Once Nintendo gets more consistent third-party support and manages to actually produce enough of these things to meet demand, that balance is going to tip even further in Japan.
And if that happens, we can finally talk about Nintendo's monopoly in Japan (and the handheld market)
And hopefully the world, too!
Ah... I can't wait for the day when we have to have discussions like "Nintendo fans, we've got a problem. Nintendo is just too damn popular and successful!"
Nintendo won't regain the throne from Sony worldwide, but I could easily see the Switch selling better than the Xbox One. One of the factors in Nintendo's favor is that the Switch is so different from a traditional home console that it arguably isn't even in direct competition with the PS4. I mean, this has been true of Ninty consoles to some extent since the Wii, but that was still a traditional, living room-tethered device. The Switch has the potential to appeal to different sectors of the gaming market simultaneously.
While it was undoubtedly the product of desperation (Nintendo can't afford to support two platforms simultaneously with such uncertain third party support, and trying to compete with Sony and Microsoft in the graphical arms race would be an incredibly foolish move, so their hand was kind of forced here if they didn't want to leave the home console market entirely), I do think the Switch was a brilliant move on Nintendo's part, and one that will keep them relevant in the console gaming space. If the Wii U was Nintendo looking for a gimmick, then the Switch is Nintendo finally playing to their strengths.
@Nicolai Those days already happened in the form of NES being the only really good console at the time and Nintendo enforcing their ''seal of quality'' on everything. It's what led to a certain company coming up with a certain blue hedgehog on their own first 16-bit system to try and counter them.
@Ralizah
Yea, Sony totally owns this generation, and it's mostly due to Microsoft basically waffling a soft ball at them when those terrible online-only details emerged about the Xbox One. And then they shot themselves in their other foot with that horrible E3 presentation that made the Xbox One seem more like a VCR than a gaming machine. It was just one baffling, horrible decision after another leading up to the Xbox One launch that one would think Microsoft had a death wish for their own console.
And all Sony had to do was make a couple silly 30-second videos about sharing games and stuff to capitalize on those missteps, and the frothing masses went wild for a machine that had zero good/interesting games for the first year of its existence. (Dat Knack 2, though... it's happening lol)
@rallydefault I read that Sony was actually kicking around the idea of disallowing used games on the PS4, but that they ditched the idea after they saw the reaction to Microsoft's announced plans for the Xbone. And... I have to give them credit: they're smart and ruthless. They sensed blood in the water and jumped by playing on the expectations and anxieties of their audience. Those silly videos you mentioned resonated powerfully with the core gaming audience. In terms of marketing, pricing, etc. they did EVERYTHING right early on.
And yeah, anytime some troll tries to talk smack about the selection of games on the Switch, I remind them that its year one library is about a million times better than the year one selection of games on almost any other console (unless masses of mediocre last-gen ports sets your soul aflame!).
@Ralizah
Oh yea, they went for the jugular when they sensed weakness. It was (obviously) an amazing business decision. And those videos were hilariously perfect. Even I chuckled when I saw them for the first time. So simple yet so effective.
I also think the PS4 launch lineup is an analyst's dream to study in terms of, perhaps, how little launch lineups really mean nowadays. It seems people are willing to purchase a machine under the mere promise of future games rather than current games, which runs opposite of the previous generations where the idea of the "killer app" was so accepted. The PS4 demonstrated that you don't necessarily need that killer app on your machine, at least not on day 1, in order to succeed. Whether that will serve as an anomaly or a realignment, only future hardware launches will show.
(My jaded self also thinks the presence of the internet and its gaming subculture now has a lot to do with a small yet noticeable portion of the market's decision-making when it comes to gaming purchases.)
The GCN in the first two months had at least 8 great games that were absolutely worth the 50 bucks in 2001. Wii U had a good chunk of legit big-time 3rd party games (including the two biggest games of late 2012, Black Ops 2 and AC3), Nintendo Land (which is better than Wii Sports, easily) and what is considered the best 2d Mario since the 90s. Guess which two Nintendo consoles were massive sales disappointments? Launch lineups are not the be-all end-all at all.
Though as a counterpoint, the 3DS' launch got exactly what it deserved for its embarrassing lack of must-own games. (even the actually good Ghost Recon game, I would put below basically all those GCN launch games I mentioned)
and what is considered the best 2d Mario since the 90s.
But NSMB 2 was a 3DS game.
@IceClimbers Nice! I actually never dug into that game as much as I wanted when it first released, and the game's structure is basically perfect for a portable platform. McMillen really seems to be taken with the Switch, which is nice. I wish I liked Binding of Isaac more than I do.
Forums
Topic: The Nintendo Switch Thread
Posts 15,461 to 15,480 of 69,719
Please login or sign up to reply to this topic