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EA's VP Söderlund on the Switch: "...didn’t get the concept, I was puzzled by it..."

If I was a high level exec, this community would make me never want to open my mouth. God forbid a guy gives you some honest inside information about a concept he heard about years before it was realized.

The typical person would go, "Wow, that is a fascinating inside look." But don't worry, here comes all the gaffer keyboard CEOs to tell you how much of an idiot you are.

Agreed. It's not easy to predict when a system will fail or succeed, especially when it's something different than the standard. It's not even like he badmouthed the system, he is being very positive. It's almost like no one ever learns from mistakes or change their mind after a while.
 

cw_sasuke

If all DLC came tied to $13 figurines, I'd consider all DLC to be free
Agreed. It's not easy to predict when a system will fail or succeed, especially when it's something different than the standard. It's not even like he badmouthed the system, he is being very positive. It's almost like no one ever learns from mistakes or change their mind after a while.

This isnt about it being a success or not. You can get the concept of a console and still not be sure about it commercial success.

The Switch concept isnt something hard to get, which is why it is selling to people outside of the hardcore WiiU owners. He probably new early on that the system would allow for consoles games to be played at home and on the go. On a basic level thats really nothing to get puzzled by.

I also understand that he wouldnt sign or prepare a bunch of Switch titles based on a non-final concept....we know how it worked out with Nintendo and EA prior to the WiiU launch. Things changed and pretty much all talks of partnership were worth nothing.
 
If I was a high level exec, this community would make me never want to open my mouth. God forbid a guy gives you some honest inside information about a concept he heard about years before it was realized.

The typical person would go, "Wow, that is a fascinating inside look." But don't worry, here comes all the gaffer keyboard CEOs to tell you how much of an idiot you are.

I don't think anyone is particularly outraged, but either way he's rightfully being criticized for not understanding what was always a very simple concept. It's very interesting to hear this type of talk but that doesn't mean it's above criticism.

Also a lot of people seem to be thinking he didn't understand the market appeal of it, which is much more understandable, but he seems to be saying he flat out didn't understand the concept. I'm sure their prototype wasn't as elegant as the final product but the concept itself- a home console power level device which is also 100% portable- is not hard to grasp.
 

Apathy

Member
So he's either admitting to being an idiot or admitting he's incompetent at his job as a VP a mother fucking EA.
 

Coxy100

Banned
So he's either admitting to being an idiot or admitting he's incompetent at his job as a VP a mother fucking EA.

Calm down. He saw an early concept just like others have pointed out. Read through the thread and don't just reply to the OP.
 
I don't think anyone is particularly outraged, but either way he's rightfully being criticized for not understanding what was always a very simple concept. It's very interesting to hear this type of talk but that doesn't mean it's above criticism.

Also a lot of people seem to be thinking he didn't understand the market appeal of it, which is much more understandable, but he seems to be saying he flat out didn't understand the concept. I'm sure their prototype wasn't as elegant as the final product but the concept itself- a home console power level device which is also 100% portable- is not hard to grasp.

Agree, it's not that hard to grasp. In this day and age where people have extremely busy lives the appeal of a device that is flexible in how and where you can play it and is extremely convenient should be quickly evident, IMO.

I think EA was probably going to be skeptical of anything that Nintendo showed after the Wii U.
 
So now everyone sees the Switch success as obvious? Easy to say in retrospect, that's not how I remember the commentary around the announcement.
 

Apathy

Member
Calm down. He saw an early concept just like others have pointed out. Read through the thread and don't just reply to the OP.

I did, he's still an idiot. No one in their right mind sees a prototype and goes"oh it's going to look exactly like this" and makes decisions on that alone. Working that high up you're supposed to have seen prototypes from these companies before and you extrapolate what they've told you and form the final concept in your mind. If he couldn't do that and couldn't grasp it from there then yeah, he sucks at his job.
 
So now everyone sees the Switch success as obvious? Easy to say in retrospect, that's not how I remember the commentary around the announcement.

Nothing about this quote suggests he's talking about being puzzled by the Switch's success, rather the actual concept overall which was always simple and apparent to most everyone.
 

Piers

Member
So now everyone sees the Switch success as obvious? Easy to say in retrospect, that's not how I remember the commentary around the announcement.
Success depends on how much of the smartphone and console market it can grab, and more importantly keep in the long haul. It's possible for consumers to get bored of the novelty with Switch's tabletop multiplayer and generation-behind graphics, and so they'll return to smartphone apps for on-the-go gaming and XB1/PS4 when at home.
 

test_account

XP-39C²
What's not to get? It's a handheld that you can dock.
Actually, is a console you can take outside.
ZIUWEiX.jpg


"I see it as a handheld that you can dock, but he sees it as a console that you can take outside"



o50lbB3.jpg


"Now this may shock you, but you're both right!"
 
Yeah, my bad, I missed that he said he first saw the concept years ago. It's possible Nintendo wasn't as good at selling the idea back then, or that the market looked worse for it.
 

v1oz

Member
The Wii U and Switch are the same apart from the fact that the Switch is portable. He and the rest of EA had a genuine reason to not get the Switch. Why would you refine a formula that didn't work?

I have a feeling if the Switch was as shoddily executed as the Wii U was. With the poor industrial design. It would have flopped.
 
A LOT of people shared the same feelings when it was announced.

Only with its currently big success has talk like that vanished.
I don't think this is true. The way they initially pitched Switch was possibly the best way any of the last three consoles has been pitched (PS4 Pro, Xbox One X, and Switch).

"Man, I'm playing Zelda at home and it's great!"
-alarm buzzes-
"Crap, gotta catch the bus to work/school..."
-undocks system, and continues to play Zelda-

What's not to understand? It's EXTREMELY obvious what the idea behind this was from the beginning.

EDIT: If the question is, "I don't get WHY they're doing this?" then that makes much more sense to be confused about, though I would still say a console Zelda, 3D Mario, etc that you can take with you or play at home seems to sell itself.
 

Aostia

El Capitan Todd
Does this mean EA will now make games for it?

Of course not.


They actually are making a very good version of fifa and stated that a couple more projects are underway

BTW I am not surprised
EA/M abandon the switch early in, has gigantic studios working on very standardised work flow funnels and point primarily to cinematic experiences for a certain target age with spending power and interested in onlline interactivity and dlc purchases

So the opposite of the spectrum compared to Nintendo products and targets
 
Nothing about this quote suggests he's talking about being puzzled by the Switch's success, rather the actual concept overall which was always simple and apparent to most everyone.

Yeah, that's a fair point to make. I am not sure even the concept was universally acclaimed at the time, but it was certainly a lot better received than the Wii U reveal.
 
EDIT: If the question is, "I don't get WHY they're doing this?" then that makes much more sense to be confused about, though I would still say a console Zelda, 3D Mario, etc that you can take with you or play at home seems to sell itself.

Right, this is a much more reasonable thing to be puzzled about and probably the majority of Gaf was just as puzzled about this too. But his actual response in the OP seems to be him being puzzled about what the concept actually is, not what the market for it is, not why they think it will sell, not why it has any chance at success, etc...

It could just be misinterpreting his wording, but it would be very odd if he didn't understand the very simple concept itself, no matter how many years ago it was pitched or what the prototype looked like.

Yeah, that's a fair point to make. I am not sure even the concept was universally acclaimed at the time, but it was certainly a lot better received than the Wii U reveal.

Again I don't think he's saying that he didn't think the concept would work or make sense, but he's saying that he didn't understand what the concept was. If that's what he's saying then I absolutely think it's right to criticize him- we all knew what the concept was when it was first revealed, and even if the prototype years ago looked nothing like the final product I'm sure the concept was very easy to communicate.
 

TheMink

Member
Man it's almost incredible how much people forget the initial skeptical reactions to the Switches actual reveal. And that isn't some 2 year old prototype they showed.
 

Kill3r7

Member
What's not to get? It's a handheld that you can dock.

Why would someone want this? That is what he is really saying. Most adults are minimalist and that is what Silicon Valley has been pushing for years. Having a portable device dedicated to gaming goes against that.

Personally the Switch fits my life perfectly. The bulk of my gaming time is on my commute.
 

El Topo

Member
Man it's almost incredible how much people forget the initial skeptical reactions to the Switches actual reveal. And that isn't some 2 year old prototype they showed.

Yup. I was very skeptical about the console and I certainly wasn't the only one. Heck, look at the reveal conference thread.
 
A lot were skeptical here with the Switch. Personally, i had good faith the console would be a smash hit and it is.

The concept is really amazing and to this day, i still play Switch the most because it goes with me everywhere. It's an amazing handheld and a good console at home. Its focus on multiplayer and simplicity really goes well with me.
 

Phamit

Member
I could understand that and whatever he saw years ago might have note as refined as the finished console.

I listening to a german videogame podcast and their had pretty first impression back in Janurary at the first Hand On event. They didn't get it at all and were quiet negativ about the Switch. Now they really like it.
 
Yup. I was very skeptical about the console and I certainly wasn't the only one. Heck, look at the reveal conference thread.

This is GAF at it's worst. They conveniently forget that they themselves ridiculed Nintendo just a few months ago.

Söderlund at least admits that he was wrong, and that his son showed him the way.

This forum continues attacking EVERYONE that won't fit their little bubble.


Really guys, tone down the toxic. And maybe grow up too?
 

Boss Doggie

all my loli wolf companions are so moe
Cuningas de Häme;246337850 said:
This is GAF at it's worst. They conveniently forget that they themselves ridiculed Nintendo just a few months ago.

Don't forget revisionism and hindsight changing.
 

Chao

Member
But then I was like, it’s Nintendo. They probably understand something that I don’t [laughs]. They usually do.

This should be EA's motto going forward.

'WE JUST DON'T GET IT"
 
I got the Switch's awesomeness right away *blatantly pats himself on the back*

Good thing a lot of ppl were confused or down on it after that one presentation. Made it much, much, MUCH easier to grab a pre-order once those went up.
 

mrklaw

MrArseFace
What's not to get? It's a handheld that you can dock.

That's interesting but I don't think it is the part triggering people's imagination. This part I think will become more relevant for switch's success:

more importantly, he uses it like, ‘Do you want to play with me?’ Then he takes off the Joy-Con and we play Mario Kart together.


That's the intangible X factor IMO, and reasonable that it may lead someone to 'not get the concept' wigir seeing it in action when the console is in the market
 

Malakai

Member
They actually are making a very good version of fifa and stated that a couple more projects are underway

BTW I am not surprised
EA/M abandon the switch early in, has gigantic studios working on very standardised work flow funnels and point primarily to cinematic experiences for a certain target age with spending power and interested in onlline interactivity and dlc purchases

So the opposite of the spectrum compared to Nintendo products and targets

Here is the problem with that not every game that EA makes is on point primarily to cinematic experiences for a certain target age" and those games in other categories aren't coming to the Switch i.e. Plants vs Zombies Garden Warfare, Mirror Edge or some of the PopCap games like Bejeweled. Those types of games would literally require an extremely small investment to be playable on the Switch and would most likely have great LTD sales on the Switch. This is the gaming industry betting, yet again, against Nintendo.
 

beastlove

Member
To be fair, we still don't know how successful this will be. Since the switch is both a handheld and home console are Nintendo looking for for Wii + 3DS volume? It is going to sell more than the Wii U but I am still not sure it will beat the PS4 or Wii.
 
I got one for this exact purpose. I am basically Wall-e people now.

Search for gooseneck tablet holders on Amazon. The best seller actually markets itself towards Switch owners!

Thank you. Just bought one and should have it on Saturday. I love playing my Swtich laying down in bed and this seems like it's going to take it to a whole different level.
 

Malakai

Member
To be fair, we still don't know how successful this will be. Since the switch is both a handheld and home console are Nintendo looking for for Wii + 3DS volume? It is going to sell more than the Wii U but I am still not sure it will beat the PS4 or Wii.

Yet, in Japan, there are lotteries for a 100 Nintendo Switches and thousands line up. Come on now.
 

brad-t

Member
Yet, in Japan, there are lotteries for a 100 Nintendo Switches and thousands line up. Come on now.

That only says that demand among enthusiasts is high — the Wii sold 100 million. A few thousand lining up doesn't tell us much about broader demand. I think the Switch will be extremely successful, but it's impossible to say what exactly that success will look like so early in the console's life.
 
To be fair, we still don't know how successful this will be. Since the switch is both a handheld and home console are Nintendo looking for for Wii + 3DS volume? It is going to sell more than the Wii U but I am still not sure it will beat the PS4 or Wii.

Wii + 3DS volume? You think Nintendo is looking for 160 million + sales?

What do the PS4 and Wii have to do with anything either?
 
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