Pokémon Go's success – Opportunity or threat for Nintendo’s home console business?

[Bitch Pudding]

Pokémon Go is an overwhelming success story for Nintendo and Niantic.

Shares of Nintendo have risen to a 5-year high, and even McDonalds shares – which sure as hell don’t have a track record for something like this – gained 20% on one day because they sell Pokémon figurines. And this is before Nintendo started to sell Pokestop-licences (or whatever you might call them) to companies like Gamestop or McDonalds.

So I want to ask the fans of Nintendo home consoles and handhelds - and of course everyone else: What do you think about this development from the perspective of Nintendo’s classic video games business: Will the incoming money ensure further and even riskier investments into their classic video games (hardware and software) business (meaning: more games, more elaborate hardware gimmicks and so on) or do you see it as a major threat to Nintendo’s focus on classic video gaming (let me explain why below)?

I for one am at least not sure yet what to think of it. I give Nintendo every credit for – once again – finding a new “once in a lifetime” cash machine. But I fear that the company will now focus their resources on mobile gaming, because this is where the cash is nowadays.

Until Pokémon Go happened I was rather sure that even if the NX (home console) fails like the WiiU did, there would still be a successor, because this is what Nintendo does (and they still have quite a lot of cash nevertheless). But now I am not so sure anymore if they'd really it try again if the NX fails, as they have another - and quite effective - cash mashine at their disposal.

And Nintendo leaving the home console business (at least hardware-wise) is the last thing I’d want. What are your thoughts on that?

 

[idonteven]

if they make a pokemon mmo for the nx they are good

i would buy one just for that

 

[Hoo-doo]

They are not leaving their console market anytime soon.

But I do think they have found their new 'blue ocean' for Nintendo software so to speak. It's simply way too big a market to ignore.

 

[Scrawnton]

Opportunity.

If you make you're Pokemon Go Pokemon transferable to Sun/Moon, that game will explode. Same for the other way around.

 

[TheMoon]

Pokémon Go = Pokémon Company

Not Nintendo. They own parts of it but other than that have had little to nothing to do with this. This has little consequence to anything they're doing (other than raking in teh moneyz).

edit: and they're most certainly not gonna go "omg lol let's take our pants off and jump all into the mobile pool and kick all the other shit aside because wooooo!"

 

[z0m3le]

Nintendo has been a 2 platform company since the release of the original Gameboy, business wise, their best move would be to combine their Consoles and Handhelds in to a single platform like NintendOS and use Mobile as a second platform, this would allow them to focus on their dedicated business while making money in the casual market with the smallest investment and the highest return possible for a company that is so rooted as a Software and Hardware company (half their employees are hardware developers)

 

[Scrawnton]

Pokémon Go = Pokémon Company

Not Nintendo. They own parts of it but other than that have had little to nothing to do with this. This has little consequence to anything they're doing.

This narrative is tiring. People should read up on how and why TPC was created in the first place.

 

[LegendofDragoonLives]

Make a good console Pokemon, and I might buy it with the new sweet looking Zelda.

 

[Regginator]

They have gold in their hands, if they don't make a NX Pokémon MMO or something similar with online play, Nintendo is fucking stupid.

 

[TheMoon]

This narrative is tiring. People should read up on how and why TPC was created in the first place.

What narrative? lol

 

[Scrawnton]

What narrative? lol

That Nintendo has nothing to do with Pokemon Go and that TPC is some separate company that answers to no one. Its already been stated that the creator of Pokemon and Iwata hashed out the plans for this game before bringing in Niantic.

 

[Galang]

I remember when a few were speculating sun/moon was also coming to NX before it got its first real trailer. Would have been really interesting if that happened, but Sun/Moon will do really well on 3DS regardless. Not like the games didn't sell well before either

 

[butzopower]

Pokémon Go = Pokémon Company

Not Nintendo. They own parts of it but other than that have had little to nothing to do with this. This has little consequence to anything they're doing (other than raking in teh moneyz).

edit: and they're most certainly not gonna go "omg lol let's take our pants off and jump all into the mobile pool and kick all the other shit aside because wooooo!"

Stock definitely doubled from all that Miitomo money.

 

[James Scott]

It's done a good job promoting the Pokemon brand so the next mainline game should benefit from it.
Pokemon games are rarely on consoles, tho

 

[z0m3le]

Pokémon Go = Pokémon Company

Not Nintendo. They own parts of it but other than that have had little to nothing to do with this. This has little consequence to anything they're doing (other than raking in teh moneyz).

edit: and they're most certainly not gonna go "omg lol let's take our pants off and jump all into the mobile pool and kick all the other shit aside because wooooo!"

Pokemon Go happened in large part because of Iwata and Google. Also Nintendo has seen a huge stock increase, they are now more valuable than Sony, and this is indeed because of pokemon go. The ownership of the game doesn't really matter, Nintendo makes something around 50% of the profit from this game regardless.

 

[Hoo-doo]

They have gold in their hands, if they don't make a NX Pokémon MMO or something similar with online play, Nintendo is fucking stupid.

They have gold in their hands simply because it's free and available on devices that literally almost everyone owns.

This doesn't mean this kind of success translates to home consoles, not at all. Nintendo would be fools to invest big in a huge NX-only MMO like that, honestly.

 

[Omnistalgic]

Definitely opportunity

 

[wapplew]

I think Nintendo have enough big ip for them to do well on anything gaming.
On console business, NX have better chance than Scorpio to be successful. They have the best talent, biggest IPs, global appeal, Japanese third party support and MS have none of that. Western third party support will come cause they only care about install base.
Nintendo only need to have some common sense on hardware spec, network, account, policy and they are ready to make a big come back.

 

[Kilrogg]

If this is a 'threat' to classic video games, the threat isn't limited to Nintendo. This is the kind of success that questions some of the fundamental values of video games that have been taken for granted by many companies for years now.

Think of it this way. This is a game where:
- you're pretty much required to go outside
- you derive much of the enjoyment not from the game itself, but from socializing with other players
- content and polish seem almost superfluous - basic gameplay, constant crashes haven't hampered the game's success.

And it's making money hand over fist on microtransactions alone. The game itself is free.

In a world where many publishers would have you believe that huge single-player campaigns, competitive online play, incredible graphics, having X hours of gameplay and complex game mechanics are the be-all, end-all, Pokémon Go is blasphemous, much like the Wii in its time.

The potential reach and impact on the business go way beyond Nintendo. You can bet your ass many companies will want to emulate that success, and if they can, they will make fewer and fewer traditional games.

 

[Somnid]

I maintain that Pokemon Go works because it is a game that is very specific to phones. It works for holding the casual market which doesn't not tend to juggle many games. The rest of the gaming population, the ones that would buy hardware, the ones that buy lots of software want dedicated machines that are designed to give the best possible game experience. Nintendo already make lots of money off that population and you'd have to be immensely stupid to leave that on the table especially when your company is optimized to that market and changes would involve massive employee turnover. It's all about expansion and diversification.

 

[jond76]

Now would be the time to introduce the NX and show off a Pokémon game on it. But they won't.

 

[AntMurda]

Pokémon Go = Pokémon Company

Not Nintendo. They own parts of it but other than that have had little to nothing to do with this. This has little consequence to anything they're doing (other than raking in teh moneyz).

Nintendo is internally developing a bluetooth hardware app for this called Pokemon Go Plus. They have a lot to do with this.

 

[Dynamite Shikoku]

nintendo wishes they could create something like pokemon go, but like the wii, I don't think that success will be replicated

 

[Mihael Mello Keehl]

NX only? What else its gonna be on?

 

[Deleted member 752119]

I think it's a threat to their portable business. But that's already dealing as casuals are on mobile and core gamers in the west would rather just play in their big screens.

If anything it can help bolster the console business by providing s big revenue stream that can help keep profits up even if their console business never recovers majorly (they plan to sell at a profit day one hardware wise so it shouldn't ever be a big money sink unless they overproduce stock).

 

[TheMoon]

That Nintendo has nothing to do with Pokemon Go and that TPC is some separate company that answers to no one. Its already been stated that the creator of Pokemon and Iwata hashed out the plans for this game before bringing in Niantic.

Pokemon Go happened in large part because of Iwata and Google. Also Nintendo has seen a huge stock increase, they are now more valuable than Sony, and this is indeed because of pokemon go. The ownership of the game doesn't really matter, Nintendo makes something around 50% of the profit from this game regardless.

That is all well and good but does that mean they're gonna drop what they're doing or let it influence any kind of decision for their entirely separate hardware business?! No.

Nintendo is internally developing a bluetooth hardware app for this called Pokemon Go Plus. They have a lot to do with this.

You guys aren't getting what I'm saying here. What does any of this have to do with their home console decisions.

This is a singular lighting-in-a-bottle thing.

 

[Nere]

Pokémon Go = Pokémon Company

Not Nintendo. They own parts of it but other than that have had little to nothing to do with this. This has little consequence to anything they're doing (other than raking in teh moneyz).

edit: and they're most certainly not gonna go "omg lol let's take our pants off and jump all into the mobile pool and kick all the other shit aside because wooooo!"

Yeah Nintendo has nothing to do with Pokemon that's why their stocks rose so much after Pokemon Go release because they have nothing to do with it.

 

[Nameless]

It's an opportunity in this might have kick-started a new 'generation' of Pokemon madness, and the NX is the only console that will have Pokemon. Whether or not they can leverage Pokemon Go directly, which is possible given the system's rumored mobile/handheld component, will depend on Niantic keeping the game fresh and exciting through the NX's release.

 

[Revolutionary]

I don't think it will have any significance to their consoles.
As for mobile, it's a huge opportunity but knowing Nintendo they'll muck it up at the first chance they get (probably Animal Crossing mobile).

Its already been stated that the creator of Pokemon and Iwata hashed out the plans for this game before bringing in Niantic.

Uh, are you sure you got that right? The interviews with Niantic's CEO state the exact opposite.

 

[JoeM86]

Uh, are you sure you got that right? The interviews with Niantic's CEO state the exact opposite.

It's what they said in the announcement of Pokémon GO

 

[Asd202]

It's an opportunity in this might have kick-started a new 'generation' of Pokemon madness, and the NX is the only console that will have Pokemon. Whether or not they can leverage Pokemon Go directly, which is possible given the system's rumored mobile/handheld component, will depend on Niantic keeping the game fresh and exciting to people through the NX's release.

I think it will depend more on people going from Go to traditional Pokemon game with hardware barrier.

 

[JonnyDBrit]

Much of Go's success comes from the fact Pokemon has had a consistently strong and popular line of main games, so that even people who've never played one of the games knows broadly what they are, and are now excited to have the chance to get in on the franchise without spending dozens or hundreds of dollars (adjust for whatever your local currency is, pricey either way). It builds implicit hype, and is far easier for new users to pick up - just gotta download a free app after all - than how its been done by the core fanbase for years.

Its the same basic mechanism behind Marvel's success in movies, and I would ideally hope for a similar response from Nintendo: Maintain the core of the business so that in adapting for a wider market, the fanbase will stir people's passing knowledge into interest and active consumption.

 

[Chaos17]

I hope for them it will translated into sale for their console game but a part of me is septical about mobile players moving to console gaming. I already saw people not even considering playing the consoles games and just want to stick to mobile version even if they're unable to play it (so stubborn).

Only futur will tell us.

Edit: I forgot to mention that those people who're stubborn prefer to cheat/hack the app instead of playing the normal games... I facepalmed at that moment.

 

[TheMoon]

Yeah Nintendo has nothing to do with Pokemon that's why their stocks rose so much after Pokemon Go release because they have nothing to do with it.

see above you.

 

[jroc74]

I say threat.

But threat might be the wrong word. I think its their Plan B if their home consoles dont go back to at least half of Wii levels with the NX and their next home console.

I agree it might be a threat to their handhelds tho.

This game is seeing an enormous success without them releasing a single device for it. Think about that for a minute.

In some ways it makes sense to go all in or majority in on mobile. Especially if you can release hit games.

 

[Revolutionary]

It's what they said in the announcement of Pokémon GO

I'm sure they said a lot of things when the game was announced.
The interviews I've read with the CEO of Niantic state the exact opposite. Nintendo were Ingress fans, Niantic approached them about the idea after the Pokemon Google April Fools joke, and things went on from there.
Here's the first one I found via mobile:
http://www.businessinsider.com/pokemon-go-niantic-john-hanke-interview-2016-7

 

[ReaperXL7]

Neither in my opinion. You cannot create a Pokemon go game on NX because it would need to be connected at all times for the concept to work which would require a data plan. It's also a pipe dream if anyone ever thinks that a Pokemon game relegated to a dedicated handheld will ever touch this games current and potential success.

I hope the NX is cool, and successful because I'd love to be excited about Nintendo again but it remains to be seen what Nintendo will take away from the success of GO. I do imagine investors will try to push them further into mobile/third party if the NX performs the way the Wii U has though.

 

[AntMurda]

You guys aren't getting what I'm saying here. What does any of this have to do with their home console decisions.

This is a singular lighting-in-a-bottle thing.

This doesn't affect the NX by any means, but Nintendo definitely is involved in Pokemon Go.

 

[Smiles and Cries]

yeah I was just thinking about that Nintendo might feel more pressure to send more talent over to mobile games development instead of working on deeper larger games like the Zelda we are all waiting for that took them 5 years to make.

but to be fair they will learn really quickly when their next mobile title fails to reach pGO success not every mobile game can go viral like this so we should not worry that much

 

[LordOfChaos]

Yes.

As in, a little of column A, a little of column B. We'll have to see how they manage to retain those players and try to move them to dedicated hardware.

 

[valkillmore]

Leverage the mobile audience to expand their console business. It's a huge opportunity and also a steamrolling revenue generator.

 

[KAL2006]

People saying Nintendo will do way better on smartphones have no idea. Many Japanese publishers thought this such as Square Enix and they have come running back to consoles. Mobile is a different audience publishers should use that market ad a extra avenue of sales.

People saying this means every Nintendo game will have success also have no idea. Pokemon and it's GPRS features are a lining in a bottle situation. NINTENDO has had games on smartphones before including the Pokemon IP and they all didn't sell a crazy amount

What Nintendo need to do is leverage their sales and have synergy. Theme parks and even animates shows would be a start. Perhaps have exclusive Pokemon into if you get Sun and Moon. Release a Stadium Game that let's you transfer your Pokémon from your smartphone.


Edit
While Nintendo are in the spotlight and they is mainstream coverage it would be in Nintendo's best interest to announce NX sooner rather than later and announce a connectivity feature from Pokemon Go to NX.

 

[emb]

I think short term it's an advantage, increasing brand awareness and giving the company way more money to work with.

Long term, it's probably bad though. Every hit on mobile is that much more reason to dedicate resources in that direction. I think they'll continually find that it's easier to reach an audience on these devices, and I think they'll continue to have a hard time competing in the console space and finding a large market for dedicated handhelds.

Of course, I hope not. Ideally they continue to offer premium games on dedicated hardware because that's what I like. Ideally it's just more diversification, and all these things are continued in parallel. I just feel like, more and more over time, they'll look at that space and think, 'why do we keep that around?'.

 

[Zafir]

It's totally an opportunity for their handhelds for the moment. It's revitalised interest among those of us who were part of the original pokecraze of the 90s while also introducing a whole lot more people into the fray. I think we could see Sun and Moon selling a lot more than anyone would have thought pre-Pokemon Go. If the NX does indeed end up being some handheld/home console hybrid, and they release Pokemon on it, it could be an opportunity for that too. Question is whether this craze will last until the NX though.

It's not going to help the Wii U much. That ship has sailed, and there isn't much Pokemon on it outside of Pokken. I mean Pokken could see a bit of a boost in sales, but I dunno, I don't see it being massive.

That all said, it may have given them the wake up call that they probably needed in realising how powerful their brands are. I think we may see them focusing a bit more on mobile.

Overall, I think it really depends on how the NX does.

 

[peaceiscloser]

I think Nintendo have enough big ip for them to do well on anything gaming.
On console business, NX have better chance than Scorpio to be successful. They have the best talent, biggest IPs, global appeal, Japanese third party support and MS have none of that. Western third party support will come cause they only care about install base.
Nintendo only need to have some common sense on hardware spec, network, account, policy and they are ready to make a big come back.

I agree with you, but something about this reminded me of a Trump post LOL.

"We've got the biggest IP for us to do well, the best talent, biggest IP s, global appeal, the very best you see, which by the way Microsoft has none of, we've got a better chance to be successful. Ready to make a big come back!"

 

[Wollan]

I would be interested in picking up Pokémon Sun and Moon if they released it on NX (or mobile) now with sharper graphics. Or X & Y for that matter. Thanks to my love for Pokémon GO.

 

[Father_Brain]

Right now, neither. Depends how NX does.

 

[peaceiscloser]

yeah I was just thinking about that Nintendo might feel more pressure to send more talent over to mobile games development instead of working on deeper larger games like the Zelda we are all waiting for that took them 5 years to make.

but to be fair they will learn really quickly when their next mobile title fails to reach pGO success not every mobile game can go viral like this so we should not worry that much

I hope they've already seen that with the quick drop off of Miitomo. I wonder if most people have already forgotten about it completely.

 

[mantidor]

Nintendo is very smart and very protective of its IPs, I really doubt we'll get a Mario F2P mobile game anytime soon, Pokemon as an IP lends itself to AR and mobile and that is why we have Pokemon Go.

Also their IPs were grown and nurtured in their hardware, where they had complete and absolute control, I also doubt they will give that away.

 

[Whompa02]

if they make a pokemon mmo for the nx they are good

i would buy one just for that

People have been clamoring for that for years.

I wouldn't hold my breath.