Although nobody expects Nintendo to ignore boxed retail games with its 3DS handheld, the smart money is on the company announcing a greater focus on download titles than before. Capcom CEO Haruhiro Tsujimoto believes the system has the potential to introduce a new business model to the hardware landscape.
Speaking to Japanese newspaper Nikkei, Mr Tsujimoto said:
What we're more looking forward to is the offering of a new business model. Nintendo has been in the hardware business for a long time, and I believe they must be looking closely at Apple's recent success. We third parties are paying attention to Nintendo's E3 3DS announcement because of this point as well.
As first, tentative steps into digital distribution, WiiWare and DSiWare have certainly had their faults but have also provided plenty of opportunities to both developers and players to experience otherwise impossible games. Nintendo is expected to ramp up the digital delivery service with 3DS but in its own way, so don't expect an iTunes-style store to be unveiled at E3 next Tuesday.
[source andriasang.com]
Comments 17
Maybe they can bring back Magic Eye to do some retro stereogram advertising.
The biggest things they could do are open up both the file size and the price points. Hopefully the 3DS has a lot more memory and speed so that it can handle larger files.
One of the biggest draws of download games is their price point, and Nintendo needs to allow lower prices than 200 points. Free demos would also help a lot.
On the developer's side, I'd like to see the cost of the SDK reduced or even made available free like Microsoft's XNA Game Studio (and Apple's SDK, I think, but I've never owned an Apple device that has apps), rather than the current "£3000 + must be working from secure offices" system that Nintendo currently has, which effectively blocks small indies for developing for it without some serious financial backing
Nintendo keeps game pricing on a tight leash, a situation like on the app store where games of any size are practically forced to cost 1$ or even nothing and most use paid DLC to add on hidden costs isn't good for gamers or developers.
Its a shark!!!
Nintendo hopefully realizes that the downloadable titles on the Wii and DS are lacking in a variety of prices.
I hate paying $2.00 for dsiware I could get at the appstore for free. Nintendo should give more freedom to the developers, like naming exact pricing and having higher amount of memory to be used.
PRICING! That is what Nintendo needs to learn from all the competition. We love sales and Nintendo refuses to put there download games on sale from some reason. Even when they are already overpriced!
I agree. The more expensive games should subsidize the cost of hosting the cheap or free games.
Does CAPCOM and Apple want a cookie or something?
Pricing does need to be addressed definitely. When games are 50+% cheaper on the app store than on DSiWare, it really doesn't make sense to purchase the game on the DSi. That's the biggest thing they could learn from the app store, that and how they work downloadable purchase transfers.
It wouldn't kill them to learn a couple lessons from Sony/Microsoft too. Sony's games are also often cheaper; you can transfer systems; and both offer demos. (The app store just offers free "lite" versions).
I feel for devs about the price of the dev kit, but seeing how much shovelware is on the service already, and how much MORE crap is on the app store, I'm not sure if lowering the price of the dev kit will bring us more games worth having. I guess if lowering the price meant that devs who had to start on the app store for cost reasons could use the extra money to actually improve the game for WW/DSiWare instead of just blow up the screen and translate the code as opposed to what they do now, then that could be nice, or the savings were passed to the consumer. Great games will find backers though, that's how we got Cave Story after all.
At this point, neither WW or DSiWare are pressed for games though, so anything that keeps it from becoming as full of useless crap as the app store is fine with me.
I want that picture as my wallpaper...
...when I'm not using my Shantae one... ^^
whats with japanese dev loving apple right now sure if one likes over priced hardly working programs then good for them
Shadow Complex FOR 3DS.(hopefully)
"Capcom CEO Thinks 3DS Could Learn from Apple"
So what do they need to learn, how to become full digital, make every short downloadable game a penny, allowed only touch screen play, etc? I say heck no, 3DS is not gonna learn from Apple no matter what, it's gonna improve from DSi.
I'm very happy with my DSi and DSiware and don't see a single thing Nintendo could "learn from Apple". Games on an iPhone/iPod Touch are single screen, don't have a d-pad and buttons to aid in the control and most games look ugly on them.
I like both DSiware and Wiiware/VC and i doubt Nintendo could learn from Apple, maybe Apple should learn from Nintendo.
Still I prefer to have a boxed retail version of a game, it's not the same as only having the digital files... It feels almost like piracy imo.
Fanboys......
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