bone_and_sinew
breaking down barriers in gratuitous nudity
The majority of decisions beginning from "let's make the Virtual Boy" until now.
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What do you consider Nintendo's most illogical or baffling decision?
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jts
...hate me...
I agree it's poor, why not include the Wii though?No ethernet ports on both Wii u and Switch
Sniffynose
Member
This is like reality check: The Thread. I really should stop supportting their shenanigans because ya, no way to backup my saves and you just know deep down the fuckers will release a better version of the switch in a year or two just like they've done with every other handheld. They also pander to scalpers like mad.
Written by a Nintendo junkie who refuses therapy.
Written by a Nintendo junkie who refuses therapy.
bone_and_sinew
breaking down barriers in gratuitous nudity
No he's right, asymmetrical face buttons are terrible.
Diamond face buttons or 3 button rows are superior. And paddles are even better than face buttons for games that use the right stick a lot.
Wii U, hands down. At least the Virtual Boy was kind of like an experimental side project that got pulled very quickly after launch and didn't affect Nintendo too much. The Wii U was like if Nintendo had released the Virtual Boy as the successor to the SNES or something. And I say that as a Wii U owner who loves Game and Wario, Smash Bros etc. If it wasn't a Christmas present four years ago I would have sold it by now. Thankfully, the Switch seems to be the anti-Wii U and is getting everything right.
friskykillface
Banned
Animal crossing amiibos got them shook so now it's back to limited
Wii U , from its reveal to name to design, should have made it into a GameCube or something, it was the exact same shape and everything
Right now I'd say no VC on switch, you've got people who skipped Wii U, didn't buy VC games on Wii and you don't offer a catalog after the first month? Water you doing nintendo
axisofweevils
Holy crap! Today's real megaton is that more than two people can have the same first name.
Considering the niche audience that would be interested in SMTFE - Tokyo Mirage Sessions, the amount of time, money and effort Nintendo spent annoying that very same audience by making random changes to the game for the Western release was nothing short of insane - even going as far as to redub Japanese lines.
uncleslappy
nethack is my favorite dark souls clone
Ending their 2012(?) E3 press conference with a fireworks display in Nintendoland.
jts
...hate me...
Because they make a lot of money.
clevbrowns94
Member
Has to be N64 cartridges. This allowed Sony to take over and lost third party support, which has been average at best since then, and terrible for certain consoles like the Wii U. This is really the only decision that mattered and they could have won that generation if it was different. Mini-DVDs was a bad decision for Gamecube, but they weren't beating the PS2 that generation anyway. Regular DVDs might have helped sales somewhat though. And you can't even pin down one decision with the Wii U, the two biggest are the name and Gamepad, but again, they weren't going to beat the PS4 even if there was no gamepad and it was named something better than they chose. N64 cartridges is what started it all and has hunted them for decades really.
LordKasual
Banned
I don't find anything they do baffling. They do it all for obvious reasons, and it either works (wii) or it doesn't (wiiU)
I just find it disappointing.
I just find it disappointing.
The drip feed of virtual console titles on every single new console. After playing Breath of the Wild (first Zelda game I finished) I wanted to go back and play some of the original NES games. But I can't. Because Nintendo.
I can play numerous NeoGeo games though because apparently those are much less complicated to port to the Switch.
I can play numerous NeoGeo games though because apparently those are much less complicated to port to the Switch.
AdmiralMikey
Member
This is what I came in here to say. I've heard Nintendo's policy towards piracy described as overkill and this is the instance where it hurt the company more than it helped them. CDs allowed third parties to build better games with higher quality sound, pre-rendered cutscenes and lower licensing and production costs. While the N64 technically had more power than the Playstation, the disc format made the PS1 the more versatile system. While the Wii was an aberration due to the pure number of hardware units sold, Nintendo hasn't come back from the third part support they lost in sticking with the cartridge format when the rest of the industry moved to disc over 20 years ago.
To a lesser extent, their insistence in not keeping up with the technology of the times for their home consoles for the last 10 years or so has only helped exacerbate this problem. It's weird to think that the only Nintendo home console with a good number of quality multi-platform titles over the last 20 years was the Gamecube.
Glass Shark
Banned
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jts
...hate me...
There are so many - it is difficult to pick just one decision.
The Wii U console is probably close to the top for me. The sheer hubris that they could simply expand upon the Wii's concept and continue to be successful tells me that Nintendo didn't really understand how they had harnessed "blue ocean" / "lightning in a bottle" / etc. with the Wii.
Then you also have the marketing which did little to distinguish Wii and Wii U, confusing many "casual" consumers even more.
The Switch may rectify some of those mistakes, but we still see plenty of baffling decisions coming from Nintendo corporate on a regular basis so my expectations aren't very high.
The Wii U console is probably close to the top for me. The sheer hubris that they could simply expand upon the Wii's concept and continue to be successful tells me that Nintendo didn't really understand how they had harnessed "blue ocean" / "lightning in a bottle" / etc. with the Wii.
Then you also have the marketing which did little to distinguish Wii and Wii U, confusing many "casual" consumers even more.
The Switch may rectify some of those mistakes, but we still see plenty of baffling decisions coming from Nintendo corporate on a regular basis so my expectations aren't very high.
Glass Shark
Banned
.
fite me
Launching the Switch with a half-assed online infrastructure and account-system. They had so much time to work on it and they still aren't finished.
Yeah, I thought there was going to be a big game announced afterwards and Reggie just ended it with that fucking firework.
Yeah, I thought there was going to be a big game announced afterwards and Reggie just ended it with that fucking firework.
Chmpocalypse
Blizzard
Wow OP, that cable shipping story is hilarious! Lol
On topic, I'd say the Wii U itself. A concept nobody wanted that Nintendo all but insisted would be the new way to play games. Like, it was clear before launch it was a dud, but nope, they just powered forward anyway.
On topic, I'd say the Wii U itself. A concept nobody wanted that Nintendo all but insisted would be the new way to play games. Like, it was clear before launch it was a dud, but nope, they just powered forward anyway.
I was gonna say the WiiU Gamepad not being optional, but the hardware direction and name are nails in the coffin too.
Yeah, the Wii U was a terrible idea. I have no idea how that thing made it past so many levels of approval.
It also blows my mind how ill prepared they were for HD development. They had so many warnings from other Japanese developers, but they completely ignored them. They easily could have leveraged the Wii's success to staff up etc, but nope.
tkscz
Member
The Wii U. Don't get me wrong, I love the console. Great games and I like the controller, but holy shit. The naming, the advertising, the presentations, so much went wrong with this one and most of it Nintendo's own fault. You can see their hubris from the beginning. There was already too much shit named after the Wii, the Wii sales were falling fast, why in god's name would you name it Wii again? The U behind it didn't make sense to the casual audience and the way they showed it off didn't help anyone.
ForkNetwork
Banned
A long history that includes Lionhead, and...Mojang?
The 1-2 punch of 3DS and Wii U from a marketing point of view. Yes, the DS and Wii were their most successful pieces of hardware, that doesn't mean you piggy-back off of their success by absolutely confusing the average consumer.
Cartridges for N64 are an easy one, although given the time, they likely couldn't have imagined that Sony would gobble up publishers like they did. So to tie into that, underestimating the competition was a mistake - publishers weren't going to put up with their crap if their was a viable alternative.
Virtual Boy was what it was...
The craptastic online infrastructure they've had for the past decade... from hardware-tied purchases to friend codes.
Butchering everything and anything from a supply chain standpoint.
Cartridges for N64 are an easy one, although given the time, they likely couldn't have imagined that Sony would gobble up publishers like they did. So to tie into that, underestimating the competition was a mistake - publishers weren't going to put up with their crap if their was a viable alternative.
Virtual Boy was what it was...
The craptastic online infrastructure they've had for the past decade... from hardware-tied purchases to friend codes.
Butchering everything and anything from a supply chain standpoint.
LegendofLex
Member
Except 3DS was one of the only healthy business segments before Switch came out, and the fact that they can't put unlimited Switches on store shelves means not releasing new 3DS software means not serving tens of millions of their customers.
They've sold more than 40 million 3DS games since the beginning of last year.
So with the Wii U, what else could Nintendo do? The Wii was dead. They couldn't compete with MS and Sony head to head. They needed another gimmick. They thought an HD Wii with a DS bottom screen was it. It makes a lot of sense.
Now their marketing for it really didn't make any sense. And then they practically ignored the Wii U controller which also made little sense.
For me the real answer is not bringing good Mario Sports games to Wii after Wii Sports was such a HUGE hit.
Now their marketing for it really didn't make any sense. And then they practically ignored the Wii U controller which also made little sense.
For me the real answer is not bringing good Mario Sports games to Wii after Wii Sports was such a HUGE hit.
Boy Wander
Member
Making more coin from a product that is still selling well is the biggest mistake they've made. Alright, son.
Solo Act
Member
The 360 and PS3 were nearing the end of their life. They could've put out a system a bit weaker than Xbox One, packed in a pro controller and made 99% of the Wii U library on that system. Make it so all Wii remotes work for backwards compatibility and call it a day. I don't understand why "they needed another gimmick".
If the long-range plan was the Switch (and I'm sure it was, even back then), make a more traditional console as the transition console.
I don't know. I buy all of the Nintendo consoles and usually feel like a fool afterwards. I beat Zelda and had to power down the Switch, not put it into sleep mode. The next game on my horizon is Mario Odyssey in probably October.
I cannot fathom why the entire back catalogue is not hosted online with either iTunes or spotify style purchasing. NES, SNES and GBA alone would be worth it.
I mean, the fact that Star Fox Adventures was mediocre and every game after they made themselves after it was pretty mediocre outside of Viva Pinata (a game that was praised but then forgotten) and the polarizing reception of Banjo Nuts & Bolts says it all. Nintendo got $350 million from the deal and have invested that in purchasing other studios such as Monolithsoft and further investing in their own studios such as Nintendo EAD Tokyo. It was a no brainer business decision.
Wii U didn't make any sense. Having to look away from the television is not something people want to do, and not something you can do in most types of gameplay. Limiting its uses to mainly maps and inventory management, which no one is going to buy a console for and can still be done well enough without it.
You didn't see many uses of the GamePad because there weren't many uses of it, and they were considering dropping it entirely during the console's development because of cost. There was no confidence internally in it, nothing compelling built round it, and you could tell all this when it was shown to the public. The concept was confused and fundamentally broken.
Off-TV play or dual-screen play? Because the former says the latter isn't important.
A much cheaper Wii HD to ease them into HD development would have sold at least as well, probably a fair bit better. What Wii U did give us was the Switch, salvaged from the burning wreckage.
CrazyHorse
Junior Member
Not trying to break their kiddy image until the Switch reveal.
Had that done that, we'd all be saying that system was their baffling mistake. How could they have thought they could compete with MS and Sony? It would have been the Dreamcast all over again. Coming out a year early wouldn't have brought in the 3rd party devs.
They went with what had been working, and the Wii U could have worked if they had marketed it better and supported the gimmick better. But from the start it was a bust. NSMBU was amazing, but only used the screen as an afterthought. It's not compelling.
Always-honest
Banned
Yeah well i got me some component cables for the Gamecube.
Needed them for my projector.
Nintendo in general is thickheaded as fuck.
No cd-rom drive, no DVD player, etc.
Most baffling decision since Wii is the incredible small upgrades in raw power.
They really have to do their best to make it as weak as possible.
It must be disappointing as fuck for any artist working there. Constantly hearing: "no sorry, we can't do that". "make it even less". And in the end, what little is left will be killed by jaggies.
Hate this. Didn't buy the Switch. I'll get back to them in a couple of years.
I don't mind "kiddy" (as some insecure folks like to call it) but stylized graphics need AA too mother fuckers. And a lot of other stuff.
Needed them for my projector.
Nintendo in general is thickheaded as fuck.
No cd-rom drive, no DVD player, etc.
Most baffling decision since Wii is the incredible small upgrades in raw power.
They really have to do their best to make it as weak as possible.
It must be disappointing as fuck for any artist working there. Constantly hearing: "no sorry, we can't do that". "make it even less". And in the end, what little is left will be killed by jaggies.
Hate this. Didn't buy the Switch. I'll get back to them in a couple of years.
I don't mind "kiddy" (as some insecure folks like to call it) but stylized graphics need AA too mother fuckers. And a lot of other stuff.
Velocity:Design:Comfort
Banned
Actually letting Metroid Other M release and even making and conceptualizing at all Federation Force. Just an absolutely ridiculous decision. Not translating and releasing Mother 3 in the West when there has been 10 years of demand- maybe it's not hugely cost effective, but you can't put fan good will and long term trust in your brand on your accounting sheets.
You're not showing me any sources here where it's stated Rare's best talent left before the sale, and pointing to their output that took place predominantly after the sale corroborates Eurogamer's account of the mismanagement by Microsoft that took place in the years to come after the sale, rather than it being from a mass exodus in the years before.
I've long suspected that "Rare's best talent left before the sale" is just hearsay that fans of the Nintendo+Rare partnership wanted to believe to feel better after the fact, rather than having any truth behind it.
Crankshaft
Member
Digital games being tied to the hardware.
bemusedchunk
Banned
Posts have a character limit OP.
I suppose the biggest one is throwing third parties under the bus since... forever. It's well documented that Nintendo really played hardball in the early days because they were the only show in town, so many were eager to jump ship as soon as possible. Making their hardware less uniform and forcing developers to put in extra work doesn't help either. Nintendo makes hardware that's appealing to Nintendo, and with that comes amazing first party titles, but then little else.
[edit]I see a lot of people saying Wii U, but the biggest blunder of all is how they revealed that thing. Only focusing on the controller, having no recognizably new software in the debut trailer, and not even showing the console at E3 on stage. I understand why they would think the console would be a success since it mimics the DS' gimmick, but once you actually get your hands on it, you quickly realize the superfluousness of the Gamepad.
I suppose the biggest one is throwing third parties under the bus since... forever. It's well documented that Nintendo really played hardball in the early days because they were the only show in town, so many were eager to jump ship as soon as possible. Making their hardware less uniform and forcing developers to put in extra work doesn't help either. Nintendo makes hardware that's appealing to Nintendo, and with that comes amazing first party titles, but then little else.
[edit]I see a lot of people saying Wii U, but the biggest blunder of all is how they revealed that thing. Only focusing on the controller, having no recognizably new software in the debut trailer, and not even showing the console at E3 on stage. I understand why they would think the console would be a success since it mimics the DS' gimmick, but once you actually get your hands on it, you quickly realize the superfluousness of the Gamepad.
Digital games tied to hardware, dropping backwards compatibility because that was one of the few things that gave them advantage over competitors,not being able to share friendcodes on miiverse,not allowing to retain all vc games purchased once on all future nintnedo devices, a 299 dollar price for the Switch...
Federation force was a big mistake and i really wonder who had the idea to make Federation Force. That person probably had no clue about what metroid is.
Federation force was a big mistake and i really wonder who had the idea to make Federation Force. That person probably had no clue about what metroid is.
Rodney McKay
Member
I am aware of that, but the range was just slightly too short which made streaming to the controller useless for me after I moved to a larger apartment. I'm pretty sure that the Switch's streaming using some kind of WiFi since modern have been able to stream PC games to the Switch. I feel like connecting it to your router should have at least been an option for users that have a decent option and want longer range.
The original 3DS and first XL both had the limitation of holding the system perfectly still at a fixed distance from tour face if you awaited the 3D to work right, and that wasn't great either even if the original hardware required it given the technology at the time. At least the 3DS did well enough that they managed to fix that with the New 3DS.
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