There are more fun facts from this talk (translated from Japanese; the English transcript is not up yet.) Evidently Nintendo had been working on a DS Lite with 3.8 inch screens (the LL's are 4.2 inches, the Lite's are 3 inches, DSi is 3.2). It backed off because of manufacturing cost and the success of the regular flavor DS Lite. It sounds like they also wanted to do a simultaneous release of the DSi and DSi LL but it never came together.

Andriasang has more (in English) about the discussion.

The Other DSi LL Names [Andriasang via VG247]

"Most radical people even dare to say that retailers will be replaced by digital distribution in no time," Iwata said at a recent Nintendo briefing. "But personally, I think it will still require a significant amount of time."

By significant, Iwata means two decades. "In other words, it will require many years and months for the majority of video game purchase to become digital," said Iwata. "In short, in 20 years or so I might say it will have probably changed. But in 5 years or so, I do not totally agree with opinions that no one will purchase titles at retailers by then."

Habits of life, Iwata pointed out, don't change such radically and quickly. "Especially for the expanded audience of various people," he added, "to whom we are and will be trying to appeal, I believe their habits will change more slowly."

Twenty years? Won't we have flying cars then?

Investor Relations: Corporate Management Policy Briefing / Semi-annual Financial Results Briefing Q & A [Nintendo via GoNintendo] [Pic]

Nintendo execs were asked when the company plans to make the move to high-definition graphics, joining the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in pushing more polygons, more pixels and more everything else. Not surprisingly, Nintendo is taking things cautiously, trying to find the balance between SD and HD content.

First to weigh in is Genyo Takeda, general manager of Nintendo's Integrated Research and Development Division. He says his group has been "reviewing and developing a number of hardware [options]... including HD and SD."

"However, we have not come to the stage where we can announce which is the most appropriate means," Takeda says."Since an increasing number of the TV sets at home around the world are becoming HD today, it will be natural for a machine to be able to generate graphics that people will be accustomed to see on HD televisions."

He adds that "moving to HD appears to me a natural flow."

Famed game designer Shigeru Miyamoto also offered his opinion about entering the HD era, implying that the decision is game dependent.

"Regarding the question of SD or HD, it must depend on each software," Miyamoto said. "For example, we have to ask ourselves if HD is really necessary to develop Wii Fit. Won't HD be better for the games like Pikmin? The developers should choose the most appropriate graphical format depending on the software they make."

The full response is an intimidating wall of text, from Takeda, Miyamoto and Nintendo president Satoru Iwata, one that may be designed to confuse rather than inform. If you can decipher it, let us know what their plans are, OK? Thanks.

Investor Relations: Corporate Management Policy Briefing / Semi-annual Financial Results Briefing Q & A [Nintendo]

That's according to IGN's translation of the oft-cited investor Q&A that Iwata and Shigeru Miyamoto dropped minor details at last week—nuggets of news that range from Miyamoto's acquisition of a real life cat, Wii MotionPlus support in the next Legend of Zelda game for the Wii, a cooling Wii market, and the possibility of a 3G-enabled Nintendo DS in the future.

Hey, demos are a good idea, just like cat ownership and 3G devices. Maybe you'll find the ArtStyle games, like Cubello up there, tons of fun. And maybe you'll reconsider that purchase of Sexy Poker or Major League Eating: The Game, despite both sounding like excellent fodder for WiiWare games.

We're tapping Nintendo of America on the shoulder to see if we can expect the same treatment here.

Nintendo to Offer WiiWare Demos [IGN]

Unlike today's smart phones and mobile 3G cards, which require monthly fees to access the network, Amazon's Kindle eBook reader figures in the price of 3G into the initial hardware cost, so the customer effectively pays one fee for the device and a lifetime of 3G access. Speaking at a analyst briefing following last week's lowered financial outlook, Nintendo's president called the Kindle's price plan an "option for the future."

"Only people who can pay thousands of yen a month [in mobile phone subscriptions] can be iPhone customers. That doesn't fit Nintendo customers because we make amusement products," Mr Iwata said. The Kindle's one-off cost would better suit Nintendo's customer base, he said. "In reality, if we did this it would increase the cost of the hardware, and customers would complain about Nintendo putting prices up, but it is one option for the future."

I don't see any problem with the handheld's current Wi-Fi access, but then again I rarely go anywhere that doesn't have an access point these days. I suppose if you want to be able to download new games nearly anywhere, 3G is certainly one way to go. Would you pay more for a 3G-enabled Nintendo DS?

Nintendo considers Kindle tactics for consoles [Financial Times]

Nintendo president Satoru Iwata said at the company's semi-annual financial briefing that the boost in LCD screen real estate is obviously easier on the eyes, but that "Nintendo does not offer such new product for such limited purposes only."

"Many people see a portable video game device as the device that can be played by yourself wherever you are," Iwata contends. "In fact, portable video game systems so far have been developed by prioritizing the portable nature and single-player modes."

Not the DSi XL! It addresses the lack of "a beautiful view from any angle," Iwata says, offering a "new play style."

"Nintendo DSi XL realizes beautiful game screens even for those who look at them from an angle," Iwata claims. "You do not have to peek closely into the monitor of another player's video game to get a good view anymore. Nintendo DSi LL is going to offer a new play style, where those who are surrounding the game player can also join in one way or the other to the gameplay. When you look at the home console video games you can understand that the fun of great games can be conveyed to and shared by those who are watching the player play."

In other words, Nintendo is attempting to transform the image of the Nintendo DS from portable platform only to portable platform that's also a console to be played at home in groups.

Iwata pointed to the Nintendo DS Mii collecting game Tomodachi Collection—a bestseller in Japan—as an example of a title which "whose appeal can by multiplied and enjoyed by bystanders."

The Nintendo DSi XL, Iwata says, is the "first portable video game system aimed to be played with others in person." In doing so, Nintendo expects DSi XL to accentuate the "fun feature" of software, potentially making the game "an unexpectedly huge hit."

We're ready to test this theory at Kotaku Towers, already planning our Nintendo DSi XL launch parties, in which we invite a wholesome group of culturally and ethnically diverse friends, tentatively scheduled for early 2010.

"The mood of the market got colder than expected," said Iwata, "and there was a miscalculation." This comes as Nintendo records its first decline in profits in six years.

Iwata disclosed that there were no extra resources in the company that can combat the slide in profits this year — Nintendo is aware of the weak 2009 software releases. Iwata did mention that the Wii Vitality Sensor will be out in 2010 and stressed that it is more than a simple heart rate monitor and that it will actually be fun.

"Now, we are preparing for next year and thinking about what to do the year after next," said Iwata. "We're thinking about our best chances for success." For some this signals sequels and perhaps new hardware from Nintendo.

When asked if Nintendo was worried about increased portable gaming competition from the iPhone, he replied, "In the marketplace, our presence is growing."

任天堂社長「見込み違いがあった」 [経済ニュース] [Pic]

Wii sales dropped by 10 million units during the six month period ending September 2009, and Nintendo has recorded its first decline in profit in six years. Iwata summed up the feeling at Nintendo. "Not being able to continuously release strong software has made a good mood grow cold."

With upcoming titles like New Super Mario Bros. Wii, Nintendo is feeling more confident about this holiday season.

任天堂：４年ぶり減収減益…「Ｗｉｉ」急減響く　９月連結 － 毎日ｊｐ(毎日新聞) [Mainichi]

Says Miyamoto: "I've always enjoyed guessing the lengths of objects, which is why I carry a measuring tape around with me." To which Iwata replies: "Really? That one's new to me too!"

Continues Shiggy:

For instance, I might guess that the table in front of us is about 1.2 metres long. Then I'd actually measure it with the measuring tape to check. If I got it right, I'd think: "I'm on form today!" But if I missed the mark by a long way, I'd think: "I've been slipping a bit recently!" ... And it's not just length: I also really enjoy predicting the weight and other measurements of things. So for instance, I'd pick up a chair and think: "I wonder how many kilos this weighs." Or I'd wonder how many grams a weekly manga magazine weighs.

Iwata says he'd need a set of scales to satisfy that curiosity, not as portable as a tape measure. Miyamoto agrees:

That's why I've always thought that using the Wii Balance Board to play a weight-guessing game would be great. For instance, we could make it like a school sports day. Get ten people together and hand out cards to each person. Then for instance, Iwata-san, you might get a card that reads "12 kilos" and I might get a card that reads "3 kilos". Then we'd all split up and go around the school …

Iwata: … And we'd each have to bring back something which weighed that much.

Miyamoto: We'd each put the object on the scales and the person who got closest to their target weight would be the winner! (laughs) Doing something like that would be great fun, wouldn't it? You don't think it would be fun?

Iwata: Um … Sure!

And thus, "while it's not exactly the same," that's why a similar weight-guessing game is included in Wii Fit Plus, Miyamoto says.

Iwata Asks: Wii Fit Plus [Wii.com via CVG]

Says Iwata:

As for the media briefing at E3, of course we had many internal discussions after that. Honestly speaking, none of us at Nintendo thought that our presentation at E3 was as good as it could have been. It is apparent that we could not fully convey the charm of our products.

Iwata singles out the new Super Mario Bros. Wii demonstration as especially less-than-whelming.

This year, however, with the New Super Mario Bros. Wii, four people lined up with Wii Remotes was not a scene that no one had ever seen. Those who actually had the chance to play understood how the game would change with four people playing simultaneously, but we could not address that fun sentiment at the media briefing.

Iwata goes on to say that, in the future, Nintendo's press briefing strategy may be fine-tuned to deliver impact to those watching online - in other words, you, the interested consumer, and not the media per se. Wonder if they noticed this?

Now we strongly feel that we need to look into finding a better way to demonstrate the products' appeal better at E3 in these times where more people are watching it online via web cast not only in the U.S. but all around the world, than the number of audience who actually watch it in the theatre.

Recapping: Golden Sun DS, Super Mario Galaxy 2 and Metroid: Other M were really the only big splashes for Nintendo this year - Wii Sports Resort and its sales since notwithstanding. The Vitality Sensor was an absolutely bottom-out dud that left many people wondering, almost seriously, if Nintendo was trolling the press.

The briefing still was an improvement above the ghastly presser from 2008, although the lack of any gamechanger during a show that featured heavyweight bombs dropped by Microsoft and Sony seems almost, comparatively speaking, worse. Iwata's candor, for a chief executive, is refreshing. Whether it results in, next year, his company coming off like something better than the hip-to-it parent of video games, we shall see.

Iwata: We Know Our E3 Briefing Wasn't Good, Still Trying to Improve [Nintendo Everything, via GoNintendo]

Wii sales are slowing down, and at the recent Nintendo investor's meeting, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata was asked this during the Q&A: "Tell me if you are now thinking about cutting the hardware price."

"It's not the case of the quality of hardware moved, the feeling of missing strong competitive power, lacking its luster or poor sales," replied Iwata. "Consistently, big time titles will be released in the marketplace for this hardware. When that stops, to reinvigorate the console, or to put it another way, I think the current decline in hardware sales is due to the fact that there aren't many big titles (at the moment)."

Does that mean Nintendo is going to cut the hardware price tag? "Right now," Iwata concluded, "there aren't a lot of discussions going on about what exactly to do about hardware pricing."

It sounds like Iwata isn't blaming the Wii or the Wii's price tag for Wii sales during the April - June financial quarter, but the lack of new, big titles. Wii Sports Resort was released in late June, and the title is expected to help console sales.

In a way, Iwata's focus on game titles to move consoles is good news for gamers: It means that Nintendo is focused less on price tags and more on the titles themselves. Good games mean good sales, and that's good for everyone, no?

The shift would mean they want the unit to be seen as something everyone should own, not shared among a family. Basically, it means Nintendo wants everyone in the world to have a DS, which might seem obvious, and is an ambitious way to expand what analysts had seen as a somewhat saturated market.

Techradar's digest of a Nikkei article (subscription only) said the marketing will portray the DS as personal device "like a mobile phone," but I wouldn't take that to mean it's gonna get those capabilities sometime.

Nintendo Wants to Sell DS to Everyone on Earth [Techradar via Cubed3]

Shigeru Miyamoto, general manager of the Entertainment Analysis & Development Division—the team responsible for Wii Sports Resort—tells Nintendo president Satoru Iwata that the destination in the Wii sequel is essentially the star of the show. Wuhu Island, Miyamoto says, is designed to join the likes of Mario and Donkey Kong as a new Nintendo franchise, seen in multiple games.

"We really polished up the island, turned it into a resort and actually made the location into a kind of character," Miyamoto says in the latest "Iwata Asks" interview. "This will then lead to a range of island series... You could have adventure games, role-playing games, city-building simulation games... It will be fun to see all the ideas that we can come up with, won't it?"

Despite all the "(laughs)" peppered throughout the interview, Miyamoto sounds quite serious about "licensing it out as a franchise," meaning we could see Super Mario Resort or Tingle's Fantasy Island or... who knows what this madman will dream up next?

Miyamoto further justifies the idea by saying Wuhu Island will breed familiarity, like a real world city or town.

"We thought it would be a fun idea to have a location that everyone knows and then have all sorts of stuff going on there," he says. "It would mean that players would already know the town like the back of their hands by the time they came to buy the next adventure game. Everyone could play in a location they were familiar with which would truly turn it into a miniature garden."

Wait. Miniature garden? OMG PIKMIN 3 WILL BE ON AN ISLAND!

Iwata Asks: Wii Sports Resort [Wii.com]

According to Nintendo president Satoru Iwata, "To tell the truth, I expected them to come up with stuff like this last year. So in my mind they're later than expected." But that doesn't mean he's against his competitors entering this new realm — instead Iwata says he's happy that it's now an industry standard. "I'd like to say to them, 'Welcome to the motion-control world!'"

Nintendo, the exec contents, "will not be standing still" and is "actually looking forward to engaging in that sort of competition." Nintendo is always working on something new, Iwata adds. So perhaps this will push the company's creativity even further?

"However, we still have no idea about when their products will be available, or how much they will cost, or what sort of software they will be used with," he adds. "So, I am not in a position to judge whether they are a threat or not." Good point: We don't know when these motion controllers will be out, and we don't know what games they'll work with — probably because this hasn't been announced. But, will Sony's and Microsoft's motion controllers cost less than three Wii-motes and four nunchakus?

How Nintendo's boss rewrote the rules of the game [Times Online via Endsights]

According to a report from CNBC, Iwata says that Nintendo had another handheld gaming system in the works as recently as three years ago. What that platform would have been, which market it would have targeted and what kinds of games it would play, Iwata didn't say.

What he did say, or at least indicate, was that platform that would coexist with the Nintendo DS and Wii wouldn't do much for the company's "momentum."

"But when we are launching new hardware, the most important is thing is to sustain the momentum," Iwata said. "If introducing new hardware won't do anything to do that, well…" Well, what?!

Could it have been the ill-conceived dual-DS card version of the Nintendo DS? Or could it have been something more interesting, another entry in the Game Boy family? Only Iwata knows!

Nintendo President: 'We Have Scuttled New Hardware' [CNBC via Dtoid]

One day, Nintendo will release a new console. "If we have an opportunity to make a new console, it will probably support HD because it is now common throughout the world," Nintendo president Satoru Iwata told website VentureBeat. "However, as far as the Wii is concerned, we have not found a significant reason to make it HD-compatible at this time."

We take it that it-looks-better-on-our-TVs doesn't count?

"What is the significant meaning to the users?" Iwata continued. (See above.) "I don't think we should do it unless we find that reason." (See above.) "If we decide for other reasons to make new hardware, then HD is one of the things we would naturally add." (Thank you.)

When can we expect new hardware? When Nintendo developers start asking for new hardware so they can "developer meaningful surprises to the users." Iwata even gives a launch window — a vague one: "As for timing, it may be three years from now, five years from now or eight years from now."

Let's see, Japanese analog broadcasts stop in 2011, so we're betting sometime before then.

Nintendo CEO: Wii care about your heartbeat, but not your iPhone, the recession or free games [VentureBeat]

Nintendo president Satoru Iwata asks just that in the Iwata Asks column on Wii.com. Here's the exchange between Iwata and Nintendo R&D's Junji Takamoto :

Iwata: I suppose the obvious question is: if it offers such huge advantages, why didn't you use it in the Wii Remote from the very start?

Takamoto: We actually looked into the idea of including a gyro sensor at the very start of the Wii Remote's development. But the idea was rejected due to issues of both space and cost which attaching a gyro sensor would entail.

Iwata: I see. But gyro sensors are measuring devices that have actually been around for a considerable amount of time, aren't they?

Takamoto: That's right. They were originally called gyroscopes and were used to measure angle and rotation speed in rockets and the navigation systems of ships. But they were very bulky instruments.

Iwata: They're fitted in the noses of airplanes as well, aren't they?

Takamoto: Right. That's the sort of size we're talking about. And let's not forget that they were also extremely expensive.

You know what's also expensive? Buying all the peripherals Nintendo releases.

The Gyro Sensor: A New Sense Of Control [Wii.com Thanks, Swarmster!]

The company told Kotaku today it has not restricted international travel for key Nintendo employees due to concerns over swine flu, which may not actually be transmitted via pig bites. Nintendo video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto and president Satoru Iwata will make E3 appearances as planned.

"Nintendo has been carefully monitoring the situation worldwide and is taking appropriate steps to minimize health risks for everyone," Nintendo said in an official statement. "As of now, Nintendo has no travel bans in place, but is instructing employees whose travel cannot wait to take precautions, such as wearing protective masks and washing their hands frequently."

Companies including Capcom, Square Enix, and Koei have all expressed plans to limit travel to the U.S. amid health concerns. But Nintendo fans can count on smiles, not surgical masks, on faces at E3.

"Video game fans can rest assured that Nintendo President Satoru Iwata will be presenting during the company's E3 Expo media briefing the morning of June 2, and that legendary Nintendo video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto will host a developer roundtable event later that day."

If anything, Miyamoto may be able to turn swine flu pandemic concerns into a strong game concept. And, no, Dr. Mario doesn't count!

Yes, Nintendo of America executive vice president of Sales & Marketing Cammie Dunaway will be there. Also appearing will be Nintendo president Satoru Iwata and Reggie Fils-Aime, the company announced today. The three amigos of Nintendo's E3 keynote will be handling all new Wii and Nintendo DS announcements at this year's E3 expo, delivering a fresh batch of promises and an update on Nintendo's smiles per faces tie ratio.

Since this one's "about the games," expect more focus on promised Mario and Zelda titles, less onstage demonstrations of Personal Trainer Walking. No mention of a Wii Music jam session, but we can always hope.

The action kicks off June 2nd at 9 A.M. Pacific Time. Nintendo fans in Mario outfits bearing supportive signage can begin loitering at the Nokia Plaza in downtown Los Angeles at 7 A.M. if they'd like to be photographed.

Speaking after Nintendo's recent fiscal year report briefing, Iwata sounds like the constant comparisons between the two devices have got to him, as he remarks:

I do not imagine that iPhone will dominate the Nintendo DS market at once. My impression as the person who has used iPhone is, it is very attractive but, frankly, I did not feel that it was designed to be appreciated by a wide variety of people like how Nintendo has been designing its products.

I don't know. I appreciate how the iPhone can make phone calls. My DS can't. Then again, I don't appreciate how there's still no decent Advance Wars clone on Apple's device.

Guess I'll have to keep appreciating both devices, then!

Financial Results Briefing Q&A [Nintendo]