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Nintendo spells it out to 'solitary anti-social teens'

A certain point of contention, Nintendo recently held a 'Mind, Body and Console' conference in London, which was covered by Edge. The full article is interesting and worth a read, but this small extract in particular is worthy of note.

One slide of Dawn Paine's [UK Head of Marketing] presentation outlined the ways in which gaming has traditionally been perceivedas 'an addiction that removes the player from reality'. A picture of a long haired nerd, screaming as he gripped a control pad, appeared on the projection screen, the surrounding space soon ppulated by the phrases 'glazed over', 'isolated' and other negative terminology.

Rather than debunk such perceptions, Nintendo simply suggested it was courting a different audience, and the company would soon come to stand for 'self development, health, beauty and fitness'.

This paradigm shift, to use Paine's terms, would come as the result of Nintendo's Touch! Generation software, which unlike traditional gamng, doesn't "replace your life - it connects with it". Paine's assertion that Nintendo wasn't abandoning the traditional gamer was supported by jus three examples: Metroid Prime 3, Phantom Hourglass and Mario Galaxy.

Clearly there's nothing wrong with engaging a new audience - indeed, it's massively profitable - but at the same time such efforts seem to dismiss the worth of the medium prior to this influx of accessible, functional but artistically shallow titles.
 

Peru

Member
Grayman said:
How can "artistically shallow" ever be a good thing to list?
It's clearly not listed as such?


EDGE has a point, a simple one - and it's the fact that PR teams are shameless - they always have been and they still are in Nintendo's offices.
 

beef3483

Member
Prime 3, Phantom Hourglass, and Galaxy in one year is pretty good.

Also, if there is no link, you should at least specify where you're getting you're quotes from.

Did Nintendo say 'solitary anti-social teens' or was that Edge's interpretation?
 

SapientWolf

Trucker Sexologist
It's just marketing. I wouldn't even consider the Wii a party console anymore. At least, not until they release Brawl and update Mario Party. And yes, most people are still going to look like spaced out mental patients while they're playing Mario Galaxy. It's just the nature of the hobby.
 

Grayman

Member
Peru said:
It's clearly not listed as such?


EDGE has a point, a simple one - and it's the fact that PR teams are shameless - they always have been and they still are in Nintendo's offices.
Got me there, I read it as something that came from Paine and not edge. Like the new accessible but shallow titles were something to be proud of.

The accessibility and functionality are of course.
 

Gigglepoo

Member
I can't believe they are still spouting this line. Back in the PSX vs. N64 days, Yamauchi said PlayStation gamers locked themselves in dark rooms playing RPGs by themselves. I'm still not sure how Nintendo can rip solitary gamers than release games like Phantom Hourglass and Metriod Prime. I know I wasn't playing those games with a group of people.

EDIT - Found the quote!

From IGN:

"[People who play RPGs are] depressed gamers who like to sit alone in their dark rooms and play slow games," he noted in a 1999 interview. Yamauchi - who incidentally has prided himself on the fact that he has never played a videogame - went on to call RPGs as a whole both "silly and boring."
 

Crayon Shinchan

Aquafina Fanboy
This is the sound of Nintendo fans tittering nervously.

Moments before Nintendo announce that they'll be moving out of gaming and into lifestyle treatment software.
 

Tristam

Member
Crayon Shinchan said:
This is the sound of Nintendo fans tittering nervously.

Moments before Nintendo announce that they'll be moving out of gaming and into lifestyle treatment software.

At least they're going out with Super Mario Galaxy. A fitting farewell present if there ever was any.
 
Old Nintendo:

post.jpg


New Nintendo:

3947_large_gerwiiatrics%5B6%5D.jpg
 

Azih

Member
Dear Nintendo fanboys

You are the frumpy loyal girl that constantly gets hit up for loans by your 'boyfriend' who then uses that money to chase hotties while laughing at you behind your back. Only now you're getting laughed at in the face.

Oh and you occasionally get a pity lay.

Thank you.
 

Dave Long

Banned
I dunno dudes, we're all pretty much exactly as they describe. Take a look around your circle of friends and specifically your choice of Internet forum and then tell me honestly that we aren't all a bunch of retards.
 

RurouniZel

Asks questions so Ezalc doesn't have to
In other news, "people will spend $600 on the PlayStation 3 even without games!"

Bullshit, its not exclusive to Nintendo.
 
I'm so fucking sick of people complaining about stuff like this. Why do you think something a PR or advertising person says has to affect you? It's almost as bad as that "new Apple campaign dissing Vista downgraders" thread.

I own a Wii, and I play games that I like on it. Apart from that, I don't care who Nintendo's target audience is, and I don't care what their corporate image is.
 

Firewire

Banned
Azih said:
Dear Nintendo fanboys

You are the frumpy loyal girl that constantly gets hit up for loans by your 'boyfriend' who then uses that money to chase hotties while laughing at you behind your back. Only now you're getting laughed at in the face.

Oh and you occasionally get a pity lay.

Thank you.
:lol
 

beef3483

Member
Azih said:
Dear Nintendo fanboys

You are the frumpy loyal girl that constantly gets hit up for loans by your 'boyfriend' who then uses that money to chase hotties while laughing at you behind your back. Only now you're getting laughed at in the face.

Oh and you occasionally get a pity lay.

Thank you.

No, we're the smart and sexy people. Didn't you read the OP? You're the nerd in the basement.

In all seriousness, as long as I get my Metroid, Mario, and Zeldas, then it doesn't really matter what some PR person says. I have yet to see Nintendo neglect me the software I want. So what difference does it make?
 

Tristam

Member
blame space said:
I'm so fucking sick of people complaining about stuff like this. Why do you think something a PR or advertising person says has to affect you? It's almost as bad as that "new Apple campaign dissing Vista downgraders" thread.

I own a Wii, and I play games that I like on it. Apart from that, I don't care who Nintendo's target audience is, and I don't care what their corporate image is.

System warz, dude. As long as Nintendo makes games like Mario Galaxy I really don't give a shit about their corporate image. If it's an indication that they aren't going to be making games like Mario Galaxy in the future, then I'll be a sad panda. But we can wait and see.
 
Attack You said:
Is there any other industry that insults its own audience as often as the video game industry? Sheesh.

Yes, by addressing and trying to reverse a damaging stereotype the industry is insulting its audience. Understood.
 

vanguardian1

poor, homeless and tasteless
blame space said:
I'm so fucking sick of people complaining about stuff like this. Why do you think something a PR or advertising person says has to affect you? It's almost as bad as that "new Apple campaign dissing Vista downgraders" thread.

I own a Wii, and I play games that I like on it. Apart from that, I don't care who Nintendo's target audience is, and I don't care what their corporate image is.

ditto.
 

Kosma

Banned
Mariah Carey said:
Yes, by addressing and trying to reverse a damaging stereotype the industry is insulting its audience. Understood.

Making new shallow stereotypes doesn't help much either.
 

karasu

Member
blame space said:
I'm so fucking sick of people complaining about stuff like this. .


Are you serious? Whether you're making movies, music, video games or cupcakes; rule number one should be that you don't insult your audience's intelligence.

Mariah Carey said:
Yes, by addressing and trying to reverse a damaging stereotype the industry is insulting its audience. Understood.

What?!?!
 
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