shinra-bansho
Member
Are you suggesting nursing homes and whatnot would have bought this $350 system had it come bundled with a game that allowed them to bowl and play tennis (again)?
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Iwata to become Nintendo of America CEO, NoA CEO promoted to NCL Managing Director
- Thread starter Macho Madness
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They are, though durango's interface has some interesting aspects from what we know. Dual analog is for modern gamers. Lapsed and non gamers can't touch it. As an example, my 63 year old father had no issues with super Mario bros on the NES. Hand him a dual analog pad and it will lead to immediate confusion. Handed him a Wii remote and he was bowling within seconds. These types of anecdotal stories are extremely common. These dual analog machines are for us. For existing hardcore/casual gamers. There are a lot less of those people than folks that don't play games regularly. There is a reason why simpler games (ie iOS, Wii) sold far and wide, and it is because of accessibility. The upcoming industry contraction is going to e the direct result of a correction in the market unless one of the console makers manages to light a fire outside of our niche again this generation. Microsoft will be making some interesting propositions in that regard. Not sure if they will work but there is going to be plenty of moaning and groaning on GAF.
Yet the same argument has been said against Nintendo that they need to go back to a traditional control platform. Now that they have, its all of a sudden too complex? I'm sorry but I just don't buy that argument.
They are pretty fucked. Aren't they at ~70-80m units over the span of 7-8 years? That's pretty shitty.
Why do you think Microsoft is trying to push Kinect on the new Xbox? Because they're big poopie heads who hate "gamers"?
They are on the way to 3rd/4th best selling console of all time. Terrible.
"Traditional controls" Are a capitulation. Regression. At least in terms of the mass market outside gamers. The touch screen is likely a response to that. A kind of half-way. That's only my speculation but I know of many third parties that didn't like the Wii remote. They like dual analog. Ironically, third parties aren't throwing much support despite the standard control scheme this time around.
"Best selling console" is an irrelevant measure. It's peanuts compared to other consumer electronics.
all the main consoles going into next-gen are banking on a separate feature to help sell the console. sony has the eyetoy. microsoft has the kinect. do you think they're banking on it? no, not really. neither is nintendo with the gamepad. it's a value-adding device. it does not define the experience the way you're making it seem. the main focus of the system is their games. their major launch game - NSMB:U - has gamepad play being highly optional. i think i tapped it twice.
the entire thing just adds a second layer to the console. it adds to the motion experience as we've seen with the Wii Sports golf demo. it adds to the core gameplay experience by taking menus off the screen and letting you play out of the room. it is not meant to overwhelm the experience.
If 70~80 million units is bad for a global economy that all but died in 2008 and we're still recovering from is bad, then I don't know what's supposed to be good.
Touchscreen interfaces like ipad and iphone are also multifeatured devices. They're not dedicated to just gaming, but all media and communication standards. Also the games that are sold on said devices tend to be $.99 short term distractions instead of full experiences.
Kinect is a kneejerk reaction to what they believe made the Wii successful. Unfortunately Kinect game sales really aren't there enough to justify a purchase of the device. I hope that they plan better for the Kinect if they're doubling down on it with Durango but I personally believe that the motion gaming ship has sailed among the casuals due to costs and dedicated hardware.
All of these factors I've mentioned make way more sense as to why console gaming is struggling than controls are too complex. PC gaming sales are skyrocketing thanks to Steam and other sales and they use a Keyboard/Mouse combination that makes a dual analog controller look like a Hungry Hungry Hippos lever.
Traditional controls may be part of the issue, but that's not even close to the main problem.
It's a value that seems to be irrelevant to many consumers which is bad when it makes the price go up. Much like a cotton candy spinner inside a console would also add value, nobody would really care.
And consoles are not multi-featured devices used for media and some communication as well?
that's an awful analogy. a cotton candy spinner wouldn't change your gaming experience it'd just make cotton candy. there's tons of issues with the Wii U but indifference towards the gamepad is not something i'm seeing, only confusion and a botched marketing job from Nintendo playing dubstep commercials with the "Wii add-on".
shinra-bansho
Member
Are you really saying that Nintendo didn't bank on the touch-screen. That they're not trying to use it as their primary selling point. That they haven't and are not focusing on it in their PR and marketing. Really?
The touch-screen is clearly meant to be the Wii U's motion control, and the intent of Nintendo Land was clearly to serve as the system's Wii Sports equivalent. Even if the outcome hasn't been positive.
Not to the degree of features and portability of smartdevices. Smartdevices also have the benefit of having most software ranging at the $1-5 area, something consoles just cannot do for their flagship titles.
Edit: Nintendo completely banked on the touchscreen as a fundamental feature of the Wii U. They just completely botched the execution of selling the feature. Off screen play alone has sold Wii Us, yet they continue to fail at broadcasting such a feature to the masses. Really its a failure in marketing and scheduling. Hopefully they can still turn it around with flagship titles and a new marketing campaign.
Thats why I still think Wii 2 should have had improved Wiimotes as primary controls and an improved Gamecube controller as secondary controls.
i don't know what you're seeing in this video. i only see stuff that proves my point. the dude is not using the gamepad controller as a primary input method in this video. he's playing as anyone would traditionally and then switches it over and uses the screen. i'd call that "adding value to the experience" because you still get the same experience playing games as you normally would without the gamepad - it just makes it easier. the ability to take the game away from your TV is a value.
i'm saying that the GamePad is not similar to the motion control on the Wii. I'm saying that it is similar to how motion control will work on all next-gen consoles. it is going to add value in small ways. it is not going to be the main selling point.
Wow
Better expand.
Off-screen play is a amazing feature for anyone who shares a tv (i.e. family)
Even if you have a dedicated room for gaming, it's nice to be able to spend time (even if your not doing the same thing) together.
They leave disappointed because what they expected to be a $99 peripheral is a new $300+ box with very few games.
And as I said, I didn't construct this narrative, I'm just repeating it.
Which is absolutely irrelevant.
CoffeeGames
Member
The GamePad could easily have been a peripheral, and lowered the cost of the system (if we base it on the repair costs receipt, by about $150). But, if it had been a peripheral, it's less likely that developers would make games using it's features because the attach rate would be significantly lower.
For me, the GamePad is/was a selling feature of the Wii U (having a little one that enjoys Mario games, NSMBU was a selling feature as well...which he received at Christmas).
I don't argue the price being an issue for why the Wii U might not be selling well (depends what we are comparing it with), but I do think Nintendo might be in a good spot with the Wii U when the NextBox and PS4 release, if their prices are above $300 (which rumors are saying they will be).
Do you remember what the PS2 was priced and when it released compared to the GameCube and Xbox? It was $299.99 and released a year before those systems. About 6 months after the GameCube (priced at $199.99) and Xbox (priced at $299.99) released, Sony slashed the price of the PS2 down to $199.99.
I think it will be interesting to see what happens with prices moving forward, and I do think Microsoft will have a subscription model at launch which could make things very interesting (and competitive).
Not necessarily at $350, as I already stated I think one of the biggest reasons the Wii sold as well as it did, was its lower price compared to the other consoles.
I think a big feature that could have helped and been advertised (and maybe can be if they release a sequel) is online play. Online bowling leagues? With how WiFi has expanded and is many places these days, I imagine some of the nursing homes/retirement centers have WiFi. Price is a big factor though.
As for the "(again)" part, I don't think Wii Sports really has the sequelitis problems of some other franchises. I was hoping for a "board game" game at launch though, with things like checkers/chess, etc. Still surprised that hasn't happened. Digital pieces are a lot easier to "pick up" than real pieces....
TheFLYINGManga_Ka
Member
Is this a promotion or demotion? And is this a good thing or bad thing?
The problem with off TV play is the use case described (one person watches TV while the other plays games) is much better served by devices that everyone already has like smart phones and tablets and 3DSes or Vitas. A single device that does everything! is much less interesting in an environment where everyone is used to multiple devices anyway.
Steve Youngblood
Member
The utility they attempted to play up is the seamless transition between TV and handheld. To their credit, I think they realized that simply being a pseudo-handheld tethered to the living room in and of itself wasn't a selling point, so in most of their demonstrations they attempt to showcase how you can use one device between the TV and as your handheld/pseudo-tablet. All in all, what you point out is still problematic for the device, as that use case probably isn't common enough to necessitate this solution.
And by that, I just mean that if my concern is that I need uninterrupted access to my console game, and I know that I'm getting kicked off the TV by my roommate/wife/parents/kids/sibling/whatever when the big primetime event comes on, I'd probably be playing in a different area to begin with. It also doesn't help that the battery life/wireless range/screen quality make it a poor substitute for a decent tablet for anything other than "I want to play a Wii U game."
As is, the Off-TV only really comes in handy right now for people like me that have kids in that the flexibility is useful there. I can't just go hang out in the master bedroom and play whatever I want, because my son isn't old enough to be left alone. In that regard, the ability to have a console experience on the TV and switch to a handheld format is rather useful, but probably not worth the price of entry in and of itself for many people.
Beetleking11
Banned
woow I heard rumors that they ARE USING their manpower to create cellphone games and fast sequals!!
what?
Tathanen
Get Inside Her!
WOOW!!
sixteen-bit
Member
is "sequals" an accepted spelling? I see it often.
RumblingRosco
Member
What are your sources?
I'm actually serious.
Oh, and this is one of the Top 10 (so far) Best Bumps of 2013, as voted on by me.
Um, what?
Are you crazy buttocks on a train?
maquiladora
Member
wat
Wiz
Member
You heard it here first guys.
Skiesofwonder
Walruses, camels, bears, rabbits, tigers and badgers.
I don't understand why you capitalized "are using" in this sentence. I'm trying to sound out the sentence, and it just doesn't make sense.
Please elaborate
Beetleking11
Banned
It was Square joke.. nothing else..KojiKnight
Member
Before I clicked this thread, I knew it had been a month since it was posted, and I knew it was going to be a junior bumping it in a completely off topic post. I just knew.
Was not disappointed.
Was not disappointed.
lordfroakie
Member
You bump this thread for your stupid SE joke? -_-
VeryGooster
Banned
RumblingRosco
Member
I still don't get the joke.
Asskicker064
Member
Sure, if you're the same idiot that spells "lose" as "loose".
Exterminieren
Banned
Freezie KO
Banned
This would've been great. But as long as we have the GamePad, I do enjoy Miiverse on it and off-TV play for Virtual Console games.
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