Ugh, once again Marco succeeds in making Apple's way look like the only way. Here's two reasons why Marco and especially that hack Gruber are both fantastically deluded:<p>1) Nintendo is the Disney of Video Games. Lots of companies make cartoons & there's tons of theme parks, but there's only 1 Disney. It's a seal of quality, of fun, of playability. Nintendo's reputation, and the consumer mindshare is in this.<p>You fill yours and your kid's shelves with Disney books, movies, and Nintendo video games and other assorted merch. A $500 very breakable phone with a $100 a month of data services for my 9 year old? I don't think so. A $130 handheld with a few games he's earned from doing chores that he can beat around, drop and otherwise drag and kick around is where it's at. Sure you see the occasional bored kid at a family dinner using their mom's phone to play angry birds. But you see 20x as many with their Nintendo xDS playing Mario Brothers.<p>Nintendo generally makes lots of money by using slightly older technology to make this year's great new gaming experience. They've survived generations of very competitive onslaught. They've <i>never</i> targeted the high end gamer...from the beginning.<p>"Nintendo needs the profits of the high end" is quite simply, incorrect. Nintendo profits from pretty much every unit of everything they move. And on top of moving games and systems they have a substantial merchandising business probably second to only Disney.<p>The only surprise is that Nintendo hasn't been able to get into theme parks and cartoons in a bigger way. A Disney/Nintendo cross licensing for characters would be <i>amazing</i>. Bring your kids to Walt Disney <insert park>, your daughter gets to meet all her princesses and your son gets to hang out with Samus and Mario.<p>2) "But but but", Marco argues, "people are getting used to paying <$10 for a game". Yeah, but those games suck compared to a new Mario title. But let's say that suddenly amazing $4 games started coming out.<p>Let's play a game, given that kids abuse systems so badly and selection of Apple handhelds is...limited. Would I rather buy a free/cheap Android phone for my kid to abuse or an expensive and fragile iPhone? I can guarantee it would be the one with the lower replacement cost, especially after the first couple phone go in the toilet or down the stairs.<p>But let's be serious, there's zero possibility that Nintendo will go the way of Sega in the next generation or two. They <i>dominate</i> handhelds in a way Microsoft used to dominate the desktop business and the WiiU, while a technological disappointment in some ways was a carefully calculated system designed to ensure that the big N never lost a dollar on any part of their vertically integrated gaming empire that they sold. There's no such thing as "loss leader" at Nintendo.<p>And let's face it, phone gaming frankly sucks compared to holding a DS and working a d-pad.<p>- edit -<p>for <i>anybody</i> to get what Nintendo is about should read up on Gunpei Yokoi's "Lateral Thinking of Withered Technology" (枯れた技術の水平思考) It makes analysis like this really seem very uninformed about the company.
Key phrase:<p><i>"But I was always thinking of making iOS games and making their own hardware as mutually exclusive."</i><p>For Nintendo, it is. As far as I recall, Nintendo <i>never</i> released one its games on another platform. And Satoru Iwata (Nintendo's CEO) explained it lately [1]. Relevant quote:<p><i>"By integrating hardware and software, we can be unique. And because we have hardware and software developers in the same building, they stimulate each other."</i><p>Have you ever bought a Nintendo system <i>just</i> for its Nintendo games? I know I did. Several times. The N64 for Mario Kart and Mario 64, the GameCube for Mario Sunshine, the Wii for Mario Galaxy and Mario Kart again...<p>Maybe Nintendo looks like an idealist in a corporate-driven business, but consumers are somewhat sensible to Nintendo's commitment and that's why they're still successful.<p>It can backfire someday. Currently, the Wii U is sold at a loss [2]. I don't know how it will sort iself out. A bit too early to tell.<p>Anyway, Nintendo games on iOS would be <i>hugely</i> successful, but it's neither in their DNA nor in their <i>long-term</i> business strategy, no matter what gaming platform you're talking about (because yes, iOS has become a gaming platform).<p>[1] <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/news/iwata-explains-why-nintendo-wont-release-its-games-on-other-platforms-6412687" rel="nofollow">http://www.gamespot.com/news/iwata-explains-why-nintendo-won...</a><p>[2] <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/news/nintendo-continues-to-sell-wii-u-hardware-at-a-loss-6412671" rel="nofollow">http://www.gamespot.com/news/nintendo-continues-to-sell-wii-...</a>
I find it interesting that these hardcore Apple guys talk about putting Nintendo games on iOS when they support a company that makes their own hardware to put their own software on it only. Nintendo has enough money saved up to think of something and I don't see them giving up on hardware. I like that Nintendo takes great care of there games just as Apple does with their software and hardware. Nintendo's strongest business is handheld games yet they should make iOS games. It just doesn't make sense.
The best article I've ever read that explained Nintendo's product strategy was written in 2005 by Daniel Cook of lostgarden.com (founder of Spry Fox, creators of Triple Town amongst other games) on the eve of the launch of the Wii, and discusses how Nintendo fundamentally needs a creative environment based around product innovation and new input types that it has control over:<p><a href="http://www.lostgarden.com/2005/09/nintendos-genre-innovation-strategy.html" rel="nofollow">http://www.lostgarden.com/2005/09/nintendos-genre-innovation...</a>
I disagree. Mobile gaming is a vast wasteland with a shitty business model. Either you sell a game for peanuts or you go to a freemium model and not-so-transparently squeeze your customers for every penny they are willing to pay. There's no benefit to Nintendo. Alos, touch controls are very limiting for a lot of genres.<p>Maybe when Apple and Google get serious about mobile gaming, it'll make sense to release AAA, not until then.<p>However, I do like the idea of targeting mobile platforms as companion devices to Nintendo games or consoles. For example, It would cool if you could use an iPad or iPhone, in lieu of the Wii GamePad. SmartGlass-type stuff is cool and detracts nothing from the platform. Slick mobile app access to your account is awesome. Nintendo should have a presence, but releasing standalone games today is not necessary (didn't save Sonic).
Nintendo isn't doomed. Period.<p>People have been saying this since the Gamecube days, and what happened after that? Nintendo Wii. This link[1] has an enumeration of quotes saying things like "Nintendo should stop making hardware", dating back from <i>2003</i>.<p>[1]: <a href="http://kotaku.com/5986942/nintendos-doomed-they-should-go-third+partysaid-everyone-ever" rel="nofollow">http://kotaku.com/5986942/nintendos-doomed-they-should-go-th...</a><p><i>Footnote: I loathe Gawker as much as most people in here, but it's the only place I could find a compilation of such </i>quotes.
Meh, saying IOS is a gaming platform is a joke. It is a race to the bottom crapfest. There are good games among the chaff but seriously why would Nintendo go from 35 dollars a unit to 10 dollars or less a unit. They will not.
I hope that whatever happens to Nintendo, they keep making great games. The hardware needs to be "good enough" to not get in the way. As long as the games are fun, I will keep buying them.<p>We have a Nintendo 64, a GameCube, and a Wii in my apt, because there are versions of MarioKart and SmashBros that are best on a particular system. But the games, not the system, are the reason we keep them all.
Nah I disagree with this. I think Nintendo should instead open up the 3DS platform to indie developers, ala Android and iOS. There are top notch games on 3DS and there could be even more if they made it easier to develop and self publish.<p>Plus, gaming with buttons is so much better than touchscreen gaming, IMO.
I wonder why many Apple faithful are obsessed with what Nintendo does or doesn't do, should do or shouldn't do. Maybe they're secretly angry that the current CEO of Nintendo started programming on a Commodore PET, and not on an Apple device.
Worth reading if for no other thing this bit of wisdom followed by gaming company examples, like I use Microsoft and its Office competitors after the introduction of Windows 3.0 showed they'd lost their ability to write software that basically worked:<p>"<i>Over the last few years, I’ve learned a lot about competition. The biggest lesson has been that in most cases, products and companies live and die by their own actions, not their competitors’.</i>"
I think a move away form physical media would be a first step. Secondly, the hardware and even software should double as a media center. Lastly, it would be awesome of they had a way to incorporate the 3ds as an optional controller for certain RPGs and such.<p>All in all, Nintendo may not have its former glory, but it's still a strong contender in the space. They just need to hit their stride again.
Can someone explain to me the argument that it's hardware margins that are vital to the bottom line for Nintendo and not software ones? It seems to me the opposite of usual truths when it comes to hardware margins vs software margins.
This is not going to happen as long as Nintendo is still making its own hardware. They are going to keep focusing on their own platform.<p>One could argue Nintendo should make games for the Xbox One / PlayStation 4 if these consoles outsell the Wii U as badly as it looks like they will. But they're not going to.<p>The reason Nintendo is flailing right now is that the 3DS released with poor battery life and too expensive. The Wii U released with no "must play" games even on the horizon, let alone available at launch. (Still only one side scrolling Mario game, no Zelda or 3D Mario even announced, and Mario Kart is a ways off.)<p>Marco is right that Nintendo did this to themselves, but both Marco and Gruber know nothing about Nintendo if they think there is any chance of them releasing any iOS games.