There is no dispute among gaming fans that Nintendo is not what they used to be. Years ago they dominated the industry, but in the years since their popularity and talent has withered away to virtually nothing.
Virtually everyone who has ever played another gaming platform agrees with this assessment. The question at this point is... when did this happen? How did it happen? What franchise, which developer got the ball rolling to put Nintendo in the hole where it is today?
it all began with Kirby.
Kirby was designed as a straightforward, easy to play 2D platformer aimed at younger audiences. As the series went on, not a whole lot improved or changed while Nintendo wasted their time with pathetic spin off releases that no one wanted or asked for.
Sound familiar?
Kirby isn't a popular title to criticize in this way. I imagine that this is because most fans simply overlooked all of the major red flags with the series and its creators. It was the first major Nintendo IP to not evolve in any meaningful capacity with every release, setting the modern standard for how Mario Kart and Splatoon are treated. Kirby is almost a thirty year old franchise. To this day it has NEVER received a proper 3D release. Nintendo has failed to evolve the formula in an interesting, creative way the way they did with their truly great titles. Metroid Prime, Smash, OOT, and Super Mario Bros.
Following Iwata's ascension into presidency, other Nintendo franchises began to become infected by the Kirby cancer. Every game became overtly colorful and bright. Titles like Sin and Punishment, Perfect Dark, Eternal Darkness, and Project H.A.M.M.E.R were shoved to the side in favor of derivative lazy releases like Wii Music and ExciteTruck. Paper Mario went from being this surprisingly dark and mature series to a scrapbook simulator for brain dead children. Metroid Prime went over a DECADE with no true follow up.
Meanwhile Mario Party got regular releases, despite the original developers being bought out by Konami. Donkey Kong Country was rebooted. Custom and Chibi Robo got a billion sequels that no one cared about. And Kirby continued to get new releases... During Iwata's presidency we got one almost every year, none of which good in any way, shape, or form.
Modern Nintendo believes that every game needs to be 2D. They refuse to evolve the formula of titles like Yoshi or DKC while they milk Mario and Zelda for all of its worth. Modern Nintendo refuses to allow western studios to tackle dark or mature subjects, instead forcing them to conform to what Nintendo thinks all games should be like.
I suspect that Metroid Prime 4 will be far more similar in style and tone to Federation Force than the original Metroid Prime. Nothing Nintendo has done with Kirby or any of its other franchises have really reassured me that this company can be trusted.
Virtually everyone who has ever played another gaming platform agrees with this assessment. The question at this point is... when did this happen? How did it happen? What franchise, which developer got the ball rolling to put Nintendo in the hole where it is today?
it all began with Kirby.
Kirby was designed as a straightforward, easy to play 2D platformer aimed at younger audiences. As the series went on, not a whole lot improved or changed while Nintendo wasted their time with pathetic spin off releases that no one wanted or asked for.
Sound familiar?
Kirby isn't a popular title to criticize in this way. I imagine that this is because most fans simply overlooked all of the major red flags with the series and its creators. It was the first major Nintendo IP to not evolve in any meaningful capacity with every release, setting the modern standard for how Mario Kart and Splatoon are treated. Kirby is almost a thirty year old franchise. To this day it has NEVER received a proper 3D release. Nintendo has failed to evolve the formula in an interesting, creative way the way they did with their truly great titles. Metroid Prime, Smash, OOT, and Super Mario Bros.
Following Iwata's ascension into presidency, other Nintendo franchises began to become infected by the Kirby cancer. Every game became overtly colorful and bright. Titles like Sin and Punishment, Perfect Dark, Eternal Darkness, and Project H.A.M.M.E.R were shoved to the side in favor of derivative lazy releases like Wii Music and ExciteTruck. Paper Mario went from being this surprisingly dark and mature series to a scrapbook simulator for brain dead children. Metroid Prime went over a DECADE with no true follow up.
Meanwhile Mario Party got regular releases, despite the original developers being bought out by Konami. Donkey Kong Country was rebooted. Custom and Chibi Robo got a billion sequels that no one cared about. And Kirby continued to get new releases... During Iwata's presidency we got one almost every year, none of which good in any way, shape, or form.
Modern Nintendo believes that every game needs to be 2D. They refuse to evolve the formula of titles like Yoshi or DKC while they milk Mario and Zelda for all of its worth. Modern Nintendo refuses to allow western studios to tackle dark or mature subjects, instead forcing them to conform to what Nintendo thinks all games should be like.
I suspect that Metroid Prime 4 will be far more similar in style and tone to Federation Force than the original Metroid Prime. Nothing Nintendo has done with Kirby or any of its other franchises have really reassured me that this company can be trusted.
