Nintendo Is The Company That Made Me Love Gaming, Says Zelda Williams

no further comments ;D

I never doubted Williams and his daughter's love of Nintendo.

Now, those commercials that Penelope Cruz and her sister did for Nintendo on the other hand... yikes.

Ms. Williams is only half right though. Yeah, nobody's going to buy an older system to play a last-gen Call of Duty, but there's still plenty of games on previous systems that are a lot of fun. PS1 Classics are hugely popular on Sony platforms, and Square-Enix makes a living these days by re-releasing all of their classic games on mobile. It really depends on the type of game.

But maybe his son, Cody, prefers Cod...

Nailed it

Boy I love her so much

It's odd, for lack of a better term, that the negative stereotype of what a gamer looks like is so embedded in people's minds that when someone doesn't fit it they are called a fake.

@Mk_II your so lucky man!

In other, equally relevant news:

Spaghetti is the dish that made me love Italian food

Nintendo is the company that made a LOT of people love gaming.

Nintendo made me the gamer and game creator I am today.

It's just a pity it's not quite at the same peak as it was back in the NES/SNES era, where it really was pretty much infallible and untouchable (as much as any games company and it's products have been).

I will always have a place in my heart for Nintendo.

Nintendo made games that are nearly 30 years old but are still played, relevant and enjoyed.
Have you ever heard someone say how much he loves the first GTA ? Or that he constantly replays the COD series, starting at the first title ?
Most modern games get irrelevant pretty fast. They get hyped to "the best game ever" and are forgotten in a year or two afterwards.

@Kirk It still is, although the mainstream press likes to make it sound otherwise Because nearly everyone played some nintendo franchises back in the day, they can relate to them nowadays. Older titles still matter today. Mario Sunshine is not made obsolete by, say, Galaxy. ALthough still a mario title, every game stands on its own feet. That is something not many other series can say for themselves.
And despite the general opinion of generation "dudebro" and the downlooking attitude of the general mainstream gaming press, almost everyone giving nintendo games a chance today still falls in love with it. Some poeple more, some people less. The thing that makes these kind of games seem obsolete is, that the mainstream gaming press forces the believe down peoples throats, that games need to be bigger, better, more epic and more and more realistic with each installment instead of just being fun and entertaining.

I wish more people thought like her, especially when so many people are saying "Nintendo is doomed!"

Calling Zelda Williams 'famous' is a bit of a stretch...

I wonder if she has her fathers forearms??

Zelda is one cool cat.

@Technosphile Spaghetti was the gateway dish to Lasagne. I am forever grateful.

And people who grew up playing Playstation/Xbox and not Nintendo will feel nostalgic towards those systems and their games too.

Lets not pretend 'nostalgia' is something Nintendo has exclusively.

I agree, but I kinda AM nostalgic for the first Halo to be honest.

I agree and disagree with her. Sure Nintendo is going to have longevity with those say 25 and older but most will flock back to what they played all through their childhood. 10 years from now 20 year olds who played Xbox will feel the same way a lot of us 25 and older do about Nintendo.

It looks like Zelda Williams already trolled this one

@Einherjar "Most modern games get irrelevant pretty fast. They get hyped to "the best game ever" and are forgotten in a year or two afterwards."

Hmm... I find most games are usually forgotten about after a few months. CoD can easily be forgotten after 4 months, until they start releasing the wave of new DLC and then its remembered briefly. And then all together forgotten when the new one is released next year.

But Zelda, Mario, Metroid, Kirby, Donkey Kong etc. are classic titles. Why? Because every iteration is completely different to the last instalment and different things to play around with. Whereas Fife and CoD (although really good fun) is the same formula, kill pixels or kick balls.

@Tech True, but how many are flocking back to the PS2/1 or the original Xbox? Very little I would think, there will be the die hard fans playing what originally came out on those systems, but the majority will want to be playing the next big blockbuster on the next big machine.

Whether Xbox and Playstation gather a cult following in 20-25 years time will have to wait to be seen. But Nintendo will always be know as the one who broke into it first, I would think most of the Atari fans would have been bopped off by then.

Ms. Zelda Williams just got cooler.

More people actually wasting their time accusing people of 'not being a real gamer'. It's saddening really. -.-

@Chris720 - To you and all the others too numerous to count -

Nintendo may have the larger cult w/ Mario and Zelda, but FF7 probably has a more cultish cult. I'm not going to go looking it up, but I'ld guess Sephiroth is above Bowser or Ganan(dorf) on the all time greatest video game villain list.

I'ld pick Nintendo over Square as the all time greatest video game making company (Square hasn't bene good in like 10 years) but there are a lot of video gamers who grew up w/ the PS1 JRPGs who still regard them very highly.

@Einherjar

I half agree with you and half disagree...

I mostly agree with your comments relating to how it was in the past but mostly disagree with your comments relating to how you think it is the present.

Nintendo was unquestionably amazing and near flawless in the past. Very few people with any level of awareness and objectivity would argue this. Nintendo of the present however, while still having many moments of genuine magic, is nowhere near as all-round amazing and near flawless as it was in past. Very few people with any level of awareness and objectivity would argue this.

There's still magic coming from Nintendo but most of the time that magic is tempered with a lot of disappointment and frustration too.

@Kirk that disappointment and frustration is from people who think the world of their own ideas and when Nintendo doesn't listen to all of those brilliant ideas, they dump on Nintendo for not agreeing with their brilliant ideas.

Then on the other side of the coin you have Nintendo gamers who just enjoy Nintendo for what they are, not what they wish they were.

@Chris720
I would say most Mario, Zelda, Donkey Kong, Smash Bros, Mario Kart, Animal Crossing, Pokemon, etc. games have pretty much the same formula. I mean, you say that every release is completely different from the last, but each New Super Mario Bros. game for example isn't that different from the last (some would say almost identical). DKC: Tropical Freeze isn't going to be completely different from DKC: Returns or indeed the SNES DKC games from 20 years ago. Not that I would complain about it, I don't really mind, but it's not as if Nintendo completely reinvents each franchise with every single release whereas others don't.

@element187

No, that disappointment and frustration is real, relative and justified, and only stubbornly loyal FANS want people to believe otherwise.

Just because YOU are happy with something that's clearly below par relative to it's time and place (I'm going to presume), when compared to everything else you can RELATIVELY compare it to (such as the lack of power in the Wii U or the abysmal third party support compared to the competition as just a couple of examples), that does not mean it's fine and dandy and anyone that has a genuine issue with it is wrong.

There's still a lot of fun to be had on a Nintendo system like the Wii U but to even imagine there's no valid criticisms to be made of the console (lack of power and features...), it's games (abysmal third party support...) or services (non-unified eShop experience is still convoluted and VC games relatively overpriced in general...), is just utterly ridiculous and absurd at this point.

It's okay to love Nintendo, virtually all of us in here do, but that doesn't automatically mean it's doing everything perfectly all the time.

@Kirk You have to consider the amount of competition today. Its not just Sega. Its the whole PC gaming market, the mobile phone "gaming" market, giants like Microsoft and Sony, the letter both on homeconsole and handheld terms. You have so much more to choose from, that its obvious that one part of that whole picture can dominate every other part. The task is much too daunting.
And to your answer to @element187: Im on elements side. I could care less about having each and every game on each console and i could also care less about the "power" of the system and its graphical capabilitys. I played on a PS4 today and have to say, im happy that i didnt spend money on something like that (i played knack, because everything else is simply not my thing). Everything these consoles have going for them are the looks and to be honest, i was pretty underwhelmed. Thats not really something a PS3 couldnt do. And since thats the only "new" thing the console has to offer...well, i can live without one for a couple of years

@Haywired Your not completely wrong but lets compare nintendos best against the overall best selling series overall (that would be COD at the moment)
So, COD also has many different sub series's running along: Black Ops, Modern Warfare, the older WWII line, now Ghosts
And ALL are carbon copys of each other (at least from modern warfare 1 onwards). Not a single thing changes. Even the setting can be set a hundret years apart and still, every weapon functiones the same. There is no real gameplay variation..
Sure, you have the same thing in marios sub series's as well. All the "NEW" titles play pretty much the same. But outside of these series's no games plays like the other. And the longest "same game" sequel span IS the "NEW" series with 4 titles (DS, Wii, 3DS, WiiU). And that series got stale pretty quickly to be honest and for good reason.

@Einherjar

"I'm on elements side. I could care less about having each and every game on each console and i could also care less about the "power" of the system and its graphical capabilities."

Hence why it's YOU guys who are being subjective here and not me, regarding the very real issues with Wii U.

You could maybe defend the Wii U's lack of power or lack of third party support IF is was to the gamers/consumers benefit in any way, shape or form but all things being relative it really is not.

YOU two are suggesting things are just perfect because you two don't personally care about those very real issues that a lot of gamers have with the system. I'm telling you that OBJECTIVELY, as in not just in my own personal and subjective view of the world, these are issues, things are not perfect and it all could be a LOT better.

That disappointment and frustration I mentioned is very real and it's very warranted, these power and third party issues are real issues with the system all things being relative, and that's not just because I happen to share it on a personal subjective level too.

Also; It's "I could[n't] care less". Just saying.

@Kirk This "world" you are talking about made Call of Duty one of the best selling franchises year after year and keeps on spending money on EA titles although they get shafted and ripped of every-single-time
To be honest, i dont give a rats tail about an opinion based on such people
I know for a fact that i have a blast with that system as it is and that it gets better and better. And you know what ? That really is all i care about.
Market analyses, mainstream press, global opinion, all these things dont affect me liking the system and the way it handles things in one bit, and i dont know why it even should matter to be honest.
Why should i care that the rest of the world thinks that the WiiU could use "next gen super duper ultra mega XD resolution blast cloud processing" when all you need is a good game ? Why should everything i care about be a negative thing ? Why cant i just concentrate on the good things ? that im having tons of fun ? You can call me a "stubbornly loyal fan" all you want, youre right with that, and i dont see why this is a bad thing ? Are you saying this to every apple product user because apple also makes more mistakes that they need to ? Do you say the same things about any dedicated microsoft user, because microsoft is mostly a bunch of incompetent derps ?
Objective opinions os one thing, fun is another, fun isnt objective and thats all i care about really.

@Einherjar

Hey, don't associate me (my views) with Call of Duty or EA's yearly updates to it's sports games or whatever lol

I have no love for that game or those practices.

Also, all that really affects me is the end user experience I [would] have and on Wii U it's...under powered (so often games just look bad relative to my now current-gen expectations), lacking a decent selection of truly great software titles (certainly third party support mostly sucks so I'm left with a few decent first party titles at most spread thinly across the year), lacking features (can't even play my DVDs on it), lacking satisfaction (a few games I give a crap about played on a controller I personally find slightly uncomfortable, with an eShop I don't want to use because the VC games are too expensive and there's hardly anything worth buying on it anyway, at a price that I find too expensive for what it actually is)...

I'm not arguing on behalf of the manufacturers, producers, developers, marketing teams here.

@Kirk I didnt mean to But thats the "world" you are talking about. The world that thinks COD is one of its best franchises is also the world who hates on a system for simply not using state of the art tech.
I dint meant you personally. But it includes a heck of a lot of so called "gamers", developers and publishers who think like that. And like i said, i couldnt care less about their opinion

@Einherjar

Well, ultimately, I couldn't care less about anything but my own personal gamer/user experience either and like I said above...

On Wii U it's...under powered (so often games just look bad relative to my now current-gen expectations. Some Wii U games STILL have circle shadows!!!), lacking a decent selection of truly great software titles (certainly third party support mostly sucks so I'm left with a few decent first party titles at most spread thinly across the year), lacking features (can't even play my DVDs on it), lacking satisfaction (a few games I give a crap about played on a controller I personally find slightly uncomfortable, with an eShop I don't want to use because the VC games are too expensive and there's hardly anything worth buying on it anyway, at a price that I find too expensive for what it actually is)...

I'm certainly not arguing on behalf of the manufacturers, producers, developers, marketing teams, analysts, gaming press or general media here.

Also, the "world" you think it is that I'm alluding to is not actually the world I'm advocating at all. I'm simply saying the Wii U could be and do so much better and indeed be so much more satisfying, in so many ways, and as an end gamer and customer I'd very simply like it if it were. Indeed, I think it's essential if it's ever going to be more than a bad experience, or at best a passable experience, for me personally and that's just not enough imo.

Most hardcore FANS and some casuals will be pretty happy with the Wii U but I don't think most other people will to be honest.

I KNOW a LOT of people agree (and not just in a fanb*y or h*ter type way).

She took the words right out of my mouth. Great article.

She took the words right out of my mouth. Great article.

I do get a bit nostalgic over Halo 1 actually, but other than that I agree with her.

Man, well said.

@rjejr

Square's a tough company to use in competition to Nintendo as many of it's classics were on Nintendo's system- FF2(4), FF3(6), Chrono Trigger, Secret of Mana, Secret of Evermore, as well as the collabo with Ninty for Super Mario RPG.

Man, I miss those days. And not so much that i feel games aren't as good anymore, but moreso because i had a ton of gamer friends in those days and now all my friends are too cool to play any video games, much less Nintendo.

@LDXD

Selective picking much.

Anyone that isn't totally biased knows the Wii U is under powered and understands that this means most games are going to look better on the other systems, especially multi-plat games. There are already plenty of games that look better than anything on the Wii U and that's only going to get worse as this generation moves on. That's not even up for debate.

Would having more powerful graphics hardware and tech make Wii U first party games any worse?

Would Super Mario 3D World's 4-player split screen be better if the shadows on the characters didn't default to basic circles, possibly because the machine can't even handle 4 players having proper shadows (although I think that was just Nintendo's programmers being a little sloppy to be honest), for example? Or how about if the actual in-game levels used the same more advanced shadowing that's on the Title Screens but is actually reduced in tech ever so slightly in the main game levels (all objects actually cast proper directional dynamic shadows in the Title Screen but not in the actual levels for example)?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9MTOmYASQko&list=FLPRNNGLAaYqhvf_xmif5RiQ&index=9 (If only the in-game level visuals looked this beautiful. Not that they are bad, by any stretch of the imagination, but they aren't quite THIS beautiful.)

Well it would definitely be just as good AND yet it would also look a little bit better too, which SOME people might even argue would in fact make it just a little bit better overall. It certainly wouldn't make the experience worse for you if such things were fully realized in the game. Small things but things nonetheless. Now find all those kinds of things (not just graphics related either) and add them altogether and see if it does in fact make a difference to the quality and satisfaction of the overall experience or not...and if not to you, where it could apparently not get any better than it already is, then to people who do actually notice and care about such things.

Failing to have a basic feature that everyone else has had on their consoles for two previous generations (DVD playback), now going into a third generation, doesn't mean it's acceptable to not have it on a modern console like the Wii U. MOST people appreciate stuff like this and just because you don't that doesn't mean it's unimportant.

You logic is what is totally absurd here.

@LetsGoRetro - Good point. I was actually going to mention Chrono Trigger as a game a w/ a pretty decent following. (I personally liked Chrono Cross better, probably b/c I played it first.) That and I played them all on my PS1, having never owned any Nintendo system before the Gamecube. Guess you're right though, everybody would have fond memories of Nintnedo's systems if that's where they played those games, I just don't associate Nintendo w/ JRPGs in my head.

@LDXD

I think you think if we ignore those other things, which is part of the absurd stuff I'm on about, that it's all about the games and in that respect I presume you think Wii U is nigh-on perfect or something (otherwise why do you keep harping on about "the games" like it's the Wii U's trump card)...

Thing is, outside of a few decent first party games then show me all these games I'm supposed to be genuinely excited about (particularly the third party games)...and not just the ones the most loyal Nintendo/Wii U fans and few other more objective people think are brilliant either...

Even when it comes down to pure games alone I think the Wii U falls far short and if it doesn't then show me all the sales numbers, game ratings, critical acclaim and positive press to support the opposite view...Show me all the amazing upcoming proper next-gen AAA third party titles coming to the Wii U (not the few remaining ports of Xbox 360 and PS3 titles)...

Note: Don't bother getting examples because we all know for any positive example/argument you post there will be tens of negative examples/arguments to basically negate it.

We can debate it all day but to all but the most loyal and die-hard Nintendo fans I think it's very apparent that the Wii U isn't an entirely satisfying console experience for this day and age.

It's not a total turd like the 3DO or CDi but it's not exactly a NES or SNES level of satisfaction either.

I'm arguing power, sales, and whatever else ALONG with the games because they are ALL part of the overall Wii U experience.

LDXD

The Wii U is under powered and it will simply be incapable of doing some of the things we will come to expect from games going forwards into this new generation, which will be to the detriment of the system and the overall experience, and that is a fact.

The other consoles don't have that problem and won't because they are the lead development platforms. It's basically irrelevant that PC is more capable because the vast majority of multi-plat games will be developed with the Xbox One and PS4 at the forefront and as the leads SKUs.

"looking better has nothing to do what how good a game is that's NOT up for debate killzone shadow fall is just one example"

Unfortunately you appear to be one of those people that doesn't even understand that more powerful hardware/tech does far more than just improve the visual elements of the graphics in games. Looking better is just one part of what better "graphics" tech brings to the table.

If you don't even get that there's not much point in disusing anything any further to be honest.

@Haywired True, Nintendo's titles aren't exactly different from one another, especially in recent with Mario. However, they at least try to keep changing it up and include different ways of playing the game, either through new power-ups or how the level works. Whereas most modern games seem to choose the most generic route.

I'm not saying Nintendo can't be generic, they've shown they can be with the NSMB series. But they try to switch it up and do different things.

@rjejr I'm not saying Nintendo has the largest cult following in the world. Just compared to Sony and Xbox, theirs is still pretty huge. There is no doubt in my mind that there are some brilliant titles on the PS1 and Xbox that people will go back to and play again and again. Its just in modern day society where most people want the next big thing.

While Nintendo's classical titles on NES/SNES/N64 etc.more-or-less raised this generation of gamers and will always be admired in peoples hearts, whereas I personally don't get that feeling from this generation of gaming on the Xbox, PS3, Wii or 3DS. There isn't one game that I'd think I'd want to play again in 25 years time.

Yep! she trolled good

@Chris720 - "There isn't one game that I'd think I'd want to play again in 25 years time."

I agree. The PS3 was a big letdown for me after the PS2 as the only two categories I really play are open world platformers and JRPGS, which the PS2 had in abundance, and the PS3 has an abundance of PS2 HD remasters I just bought Ratchet and Clank HD yesterday.

My personal preferences aside, those older systems were built w/ kids in mind - adult didn't play videogameas in the 80's they were too busy snorting coke or smoking crack - and the last 1 or 2 gen of systems are all about FPS and realistic sports games, there really isn't anything for children to get attached to as there aren't many games aimed at kids. My kids have been playing video games pretty much since before they were born and I'm not sure they're attached to much besides Pokemon. And I'm glad for Pokemon.

@rjejr I think most developers try to appeal to every sort of person. Developers the 80s/90s made games that pushed people to the absolute brink of sanity and we found it incredibly fun. Now they make them dumber and easier, or even put in helping hands to guide the player along.

Not to mention the mind numbing amount of FPS titles and sims that are fun for a while and then outdated within a year.

I'd happily play SMB for days. Would I play NSMB games for days? I can't even play them for an hour without being bored. After the PS1 and N64 era, I think gaming took a nose dive. Although the PS2 did try to hang on, it had to eventually be replaced by the PS3.

I don't think the developers are at fault, they just create what sells. I think the consumers mind has changed over the years, but I honestly don'tknow why. What changed?

@Chris720 - "but I honestly don'tknow why. What changed?"

" that pushed people to the absolute brink of sanity and we found it incredibly fun."

Nobody finds that fun, there were just limited options. Tv had like 5 channels if you were lucky. Computers cost thousands of dollars. Touch football was the best part of life in the 80's but parents are afraid to let their kids off the block now. And all the moms work, no "go to" house for cookies and soda. And soda is bad for you anyway.

"Although the PS2 did try to hang on, it had to eventually be replaced by the PS3."

The PS2 sold 155 mil consoles. 155,000,000. 50% more than the Wii. Try to hang on? Really? Seriously? The undisputed number 1 selling home console of all time had to be replaced? That makes no sense whatsoever.

Here's what changed - tablets, a tv in every room, a PC in every home, a multitude of choices, Netflix, Facebook, Twitter. Nobody wants their games to be hard, life is hard enough. Newtown, 911 (biased, I live in NY) common Core curriculum, baseball, piano, soccer, karate. Sure, nobody makes their kids work in the fields or in sweatshops but they always have to be doing something. Parents are stressed, the kids feel the stress, nobody needs added stress from playing games, which are supposed to be fun. When we where younger we played w/ blocks and action figures, just make believe playing for fun, adults call it "downtime" now. Now kids don't do that, they just play videogames. Videogames are replacing the "fun" and to do that they need to be fun, not hard.

Also, kids make up a very small part of the market now, they were the entire market in the 80s. The kids who played videogames now play as adults, and adults want FPS, unfortunately. All the dads who are beat down from their stressful lives and jobs - ever see "Fight Club"? - want to kill their boss, so they play COD.

Here's your problem - you probably dont want to play the few "kids" games - Skylanders, Disney Infinity, Lego Marvel - bc they are kids games. But you don't want to play FPS ether. Sorry, I don't have any solutions. but heres the truth - in 20 or 30 years you'll be too old to want to play any videogames so you won't care that there's nothing for you to play.

That's awesome! She's 100% right.