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Nintendo Businesses Portables (Games) Sony

Nintendogs Pummels Sony Products 114

Posted by Zonk from the fuzzy-and-vicious dept.
Gamespot has the news that the hit DS title Nintendogs has allowed the Nintendo DS to pull ahead of the PSP and PS2 consoles for over a month straight. In the week Nintendogs was launched, the DS outsold the PSP and PS2 combined in the nation of Japan. Several weeks after its initial launch, the DS is still outselling the PSP by 5,000-sum units. Those of us in the states still have a little while to wait to see the cuteness firsthand. From the article: "The game is sold in different editions, each housing roughly five types of puppies, from Chihuahuas to Labrador retrievers. As a virtual owner, gamers will pet their pooches using the stylus, order commands through the integrated microphone, and let their canines sniff other gamers' Nintendogs wirelessly. Nintendogs is scheduled to roll over to the US on August 22."
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Nintendogs Pummels Sony Products More

Nintendogs Pummels Sony Products

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  • But who buys it? (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Dogers ( 446369 ) on Friday June 03, 2005 @10:41AM (#12714351)
    This months Edge has a fact that the Japanese "teeny boppers" control fads out there..

    If 5% of them buy it, then another 60% will within a month, or something to that effect!

    • Re:But who buys it? (Score:4, Insightful)

      by Doomstalk ( 629173 ) on Saturday June 04, 2005 @12:41AM (#12721340)
      That's what we call a killer app. Even if the fad dies away, they've still sold a lot of games and, more importantly, A LOT of hardware. If they've got the system, they're that much more likely to try and get their money's worth by buying more games. Furthermore, it makes the DS that much more appealing of a platform, since it's got a massive installed base. Case and point, look at the original Gameboy: they hooked people with Tetris and (much later) Pokemon, and then from there they just kept buying games. It also proves Nintendo's point about grabbing non-traditional gamers. There's a huge untapped market out there that's willing to try games, but just doesn't like stuff like GTA and Doom 3. If you can grab them, you're poised to make a lot of money - more than you could ever make with just the hardcore gamer crowd, which is miniscule compared to, say, the portion of the population that buys CDs, or goes to movies.

  • Soooo... (Score:3, Informative)

    by igrp ( 732252 ) on Friday June 03, 2005 @10:44AM (#12714386)
    ... in essence, it's a next-generation, WiFi-enabled tamagotchi [wikipedia.org], right?

    The screenshots (GIS [google.com]) sure look interesting though. Very clean, polished PDA-like interface that sort of reminds me of an 'OS X' application. I thought they would market a game like this towards a younger target demograhic (ie. kids ages 4-14) but, judging from the UI, it doesn't appear the case.

  • so nintendo =/= teh d00m3d?!?!

  • Very expensive Tamagotchi.
    • Nintendogs, like Pokemon, is gunning for global domination. After its release in Japan it got a perfect 40/40 in Japanese games mag Weekly Famitsu and sold more than 100,000 copies in three days. This kind of stuff doesnt happen to agame thats just a daft Tamagotchi rip off. This only happens to killer games and Nintendogs is just that. Its not a cute and fluffy poodle- it's a rabid German Shepherd dog thats going to take the games industry by the throat and shake it into submision.
  • Didn't we already decide that tomagotchi's or whatever they were called are a waste of space? Only in Tokyo would feeding a virtual dog be considered entertainment.

    • Re:Tomagotchi (Score:4, Insightful)

      by theREALMcCoy ( 817988 ) on Friday June 03, 2005 @11:14AM (#12714681)
      Apparently, most would disagree with you. The desire to be a virtual care taker, whether of a family unit (Sims), an empire (Civilization), or a Pet drives more game sales than any other genre.
      • I can't say the Sims is that diffrent, but Civilization is a strategy game. It is in a whole diffrent league. It has some good simulation elements, but it is pretty much just a really nice strategy game with a turn based system.

    • It's an improvement! (Score:5, Funny)

      by sneakers563 ( 759525 ) on Friday June 03, 2005 @01:14PM (#12716234)
      Still, it's a step up over a real cat.

      • Re:It's an improvement! (Score:4, Funny)

        by tktk ( 540564 ) on Friday June 03, 2005 @05:04PM (#12718413)
        It'd be simple to make a NintenCats.

        Change the dog graphics to cats, and then turn off the responses to any inputs.

        • In the movie "As Good as it Gets", Jack Nicholson plays a writer. Some fan comes up to him gushing about how well he portrays female characters, and asks him how he does it. His insta-classic response (Paraphrased as best as I remember it):

          "I think of a male, then I remove all reason and accountability"

          I nearly pissed myself laughing at that.
    • Well, considering that you can teach your dogs tricks using the microphone, participate in various events with it, and allow multiple dogs to interact with each other in the same room, it's got a *bit* more going for it than a Tamagotchi. Tamagotchis are interesting in direct proportion to what the pet itself is capable of. Word is, they've actually done a pretty good job of modelling dog behavior, though I'm sure it's not perfect. (And the tricks seems to be hardcoded into the system, though there are a

  • Nintendogs? (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Momoru ( 837801 ) on Friday June 03, 2005 @11:12AM (#12714657) Homepage Journal
    Can they really prove its Nintendogs that is causing this? Maybe just the initial excitement of PSP has worn off (or everyone that wanted one got one), and Nintendo just rose back to the top in the handheld console world.

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

      by theREALMcCoy ( 817988 )
      Very good point. This last week, Nintendogs didn't even make it into the top ten in Japan. A Gundam game and a puzzle/quiz game did.
      http://www.nintendojo.com/infocus/view_item.php?11 17771961 [nintendojo.com]
    • Yes, yes they can. Remember, we're talking about Japan here. Where in the US something like Katamari or Nintendogs will be a cult hit by people who can get over themselves and enjoy something that is fun. In Japan people go crazy for it and buy a zillion copies. Why do you think japanese culture is becoming the awesome stuff that US geeks love?

      I predict that Nintendogs will sell well to people in the US, but only to people who wouldn't be embarassed to be caught playing it.
      • Why do you think japanese culture is becoming the awesome stuff that US geeks love?

        Because geeks have questionable taste?

        In all seriousness, my theory is that the reason that geeks are disproportionately attracted to Japanese popular culture is that Japanese popular culture is uniquely insular; by that I mean, more of it is designed to consumed alone, in private. Typical American games, by contrast, are more often designed to be played socially, with a group of friends, while hanging out together or as p

        • GTA the most american game there is is the most single player game there is.

          Nintendogs is a wireless multiplayer game. In fact, most nintendo games are social experiences, mario party, mario tennis, FF:CC, four swords. Playstation and XBoX seem to have the single player games like the RPGs and the 3d platform shooters and such. And Nintendo is more popular in japan.

          Your point has much merit, but not in this case.

          • Re:Nintendogs? (Score:3, Insightful)

            by DeadScreenSky ( 666442 )
            GTA the most american game there is is the most single player game there is.
            Um, shouldn't "the most american game" out there at least be made by Americans?
        • Funny thing is that Americans form groups and band together to consume Japanese pop culture.

          Most people I know of who bought the virtual pet software like Catz and Dogz were adults.
    • Nintendogs' success came beginning the week of April 18th, the same week DS sales spiked. It was the #4, #5 and #6 game, among all games sold in Japan, for that week. It seems fairly likely that Nintendogs was behind the DS' success.

      The DS' continued sales lead over the PSP is probably due, mostly, to other things. That "quiz game" mentioned is actually Work Your Brain, which is based off of a self-help book and is intended as a sort of IQ-raising training program. Something I, myself, would like to pl
    • I've heard that Nintendogs got a perfect score in Famitsu. I only know of 4 other games that accomplished such a feat. (Soul Calibur, Vagrant Story, Zelda: OoT, and Zelda: WW). Perfect scores just aren't that easy to come by.

  • Good to see Nintendo's strategy working (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Andy_R ( 114137 ) on Friday June 03, 2005 @11:17AM (#12714701) Homepage Journal
    While Microsoft and Sony are pouring billions into hardware, which they expect to lead to game sales, Nintendo keep on doing what they always have done, making games their first priority, and hardware second.

    Maybe Nintendogs is the next in the line of Pokemon/Zelda/Mario/Tetris, maybe it's not. The point is that Nintendo is putting it's effort into coming up with this stuff while the other 2 players are competing over how many extra polys they can render in their new WW2 FPS game.

    I can see Nintendo winning the next gen war by making a good, cheap console with great games that PS3 and Xbox360 owners buy as their second machine.
    • Yes Nintendo is software 1st, hardware 2nd. But their games are also Japan first, everybody else 2nd.

      How about a focus group research to see what people outside Japan really want to play. More than half their games are so anime-ish with a stronger appeal for kids than adult.

      • My thoughts exactly. My suspicion is that many Nintendo fanboys are actually just fans of Japanese popular culture, which Nintendo delivers more of than other consoles. What they sometimes may forget is that they are a decided minority, and that for people like myself, who are rather indifferent to Japanese popular culture, this emphasis can be a bug, not a feature.
        • My suspicion is that many Nintendo fanboys are actually just fans of Japanese popular culture

          Well, some might call me a Nintendo fanboy (though not a frothing blind one) and I hate anime and manga.

          I find that I stick by Nintendo because they have a track record of making solid games, innovating genres, and not disappointing me. I think the only games that I mourn not being able to play are GTA and Katamari Damancy.

          If I was a sports gamer or FPS fan, I might have a different opinion, but those genr

      • Re:Good to see Nintendo's strategy working (Score:4, Insightful)

        by Phisbut ( 761268 ) on Friday June 03, 2005 @01:09PM (#12716183)
        How about a focus group research to see what people outside Japan really want to play.

        What I'd actually like to see is more japanese games being released outside of Japan. Japanese game designers have very, very weird ideas (think Katamari), and that's what makes a cool varied set of games. Unfortunately, only a small portion of those games ever get officially distributed out of Japan.

    • The only place Nintendo has really been behind in hardware is using a cartridge for the n64.

      The gamecube has moderately lower specifications than the money losing Xbox, but it's best looking games, such as Metriod Prime, look better, IMO, than a game such as HALO.

      Nintendo has been the first in introducing most new controller features that and now standards. (d-pad, analog control stick, shoulder buttons, analog triggers, rumble, four controller ports)

      It does appear their hardware will be less powerfull
    • What in the world are you talking about? I hardly think that Nintendo puts games first and hardware second. They consistantly put out quality hardware. And as far as Nintendo putting effort in to games while MS and Sony are not is a fairly ridiculous statement. Sony and MS are not in the business of making games like Nintendo is. Sure, there are some games with MS on it, but they are just companies that they bought. I want Sony and MS to put their focus on hardware, that is all they have to freaking c

    • When you buy a Gamecube, what games do you want? Metroid, Mario, and Zelda. All first party games. A PS2? Grand Theft Auto, Final Fantasy, Gran Tourismo. An Xbox? KOTOR, Halo, and Fable. With the arguable exception of Halo, all third party.

      Nintendo knows the best games on their system are going to be their own, so they make their hardware cheap and simple and move on to the games. Playstations and Xboxes are sold because most of the great games from a lot of developers go there instead. So they make their

  • I just checked out Nintendo's game list for the DS [nintendo.com], and it only has like 26 games currently available (though it has about 100 announced), and the PSP only has 32 [playstation.com] currently available, with only 9 other games announced. This doesn't take into account the quality of any of the games.

    The only advantage I can see going for the DS right now is the fact that you can play a huge catalog of GBA games. But if you're going to do that, why not just get a used GBA SP and save $90? I'm sure they will go back in forth,

    • But if you're going to do that, why not just get a used GBA SP and save $90?

      Because then you wouldn't be able to play DS games _or_ PSP games? If you're looking at it from the perspective of which next-gen handheld to get the presence of GBA games on the DS is motivation to get a DS rather than a PSP, not a motivation to get neither.

    • Re:Way to early to call this race (Score:4, Insightful)

      by deinol ( 210478 ) on Friday June 03, 2005 @12:12PM (#12715559) Homepage
      This doesn't take into account the quality of any of the games.

      And quality is where it really matters. There are a ton more games for the PS2 than the GameCube. But I buy about the same ammount of both. So far, there have been several titles that have tempted me to pick up a DS, but nothing at all to make me even look at the PSP. So often people buy a console for a single game they like, then look around at the others once they have it.

      Personally, I like supporting a variety of consoles. Having several big companies vying for my attention means a larger variety of titles for me to choose from.
    • "But if you're going to do that, why not just get a used GBA SP and save $90?"

      Because I'd like to play Nintendogs and I can't do that on an SP or a PSP?
      • actually the diffence between a used sp and a ds is $50 at least at gamestop. used psps are like $199 its not even a race. i am sure nintendo profits from every unit sold and sony lose a bit of cash. Making up for it with umd movie sales and such.

  • Wonder if the PSP will be helped (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Bloomy ( 714535 ) on Friday June 03, 2005 @11:28AM (#12714875)
    by the release of porn [gamesindustry.biz] on UMD.
  • Games that have great appeal and will sell huge amounts of units that cannot be replicated on a PSP.

    Obviously, this is not for typical hard core gamers, but I dont think Nintendo much cares if its getting its money from a 19 year old acne ridden starwars geek or a 32 year old soccer mom.

    This game probably wont do quite as well in North America, however. It will do quite well if Nintendo can get demo units exposed to the kind of gamer that would buy it.

    END COMMUNICATION
  • The PSP just needs a killer app and it would easly take the lead. Looks dont make games but it sure helps alot - the PSP hands down the games look better. The DS is not taking advange of its hardware. Where is the DS verson of Bejewled or all those other puzzle games that most people play. The DS could also make some nice RTS game or a real verson of the Sims and Simcity.
    • Bejeweled = Zookeeper As for killer apps, the PSP has GTA on the way. After that I can't think of another killer app, unless a Final Fantasy game (not UMD movie) is in the works. Meanwhile, DS has Animal Crossing, Mario Kart, Castlevania, Metroid:Hunters, Zelda DS, Viewtiful Joe DS, Meteos, Nintendogs, Mario DS, Sonic Rush....the list is pretty extensive. The portable war will be interesting when GBA2 drops. I'm curious about how Nintendo plans to deal with that. Originally their stance on the DS was
      • I agree completely. I see no killer apps for the PSP on the horizon. Not even GTA. The thing is, why would a developer pour millions into creating a high quality PSP game, when they could direct those dollars (or Yen as the case may be) to creating a quality PS2 or PS3 game that will assuradly sell. It just costs too much to create a flashy game for PSP.
        On the other hand, the DS can provide a great gaming experience with substantially lower dev costs.

      • As for killer apps, the PSP has GTA on the way. After that I can't think of another killer app

        Lumines.

  • I'm sorry but this game just looks like fun. Yeah, it's a tamagotchi, and that's girly-cute and been done before. As a gamer, I should of course shun it at all costs and go buy the next truly innovative FPS that allows you pick your nose with realistic booger textures.

    Sorry, but I'm in it for the game, and the fun of it. I'm sure I'll have to purchase another copy just for the girl. Maybe get her one of those nifty new electric blue DSes [amazon.com]

    • electric blue DSes

      Sonofabitch. That's what I get for being an early adopter.

      Although, maybe me girlfriend would want one, especially if Nintendogs has any multiplayer.

  • Disappointing PSP sales (Score:4, Interesting)

    by metamatic ( 202216 ) on Friday June 03, 2005 @12:40PM (#12715861) Homepage Journal
    Personally, I think the disappointing PSP sales have more to do with the fact that Sony seems to expect you to buy the thing without getting a chance to see it first.

    Nintendo has made sure there are DS systems in every major store, showing the latest games. I've yet to see a PSP at all; all the stores have tons of boxes sitting in locked display cases, but apparently Sony thinks people will drop $250 on a toy without seeing it first.
    • These are Japanese numbers. Not US. They have demos in Japan
    • At several places, ive asked if they have a demo of the PSP. There seems to be one floating around in every store, and they'll let you test it. My big question is if they will let you try the unit you are going to buy (no dead pixels please)
    • There's a PSP playable at my local Best Buy, but that's the only one I've seen. It was tethered down with two big plastic bands covering 1/4 of the screen. The analog nub was completely broken off, and the screen was pretty scratched up. I started up the demo, but it took so long to load that I went to play Wario Ware Touched for a while. Needless to say, I wasn't too impressed by the hands-on. The graphics were nice, but the durability and loading times made it a pretty disappointing experience.
  • Who would want to buy something like this...

    (Looks at screen shots [gamershell.com])

    OMG! Puppies! Cute!

    OK, maybe I can understand the appeal of this to crazy dog people like me. Darn it, now I'm pondering getting a DS.
    • OK, maybe I can understand the appeal of this to crazy dog people like me.

      I think it's a silly game! I'm holding out until they release Nintencats :)

  • This fight has been discussed tons over at PSP Hacks [psp-hacks.com] in their forums. They are obviously biased to the PSP but some good points have been made.
  • I love how this post (and other pro-Nintendo posts) bring out the anti-Nintendo fanboys in SWARMS. It's hilarious to see them all get upset at Nintendo for doing so well. I love it.

    I've been watching this game very closely for a few months now. At first I was thought it wouldn't be all that great, but after reading about it, watching videos, and viewing images, I'm psyched.
    • You know right now I'd say the Pro-N fans are outnumbering the Anti-N. Anyway I still think this game is not my cup of tea but then I realized this would be a great way to distract my girlfriend from wanting a cat.

      Sure hope I'm not getting myself in too deep. Men, wish me luck.

  • Unbelievably cute game (Score:4, Informative)

    by ylsul ( 94641 ) on Friday June 03, 2005 @03:02PM (#12717192)
    Check out this little flash presentation...

    http://www.albinoblacksheep.com/flash/nintendogs.p hp [albinoblacksheep.com]

    Sooo cuuuttte :)
  • I love games. I'm a typical guy (prefer dogs over cats). And Nintendogs (to say this in the most non-girly way) is uber-cute. What else do I need to buy the DS + ND? ;P But actually I think it's pretty cool from the AI/realism standpoint. Check out the flash movie [albinoblacksheep.com] of it. Even if you hate dogs or tamagotchi or pocket monsters, you have to admit they simulated the dogs darn well. They jump, run, twitch, wag, and bark very convincingly. I'll most likely get it, even though I might not buy many other DS

  • Strange (Score:2, Funny)

    by theantipop ( 803016 )
    ...order commands through the integrated microphone...
    I'd like to meet the person yelling things like "sit!" and "don't pee on the carpet!" at their DS while walking around town.
  • Here's some video [albinoblacksheep.com] of Nintendogs in action. Umm, for some reason I don't think this is going to go over well in the US market.
  • Eh, I'm more interested in "DS Training For Adults: Work Your Brain"... I hope it comes out in the US.

    Here [watercoolergames.org] is where I first heard of it...

  • This is one of those games... (Score:5, Informative)

    by wheresdrew ( 735202 ) on Friday June 03, 2005 @05:39PM (#12718708) Journal
    ...where "you have to play it to 'get it'" isn't much of an exaggeration.

    On the surface, it's nothing more than an advanced Tamagotchi (which, by the way, are still on sale in Japan and still very, very popular with younger - under 10 - kids), but the more you play it, the more you can see how much work went into it.

    I picked it up right around the time it came out, and really got into it. I bought it on a lark, and was surprised how much I liked it. You do the basic pet owner stuff - walk your dog, teach it tricks, feed it, bathe it, play fetch, etc. - as well as enter it in dog shows, frisbee contests and athletic tournaments (an obstacle course kind of thing). Winning competitions earns you cash that you can use to buy more stuff for your dog (toys, food, collars), upgrade your apartment or even get more dogs. (You can have up to three dogs at once.)

    What makes the game work is how well everything is dog. The animation is very fluid and natural. The AI is done well, and different dogs seem to have different personalities. My dog (a Shiba Inu named "Sushi" ^.^) likes to play with a lot of his toys and will chase them all over the apartment or bound around the park when I take him outside to play. However, there's one he seems to be scared of. It's a squeaky ball that makes noise when it bounces. He growls and yips at it, but won't go near it. I've talked to other people who have the same toy, and their dogs all love it. Sure, it could just be that my dog has one line of code (hate ball = yes) that set up this behavior, but it seems very realistic when you see it in action.

    So while it's easy to dismiss the game as yet another virtual pet, there's a lot more going on under the hood than has been done in the past. I'm not sure how well it'll do in the US, but I'm sure it's got a market there.

    And as for the DS sales surging when Nintendogs came out, I doubt it hurt that the Pink and Blue DSes were released on the same day that Nintendogs came out.

    • What makes the game work is how well everything is dog.

      Must be good. The subliminal advertising seems to be working a treat. :)

    • Dude, You must not have been in a Toys R Us lately..... we can't keep the Tamagotchi in stock. And wave 2 of the new Tamagotchi's are arriving in the next month or two. I laughed when we got them in , but now all the little girls and some gender confused boys want them, in all the colors.... I suggest you get out more.
      • I get out plenty, just not in the US.

        But you're right, I haven't been in a TRU recently. I live in Tokyo and, as far as I know, there's only one here. Their prices on games are higher than most every other shop and they don't have a "loyalty card" that earns store credit with every purchase like the Japanese chains do. For my shopping needs, that makes them a serious non-contender.

        (In their defense, I did score a PSP from them on launch day last December - so they're occasionally useful.)

        • I had to go to TRU to pick up Electroplankton, since my normal store didn't have it. But yeah, they're seriously overpriced.

          Also, I've already sent two pink DSes to girls in America. I think a dude could make a decent business out of it, at least until the US version is released.

  • The PSP is also a great console... (Score:5, Funny)

    by Zangief ( 461457 ) on Friday June 03, 2005 @06:22PM (#12719059) Homepage Journal
    ...for my Nintendog to POOP ON!!!
  • Personally the problem with the release of the PSP is that everyone was fighting over the Xboxs and the Nitendo DS's this past christmas that people are just now receiving them from the over demand of them. This is probably why the PSP's release was not at a good time, with the picture Ipod and the Creative Zen Mp3 and various other media veiwing devices coming out at this time. The PSP's problem was just that it got drowned out by all the other tech. hubub out there and it's price tag isn't what people are
  • I am curtainly not surprised that Nintendo is doing well. I just traded my psp in for 2 DS units and some games. Very true there are more psp games out there but the fact of the matter is 99% of the just plain suck. Too darn easy to beat. how many racing games do you really need at launch? Nintendogs is a killer app sure but not THE killer app. actually you can take your pick. quite a few good games are coming down the pipe (first coming to my mind would be animal crossing). nintendo games are kind of like

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