Kotaku 
Enter your username and password.
Denver, 2:54 AM
Mon Dec 7
17 posts in the last 24 hours
Tip us:
Editor-In-Chief:
Brian Crecente
| AIM | Twitter
Deputy Editor:
Stephen Totilo
| AIM | Twitter
Senior Editor:
Michael McWhertor
| AIM | Twitter
Senior Contributing Editor, Japan:
Brian Ashcraft
| AIM | Twitter
Contributing Editor, East Coast:
Michael Fahey
| AIM | Twitter
Contributing Editor, Oceania:
Luke Plunkett
| AIM | Twitter
Contributing Editor, Weekends:
Owen Good
| AIM | Twitter
Correspondent, San Francisco:
AJ Glasser
| AIM | Twitter
Columnist:
Leigh Alexander
Columnist:
Tim Rogers
Original material is licensed under a Creative Commons License permitting non-commercial sharing with attribution.
05/07/09
Either way, it makes me laugh how Greenpeace's constant panning of Nintendo for non-disclosure is totally ignored for this, haha...
05/07/09
This constant bemoaning of Nintendo is nothing but idiocy in a capitalist world because ask yourself this question: What company -esp in the last 25 years -(in any industry) aims not to make the most money possible? Simple maths here will tell you that three companies going after the same audience is not as potentially profitable as one company going after a different audience.
-------------------------------------------------------------
Heres some examples:
The PS1 superbly outsold the competition beacuse it had the Wiiesque appeal of aiming to attract EVERYBODY. It had (compared to the competition) a sleek and sexy design, it carried the name of one of the biggest and influential companies the technology AND entertainment industry had ever seen. As well as this it also had your tradtional games carried over from the SNES/MD era, it brought in many new "casual" types of games and it introduced a new and (at the time) exciting format that was growing to be the biggest shake up many industries had seen. This compared to the N64 which used old clunky media, was backed by a campaign aimed to really attract those who were previous Nintendo fans.
The PS2: Ticking all the boxes that the PS1 already did, Sony then went on to dominate the competition with a lineup of casual games and the image that it was OK to have a gaming console in your living room because a games console wasn't just about Solo experiences but also about social gatherings. This was backed up by such major hits as Singstar, Eye Toy, Buzz etc. As we know the console pretty much went unchallenged until the Xbox came along. Where was Nintendo? Still trying to convince gamers-wait, let me say that again- G.A.M.E.R.S. (Yes, you "hardcore", fickle, only "true" gamers)that Nintendo was the company for you by attempting to get some of the big players in Sony's twilight years on their side such as Namco, Capcom and even the Yamuichi despised Square Enix to help make the console seem a bit more rounded.
-------------------------------------------------------------
The N64 and the GCN were always aimed solely at Nintendo fans first and foremost with every other aspect coming as a second thought and for that reason many of the now disgruntled Nintendo fans who fail to realise that by buying a PS1/2/Xbox you pretty much made Nintendo's mind up about their direction that they needed to take in order to have a viable market share and avoid a SEGAesque bow out that seemed like it was a foregone conclusion during the GCN days where I distinctly remember reading rumor after rumor about Microsoft's ambition to buyout the company.
Face it, the only way Nintendo could compete with two other companies going after the same market was to alter its statergy, take a hit on the technology side in order to go for a cheap, affordable console that had a new and instantlly approachable control scheme that would make people who have always looked at games as a child's pass-time or a hobby for young men to waste their lives on look at the console and think: "That looks like fun! I want one" - just like they did with the PS2... -
All this talk about the Wii "killing gaming" is stupid and unfounded. Just like when the PS1 (and more importantly the PS2) came into play Nintendo are simply trying to make more money by broadening out its audience, and to be honest with several companies both outside and inside the industry falling like flies in a global recession. Can you really blame them for wanting to appease everybody as opposed to the traditional gamer? History has taught Nintendo that gamers aren't loyal and essentially they are an unpleasable fan base ([tvtropes.org] )that will always want what they don't get.
05/07/09
Thank you.
05/07/09
The PS2 also had a rather rocky launch and was most definitely targeted at the hardcore gamers out there. For a long time there was little sign of any casual titles. Eventually the console gained a second wind part-way through it's life with more casual titles like Singstar, Eye Toy, Buzz as you mention, but this was not where the console was aimed early on. Many gamers I knew had already moved on to the next generation of consoles by the time Buzz and Singstar started to really drive PS2 sales. Not that it really mattered because the PS2's game library can cater to any and all.
To me the Wii difference is that the early adopters jumped on board with expectations that Nintendo did nothing to dispel. Both side had their reasons for acting as they did. Unlike the PS2 though the range of Wii titles is nowhere near as diverse. It's certainly no PS2. What you're seeing now are buyers who feel cheated. I'm console agnostic personally so don't really care, but I do have some sympathy for those with an unused Wii lying around.
Oh, and I'm seeing far more Nintendo defense on this article than bashing. ;)
05/07/09
05/07/09
What I was trying to get across was that (judging by third party support/titles and the reaction from my friend circle) the original xbox seemed like the only other console of that generation that you could own instead of a PS2 while the GC was looked at as the 'ugly duckling' (for lack of a better term^^)
At present I agree with you in the fact that the Wii's liabry at present isn't as diverse as the PS2's. However, I feel that if the console is given a little bit more thought from 3rd party developers as well as some faith from gamers you could indeed see a large wealth of titles that offer a deeper experience than we are currently getting. The problem with the Wii is that unlike the PS2 (for a large period of its lifespan) it is sadly pigeonholed between two powerhouse consoles so the more demanding titles often go to the PS3/360 as opposed to be considered as a Wii game
@shouryuuken: The recession couldn't have come at a worse time for Sony and their PS3. Thier more or less stuck in a loose/loose situation where as you stated the console is massively exspensive comapred to its rival(s)* with features that people need a fair share of disposable income to really get the benefit of.
*Im not too sure the price of the Xbox 360 elite over the PS3 in other markets outside of the UK; but over here they are about the same price.
05/07/09
@MattB: yeah, i remember my cousin having this.. like 800 - 1000 dollar dvd player in 1996. but yeah, thats another thing that was good.. dvd players were cheaper to make in 2000 than bluray players in 06.. so sony had a great advantage there. what i meant is that it was the first console wise when it came to dvds.. it launched dvd as a format to play console games on. but the fact that it played movies (especially over the dreamcast) sold it to so many people that probably bought less than 5 games the whole time they owned it.
05/07/09
Nintendo isnt the company they used to be. They qualitied controlled everything back in the day from the mandatory nintendo seal of quality to actually limited developers on how many games they could release per year to keep the game quality high as possible.
Now look at the game isle for the wii and ds in any store and tell me they still give a shit about quality titles.
Or maybe the fact each time they release a system you see less and less nintendo brand games. Or the fact they release a major system and then every year and a half make a small adjustment, change the color and charge more for it. How many times did they change the gameboy systems? Like 4 or the ds into the dsi. Yeah screen is 1/9th inch bigger, battery life is worse and it has 2 cameras and they charged 60 bucks more for it.
05/07/09
The Nintendo Seal of Quality is and always was a marketing gimmick. It's primary reason for being around was to sooth the fear of TOY STORES, which in the mid 80's were the place you went for video games, not GameStop. Toy stores got burned big time on the 83 crash and lost tens of millions of dollars when they ended up with stock they couldn't move, because in those days, you had to place your orders ahead of time and pay full price..you only made your money back if the carts sold.
Nintendo's "You can only release 3 games a year" policy did NOTHING to stop shovelware, because Konami, Capcom and countless other publishers simply opened up new publishing houses to get around that limit and next to the PS2 and SNES, the NES had a crapload of shovelware like nothing else.
This "Nintendo isn't what they used to be." line is bullshit of the highest order. Nintendo today is pretty much like Nintendo of the 80's and like Nintendo of 1889 was like. Same mission statement, same goals, but every single thread, we have folks with rose-colored glasses not only on, but bolted onto their face who claim that somehow Nintendo's changed when Nintendo has changed very little, other then this gen taking a double risk, first in the form of the DS, then in the form of the Wii.
You've gotten older. Take off those rose colored glasses and see things for what they are. And for the love of god, learn how to state viable points.
05/08/09
point? nintendo aint changed.. theyve just added a new area of gaming to their existing catalogue. its different sure, but its not like they stopped making their other games and only made wii fit/sports/music/play, and brain age/big brain academy. its really silly how these kids always whine on here about nintendo abandoning people. they really havent.. the only thing they should do more of is buy up random studios like sony/microsoft so they could have odd games not made by them..msft has no internal teams.. and sony has barely any.. they just buy up companies or make exclusive deals. media molecule, naughty dog, insomniac, sucker punch.. and the list goes on. dont get me wrong, i LOVE The games that come out of those teams... but i applaud nintendo and get pissed at the haters because guess what.. a large bulk of the games that theyre known for are all home grown. nobody else catches flak for this though.. like blizzard. world of WARCRAFT, STARCRAFT II, DIABLO III. seriously.. whens the last time they did something other than some form of western rpg or rts... blackthorne on snes? seriously.
05/07/09
05/07/09
-1 for people who label themselves...
05/07/09
I'm not crazy about the term myself, but you know what it implies and it hardly negates BryanGuitarDude's point. You do realize you are reading a blog site which uses the term rather frequently?
05/07/09
05/07/09
Consoles: Good
Cameras: Bad
Computers: Okay
TVs: Good (modern) Fucking Awesome (CRTs)
Phones: hahahahahahahaha...
I can totally see how they'd be so low.
05/07/09
Sure, I miss their old days, but I genuinely think they're expanding the gaming world. Never before would I have imagined seeing some of my pals sit down and play SSB, No More Heroes, or even Trauma Center.
Now if only we can get rid of their re-hashes. (FUCK YOU, Animal Crossing!)
05/07/09
I guess we were just cool.
05/07/09
They're doing some good stuff but also doing some bad stuff in my opinion. In the end you can still enjoy the Wii and it's a good console but I wish they'd make more new Wii exclusive traditional titles (Nintendo themselves) rather than just make new casual ones like Wii fit, sports, resort etc.
05/07/09
And yes, people will argue that somehow thet didn't like ANY of those games, but at the end of the day, nintendo is releasing more titles than ever and maybe, just maybe it isn't nintendo who's abandoning these "core" gamers, maybe it's the other way around... and that's OK, no one HAS to like them.
What's not OK is being a whiny little bitch on every single nintendo related article. - And i have to make clear that this last statement is NOT about you, you seem well rounded on your comments on this thread-
05/07/09
I JUST bought Broken Sword for the wii and it's freaking awesome... i belive it was a PS or PS2 game, but still, the game is top notch on puzzles, argument and voice acting.
05/07/09
05/07/09
Don't worry about Nintendo in the handheld market. If you look at their track record from new handheld to new handheld, you'll see the obviously know what they're doing.
As for Wii to next system? I think it'll go like the NES - SNES. I could be wrong, but that's how I think it's going to go down.
05/07/09
05/07/09
also, the economy will be stronger, and the system will launch for $299.
05/07/09
05/07/09
05/07/09
Sony is a saint (which otherwise would be a ridiculous statement), and Nintendo is Jesus compared to MS.
05/07/09
and it hardly stopped there. what about the hardware debacle that was BOTH the first two playstations? what about how they denied for years that the hardware had inherent factory defects much like you demonize MS for? how about the fact that they, even further, would not warranty that bad hardware, leaving the consumer to either try to find a way to have it repaired, or send it to sony and be charged for it, or just throw it away and buy a new one? even MS after a few months admitted they goofed up and slapped a 3 year replcement warranty on the issue. 3 years is unheard of in gaming hardware warranty. yeah sony, saint indeed.
05/07/09
05/07/09
05/07/09
05/07/09
Also, protip, Nintendo didn't invent motion controls.
05/07/09
05/07/09
And the PSP launched. Overpriced, undersupported and soon a pirate's best friend. Software was priced insanely, a new game cost $40 and EA's offerings often hit the $50 dollar mark. The UMD cases were junk, the battery life was meh, the controls didn't set the world on fire, but it didn't matter it was the Playstation Portable and the DS had no chance.
Time passed..and the next round of systems were announced. The 360 looked to deal with all of the issues that the Xbox had and they were coming out swinging. The PS3 was announced and people got ready to enjoy what would surely be a 3rd gen of Sony control. Yeah that Xbox had a okey launch and the grey market made it some money, but people were saving up so they could buy a car with PS3 profits.
And Nintendo announced the Wii..and time rolled backwards some and it was just like the announcement of the DS. Everyone forgot how wrong they had been about the DS, this..thing had no chance, not with 100+ million likely Playstation fans ready to adopt..and with the 360, Nintendo didn't have a chance.
War never changes and history repeats itself.
05/07/09
05/07/09
Before the Wii haters say anything, I just want to say:
GOOD JOB NINTENDO!
05/07/09
And they got there bay basically telling their core gamers to F@#k off because its the casual's that make them money now.
05/07/09
You see, I never had a thing against these "casual" gamers. I consider myself a "casual". But one thing we simply cannot afford is to have "casual" and "hardcore" be differed. Whenever an industry shifts away from either point, it suffers. It's what happened to comics, arcades, anime, and pretty much PC gaming in general. I don't want that to ever happen to consoles.
05/07/09
Speak for yourself. I'm a so-called "hardcore" gamer and I play my Wii on the reg. There's tons of good games out for the system now that I personally think are good. I'm not going to bother making list, cause it's pointless but yeah, speak for yourself.
05/07/09
05/07/09
We have Nintendo for your kids, and Sony/MS for the adults. People need to get over the 'great snes days' and realize that although I liked the n64, and the GC, in both cases if I was my age now, I would of bought a ps1 and ps2.
All the good games from the snes days were mostly thirdparty stuff. Capcom, Square, they still make great games. Just not on the wii.
Hardcore people should be buying a sony or ms console (or pc), and waiting for the end of the wii's cycle. Buy a wii when it's $150 or less and can say there is a good selection of games already released that I want to play - that justify that $150.
Nintendo - just like Disney doesn't grow up with you, they don't make 18+ movies. They make movies that although adults can enjoy, are mostly targeted at children - since children make them money and not adults.
05/07/09
05/07/09
05/07/09
Seriously folks. How is it possible that gaming is moving mainstream and getting more recognition, more advertising, more development dollars, more respect, and yet gamers are pissed about it? Nintendo is just the most successful, they're not the only ones moving this medium to the masses.
05/07/09
The Wii may have many bases covered, but not all of them, and many of them aren't covered well enough. I don't know of any Western-style RPGs. The only JRPGs I know of are Baroque and Tales of Symphonia 2, which is about the same as covering that base with two inept guards. The only Tactical RPG I know of is Radiant Dawn, which is about the same as expecting one really good guard to secure an entire base. With the exception of MP3:C, all the FPSs have been average at best, which is a real shame considering the controller would be great for it. If you want a racer and don't care for Mario Kart, you'll be SOL - there are no good substitutes to Burnout, Forza, Gran Turismo, Pure, Grid or WipeOutHD. (And seriously, why hasn't there been an F-Zero on the Wii yet?)
05/07/09
That's not really "good" statistic-wise.
I'm not saying they themselves are not good games, but it pretty much does sum up the status of the console in most people's eyes (sadly): a system home solely to rehashes and ports.
Also, you forgot de Blob. That game was "de shit."
05/07/09
Change "waggle support" to "updated graphics" and you're describing the best games on the 360 and PS3. So what?
05/07/09
05/07/09
05/07/09
05/07/09
05/07/09
05/07/09
05/07/09
05/07/09
05/07/09