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GameCube (Games)

Nintendo May Do Anime 60

Posted by Zonk from the big-N-at-it-again dept.
Thanks to GameSpy for the news that former Nintendo President Hiroshi Yamauchi is planning to present a plan to the Board detailing Nintendo made anime series. The move is intended to provide diversification and increase earnings by linking their characters more closely with the anime market. The company also pleased investors by adjusting higher their profit forecast by almost 20 percent for the year. Nintendo now expects to report almost US$758.9 million for the year.
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Nintendo May Do Anime More

Nintendo May Do Anime

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  • Mario (Score:4, Insightful)

    by lexarius ( 560925 ) on Monday October 04, 2004 @02:53PM (#10431835)
    What, the Mario cartoons don't count as anime? As I recall there were also Zelda and Kirby cartoons. And who can forget Captain Nintendo? That stuff had to be made in Japan, right? Or is it that they are going to do it in-house instead of licensing it out?
    • I believe that a little known game called 'pokemon' might have been made into a TV series and some movies too?

      • Re:Mario (Score:2, Informative)

        by kisielk ( 467327 )
        I believe the Pokemon TV series spawned the games, and not vice versa.

        • Re:Mario (Score:1, Informative)

          by Anonymous Coward
          your belief is wrong.
        • Pokemon was not originally one of Nintendo's projects like Mario, Metroid, or Zelda, but an independent game. However, it did prove to be the best selling series on the Game Boy, and pretty quickly became one of their flagship products. So much so that Pikachu is probably more identified with the Gameboy consoles than any of Nintendo's traditional characters are.

    • Re:Mario (Score:3, Insightful)

      by Joe the Lesser ( 533425 )
      Ok, listen up.

      Made in Japan != Anime.

      Anime is a style. Not region based.

      • Re:Mario (Score:5, Informative)

        by Anonymous Coward on Monday October 04, 2004 @03:32PM (#10432282)
        Actually, all animation is anime to the Japanese. Ask many older Japanese what their favorite "anime" is, and you will VERY often hear "Tom & Jerry" as the response. It was broadcast in Japan after the war, and was enormously popular.

        To non-Japanese, "anime" normally means Japanese anime. If you refer to Korean animation or things like Kaena or Adam Warren stuff or MegaTokyo as "anime" to non-Japanese anime fans, they will correct you.

        I'm not sure how this all happened, but there you go.

        Also of note is that "manga" is the word that Japanese use for comics and comic-style art. In the U.S., you can refer to something being drawn in comic style or in realistic style. The Japanese have the same distinction, not because comic-style art can't be realistic, but because there are obvious differences regardless of where you grew up. They just use the term "manga" instead of "comic-style." And just to confuse the issue, most Westerners are in the habit of referring to "Japanese comic-style" art as "anime-style." That's the point where I give up on trying to understand those of my countrymen who would misundersand simple things that they're presumably so enthusiastic about.

        - AC
        • That's interesting.

          But I think professional cartoonists are able to distinguish, even if the common word in America is 'Cartoon' and the common word in Japan is 'Anime', I think most fans of animation should understand that Kenshin is quite different from Jackie Chan Adventures in content and artwork, and that isn't necessarily based upon the creator's locale.

        • Re:Mario (Score:1, Insightful)

          by Anonymous Coward
          The petulant use of "anime" by westerners goes hand in hand with the insistence that "anime" is mature and for grown ups, and really has NOTHING in common with kiddie cartoons, except that they both happen to be animated.

          Extra bonus funny that the Japanese themselves think anime is for kids or otaku (NOT a compliment). Except for Miyazaki of course!

    • Re:Mario (Score:2, Informative)

      by Anonymous Coward
      Nintendo, like many other game companies, has partnered with animation companies to produce weekly TV shows, movies, videos, etc. Yamauchi wants to pull all of that in-house and reap 100% of the benefits.

      I honestly don't remember the Mario and Captain N cartoons very much. Blasphemy, sure, but there you are. They were from my childhood, and I remember them sucking pretty much.

      Zelda was made in the U.S. If you think anyone in Kyoto had anything to do with " Well excuuuuuuuse me, princess [wellexcusemeprincess.com]!" you're as mis
    • The nice thing about this is we might finally get to see all the pron titles: Konkey Dong, Mario and the Princesspool. You know, quality stuff.

    • Re:Mario (Score:2, Interesting)

      by BIGmog ( 592353 )
      You can watch some streaming episodes of the Super Mario Bros Super Show as well as Zelda here [yahoo.com].

  • Hehehe (Score:5, Funny)

    by Moo Moo Cow of Death ( 778623 ) on Monday October 04, 2004 @02:58PM (#10431896) Journal
    What? Nintendo is doing anime? So we're going to see Mario with 10 tentacle penis fingers and the Princess as a age old Sex Ninja that must fornicate with the evil Goombas and King Bowser in order to save the world from evil?

    (I would've linked this little bit right up but I'm at work and can't remember them offhand :D)
    • It scares me to think what else might be in your bookmarks at home...
    • The type of animation you are referring to is "hentai" anime, hentai of course being the Japanese word for pervert, which is a whole different breed. Contrary to popular belief, anime and hentai are NOT synonymous.

  • Didn't they already try this? (Score:4, Interesting)

    by gzsfrk ( 519324 ) on Monday October 04, 2004 @03:00PM (#10431915)
    I remember waking up on the Saturday morning that "Captain N--The Game Master" was to premiere. I recall even as a kid being appalled at how bad the animation was, how poorly written the characters were, and feeling almost insulted that this crap was expected to cause me to go out in feverish anticipation to buy the crudely represented stalwarts of Nintendo's game lines.

    As I recall, the primary characters were from the Metroid (Mother Brain), Castlevania (Belmont), Punch-out (King Hippo), Kid Icarus (same), Megaman (same), and ... Zelda (Princess--?) games. I know there's a couple other regulars on the show that I'm forgetting. Donkey Kong was one, wasn't he?

    Same song, different generational beat... =)
    • As I recall, the primary characters were from the Metroid (Mother Brain), Castlevania (Belmont), Punch-out (King Hippo), Kid Icarus (same), Megaman (same), and ... Zelda (Princess--?) games. I know there's a couple other regulars on the show that I'm forgetting. Donkey Kong was one, wasn't he?

      I don't recall Donkey Kong being a regular on the show. I do remember there being a short lived Donkey Kong cartoon though.

      As for other regulars, there was the Eggplant wizard from Kid Icarus who always hung out

  • Makes sense. (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday October 04, 2004 @03:17PM (#10432118)
    In the past year, Nintendo had recently been on-again in their off-again, on-again talks to acquire majority control of family-run entertainment conglomerate Bandai. Bandai is the sole owner of so many properties with worldwide appeal that it's no wonder.

    Yamauchi isn't just talking about anime, either. If Nintendo follows his advice (which is all it really is, at this point, since he's no longer really running the show), they would be branching off into full-blown film, video, and toy production and distribution as well. Bandai, the number 2 toy maker in the U.S. alone (not to mention Asian region), would have instant competition and Nintendo would likely be rolling in gold.

    On another note, it's important for us level-headed folk to recognize that the reason Nintendo has increased their profit forecast so impressively is because of foreign exchange rates. All those doom & gloom Nintendo detractors that predicted their end due solely on their one recent unprofitable quarter should remember this. Nintendo holds considerable American investments, so a strong dollar is actually far better for them than a strong yen. Now that the yen has weakened again, they are seeing the benefits. Basically, they rise and fall on the power of the dollar, not that of the yen. Sony, who is in the same predicament, also saw a bad quarter along with Nintendo, whereas now navi should fare better along with Nintendo as well.
    • Yeah, there have been periods where the strong yen has put ninty on the red, and many idiots start saying OMG N1ntendo is teh dead!

      Now, that Yen is weak, and all those euros and dollars count a lot, and Nintendo has proved themselves with the ds, it woudl be a wise move to diverify.

      Nintendo has also made anime before. The pokemon anime is a great success, and has helped the game outside japan.
  • Does anyone else remember that show? I remember watching it in the mid 80's. (Sorry, I was little.)
  • Where're all the people that come around to say that Nintendo is irrelevant and going out of business? Almost a billion dollars in revenue? I guess they just barely staved off death for one more year.
    • Nintendo's the Apple Computer of console gaming. Or least it's become that in the last few years.

      And before you flame, I have one of each: GC, Xbox, PS2, MacOS X, Win XP, Linux.

      And no, I don't have time to use any of them.

      I'm currently awaiting a wife and kids so I can look back at how relaxing this period of my life is.

      • I'm currently awaiting a wife and kids so I can look back at how relaxing this period of my life is.

        Well if you read slashdot you'll be waiting for a long, long time. Might as well just give up on the idea, eh?

        zosX

      • Nintendo's the Apple Computer of console gaming. Or least it's become that in the last few years.

        Yeah, Nintendo's consoles and games are quite a well-working brand, they're generally praised for their rather good quality, they have a large group of extremely rabid fans... and just like Apple, Nintendo has been "dying" for quite a while now. =)

  • Pokemon? (Score:4, Interesting)

    by 2nd Post! ( 213333 ) <gundbear.pacbell@net> on Monday October 04, 2004 @04:08PM (#10432719) Homepage
    I'm surprised no one is mentioning Pokemon!
  • They need to first create a coherent Internet strategy spearheaded by a Pokemon, Zelda, or Mario based MMORPG at least on par with Final Fantasy [playonline.com] and Second Life [secondlife.com]. Only then shall I permit this fragmentation of attention! This..this... childish insolence!
    • A Zelda MMORPG, perhaps with Wind Waker-esque cell shaded graphics, coupled with a cartoon drawn in the same style with the same characters/locations as in the game would be an instant hit. As long as the game wasn't TOO kiddy (easy and cheesy), and the cartoon was done so that it appealed to preteen kids, adult swim junkies, and anime fans.

      It would be even better if it was on the DS... since it has built in wireless networking, voice chat, etc, etc, and would also give it what no other MMORPG has, portabil

      • Gah, now I can't stop thinking about how cool a DS Zelda MMORPG would be. Thanks!

        hahahaaa!! I know!

        Yeah hey if it was simply done in Nintendo fashion, I think any of those franchises would just nail it. And that's part of the "problem" -- Nintendo can't do anything without doing it 100000%. It's all or nothing. They have such engaging characters with enriching relationships that you actually care about. Think of Epona in Zelda64, whose life you touch in so many ways. Her song is ingrained in you

        • I forgot to mention that FFXI also goes a long way toward promoting nonviolence as an in-game lifestyle and society. They have guilds based on magic, art, and cooking. They even have pseudogames to unite all in-game nationalities that exist for the purpose of celebrating nonviolence and unity. And it'll continue over time.

          In the meantime, Second Life [secondlife.com] is a fully scriptable and physics-enabled virtual world with optional damage-enabled zones, where players can create their own RPG and other lifestyle env

        • Gah, as I sat around having dinner I was thinking about this some more... The Wind Waker game world is perfect for a MMORPG... Link isn't actually in it anywhere, the coming of age ceremony puts you in Link-like cloths, and you start out as a 'kid' who likely grew up hearing tales of how great the Hero Link's adventures were... So you have a world where everyone can basically be Link, but have a valid in-game reason for it.

          Add to this the fact that the world is completely made up of smallish islands, and s

          • The only downside is that it'd only run on Nintendo hardware, and I don't have a Gamecube. But I'd get one just for that! A Zelda appliance!
            • Well, a GC is only liek $80 or something like that now. I still think this would be perfectly suited to the DS, and would make the DS a must have system... Or, they could do a FF deal and bundle a Zelda MMO w/ a broadband adaptor and some sort of massive special memory card or something...

              Which makes me think... if there was to be a DS MMO, you would need something to hold data locally, more than the game's flashcard would probably have available... I wonder if it would be feasable to have DS games come w

          • Look at it this way... Pretty much by definition, an MMORPG can't have a progressing story line, only a rather static backstory. Otherwise new players would constantly be joining in the middle of storylines, missing all the "fun" because they have to level up while the early players are already spanking Ganon. A "looping" story wouldn't appeal because MMORPG players tend to insist that the worlds persist, and I don't think they have the resources (technical, financial, or creative) the be constantly making
    • I've suggested a Pokemon based MMORPG before. [slashdot.org] Personally I think it'd be a natural choice for a game concept that practically screams MMORPG as it is. And say what you will about the series, the first Pokemon game was extremely innovative and a lot of fun, whatever your age or maturity level.
  • A lot of people here bringing up other nintendo-related cartoons have existed for a long time. This is a business story on how they plan to start producing the anime themselves. That's a very considerable decision.

    What it means to me most interestingly is that the two art forms, anime and games will be brought closer together overall through talent working side by side as opposed to through 3rd party proxies. I can't entirely see how this might make games any better. It would seem to increase the likli

  • mario (Score:3, Informative)

    by bludstone ( 103539 ) on Monday October 04, 2004 @04:41PM (#10433230)
    op:

    Hey, paesanos! It's The Super Mario Brothers Super Show! We're the Mario Brothers, and plumbing's our game, we're not like the others who get all the fame. If your sink is in trouble, you can call us on the double, we're faster than the others, you'll be hooked on the Brothers! Uh! You'll be hooked on the Brothers Gimme gimme, gimme gimme! You're in for a treat, so hang on to your seat. Get ready for adventures and remarkable feats. You'll meet Koopas, the Troopas, the Princess, and the others, hangin' with the plumbers, you'll be hooked on the Brothers! To the brink! Uh! Uh! Huh, huh, I said hoo-hoo-hoo-hoo-hooked on the Brothers!

    end:

    Do the Mario! Swing your arms from side to side. Come on, it's time to go. Do the Mario! Take one step, and then again. Let's do the Mario, all together now! You got it! It's the Mario! Do the Mario! Swing your arms from side to side. Come on, it's time to go. Do the Mario! Take one step, and then again. Let's do the Mario, all together now! Come on now. Just like that!
    • You forgot one:

      Cartoon start:
      We're the Mario Brothers, and pluming's our game. Found a secret warp zone while workin' on the drain. Lend the princess a hand in the mushroom land, drummin' action with the plumbers you'll be hooked on the brothers. Uh! Now, Evil Koopa and his troopas are up to misbehavin, they kidnapped the princess, Mushroom Land needs' savin'. [Beat some confusion] and everybody discovers, you can't [cut the bus] to be hooked on the brothers! Uh!

      Garbled lyrics enclosed in square brackets.

  • anime? (Score:1, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward
    so do we get to see Samus Aran tentacle-raped by Metroids?
  • I think it would be very cool to do a Legend of Zelda cartoon, even if it was in the styling of Wind Waker.
  • In other news Microsoft fires back by releasing soft-porn flicks. Well at least they both know their target audience.
  • Is it going to be in black and red 3D?

    BaltikaTroika

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