Nintendo Profits Nosedive

[Prof. Monkeypox]

Nintendo will be fine, I'm sure. Their market's just saturated and their haven't had a big release in a while (and a lot of the Wii/DS games aren't so interesting right now in my opinion). If there's nothing interesting to buy, why would anyone do it? Everyone who wants one of the two consoles probably already has it at this point, or else won't be buying it at all.

But they'll survive, the 3DS will probably be a huge success, and everything will return to the status quo. I just hope they haven't done anything I'm not aware of to bungle it all up.

 

[Redlin5_v1legacy]

That's mostly because everyone has one.

Not really.

*looks at Gamecube thoughtfully*

OT: I sure hope the 3DS rises to the occasion. Future Redlin needs his Pokemon fix too!

 

[Frozen Donkey Wheel2]

Yeah, who knew you needed to put actual effort into more then roughly 10%[footnote]and that's a generous estimate[/footnote] of the games available for your console?

 

[Frozen Donkey Wheel2]

*snip*

Oh another child who can't respond without resorting to name calling, how cute. Must be another Brit, from the word usage.

But yeah, I neither want, nor need your acknowledgement of my being right. I know I'm right. Personally, I'd be happy if people just took a little more time to write what they meant, and not some retarded generalization that's completely wrong. Is this a British thing?

I'm Irish...

Erin Go Bragh! Fuck the brits.

... Do I have to fetch a definition of irony or can you pick that one up on your own?

I'm quite familiar with the definition of irony, however, generalizations are retarded, and tend to do nothing but bad things well, no matter how they're applied. Thus, retarded, as in, it retards thoughtful conversation.

Oh wow. There's enough irony here to kill a man. Hey, guess what? Saying that "generalizations do nothing but bad things" is, itself, a generalization. So is assuming that generalizing is "a British thing", but in retrospect, I'm thinking you may have done that one on purpose.

All of these are completly different, of course, from hyperbole and exaggeration, which are perfectly accepted tactics for getting points across. Unless you're a robot. Or a Vulcan.

Also, I would like you to know that everyone in the entire world agrees with me.[footnote]See what I did there?[/footnote]

 

[squid5580]

Gee Nintendo I wonder why. Could it be the Playstation move does what the Wii was supposed to do (read motions at a 1:1 ratio)? Could it be that you release a new and improved version of the DS every other month? FFS Nintendo I think you have gotten senile in your old age.

 

[gl1koz3]

The guys at Nintendo feel quite stagnant. Million rehashes of original games and all that. Never been really into their stuff.

 

[Atmos Duality]

It isn't saturation. Eat your hat now.

*snip*

Nintendo has lacked serious 3rd party support for the better part of the last decade, yet the revenue rates are different.
Total Wii sales hit 84 million world wide. The 360 and PS3 in comparison, are far less than that even now (around 50 and 42 million, respectively).
Nintendo's sales are slumping, while Microsoft and Sony's are growing. Based on economics, the Wii is still the cheapest and family friendly ("Disney-fied")home system; so any new gamers that enter the market are more likely to start there.
Thus, we can use Nintendo as a barometer for the entire market. Also recall that most of Nintendo's Wii customers are "casual gamers" who didn't own a previous generation system.

Handhelds sales are even higher than consoles, which suggests a much higher user cap, but this is easily explained: Handhelds are used on a per person basis, while consoles are used per household.

Since the Wii has long outstayed its welcome with its incredibly lackluster titles, there are quite a few disgusted/bored Wii gamers that are now looking into non-Nintendo systems.
Locally, most people who are buying Move and Kinect (based on my contacts in retail: Namely managers and salesmen from Target and Gameschtoop) are, ironically, already Wii owners, so the motion-controls market isn't as mutually-exclusive as once thought.

All of this points to market saturation; old customers are looking for new products, rather than the market attracting new customers and having the Big Three fight over which system these new customers purchase first.

No questioning your comments on the Wii Revolution being over: I'm sad to own a Wii (feel ripped off, really), and have been for over two and a half years now. There isn't shit worth playing on it unless you're really into the established Nintendo perennials, and having played those since the 80s, the charm has long since worn out its welcome.
Thankfully, it's not totally useless; I've been playing older Gamecube titles on it since I didn't own a Gamecube back when it was current gen.

 

[hymie]

Nintendo made nearly two billion dollars in profit in the last nine months of the year. I'd be thrilled to have such a "failure". Our household owns two DSs and a Wii, and we'll probably replace at least one of the DSs with a 3DS when it comes out. My ten-year-old son still plays on both systems regularly. (His DS has suffered a great deal of wear and tear. The hinge is cracked so that the two halves of the system are held together mostly by the exposed internal wiring, and there is no friction left so they just flop flat. But it continues to work correctly.) I expect we'll pick up a copy of Pokémon Black or White when it comes out, and 2011 version of YuGiOh!.

 

[Electrogecko]

Honestly an affordable hardcore gaming console without the motion control garbage would be welcome. Games like "eternal darkness" and the like have been begging for sequels.

This is the problem. Nintendo has shown in the past decade and a half that without some sort of shitty gimmick to set their systems apart they simply are unable to compete any longer. N64 was a failure and the Gaemcube was pretty horrible too. It wasn't until they started adding on gimmicks like two screens and touch screen and motion controls did anyone give two shits about their consoles again and the 3DS proves they still feel that they need a gimmick to fall back on rather than standing on the actual quality of their games.

I have a feeling that if Nintendo had to actually compete without having a bad gimmick to hide behind people would far less willing to keep buying the same six or seven titles they regurgitate over and over. Present day Nintendo without gimmicks is the Sega of 10 years ago and we saw how that ended. Simply put I doubt we will ever see another Nintendo console that is just a pure and simple gaming console for people who want to play games and not flail around or stare at two screens. They tried those waters twice already and both times they failed.

Wow. The N64 was a failure? What planet are you from? And I would never call the GC a failure, considering it was the cheapest of the 3 consoles and had the best games IMO.

Yes, Nintendo doesn't want to release new systems unless that system opens up new gameplay or control possibilities. (not just added processing power- any corporate retard could do that) These are the things that you constantly refer to as "gimmicks." (you know- things that actually have a possibility of expanding the medium, which, by the way, are no different from the early analog stick or controller rumble- both Nintendo) You think that there's something preventing Nintendo from releasing a hulking powerhouse of a console and keeping it as boring and uninspired as the other two competitors? You think that you're somehow a more definitive gamer because you don't play Nintendo games? It's funny how you keep saying that the Wii is essentially a GC when, in the opinion of most, the Wii supplied the most important improvement over it's predecessor out of any of the main three consoles. It may not appeal to you, and you may not think it appeals to so called "hardcore gamers," (honestly, I don't know how any "hardcore" gamer could be content missing out on first party Nintendo titles) but that's no reason to hate it. (that's about as ignorant and pathetic as hating Disney because they appeal to children) In fact, constant criticism of the Wii only shows just how insecure, immature, and narrow minded you are. (especially when those criticisms are nothing more than ignorant and constant spouting of the words "shit" and "gimmick") Please go back to playing CoD and convincing yourself that aiming isn't easier with a Wii remote and that it looks better than Mario Galaxy, Metroid Prime, Epic Yarn, or DKCR.

Incidentally, why are all your posts nothing more than swearing at Nintendo and claiming that they're a failure as an entertainment company? Are you some kind of troll or something? If you don't like the Wii, all you have to say is "I prefer my 360/PS3/PC for such and such reasons."

 

[Treblaine]

Nintendo managed to put out 13.7 million Wii systems over the nine month span, down 20 percent from the previous year, and 15.7 million DS handhelds, a drop of 33 percent. The company also reaffirmed its plan to ship four million 3DS systems in the first month of launch to avoid the shortages that plagued the early years of the Wii.

Excuse me but that is still bloody amazing sales, who the hell in the financial world can't see that? It's is still miles better than anyone else and a profit on each unit of hardware.

Could someone please explain to me why even a 33% drop is such a big deal when you are STILL outselling and profiting more than all of your competition?

 

[kitsuta]

[snip]

Excellent financial analysis, good sir!

Fans are clingy complaining dipshits who will never ever be grateful for any concession you make. The moment you shut out their shrill, tremulous voices the happier you will be for it.

I know ragging on Nintendo and accusing them of "abandoning the real gaming audience" and "appealing only to casual players" is fun and all, but it's been four years. Can we be done with that now? What happened to being happy about five big franchise releases within two years [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/101374-E3-2010-From-the-Nintendo-Press-Conference], anyway?

How about this. If you want to complain about Nintendo going after the "casual" market and abandoning the "hardcore" market, go ahead, bash all you want. But first you have to find one instance of Nintendo saying they are aiming for this mythical "casual" market. Include a link to this instance in your post or something. Heck, catch them even using the word "casual" and it might count.

But good luck finding such a thing - if you do, let me know for real, I'd be interested in it. Look, an article. [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/103925-Nintendo-Admits-Its-Third-Party-Sales-Are-Pretty-Terrible] Now look at the bottom of the article. What does Iwata say? Does he say "we want to expand our appeal to casual players?" No. Never. Nintendo's line has been and always will be expansion of the market. You could say, in cynical fashion, that "expanded" and "new" is just PR-speak for "casual." And hey, PR is known for that type of thing. But if that's the case, what are bridge games [http://us.wii.com/iwata_asks/crossbow/vol1_page1.jsp] and why is Nintendo the only game company actively talking about making them?

I'm trying to make a point instead of rant, so I'll just leave with one relatively obscure quote [http://www.gamespot.com/pages/unions/read_article.php?topic_id=25522312&union_id=8913] that touches on one of the biggest reasons for the unfortunate dearth of good games on the Wii.

It seems that when [third-party companies are] putting games out on Nintendo hardware, those games are being developed by their third-string team or their fourth-string team. ...when Nintendo puts out a title that is designed to really support and sell its hardware, that title is always developed by one of our number one teams. And so I think that when it comes to the question of trying to compete with our software, I would really like to see the parties try to do that with their number one teams rather than with the third- or fourth-string teams.

 

[coolkirb]

Strange to say since people allways buy a new Iphone it seems, the fact is Nintendo is destroying its competition, and as for the supposed Move and Kinect alternatives, you can buy a Wii, with Wii Sports and Wii Sports resort for $200, a PS3 and move would run you, Xbox kinect with 1 game would run you $300 and a PS3 Move bundle wpuld cost $400, so it just doesnt seem likely that the Move and Kinect will outsell the Wii, also remember branding is everything, Nintendo has branded its Wii as a family friendly company for years now, while the Soney and Microsoft are just now trying to go down the part. So in my oppinion the Wii has the brand advantage and a better price point for people just buying their first system.

 

[Xanthious]

Wow. The N64 was a failure?

Yes, a dismal one, I'm sorry this comes as such a shock to you. When you consider it's primary competitor was the original Playstation and it outsold the N64 on more than a 3:1 ratio I would say that qualifies as a failure. Furthermore, it had almost no third party support with most if not all of it's best games being produced in house by Nintendo.

And I would never call the GC a failure, considering it was the cheapest of the 3 consoles and had the best games IMO.

Indeed it was the cheapest, and that was for a reason. Yet even being the cheapest horse in the race Nintendo was bringing up the rear staunchly behind both the Xbox and left in the dust by Sony who outsold Nintendo this round at a 7:1 ratio. And yet again it was another in what would be a long line of Nintendo consoles with terrible third party support and most to all of their best games being produced in house.

I apologize if those facts skew your rose colored view of history. On to the present.

Yes, Nintendo doesn't want to release new systems unless that system opens up new gameplay or control possibilities. (not just added processing power- any corporate retard could do that) These are the things that you constantly refer to as "gimmicks." (you know- things that actually have a possibility of expanding the medium, which, by the way, are no different from the early analog stick or controller rumble- both Nintendo)

Correct me if I'm wrong, but that was just a slightly wordier way to say Nintendo doesn't want to release a new console without a gimmick to hide behind. . . . see we're on the same page.

You think that there's something preventing Nintendo from releasing a hulking powerhouse of a console and keeping it as boring and uninspired as the other two competitors?

Yes, history is keeping them from doing just that. They've tried and failed (As I proved up above) twice already in the N64 and the Gamecube. So having lost any hope of releasing consoles and games for the more hardcore crowd they've decided to carter to people that think it's cool you can flail around like an epileptic and "make your guy move".

You think that you're somehow a more definitive gamer because you don't play Nintendo games?

Not at all, I've played Nintendo games but I'm smart enough not to know that Mario Kart is pretty much Mario Kart whether its on the Super Nintendo or the Wii. The average Nintendo fan seems to not realize that they just keep getting fed the same handful of titles over and over. What that says about them I will leave for others to decide.

It's funny how you keep saying that the Wii is essentially a GC

Even though you have an odd sense of humor it doesn't change the fact the Wii is more or less a Gamecube with motion controls. See what I did there? Huh, do ya?

when, in the opinion of most, the Wii supplied the most important improvement over it's predecessor out of any of the main three consoles.

Ok, who is "most" is there some kind of survey or study out there that shows this or are you just making this up to support your argument. Come on be honest, I won't judge. However, if the majority of people find flailing about wildly to be a massive step forward in gaming then please, by all means, leave me in the past.

It may not appeal to you, and you may not think it appeals to so called "hardcore gamers," (honestly, I don't know how any "hardcore" gamer could be content missing out on first party Nintendo titles) but that's no reason to hate it.

Speaking as a hardcore gamer I've already played Nintendo's first party titles when they released the first time, and some the second time, hell a few even the third so I have no need to play them again only this time . . .with motion controls!

In fact, constant criticism of the Wii only shows just how insecure, immature, and narrow minded you are.

Don't forget pox ridden and reeking of sour milk.

(especially when those criticisms are nothing more than ignorant and constant spouting of the words "shit" and "gimmick")

To be fair I use the work gimmick more than shit but now we are just splitting hairs.

Please go back to playing CoD and convincing yourself that aiming isn't easier with a Wii remote and that it looks better than Mario Galaxy, Metroid Prime, Epic Yarn, or DKCR.

Aiming is terribly easier with a mouse and keyboard and yes, any up to date gaming PC Xbox 360, or PS3 game is most likely going to look better than a Wii title seeing as they got that new fangled high definition thing. Thank you for your permission to go back to those. I was getting restless.

Speaking of high definition allow me to ask a simple question. If Nintendo is all about innovation and moving forward why on Earth are they still unable to support a feature, like high definition, you know with HDTV being in over 50% of homes and all. Also, what's up with the Wii unable to play DvDs? I know DvDs are still REALLY new and the technology might not stick around . . . but I digress.

Incidentally, why are all your posts nothing more than swearing at Nintendo and claiming that they're a failure as an entertainment company?

Not all, just the ones about Nintendo. I never claim they are currently a failure, just that they were in the past and if they ever released a console without a gimmick to get it over they would mostly likely be again.

Are you some kind of troll or something?

Yes (I even have a badge to prove it if you look up above), I live in the woods and eat children. . . .it's a living.

If you don't like the Wii, all you have to say is "I prefer my 360/PS3/PC for such and such reasons."

Where's the fun in that?

<3

 

[Thamous]

Hell, Nintendo could still buy several small nations if they really wanted to.

 

[BabyRaptor]

My information may be a little out of date, but this is how I see it. The 3DS has exactly one confirmed launch title (and it's Madden, a niche title at that), it doesn't have a back library, it's 300 bucks, short battery life...

How, exactly, are they expecting this to be a show stopper?

 

[Twilight_guy]

That's the problem with game systems, you can only sell so many before everyone's got one. At some point you have to invent something new to sell so I think there going to see lots of drops in sales over time until they create a new system.

 

[TheGuy(wantstobe)]

You think that you're somehow a more definitive gamer because you don't play Nintendo games?

Not at all, I've played Nintendo games but I'm smart enough not to know that Mario Kart is pretty much Mario Kart whether its on the Super Nintendo or the Wii. The average Nintendo fan seems to not realize that they just keep getting fed the same handful of titles over and over. What that says about them I will leave for others to decide.

Now i've played COD/MOH/TES/Madden etc but i'm smart enough to know that those games are pretty much the same whether they are on the PS1 or a top of the line gaming pc. The average Dudebro fan seems not to realise that they keep getting fed the same handful of titles over and over. What that says about them I will leave for others to decide.

It may not appeal to you, and you may not think it appeals to so called "hardcore gamers," (honestly, I don't know how any "hardcore" gamer could be content missing out on first party Nintendo titles) but that's no reason to hate it.

Speaking as a hardcore gamer I've already played Nintendo's first party titles when they released the first time, and some the second time, hell a few even the third so I have no need to play them again only this time . . .with motion controls!

I played COD back when it was developed by Rare and called Goldeneye. I even had a dual analogue set up. I feel no need to play it again just with shinier graphics, shittier story and way less fun multiplayer.

Please go back to playing CoD and convincing yourself that aiming isn't easier with a Wii remote and that it looks better than Mario Galaxy, Metroid Prime, Epic Yarn, or DKCR.

Aiming is terribly easier with a mouse and keyboard and yes, any up to date gaming PC Xbox 360, or PS3 game is most likely going to look better than a Wii title seeing as they got that new fangled high definition thing. Thank you for your permission to go back to those. I was getting restless.[/quote]
This is getting into an aesthetic debate. The only thing you can say that currently the 360/PS3/Gaming PC trio do better is IQ. How good a game looks is largely defined by artstyle which is purely subjective. Kirby's epic Yarn is gorgeous to look at as is DKC:R. There is nothing out on the other consoles that match these.

Speaking of high definition allow me to ask a simple question. If Nintendo is all about innovation and moving forward why on Earth are they still unable to support a feature, like high definition, you know with HDTV being in over 50% of homes and all. Also, what's up with the Wii unable to play DvDs? I know DvDs are still REALLY new and the technology might not stick around . . . but I digress.

HD adoption rate at the time the console hardware was finalised was less than 10% and with spiralling costs to produce assets for the increase in that higher resolution it would have entailed Nintendo opted not to go down that route.
As for DVD's that was always a :S moment for me.

I already posted a purely financial analysis earlier on. I suggest you read it.

 

[Folio]

Release more colors, Nintendo! Don't give us the 'wait until we dangle your favorite color' scheme again! SELL! NOW!

 

[Rorschach II]

*sigh*

Simple way round it really.

1). Sell the Wii.

2). Buy a Nes/Snes

3). Disregard present day and live the rest of your life in nostalgia playing the great games like Super Mario World, Street Fighter 2 and Starfox.

>

 

[neXianXavia]

How about this. If you want to complain about Nintendo going after the "casual" market and abandoning the "hardcore" market, go ahead, bash all you want. But first you have to find one instance of Nintendo saying they are aiming for this mythical "casual" market. Include a link to this instance in your post or something. Heck, catch them even using the word "casual" and it might count.

Try the word 'Family'. That's one word that not only indicts the console with the value of 'Casual', but also the value of 'for the general public'. Imagine a G-rated movie. How much audience did they get? They don't get major horror movie genre fans, or mystery fans, or romance, or thriller fans, they just get more audience from smaller children than anything else, and I can't help but think that Nintendo saw it coming. It was designed similarly to a G-rated movie. Everyone can enjoy it. Just the hardcore gamers will walk away dissatisfied.

Here's how I like to look at the Wii. There are many bad games, and very few good ones. The mini game market has been spammed, and this has resulted in very a LOT of replicas that, typically, weren't particularly good. The ratio of entertaining games for hardcore gamers is extremely low. So trying to find a good game on the Wii is like trying to find gold you swallowed an a 2x2 metre hill of your own faecal matter. The gold is there, and you know it, but trying some in the mass of crap is messy, unpleasant, and probably not worth it. Especially because there is heaps of crap, and not much gold. Yes, there are good games, but so much more far and few between than the other consoles.

As for the motion sensors, they have no indication of where to stop, with the motion sensors, and so you can only commit yourself to actions. Yahtzee has mentioned this a few times. And so the motion sensor is basically miming to fit the game, and your skill at doing it. Which is similar to the other consoles really, except this motion control makes you collide with nothing, pass whatever you're holding through objects, and aim out of the screen and freeze your character when it counts. So not only is it more of a hassle to use than a simple controller, but it is way more tedious when you do get it to work aswell. And so removing the controller not only takes the ordinary gaming experience out of it, it changes it completely, and because it is made to fit a G-rating, hardcore gamers see it as a complete waste of time. Why bother? It has a G-rating! I may aswell play something that matters to other people.

Between the narrowing of the market, the forced switching of controller from fine motor function to normal motor function, the target audience, and the lack of decent specialised games, or even the lack of good games, is why it is suffering. These are the reasons that the Wii is suffering, and all the other points except the motion controls can be traced back (to a lesser extent) to the other Nintendo consoles.

C'mon Nintendo fans, hit me with your best shot.