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[E-phonk]

Oh that is good! While not fantastic I'm glad it's going to pass 10 million this year how much is the DC and Vita currently at?

According to this post, the DC ended with 9.13m. Numbers on wikipedia claim differently (a little above 10 million) but apparently there's no official source for that.

I don't know if we have accurate vita numbers. This source claims 10m this summer, although it's a bit through deduction. I wouldn't take it as accurate.

 

[vinnygambini]

9 million for ORAS? And it's only been 3 months?

How did XY compare to the same timeframe again

11.61 million

Pokemon did good.

Obligatory, from this link:

Iwata said as such back in Q2 - they are reiterating what he mentioned. Mobile strategy should be touched upon at the meeting tonight.

 

[Exile20]

Good to see them in the black. Hope this year is better.

 

[maxcriden]

11.61 million

Pokemon did good.

Iwata said as such back in Q2 - they are reiterating what he mentioned. Mobile strategy should be touched upon at the meeting tonight.

I would be surprised to see any strategy beyond Amiibo and other apps given prior comments and lack of eagerness to enter the mobile market beyond that. I presume that's what you're alluding to, though

 

[zomgbbqftw]

I thought "Cost of sales" is everything that has to do with the production and shipment of their products, since they're produced outside of Japan, wouldn't that increase their cost because of the weak Yen?

It depends on the contracts, but not many Japanese companies pay in USD, Sony are one of very few who don't pay in JPY. I would be surprised if a company as conservative as Nintendo agreed to pay in USD or some other currency.

 

[Gonzo The Great]

This is good. While they might not be in a strong situation it seems like they have been able to pad their margins enough to remain profitable. It's also nice to see that that padding hasn't really impacted player value, games are top notch and pricing has been quite fair. It would have been very easy to slip into sleaze modes like just about everyone else, compromise their own values, and player expectation but make a lot of money.

You're posting this after there was a 20+ page thread about how Nintendo isn't including an AC adapter with the New 3DS XL in North America. If they're unable to grow their business, I think we're going to see more cost cutting measures like this in the future.

 

[vinnygambini]

I would be surprised to see any strategy beyond Amiibo and other apps given prior comments and lack of eagerness to enter the mobile market beyond that. I presume that's what you're alluding to, though

In FY14's meeting, Iwata did mention they would discuss their mobile strategy in FY15. So I'm hoping that will be touched upon tonight. But yes lol

 

[Plinko]

I guess now would be the right time for NES games on mobile.

Nobody is buying a Wii U or 3DS because of NES games. It wouldn't cannibalize sales.

 

[vinnygambini]

Amiibo Update:

Iwata said Nintendo sold about 5.7 million of its new Amiibo figurines worldwide since late November, giving an early indication of whether the company’s strategy of selling toys will be successful. Iwata spoke at a briefing in Osaka today.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-01-28/nintendo-s-outlook-disappoints-and-mario-can-t-save-wii-u

Thread worthy?

 

[maxcriden]

In FY14's meeting, Iwata did mention they would discuss their mobile strategy in FY15. So I'm hoping that will be touched upon tonight. But yes lol

Just making sure I didn't miss some big indication otherwise since I know you've got your finger to the pulse on this stuff! Thanks Vinny. I'm very eager to see what tidbits we get tonight.

Though, with Gibbo unable to live-tweet, I wonder how long we'll have to wait for info?

Amiibo Update:

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-01-28/nintendo-s-outlook-disappoints-and-mario-can-t-save-wii-u

Thread worthy?

Undoubtedly!!

 

[JoeM86]

Amiibo Update:


http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-01-28/nintendo-s-outlook-disappoints-and-mario-can-t-save-wii-u

Thread worthy?

Aside from that, what a horrible article that is

 

[maxcriden]

The company is considering various options for mobile devices, Iwata said in Osaka today without providing specifics.

“As a rule, we don’t consider to bring games for our game machines into smart devices,” he said. “If we follow current games on smartphones and we just bring our current games into smart devices, it won’t lead to the future.”

So, further reiteration from that article, at least.

 

[JoeM86]

So, further reiteration from that article, at least.

People are going to forever be bugging Nintendo to go the smartphone route. What people, especilaly analysts, realise is that a very small portion of developers make the vast majority of money from it. Nintendo would be nowhere near even their current net profit if they just went smartphone.

 

[Cheebo]

People are going to forever be bugging Nintendo to go the smartphone route. Whatpeople, especilaly analysts, realise is that a very small portion of developers make the vast majority of money from it. Nintendo would be nowhere near even their current net profit if they just went smartphone.

A micro-transaction filed animal crossing on mobile would make HUUUGE money. Make puzzles and dragons look small.

 

[maxcriden]

People are going to forever be bugging Nintendo to go the smartphone route. What people, especilaly analysts, realise is that a very small portion of developers make the vast majority of money from it. Nintendo would be nowhere near even their current net profit if they just went smartphone.

Oh, no doubt. It makes me sad to see articles like those in this thread jumping on that bandwagon, whether it be about developing for mobile devices or for competing consoles. With that said, it's always with a bit of a sigh of relief that I read Iwata's rebuttal of this idea, because it at least shows Nintendo continuing to stand ground against this

Spoiler

preposterous

idea

Spoiler

of going all in on a fad

.

 

[Cheebo]

Oh, no doubt. It makes me sad to see articles like those in this thread jumping on that bandwagon, whether it be about developing for mobile devices or for competing consoles. With that said, it's always with a bit of a sigh of relief that I read Iwata's rebuttal of this idea, because it at least shows Nintendo continuing to stand ground against this

Spoiler

preposterous

idea

Spoiler

of going all in on a fad

.

Mobile gaming is not a fad. Are you serious? It grows every year.

 

[theprodigy]

Oh, no doubt. It makes me sad to see articles like those in this thread jumping on that bandwagon, whether it be about developing for mobile devices or for competing consoles. With that said, it's always with a bit of a sigh of relief that I read Iwata's rebuttal of this idea, because it at least shows Nintendo continuing to stand ground against this

Spoiler

preposterous

idea

Spoiler

of going all in on a fad

.

ah yes, the good old "that thing I don't like is a fad"

 

[Cheebo]

It's absurd. Mobile gaming is the new normal for the average person. It's as much of a fad as the Internet is a fad.

People have been calling iPhone a fad here since it came out in 2007 nearly 8 years ago. It sold 76 million the last quarter alone. Is that still a fad?

I am not saying Nintendo should switch to mobile but mobile gaming is the new main platform now for handheld gaming. Not a fad. Dedicated handhelds will never be as big as they used to be.

 

[Relaxed Muscle]

Oh, no doubt. It makes me sad to see articles like those in this thread jumping on that bandwagon, whether it be about developing for mobile devices or for competing consoles. With that said, it's always with a bit of a sigh of relief that I read Iwata's rebuttal of this idea, because it at least shows Nintendo continuing to stand ground against this

Spoiler

preposterous

idea

Spoiler

of going all in on a fad

.

Mobile gaming a fad?

whatyearitis.jpg

I don't see anything wrong with the article. Nintendo earnings are mostly due to the yen exchange while the core business remains very weak with a very poor outlook for next year. That's quite accurate.

 

[JoeM86]

Mobile gaming is not a fad. Are you serious? It grows every year.

As did Facebook gaming.

Smartphone gaming will be here for a very long time, no doubt about that, but the monetisation structure is not going to continue. It's going to collapse and a new form of smartphone gaming monetisation will appear with less of the evil.

A micro-transaction filed animal crossing on mobile would make HUUUGE money. Make puzzles and dragons look small.

Possibly. I wouldn't be happy to see that. Microtransactions on certain levels are unethical

 

[Relaxed Muscle]

As did Facebook gaming.

Smartphone gaming will be here for a very long time, no doubt about that, but the monetisation structure is not going to continue. It's going to collapse.

That's very different from being a fad. Regarding the pricing structure is quite soon to tell, obviously it has to evolve and improve but collapse is a very strong word.

 

[Juken]

Is it that hard to understand the perspective of the shareholders?

They constantly hear massive success stories other companies have with mobile games while Nintendo fails to demonstrate their business model is viable long term.

You have to try to set your personal gaming preferences aside for this.

 

[maxcriden]

Mobile gaming is not a fad. Are you serious? It grows every year.

ah yes, the good old "that thing I don't like is a fad"

It's absurd. Mobile gaming is the new normal for the average person. It's as much of a fad as the Internet is a fad.

Mobile gaming a fad?

whatyearitis.jpg

I don't see anything wrong with the article. Nintendo earnings are mostly due to the yen exchange while the core business remains very weak with a very poor outlook for next year. That's quite accurate.

First: theprodigy, no offense, but please don't put words in my mouth. I never said I don't like mobile gaming. I just don't feel it's a good fit for Nintendo's products, and I do feel some aspects of its popularity have indicators of being a fad.

I agree that Mobile Gaming is the new normal for the average person.

With that said, I don't know that Mobile Gaming as it currently stands will maintain casual gamers' sustained interest for several years to come. I think many people who were into Wii and then, say, Farmville were then into Angry Birds and are now into Candy Crush. I think this interest is based on a series of trends that quality and interest in terms of the most popular games will not necessarily sustain in its current form in the long run. You can disagree, of course, but I don't personally think Mobile Gaming has been huge for long enough to put it on the same level as the Internet. This is my opinion, and I'm not saying anything more or less than that. I hope that makes sense.

 

[Captain Smoker]

It depends on the contracts, but not many Japanese companies pay in USD, Sony are one of very few who don't pay in JPY. I would be surprised if a company as conservative as Nintendo agreed to pay in USD or some other currency.

Ok thx, I thought it depends on the market in which their products are manufactured (in this case China).

 

[Soul Lab]

so when is the Investors Conference?

 

[JoeM86]

That's very different from being a fad. Regarding the pricing structure is quite soon to tell, obviously it has to evolve and improve but collapse is a very strong word.

I never said it was a fad. Just that the current scheme is unsustainable in the longterm, especially for the wider developers

so when is the Investors Conference?

Tonight!

Is it that hard to understand the perspective of the shareholders?

They constantly hear massive success stories other companies have with mobile games while Nintendo fails to demonstrate their business model is viable long term.

You have to try to set your personal gaming preferences aside for this.

Yeah but what they don't realise is that only a very small portion of developers see that success.

 

[Cheebo]

As did Facebook gaming.

Smartphone gaming will be here for a very long time, no doubt about that, but the monetisation structure is not going to continue. It's going to collapse.

Facebook gaming was a flash in the pan and vert short lived. people on gaf have been predicting the collapse of smartphone gaming since the it first starting blowing up in 2008 when the App Store hit. It's been nearly 7 years since then. And smartphone gaming is still growing and app store revenue continues to increase for both iOS and Android.

It has long out lasted the stage of concern about being a money maker.

 

[Soul Lab]

I never said it was a fad. Just that the current scheme is unsustainable in the longterm, especially for the wider developers



Tonight!

in which timezone? )

 

[JoeM86]

in which timezone? )

US and Europe. It'll be middle of the night for Europe. Evening to late night US

 

[maxcriden]

so when is the Investors Conference?

Tonight, but as the usual live-tweeter won't be able to do so, I don't know how immediately we'll get information from it.

Facebook gaming was a flash in the pan and vert short lived. people on gaf have been predicting the collapse of smartphone gaming since the it first starting blowing up in 2008 when the App Store hit. It's been nearly 7 years since then. And smartphone gaming is still growing and app store revenue continues to increase for both iOS and Android.

It has long out lasted the stage of concern about being a money maker.

FWIW I'm not saying Mobile Gaming is not a money maker, or that it's not growing in revenue at the moment. What I'm saying is that, as Joe indicated, I don't believe it will necessarily sustain the current interest of its users, or its current highly concentrated sales model, for the long term, in its current form.

 

[Relaxed Muscle]

I never said it was a fad. Just that the current scheme is unsustainable in the longterm, especially for the wider developers



Tonight!

Too soon to say that, with the gaming smartphone market growing each year, is clearly there's still a lot of money on the table. That means everyone will make money on it? Of course not, and we'll see releases stabilizing each year, when people realized that cake is not big enough for everyone that wants a piece of the cake.

 

[Draxal]

Mobile gaming is not a fad. Are you serious? It grows every year.

Puzzle and Dragons and it's growth rate is not sustainable, and investors want the returns of Puzzle and Dragons.

 

[Jomjom]

Wow so Wii U is not far behind the Xbone. Nice job Wii U!

Before anyone makes the excuse that Wii U came out a year earlier, nobody cared that the 360 released a year earlier than the PS3 when making sales comparisons, so it shouldn't matter here.

 

[Relaxed Muscle]

Puzzle and Dragons and it's growth rate is not sustainable, and investors want the returns of Puzzle and Dragons.

That assuming GungHo never ever creates another succesful game.

 

[Soul Lab]

US and Europe. It'll be middle of the night for Europe. Evening to late night US

alright thanks!

 

[Rösti]

The OP says the results briefing will be tomorrow (Jan. 29) at 08:00 PM EST, but January 29, 10:00 AM JST corresponds to January 28, 08:00 PM EST as far as I can tell, and thus would make the following countdown:

I'll amend if incorrect.

 

[JoeM86]

The OP says the results briefing will be tomorrow (Jan. 29) at 08:00 PM EST, but January 29, 10:00 AM JST corresponds to January 28, 08:00 PM EST as far as I can tell, and thus would make the following countdown:

I'll amend if incorrect.

Yep. No live tweets but the slides are usually put up within 2 hours of it ending

 

[Seik]

I wonder if Nintendo has a chance of beating the Gamecube's 22 millions before the Wii U dies at this point, it's not even halfway. :/

Anyways, glad to see they're doing better!

 

[Draxal]

That assuming GungHo never ever creates another succesful game.

They can create other successful games, but you'll also have to fight the clones like Monster Strike, and other companies trying to beat you to the punch. And by creating another game you are also competing against yourself (which is why Blizzard is very hesitant to release another MMOrpg).

The monetization of Puzzle and Dragons is a big deal though and if Nintendo were to do something with Pokemon (which is the antithesis of Game Freak's ideals as a company); they would be able to compete.

 

[Reg]

Ugly numbers. Their market continues to shrink.

 

[Cheebo]

Tonight, but as the usual live-tweeter won't be able to do so, I don't know how immediately we'll get information from it.



FWIW I'm not saying Mobile Gaming is not a money maker, or that it's not growing in revenue at the moment. What I'm saying is that, as Joe indicated, I don't believe it will necessarily sustain the current interest of its users, or its current highly concentrated sales model, for the long term, in its current form.

thing is people will always want to play games, handheld games. Just like always. At one time it was Tetris on a gameboy. Or brain age on a DS. And people will continue to use and buy smartphones which play games. Which is good enough for the majority of people.

As long as people use smartphones smartphone gaming will be dominate. Because people like to play games on the go. There is literally no way to get them to move back to buying new hardware just for games when they have a smartphone.

As long as we continue to but and use smartphones mobile gaming will remain the dominate force in handheld gaming.

 

[ZhugeEX]

Wow so Wii U is not far behind the Xbone. Nice job Wii U!

Before anyone makes the excuse that Wii U came out a year earlier, nobody cared that the 360 released a year earlier than the PS3 when making sales comparisons, so it shouldn't matter here.

The sad thing is that more people aren't buying the Wii U. It's a much better console than people think.

I understand why it hasn't been selling but that hasn't stopped me buying one.

Looking at the predictions from Nintendo it looks like the Wii U isn't going to reach 20 million easily. Maybe in a couple of years.

 

[Welfare]

Wow so Wii U is not far behind the Xbone. Nice job Wii U!

Before anyone makes the excuse that Wii U came out a year earlier, nobody cared that the 360 released a year earlier than the PS3 when making sales comparisons, so it shouldn't matter here.

No, it does. You can't hide behind that statement because unlike the Wii U, the 360 was an actual success unit wise.

The Xbox One sales sold to consumers is above the Wii U's shipped number. That's not a nice job.

 

[Juken]

I never said it was a fad. Just that the current scheme is unsustainable in the longterm, especially for the wider developers

What makes you say that? I don't know how you can make a case for that when smartphone gaming and smartphones in general are still growing so quickly.

At the very least, I think it's impossible to make the case that Nintendo's vision of gaming is any more sustainable long term.

Nintendo needs to prove it to shareholders with a real turnaround and successful products, not a couple of quarters of positive net income full of asterisks.

 

[CosmicQueso]

Wow so Wii U is not far behind the Xbone. Nice job Wii U!

Before anyone makes the excuse that Wii U came out a year earlier, nobody cared that the 360 released a year earlier than the PS3 when making sales comparisons, so it shouldn't matter here.

If timing doesn't matter you should just compare the life to date of the Wii U with the launch month only of Xbox One. The Wii U is trouncing it!

Delusional.

 

[Draxal]

The sad thing is that more people aren't buying the Wii U. It's a much better console than people think.

I understand why it hasn't been selling but that hasn't stopped me buying one.

The gamepad was a complete disaster, and it's a shame as the first party development of Nintendo has been very very strong.

 

[jholmes]

Interesting tidbit:

As I mentioned earlier, Cash & Equivalents increased significantly.

Q3 FY14 prior to share repurchase:


Q2 FY15:


Q3 FY15:

Nintendo has said they're open to acquisitions, and those take liquid capital. Just a thought.

2017 seems like the launch date of a new traditional console.

Who does this benefit? Why do people keep trying to convince themselves this will happen? What about the last 10 years in the industry makes a four-year console likely?

Nintendo's forecasts have been often ridicolously high for several quarters. I think that they are trolling investors.

This one is slighty better.

By all means, report them to the securities authorities.

Too soon to say that, with the gaming smartphone market growing each year, is clearly there's still a lot of money on the table. That means everyone will make money on it? Of course not, and we'll see releases stabilizing each year, when people realized that cake is not big enough for everyone that wants a piece of the cake.

If mobile gaming is such a healthy market, why are there so few consistent hit-makers and so many one-hit wonders?

 

[Roo]

Well, congrats to Nintendo.
It is sad that even tho their software has been top-notch this gen, they have failed to attract more people to their userbase.

They made a lot of mistakes so now they have to live with it.
Hopefully with Wii U's failure, they're more open to listen what people (and developers) have to say about what the want from them instead of only doing their thing.

Healthy numbers overall.
Hope they keep improving.

 

[theprodigy]

Wow so Wii U is not far behind the Xbone. Nice job Wii U!

Before anyone makes the excuse that Wii U came out a year earlier, nobody cared that the 360 released a year earlier than the PS3 when making sales comparisons, so it shouldn't matter here.

the difference in current sales velocity is comparatively way bigger than PS3 vs 360 though (which was pretty minimal, seeing as how it's debatable whether it even caught up now)

 

[jholmes]

They made a lot of mistakes so now they have to live with it.
Hopefully with Wii U's failure, they're more open to listen what people (and developers) have to say about what the want from them instead of only doing their thing.

Well, I wanted the Wii U, so what exactly are you saying here?