Should Nintendo go the SEGA route?

[Fignuts]

I don't know if this has been discussed before, but whatever.

Nintendo isn't in the same boat as SEGA was years ago, but if their next system doesn't hang with XBOX 2 and the PS3, I think they should just make games, and leave the consoles for other companies. They can still have the handheld though. The succesor to the GBA is still on the way.(Miyamoto has said that the DS is not the successor.)

[Kane Knight]

Nope.

[Gouda]

Nope. A world without a Nintendo console is like a world without... ummm... [insert rest of analogy here]

[The Snake]

They are slowly making the same kind of mistakes as Sega. The DS as a good example. Paid 150 for it. Slow launch, but fun titles. Here we are 4 months almost 5 down the line , they've put out maybe 1 other quality title besides Mario which would be the Wario Touched game.

Sony's lineup and features are mindblowing. I'd have gladly put out the extra 100 for the feature set. And the announcement of GBA 2 before they've even worked on this product . . just sucks. Reminds me of the Sega evolution line of Sega CD --> 32x -->Saturn ---> Dreamcast. All of which had potential.

Nintendo can survive fine though on Kiddies, Japan and the faithful that they have here (me included). But i wish they'd make more of an effort to keep with the times and put out more 3rd party stuff. Same complaints have been around since 64. SNES was their last complete console. And GBA is probably going to be their last success at handheld.

[Kane Knight]

They are slowly making the same kind of mistakes as Sega. The DS as a good example. Paid 150 for it. Slow launch, but fun titles. Here we are 4 months almost 5 down the line , they've put out maybe 1 other quality title besides Mario which would be the Wario Touched game.

Sony's lineup and features are mindblowing. I'd have gladly put out the extra 100 for the feature set. And the announcement of GBA 2 before they've even worked on this product . . just sucks. Reminds me of the Sega evolution line of Sega CD --> 32x -->Saturn ---> Dreamcast. All of which had potential.

Nintendo can survive fine though on Kiddies, Japan and the faithful that they have here (me included). But i wish they'd make more of an effort to keep with the times and put out more 3rd party stuff. Same complaints have been around since 64. SNES was their last complete console. And GBA is probably going to be their last success at handheld.
Sony's launch titles are mostly lackluster too (Regarding the PSP).

[Funky Fly]

If Nintendo goes the way of SEGA, I will convert to PC games and be done with consoles. :|

[Bad Company]

Sony's launch titles are mostly lackluster too (Regarding the PSP).
I agree

MESSAGE TO SONY: RIDGE RACER HAS NEVER BEEN GOOD!

[DS]

If Nintendo goes the way of SEGA, I will convert to PC games and be done with consoles. :|
...I'm really not seeing the loss in this situation...

[Silent]

...I'm really not seeing the loss in this situation...

:D

[Vietnamese Crippler]

I agree

MESSAGE TO SONY: RIDGE RACER HAS NEVER BEEN GOOD!

Ridge Racer isn't THAT bad on PSP.

It will be, however, after Gran Turismo 4 comes out :drool:

[The Destroyer]

Nintendo can survive fine though on Kiddies, Japan and the faithful that they have here (me included). But i wish they'd make more of an effort to keep with the times and put out more 3rd party stuff. Same complaints have been around since 64. SNES was their last complete console. And GBA is probably going to be their last success at handheld.
They can hardly force third party developers to make games for their consoles.

Besides, Nintendo's own games are good because they know the systems that the games are intended for inside out. If they suddenly decided to develop for the next gen MS and Sony consoles, that advantage would go right out the window. Not to mention the fact they would probably stand to lose full creative control.

And just because they're not dominating the console market currently, doesn't mean they're failures. They're still turning a profit at least. But then again, unlike Sony and MS, they're totally reliant on their consoles and games...

[Jonster]

It'd be a sad sad day if Nintendo stopped making consoles. And IIRC they've made more of a profit this generation than Microsoft (who I think haven't made a profit).

Plus they're still providing mystery over the Revolution:

Link (http://www.gamespot.com/news/2005/03/29/news_6121264.html)
Iwata then switched the conversation from software to hardware, saying that one way Nintendo hopes to grow the user base is by making the Revolution gamepad more user-friendly for nongamers.
"Controllers for current consoles have more than doubled [in complexity] from older consoles. They may satisfy the hardcore gamers, but they've become too difficult for more casual gamers," Iwata said. When elaborating on the Revolution's controller, Iwata used the phrase "user interface" and avoided the word "controller" to describe the Revolution's input device. A recent magazine article sparked widespread speculation (http://www.gamespot.com/news/2005/03/25/news_6121112.html) that the Revolution's controller would feature no buttons other than a DS-style touch screen.

"For the next-generation console, we plan to introduce a friendly user interface so that, for example, a mother who's watching her child playing a game might say, 'Oh, I'd like to try that too.' However, user interfaces are devices that can be easily imitated by other companies, so I can't reveal any details right now," he said.

[King Jericho]

Nintendo is far from dead, and would be a damn sad day if they were to ever take the path of Sega. Nintendo still have foothold in Japan and some of America and the Handheld market, which has been said.

I'm excited about the possibilities of the Revolution, because I'm sure it will be in more ways than one revolutionary in the advances and future of gaming.

[Kane Knight]

I agree

MESSAGE TO SONY: RIDGE RACER HAS NEVER BEEN GOOD!
:(

[Kane Knight]

They can hardly force third party developers to make games for their consoles.

Besides, Nintendo's own games are good because they know the systems that the games are intended for inside out. If they suddenly decided to develop for the next gen MS and Sony consoles, that advantage would go right out the window. Not to mention the fact they would probably stand to lose full creative control.

And just because they're not dominating the console market currently, doesn't mean they're failures. They're still turning a profit at least. But then again, unlike Sony and MS, they're totally reliant on their consoles and games...
I have to agree with this. Nintendo as a third party doesn't work.

[Kane Knight]

It'd be a sad sad day if Nintendo stopped making consoles. And IIRC they've made more of a profit this generation than Microsoft (who I think haven't made a profit).

Plus they're still providing mystery over the Revolution:

Link (http://www.gamespot.com/news/2005/03/29/news_6121264.html)
That scares me a little.

[SuperSlim]

Nintendo should never go the Sega route. You can't stop the originators

[Team Sheep]

Somehow, imagining Super Mario on the PS2 just doesn't seem right. :-\

[AareDub]

Wow, I'm surprised there is such opposition for this idea. I think it would be the best thing to happen to gaming since full motion video. Nintendo is doing horrible these days imo. I read an article on IGN yesterday with a statement saying "first does not always mean best," it was some chick from nintendo referring to online play. I laughed at that because it's the exact opposite of Nintendo's behaviour with things like the DS as a good example. They are stressing innovation so much, yet they refuse to accept the growing trends until it would absolutely kill them to ignore it.

If they went the way of SEGA they could still make plenty of money off their "kid market" by selling the mario titles cross platform. They'd probably also make a killing by releasing a set of classic games (like the sonic collection, but with mario etc) for the PS2 and XBOX (or next gen). All the older gamers that didn't bother with a gamecube would go crazy over such nostalgia.

I could go on and on, I just don't see any downside to this whatsoever.

[Team Sheep]

I think the problem with Nintendo is that as the gaming world moves on, more and more gamers have gotten more mature. Sure back in the day everyone loved Super Mario, Donkey Kong, Star Fox Adventures, etc. But now a days most gamers are more mature and are more into shoot-em-ups and more complex games, and Sony and Microsoft have realised that whilst Nintendo are still doing the same old child-like games which are great IMO, but may not suit the majority of gamers. If Nintendo where to stop making consoles and concentrated on games, then Xbox and Playstation would have and ideal assortment that would suit every gamer. That's kind of the reason why I have a Gamecube asswell as a PS2. I use my Gamecube for all the fun Mario type genre of games.

[DS]

It's not as much as they are into FPS, it's that they aren't into pixelation. Gamers these days want to get as close to realism with graphics as they can because they feel that would suck them into the expirence more. It brings up a couple problems for Nintendo though.

How fun would it be if you were a life-like plumber trying to kill a realistic turtle? Or having a donkey that actually looked like it belonged in a zoo? They keep their nostalgic fans but they tend to scare off newer gamers. They give them a chance, but let's face it, this gen games haven't been that great for their franchises. That's why everyone is going crazy over the new Zelda. It looks nice, looks like it plays nice, and hell...it's Zelda.

Personally, I think they should call it quits on the consoles and stick to games and handhelds. They can make plenty of new and exciting games that don't have to be with Mario.

[Silent]

If they focused on the handheld market they could still dominate it.

[Kane Knight]

-EDIT-screwflanderscrewflandersscrewflanders

[Kane Knight]

Dammit! Quoted the wrong person!

[Kane Knight]

It's not as much as they are into FPS, it's that they aren't into pixelation. Gamers these days want to get as close to realism with graphics as they can because they feel that would suck them into the expirence more. It brings up a couple problems for Nintendo though.

How fun would it be if you were a life-like plumber trying to kill a realistic turtle? Or having a donkey that actually looked like it belonged in a zoo? They keep their nostalgic fans but they tend to scare off newer gamers. They give them a chance, but let's face it, this gen games haven't been that great for their franchises. That's why everyone is going crazy over the new Zelda. It looks nice, looks like it plays nice, and hell...it's Zelda.

Personally, I think they should call it quits on the consoles and stick to games and handhelds. They can make plenty of new and exciting games that don't have to be with Mario.
Yeah, when I'm firing a particle cannon at an evil alien squid that has jumped through a vortex to kill me, I want REALISM, DAMMIT

[Funky Fly]

They need REAL 3rd party support this time around. How many games come out that are only for PS2, PC and X-Box.

[Requiem]

I agree with DS. Most of their games are still geared toward children, and unfortunately... all the kids who grew up with nintendo, aren't kids anymore, or are approaching the stage where they want something more.

If their new console fails, they should call it quits and go with handhelds and games.

[Sepholio]

They need REAL 3rd party support this time around. How many games come out that are only for PS2, PC and X-Box.

It is their own fault they don't have enough 3rd party support. Alot of the titles that are only on the other systems would come out for a nintendo system if nintendos higher-ups didnt shun nearly everything that's violent.

They need to do the same thing the other companies do. Let any type of game, regardless of violence, drugs, profanity, sexuality, or any other thing they view as negative still come out on the system, and let the gamers decide what games they want to play.

That way, the kids would still be pleased with nintendos family friendly titles, but hardcore gamers and older gamers could find their niche in the systems library of software as well.

[Kane Knight]

They need REAL 3rd party support this time around. How many games come out that are only for PS2, PC and X-Box.
Yeah, I agree. but they've done their best to alienate 3rd party support.

[DS]

Yeah, when I'm firing a particle cannon at an evil alien squid that has jumped through a vortex to kill me, I want REALISM, DAMMIT
That's why I was sure to say "realism in graphics" KK. Because I knew you would be the first to point out something wrong about my post.

[Kane Knight]

That's why I was sure to say "realism in graphics" KK. Because I knew you would be the first to point out something wrong about my post.
Even then, realism is subjective within graphics, based upon the content. Unrealistic content=unrealistic graphics, no matter how slick they are.

Besides, Both XBox and GCN are capable of more "immersive" graphics. Sony still leads, and will continue to. Sony uses inferior hardware, but is the MOST popular. Gamecube isn't all kiddy games, and has shown itself capable of strong "realism" in graphics when it's not doing "Donkey Konga."

[Jaton]

I've said this before, but I'll do it again.

Nintendo's problem is not in their software. Their first party games, such as Mario, Donkey Kong, etc, are all excellent games. The problem is the fact that they market it to a much smaller audience. That being younger children and hardcore gamers who still enjoy these games. PS2's software takes the exact opposite route--they market their games to a more mainstream audience. Hence why their software sales are dominating over XBox and GCN.

[Kane Knight]

I've said this before, but I'll do it again.

Nintendo's problem is not in their software. Their first party games, such as Mario, Donkey Kong, etc, are all excellent games. The problem is the fact that they market it to a much smaller audience. That being younger children and hardcore gamers who still enjoy these games. PS2's software takes the exact opposite route--they market their games to a more mainstream audience. Hence why their software sales are dominating over XBox and GCN.
Which explains why it dominates the other MAINSTREAM system. :roll: