that was kind of my point. Same with Kirby. They have fantastic franchises that they are just sitting on. Instead of rolling out fresh installments of beloved franchises, they've been pumping out Mario after Mario title. And while Mario may be fantastic, there are only so many times someone is willing to buy Mario Kart or New Super Mario Bros before they just want something different.
As far as LPing goes, it's not a tangible way of measuring a loss. There are many people who would watch a game simply because a personality played it, who may not have an interest in the franchise. Anecdotally, I've been compelled to buy games I'd never thought of before because I saw someone LP them. I'm sure the opposite is true as well. Morally gray issue aside, if you're slapping the fans in the face who are making videos, and taking their money, that just means that LPer is going to show their audience titles other than Nintendo titles.
Not to mention, games aren't like movies. Gameplay is important, and gameplay wildly changes based on a person to person basis. Its logical to assume that if I saw Pacific Rim in its entirety on YouTube I'd have no reason to go and purchase the DVD of it - the primary mode of interaction with the piece is passive. Games are active. You can run through the story, but the way you slash a zombies face off may differ from my approach to sneak past them. I liken games to sports in that respect.
Its a difficult issue, I agree. And Nintendo may have acted in the right. But part of marketing is adaptation - and resisting that adaptation isn't winning them any favors.
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Unrelated to the previous post, here's a point I forgot to make in my original post. Them moving towards smartphones is a great idea. They have lost a lot of money because they are stuck in a very old school model of thinking. I already discussed why I think they've failed. But this shows they are at least considering ways of improving themselves. And I applaud that.
They just need to pull their heads out of the sand soon, or there won't be a Nintendo left.
well i'm ready for an industry crash over this any-day and I hope it's enough to fully shake the foundation that has become the norm lately. Releasing mario, pokemon and other 1st party games on smart-phones/tablets of course is going to lead down the road of micro-transactions. You want an extra life well that's .99cents, you want to unlock this legendary Pokemon pay 3.99 and don't think it won't happen everyone. H*** look at what's gaming become now on last and current gen consoles with on disc dlc, pay for costumes etc. Yeah I'm sound like a pessimistic here but screw it I would rather let the industry start over again.
The actual quote says they're "studying" smart phones; considering that Iwata said "it's not as simple as making Mario move on a smart phone", you're probably not going to see that. Sure, idiots like Pachter and short-sighted Western investors will throw a tantrum, but they would do it regardless. They might put free apps on smart phones, but I doubt we'll be seeing Nintendo games on there. That would just be stupidCecilthedarkknight_234 said:
Exactly. I asked my friend with a 3ds what gba games were on the digital storefront and it confused the fuck out if me when he explained that there weren't that many games and Metroid Fusion and others were only part of the ambassador program. What. The. Fuck. Luckily, I already have a portable game console that let's me play digital versions of gba games: a pspNeronium said:
People want to talk about how Nintendo is great and should never change but this kind of bullshit is the reason I've put off buying a 3DS. Nintendo does a lot of things right but this weird, outdated stuff is what holds them back
This reminds me, there was a posting of Mario 3D World on this site I go to.
The description said something along the lines of:
"Got this as a Christmas Present. Selling it, because it turns out it won't work on my Wii"
I think Nintendo really needs to deal with this, people still think the Wii U is a Wii...
The description said something along the lines of:
"Got this as a Christmas Present. Selling it, because it turns out it won't work on my Wii"
I think Nintendo really needs to deal with this, people still think the Wii U is a Wii...
Nintendo definitely needs some kind of corporate restructuring, similar to what Sony did shortly after the PS3's disastrous launch.
I will get flamed for this I know, but on the home console TV set top box front I would not be surprised to see Nintendo opt to cut some sort of partnership deal with SONY rather than pouring money into another console platform. (Maybe doing a tradeoff of SONY finally giving up on the Vita in favor of supporting the 3dS, while Nintendo starts putting games on the PS4?) I know how much Nintendo fans love Nintendo and Nintendo products. I just don't see the console hardware as being Nintendo's strongest area or its best potential growth or profit driver.
There are several things that is wrong with Nintendo's current model. Like many people have pointed out, marketing is one of the big ones.
Heres the thing: many people don't even know the Wii U exists. The majority of my non-gamer friends have simply assumed that the Wii U is another add-on for the Wii, and didn't even realise that it was a new console.
Adverts for the console are almost non-existent, branding has utterly failed, and retailers have pushed Nintendo products to the corner of their stores in favour of PS4 and Xbone products.
There is a lot Nintendo can still do to salvage the console, and make it successful (though catching up may be not possible anymore): Advertise, a LOT more, and make sure people know that you actually made a new damn product. Bring out more big-hitters, like a BIG Zelda game. Mario 3D world, while certainly an amazing game by all accounts, simply didn't look like a proper Mario game by marketing standards, it sort of looked like a spin-off title much like the New Super Mario Bros. series. Invest in 3rd party support, bringing Bayonetta 2 to the Wii U was a great move, now try and persuade Activision and EA to bring more titles to your console.
Heres the thing: many people don't even know the Wii U exists. The majority of my non-gamer friends have simply assumed that the Wii U is another add-on for the Wii, and didn't even realise that it was a new console.
Adverts for the console are almost non-existent, branding has utterly failed, and retailers have pushed Nintendo products to the corner of their stores in favour of PS4 and Xbone products.
There is a lot Nintendo can still do to salvage the console, and make it successful (though catching up may be not possible anymore): Advertise, a LOT more, and make sure people know that you actually made a new damn product. Bring out more big-hitters, like a BIG Zelda game. Mario 3D world, while certainly an amazing game by all accounts, simply didn't look like a proper Mario game by marketing standards, it sort of looked like a spin-off title much like the New Super Mario Bros. series. Invest in 3rd party support, bringing Bayonetta 2 to the Wii U was a great move, now try and persuade Activision and EA to bring more titles to your console.
Activision? I can see.Simalacrum said:
EA?...eeeeyeeaaano. EA has outright lied about the Wii U, took a big shit on it, embarrassed themselves during the Xbox One fiasco, and sworn off working on the Wii U.
While them coming back to produce games on it isn't impossible, EA act like giant corporate babies and there is a good chance that they aren't going to do shit for the Wii U unless Nintendo ponies up some serious cash.
The only advertizing I saw for it was all about the catsuit. Yay!Simalacrum said:
I know it pisses off a lot of Nintendo fans when I say this, but it needs to be said; Nintendo has to bring some fresh new IPs, or iterations of existing IPs to the table. That's really all they need to do to save the Wii-U. All their first-party games are starting to look visually samey, and nothing about them is jumping out to grab your attention.
It baffles me as to why Nintendo hasn't taken advantage of smartphones to release all their old Gameboy and SNES classics. If any game would do well on a touchscreen, it's one designed when the controller had only 2 buttons and a D pad.
They were very lucky with the wii, but it was a fad that took off with a huge number of non gamers. An a lot of those people were never going to buy the WiiU or any other console. An its stupid of Nintendo to think they would sell the same amount again. I know people that had a Wii and they never bought any games apart from wii fit/sports.
Nintendo owes some of the biggest game series in gaming. So they will never go bankrupt, most we will see is them go the way of Sega and start releasing their games on other platforms.
Nintendo owes some of the biggest game series in gaming. So they will never go bankrupt, most we will see is them go the way of Sega and start releasing their games on other platforms.