Post Iwata will Ninty still have the gusto?
What can Nintendo learn from their recent past and SEGA?
Overnight GamesIndustry posted a ponderance on the future console machinations of Nintendo. Regardless of their choice of the next console timeline it looks like the WiiU will be the worst selling console of the company’s modern existence, except for the calamity known as the Virtual Boy .
The traction lost on the console, which I was really excited at launch, is due not to the first party releases, nor third party uptake, I think there is something deeper there that I’ve noticed while playing games with my son.
Saturday playing games has almost become a religiously frequent event in my household. My son and I trawl through my collection and play random games much to our glee. The WiiU has been passed over for months now, instead we stick to the regular titles released on PS3 and XBONE. The decision to purchase a new game in store when looking at all three I seem to lean towards the Sony and Microsoft counterparts. What makes a good Ninty game for us is the uniqueness of Mario Party, the sublime Pikmin and competitiveness of Mario Kart. Rehashing works to an extent but we need innovation, something which lacks to break through the marketing glass ceiling for the new console. The king Iwata shaped the company on his philosophy, he lived and breathed it. The best selling Wii, which was technically inferior left many aghast, as for the DS? I was ridiculed when I picked it up at launch only to have those friends slowly turn their back on Sony’s handheld iteration to go back home to Ninty. In any case the WiiU is lacking what made the Wii and DS blaring successes, its a feeling, a vibe and Nintendo needs to get that back.
What happens now Iwata is gone? Will innovation be the key? I hope there is but as a warning, too much innovation can leave even your most loyal supporters seeing the grass is far greener on the other side. As a SEGA fanboy of the 80s and 90s I can never forget the confusion surrounding the 32X and Saturn release schedule. Money was short in my household and the choices made for game uptake at Christmas and birthdays set you up for the entire year. SEGA’s choice to release confusedly marketed, yet undeniably innovative left many people confused and looking over towards the marketing of Sony.
The future will no doubt be interesting for Ninty, here is hoping that under Kimishima that the innovation continues but not at the cost of those most loyal.
