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Pachter: "I don't know why Iwata is still employed"; should bring old games to mobile

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This is what I don't understand about this whole Pachter thing. People argue back and forth ad nauseum about whether Pachter is good or bad at making predictions.

Why are a financial analyst's opinions being discussed here at all again? Is this an investment forum now?
 
wsippel said:
It's profitable for companies like EA, companies that never made much money on dedicated handhelds. For Nintendo, it's a fart in the wind.
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Electronic Arts generated 177.000.000 $ in the last two financial quarters.

Last year it was 274.000.000 $.


Since this segment is growing they should probably reach 300.000.000 $ to 400.000.000 $ in revenue this fiscal year.


Let's say that they have to pay 30% across all Shops, so they could generate 210.000.000 $ to 280.000.000 $ of income.

Nintendo needs so sell around 11.000.000 Pokemon games for the same income and in the end, the game could/should sell that amount.

Not to forget that Pokemon shifts millions of 100$ - 250$ hardware that generates other/further software sales. That's the eco-system.


And EA is probably the most comparable company.

A lot of well known brands and a traditional gaming company.
 
Putting button based games on touch devices will always be a bad idea. Plus this kind of move would cannibalize what hardware sales they do have. A short term solution to a long term problem.

Nintendo needs to do something, but this is not it. I wish investors/analysts would stop floating this idea. It'll never happen.
 
Also, of course the Kohler article was better! Chris knows a hell of a lot more about gaming and its history than Pachter does, and he's better at communicating that knowledge.
 
shinobi602 said:
He clarified a little bit on what he meant on the GBA games:

Hl8u44K.png
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So Patchter is the one responsible for the microtransactions of Forza 5 + GT6.
 
-Eddman- said:
Those measures might be good for short-term profit but I wouldn't bet on "free" brands like Angry Birds, Candy Crush or Fruit Ninja being popular or relevant 20 years from now. I want to think Nintendo is smart enough to realize that.

Is Final Fantasy, for example, more popular now that the old games are available for cellphones?
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20 years is overselling them. I'd be surprised if they are relevant in even 5 years from now.
 
vagabondarts said:
Not really. SNES GBA ... Sleek gameboy micro type device...
NES, GB $2.99
SNES GBA 4.99

I don't see the similarity

I'm talking about a dedicated legacy platform, with a ton of games available every week, not dropped out one at a time once a month.
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So a third handheld console that only runs old games that the current consoles are perfectly capable of running? I'm not convinced.

I agree that the Virtual Console releases are way too sparse right now. They should have a studio purely dedicated to getting all the great releases working with the Virtual Console on both the 2/3DS and Wii U and have it connect to a common NNID account system first. That is the direction they should be heading right now with regards to their legacy ecosystem. This is all software. There is no need for a third device from my point of view. People already own a shit ton of 3DS devices - get them there first, the groundwork is there. The controls are there, etc. Hell a soft "launch" of the "new and improved" rapid release Virtual Console would likely be enough.

jimi_dini said:
So Patchter is the one responsible for the microtransactions of Forza 5 + GT6.
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Seriously fuck monetizing like Candy Crush. That's some good shit Pachter is smoking. He wants Nintendo to go full George Lucas on their old games. Just release them as is at reasonable prices on the consoles they have. Why the need to fuck everything to make them maybe work less than half as good on a shitty touchscreen?

The only way it would work is if they were to release their own controller-type device/attachment for phones, and that won't happen either. I will eat crow.
 
Everyone who is hating on Pachter, NeoGAF has been in the "Pachter is awesome" train for a few months now. You'll have to wait a little bit before you can start hating again.
 
no idea how this guy gets any coverage, he is an idiot

Edit: while releasing GBA/Snes games on 3ds and Wii U at a much faster pace and handled like playstation does with PS1/PS2/ PSP content would be a great move forward, anything to do with mobile is a horrible idea as the controls are god awful and they have their own systems to sell.
 
Mudcrab said:
Its not a "fart in the wind" if you are reaching a large audience that isn't playing games on your handheld. You would effectively be marketing and making money by selling already produced content.
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It's not that simple. Nintendo would potentially make $10 million from people who wouldn't buy their platforms to begin with, but lose $20 million from people who would at the same time. Nobody knows for sure, but the risk isn't worth it either way.
 
bishopcruz said:
You mean the article where he says that Iwata and co learn from their mistakes? History is not on their side.
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Maybe not, but the article does mention that Nintendo has been in several tight spots in the past. Which is true and they can reinvent themselves.
 
DragonSworne said:
I have been saying it for a while now, Iwata, Miyamoto, Takeda, and Reggie all need to go.

Glad to see the mainstream is starting to catch up.
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We know, DragonSworne, we know. Everyone knows.

And it will be entertaining for years to come to see you struggle because the chance of this happening is close to zero.
 
I'm very skeptical of the claim that putting old games on mobile would drive sales of Nintendo consoles and full-priced games in the future. I think it's much more likely that $5 Nintendo games on mobile would seriously hamper their ability to sell any hardware, or any software for more than 5 or 10 bucks. Especially since half the magic of Nintendo games is in how perfectly and fluidly they control, an advantage that would be almost totally erased on touch-only devices. Nintendo games on touch devices would sell, but they wouldn't stand out enough to bring in a whole new generation of Nintendo fans.

If the mass market started buying old Nintendo games on their iPhones, they wouldn't think "Wow, Nintendo games are great! I like these franchises! I think I'll go buy a $300 and a $150 handheld and start buying full-priced games!" They would think "Hey, these Nintendo games are pretty good! Wait, you're telling me that Nintendo consoles cost hundreds of dollars, and then the games for them cost 40 or 50 or 60 bucks? Jeez, who would spend $40 for a video game!? I'll just keep an eye out for more iPhone games." Brand value gone. Now everyone but enthusiast gamers thinks Mario games cost $5, should cost $5, and will always cost $5.
 
Hermii said:
How do you know exactly who is responsible for which decisions at Nintendo?
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Probably from the job title, googled the name looking for his job title and "general manager of Nintendo's integrated research division" came up. Doesn't matter if he specifically came up with the idea then, he's the boss, the GM and so he is responsible for the final product as far as I'm concerned. Maybe he's got a specific source like an interview where he states that's the direction they wanted but as far as I'm concerned him being in charge is enough for me since I'm definitely not a fan of that direction. I'm just one poster on an enthusiast message board though so my opinion doesn't really hold water to the inner workings of Nintendo but I'd be happy if there was change in that position.
 
Kintaro said:
Sony is putting their legacy titles on every single... really? Please tell me where I can find Wipeout, Crash Bandicoot (oh wait), Colony Wars, the first Warhawk...etc on my Android. I can't find them.

If you say PlayStation Mobile, I'm going to laugh.
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Do you know what the word "should" means? Can you read things first then get back to me?
 
There's absolutely no reason Nintendo should put their games on consoles other than their own. I think they're missing a huge opportunity by not putting a lot of games on the virtual console, especially GBA games or the Pokemon series on the 3DS eshop. But why on earth would putting games on the iPad for free do anything to help Nintendo?
 
Kintaro said:
Again. How do you figure? To those customers, there is a much bigger chance that they will take it as "Finally, Nintendo games on mobile. I don't have to buy their hardware anymore."

Now what?
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Those people aren't buying Nintendo handhelds anyway, the may not even know they exist. There is a large group that has fond memories of playing Nintendo as a kid but stopped paying attention as they grew up.
 
wsippel said:
It's not that simple. Nintendo would potentially make $10 million from people who wouldn't buy their platforms to begin with, but lose $20 million from people who would at the same time. Nobody knows for sure, but the risk isn't worth it either way.
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If you're the type of person who buys new Nintendo handhelds what are the odds you'll drop it for iOS/Android to play old GBA/DS games? IMO I don't think its a big risk. Start small.
 
DragonSworne said:
I have been saying it for a while now, Iwata, Miyamoto, Takeda, and Reggie all need to go.

Glad to see the mainstream is starting to catch up.
Click to expand...
I don't see Reggie as a problem. Nintendo of America hasn't had power since Howard Lincoln so what can he do? He's just a PR Man who gets caught up with Nintendo of Japan's nonsense.

Reggie has also worked at other companies besides Nintendo so he might still be worth something (though if he really believes the drivel his company tells him then we have a problem).
 
Soule said:
Probably from the job title, googled the name looking for his job title and "general manager of Nintendo's integrated research division" came up. Doesn't matter if he specifically came up with the idea then, he's the boss, the GM and so he is responsible for the final product as far as I'm concerned. Maybe he's got a specific source like an interview where he states that's the direction they wanted but as far as I'm concerned him being in charge is enough for me since I'm definitely not a fan of that direction. I'm just one poster on an enthusiast message board though so my opinion doesn't really hold water to the inner workings of Nintendo but I'd be happy if there was change in that position.
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Maybe he got orders from above to engineer the console that way. For what it is, the Wii U is a well engineered console that punches above its weight. If thats partly because of Takeda I am sure his team could engineer a more powerful console that punches above its weight if Nintendo wanted to do that.
 
Mudcrab said:
If you're the type of person who buys new Nintendo handhelds what are the odds you'll drop it for iOS/Android to play old GBA/DS games? IMO I don't think its a big risk. Start small.
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It's not about me. And it's not about you, either. It's about a much larger audience and long term success. And we're talking about a, I don't know, $100 million market here. That sounds like a lot, but to Nintendo, it's what a single game on 3DS makes. They don't care. They could completely dominate the mobile world and it would hardly make a difference in their reports. Why risk anything and waste time and resources on that shit?
 
Pudge said:
Sure, it would make them a small amount of money now, at the cost of devaluing all of their old games in the eyes of consumers and tarnishing their shining reputation, because no matter what they do, Super Mario Bros. would suck to play on a phone.

Patcher and everyone else planning a funeral for Nintendo is out of their mind.
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I tend to agree with this sentiment however is Nintendo reaching a tipping point where they would sacrifice the perception of quality in their franchises in order to satisfy shareholders? After all they are a corporation that needs to generate revenue and ultimately answer to investors. I don't think it will come to this just yet, especially under current management, but I can't blame analysts like Pachter for the suggestion as they are paid to view these companies from a mostly financial perspective.
 
NES/Gameboy games should have been on mobile a long time ago.

I would want SNES/GBA but knowing Nintendo that's another 5 years off after the fact
 
wsippel said:
It's not about me. And it's not about you, either. It's about a much larger audience and long term success. And we're talking about a, I don't know, $100 million market here. That sounds like a lot, but to Nintendo, it's one game. They don't care. They could completely dominate the mobile world and it would hardly make a difference in their reports. Why risk anything and waste time and resources on that shit?
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Because Apple stocks would skyrocket if Nintendo started developing on iOS.


Anyway, tge solution is not making games available on iOS and andriod, but fixing their own vitural console and eshop.

Nintendo's whole catalog should be available on eShop and VC along with a real account system with account management tools.
 
EricDiesel said:
Putting button based games on touch devices will always be a bad idea. Plus this kind of move would cannibalize what hardware sales they do have. A short term solution to a long term problem.

Nintendo needs to do something, but this is not it. I wish investors/analysts would stop floating this idea. It'll never happen.
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http://www.engadget.com/2013/10/12/hands-on-with-gestureworks-gameplay-virtual-controller/

There are many, many people who disagree. If i can play Limbo or Braid or Super Meat Boy on a tablet, why is Kirby or Mario Bros out of the question? It's not ideal, but like console gaming compared to PC gaming, it's a compromise for convenience.
 
Normally I agree with Pachter on things, but he's wrong this time around.

Putting their games on mobiles might expand their audience, but it also says to that same audience that Nintendo games are or will be available on other platforms other than their own. While there could be a small percentage that buys GBA games and then goes on to buy a 3DS or Wii U or whatever, that's saying to whole new load of people that, if they wait long enough, Nintendo games will be available on other platforms, of which of course they won't be. Nintendo obviously has a vested interest in keeping it's older games on their own hardware, however slow the releases may be.
 
If Nintendo gets pushed out of the console and handheld business then they can consider it but why do it before they are even pushed out? The much simpler solution is just to have future consoles be more competitive on price and see how that goes.
 
Iwata SHOULD be employed at Nintendo. He knows the company in and out, he's been in the trenches, knows the people, how they work and how to get stuff done and all that. In short he should be COO of the company. Not CEO. Iwata's problem isn't so much him, it's more that they have him doing the wrong job.
 
Hermii said:
Maybe he got orders from above to engineer the console that way. For what it is, the Wii U is a well engineered console that punches above its weight. If thats partly because of Takeda I am sure his team could engineer a more powerful console that punches above its weight if Nintendo wanted to do that.
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If they wanted to do that. Keeping the console affordable is part of Nintendo's strategy. I question whether a $400+ Nintendo console would even sell as well as the Wii U, or have the third party support that they would need to justify it. As a Nintendo fan, I would love to see a console as powerful as the Xbox One or PS4, but before I care about the jiggahertz, I care about the games, and Nintendo does good by that metric, for me, regardless of Ps.
 
Pachter is on the money. Iwata is the head of a publicly traded videogame company, and right now it appears he doesn't care about the console business. Honestly, it's getting to the point of almost making no sense at all. Iwata has all these valuable assets - being his first party brands - and he isn't doing anything with them.
Besides selling the brand rights to other companies - I bet Pachter would also be content with Nintendo at least putting their games on a console that has up to date hardware that people would actually be purchasing.
More importantly - when are Nintendo shareholders going to say "enough"?
 
I wish I could put pachter threads on ignore list.

Pachter himself here sounds so different than on those articles. Its like he is mad at Nintendo or something
 
RMI said:
I just vomited a little in my mouth.

Nintendo should just make a goddamned phone, I'd buy that.
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They've actually planned out phones in the past, though, I don't see much of an advantage for them to do one these days.
Sure as hell didn't work out for Sony.

Maidenpool? said:
Pachter is on the money. Iwata is the head of a publicly traded videogame company, and right now it appears he doesn't care about the console business. Honestly, it's getting to the point of almost making no sense at all. Iwata has all these valuable assets - being his first party brands - and he isn't doing anything with them.
Besides selling the brand rights to other companies - I bet Pachter would also be content with Nintendo at least putting their games on a console that has up to date hardware that people would actually be purchasing.
More importantly - when are Nintendo shareholders going to say "enough"?
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Huh?
 
RMI said:
I just vomited a little in my mouth.

Nintendo should just make a goddamned phone, I'd buy that.
Click to expand...

I would too. Honestly this has more chance of happening than them releasing their software elsewhere, for devices with input the games weren't designed for in the first place.
 
Hermii said:
Maybe he got orders from above to engineer the console that way. For what it is, the Wii U is a well engineered console that punches above its weight. If thats partly because of Takeda I am sure his team could engineer a more powerful console that punches above its weight if Nintendo wanted to do that.
Click to expand...

Yeah that's very true. I still think he's got a degree of responsibility over the final product but you're right there's a good chance that he may have had his hands tied in what to deliver. If that's the case I'm kind of indifferent to if he stays in the hypothetical leadership change up going through my mind. Man I really would love to know who was responsible for decisions in the inner, upper circle of Nintendo... Obviously hindsight is 20/20 though so I don't envy the idea of being the one making the decisions but just for purposes of accurately laying criticism and just curiosity if anything lol.
 
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