Other than that those few bits of information, we've got nothing but rumors and talk from "reliable" sources. So I don't feel like running down the list of things that could be true or not. But I do feel like there are some things that this new system is going to need to accomplish in order to be successful and I want to hear what you guys think about it.
I feel like Nintendo is in somewhat awkward position at this juncture and may have had to push out a new system earlier than they really wanted to. Between the large drop in sales (don't worry Nintendo is still filthy rich) for the Wii and the ever waning support/sales of big third party developers. It's become clear to me that Nintendo saw that it was losing too much support and interest in the Wii brand overall. Plus lets face it, most Wii owners other than the hardcore adopters just don't buy as many games as PS3/360 owners; unless it involves gyrating your pelvis or turning New Super Mario Bros. into a drinking game.
After the jump is a list of issues I think Nintendo needs to address in order help get this console streaming onto your faces... I mean living rooms around the world.
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| It feels crab, man |
Nintendo is going to be releasing it's next console possibly very close to the end of the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360's life-cycles. It could very well happen that Microsoft or Sony may take an opportunity to knock the wind out of Nintendo's sails by letting gamers know that their new consoles are only a few years away. It's going to take a lot more that just an upgrade to 1080p HD graphics and the standard Nintendo first party games to get most gamers to jump ship for a new console. There are quite of few gamers left with a bad Nintendo taste in their mouth and most might say, "Why bother buying this when the Playstation 4 or Xbox 1080 is coming in 2014?" If that happens you can toss Nintendo's new console into the dumpster with the Dreamcast.
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| Make 3rd parties your best friends. |
This one has been a sore spot for Nintendo and its fans for a long time and I think Nintendo really felt the third party burn with the Wii. The best way for Nintendo to secure a good future is to really (I mean really this time) reach out to third parties and get them on board early. Give them a platform they can feel confident in and will help make them tons of cash selling games. The last I checked people still really like to make fistfuls of money for some crazy reason. The Wii managed to be successful for awhile by attracting a whole new demographic of people willing to buy into Wiispor... I mean gaming, but they didn't buy a wide variety of games in high volumes. After a few disappointing sales of some "Hardcore" games, a lot of developers started jumping ship and focusing their efforts on HD competitors where the grass seemed greener.
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| The console should be a beast. |
More power might not necessarily equal success as we've seen in the past, but this time around Nintendo may need up the ante a little bit in order to get gamers and developers to take notice. Technically the extra power may not prove to produce a giant leap in graphics, but it may prove a point psychologically to people that Nintendo means business and has dipped its balls in marinara sauce so they you can get a taste of home. It's also going to be vital to stay ahead of the future consoles tech as long as possible, since in a few years Nintendo's new console could look very old, very fast. You all know how fickle and gullible we gamers are for amazing graphics. We'll gump over the next big box of horsepower in two seconds flat without even saying thank you or give goodbye hug. Plus can you imaging how amazing Mario's mustache would look with full bump mapping in glorious 1080p?
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| XBox Live changed everything |
Nintendo can't really afford to screw this one up if they are really serious about capturing a wide variety of audiences in the market. If their online structure isn't even half of what Playstation or Xbox is offering you can call this console dead in the water. Heck, I would take a direct copy of either one of other systems networks (well, maybe not the PSN network) in terms of functionality and it would be like Nintendo received a message from some online gaming god. There is some signs of hope with the Nintendo 3DS, but its too early to tell for sure if they are going to Nintendoify it to death or not. It's going to be 2012 Nintendo, if your system can't or won't let me play games and chat online with my friends with ease, then I don't know what to say other than your bat shit stupid, period. If there is even a whiff of bullshit in Nintendo's online network, I think you will see a lot of gamers take a pass on the system. I put up with a crappy online infrastructure on the Wii, but never again, ever.
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| NO! We don't need another Bubsy |
I really feel that this is also going be even more crucial in the coming up generation. If Nintendo manages to only wrangle in big third parties and have them deliver their bread winners, that still wont be enough for most gamers. The Nintendo faithful will be just fine and dandy with the next Zelda and I personally can't wait to see a new Metroid with all the bells and whistles of a powerful system. But what about the rest of the gaming community? A lot of people are getting tired of seeing the same Nintendo franchises over and over with slightly better graphics. Nintendo has a lot of talent and second parties at its disposal. If they could show gamers a list of totally new games for them to get excited about, that would go a long way in securing a good fan base. It would even be nice to see a few exclusive third parties games come to the system, even if it was only exclusive for a year or so. It's a strategy that has paid off for Nintendo's competitors and its about time to see something entirely new from them.
Nintendo has a lot of money its earned over the last 6 years of success with the DS and the Wii. It may be time the spend some of that money on really putting themselves out there. We will see Nintendo come out swinging like Tyson at E3 this year. By the looks of the gaming industry in its current state, they better.
What do you think Nintendo needs to do to have a successful new console launch?
"The best way for Nintendo to secure a good future is to really (I mean really this time) reach out to third parties and get them on board early."
ReplyDeleteYes. If that means helping with advertising, like Monster Hunter Tri...or collaborating with the developers on peripheral designs as they did with the CCPro and Capcom for MHT; they need to do it more.
"I put up with it crappy online on the Wii, but never again, never again."
Playing with friends on the Wii is a pain. Just hopping online and playing some random matches though, is pretty simple and straight forward.
Friend codes do need to go though...
The part of me screaming "IT WON'T HAPPEN!" though, in regards to a drastically improved online system, is the release of the 3DS...why release a handheld, that has virtually no useful online features? I mean really now, how long were they working on the 3DS...since like the 90s when the Virtual Boy failed? Perhaps if Nintendo had started working on a better online service when the Wii released, it would have been ready 4+ years later when the 3DS released...but no, still not ready. Makes no sense to me.
New IPs, I agree.
"Nintendo has a lot of talent and second parties at its disposal."
Metroid Prime 3, ExciteBots, Endless Ocean, Donkey Kong Country Returns, and many more were developed by second parties, and I hope to see quality titles put out by second parties on the next console as well.
Sometime this year...maybe...I'll finish my piece on Project Cafe, we have many points we agree on, and a few tweaks that I think need to happen.
@Coffee "Yes. If that means helping with advertising, like Monster Hunter Tri...or collaborating with the developers on peripheral designs as they did with the CCPro and Capcom for MHT; they need to do it more"
ReplyDeleteAgree
"Playing with friends on the Wii is a pain."
Agree
"in regards to a drastically improved online system, is the release of the 3DS...why release a handheld, that has virtually no useful online features?"
Yes it doesn't give me a lot of hope about future online plans. Saturo Iwata has stated that the company tried to go it alone with the Wii and is goingn to reach out more for help. Hopefully they just farm out their online design to someone with smarts.
One not for the 3DS is that its taking so long that they are really trying to get it right for once, but they've had years... years to be working on this so wtf is going on at NOJ?
I hope we see new games from Nintendo as well... its one of the major things slowing down the 3DS, there aren't any games worth getting exciting about... its about games... always will be.
@Coffee alright I'll try responding again since blogger deleted my first attempt due to the outage.
ReplyDelete"Yes. If that means helping with advertising, like Monster Hunter Tri...or collaborating with the developers on peripheral designs as they did with the CCPro and Capcom for MHT; they need to do it more."
We hear the same mantra console about third party support, Nintendo did some valiant efforts on Wii with Tri, and yes they need to do much more.
"Friend codes do need to go though..."
Yeah friend codes I feel is a 60/40 chance they will stick around. 3DS has them but much more streamlined, still annoying however.
The part of me screaming "IT WON'T HAPPEN!" though, in regards to a drastically improved online system, is the release of the 3DS...why release a handheld, that has virtually no useful online features?
Yeah they say they are reaching out and not trying to do everything on their own. Nintendo has always had a DYI attitude about things, but at this level in the game they need to find specalists in the online department. They aren't cuttin the mustard. (How do you cut mustard?)
I sounds like were on the same boat here. E3 is going to be interesting to see what Nintendo does. I have a strange feeling I'm going to be a little disappointed. Keeping my fingers crossed however.