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[IbizaPocholo]

PS5 and Xbox Scarlett ‘need to learn’ from Switch, says Japanese indie boss | VGC

But new consoles can’t imitate portability…

www.videogameschronicle.com

Inti Creates president Inti Creates president Takuya Aizu also argued that the success of the new consoles – which are both set to arrive in 2020 – will depend heavily on their exclusive titles.

“I think it might be pretty tough [for new consoles] because at this point in time exclusivity is dying,” he told VGC. “There are a lot of games coming out on multiple platforms and even if they don’t at first, they get ported to other platforms later on.

“So when these companies put out new consoles I think one of the most important things for them is going to be how many exclusives they can have at their launch, because if they don’t have those then the chance that they’re going to have a failed launch is going to be pretty high I think.

“The other thing that will determine the new consoles’ fate is the precedent that Nintendo Switch set,” he added. “it does something new that no system can or has done.

“So whatever these new systems are, they’re going to need to offer an experience that you can only have by owning it. I think that, especially with the precedent that Nintendo Switch has set, that uniqueness is more important than ever now.”

Aizu told VGC that in his opinion, Sony and Microsoft could not imitate Nintendo Switch’s hybrid design without being eclipsed by a successor system from Nintendo.

“I think when it comes to portability, Switch has cornered that space,” he said.

“I think the only console that needs that portability to succeed is a potential Switch successor. If another company comes out with their own portable hybrid, then they’re not going to be able to compete with whatever Nintendo puts out next, because they’ve established this massive base.

“Whatever the new systems are, they’re not going to be able to just copy Nintendo. They’ll need something else to set them apart. If I knew exactly what that something was, I’d go and sell it to Sony or Microsoft!”

 

[Abriael_GN]

With all the respect I have for Aizu-san, I doubt he has much more visibility on the mass-market audience (which is what makes or breaks a console) than anyone else.

Exclusivity isn't dying at all. That's what first-party studios are for, and both Sony and Microsoft have plenty of those.

Of course, the Switch is a great platform to play the kind of games Inti Creates makes, so this is a rather skewed point of view, but there are other kinds of games out there, which are very popular and held back massively by weaker hardware.

Sony and Microsoft are not even caring to try to imitate Nintendo, because they don't need to. They (especially Sony) have the AAA market cornered, and that's plenty.

There is a reason why so many games get announced only for PS4, Xbox One, and PC, skipping the Switch. Being so unique, especially on the hardware side, is an advantage on one side, but a disadvantage on the other. Many developers don't care to spend additional money and resources to cater to one platform when they can cater to three pretty much in one go.

 

[TLZ]

Exclusivity is dying, yet Nintendo themselves rely heavily on them and sell great. Sony's first parties selling great as well.

 

[Kagey K]

Exclusivity is dying, yet Nintendo themselves rely heavily on them and sell great. Sony's first parties selling great as well.

It wasn’t exclusives that had the Switch selling so well last year. It was indie ports of games released years ago on other platforms keeping people interested.

Perfect on Switch, and all of that.

This seems like a case of biting the hand that feeds. Don’t diss your support, where you had none previously.

 

[TeamGhobad]

they need to be underpowered and handheld and only have 2 good games?

 

[KungFucius]

This reads like typical engineer/ mid level manager trying to talk business because it thinks it makes him sound smart but really is nothing. He doesn't know. He follows the industry enough but his focus is on creating games, not on developing the market.

The console with the best launch lineup of exclusives has the advantage. Really? I am shocked. I prefer the one that has weal ports from last gen and a shitty tech demo.

Exclusivity is dying ( read 3rd party exclusives and assume the distinction is lost in translation). Um this has been dead for generations really with the exception of MGS4. Part of what drove this was drastically different HW. It was harder to develop for all systems in the past and small subsidies and package deals were enough to woo a publisher, now PS and Xbox are PC lite and porting is so easy you'd have to pay a ton to get them not to port it and have access to 10s of millions more consoles.

Consoles need to focus on a unique experience. This doesn't mean be the Switch, it means a combination of first party exclusives and unique services and or gimmicks. People need a reason to buy a system that separates it from other options. All players have been doing this for generations. MS started Xbox Live, Sony added games to PS Plus, etc. It's basic marketing 101 level shit.

 

[killatopak]

I’m just gonna laugh when Switch doesn’t even get the minimum third party support they have now because the difference between the next gen consoles and it will make porting a nightmare.

The devs who usually have problems with the next gen hardware are japanese devs who still want to use their PS3 level assets on their games which conveniently the Switch masks in great effect due to the low resolution.

They’re also forgetting the fact that the next gen isn’t a reset like the previous generations have done. All your digital and physical purchases for this gen are carried over to next gen. People who have large libraries on either the Xbox or PS ecosystem isn’t just gonna dump it out willy nilly.

Okay so what are these experiences the Switch cannot do and the next gen can? Well there’s VR and I’m sure the next Xbox will have their own take on it. Not even gonna bother with how bad Switch supposed VR is. Next are games. the next gen consoles are gonna feature a vastly superior gpu AND cpu to what is available today on the console market. I’d be counting the days the Switch is still getting ports of any big game and just be settled for less demanding games. With how stingy publishers are for larger catridge sizes and with how much bigger games are getting nowadays it’ll be a miracle for a big game to be ported. Streaming services are also thing MS and Sony has up over Nintendo. Xcloud and PS Now compared to what? Nintendo has nothing.

I also believe that Nintendo didn’t corner the portable space. It cornered them. They lost their console space and it’ll only be a matter of time until mobile eats up their market.

 

[theclaw135]

Ports are the future. They provide funding for the unique experiences, and it's a travesty how many outstanding games are stranded on old systems. Don't give me that "should've bought the original" nonsense. Each generation brings new people into gaming, many of whom aren't going to be pleased to track down overpriced out-of-print games (which doesn't support the developer anyway).

Besides. Why make 3rd party exclusives these days, unless the 1st party foots the bill? Multiplatform engines have become adequate enough for most purposes, a lot less wasteful than proprietary tech that nobody will be able to understand once the dev team disbands.

 

[MagnesG]

This reads like typical engineer/ mid level manager trying to talk business because it thinks it makes him sound smart but really is nothing. He doesn't know. He follows the industry enough but his focus is on creating games, not on developing the market.

The console with the best launch lineup of exclusives has the advantage. Really? I am shocked. I prefer the one that has weal ports from last gen and a shitty tech demo.

Exclusivity is dying ( read 3rd party exclusives and assume the distinction is lost in translation). Um this has been dead for generations really with the exception of MGS4. Part of what drove this was drastically different HW. It was harder to develop for all systems in the past and small subsidies and package deals were enough to woo a publisher, now PS and Xbox are PC lite and porting is so easy you'd have to pay a ton to get them not to port it and have access to 10s of millions more consoles.

Consoles need to focus on a unique experience. This doesn't mean be the Switch, it means a combination of first party exclusives and unique services and or gimmicks. People need a reason to buy a system that separates it from other options. All players have been doing this for generations. MS started Xbox Live, Sony added games to PS Plus, etc. It's basic marketing 101 level shit.

I think this can be easily misinterpreted as being in the high ground, which he did not, plus all the translations and stuff. For me his input can be seen as his interest in investing in those platforms as developers. That's it.

 

[SonGoku]

MS and Sony will be wise to ignore Japanese devs completely, its a dead end market for consoles. Don't compromise your vision/ambition for a market that only cares about mobile games.

 

[MiyazakiHatesKojima]

Another indie studio chiming in on next gen!?

 

[SonGoku]

Another indie studio chiming in on next gen!?

Hey! at least its not gamingbolt breaking the news

 

[Scopa]

- Positive Nintendo comment
- Butthurt posts in response
- The World is still turning

Carry on.

Spoiler

Just jokes friends. Just enjoy games and whysoserious.gif