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GameCube (Games) Portables (Games) Entertainment Games

Nintendo - Money, Announcements, Comeback? 58

Posted by simoniker from the everything's-not-lost dept.
Thanks to GameSpy for their new 'Sole Food column, which discusses Nintendo's recent announcements and their prospects for the future. They point out that "Despite the large number of 'Nintendo-is-doomed' articles written over the last few years, the company still has a ton of cash (around six-billion USD by most reports)", and speculate on the 'big announcement' Nintendo are promising early next year ("Initially, the buzz was that it will be announcing a new console to be released in 2005. Lately, the buzz has shifted to a new handheld announcement.") Finally, the opinion piece ends on an upbeat note: "If any company is capable of making a comeback, it's Nintendo. It has the money and the talent. It just needs to strategize better to ensure that its future consoles appeal to a broad audience."
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Nintendo - Money, Announcements, Comeback? More

Nintendo - Money, Announcements, Comeback?

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  • I hope not. Didn't the Gameboy Advance SP JUST come out? Maybe the announcement will be actually acknowledging the fact that the Gamecube is capable of online game play?

    At least give us a Mario game other than Sunshine!

    • Re:New Handheld? (Score:3, Interesting)

      by Gr33nNight ( 679837 )
      Nintendo has been working on a true sequel to Mario 64 (called Mario 128...imagine that) for close to 3 years now. Rumor is, is that Mario Sunshine was originally suppose to be for the ill-fated 64DD added for the N64, but was retooled as a GameCube game when they realized the 64DD was toast.

      Miyamoto said back in E3 that they were ready to show some clips of the game in action, but backlash from showing Zelda early taught Nintendo to not show anything until they were ready.
    • The SP just came out but the GBA platform itself is a couple of years old already.
  • I wish these guys the best of luck. I've wanted to see a rad new console from them since they axed the SNES. The N64 and GC just dont' have the software I want right now, If they start to attract the developers that the PS2 and Xbox have then they will be a player in the console arena again.

  • Nintendo? Fail? Like junk mail, maybe. (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Asprin ( 545477 ) <(moc.oohay) (ta) (dlonrasg)> on Tuesday August 12, 2003 @06:15PM (#6680324) Homepage Journal

    Irrelevant!

    Even if Nintendo's consoles tank, they will still be around for years to come because they know how to design games. They'll just pull a Sega and we'll all be playing Animal Crossing 3 on our Playstation 5 Mega-Media Centers in a few years.

    • Re:Nintendo? Fail? Like junk mail, maybe. (Score:5, Interesting)

      by The Munger ( 695154 ) on Tuesday August 12, 2003 @07:59PM (#6681121) Homepage
      They sure do know how to make a decent game. I recently borrowed a GameCube of a friend (mine's a PS1). Two of the games I got with it were Super Monkey Ball and Mario Party. I'm a gamer through-and-through, but my girlfriend is not.

      Enter SMB:
      Girlfriend: Can we play some more SMB?
      Me: Sure, but do you want to try MP?
      Girlfriend: No, let's just play some more SMB.
      After convincing her to play a round of MP:
      Girlfriend: Hey, that was pretty fun. Let's play that again.
      Me: Sweeeeeet

      So after thinking about updating the PS1 for a while, after 2 days of a GameCube, GF says 'Let's get a GameCube.' Suddenly that PS2 and Xbox have just slipped out of my mind.

      Sure the PS2 may have the sheer number of games, and the Xbox may be able to show off my shiny Home Theatre gear, but the GameCube has games that me and my friends want to play the most.

      Now, if I could only convince her of just how good a game Metroid is...
  • Don't strategize, innovate! Synergize! Focus on your core competencies and maximize ROI! Mmm, yeah, I $mell profit!

  • Here we go (Score:3, Funny)

    by JGag21 ( 678945 ) on Tuesday August 12, 2003 @06:18PM (#6680355)
    Mandatory Nintendo needs to drop "kiddy image" comments in 3....2....1....

    • Re:Here we go (Score:5, Insightful)

      by neostorm ( 462848 ) on Tuesday August 12, 2003 @06:31PM (#6680459)
      They have fully embraced all levels of maturity in entertainment, but Nintendo will forever create first party games that are acceptable to all audiences simultaneously. They really have never created "games for kids", so what really needs to be dropped here is the concept that colorfully animated, easily playable video games are "for kids only".

  • Lets see, nintendo's market is japan. Japan loves gadgets and things they can use in trains where space is limited but where you spend some time.

    A current extension allows you to watch videos on youre gba but lets face it is has never been designed for this.

    So maybe a small, think between gba/ipod size entertainment center? A bigger screen, perhaps lighting. A decent battery, maybe even a hd or something like mini discs to store the movies on? Add as gba cartridge slot and you got all the entertainment yo

    • A GBA playing MP3s would work about as well as a PS2 playing DVDs [slashdot.org]. If you want an iPod, get an iPod. Leave my game console alone.
    • You might be right about Japan's fascination with handheld gadgets, but a device such as you describe would stray way too far - primarily in terms of concept and price - from what the GB/GBC/GBA's core audience expects and would cost them more customers than it would attract.

      Believe it or not, Nintendo knows EXACTLY what they're doing in the handheld market and are probably best served by "staying the course" in that area. While Sony's plan for the PSP is ambitious and interesting, the truth is that it's

  • comeback? (Score:5, Insightful)

    by H0NGK0NGPH00EY ( 210370 ) on Tuesday August 12, 2003 @06:37PM (#6680510) Homepage
    "If any company is capable of making a comeback, it's Nintendo. It has the money and the talent. It just needs to strategize better to ensure that its future consoles appeal to a broad audience."

    I really don't understand the mindset of people when it comes to Nintendo. They have a great line of products, loyal fans, and ca$h in the bank. Even though their sales are far behind Sony in the home console market, they are still turning a decent profit on the GameCube. Why do people seem to have the obsession that Nintendo must have the #1 selling console, or that this should even be Nintendo's goal? I don't see the local flower shop strategizing over how to overtake all of their competitors and rise to the top flower distributor in the nation. Sometimes a company is content just to make a great product and turn a profit. Not that I really know if that is Nintendo's mindset, but I certainly wouldn't be surprised.
    • Well, here's the thing. Nintendo was #1. With the garbage N64 (I had one and left it outside in the rain, I played it so little.) they really took a hit. The GameCube was supposed to be their return to dominance...but they've found the market a bit more competitive than they expected.

      I don't think Nintendo's hurting though. Not in the least. I do however, think they STILL have being #1 on their sights. I don't think Nintendo is satisfied with the plan of action you suggest, but I also don't think the
      • "With the garbage N64 (I had one and left it outside in the rain, I played it so little.)"

        Looks like the N64 failed the Outside Gaming Test.

        Maybe that's the new innovation! A tough, waterproof Gamecube for playing in the rain while climbing up Kilimanjaro! An untapped market...

    • Re:comeback? (Score:1, Insightful)

      by JGag21 ( 678945 )
      "Why do people seem to have the obsession that Nintendo must have the #1 selling console, or that this should even be Nintendo's goal?"

      No way, as soon as anyone stops trying to be the best, quality starts to drop.

      "I don't see the local flower shop strategizing over how to overtake all of their competitors and rise to the top flower distributor in the nation."

      Big difference there. Flower shops really don't sell unique products. Just advice and whatever plants can live in their area. Nintendo, has to t

      • They're still trying to be the best. It's just from an artistic side as opposed to a strictly commercial side.

        That's their philosophy, believe it or not, and that goes behind everything.

        Maybe eventually the flow will get back behidn them, and to be honest I think it will. But the style is non-Nintendo, right now, and they don't want to sell out.

        Good for them I say.

        • Re:comeback? (Score:3, Informative)

          by Babbster ( 107076 )
          Oh COME on! I'm all for Nintendo being successful but let's not fool ourselves. If Nintendo was not a "strictly commercial" business, they would release Pokemon games in complete form rather than splitting a few things off into a separate package and call it by a different name. If Nintendo were mainly in it for the "artistic side," then they wouldn't force third parties to make Gamecube games in order to sell GBA games. If Nintendo wasn't in it for the almighty dollar (and yen), they would have enabled
          • No one is saying that Nintendo doesn't care about the profit. But I think everyone here will agree that Nintendo DOES care about the quality of their games more than Sony or MS does.
    • Well, the key difference there is that the local flower shop isn't a publicly held company. Nintendo has an obligation to maximize their profits by whatever means necessary. In a perfect world, they could just fill their little niche, make a "good enough" profit and everyone would be happy. But that's not the way it is.
    • well, 1. the gba is actaully OUTSELLING the ps2 in japan, with the gc and the original gba selling very very well. in japan, those 3 units are 3 out of the top 4 gaming systems being sold, with the ps2 at number 2, and xbox at 5...

      and no, nintendo doesn't NEED to have the number 1 spot, but they are a corporation, and they are in it for money, and the higher you are on the food chain, the more money you get...
    • it's the same attitude that most folks have about apple -- they only have littleX% of the market, down from bigX%, so they must be dying. Never mind that they post a profit, have die-hard loyalist customers, and have X billion in the bank. They're well known for the design and work they put in to their products, which is legendary on a few accounts.

      Really, same sh*t different company.

  • Holographic Display (Score:3, Informative)

    by neostorm ( 462848 ) on Tuesday August 12, 2003 @06:44PM (#6680549)
    A couple years ago (E3 2000 or 2001 I think), Nintendo showed off a holographic display for the gamecube. They mentioned it's future consumer availability several times, and with all their PR speeches about this upcoming announcement and how it will change the face of gaming (or some such nonsense), I woulnd't be surprised if this were it.

    Personally I don't believe gaming is ready for holographic projection. It's a great gimick, but until it's widely available in homes as a standard viewing medium, I don't think it will grow past its "cool gadget" stage.
    I truly hope this isn't Nintendos big announcement, because a more innovative product at a more affordable price would be far better to bring in more customers for the cube.
  • It's all about Demographics, really. Sony struck gold by marketing to 20+ year old gamers, making games they wouldn't feel silly playing (it's hard for a 27 year-old welder to play a cartoon peter pan running around rescuing a cartoon princess. But let him play a mobster capping other mobsters...)

    This is what Nintendo never got. Adults don't feel silly watching action movies and thus don't feel silly playing action movies. Adults do feel a little silly watching peter pan cartoons, and thus do feel sill
    • Nintendo DOES NOT MARKET TO KIDS. They market to EVERYONE. Seriously, I'm amazed at how people confuse a game playable by everyone to a game playable by only kids. A kiddie game is something like Elmo's Letter Adventures. It's made ONLY for kids to be played. A game like Super Mario Sunshine is made for EVERYONE. It's made to be enjoyable by kids, teens, AND adults. Just like Mario 64. Little kids played Mario 64, and they had fun, just like the millions of teens and adults that also play
      • The "Nintendo is Kiddie" argument is pretty shallow. But that doesn't stop a large segment of the gaming populace from feeling it's the truth.

        There's a lot of adults out there that feel silly playing games where the hero screeches italian stereotypes in an annoying falsetto. I personally think it's funny and just enjoy the gameplay, but I can't blame people for thinking it's annoying either.

        I can't blame adults for wanting to play golf as Tiger Woods instead of as a giant green dinosaur. I can't blame
        • Nintendo seems to think that somehow by making beautiful, misunderstood games that they will someday get those kind of people into their camp. The problem is that it will never work (just ask Sega). If they don't care about attracting those people, that's fine by me and I'll buy their hi-quality sparsely released stuff, but they'll have to settle for third place in the meantime.

          I have not yet found a single person that maintains the 'Nintendo is kiddie' opinion after sitting them down and having them play
          • I have not yet found a single person that maintains the 'Nintendo is kiddie' opinion after sitting them down and having them play a handful of games on the system.

            A lot of my older friends did enjoy Animal Crossing and Mario when I showed it to them and had them play it a little. But it wasn't like they said "OMG I MUST GET GAMECUBE NOW!" They mostly just said "oh, that's cool" and went back to playing Halo and MechAssault on their Xbox's or GT3 and GTA* on their PS2s

            Many older gamers recognize that N

      • Comment removed based on user account deletion
    • I don't think Nintendo wants to market to adults. There are a few adult games on the Cube (Resident evil for instance) but for the most part they don't care about the adult market. Suer they might not make the maximum amount of money they could by broadening their focus, but instead they are trying to lock up the kiddie market. There's plenty of money in making toys!

    • Re:Graphics and Demographics (Score:5, Insightful)

      by unclethursday ( 664807 ) on Wednesday August 13, 2003 @02:13AM (#6683189)
      It's all about Demographics, really. Sony struck gold by marketing to 20+ year old gamers, making games they wouldn't feel silly playing (it's hard for a 27 year-old welder to play a cartoon peter pan running around rescuing a cartoon princess. But let him play a mobster capping other mobsters...)

      29 year old heavy machinery operator here (and game reviewer/newsie on the side). I have no problems picking up Nintendo first party games. Neither do most of my friends who are of similar age, if not similar working enviroments.

      This is what Nintendo never got. Adults don't feel silly watching action movies and thus don't feel silly playing action movies. Adults do feel a little silly watching peter pan cartoons, and thus do feel silly manipulating a little guy with his green hood and tights.

      Maybe it's you who has a slight problem dealing with the things you mention, and not the whole world?

      You say that the M-rated games on the PSOne marketed the PSOne to the 20+ crowd....yet the fact is the real 20+ crowd buys games from any rating, from E all the way to M.

      You do know where the M rated games sell the most, though, right? The 12-16 crowd. Yep, teenagers, most barely old enough to shave or look at a girl without thinking about 'girl germs'. The real kiddies of the video game market.

      And they flock to blood and polygonal boobie filled games like flies to shit. And, while the oogle over the game and say how cool it is and beg mommy and daddy to buy it for them (because they aren't old enough to have a job), they'll scoff at the Nintendo stuff as 'kiddie'.

      Irony, your face is pimply.

      Thursdae

      • I could not mod this topic up enough if I had the points. Good arguments, great examples.

      • Buyer Demographics: Ninety-two percent of those who purchase console games are over the age of 18, and 98 percent of computer game buyers are over 18. Forty-seven percent of console game buyers and 57 percent of computer game buyers are women.

        Computer Player Demographics: Fifty-eight percent of computer game players are male, while 42 percent are female. Thirty percent are under 18 years old, 29 percent are 18 to 35, and 41 percent are over 36.

        Console Player Demographics: Seventy-two percent of console ga

    • Nintendo isn't all about "kids games" and you know what, a game for "adults" doesn't always have to have boobies and pimps in it.

      Nintendo has the titles, I bought my GC for Mario, Zelda, Mario-Kart and F-Zero. They keep pumping those out and I'll keep playing and buying.

      For me the only PS/2 game I'm looking foreward to is SOCOM 2.

      I can play the GC all day long and my hands don't hurt, the PS/2 controller really bugs me.

  • As in the GBA SP EX? (Score:3, Funny)

    by AlexMax2742 ( 602517 ) on Tuesday August 12, 2003 @11:55PM (#6682530)
    A new handheald?

    As in the GBA SP EX? [penny-arcade.com]

  • Making $95 Million last quarter($1 MILLION A DAY) is surely a bad thing! Where Sony's profits are down 98% and XBox is still reporting losses. ...

    $1,000,000.00 a DAY.

    $11.95 a SECOND ...

    That's BAD?
  • Comment removed based on user account deletion

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