Quote:The president of Nintendo Co. Ltd, Satoru Iwata, has come out again to say that the direction of the company is not to join the other console manufacturers in making gamers pay extra for online games. Then he also went on to say that Nintendo is investing some of their $6 billion dollars on the successors to the next GameCube and Game Boy. Unfortunately he doesn’t say how much, we only know that it’s "some." Iwata made a bold statement that Nintendo’s developers are hard at work on the next-generation stars to replace Mario and Pokémon.
Yes, you heard right, it looks like Iwata may be trying to take the company into an entirely new direction. He himself has been focused on the creative side of gaming, so he could direct Nintendo in creating such titles. He seems to indicate that the current franchises may be too outdated now for most gamers, so that is why he is saying the next lineup of big-name titles are being developed to “replace” Mario and Pokémon.
In other news today, Sony has announced plans to release a system called the PSX for early next year, it will be a beefed up PS2 hardware with TV tuner, hard disk drive and DVD recorder. Go figure, I though the PSX was already released… confusing name. Sony also says that they are going to work more on their gaming division to increase profits for the entertainment company. Microsoft's Xbox chief today fires off a comment about Nintendo saying "I don't think Nintendo is here for the digital-entertainment revolution. They are a toy company."
I hope they don't phase out Mario completely and I would like to see a Pokemon RPG someday, but I'm intersted to know what new big-name games they have in the works.
Quote:"I don't think Nintendo is here for the digital-entertainment revolution"
That's because they are more interested in actually MAKING GAMES instead putting a bunch of useless features into their console. Game consoles should play games not record your favorite tv shows, store your music collection, and wash your clothes.
Quote:"They are a toy company."
Umm...No, I think they are a videogame developer.
N-Philes
No Mario? Hmm, maybe they'll come up with something "new" like Pacman all over again. (E3 was pretty lame)
Whoever said that from Microsoft isn't really blessed with brains is he?
Quote:Originally posted by Great Rumbler
[B]That's because they are more interested in actually MAKING GAMES instead putting a bunch of useless features into their console. Game consoles should play games not record your favorite tv shows, store your music collection, and wash your clothes.
That's not really true. Nintendo would certainly join Sony and MS if they really had a mind to, the reason they don't is both because it would cost Nintendo far more to produce such a console, as MS and Sony can much more easily and less expensively implement such features, and also because Nintendo has already tried the set-top box idea, with the Famicom (Ergo, family computer). The Famicom was originally intended to be the all-in-one entertainment device that allowed for such things as playing games, balancing your checkbook, and there were even attempts at creating a primitive network. Needless to say, the technology of the day did not quite match the vision, and it failed. After that, Nintendo's been totally against the idea. But don't think for a minute that they are games-only because they think people only want their machines to play games, that the Xbox and PS2 both outsell it disprove that idea. Nintendo won't go along with it because they simply cannot.
This is actually very good news. Nintendo is in third place right now even though they've released new, excellent installments in the Mario, Zelda, and Metroid series for the Gamecube, three of their biggest franchises. Zelda is selling well but Mario and Metroid sold below expectations. Nintendo's franchises don't mean too much to the average consumer anymore, so Nintendo really needs to come up with some great new franchises that will attract a whole new generation of gamers. Of course Mario won't fade away, but I'm all for Nintendo trying to do something new to get ahead in the console race.
Hmm... very interesting. More branching out for Nintendo. Well, if the games are good that's fine... more variety is always good as long as its GOOD variety. And I can trust Nintendo to usually do that. :)
And yes, I very much doubt this means the end of Mario or Pokemon... just some more variety so they aren't as reliant on a half dozen franchises...
Now add some things like a real netplay system and a good new console that looks less like a toy, has a controller with more buttons, has media as large in space as the competition, etc... and they could do better next generation. Though with public opinion as it is... you never know.
Well the problem with the Gamecube is that they didn't market the system nearly as well as MS did the X-Box, and at the beginning of the system's life they marketed it more towards a younger audience. What they're doing now is good (mostly), but it's too late for the 'cube. People have made up their minds about it.
Yes. And Nintendo must do things to show those people that they have changed or their next console will go the way of their last two...
No more purple systems (even though they released two colors they only advertised purple), no handles (as handy as they are), and make the system look cool (cool to Joe Public).
And a new advertising company that can actually "advertise".
With a decent budget... you see about 10 PS2 ads for every 4 or 5 X-Box for every ... uh, half of a Nintendo ad... maybe... on a good month...
i love the handle...they should definately include it on the next console...just maybe make it a little less obvious, but don't ditch the idea, it's probably the greatest innovation the consoles have seen this generation.
But the cube does look cool to joe public! I can't see a flaw, and when did purple become a bad color? The SNES ROCKED, and the very buttons on it were two shades of purple! And handles can look cooler, if that's your beef.
Man, I don't like the sound of this at all. There's nothing wrong with Mario...no need to discontinue it. If they're gonna retire Mario, their friggin mascot, how far away is Zelda from the old games' home?
*sigh*
Forget to read the posts again, Darunia? They're not ditching Mario.
And DJ, I like purple but apparently most people did not.
The cube looks cool to Joe Public? Uhh... in what universe is that true? Not this one, for sure...
Perhaps a thin handle which can flip down and out of sight. Just use it when needed and put it away when you don't.
You're right OB1, purple was a bad move for Nintendo to market their console as. Black seems to do well, so maybe they should just stick with that. White or silver might also serve to look cool.
The next-next-gen console fron Ninty needs to have built in Wavebird recievers. With Wavebirds, there is no longer a need to have wire controllers, except if you like the rumble, which I frankly do not. But by then I'm sure they can modify wireless controllers to have rumble.
Forget about compactness and move up to full-size DVD discs. The little ones are cool, and combat copying, but they hold much less data. More data could mean better graphics and more gaming "meat".
DON'T KILL OFF MARIO! That would be the last nail in a big, N-shaped coffin. Mario, Zelda, and Pokemon (blech) are really all Nintendo has now. If they try new stuff now when they're in last place, they can't afford to risk it. Open new franchises, but ease them to the public. Release Mario games, with new franchise games, and with great quality. Then scale down the Mario and scale up the new franchises.
Quote:Perhaps a thin handle which can flip down and out of sight. Just use it when needed and put it away when you don't.
That might be ok... if it looks cool...
IMO Nintendo's best looking console is the N64. By far. Sure, the other Nintendo consoles are all nice looking... but the N64 is the best. Its just so cool looking...
Quote:You're right OB1, purple was a bad move for Nintendo to market their console as. Black seems to do well, so maybe they should just stick with that. White or silver might also serve to look cool.
Black is always good... black, silver (like the silver gamecube, which looks so cool), white... good colors. Not purple or pink... and as for orange (like the orange Cube thats in Japan) it looks ok but I wouldn't use that as the main color either... too "toylike".
Quote: The next-next-gen console fron Ninty needs to have built in Wavebird recievers. With Wavebirds, there is no longer a need to have wire controllers, except if you like the rumble, which I frankly do not. But by then I'm sure they can modify wireless controllers to have rumble.
No! Bad idea! I've used the wavebird... its okay. But I'd rather stick to normal pads... I like rumble! Its not required or anything (I do fine with a non-rumble PC pad, and I never got another N64 rumble pack when the one I had broke... as much because by late
'02 (when it broke) it was kind of hard to find N64 rumble pads for sale. :)
And getting away from batteries is great. I used battery-powered N64 rumble packs for years, sure... but with those you can let it really run down before replacing the batteries. I imagine that that isn't really an option with the Wavebird... if you want to play, that is. :)
Keep it as an optional accessory.
Oh, and the Wavebird has no rumble because of the high power requirements of such a accessory... it'd greatly decrease battery life (or require twice as many batteries...)... not good!
Quote:Forget about compactness and move up to full-size DVD discs. The little ones are cool, and combat copying, but they hold much less data. More data could mean better graphics and more gaming "meat".
First, if you think that bigger discs lead to more gameplay you are delusional. It never happens that way, as you should know.
Next, they should use a larger format, for sure. But I don't know about standard DVDs... it'd make piracy so easy with a DVD burner and modchips... and that's not good! Sure people could get miniDVDs but those are a lot rarer and harder to get... its a fairly effective anti-piracy tool.
Note now the PS2 and X-Box both have modchips and easy game piracy via burning games. And plenty of availiable games if you know where to look.
And note how the NGC has essentially none. It works... and I'd say they should do something next gen so it keeps working.
Quote:DON'T KILL OFF MARIO! That would be the last nail in a big, N-shaped coffin. Mario, Zelda, and Pokemon (blech) are really all Nintendo has now. If they try new stuff now when they're in last place, they can't afford to risk it. Open new franchises, but ease them to the public. Release Mario games, with new franchise games, and with great quality. Then scale down the Mario and scale up the new franchises.
Who said they were "killing off Mario"? Not them... I'd say that "emphathising some new serieses" is a bit different. They see how Mario and Pokemon aren't doing as well as they used to (just look at Mario Sunshine or Pokemon sales compared to older games in those serieses...) and see that they need to make some more variety of games in genres they know... as it is there aren't many non-sequel Nintendo games in the genres they do best. That isn't really good... sure sequels are good but new games are at least as important!
And I'd say that 'release new mario games and slowly scale up other games' is exactly what they are doing... given how we know they are working on a Mario game or two, and this is the first we've heard of other games. I see no danger of Mario suddenly dissapearing... they just need some more franchises. You can't run on just a couple of them forever...
Sega knows this too. That's why they are making Billy Hatcher -- their first original platformer since the Saturn days...
You guys are full of shit beyond your years.
Everything, and I mean EVERYTHING in the entertainment industry comes down to marketing. Nintendo is in 3rd place because of marketing, not because Sony and MS are brilliant companies in their ideas and endeavors other than marketing.
Nintendo wants to phase out Mario and Pokemon because of marketing. That's it.
Take away Sony's marketing and cool factor and you have the weakest system on the market that is actually last gen compared to Xbox and GC, which are current gen. Take away MS marketing and you have a Halo machine, soon to be replaced with a Halo 2 machine. Same machine, new graphics.
Take away Nintendo's marketing and you have Nintendo. That's the first step, then they're going to reinvent the wheel and repackage the same company and sell it back to us with a new image. The only change we'll see is that more people will be interested in it without fear of losing their friends because they play on a "system for children."
Dont even try to tell me that Nintendo is 3rd place because of bad business or lack of imagination. Dont fool yourself in to believing that Sony or MS have greater expectations, hell if anything they sent the games industry back about ten years or more. Back to the days of Mortal Kombat's blood factor. We dont need a gimmicky industry again and Nintendo has been against that since the SNES, now they believe its the only way to SURVIVE the industry.
Just remember that Pokemon and Mario will be put on the back burners because of marketing, and only marketing. And as soon as Nintendo's cool again, guess what games people will be begging for.
Weltall/ "the reason they don't is both because it would cost Nintendo far more to produce such a console, as MS and Sony can much more easily and less expensively implement such features"
Nintendo spent more money on the creation of the Gamecube than Xbox and PS2 combined. Both of those system were hastily put together using existing technology.
Eden/ The disks used by the Gamecube hold as much if not more than a standard DVD disk based on how the hardware uses the data. There is no visual difference in games and it is easier to program for. Disks do not carry graphics, it only holds the models used and their programed coordinates of how they're placed and animated (based on cues). Gameplay information itself takes up less than 1% of a disk since it's basically binary data. As our mother's said; Size doesn't matter.
Nintendo isn't killing off Mario, they're putting him on the back burner while they focus more on their image and the games that will stabalize that image.
Oh about the Wavebird thing, I heard it through the grape vine that Nintendo's soon to release a Wavebird 2 which may run off of a recharger unit that will still allow the use of the controller while charging. So it would be like charging your cell phone while talking on it. edit - The (rumored) Wavebird 2 would have rumble features
The technology already exists but I dont see how Nintendo could release such a peripheral under 60 bucks each with the recharger.
Quote:Originally posted by lazyfatbum
Oh about the Wavebird thing, I heard it through the grape vine that Nintendo's soon to release a Wavebird 2 which may run off of a recharger unit that will still allow the use of the controller while charging. So it would be like charging your cell phone while talking on it. edit - The (rumored) Wavebird 2 would have rumble features
The technology already exists but I dont see how Nintendo could release such a peripheral under 60 bucks each with the recharger.
Something similar to the GBA SP would be nice.
I guess I don't understand why you'd want to use a cord controller. My Bird can go for weeks before it needs fresh batteries. I don't like rumble that much, but it shouldn't be too hard to incorporate. Playing from any distance and through stuff (like, say, a blanket) is also great. I never see the need to dust off my corded GC controllers ever again.
That would be cool... much better than standard batteries. Yeah, its more expensive, but it'd be worth it...
Quote: Nintendo spent more money on the creation of the Gamecube than Xbox and PS2 combined. Both of those system were hastily put together using existing technology.
Gamecube uses non-existent technology?
Anyway, that's not entirely true. It's true that Xbox is a cacophony of stock PC parts, but most of the PS2, like the Cube, was comprised mostly of custom-built parts.
Haha, yeah that's a very confusing phrase. I was very confused playing Metal Gear Solid 2 when they kept saying stuff like "remember, this device is made from currently existing technology". I mean, of COURSE it's currently existing, otherwise the device itself wouldn't exist! I figure it's probably an expression, but I'll be kasmoogled if I can figure out what that expression could possibly mean.
OB1, I wasn;t the only one who fears they might get rid of Mario...and yes I did read all of that post, you insulting sodomy monger.
Quote:You guys are full of shit beyond your years.
Everything, and I mean EVERYTHING in the entertainment industry comes down to marketing. Nintendo is in 3rd place because of marketing, not because Sony and MS are brilliant companies in their ideas and endeavors other than marketing.
Um... that's what ABF and myself have been saying for the past few years now. I even mentioned marketing in my first post here. Nintendo marketed the Gamecube towards a younger audience in the beginning, and advertisements were few and far between. While MS was advertising their machine a year before it came out, Nintendo waited until a couple of months before the GC's launch to start with the marketing.
Another thing that Nintendo should do with the next console is to make it as expensive as the PS3 and X-Box 2. Even though the Gamecube is just about as powerful as the X-Box and much more powerful than the PS2, many people thought that it was the most inferior because it was $100 less espensive.
Heck no! I LIKE a price break! Sorry, but when I think of what companies should do, it's ALWAYS with MY interests in mind first and foremost :D, so keep up the lower pricing!
Hey so do I, but the fact of the matter is that most people thought the Gamecube was inferior to the other two systems because of its price. Lower price = lower quality to the general public.
Yeah, saying "higher price = more sales and public acceptance" is bizarre, but its the way it works... or at least it sure seems to...
Oh, and the demodiscs must keep coming.
Yeah, it's wierd that a system selling for $200 doesn't have an advantage over a $300 system. There are a few reasons that come to mind:
1. Early adoptors, the people that buy a system when it comes out, tend to be either tech-heads, wealthy types, or fans of the company. All of these groups are willing to pay an extra $100 if they think it's worth it. Ask yourself: would you have bought Gamecube if it had cost $300 and played DVDs? I know I would have.
2. Apparently, the consumer believes that a $200 game system has less value than a $300 media system
3. Image, as stated repetedly by practically every internet-traveling Nintendo fan. People are more willing to pay $300 for an electronic device than $200 for a toy.
Personally, I definitely wouldn't have liked it if the GC was $300 and had DVD playback. Both the XBox and PS2 DVD players are shit.
Yeah, I really liked that it was just $200... a $300 system would have been a LOT harder to justify buying at that price, even if it IS Nintendo... for me, anyway. When I got my Cube I don't think I had the near $400 it'd have cost... as opposed to a bit over $300 like the Cube with game and memory card and tax was...
And DVD players are for DVD playback.