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[ramine]

I was just thinking about this years E3 and imagining what it would be like if Nintendo simply wasn't there. I don't mean as a 3rd party, I just mean if them, and their devs simply weren't around and it was just 360,PS3, PS4, Xbone and PC and the remained of devs. You'd have something like 90% of titles being multiplatform across nearly all platforms with just a small handful being exclusives.

Saying it'd be weird would be an understatement

edit: For clarification, basically if they went out of business, their franchises weren't picked up by anyone and their various devs/employees either quit or were assimilated into other companies (but not really in leading positions)

Nintendo, unlike many companies, doesn't try to "win" at the industry. They don't try to ship what sells the most. They try to build what will make people happy. They genuinely want to open up gaming and make it accessible to everyone.

The remote, the touch screen, and basically all of their games are efforts to bring more people to the party. They have proven time and again that they are willing to take risks.

Without their creativity and vision, the industry would be much weaker.

 

[lenovox1]

Really? So you're saying that people who like Nintendo aren't worthy of consideration? That having games accessible to everyone which allows new gamers to enjoy our hobby isn't worthy in gaming? That the 90+ million that bought a Wii isn't worth the industries attention? Boy I'm really glad you're not the head of a company because your business philosophies would drive the company into the ground within the first week.

No, he, umm, said the opposite of that. Read the post he quoted and then read the post that poster quoted.

 

[F#A#Oo]

If nintendo closed shop, it wouldn't be the end of videogames. Their designers and talent would be absorbed into other companies, and other developers would fill the gaps caused by their loss.

I doubt it...

What other developer or publisher around atm does what Nintendo does?

If we take a look at console's...Sony and MS can't even be bothered to try new things with their controller design...well Sony tried but they shat their pants when people laughed, showing they truly lack any vision or purpose in design...and MS straight out ripped off SEGA after a failed takeover attempt and have been riding that controller design ever since.

Sure someone would fill the void...doesn't mean it would be for the betterment of gaming. You forget that Sony and MS have interests outside of videogames...if videogames fail they'll just go off and develop another sector of their business and move on...we'd be left with PC but for how long?

MS's entry into videogames was always control of the living room and we are seeing what it's all been leading to today...billions of dollars dumped in order to control something in everyone's life eventually.

I do appreciate what the PS4 represents though...it's probably the first time Sony has fully positioned it's console as a true gaming centric system and not some multi-functional device. We're not seeing any of that "Power of the Cell" or "Emotion Engine = Toy Story graphics" or it's so advance that it can be used as a missile guidance system...

That being said I own a Vita and Sony is neglecting that system tbh and that is frustrating...they did the same with the PSP. Which is a sign that Sony lack the depth to support a platform unless third parties pad out the calendar in between their releases. Even when they can release their software they can't hold a candle to the software that Nintendo outputs.

That's the one thing I appreciate with Nintendo...even if their system tanks like the GameCube and with the Wii U now...they still put some effort into making some software which can resuscitate the system...even if it's only for a few hours/days/weeks...they still try and maintain a certain legacy and standard and move forward.

 

[savor100]

Gaming will be sad and void without Nintendo. Even top notch development studios like Naughty Dog and Valve can't reproduce the magic of EAD games.

 

[DecoyOctopus]

I wouldn't want to live in such a world!

 

[muu]

It would be interesting to see what the E For Everyone area would look like. Just seems to me that most others don't try, simply because no one can do it better than Nintendo can. Without them in the way, what would have happened?

 

[Dicer]

NEC/Hudson would have gained better traction. I would not have a terrible time with that.

 

[metalslimer]

One thing that I think it's important to note with Nintendo is that even if I'm current disappointed in a lot of what they do, they are still the best kid's game maker in the world. Can you imagine if when we were growing up we had to deal with the shovelwhare that's thrown at kids nowadays. The industry basically treats kids like idiots and NIntendo makes games that can appeal to kids and everyone so I would hate to see how kids growing up only got crap to play with. Barely anyone makes a good E rated game anymore.

would be interesting to see what the E For Everyone area would look like. Just seems to me that most others don't try, simply because no one can do it better than Nintendo can. Without them in the way, what would have happened?

They would all be playing iOS instead.

 

[Arc Christelle]

We're talking about the present, the now. Corporations don't earn a spot of eternal appreciation for what was done in the past, what a corporation does with the experience and knowledge they've garnered is what keeps something relevant.

Wii-U's third party situation is fucked. It's enormously fucked. Two of the games that got the most buzz at E3 were MGS V and FF XV. MGS V is coming out on Xbox 360, PS3, PS4, Xbox One, and possibly PC. FF XV is coming out on Xbox One and PS4.

Third party games carry console sales as much as first party games do now.

I could've swore that there was more buzz around other games than FFXV, I myself am actually kinda excited for TitanFall (even though I'm not a fan of FPS). But how does the games you mention carries Nintendo's philosophy?

 

[ProtomanNeo]

Analog controls
Rumble
Motion controls
These are things that Nintendo made standard in the console industry. So if they were gone it stands to reason there would be little to no inovation based around gameplay. Things would stay just as they are now, but the graphics would just get a little better every few years.

 

[metalslimer]

Analog controls
Rumble
Motion controls
These are things that Nintendo made standard in the console industry. So if they were gone it stands to reason there would be little to no inovation based around gameplay. Things would stay just as they are now, but the graphics would just get a little better every few years.

Motion controls didn't lead to much innnovation in gameplay either. IR controls were amazing, but motion controls are crap for the most part. And let's not pretend no one else innovates outside of Nintendo. Dual analog was a great innovation bred from competition. We are seeing occulus rift coming which looks like it could be amazing in a few years.

 

[Orayn]

Really? So you're saying that people who like Nintendo aren't worthy of consideration? That having games accessible to everyone which allows new gamers to enjoy our hobby isn't worthy in gaming? That the 90+ million that bought a Wii isn't worth the industries attention? Boy I'm really glad you're not the head of a company because your business philosophies would drive the company into the ground within the first week.

No? I'm saying that all audiences are worthy of consideration. My first post was incredibly sarcastic and critical of the idea that certain demographics don't matter or don't deserve to be served.

 

[Price Drop]

Stale as hell. Going into the Nintendo booth is like an amusement park, just everyone smiling and having a blast. They didn't want to mess with too much casual stuff this year (didn't have Wii Party U or Wii Fit U on the floor) and just went straight to their key franchises which all had a great reaction.

 

[popeutlal]

Colorless.

 

[ASIS]

Motion controls didn't lead to much innnovation in gameplay either. IR controls were amazing, but motion controls are crap for the most part. And let's not pretend no one else innovates outside of Nintendo. Dual analog was a great innovation bred from competition. We are seeing occulus rift coming which looks like it could be amazing in a few years.

Boom Blox. Nuff said.

 

[lenovox1]

Stale as hell. Going into the Nintendo booth is like an amusement park, just everyone smiling and having a blast. They didn't want to mess with too much casual stuff this year (didn't have Wii Party U or Wii Fit U on the floor) and just went straight to their key franchises which all had a great reaction.

Off-topic: They'll need to work hard to replicate that in the retail and online environments. Dubstep commercials ain't gon' do it.

 

[Cdammen]

Less lighthearted and silly, fun couch co-op games. Less good games for kids to play.

 

[hawk1010]

No? I'm saying that all audiences are worthy of consideration. My first post was increfibly sarcastic and critical of the idea that certain demographics don't matter or don't deserve to be served.

Ah, didn't get the sarcasm. Am glad to hear that. Sorry for misunderstanding.

 

[ProtomanNeo]

Motion controls didn't lead to much innnovation in gameplay either. IR controls were amazing, but motion controls are crap for the most part. And let's not pretend no one else innovates outside of Nintendo. Dual analog was a great innovation bred from competition. We are seeing occulus rift coming which looks like it could be amazing in a few years.

True, but who knows what other game changers may come out of Nintendo's R&D.
If and when something like Oculus Rift makes its way into the mainstream you can bet it'll be courtesy of Nintendo and everyone will follow suit.

 

[peaceiscloser]

Stale as hell. Going into the Nintendo booth is like an amusement park, just everyone smiling and having a blast. They didn't want to mess with too much casual stuff this year (didn't have Wii Party U or Wii Fit U on the floor) and just went straight to their key franchises which all had a great reaction.

This for sure. While most of their stuff is iterative, it still manages to actually look like plain fun. Everything Nintendo showed off this year actually looked enjoyable to play, unlike most of the dark oscarbait movie games coming out for the other two systems.

 

[Nightstick11]

Anyone trying to pretend Nintendo exiting the industry wouldn't severely affect the industry is taking bath salts. Both sentimentally, financially, and creatively, the industry would suffer steep, sharp declines all over the world.

 

[massoluk]

It will certainly make Christmas shopping for parents harder.

 

[Nightstick11]

Analog controls
Rumble
Motion controls
These are things that Nintendo made standard in the console industry. So if they were gone it stands to reason there would be little to no inovation based around gameplay. Things would stay just as they are now, but the graphics would just get a little better every few years.

You forgot:

Shoulder buttons
+ digital pad
portable-console connectivity
off-TV play
pause button
save-file slots
4-player multiplayer

I'm sure I'm missing a few.

 

[metalslimer]

Boom Blox. Nuff said.

Notice I said much and most of the time. Motion controls are a general flop for the industry.

 

[Lightning Lord]

The market would have been very different, considering Nintendo saved the industry after the video game market crash. In fact, there are many variables as to how things could have turned out. Would someone else with similar principles as Nintendo have stepped up to the plate to save the industry? Would have someone with decidedly different principles have been the ones save the industry instead? Or would there have been no saving at all, and the video game phase would have simply faded into obscurity, like many people back then thought would happen due to video games being viewed as a mere "fad"?

Then you have the question of time. If the industry was saved, would it have been around the same time frame as Nintendo? Or would it have been later, like the turn of the century? Due to the history of the Playstation, would Sony have even entered the market? Would Sega still be around? Perhaps Sega would have been the ones to pioneer the industry instead.

Speaking of Sega, would Sonic have even of been a thing? He was made to compete against Mario. Perhaps "Alex Kidd" would still be relevant. Or he could have been simply replaced by a completely different mascot. It is very difficult to say, and everything is pure conjecture.

EDIT: I see a couple posts down the TC clarified that he meant if Nintendo existed then and not now. That is a bit easier to draw conclusions, I suppose, but I do enjoy thinking of the occasional "what if?"

 

[BasilZero]

Alot of gritty and dark games.

 

[steveovig]

I'd probably stop buying new games/consoles and stick to retro stuff. The only games that seem to really get my interest up are Nintendo games. Look at the PS3 lineup, I know games like LBP2 and Uncharted 3 were great but I wasn't going out of my way to play them right away. With Nintendo stuff, I usually see stuff that really catches my eye and makes me want to play their stuff right away. A lot of the E3 stuff is like that for me. Sony's stuff looks good but for me, Nintendo's games just shout fun.

Oh yea, everything would be colorless and lack real charm.

 

[Hakai]

Probably I wouldn't be gaming as much as I do.

Also, I wouldn't even looking foward to this E3 at all.

 

[Nyoro SF]

The overall amount of colors that appear in all games would be reduced by about 80%.

 

[Meesh]

There would be a large empty hole in my gaming heart. I criticize them a lot, not always on GAF, but in general because I don't wanna see them fail their way outta the industry.

 

[dog$]

Nintendo saved the industry after the video game market crash.

The only thing that crashed in 1983 was the US console market.

All other territories were intact.
Arcades were intact.
PC was intact.

Analog controls
Rumble
Motion controls
These are things that Nintendo made standard in the console industry.

You forgot:

Shoulder buttons
+ digital pad
portable-console connectivity
off-TV play
pause button
save-file slots
4-player multiplayer

While I appreciate that neither of you used the word "invent" relating to all of this, the contention that none of these concepts would have eventually evolved to what we have today without Nintendo's singular presence is fundamentally objectively false.

These things were invented outright prior to Nintendo's use of them or previously existed in some sort of rudimentary fashion, and other companies would have taken up their evolution regardless.

 

[Road of Ease]

I think if the rest of the industry invested more in kid/family-oriented games and made serious efforts to branch over to women and elderly audiences) like Nintendo, it would not only strengthen themselves (and they NEED to), but give Nintendo a powerful incentive to work harder and not be so iterative.

The industry as it's shaped now, however, only highlights the huge blow that a loss of Nintendo would cause.

 

[Mr.Squirrel]

This for sure. While most of their stuff is iterative, it still manages to actually look like plain fun. Everything Nintendo showed off this year actually looked enjoyable to play, unlike most of the dark oscarbait movie games coming out for the other two systems.

For some reason, there's quite a number of people on this site that believe a game being fun isn't good enough. Take this quote from the Cliffy B thread:

To all those people saying to just adjust the budgets, how would you guys feel if the entire industry were like nintendo? Sure they make awesome games, but the thing I see the most here is them get shitted on for their graphical shortcomings...

You can't have both ways, you either have amazing graphics that drive the costs up immensely, or you have way less impressive games.

(Of course there are exceptions, like The Witcher devs, who can make amazing looking games without skyrocketing the costs, but even The Witcher 3 seems like it's entering blockbuster budgets)

Reading this really blew my mind and made me realize that I'm not even remotely similar to a lot of people on this board. I only have one requirement in games, that it's fun. Graphics and presentation is pretty much irrelevant to me.

 

[Persona86]

Nintendo is legendary in game history, it would be a huge loss.

 

[shadowsdarknes]

Retro Studios under Sony would be making one of the most immersive games ever conveived.

 

[Professor Renegade]

Gaming would be a lot less happier without Nintendo, I think I would miss Metroid and Pokemon the most.

 

[dog$]

I only have one requirement in games, that it's fun. Graphics and presentation is pretty much irrelevant to me.

1) Anything is fun if you're drunk enough.

2) Some games are fun because, in addition to other good qualities, they have good graphics and presentation.

 

[Lightning Lord]

The only thing that crashed in 1983 was the US console market.

All other territories were intact.
Arcades were intact.
PC was intact.

My mistake. I feel my other points are still valid, however.

These things were invented outright prior to Nintendo's use of them or previously existed in some sort of rudimentary fashion, and other companies would have taken up their evolution regardless.

It's true that these would probably still exist in the video game industry one way or another, but whether all of these would become prevalent/standard or not is another question.

 

[JimboJones]

Maybe more niche or at least it might be 5 years behind what is at the moment in terms of wide appeal. The Gameboy was a really influential peice of hardware and reached alot of people with game like Pokemon and Tetris, everyone knows about the Mario brand too.

Sega would still have apowerful presence in the hardware business, we would be playing on the SEGA Andromeda or SEGA WARP DRIVE 256BIT console and Bob Hoskins would never have starred in his most loved role.

 

[MormaPope]

While I appreciate that neither of you used the word "invent" relating to all of this, the contention that none of these concepts would have eventually evolved to what we have today without Nintendo's singular presence is fundamentally objectively false.

These things were invented outright prior to Nintendo's use of them or previously existed in some sort of rudimentary fashion, and other companies would have taken up their evolution regardless.

Thank You.

The idea that this industry wouldn't get to a similar spot like this without Nintendo is completely false.

 

[cajunator]

I wouldnt be playing videogames at all most likely.

 

[dog$]

My mistake. I feel my other points are still valid, however.

Honestly I wasn't trying to get you in a "gotcha". Whenever "the crash of 1983" comes up, all I try to illustrate is that there are far more considerations to be made than Atari, Mattel, and Coleco's consoles folding in the US.

It is important to do for two main reasons - to not forget areas in the field which did not collapse, and to not conflate Nintendo's ultimate importance.

The NES was a great product that had the fortune to sell very well. I will not contest that. I will, however, contest as to how much the entire field of video games was resurrected because of that fact.

It's true that these would probably still exist in the video game industry one way or another, but whether all of these would become prevalent/standard or not is another question.

Agreed.

I just find that ascribing Nintendo to the sole or dominant reason for anything becoming a standard risks being very myopic of the history of this field, if not trivializes the contributions that other persons and companies have in fact made.

 

[SmokedMeat]

Couldn't imagine it. It would be a massive loss.

 

[Fugu]

Anyone trying to pretend Nintendo exiting the industry wouldn't severely affect the industry is taking bath salts. Both sentimentally, financially, and creatively, the industry would suffer steep, sharp declines all over the world.

Blizzard North and id both meant a lot more to me than Nintendo does and we're doing fine without them.

Nintendo is a great developer but they're not the only one. There will be more.

 

[Hattori]

It would be horrible if Nintendo were to disappear, the industry needs diversity and Nintendo delivers that by marching to the beat of their drums.

 

[Midnight Moon]

Would be boring as hell and I would quit gaming because of it. Nintendo made me love gaming and they are the reason I keep gaming.

 

[Lightning Lord]

Honestly I wasn't trying to get you in a "gotcha". Whenever "the crash of 1983" comes up, all I try to illustrate is that there are far more considerations to be made than Atari, Mattel, and Coleco's consoles folding in the US.

It is important to do for two main reasons - to not forget areas in the field which did not collapse, and to not conflate Nintendo's ultimate importance.

The NES was a great product that had the fortune to sell very well. I will not contest that. I will, however, contest as to how much the entire field of video games was resurrected because of that fact.


Agreed.

I just find that ascribing Nintendo to the sole or dominant reason for anything becoming a standard risks being very myopic of the history of this field, if not trivializes the contributions that other persons and companies have in fact made.

No, I understand your points very well and I agree. Nintendo has contributed a lot to gaming, there is no denying that, but I have no doubt gaming would still be alive even if they never stepped into the picture. Whether on the same scale or not would be up to debate. I believe what can be agreed on is that Sega and Sony's current role in the video game market would be very different if Nintendo never existed or at least entered the industry.

 

[Parch]

Colorless? What?

Some act like Nintendo is it's own genre and wouldn't exist if they disappeared. There are Nintendo-like games out there, and some of them are pretty damn good.

Gaming doesn't become all dude-bro shooters if Nintendo disappeared.

 

[Platy]

Portable gaming market would be destroyed.

Without Nintendo to show that portable market outside cellphones is huge, Sony would just give up of the next version of Vita/PSP

 

[RangerX]

I've never been a hardcore nintendo gamer, only console i ever owned was the N64( Mario Kart 64 how i love thee!) and i have'nt owned another nintendo machine since., I was always a Sega guy through amd through. But there is no doubt gaming would be a much worse place without them. Nintendo still seems to put that magic light in kids eyes like sega did for me when i was kid that sony or Ms don't really do, and i'm talking about the mario,kirbys and yoshis that kind of stuff.