Nintendo just doesn't get it
Here is a story on Nintendo's recent woes
This choice quote bothers me:
This really tells me something about Nintendo and it tells me a lot of people are going to stop buying their consoles...oh wait a minute, they already did.
Online gaming has been a false start? Uh.....say what you want about Microsoft, they have made a killing on Xbox Live. Perhaps Nintendo's barely-there support for online gaming makes most Game Cube gamers think they shouldn't even bother.
Cinematic graphics and better stories are blind alleys? What the hell is he on about? And how can a company that is surviving pretty much soley on its constantly rehashed franchises accuse others of creating a feeling among gamers that there isn't anything new?
And the last bit basically ends the debate over wether Nintendo makes dumbed-down "kiddie" games.
This man doesn't seem to have any clue as to what many American gamers want. No wonder they had to stop making consoles for 9 months.
This choice quote bothers me:
Quote:
Sitting in a giant conference room in the company's white, castle-like headquarters, Iwata offers up a series of deeply held yet utterly contrarian beliefs about where this nearly $30 billion industry (which makes it larger than the movie business) is headed. Online video games have been a false start so far, Iwata asserts, which is why he has no plans to lead Nintendo in that direction. The current path taken by game developers toward more cinematic graphics, richer story lines and complicated controls is a blind alley that, he says, will only worsen the current "nothing's new" ennui felt by many consumers.
What people want, Iwata says, are simpler, more accessible games that are easier to play and solve?think thumb candy for dummies.
Sitting in a giant conference room in the company's white, castle-like headquarters, Iwata offers up a series of deeply held yet utterly contrarian beliefs about where this nearly $30 billion industry (which makes it larger than the movie business) is headed. Online video games have been a false start so far, Iwata asserts, which is why he has no plans to lead Nintendo in that direction. The current path taken by game developers toward more cinematic graphics, richer story lines and complicated controls is a blind alley that, he says, will only worsen the current "nothing's new" ennui felt by many consumers.
What people want, Iwata says, are simpler, more accessible games that are easier to play and solve?think thumb candy for dummies.
This really tells me something about Nintendo and it tells me a lot of people are going to stop buying their consoles...oh wait a minute, they already did.
Online gaming has been a false start? Uh.....say what you want about Microsoft, they have made a killing on Xbox Live. Perhaps Nintendo's barely-there support for online gaming makes most Game Cube gamers think they shouldn't even bother.
Cinematic graphics and better stories are blind alleys? What the hell is he on about? And how can a company that is surviving pretty much soley on its constantly rehashed franchises accuse others of creating a feeling among gamers that there isn't anything new?
And the last bit basically ends the debate over wether Nintendo makes dumbed-down "kiddie" games.
This man doesn't seem to have any clue as to what many American gamers want. No wonder they had to stop making consoles for 9 months.
Comments
And sorry, not being a gamer, I don't sympathize with you, maybe it wasn't a great idea to post here than...
This really tells me something about Nintendo and it tells me a lot of people are going to stop buying their consoles...oh wait a minute, they already did.
except that they're #2 world wide, and their sales have gone through the roof.
As for MS's online service, how much money have they made while making a "killing"?
Cinematic graphics and better stories are blind alleys?
See the latest Metal Gear Solid. UGH! cut scenes and convoluted stories do not a fun game make. it can be done, but there's a dangerous shift from gameplay to appearance. make it look good, and then you're done. gameplay trumps graphics every day of the week.
as for making games more accessable, i'm all for it. not everyone has 20 hours a week to commit to the game of the week.
one of the most fun games i've ever played is Super Monkey Ball. the single player mode uses 0 buttons. the multiplayer uses 2 buttons.
it's a blast. guys and girls like to play it, and there isn't a 40 hour learning curve. you don't have some dork who spends half a month downloading and memorizing 8 button combo hits etc.
nintendo makes fun games.
Originally posted by DoctorGonzo:
This man doesn't seem to have any clue as to what many American gamers want.
I couldn't agree more. If Nintendo keeps heading in this direction, it will have no chance of competing when the next generation consoles appear. It's barely competing right now; it had to drop the Gamecube's price to $99 in order to spur sales ? and it seems proud of this! As a longtime Nintendo fan and customer, I'm extremely disappointed with the company's current direction.
I think everything the nintedo rep said was true. He's not talking about the minority(americans)..he's talking about what the majority like in games.
Anyone who thinks xbox or xbox live has been a success doesn't look at Microsofts year end results. The division with these products loses money....it hasn't been a money maker.
Games that have not sucked recently:
Super Smash Bros. Melee (GCN)
Eternal Darkness (GCN)
Hot Shots Golf 3 (PS2)
Super Monkey Ball 1 and 2 (GCN)
Enigmo (Mac)
Dead Or Alive: Extreme Volleyball (Xbox)
Dynasty Warriors 1-4 (PS2)
i want an xbox
why?
online gaming and games are coming out for PS2 and Xbox that arent on the gamecube and used to be
one of the most fun games i've ever played is Super Monkey Ball. the single player mode uses 0 buttons. the multiplayer uses 2 buttons.
it's a blast. guys and girls like to play it
The only thing Nintendo needs to learn is the memory cards SUCK. They were dead a while ago. They need to add a hard drive like XBox did, albeit not as big, so we can save data without bother. Of course there should still be a slot for memory cards in case you want to bring one to a friends' house but not the whole Cube, but that's not common because most people earn the stuff and the Cube is small enough to just bring.
They should stop changing controllers too. The N64 had the bets controller ever. The $$$$ing new Z button pained me with Smash Brothers for quite a while and it sucks for shooters.
You online gamers aren't casual gamers. That is what a PC is for, online games, like strategy, shooter, etc. Game Cube has a network port and I'm sure there next console will have a better service and more online titles but still, PCs are so much better for online games.
Nintendo is the best for casual console gamers, which is most people. Hard core Ctrl Alt Del reading gamers are better served by buying a cheap PC.
Originally posted by Aquatic
I don't know about girls, but the women I know would disagree. Hell, between the two I spend the most time with (well, you know, one of them being my other half and all), this is far from it.
One of them owns GC, playstation 2 and N64. As she puts it, "GC is for little kids." She says she feels sorry for the two guys we know that have them. The other one plays games like age of mythology and is a huge fan of max payne. And this is a woman wtih a senior position at her firm and speaks 5 or 6 languages.
Of course, I don't have time for airheads, so I can't say about their view towards children's games.
Edit: Just to approach this from the opposite angle, there is ONLY female I know (out of those that would even look at a video game) that I could assume she would only play a kiddie game, and she's one of those blond, addicted to diamond types who convinced her fiance to buy a GC, likely because she still thinks they are a 'man' thing. Drinking beer on a ladder with the neighbors working on an addition to the house is a man thing, not a game cube, honey.
That said, I've really enjoyed every GC game I've played except for one that was like a high-speed fake 3D japanese centipede.
Online gaming can be great, but I think they sound like they would be more fun than they are. Playing games online makes you run the risk of spending a long time playing against a bunch of dicks who disconnect, cheat, whatever.
I applaud Nintendo's desire to make simple, fun games. I want to be able to pick up the game and $$$$ing play it. I don't want to invest time in learning inventories and building up character points, I want to play a game. That's all.
I agree that online games are there for computers, not Xbox or PS2. I would also love to see harddrives on the gamecubes.
Originally posted by Argento
I downlaoded and played Max Payne 2 last week and it blew. It was a fun game for the whole 2 hours of actual game play, but I swear to God the next cut scene I have to watch where max dives deeper into his emotional pain detailed by cliche'd metephors I'll throw my computer out the window.
What do you expect? The Brothers Karamazov? It's a video game with a plot. They all suck.
The original XBox controller sucked, and the S-controller they replaced it with only sucks marginally less.
Originally posted by Eugene
and the S-controller they replaced it with only sucks marginally less.
Probably one of the greatest lines ever.
1.) NOT releasing a CD-ROM add on for the SNES, I know, I know, I see you poining at Sega... but they began creating a monster with Sony and abonded it with them - Enter Sony PlayStation.
2.) NO CD-ROM in the N64. I've read Nintendo admitting this was a mistake.
3.) Slow to catch onto on-line play.
Sure Nintendo have done a lot more great things. But these are some nails in their coffin, IMHO.
I also fully appreciate Nintendo's philosophy of making games accessible and not too complex or cumbersome to control, and I feel that they are just about the only company that continues to produce games with real character and appeal. With a few exceptions, the other companies concentrate on niches (like sports games) or stagnant genres (unending sequels of the same old RPG or FPS). Look on the back of any Xbox game and you'll almost certainly see dark, uncolorful screenshots with fancy lighting effects but rather uninspired character designs. Pop in a PS2 game, and you're likely to have the same gaming experience you had ten years ago only in 3D, that is, when you're not watching 20 minute cinema scenes. Some of us still like to play our games more than watch them.
Then go out and buy a GameCube for half the price, and play games like Zelda, Metroid, and MarioKart. When I play a Nintendo game, my immediate impression is "Wow! This is what a videogame should be!" This is the first game console I've actually wanted to own since... well, since the NES. I was strictly a PC gamer for a long time, but I simply could not afford NOT to get a GameCube. It doesn't hurt that I don't have to pay an extra hundred bucks for a DVD player and internet adapter that I don't even want.
I think the GameCube is a work of art, Nintendo games are a joy to play, and despite its inherent flaws the GameBoy Player is absolutely brilliant. Period. Someday, I may find a compelling reason to purchase another console, but not today.
last console i had played miner 49...must have been about 25 years ago, give or take...
blurring the lines between movies and games is probably not a great thing...i watch movies, i play games...sounds better than i play movies and watch games...but maybe i am just an old fart...i can say that over the last couple of years my kids have been most addicted to the sims, airburst, solitare, cro-mag rally, hilly-billy wack and that star wars racer...seems like simple game play wins out here...but then i have girls who mostly IM with their friends anyway...
now that could be a marketing ploy...find a way to make IM a game that you could market and sell (AI friends and situations)...link it to a console and all the lonely geeks can have IM with britany and justin and such
g
Originally posted by Eugene
The original XBox controller sucked, and the S-controller they replaced it with only sucks marginally less.
If you have hands larger than those of a 6 year old, it's fine.
Originally posted by murbot
If you have hands larger than those of a 6 year old, it's fine.
Some of us don't!
Sorry.