Investors Urge Nintendo to Develop for Smartphones

Don't do it Nintendo.

This makes me a little sick. A few great games aside, smartphones are terrible gaming devices. I hate what they've done to the industry. "Nintendo should give up on making the best possible gaming devices and experiences and just go after the money on smartphones, herpa-derp."

Clearly this is a sign of the times.

What with Apple suing all of their competitors, that probably isn't the best idea...

And if we're only talking about developing games, no thanks. We all know that which smartphone games sells, and it's not the great kind that Nintendo develops.

Maybe THEY just don't get it. Smartphones are the worst medium for portable gaming and house the worst games on the market. High sales or low sales, nothing beats Nintendo quality.

That dude was bribed by Sony/Microsoft. They're trying to turn Nintendo into the next Sega.

@superlink64: here, here, Its amasing how people jump to conclusion. 3ds is really only starting it will improve. Ok it has a price cut but thats because punters are comfortable with a handheld machine for 150£/Eur/$ this has nothing to do with phones. Here's a bet that the wiiu will not not go anywhere near the 300.00 euro mark and will stay around the 250-270 mark.

Here's the thing, Nintendo is going to flat out refuse to make games for other systems apart from their own. Simple as that, and no denying it either. If Nintendo was to follow this, they'd have to make their own smart phone, and there have been rumours about a Nintendo Phone since 1999 from what I remember reading in magazines. The Only issue that Nintendo has with making a phone is who to rely when it comes to the actual phone service, after all it's going to be different for each country, and if they make a blunder like Sony's E3 press conference when they announced that the 3G PSVita will be on AT&T, Nintendo will have more problems than what they have now. To be honest as much as smart phones have been popular recently in the Games Industry, apart from Angry Birds, nothing else stand outs or makes itself look good compared to actual Home and Portable console games. At least SquareEnix have tried to port their FinalFantasy franchise onto the iPhone, which is a step, but the biggest issue with smart phones now are the limited physical buttons. Apple would make a HUGE....... killing if they only release an iPhone case that sports real controller buttons on it, and as long as it's standardised in the SDK for every programmer to use, you'll see more "Console-esqe" games on the iPhone. However, since Apple has yet to even make anything like this, and rather let a 3rd party make a huge arcade dock for the iPad, it's a sign that even though Smart Phones are getting games in, it's not serious enough. Without that tactile feel of buttons, touch screen controls to emulate a d-pad and buttons are terrible. Now, of course this means you need to build games in a different way, Angry Birds being one of these, that show how Touch-only controls work on an input limited device; but even then, I would like to see console-esqe games on Smart Phones. And this is where I make the circle here, if Nintendo isn't so stubborn, and trust me, we know how stubborn Nintendo can be, they can resolve themselves and flip flop, remember the GameCube? Exactly! For all I care Nintendo could release their own smart phone, with added physical buttons, the best of both worlds, a touch screen symbolic ogf the DS and the iPhone, and phyisical buttons like DS, GameBoy and pretty much any home TV Console. At this point it's just a waiting game and see what Nintendo will do, but in their hours of struggle, anything can happen, heck maybe the 3DS-Lite comes out and blows everyone away, heh.

@superlink64: here, here, Its amasing how people jump to conclusion. 3ds is really only starting it will improve. Ok it has a price cut but thats because punters are comfortable with a handheld machine for 150£/Eur/$ this has nothing to do with phones. Here's a bet that the wiiu will not not go anywhere near the 300.00 euro mark and will stay around the 250-270 mark.

Don't do it. Keep a stranglehold of the dedicated gaming market. It's still a rich market for years to come. Smartphones are a detriment to the deeper gaming experiences. Yes, stuff like Angry Birds are fine for smartphones, but a 20-hour 3D Zelda or a 40-hour Final Fantasy game with touch notification interruptions, the laughable battary life without a good charging solution, and NO BUTTONS? Thanks, but no thanks. Have you guys tried playing Mega Man 2 on an iPod Touch? Horrid.

Sure, the games will be pretty... but beauty is only skin deep.

So far, the only smartphone I've seen that I think I could tollerate playing games on is Sony's Erricson Xperia or whatever you call that thing. Dedicated game pad interface and a sleek lightweight design. I hate to praise the enemy, but Sony is on the right track with that.

NO.

Alternate title: "Investors are friggin idiots"

Might be Nintendo is far far away from creating the best possible gaming devices, which is quite notorious with the 3DS and with the Wii. From the point of view of the gamers, lets suppose 5 years ago Nintendo develops a new controller for PS3, the PS3Mote+Nunchuck. Lets suppose they port Zelda TP to PS3 in HD as well as all the Marios, lets suppose they develop the new Zelda SS without the limitations of the Wii, and lets suppose that they port it to Vita and iPad too. Where is the most profitable option for Nintendo? Selling games or selling hardware? How many millions of Mario Karts would they be able to sell being the game multiplatform?

Example on the dangers of investor thinking. The concern, rightfully, of an investor is for immediate gains and/or dividends. So yes, on the surface developing for IOS platforms or Droid would be a nice boom.

But, the exclusivity of Nintendo is the only assurance a company such as Nintendo has that they will be in business in the future. I'm not a common example, maybe, but I will definitely buy a console for Zelda/Metroid/Mario alone. As far as I'm concern, everything else is gravy.

Nintendo is a gaming company. That's it. Not like Sony with electronic products and Microsoft with software. So long term, it would be an egregiously bad move to develop on other platforms, and cut the legs off your unique differentiation point.

Now, as far as allowing pay-to-play and cheap ($1-$10) to develop for Nintendo platforms, Nintendo needs to jump on that boat soon so they don't get left behind.

Also, all the doom and gloom on the 3DS is silly, IMO. It's all about software. Once the software comes, the people will too.

Personally, the only reason why I didn't buy it at the $250 point (Yes, already got one on the adjusted price) was because there were no titles. Ocarina is like a bonus, not really a seller for me. Been there, done that. Same with Pilotwings, Street Fighter and Steel Diver. Nice games, but not 1st tier games.

Hell, had there been even a Rune Factory game, or SOMETHING I would have gotten at the higher price. I just needed a reason.

So, they'll be ok. Once they missed that boat they HAD to decrease. You don't want to scare 3rd party supporter, specially at this point in the lifecycle.

i think we could see a big colapse of the industry in a few years. not just because capitalism is in it's endphase but there wont be anymore real gaming machines in the future. i dont wanna play zelda on something like a tablet or a smartphone. there need to be consoles and handhelds just for gaming

"Investors Urge Nintendo to Develop for Smartphones"

Nintendo: DON'T DO IT!!!

Sometimes, I wonder what's really wrong with these investors.

NINTENDO !!! - MAKE YOUR OWN SMARTPHONE FOR GAMERS (f.e. with Nokia )

We don't want the best games makers now to resort to making phone games. DO-NOT-DO-IT-NINTENDO!

@SuperSushiLax Granted, but do you REALLY see Nintendo making games for other hardware though? I mean sure they did for the Atari 2600 and the PC, but they weren't that great, Nintendo games are made for Nintendo machines. At this point Nintendo needs to get their phone out there, as I wrote above, Nintendo has been pondering the concept of a phone for a while now, and in this day and age it's a no brainer to release it now, and have their dream of "Three Piers". Nintendo could make an Xperia Play style phone, where you can download both Nintendo style games, and maybe even include the Android Store in there too with exclusive apps for the Nintendo Phone. It's just a case if Nintendo will actually do it or not.

Nintendo developing for Apple or Android = 3DS goes to hell

1st If they will start develop games for Apple or Android this means they will support hardware sales for them and turn the back to it's own handheld hardware. I believe this can be suicide.

2nd option would be to develop new hardware alternatives but this is a hard way as well

3rd option make something like Sony did with mobile phones but you know they were the first there to do this. And involves the 2nd option as well. Kinda sucks but you can always beat the competition.

4th ask Nintendo manager

@47drift - it's true that Nintendo is known for quality, mostly in games and portable devices. Unfortunately in business you have to follow trends of mainstream (this also means to think out of the box) to be on the top and today the trend are smartphones. These days are hard times for handheld consoles because of Apple and Android mostly. I don't want to say this is a great alternative towards handheld gaming but that's what most people think is great. I know a lot of people who had a GameBoy back then and only 3-4 games (possibly boring games). But today you don't need to buy a gaming gadget + phone to play games. You buy a smartphone which can be for most people cheaper and easier to access then buy expensive 3DS + expensive games. Sorry but this is the truth. Hardcore gamers are in minority towards the mainstream or "average gamers". I don't want to say I like it this way but this is the true cruel reality....sorry

No.

@Godot Nintendo probably will end up only making games for other consoles someday, just like SEGA.

No.

@Gamesake: That's a possibility down the line, unless Nintendo changed it's business structure to reflect the change in consumer behavior. Sega DIDN'T adapt to the market and, in spite of how good the Dreamcast was, it found itself face down on the ground.

@Mandoble: Except that's the thing about Nintendo. They've ALWAYS built their systems and handhelds on outdated technology. It's what's worked for them. When they did embrace higher technologies in the N64 and GameCube, it ended up being a commercial failure. It's part of the reason why the Wii wasn't an HD system out of the gate.

I would never EVER buy a Nintendo-port for a smartphone. The thought alone is making me vomit a bit, just a little, just so little that I either need to swallow it or spit it in the sink when everybody else's backs are turned.

Nah it would water down the Nintendo's product

Ive read some people say that nintendo would make much more profit with iphone games, but this is untrue: which is better, 100million sales of angry birds at 0.99 each or 20 million sales of NSMBW at 39.99 each? I still think there will be a market for handheld gaming devices, but Nintendo will never replicate the success of the GBA or DS. In order to try and combat smartphones they need to lower the eshop prices dramatically. A lot of people will still buy the 3DS for nintendo IPs but to win back some of the smartphone lot the downloadable software needs to improve. IMO.

Nintendo should do it. I'd rather see Nintendo profitable and resourced than struggling.

And you people call yourselves fans of Nintendo.

This is such a tricky situation. The iOS devices are legitimate gaming machines, and Nintendo knows it; putting their games on iPhone is the same as putting them on the XBOX. They won't do it, and I'm not sure they should.

Something else people should realise (and of course, no one will bother to read this because it's more fun to have knee-jerk reactions). The investor was suggesting Nintendo make some acquisitions. Of smart phone developers. Who would then make smart phone games, but the profit would filter into Nintendo.

I like the investor. He's smart and I would suggest Nintendo do the exact same thing.

But of course they're probably wrong. Nintendo fans on a Nintendo website surely know far more about investment than professional investors.

ahem...NO!

@MasterGraveheart, and this is what from the point of view of the investors (usually smart people) is the big mistake of Nintendo. Nintendo is Mario, Zelda, Luigi, Bowser, Peach, Miis and not the outdated hardware they try to sell. The message is clear, the real profit is in the games, so you, Nintendo, better work to multiply the sales there, go multiplatform.

I hate apple. I really do... they screwed up the gaming industry. Now everyone thinks smart phones are the only way to game. I had a smart phone and No, gaming sucks on Smart phones.

No, please.

ok seriously Phones have been around a heck of a long time, WHY is it now people are saying phones (things that have been around for a long time) will kill videogames seriously this needs to stop whats next? Glue will kill video games

ALSO SOOOOOO Agree with 29

@38 because until the smart phones games weren't a big deal (or multimillion sellers) on them.

Yes, phones are going to kill video game consoles!

Sarcasm aside, I do not know many people who have smart phones. Let alone play a lot of video games on them! They're good for casual, 5-second games. Not full on console games.

@39 sorry but I think it would be bad for ninty to go to smartphones, because I predict theyed lose a lot of the "Core"

that or casuals will see a Ninty phone as something they wont want because casuals still dont wanna play ZELDA or any other BIG ninty series aside from MK, SMB, and Wii series

@MasterGraveheart That's not why the Dreamcast was canceled.

@41 No one suggested Nintendo make smart phones. The suggestion is Nintendo make applications and games for smart phones.

All of you know how to run a business.

RIGHT INTO A FLAMING CONCRETE WALL.

Ohohoho. puffs pipe Yes, indeed my good fellows. pats self on back

@Mandoble: The N64 and GameCube undoubtedly lost ground to Sony and Microsoft and barely fended off Sega, who spent more than they made.. They lost third party support and moved less consoles than expected, especially when the PS2 rolled around with a built-in DVD player, something unprecidented at the time. It wasn't just the success of the other guys, it was the commercial failures of Nintendo. Sure, the loyalists like myself stuck around as well as a few others, but sometimes it isn't what the investers say. Sometimes you just didn't pull it off. As a business, you want as big of a part of the market as possible, which Nintendo coudln't do.

GameCube worked as a gaming system, but was cruxed by the other systems doing more (online and DVD playback). Not to mention it was handcuffed out of the gate from the low N64 returner base.

But I do agree that investors don't always know what's right. In fact, I enthatically agree with this. And this smartphone thing is one of those cases.

@MechaPhoenix: In my defense, I at least have a business degree.

@45 "But I do agree that investors don't always know what's right. In fact, I enthatically agree with this. And this smartphone thing is one of those cases."

They do, however, almost always know more than the layperson.

Doctors screw up from time to time too. That doesn't mean I'd want a random person off the street to perform a heart transplant for me.

I don't agree with this at all. I want full gaming experiences.

Those investors are nuts! Nintendo would never do something like that! If they were to put games on phones, that would kind of be like making games for a rival company's systems. NO company does that! I don't like most mobile phone games anyway. Handheld and console games are a heck of a lot better than phone games!

Actully I think Nintendo might make very small apps on the iPhone (Like that new Pokemon App in Japan), but I don't expect a new Zelda on iPhone in a while, besides if I had a choice I'd rather have a Zelda Game on a iPad instead,

@43 but thats what I dont want to see, Ninty a 3rd Party

Horrible idea. If Nintendo gave up their key franchises to all consoles, then there consoles would lose that edge. Don't listen to them Nintendo!

@50 why? Third party developers don't make good games?

@MasterGraveheart If you're saying the PlayStation's success is due to Nintendo's mistakes along the way, I agree. PS2 was just a glorified DVD player.

@52 no 3rd parties do, but I still think ninty would hurt as a 3rd party, look at sega (and by hurt I mean its fans)

I had a feeling WaltzElf would be all over this....... Seriously though, Nintendo's strength is in it's exclusives. It'd be silly for them to start doing New SMB on the iPhone or on the PS Phone. Exclusivity is everything even in this "smartphone age". People buy Apple for iTunes, people by Android for Google integration, people buy Nintendo for Mario.

Having said that, they could do some "apps". There are HEAPS of unofficial guides and pokedexes on these App stores, I don't see why they couldn't do some official versions. At the other end of the spectrum they need to encourage more app developers to release, say, 3DSWare versions of Angry Birds.

As far as investor freakouts and demands go this, IMO, is one of the worst ones. They're currently demanding that News Ltd shut down some of their papers.... that makes sense, this doesn't.

Worst idea ever.
If Nintendo develops their own phone, made their way, then ok.
But developing for smartphones like a 3rd party developer? Not cool.
All those investors just don't understand a single thing about gaming.

Having heard all this talk from people online about how Nintendo should develop for other hardware platforms apart from themselves, I can't help but think Nintendo and it's games would suffer horribly from making such a transition.

The fact of the matter is the reason why Nintendo franchises like Mario, Legend of Zelda, Metroid, and such have endured for so many years and are almost universally revered by gamers and critics alike, is that Nintendo made these games innovative and creative based on the hardware THEY made. When you read interviews with Nintendo regarding what goes into creating their games, it's often brought up how the technology and hardware they make plays a deciding factor in the overall design of the game. For Nintendo, it sounds as though the intimate knowledge they have of the hardware is very much a big proponent to what makes their games unique and special. If that element is taken out of the equation, I can't help but feel the quality all these people expect to come out of these games (if ported to other platforms) would be lacking a great deal, if not altogether lost.

I would rather let Nintendo stick to what they do best. I trust Nintendo to make the best games they can possible with the hardware they feel most comfortable developing for, ...their own.

considering that nintentdo doesn`t listen to it`s fans. they ain`t going to listen to investors now, are they.

Pretty sure Nintendo isn't going to do this.

I bet 99% of the people here never invested in a company before...

It's as simple as making a Pokedex for the iPhone.

I like how a whole bunch of "fans" are essentially saying Nintendo sucks at developing stuff, unless it's for a console that Nintendo itself made.

So the developers that Ubisoft, Square Enix, EA, Activision, Capcom, Tecmo Koei and THQ pay for are all better than Nintendo, because they're all able to make good games across multiple different platforms.

Personally, I have more faith in Nintendo and it's ability to make good games, regardless of the platform.

@60 - yeah absolutely. All the investors are doing is suggest Nintendo make money, anyway.

You know, that's usually something investors like to see the companies they invest in do.

WaltzElf, you're missing the fact that Nintendo's sole purpose is not to make money. Making money is obviously very important to them as a company, but that absolutely does not mean they'll do absolutely whatever it takes to simply turn the most profit. An example of a company like that is Zynga; a FAR cry from the way Nintendo operates. Don't forget who the president of this company is. Nintendo is a very unique company.

Nintendo knows that in order to do what they want to do- that is, create new and innovative gameplay experiences- it's important for them to be able to create the hardware along with the software. They value their ability to do their part in controlling the direction in which gaming goes. Giving up on producing hardware would mean giving up on a significant chunk of their core values as a company, and something really drastic would need to happen before they would ever resort to that. They'd never do that just for a quick buck.
The idea of Nintendo creating their own consoles as well as games for other consoles/devices just doesn't make sense. It might net higher sales for certain software titles but it would destroy their own hardware sales. GAMES SELL CONSOLES, no matter what the idiots in the industry think.

@62 I could get a long with you especially since there giving me 20 FREE games, games that I didnt even ask for not to mention I was HAPPY with my 3DS b4 the news came this just made it better, I wouldve bought A LOT (not all) of those games at a $5 and $10 price point anyway

@moosa, actually, Nintendo's sole purpose is to make money.

It's a corporation, not a hobby.

I half agree with the investors. it cant be that hard to get a team together and make a few apps, sell them for 99 cents and move on. Games like Aura climber would have nice controls on a ipad or iphone. however i honestly have been hoping Nintendo would go third party for about two years now. I really only buy their systems for the games, and i miss out on alot of other games because i cant afford two systems. What would be amazing is if somehow, and i have now idea how this would work, but somehow sony and nintendo teamed up to make a console. what i mean by this is give it nintendos originality, their style, but keep the ps3's so called "hardcore" support, while adding something nintendo styled.

I know thats what the hop to accomplish to some point with the wiiU, but nintendo has become a joke of sorts when it comes to "hardcore" fans on the ps3 and xbox. i just cant see them getting a wiiU, even it is more powerful than the ps4, or xbox720 or whatever the next gen is

@WaltzElf

"Tokyo-based equities firm MF Global FXA Securities also feels Nintendo needs to switch things up and has even described the company as "behind the times" after Nintendo denied claims that it would develop software for other hardware-makers last month:"

This chunk here is a questionable decision especially for a business to make. It sounds like this investor wants Nintendo to develop for Sony and Microsoft's platforms.

In a business it is extremely unwise for you to give your opponents your software unless they're in a different market, ie smartphones. Especially when for most cases your own software is the biggest selling point. By giving your opponents your greatest edge you are in turn taking away sales from your own competing products.

So that investor really doesn't know what he's talking about in that particular section (unless the article is worded in an odd manner and he is referring to smartphones).

Nintendo making little half-hearted games that you just pick up when you have 5 minutes to spare. And using touch screen controls? No. Just no. One person mentioned Mega Man II on Apple Store. I got it while on sale, and it's not pretty trying to play it with touch screen. Same with Ghosts 'n Goblins games (why doesn't Capcom ever put them on, you know, regular systems anymore?).

Nintendo better stay away from the phone games. It's yet another fad that will go away in a couple of years. We won't remember Angry Birds in a year or two, just like Pogs, Zhu Zhu Pets and the like. Just stay the course Nintendo, the price drop and future software will fix what ails you.

Sony sees that there is a market for both smartphones and handheld game devices. The have the PS Vita, Xperia Play (PlayStation Phone), and the PlayStation Suite service for Android. Sony's covering all bases.

Nintendo has the DS, 3DS... and that's it. Perhaps they should put a few of their games on smartphones, that way people who have no interest in the DS/3DS can still try out their games.

As for people complaining that smartphones aren't suited for gaming (no buttons), the Xperia Play has gaming buttons. It basically looks like a PSP Go, with a touchscreen and slide-out buttons underneath.

I'm baffled that "analysts" really think the future of portable gaming is on smartphones and tablets. Handhelds are so far ahead of these devices it's amazing that people prefer gaming on a touchscreen-only device. Handheld games are more complex in graphics and gameplay, and they have buttons that are suited to gaming.

The Xperia Play is trying to bridge the gap between smartphone and handheld, but I'm not sure how well it's selling. The PS Vita has a capacitive multitouch screen, in addition to standard gaming buttons, so porting iOS and Android games will be a breeze. Ideally, PS Vita will be the best of both worlds. It's capable of simple iOS games, as well as more complex games.

@69 "Handhelds are so far ahead of these devices"

Based on what? I have an iPad and iPhone, and the gaming experience on both isn't that far removed, actually.

Sure, and next they can make HD ports of Mario, Zelda, and Metroid games for the PS3 and X-360. [/sarcasm] There's a reason 1st party games are always console exclusives. They'd be taking sales away from the 3DS and adding sales to their smartphone semi-competition.

As for making their own phone, attempting to enter the smartphone market at this point would easily cost them more money than they would generate out of it, even with their new smartphone game sales..

@71 I agree. I wouldn't play Angry Birds for 30+ hours either.

But I have played Civilization Revolution for at least that long.

Why do people always act like the extreme is the norm for the iPad/ iPhone? It's like if I said "Well, Wii Sports is nice and all, but I prefer more in-depth games" and pretend that the Wii doesn't have anything else.

It's making a dollar tomorrow instead of waiting to make a million a year from now.

@74 and I'd like to see your economic modelling that sees Nintendo make a "million" in a year for every dollar it could be making today.

Nintendo knows better, they'll never make anything for any of their competitors. Even if their consoles and software aren't selling successfully, they'll managed to change their market strategy and revise their plan. Nintendo knows their limit, they'll never do something that everyone already did unless they feel it's the right time to do so. The Game Boy didn't just launch with a backlit screen featuring color display with a clamshell design in 1989, it took some small step to get it right.

@Gamesake: That would be something I'd say. Look up the Game OverThinker episode "The Emperor Has No Clothes" for more on that matter.

xperia play but nintendo? i would buy that tbh. but DONT make it happen

@WaltzElf (70)

Read the rest of my comment before taking things out of context ok?'

Touchscreen only controls are good for certain games (RTS, Angry Birds, Cut the Rope, any game where you poke, drag, swipe, etc.), but many games rely on buttons for their gameplay, especially platformers and shooters.

The PS Vita offers the best of both worlds (touchscreen and buttons). It has a multitouch capacitive touchscreen that allows for simple iOS-style games, and traditional gaming buttons for more complex games.

The DS is also a good hybrid system, though the screen isn't multitouch, or capacitive.

Aw hell naw, Those investors best check themselves before they wreck themseves because Nintendo will never make a thing to help Apple, Sony or Microsoft get money off of Nintendo's good name.

I could see Nintendo spinning up a small division - kept seperate from the core franchises - which could develop new IP for existing mobile platforms. That way the development doesn't get in the way of the core Nintendo audiences, whilst being forced to stand on it's own two feet from a commercial view. I don't think that many companies really make that much money by releasing games on these platforms. I don't see Nintendo putting Mario on an iPhone, not in the traditional platformer sense at least - and I don't think they should.

I doubt Nintendo would do it. Nintendo have always been about great quality games and I think I'm with the majority here that out of the thousands of games on Ipod's, Iphone's e.t.c about 3 are worth buying.

wHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA PA PA PA PA pANIC
tiME O.o!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Handhelds are probably going to change significantly, and I can see nintendo in the app store releasing quality games for ipad and iphone. Huge audience, on a platform with strict quality control. Win for them.

I can't see them give up their home console stance though - that is a viable business and a demographic that sticks with it. Maybe this realization had already dawned in nintendo's board room because, let's face it, they worked so hard to get the casual audience growing and all they had was most of them buying iphone games. Hence, a gaming intense focus with the wiiU.

I hate Iphone and Ipad as gaming devise however they should praise the hard work of nintendo. Create videogames and consoles it isn't easy.
sorry for my bad english Im still learning...

One reason Nintendo stays away from smartphone games might be that there is a growing number of sensible experts worried that the whole smartphone craze is just another economic bubble about to burst. And unfortunately, the relationship between investors and bubbles is like that of moths and open flames (with the exception that it's the companies they influence that get burned, while they remain unscathed and trot off in search for a new bubble), so I don't value their opinion all that high.

@ WaltzElf: Isn't it ironic that you sneer at the notion that fans might know more about investing than investors, yet remain adamant in your view that investors know more about managing companies than company managers (like those of Nintendo)?

Yes a mini Mario game for 99 cents would sell loads but that wouldn't be as profitable for Nintendo. By the way platform games DO work on iOS only if there's only one action like jump and automove. Nintendo should focus on making better games for 3ds and wii u. Maybe launch a more "mature" franchise. Actually 3ds could be great with more educational titles, like 3d zoo, and other things for kids. If both 3ds and wii u flops worse than Gamecube then we will have this discussion again. But i dont think they will.

Hell to the No!! I hate smartphones with at passion.

It seems to me a lot of Nintendo's problems have come from trying too hard to please the investors instead of trying to truly please the actual consumers and especially the core gamers that are going out and buying their consoles.

Nintendo does need to do something but I don't think going into the smartphone business is the only solution at this point, although it might be something to consider in the future as more and more people will inevitably choose to game on their smart phones, tablets and game ready TVs as opposed to buying dedicated games consoles and portables.

To be fair, there are a lot of great independent titles for smartphones. Develop cheap, sell cheap is the way it goes. With a lot of opportunities for taking risks without risking much, developers aren't afraid of to try fresh and new ideas! Of course Nintendo does this as well, but they can only focus on so many projects, considering how big bugets they use. Their games CAN'T fail, or they'll lose a lot of money. Nintendo plays with higher stakes, simply put.

Man, investors are surprisingly short sighted....

So many here have completely missed the point. Why would they put their core franchises on smartphones? This isn't what the investors are after, instead they want to see Nintendo put games like Aura Aura Climber onto the services instead. This would bring in millions in revenue at a low cost to develop, that could in turn give Nintendo more research and development capital for its core franchises and consoles.

It's literally free money and the investors are exactly right. When they are investing into a company that is struggling, they want to see the company make some changes so they'll see somereturns on their investments. If investors loose faith in Nintendo and start pulling out, Nintendo will have a massive problem on its hands. Without investors, Nintendo ceases to exist!

For Nintendo, as a first-party company, they should not do any game developing for smartphone, otherwise they may generate more profit to their competing company like Apple, or Sony, and make loss. Nintendo is better at developing gamesfor their console and handheld video games.

My advice to you, Nintendo. Don't listen to these investors. Remember the profit loss that happened recently. Do what you are the best.

Don't do it, Nintendo!! You'll be fine in the long run.

While I don't particularly want a full Mario/Zelda/etc game on an iphone (it wouldn't be quite the same experience), as a few other people have said here, I don't see why Nintendo can't plonk down an app of some sort onto the smartphone market. Even if it was just a simple A-Z encyclopaedia of Mario and co (for example), it would make a dollop of cash without "watering down" the "core" franchises. Everybody's happy and Nintendo hardly need to put any effort into it; meaning they can still focus on their own consoles and get more cash to spend on game development.

Oh, and I don't know why I bother saying this any more, but the iPhone does make for a great gaming system, whether you like it or not.

I think they would make loads of money... So why not? I think their reason to not develop for smartphones is stupid. It's all about the money. Developing on smartphones is where a lot of the money is. I would still greatly prefer a "real" console, but to make money I think if I were in their position I would do it.

From my perspective, it wouldn't lower my trust to Nintendo or anything like that. As long as it doesn't effect the games I want to play, who cares?

I agree with #1. DON"T do it!

Sega does what Nintendon't. Like giving up on console manufacturing.

@98 Savino: No offence, but to release crappy games on a competing mobile system, would be to commit corporate suicide. Nintendo is renowned as a game company because of the quality of it's titles. They make quality hardware and quality software. If they do ever decide to release titles on the mobile market, you can bet your dollar that every bit as much care and thought will go into developement as with any first-party title. And if Nintendo decides that the device is not capable of providing a quality gaming experience, then they should not develope for it. Plain and simple. If Nintendo releases some "rubbish" software on iphone/ipad/android/etc, then people will see it as such, and assume Nintendo is no different than any other shovelware producer. Doing so would not only alienate their current fans, but turn off potential new customers.

Another thing about investors: they want big gains in the short term. Nintendo's number one fiscal priority is to make money in the long term. That is why they are the longest-running company in the games console business. If Nintendo doubles their stock in next quarter, the investors will be happy because they are making money. The investor will not care if in another year or two, Nintendo is still going strong or filing bankruptcy. Like Locusts flying from one field to the next, the investors will have long since moved on and placed their money elsewhere.

I can proudly say that I am an "investor" in such a great company. Though I own no shares in corporate stocks, I own plenty of shares in 1st party Nintendo games and hardware, all the way from the NES to present day. We are all "investors" because supported Nintendo by pruchacing their products. The most important "investors" are not those who buy Nintendo's stocks, but those loyal fans who continue to buy and support Nintendo's hardware and games.

I don't care what professional investors say and know about business. At the end of the day, Nintendo needs to focus on bringing the 3DS on it's feet before they venture into the jungle of smartphones. I wouldn't like them wasting efforts on smartphone games when they could be making AAA games like Zelda, Mario, Kirby, etc.

The least they could do is provide an app that connects or interacts with games on their platforms. Seeing the next Zelda on the App Store just isn't going to happen. Gaming on the phone is just asking for a disaster to happen. At least I have my dedicated handheld gaming and my phone not feeding off of one battery.

Surely, they'll consider it in the future. Right now, it'd be a wasted effort and potentionally negatively impact 3DS, which the investors don't even get (not a surprise).

@SuperSushiLax No, YOU don't get it. Business or not, Nintendo is a family company. Don't you notice that all their console focus on family and community? But I guess you're too couped up in a corner with your Sony stuff to care, right? Me, Nintendo, just keep making Mario games and I keep buying. Sega, Sonic is your best bet but don't forget friends and enemies. The only thing I like about Sony was Crash, but theyv'e stop that, so I turn my back. Xbox, while you might have your stuff, make 2d platformers. Then I would consider buying. And another thing, if Xbox and PS3 wanna boost their sales, give in to Nintendo because Nintendo has what you don't; a sense of community. Watch how much your sales grow then. >

@Savino FYI, Warioware was the biggest seller!

@StarDust Remember, Nintendo produced Mario Clock/Calculator and actually wanted people to pay for it. That's not quality in my opinion, but it's the type of thing Nintendo would make loads of money worth on Smartphones.

Shut up and let Nintendo run their own business! Man, one system doesn't sell like Nintendo hoped, and everyone won't shut up about it.

@98 Hit the nail right on the head there .

Mario Is Missing was actually fun.. At least, I liked it...

@StarDust, Nintendo is known by the Nintendo fans for the quality of its titles. But this might be pretty different for a neutral observer, Nintendo had no more than 4 high quality titles for Wii: Zelda TP (it was really a direct port of a GC game), Mkart (nothing new, almost a copy of the GC one again), MGalaxy 1 and 2. The rest are average, low or pretty low quality. But not that the casual gamer cares quiet a lot about it, and these are the main smartphone game consumers.

Wow. It shows the pressures put on companies like Nintendo. The investors just need to let Nintendo be Nintendo. I just got the 3DS & I still have my DS XL and I love them both. I'm glad they are not phones and they don't have to be and part of the draw in having them is that they provide a gaming experience you can't find anywhere else. That could change if Nintendo makes games for phones. I think this would greatly hurt the 3DS even more.

Xbox however I think could use a better phone strategy. Since Microsoft does not have a portable, an Xbox phone like the Playstation Xperia Play (a phone with an actual gamepad) to play my Xbox Live Games on the go would be sweet! Again odd Sony would come out with this before Microsoft since Sony already has the PSP.

@Mandoble
Looking at my collection of 57 games on Wii, I have to GREATLY disagree with that ludicrus statement- but alas, an opinion is an opinion.

Also, Microsoft kinda has their own phone- or mobile OS. Windows Mobile. I personally like the interface, I must say.

@komicturtle92

I was looking into that phone or phones with that OS until I realized there was no game pad Xbox, unlike Nintendo or even Sony needs a gaming phone with a gamepad. A phone that would work also as their entry in the portable gaming market seeing how they already have the highly successful Xbox Live Marketplace.

We dont want Nintendo Phone..But I would buy one Nintendo 4 life!!!

As long as smartphones do not provide an alternative for hardcore experiences, and are only capable of running casual things like Angry Birds, I prefer a good old gaming-centered system like 3DS or the new PS Vita. The day a game like Ocarina of Time would be properly playable on a smartphone is still not upon us, and will not be for a few years at least.

hmmmmmm, maybe if they update the 3DS to be a phone, kinda like NGage only good

Please don't do it Nintendo.

I believe Nintendo must hear what Nintendo fans want, we want, for example Pikmin 3 since years ago, we want Xenoblade in America, we want Jump Super Star games, things like that, details, maybe if Nintendo satisfy us the sales would be better...

Just no.

They might as well give it a try. If it doesn't work, Nintendo can simply remind everyone else what happens when "you try to tell us how to do our job!"

Bad idea, Nintendo. Really bad idea.

I think Nintendo is doing fine. It needs to fire whoever they chose to do marketing and PR though. Have any of you seen a 3DS commercial?

I really never heard of anyone actually paying to download the full release of the games on the appstore games for any smart phone. They are usaully the free trial. Even if it is only $.99 I wouldn't pay for it either. Never known anyone who has actually paid for a game app.

don't do it ninty, stick to what you do best. gaming on smart phones isn't all its cracked up to be. okay the visuals are okay but the controls sucks. i played ncaa football on the ipad and the controls wasn't good, visuals were decent, but nothing spectacular. too much smart phones out there on the market. but if someone was smart they would develop a better battery that last longer for these devices

Theres no way Nintendo would do something like that. Nintendo consoles dont give you games, they give you an experience. If Nintendo were to develop games fo the 'smart'phones, theyd be watered dwon ports of SNES or GBA games.
Investors have to sit down and play Ocarina of Time 3D and realise how dumb they are! Full touch screen controls? NO! They're messy and unresponsive. My friend has Streetfighter on his ipod, and HATES it. He cant pull of any combos with the touchscreen controls. Tehn I showed him it on my 3DS, and he LOVED it.
You'd think after the DS being the highest selling console of all time, investors would have realized that 2 screens is always better than 1.

Don't do it Nintendo!! Stick to your guns and even if you go under at least you can do it with your head held high in that you stuck to your principles. I know that the likes of @Waltzelf (not too single you out but you probably have the most voiced opinions about stuff like this ) argue about T.H.E M.O.N.E.Y!! ,the pounds,the pence the yankee freackin' dollar!,but I for one still believe in buisnesses still being able to have actual morals and certain ideals, granted many companies like that go under ,LOL ,but my point remains.
If nintendo do go out of buisness (which I doubt they will any time soon) then I hope its as a console manufactuer and not as just another developer whoring their cheap ass games on iOS.They will be much more fondly remembered if they do.

Here is what i think nintendo should do they should make one game system without the phone part and then have a separate verson without it, it would be good for phones and good for handhelds, but KEEP buttons on it

lets see my VC library, where did those games start out?........ oh thats right as Physical Content

I can't see Nintendo developing games for the iPhone, Android etc. it's just not them. We need proper gaming devices, I don't want something that's a jack of all trades and a master of none of them.

The 3DS does it's job perfectly, it's both a media device but it is solely a gaming device. When I want to play a game I don't instantly think iPhone, I'm more in for 3DS, Wii, GBA, DS, PSP, 360, PS3.

The iPhone may have some perfectly good games to download, but the problem is it's NOT a gaming device like how the 3DS is NOT a phone, they both serve two completely different things. And I don't think Nintendo want to see Mario shrunk down into a £1 mini-game for 5-minutes of enjoyment.

@WaltzElf "actually, Nintendo's sole purpose is to make money.
It's a corporation, not a hobby."

You're very wrong about this. Nintendo is full of passionate artists and creators. Iwata himself, the president of Nintendo, is one of them. His right hand man is none other than Shigeru Miyamoto. As I said, making a profit is very important, but that's not remotely the sole purpose of the company. The purpose of the company is to create new and exciting gameplay experiences, and make money while doing it. This is absolutely the truth.

Once again, Nintendo is a unique company.

Not sure if anyone mentioned this already since there are a TON of comments (and i skimmed rather fast), but I can see Nintendo moving away from their usual 2 platforms. With the WiiU, it seems as though they're combining the DS and Wii and I think that is a very good decision. Since they don't have much 3rd party support, they can focus on making really good games on their platform and leave Apple and Sony to make those portable gaming phones. I always thought Nintendo was best at making immersive video games for their television consoles anyway...

I like buttons. If there was 3ds android hybrid phone i would love that, but otherwise, nope.

what if they made their own smartphone thats also a wii u controller. they could call it the U-Phone XD

those investors are not stupid, and probably know that Nintendo is pretty unlikely to do it. It's just their way of saying, 'you better get your Sh** together' if you want to stay competitive.

That Wii U can't come any sooner and the 3DS blunders have not been welcome, even though they're handling it pretty well so far. I think they should get that Wii U out EARLY and on the market at a good price so it can sink in. Nintendo doesn't have much going for it in the market right now and it's share pricing is certainly showing it. The 3DS was supposed to be the successful holdover that gave them time until the WiiU release but it hasn't worked to it's looking like a desert until they can churn out something good REALLY soon. HD is no longer a luxury of the gaming hardcore and N needs to get busy or step up those 3D games. Free games are cool, but it's not fixing the lack of new 3d games for new people buying it on the cheap.
Make a slim version and stick a phone on it! Why the heck not? Make a deal with a couple carriers, why would that be so hard?

Nintendo should play this song at their next investor's meeting.

They just don’t get it... Sell the stock, because a management once feted for creative out-of-box thinking have just shown how behind the times they are.

I'm sorry, "once feted for creative out-of-box thinking"? They still are, and that in itself is actually timeless about them. Agreed, some IDEALS are outdated of Nintendo, but that statement goes a little too far in trying to validate why Nintendo should give up the ghost and moonlight as a 3rd party on smartphones.

If Nintendo did bite though, the only thing they need to develop is quick throwaway games of low investment that would be suitable for that environment... stuff that can be picked up and put down over there. Re-imagine the Game & Watch games for a new generation, that would be perfect for smartphones. But I digress... keep making hardware most of all Nintendo, screw these "do what everyone's doing" people.

No, just no. I want Nintendo to put their effort into their consoles, not develop little 5 second games for smartphones. They have a 3DS to work with.

God I hate smart phones.

No. No.No. No.No. No.No. No. Just No.
Smarthphones have the worst games, smarthphones are the worst way to play games.

Nintendo! Come read the comments! The opions are pretty much like this:
no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no yes no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no yes no no no no no no

It's so nice, going back, looking upon thow the 3DS was "doomed", how many snobby smart allicks here were talking about Nintendo having to do smartphones, etc. and then looking at the 3DS now. I just wish people could look back at this and realize that you don't doom a console after it hasn't even been for half a year. Seriously, why do so few people have faith in Nintendo?

Well forget the sceptics. I know Nintendo will be fine. And I also hope the Wii U dominates next gen to prove to this messed up industry that power isn't everything, ONCE AND FOR ALL!