Theonik
Member
Some test kits did support this but it wasn't the norm and they were pretty rare.
I guess it makes sense that this would work but that's still pretty crazy.
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What really went wrong with the Gamecube?
- Thread starter RedSwirl
- Start date
Combichristoffersen
Combovers don't work when there is no hair
This is a good post. Also, in a previous thread it was added that Lincoln had the backing of Yamauchi's son-in-law in all his decisions, which was probably a powerful force within Nintendo. I wonder if it's true that the shift towards Japan was indeed a company-wide decision.
I could maybe see it making sense given the situation at the time: Nintendo had lost almost all their ground to Sony when it came to Japanese third party support, so they probably felt the need to put a lot of resources towards rebuilding those bridges, which they did start to during the GCN era. Also, back then few people could really predict how important western developers would become in the console space. Sure you had games like KOTOR and Morrowind exposing American console gamers to uniquely American-made games, but nobody could have predicted that Microsoft would jumpstart the next console gen before Japanese developers were ready for it, opening a void for western studios to fill. And even then, could a more aggressive NoA really have out-negotiated Microsoft for the cooperation of the western developers coming from the PC? Could more games from Rare, Factor 5, NST, Left Field, and Silicon Knights really have competed against the likes of Bungie, BioWare, Bethesda, and eventually Epic?
sixteen-bit
Member
that's some hubris.
The Albatross
Member
Point taken on the Wii.
On the point about the N64 having that solid top 10 and then not a lot of depth after that, couldn't the same be said for the GameCube? And with the exception of only a couple of games, I wouldn't put that GC Top 10 above the N64's top 10.
I'm really struggling to think of solid games outside of the GameCube top 10... especially games that weren't done better on other competing consoles at the time.
Melchiah
Member
I've always wondered about that as well. Why was it so little, and why was the hole shaped like an octagon?
MadOdorMachine
No additional functions
Yeah, there was an effort made to improve Japanese support but they didn't have to do it at the expense of western support. They already had it and the foundation was laid to build up western exclusives. After the transition of Yamauchi and Lincoln are when things changed imo. They quit caring about graphics, dropped western support and I think they are also in trouble with their portable market if they don't do the successor to 3DS right. There have been some serious mismanagement issues at Nintendo over the past 10 years.
As far as competing with other western studios, Rare made Goldeneye and Perfect Dark - two of the most well known FPS's at the time. There was also Retro who were comprised of prior Valve, id and Iguana (Turok) employees. Then there's Silicon Knights who at the time were making Too Human for GC. There's no telling how much different things would be now if things would have worked out differently. It's possible, Perfect Dark could have been as successful as Halo or that Too Human on GC could have been a much different more positive experience for SK. Having these games could have also opened up the doors for more third party games as well. We'll never know.
Interesting rumor on Retro Studio's current situation though:
http://emilyrogersblog.wordpress.com/2012/06/13/trouble-brewing-at-retro-studios-rocky-development-for-wii-u-project/
There's more at the link, but I think this is a reflection of the poor management decisions being made at Nintendo. They may have let one of the best, most respected studios in the industry fall apart.
I had a NES, SNES, Nintendo 64, and I also bought an Xbox (And PS2.) instead of the Gamecube. The color scheme and the design of the box itself and the controller made it seem like a cheap, flimsy toy. I think I even played some Gamecube games at a friends, but it didn't interest me - I couldn't get past the initial impression of it being a mere toy.
I've heard that Gamecube has the absolute best versions of certain games, like RE4, but the image of the Gamecube itself taints even that game, which I know is good/great. It could factually be the greatest version, and I would recognize that fact logically, but the image of the Gamecube is just so powerful that it's hard to care, at all.
I've never cared about any other "consoles" like that, as long as they had great games, so Gamecube is the first in that case. I assume it's because I didn't own one.
I've heard that Gamecube has the absolute best versions of certain games, like RE4, but the image of the Gamecube itself taints even that game, which I know is good/great. It could factually be the greatest version, and I would recognize that fact logically, but the image of the Gamecube is just so powerful that it's hard to care, at all.
I've never cared about any other "consoles" like that, as long as they had great games, so Gamecube is the first in that case. I assume it's because I didn't own one.
Pop-O-Matic
Banned
I love you.
Jake Tower
Banned
UP THE IRONS! \m/
A long time user name I've used elsewhere is Seventh Son.
A long time user name I've used elsewhere is Seventh Son.
This is exactly why Iwata has said he isn't interested anymore in buying studios outright (like Platinum for instance), instead opting to just create close relationships with them. Problem is, Nintendo hasn't done this with any western studios yet. How much of that talent leak could really have been prevented by Nintendo though?
You mean since the NES era, right?
Justin Timberlake
Member
The N64 has
Ocarina of Time
Majoras Mask
Super Mario 64
Starfox 64
Mario Kart 64
Banjo Kazooie
Banjo Tooie
Perfect Dark
Goldeneye
Paper Mario
Super Smash Bros.
Pokemon Puzzle League
Conker's Bad Fur Day
F-Zero X
Diddy Kong Racing
Jetforce Gemini
Waverace
Ogre Battle 64
Sin & Punishment
Mario Tennis
1080 Snowboarding
Thats 21. After that, it gets really, really tough to recommend games. Next up would be Kirby 64, DK 64 (if you actually think thats a good game), and Pokemon Snap/Stadium. Even if you're lenient getting to 30 can be a bit of a stretch.
Meanwhile I think the Gamecube can get to 60 no problem. Hell, I listed near 50 earlier in this thread, and I left out a bunch.
Beermeister
Banned
Went wrong? Nothing. It's the best video game console, ever.
MadOdorMachine
No additional functions
The irony is that it's one of the most sturdy, best designed systems ever. The failure rate on GC's were very low.
I agree with that philosophy to a certain extent, but they already owned Retro. Look at what's happened to NST. They have been given the shaft after making some great games like RR64, WaveRace: BS, 1080 Avalanche and Metroid Prime Hunters. What have they done since? They could have been a great studio, but instead they are a port house. Look at what's happened to third and second party studios close to Nintendo like Rare, Left Field, Factor 5 and Silicon Knights. My point is that there is a clear difference in the management of Nintendo before and after Howard Lincoln's departure. Could Nintendo have retained all of their employees at Retro? Certainly not, but things could have been done to prevent such a high turnover rate. Look at what happened to Rare after Microsoft bought them. Sure, some people knew what was coming and already left like David Doak, but Rare was still a very capable developer at the time Nintendo sold them. The mismanagement is what has caused the mass exodus of Rare employees leaving only a shell of their former self. The same thing has happened to Nintendo and western support. They don't care anymore because it's painfully obvious that Nintendo doesn't care.
That doesn't deny the rumor at all. There's no denying that top people have left and that Nintendo are hiring new people there. From that same link you posted:
I meant that they're not really in trouble. Since that post, they've hired a crapton of people from Naughty Dog, Vigil, Bioware, and the like. Talent may be leaving, but they're also bringing in a lot of people with experience with HD development. They'll be fine.
Screamapillar
Member
To be fair, they didn't start pushing GBA connectvity until two years into the GameCube's lifespan. I think it was a last-ditch effort to see if they could carve out a bigger market for all the GBA owners and see if they could convince some of them to pick up a GameCube since it was at $99 by then.
It didn't work. Not enough compelling software to make the connectivity feature an appealing thing for people.
Once they realized that feature wasn't resonating with people, they pretty much gave up on selling GameCubes and just put their efforts toward releasing hardcore games and making as much money as they could. There was nothing else they could do at that point.
Fonz72
Member
At least in my circle of friends the Gamecube was looked at like a "kiddy" console. From the weird layout of the controller with it's bright buttons to the overall look of the system it just didn't appeal to us in our early to late twenty's. The Xbox and PS2 however seemed to offer a more mature gaming experience.
Mengy
wishes it were bannable to say mean things about Marvel
Sorry, the title of the best console ever is reserved for consoles named Dreamcast.
Version 3.0
Member
It's my favorite console of all time, and I've been gaming since Pong.
But to say nothing went wrong is ridiculous. It got its ass kicked, and Nintendo's backwards decision-making had a lot to do with that.