Nintendo Considering "New Business Structure"

NOOOO we don't need F2P Nintendo games, we just need Nintendo on a PS4 OMG the power of that machine with the game know how of Nintendo, it's giving me the strangest boner.

Dear Nintendo:

Have one platform only. Have it be a handheld that can wirelessly output to a small HDMI output device, so that it can be thrown up on a TV easily. Take care of your IPs. Make money.

@pj: That is a fair point . . . but do we think the options in front of Nintendo are to fail as a company and fold or to fall into developer irrelevance and make Sonic-level Mario games? I think Patrick's comment just points out that while SEGA is still alive, it still didn't work out "well" for them. Just not a bad as it could have been.

They should stop trying to embrace what's popular, and how to make a console that embraces LAST YEARS TRENDS and start innovating for the NEXT GENERATION. The Wii U boasted "1080p! Same power as PS3!" right before the PS4 was released? Wtf?

Willy Wonka also had to restructure and gave the factory over to Charlie

@fobwashed: I'm not sure if it's quite as simple as that but I tend to agree with you when it comes to the new generation of young gamers no longer aspiring to or being drawn to Nintendo the same way a lot of us were back in the 80s and 90s. The magic of Nintendo was how they grabbed your imagination and attention when you were young and you become hooked for life on that magic formula. The reality is that kids' first gaming experience today is likely their parent's ipad or phone and those cute little Angry Birds distract them long enough until they look to their older brother whose already playing PlayStation or Xbox and somehow skip the Nintendo phase altogether. Of course the fact that 3DS has sold over 40 Million units kind of punches a hole in this theory, but I definitely think there is a difference in how younger generations perceive the Nintendo brand these days as a "lesser than".

Regarding the sales of Knack vs. SMB3DW, at least if VGChartz.com is to be believed, rest assured Mario sold over 1.6 Million copies globally (over 700K in NA) while Knack managed to sell 500K globally (200K in NA) so the world hasn't yet gone completely mad at least..

This news is very interesting and somewhat troubling, I'm not sure how I would feel about such an iconic pioneering force that for better or worse is solely responsible for the existence of the console market today bowing out of consoles altogether. I choose to remain optimistic this is the desperation they need to make some meaningful, much needed changes and at least make one more valiant effort for glory in the console market. I would hate for the last console Nintendo manufactured to be called Wii U, the legacy deserves better than that..

PS @fobwashed your GB title screen art is totally rad.

Why IOS? There are more Android phones out there then apple. Also, why mobile? They already have 3ds's and those sell like crazy. Only The WiiU is a disappointment.

Nintendo put out absolutely amazing games this year. After spending crazy amounts of time playing 3D World with my nephew, I'm ready to put aside my nostalgia and call it one of the best Mario games of all-time. A Link Between Worlds was the best Zelda since The Wind Waker. Pokemon X and Y got me back into a series I haven't cared about since Gold and Silver. Fire Emblem: Awakening was absolutely incredible, coming from someone who isn't a strategy game fan in the least. Pikmin 3 is so full of charm and whimsy and I adored every second of it. Luigi's Mansion, Animal Crossing, The Wonderful 101. All fantastic, well made games across both their platforms.

And here's the boisterous games community, calling for the heads of the annualized franchises, the stale shooter genre, the busted and half-finished games, the FTP money gouging and the day one DLC plans. And here's Nintendo, the company making incredibly polished, deep, rewarding, content rich, quality games...being entirely ignored in favour of the stale shit everyone always complains about.

I read somewhere that Knack outsold Mario. I weep for this fucking industry.

They should put a subscription based virtual console on non nintendo systems. It should be like netflix but for old games. pay nintendo directly for it and get access to it on all platforms.

Keza MacDonald on IGN wrote a pretty great article today that I agree with wholeheartedly. The Wii U may completely flop and be an expensive mistake, but Nintendo will rally back and figure something out. And in the meantime, I'll get to enjoy some pretty kick-butt games that may not sell that great. "If the Wii U turns out to be a niche console with niche games, is that such a bad thing if the games themselves are worthwhile?"

(It's here, in case you're curious. I don't usually like IGN opinion pieces but this one was well thought out.)

I don't think anyone should be surprised that the wiiu tanked, but the extent to which it did is pretty impressive. I hope this means they reconsider making bayonetta 2 a wiiu exclusive, so some people can actually play it

It's about damn time. Nintendo could make some great games for phones and tablets.

Nintendo squeaked by on the GameCube, they can squeak by on the Wii U.

I do think that Nintendo needs a new system, but not the one that I have seem people mention here. The last thing they need is to release another piece of hardware that is equal to current gen competition. Read the article about the guy who developed Mass Effect 3 for the Wii U that Patrick linked. Nintendo has its head way too far up its own ass to make a console with proper tools, support, and power that AAA devs want. Release Wii U HD in 2 years and NO developer will care. The only way I would think a new console like that makes sense is with extensive outside help and a new direction. (see Mark Cerny and the PS4 vs sony Japan and PS3) And that is a risk that I don't think is worth taking, plus we are talking about a super old super proud Japanese company. Sony did it because they were desperate, and I don't see Nintendo going there.

What I think makes the most sense is instead of trying to find your way into the market of xbox and playstation, find the best way into the market as a secondary console. Release a system that is stripped of all of the crap that you can't do (extensive online systems, TV support, streaming) and make a game box that is simple to use and has the best games you can make. Be super open to indie devs as well. Basically they should make the SNES 2. Buy it for the Nintendo games, which will be the new focus of their system. No more making games to fit the hardware (motion and tablet) and back to doing what people want you to do. With the system being very open for indies, you can one day have as many games released as Steam does.

Keep the handheld stuff going, but merge it together with your new box. Find a way to make the current handheld games playable on the new home system. People want it now with the 3ds and Wii U so make it a selling point for the future.

And finally, make a freaking unified login system that I can have confidence in. I don't buy digital on anything except Steam because I don't trust anyone else.

I say they should ditch the WiiU, cut their losses and start with a new console. That won't happen because that's an incredibly risky move to make, but I think it's a bold move they should make.

What is likely to happen is that the next console will be put into development and the WiiU will be retired within a few years. Hopefully.... they'll choose a better name for their next console.

They just need to ditch the gamepad tablet thing and sell the WiiU way cheaper than PS4 and XB1. They tried to sell systems using a gimmick again and it backfired greatly.

3DS's aren't selling well because of the 3D gimmick, they are selling because they are a better DS with equivalent style games people want. Nintendo needs to make the WiiU like that and let go of the gimmicks. Wii was guitar hero and they can't recapture that success the same way Activision could never, people grow tired of gimmicks quickly.

wow smartphone talk.

Deep...

Yowza! This sucks. Don't be surprised though if Nintendo once again defies odds and pulls this out of the fire.

Good now maybe they'll put the fucking GBA backlog on the eShop on my 3DS and stop making "consoles" to compete with MS/Sony. Nintendo really fucked up with the Wii and the U, but the good news is they have always been the best at handhelds, so hopefully they give us fucking gameboy advanced games on the goddamn 3DS

@gnatsol said:

Yeah I don't understand the cheerful applause. Though I agree Nintendo's position in the market has left me longing for some time but that doesn't mean I want them to give up. It would be a shame if Nintendo went the way of SEGA, I would definitely shed a tear. I grew up with Nintendo and the NES/SNES will always hold a special place in my heart. I still believe Gaming has seem to lost its soul as it continues to chase "BETTER GRAPHIC". Gonna go play Zelda and pretend none of this is happening.

Smart phones are the wrong direction, if you ask me.

Nothing that is (traditionally) good about Nintendo works particularly well on a touch-based smart phone.

I think a better solution would be to open up the capacity for larger sales by releasing their amazing games on other platforms.

My guess would be that there's massive amounts of shareholder pressure to jump on some of the branding opportunities that would be available on smart phones, but I wonder if that's a long term solution to their problems. The idea of, for example, a Mario-branding endless runner is just incredibly sad to me.

WiiPhoneU. Confirmed.

Just dump everything into the 3DS, get some Advanced Wars and Metroid games out.

Back to making cards, Nintendo.

I cried a little reading this. To me it all started falling apart when Nintendo released Wii Music, a game Miyamoto said was his most proud game ever, and I thought it was the best game Nintendo has ever made, while basically everyone else hated it. That really messed with the way I view other people's willingness to appreciate beauty unfiltered. Without someone explaining to jaded adults why something is good, most of the time they don't pay attention because they're already sheep. Only children truly see, or people on mushrooms! :D

You need to do your research before you bash the Wii, which is the 5th best selling game console of ALL TIME; the 4 consoles ahead of it are all from previous generations of gaming consoles, and 2 of them were also manufactured by Nintendo.

The Wii outsold PS3 and Xbox 360 by over 20 MILLION units. Nintendo almost literally mopped the floor with both Sony AND Microsoft last generation, and that's NOT including their massive, world-wide success with hand-held consoles. (Even the GameBoy Advance outsold PS3 and XB360!)

No: the Wii was not a Nintendo misstep by any means. Not a lot of entertainment companies maintain liquidity on the order of $20 BILLION.

Genius!

This would require Nintendo understanding how the internet works. Though I could see a Pokemon AR game for iOS being stupidly popular for no real reason

@driftspace said:

Yeah it was the best selling console, so what? It's now gathering dust in every 5 year olds bedroom and grandparents house, sure people are going to bust it out once every christmas and go "hey wii sports? huh? huuuuuuh?" the Wii was a one gold coin in the bottom of a barrel of pirate shit, but the problem was there was only one. Where are the Wii U sales? Oh yeah everyone is fucking over motion controls.

I hate the Wii because the Gamecube and N64 were pretty fucking awesome and I was expecting something great. I'm not saying Nintendo didn't have a great past, I'm saying they need to put GBA games on the fucking eShop. The Wii was a misstep in the eyes of people who like video games, even if it spoke highly to casuals and any mom who didn't want to drop more money on superior systems for Christmas. Get what I'm saying now?

Maybe they'll just go full circle and start selling Nintendo franchise themed playing cards. EXCLUSIVELY. Having said that, in my heart, I want Nintendo to launch a crazy ass sneak attack with an awesome VR headset based console. Virtual Boy 2.0. Virtual Man. Virtualman.

Sega squandered their talent and played it way too safe to be anything but an IP grindhouse. Nintendo failed to make a compelling console or a compelling reason to own their console. There's still hope, but I think Nintendo is going to have to make some big changes in order to remain relevant this console cycle.

The account system is getting better, but it was a complete mess when it was released. That touchscreen business is such a weak concept and it put the cost focus on a peripheral and not the actual system. If they had done what sony is doing with the vita, they could have off-loaded that functionality onto the 3DS and put more money into the core system and software suite.

Anyway, I just wish they had taken more care and thought into what it takes in this day and age to make decent console experience.

Now is the time to capitalize on nostalgia. You know all those NES, SNES, N64, Gamecube, Gameboy, GBA and DS titles everyone grew up playing and loves? Start putting serious effort into getting those out on the Wii U and 3DS. Make a commitment that all legacy first party Nintendo games will be released on modern hardware in the next 3 years. Sort out the licensing agreements and get 3rd parties involved. Retro games and games that imitate them are huge right now and no one has a better back log than Nintendo. It's time to make Virtual Console matter and leverage a catalog that Sony or Microsoft would pay through the nose to have access to.

i'd actually agree with this. may be hard to get a handheld powerful enough to deliver 1080p or even 720p, but i bet it's doable, and then you get the best of both worlds. problem being to get anything remotely comparable to a home console it'd have to be $300+ or taking a severe loss. and it would have to depend on nintendo modernizing to a degree.

but on the other hand i don't want them to be forced to become something they're lot. we would lose a lot i think if they became an also-ran console manufacturer focused on graphics, endless sequels, and reiterating the same dull grey modern FPSs ad nauseum. it's a rock and a hard place. i would admit i want nintendo to be nintendo, but to also not be nintendo. there has to be a solution somewhere.

i do enjoy my wii u a lot, and i still think it has potential, but i will concede things look rough. maybe there's something they can do to turn it around. maybe aggressive marketing in a different direction. maybe they can start wooing the indies quite like sony did (i wish they came to that conclusion first though). maybe they will do something radical or a risky gambit that will help them in the long run while hopefully not losing what makes them unique. maybe things will stay the same, but this indicates that they are quite aware of the situation and are willing to take the steps to evolve. i just hope it isn't at the cost of the core of nintendo which i know and love. i'm not sure if the two are mutually exclusive.

i still fucking love nintendo, and still have strong faith in them and hope they pull through.

@chrissedoff: Whether or not you thought the games were good, Sega were putting out the most interesting games in the industry with the Dreamcast and when they pulled out of hardware that pretty much stopped dead and they fell back onto tried and trusted franchises and ports so I don't see how it can be seen as anything but a shame.

This has been my dream for years. Most gamers I know love NIntendo games, but never get to play them because they're on a system that just isn't worth it. I, for one, am not going to pay a few hundred dollars to play Mario or Zelda or both.

Bring Nintendo to everyone! Please!

I thought Nintendo just made a butt load of money in China due to the consule ban lift? Anyway... If Nintendo would just join the 21st century and make a consule that has decent hardware this wouldn't be a problem!

Sega stopped making competitive product.

Perhaps the development costs of a Nintendo title wouldn't be justified sharing profits with a hardware provider, but I have hopes that THE strongest IP holder in Gaming could make it work.

I guarantee that the first AAA title NIntendo released on all platforms (assuming they put their usual effort into it) would be their fastest seller of all time (Wii sports doesn't count; a freak fluke. And arguably the worst thing that ever happened to Nintendo as far as Gamers are concerned).

I was thinking about getting a Wii U to, think I'll reconsider till the dust settles and we see what Nintendo do next.

But ouch! Nintendo!

What Zelda on steam?

1440p, 60fps......sounds good to me.

Their prediction for console sales seems to be based off of the unexpected market the Wii ended up appealing to, why do companies assume every product will sell as well as the last?

iOS would be a grave mistake, convincing people to pay 40€ for a new game on that platform is practically impossible. And a free to play Pokemon would be a horrible thing.

Hello There,

As someone that skipped out on the Wii generation, I was pretty skeptical when the WiiU first came out. However, I then saw the release of the XBONE and the PS4, and that drastically changed my view of the WiiU. I've come to realize that I didn't want the game industry plagued with FPS games and 3rd person action games with little to no innovation, or hardware that's just all power and no substance. If hardware really mattered THAT much, the Vita should have destroyed the 3DS by now. However, we all know that this isn't the case.

Nintendo's problem isn't that there aren't any games, but that developers are focused on making graphical improvements than to improve upon the player experience. We're up to how many Call of Dutys now and the best they can come with is that you have a dog? Ubisoft was probably one of the better 3rd party developers willing to use and successfully made their games(Red Steel, ZombieU) fun with Nintendo's special hardware, whereas the rest simply made ports just hoping to cash in on the Wii's installed base. The 3DS isn't surviving because of ports but because of titles exclusive to that system!

I'm not really sure what Nintendo can do at this point, but I believe that Bayonetta 2 is a step towards the right direction. They need 3rd party WiiU exclusives that are ONLY playable on their system and what better way to do that than to act as a 'kickstarter' for developers that can't afford to make the game that they want? I personally think that Nintendo should buy Platinum games because a lot of their game design philosophies align. You can see it in their games!

Another issue that they have is that a lot of the people that grew up with Nintendo games have grown up, but Nintendo games stayed the same as when we used to play them. I would love to see Nintendo whip up some games that are tailored more towards the adolescent or adult crowds. This would help 'grow up' their image as well and probably help them in the long run.

No matter how bad Nintendo is doing, I would never want them to go down as a hardware manufacturer. Do you want a world with only Halos and Killzones, and consoles with a terabyte of DDR20 RAM so you can play Call of Duty 15 with realistic cat hair? I really hope that doesn't come to pass.

I don't think the WiiU is out of the game just yet, but Nintendo is running out of time. Hopefully an improved gameplay will materialize by E3 and show people what the WiiU can really do. The amount of RAM doesn't matter, it's how you use it. ;)

-k

i hope that isnt the end of nintendo

It doesn't matter if you wouldn't, just look at the sales of the 2/3DS this year after Pokemon was released. They make far more money from selling hardware than they could by branching out with software and for crying out loud, the last thing I want to see is Nintendo trying to monetize Pokemon with microtransactions. Nintendo going out of business, or even just turning to multiplatform sales, would be the worst thing I can see happening to this industry.

However, we did recently see Nintendo trademark "Pokemon Touch". It wouldn't surprise me to see them release more apps on Android/iOS, like they did with that Pokedex a while back, and give that some kind of connectivity to the Pokemon you can now store on the cloud service.

They must obviously know that no one would want to play a classical Nintendo game with only touchscreen input. Though I would love to see with what new ideas they could come up with to suit those devices.

I wonder if there is even the slither of chance that Nintendo would create their own smart phone? They do like making hardware.

Ouch. But yeah, I think Nintendo need to concentrate on what they're good at - handhelds and high quality first party titles.

Phones is not the way to go, however.