Nintendo - worst company to support right now?

So, recently I have heard that Injustice players on the WiiU will be getting DLC and skins much, much later than PS3 and Xbox players. Around summer time. Right there, less and less incentive to get a WiiU, especially to play Injustice.

http://www.gamespot.com/news/injustice-gods-among-us-dlc-wont-hit-wii-u-until-summer-6408141

EA has recently announced that they won't be developing any games for the WiiU anytime soon. So, no Battlefield 4 for the hardcore shooting demographic of gamers.

http://www.gamespot.com/news/ea-not-developing-anything-for-wii-u-6408481

Cancelling their E3 press conference, and sticking strictly to Nintendo Direct to get the information out on their product. Yeah, you expect me to be interested in your console through Nintendo Direct? Only Nintendo fans watch that. In the Nintendo fans minds, that is the go to console. But to everyone else? At E3, where you can showcase your console and tell us why we should get it, you choose not to? Fail Nintendo.

Definitely recommend you watch this video on the matter.

And now, the creme de la creme. Screwing over the YouTube Let's Play community. Take a look.

Thoughts on all of this?

sky is falling etc.

Former TV celebrity reduced to Youtube; angry Nintendo won't give him platform for more angry Youtube rants at E3.

meh, I don't think so. Overreactions abound.

@hailinel said:

Sessler definitely can reach more people on YouTube. Still a gaming celebrity, btw.

Among the horde of likewise angry game reviewer Youtube personalities? Sessler's basically gone from being the big fish in the small pond to just another tuna.

Were people honestly buying the WiiU for Injustice?

He remains one of the most respected, well-spoke and reasonable reviewers in the industry regardless of the G4TV nonsense that was out of his hands.

Also, no, that's not the premise of his video that I linked. He makes solid points on how Nintendo is failing as a company. And none of us in the gaming community, not even Sessler, want to see Nintendo fail. If they do, that's a terrible sign for the industry.

I'm only speaking from my personal opinion of him, of course. I never held him in that high of regard.

Yeah, along with their copies of Madden, duh!

There's way more companies out there I'd feel bad about supporting, I still like Nintendo, they just need to get on track and quit making derpy decisions.

@tectonicsuper: Not quite sure what you mean. Worst company to support?

I could almost understand that from a third party perspective. Like "Nintendo is the worst company for other game companies to support right now". I suppose there's some argument to be made there. But then you threw in the Youtube thing, and that's silly. If you're talking about everyday gamers supporting them, Nintendo is -far- from the worst company for fans to support. They're not perfect and there is plenty to dislike about them, but as far as game companies go, they're still quite likable and worthy of some support by fans.

They are definitely not the worst company to support right now. That honor would go to a company like EA, where support of them online is tantamount to a war crime amongst gamers.

@truthtellah: In regards to making gamers want to buy their product, Nintendo is doing a terrible job. I'm not the only one who sees this.

For me, I have no incentive to want to buy/support the company, because they have nothing good to sell me, especially with the WiiU.

Also, regarding EA...they are learning...

@tectonicsuper: Project ten dollars says that EA will just replace online passes with something else, like even more invasive microtransaction prompts.

the majority of let's plays are garbage, and people shouldn't be making money off of just playing the game. They could argue commentary, but a lot of them don't add any commentary what-so-ever. It's just "listen to me play this game, love my personality."

Nintendo doesn't need to do a press conference because those things just turn into "this is how much we sell, isn't that great" anyway. What they do with the Direct videos is pretty awesome. and honestly all they need. any surprises they have should happen on the show floor to rejuvinate the mystery of going to E3 past the keynotes anyway.

and Injustice dlc for the Wii U? nobody supported the game on that console, why should they waste their time? especially since it's backwards that Wii U owners will only buy if the DLC is included. that's bullshit, you buy it because you want it. if the numbers are there, netherRealm may have considered it earlier.

In terms of the Wii U people should just give it time, but it's always weird that people have to wait for Nintendo to show everyone how to use the system instead of taking awesome chances. oh well.

The word "support" in the OP's comment is indicative of trends of thought that must surely be steering us in the direction of Syndicate.

Well, as someone that did buy Injustice on the Wii U, I am annoyed that the DLC for that version is a ways off, and that Netherrealm apparently couldn't be arsed to put the ability to set up friends matches in the game. It really is the inferior version, but I bought it anyway, partially because I play a lot of Wii U anyway, and partially because my PS3 hard drive is so full that I'm really, really picky about what PS3 games I get now.

I think this means Nintendo might actually need the most support. But that might be my inner Nintendo fan wanting to save them.

I really hope they stop shooting themselves in the foot. The gaming world is better when nintendo is doing well.

Regarding as well Nintendo's lack of software on the WiiU, is milking Zelda and Mario a good step in trying to boost up hype and want for their console?

In Nintendo hardcore fans minds? Sure. Definitely. But to other gamers, primarily non-Nintendo fans, that Nintendo is trying to market to? Yeah... I don't think so... they need more than just Zelda remakes and Mario Party. Still struggling with software on the WiiU, I believe.

Nope, no problem supporting them. I'm fine with them going with Nintendo Direct. I don't care about Let's Play videos Youtube.

@hailinel: It's funny how it's one of those things that feels like a gamble to buy a Wii U game for it's Online, don't you think? haha. I see where you're coming from, and I don't doubt you're right. I always get that feeling that if I buy the Wii U version of something, I know I'm not getting the version that everyone else has. Is there anything about it that's interesting that the other versions don't do?

Of the big gaming companies right now, I actually feel like they're the most morally sound bunch, frankly, even setting aside my huge disagreements with some of their development decisions.

Iwata makes a paltry sum compared to other gaming execs, and when they make mistakes, he severely slashes his own pay. Nintendo makes their consoles in as fiscally responsible way as possible, when they upset people or do something wrong, they apologize and make amends, when it became apparent that the Wii U wasn't doing well sales-wise, Iwata's response wasn't "well, fuck, maybe we should push more DLC and cancel half of our projects since those dumbass consumers won't pony up the cash!" it was "well, we should've done a better job explaining the benefits of the system, then."

When you look at them compared to the Microsofts, the EAs, the Activisions of the gaming industry, Nintendo are fucking saints. I don't fit in with the crowd Nintendo makes most of their games for, but I respect them for respecting us, whether we buy their products or not.

Quoting the IGN article -

"Prolific Youtube channel owner Zack Scott has posted on Facebook about the demands. "I think filing claims against LPers is backwards," he writes. "Video games aren't like movies or TV. Each play-through is a unique audiovisual experience. When I see a film that someone else is also watching, I don't need to see it again. When I see a game that someone else is playing, I want to play that game for myself! Sure, there may be some people who watch games rather than play them, but are those people even gamers?"

Not really. It's a pretty straight port and doesn't do anything special, aside from obvious system-level functions like posting screenshots to Miiverse.

I am truly baffled by the lack of friends matches in online, though. Injustice is the first Wii U game with competitive multiplayer I've seen that just doesn't present the option to the player.

@lastsonbackup: the thing that's backwards about that statement is that the majority of LPs out there, If they all play the same game, they don't actually offer anything new. You can press a different button at a different time or react to something differently than anyone else. the problem is that people can't watch the LPs for the game, the youtubers have to rely on people enjoying their personality to have any relevance.

They don't offer commentary, when I watch these LPs, they don't offer any insight on the level they're on or the game they're playing.

Honestly, you can do the Let's plays all you want, but if you expect to make a career out of it by not actually offering anything other than a play-though, then don't expect it to be a living.

In about a month my fiance will be picking up the Animal Crossing 3DS XL and a copy of the game for me too.

Nintendo is still a fantastic company if you like Nintendo games. I'm not worried, and this LP outrage is fucking stupid and undeserved. It's just another issue that people want to get indignant over, and a lot of games writers are taking this opportunity to cash in on some page-views.

To keep this short, Nintendo's handheld 3DS gaming focus will be horrendous for the company in the long run, considering they are fighting a market dominated by smartphone gaming.

I don't completely agree with Zack Scott. If a game has a specific story to tell and has certain plot points, each play-through is not as unique as he implies. Sure you might use a different gun and vigor than me in BioShock Infinite, and maybe I spend a little more time hunting down audiologs, but the story is pretty much the same in both of our play-throughs. It's the story of the game that can fall under copyright protection, and not simply the mechanics of the game and how you play it differently.

This Let's Play discussion is being hashed out over three threads. Maybe a mod should start consolidating things.

And yet the 3DS is on track to overtake the DS and PS2 as the best selling games system ever? Doesn't sound particularly doom and gloom to me.

Smartphone gaming is about as much risk to handhelds as Facebook is to console games.

@wintersnowblind: Your argument is completely irrelevant to the smartphone gaming market.

Don't brush aside that smartphone gaming is dominant.

To quote someone that I thought made an excellent point on a forum read I did -

"Smartphones have yet to become ubiquitous in Japan, but they are becoming the handheld gaming device of choice in every other major market. Nintendo's stubbornness to embrace this platform will eventually bring them down."

With a terrible console approach, they need to do something. 3DS focus won't do it.

Congrats on the troll thread. Looks like you got some responses.

@lastsonbackup: I don't follow that logic. The 3DS is selling incredibly well and the main selling point is the exclusive software. If they were to release their games on the iPhone, it would completely destroy those 3DS sales.

Want to play Mario, you have to buy a DS. Want to play Fire Emblem? DS. Want to play Animal Crossing, Zelda, Pokemon?

I'm sure these titles would sell like gangbusters on iOS/Android, but they'd lose hardware sales, which wouldn't be a positive step for the company to take, in fact it almost certainly would be the very thing to bring them down. Personally, I'm happy we have at least one big company that's shying away from F2P gaming, social network integration and in-app purchases. Losing Nintendo to that wouldn't be a good thing.

People on forums continue to be wholly ignorant about how the industry works. I assume you pulled that quote from Reddit.

No, you're saying "SMARTPHONES MATTER"

and he's saying

"the 3DS is outselling previous bestselling consoles".

If it were really in such danger from smartphones it wouldn't be selling BETTER than previous consoles, now would it?

My take on it is this: those who play games primarily on smartphones are mostly those who wouldn't/didn't buy handheld consoles anyway. The games you're playing on your iphone are extremely dissimilar to the games you're playing on your 3DS. I have both, and yeah iphone games are good to have when you have 5 minutes cause you're waiting for something but that's not going to replace the gaming experience you get playing a Mario or Fire Emblem or Pokemon game. Mobile gaming still doesn't and is showing no signs of getting games like that.

Your mistake, and the mistake of everyone saying that phones will be the downfall of handheld gaming, is thinking that the two platforms are competing with each other in the same market. In my opinion, they are not. Handheld games are different enough from phone games that, while phone games are growing, I don't think they're significantly cannibalizing handheld sales.

They charge you to transfer your Wii content to the Wii U.

They sold Mario All Stars for $40 on the Wii.

Despite needing games on the Wii, they are stingy about letting games like Xenoblade onto the system.

Cancelling their E3 conference really isn't a big deal. Sure, it doesn't really look good but in the grand scheme of things, it doesn't really matter.

However, what does matter is what an abject failure the Wii U is right now. I can't imagine anyone being very happy with their purchase right now. Luckily, the 3DS seems to be doing very well and growing. I've personally been on getting closer and closer to buying one for a while now. As far as moral outrage over the YouTube thing, I would wait to see what Sony and Microsoft are doing in regards to online passes and used games before I throw a real fit about that. Say what you want about Nintendo right now but I don't think they're nearing as malicious in their business practices as many other companies in this industry.

Nope. I'm pretty sure that if this was the distopian corporate future, I'd much rather support, and thus be a drugged-up cyborg agent of Nintendo then say... EA.

Nintendo to me has always been about it's first party and exclusive titles.

Nonsense.

Let's stop with the doom and gloom right now, shall we?

Wrong. It only sells well in Japan not in the US or Europe. In fact the 3Ds sells under Nintendo's expectations and the reason for that are tablets and smartphones.

100% untrue.

http://www.joystiq.com/2013/05/16/nintendo-3ds-software-sales-up-52-year-on-year-in-us/

Sales were initially bad and were bellow Nintendo's expectations because they expected it to come out and instantly be as popular as the original DS, which didn't happen due to bad software. Now that the thing actually has games it's doing significantly better worldwide and like I said before, is on course to overtake the DS and PS2 as the best selling system ever. It's already outpacing the initial DS sales and in Europe/Australia, it's already beaten the record as the fastest selling system ever so don't bother spouting any of that "only in Japan" nonsense, unless you actually have something to back that up.

The 3DS has now sold 31.09 million units and game sales of 95 million, which is certainly far more impressive. Despite these sales though, Nintendo is still disappointed with its handheld, stating that it had "not generated sufficient sales momentum" in North America and Europe.

http://www.shopto.net/news/42541/Nintendo-sales-disappoint-but-company-still-sees-profit

@darji: You're focusing on some pretty odd information. I thought you were trying to claim that smartphones/tablets were killing handhelds, yet you link to an article that proves the 3DS has some very strong sales figures and this is BEFORE Animal Crossing, Zelda and Pokemon are about to be released? I think you're confusing disappointing with bad. The Nintendo DS and Wii were ridiculously huge sellers. The released new systems and expected them to match or overtake those figures quickly, which they haven't.

The Wii U is currently in a very dire position, if you want to argue that it's being killed by smartphones or whatever, go ahead. But I don't see any evidence that's happening with the 3DS, especially considering smartphones/tablet are getting more popular and the 3DS sales are getting stronger simultaneously. Doesn't really add up, does it?

These sales occur due to smartphone sales.

Nintendo said it hopes to sell 18 million 3DS consoles this year, a bet it can still succeed in handheld consoles when games on tablets and smartphones have become commonplace.

http://www.computerworld.com.my/resource/industries/nintendo-misses-profit-goal-as-wii-u-3ds-sales-sag/

People in the west rather play on their tablets and smartphones than on a gaming only device.

Nintendo are currently in a state of major change.

The old guard is falling out of favor and refuses to change with the times.

I predict Nintendo are going to have a major decline this gen which will force them to reinvent themselves.

How? They can literally afford to sit this one out and watch. The company seriously needs to use that money to bankroll a major shift in the way the company operates.

The modest hardware spec thing worked fine for the Wii last gen. It's not going to work again. Why?

Nintendo think they can make it without third party games and by just selling their first party stuff this gen.

They're wrong.

What Nintendo needs is a new leadership. Get rid of Iwata and Miyamoto and let young people take over. Get rid of the marketing puppet Reggie which is also these days a symbol of arrogance Nintendo has these days. They need to come out of their Ivory tower and get a feel for the real market in the world.

Not as long as Dish Network is still around. Now that is a shit company.

Seriously. They think its still 1995 over there.

Whoa, Sessler definitely has way more pull than regular ol' Youtubers. Regardless of your opinion of him, he has managed to remain relevant in the gaming press. I'm going to be honest here, anytime someone has something negative to say about Nintendo you really jump to Nintendo's defense. I don't want the company to go any less than you do, but these last few years have held tons of missteps for them. What they need is...

Well, yeah. I don't think Iwata and Miyamoto should be "gotten rid of", but they need someone else in charge who can help the company restructure in order to better fit into modern gaming. Right now, it seems like their goal as a company is to operate just like they did when the SNES was popular. They won't even do online functionality right, and the online features expected of a console were laid down when the 360 launched in 2005. I still hold to the idea that Nintendo won't be going away this generation, but there is no way in hell that they can continue to do well if they don't get some well-recognized, good games, and more than one or two a year.

And no, Hailinel, the list on this thread does not consist of games that sell a console.

@darji: This is a very circular argument, all you're doing is posting to the same news stories reporting on Nintendo's statement to disappointing sales, none of which was attributed to smartphones or tablets and leaves out the fact all other consoles have seen a massive drop in sales. You can't claim the Wii U and 3DS are doing badly for a specific reason, but then pull out an excuse to defend poor sales of the PS3, 360 and Vita.