Comment on Seriously Hoenn by Slugbox
Nintendo didn't become a publicly world traded company until 1996...
Yes, but they have been going to trade shows since before that. There were people who were saying the NES would fail back when atari consoles were still big. Every time nintendo does something, gimmicks get tossed around as a term for long term failure.
They're running into issues recently, but it's not as bad as doomsaying implies.
They're running into issues recently, but it's not as bad as doomsaying implies.
I'm going to have to agree with this--but with Slug, too. Slug, you're reasoning is rock solid--you're probably one of the smarter people I've heard talk about Nintendo's current position. Honestly, I agree with you 100%: people are too focused on one game being "Nintendo's Savior" or some crap like that, like how Kill la Kill and Space Dandy were supposed to "save anime" or whatever.
But, let's be real for a moment: Nintendo has always been "in the red". The NES? Released during a time where people thought console games were dead-and-buried. The SNES? Released when Sega had its ultra-hip Sega Genesis, and the attention of an "older" crowd. The N64? Dependent on cartridges when most everyone else had switched to CDs. The Game Boy? The weakest handheld console, compared to the Atari Lynx and the Game Gear. Gamecube? No online. Wii? Barely stronger than the Gamecube.
Again, I can't argue against your solid business reasoning--in fact, I agree. But, I still have a hard time thinking that Nintendo's situation is just *that* bad, when people have been arguing that its end is nigh since the Reagan administration and this is it, we really mean it this time!
Or maybe I'm just talking out of by butt because I never studied business, I dunno.
But, let's be real for a moment: Nintendo has always been "in the red". The NES? Released during a time where people thought console games were dead-and-buried. The SNES? Released when Sega had its ultra-hip Sega Genesis, and the attention of an "older" crowd. The N64? Dependent on cartridges when most everyone else had switched to CDs. The Game Boy? The weakest handheld console, compared to the Atari Lynx and the Game Gear. Gamecube? No online. Wii? Barely stronger than the Gamecube.
Again, I can't argue against your solid business reasoning--in fact, I agree. But, I still have a hard time thinking that Nintendo's situation is just *that* bad, when people have been arguing that its end is nigh since the Reagan administration and this is it, we really mean it this time!
Or maybe I'm just talking out of by butt because I never studied business, I dunno.
The main issue I have is that everyone pushes the concept that nintendo needs to be doing what the other companies are doing to stay in the market, when in the long term, doing that is going to be an issue. Theres this big push that the tablet will kill gaming, but it's nowhere close to what people suggest, as it's going to take a long time for it to catch up. Computer/4k gaming on the other hand is already caught up, and all it needs to do is push down its price tag a bit to be more open to console gamers.
This is the main reason why I think anyone who says nintendo needs to stop with the 'gimmicks' and just build a stronger console is missing the point. By building that 'stronger console', nintendo is getting those cross platforms, but is also competing directly against other people who have these same games, and something like the PC would blow that out of the water. By using 'gimmicks', nintendo locks a niche for themselves that no other system can replicate, meaning that more of their games can stay exclusive experiences.
And truth be told, if these consoles really were just gimmicks, then they wouldn't have pushed their consoles as well as they did as time passed. It's also ironic because people talk about wanting innovation in gaming, but when something radically different pops up, it's just a gimmick and completely disregarded as unecessary.
That said, the video game industry is in a kind of bubble, and it's going to kill a lot of mid sized companies who spend far too much compared to their value, and is probably going to open up a lot more space for indie companies to fill into those holes and become the new premeire 3rd party.
This is the main reason why I think anyone who says nintendo needs to stop with the 'gimmicks' and just build a stronger console is missing the point. By building that 'stronger console', nintendo is getting those cross platforms, but is also competing directly against other people who have these same games, and something like the PC would blow that out of the water. By using 'gimmicks', nintendo locks a niche for themselves that no other system can replicate, meaning that more of their games can stay exclusive experiences.
And truth be told, if these consoles really were just gimmicks, then they wouldn't have pushed their consoles as well as they did as time passed. It's also ironic because people talk about wanting innovation in gaming, but when something radically different pops up, it's just a gimmick and completely disregarded as unecessary.
That said, the video game industry is in a kind of bubble, and it's going to kill a lot of mid sized companies who spend far too much compared to their value, and is probably going to open up a lot more space for indie companies to fill into those holes and become the new premeire 3rd party.
