bgassassin
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- Sep 8, 2006
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Since it has been reported to us that Nintendo is trying to recapture this supposed market, I thought that we should look back at and discuss what caused Nintendo to get away from them to begin with.
Nintendo 64
When I look at how Nintendo is currently viewed by some, I liken that view to the child game "Telephone". You remember it, where someone says something and it's different by the time it reaches the last person. Nintendo has become the "non-hardcore" console maker, but that direction did not happen intentionally IMO.
First was the choice of sticking with cartridges instead of CDs. Loading time is great, but the limitations of cartridges in both cost and space clearly outweighed the benefit of the cartridge format. Next was that despite the power of the console, it was considered hard to develop for due to the implementation of the hardware. And finally was the cost of developing for the console. By this time Nintendo had become real bad about the licensing fees they charged to developers.
In the past Yamauchi's Iron Fist would have maintained control, but Sony gave third parties a place that allowed them to get away from those negatives. It is this migration that I believe Nintendo established the stigma that only Nintendo games can sell on Nintendo consoles. Simply from third parties choosing to release their games elsewhere.
Gamecube
This could have been the generation Nintendo used to get itself back on track with third parties, but instead found more ways to alienate them. It's at this time that Nintendo gained the "kiddie" label. Why? Mainly because of its design. It definitely was not due to power because the GC was clearly the second most powerful console that generation. However they go with a design that gets called things like a lunch box or a purse. Why would certain gamers want to buy a console that looked like that? And from there why would developers want to release their games (especially mature games) on a console their target market will not buy due to its look? Which leads into the format limitations.
Once again Nintendo decides to against the grain and choose a disc format that limits them. While Sony and their older PS2 and console upstart MS with the Xbox have adopted the DVD format, Nintendo instead goes with miniature discs that provide roughly 1/3 of the space. Developers were not going to be as willing to spread their game of multiple discs when they could just place it on one. Nintendo has shown in recent history their tendencies of being overprotective. And since this was done for piracy concerns, this seemed to be a beginning point for their extreme cautiousness to come.
Then there is Nintendo's new found pursuit of easier gaming. Nintendo wanted games that anybody can play. Third party developers however are not making their games to sell to everybody. This change in gaming philosophy also lead in part to the design of the GC's controller. After all who all remembers this mock up? (Couldn't find one without Revolution on it.)
There are those who didn't like the GC controller for various reasons. Generally speaking the button layout compared to the other consoles was not as practical.
It is at this time that we start to see a difference in gaming philosophy between Nintendo and third parties. Nintendo began to put more emphasis on their family first mantra, while other developers wanted to continue to focus on the games that had grew up on their games. The disc format was merely icing on the cake.
Wii
By this time Nintendo committed to not trying to run with Sony and MS, and went in an entirely different direction. They sought out to tap a market that was not really even considered. While they were very successful in this approach, the steps taken to get there was just another nail in the coffin for third party relations. This continued the trend in the difference of philosophy. The gamers Nintendo were pursuing just were not the gamers third parties wanted for most of their games. This new direction was a major factor in Nintendo's choice of hardware.
There was really no need to have a very powerful console if the intention is to make short, simple games that anyone can just jump on and play. But Nintendo took this way farther than they really should have. The Wii was virtually the same level as the first Xbox. For better of for worse (worse for devs who lost lots of money and closed their doors or were bought out) developers wanted to take their games to the next level graphically. Not only did this mean texturally high-powered graphics, but the first run at legitimate HD gaming. Nintendo decided to have none of that. The console was so poorly powered in comparison that legitimate ports were not completely possible. The gamers that wanted those high-level gaming graphics just were not going to find that on the Wii giving them no reason to buy.
As always Nintendo found a way to hurt themselves when it came to formats, this time for saving information. The console used a minuscule amount of internal space and relegated external storage to SD cards. This decision really just screams Nintendo being overprotective again. Their concerns about privacy made them reluctant to use HDDs and instead use SD cards. From a consumer standpoint there are not many legitimate pros to using SD cards over HDD.
If you did not know by now, Nintendo is overprotective. Friend codes are just another part of that. First I give lots of credit to MS for their achievement of online gaming for consoles. Nintendo on the other hand being too concerned about child predators brought over the use of friend codes from the DS to the Wii. Other than the use of the codes themselves, have a code for every game just made them even more painstaking. Why would gamers in general want to embrace that? Especially when there are much better alternatives available.
So now we are at the present. Nintendo has announced they are releasing a new console and rumors indicate that they want to get this market back. As we can see this is something that has been going on for years and developers who choose to have every right to take a "sit back and watch" position. Even though Nintendo has been good about adjusting from previous mistakes, they tend to be slow about doing so. Based on Nintendo's trends in recent history, I would almost be left to believe it would take the generation after this one for them to get it right. But stranger things have happened. After all few, if any, coming into this generation expected Sony and MS to bleed the money they did. That aside Nintendo to me has two major things they need to fix.
The first point is the foundational problem IMO for a lot of their mistakes. Stop hurting yourselves over piracy concerns that cause you to make bad format choices. Stop with the strict concern about who people game with online. I understand this world will always have sick perverts out there, but without even considering that do little kids really need to be gaming online when the games are going to be dominated by those who are teenagers and up? I do not and parent controls to prevent that and other things should be adequate.
Secondly no more toyish console designs, and ease up on the desire for everyone being able to play games. Nintendo went to extremes to achieve the latter and are going though a rubber band effect from that decision. Hopefully they will achieve better balance in that this time around.
My sleepy rant is over. I apologize for any grammatical errors I missed. Point out anything I missed that also contributed to Nintendo's current situation.
Nintendo 64
- Choice of system format
- Hard to develop for
- High licensing fees
When I look at how Nintendo is currently viewed by some, I liken that view to the child game "Telephone". You remember it, where someone says something and it's different by the time it reaches the last person. Nintendo has become the "non-hardcore" console maker, but that direction did not happen intentionally IMO.
First was the choice of sticking with cartridges instead of CDs. Loading time is great, but the limitations of cartridges in both cost and space clearly outweighed the benefit of the cartridge format. Next was that despite the power of the console, it was considered hard to develop for due to the implementation of the hardware. And finally was the cost of developing for the console. By this time Nintendo had become real bad about the licensing fees they charged to developers.
In the past Yamauchi's Iron Fist would have maintained control, but Sony gave third parties a place that allowed them to get away from those negatives. It is this migration that I believe Nintendo established the stigma that only Nintendo games can sell on Nintendo consoles. Simply from third parties choosing to release their games elsewhere.
Gamecube
- Console design
- Format limitations
- Pursuit of simpler gaming
This could have been the generation Nintendo used to get itself back on track with third parties, but instead found more ways to alienate them. It's at this time that Nintendo gained the "kiddie" label. Why? Mainly because of its design. It definitely was not due to power because the GC was clearly the second most powerful console that generation. However they go with a design that gets called things like a lunch box or a purse. Why would certain gamers want to buy a console that looked like that? And from there why would developers want to release their games (especially mature games) on a console their target market will not buy due to its look? Which leads into the format limitations.
Once again Nintendo decides to against the grain and choose a disc format that limits them. While Sony and their older PS2 and console upstart MS with the Xbox have adopted the DVD format, Nintendo instead goes with miniature discs that provide roughly 1/3 of the space. Developers were not going to be as willing to spread their game of multiple discs when they could just place it on one. Nintendo has shown in recent history their tendencies of being overprotective. And since this was done for piracy concerns, this seemed to be a beginning point for their extreme cautiousness to come.
Then there is Nintendo's new found pursuit of easier gaming. Nintendo wanted games that anybody can play. Third party developers however are not making their games to sell to everybody. This change in gaming philosophy also lead in part to the design of the GC's controller. After all who all remembers this mock up? (Couldn't find one without Revolution on it.)
There are those who didn't like the GC controller for various reasons. Generally speaking the button layout compared to the other consoles was not as practical.
It is at this time that we start to see a difference in gaming philosophy between Nintendo and third parties. Nintendo began to put more emphasis on their family first mantra, while other developers wanted to continue to focus on the games that had grew up on their games. The disc format was merely icing on the cake.
Wii
- Extreme focus on non-gamer/casual market
- Very weak hardware compared to competitors
- Storage limitations
- Friend codes
By this time Nintendo committed to not trying to run with Sony and MS, and went in an entirely different direction. They sought out to tap a market that was not really even considered. While they were very successful in this approach, the steps taken to get there was just another nail in the coffin for third party relations. This continued the trend in the difference of philosophy. The gamers Nintendo were pursuing just were not the gamers third parties wanted for most of their games. This new direction was a major factor in Nintendo's choice of hardware.
There was really no need to have a very powerful console if the intention is to make short, simple games that anyone can just jump on and play. But Nintendo took this way farther than they really should have. The Wii was virtually the same level as the first Xbox. For better of for worse (worse for devs who lost lots of money and closed their doors or were bought out) developers wanted to take their games to the next level graphically. Not only did this mean texturally high-powered graphics, but the first run at legitimate HD gaming. Nintendo decided to have none of that. The console was so poorly powered in comparison that legitimate ports were not completely possible. The gamers that wanted those high-level gaming graphics just were not going to find that on the Wii giving them no reason to buy.
As always Nintendo found a way to hurt themselves when it came to formats, this time for saving information. The console used a minuscule amount of internal space and relegated external storage to SD cards. This decision really just screams Nintendo being overprotective again. Their concerns about privacy made them reluctant to use HDDs and instead use SD cards. From a consumer standpoint there are not many legitimate pros to using SD cards over HDD.
If you did not know by now, Nintendo is overprotective. Friend codes are just another part of that. First I give lots of credit to MS for their achievement of online gaming for consoles. Nintendo on the other hand being too concerned about child predators brought over the use of friend codes from the DS to the Wii. Other than the use of the codes themselves, have a code for every game just made them even more painstaking. Why would gamers in general want to embrace that? Especially when there are much better alternatives available.
So now we are at the present. Nintendo has announced they are releasing a new console and rumors indicate that they want to get this market back. As we can see this is something that has been going on for years and developers who choose to have every right to take a "sit back and watch" position. Even though Nintendo has been good about adjusting from previous mistakes, they tend to be slow about doing so. Based on Nintendo's trends in recent history, I would almost be left to believe it would take the generation after this one for them to get it right. But stranger things have happened. After all few, if any, coming into this generation expected Sony and MS to bleed the money they did. That aside Nintendo to me has two major things they need to fix.
- Stop being so overprotective.
- Stop being so hardcore (pun intended) about easier gaming/family appeal.
The first point is the foundational problem IMO for a lot of their mistakes. Stop hurting yourselves over piracy concerns that cause you to make bad format choices. Stop with the strict concern about who people game with online. I understand this world will always have sick perverts out there, but without even considering that do little kids really need to be gaming online when the games are going to be dominated by those who are teenagers and up? I do not and parent controls to prevent that and other things should be adequate.
Secondly no more toyish console designs, and ease up on the desire for everyone being able to play games. Nintendo went to extremes to achieve the latter and are going though a rubber band effect from that decision. Hopefully they will achieve better balance in that this time around.
My sleepy rant is over. I apologize for any grammatical errors I missed. Point out anything I missed that also contributed to Nintendo's current situation.
