New Nintendo 3DS Undone by Dragon Quest Heroes and PS4 in Japanese Charts

I'm still debating importing the exclusive console for this...I want this game sooo bad and I saw an Amazon preorder listing for USA.

I don't think the 3DS will re-assert itself this year. It has the fewest announced games of the MS, Sony, Nintendo hardware families.

It's not just the Wii U that lost 3rd party support, the 3DS has that problem, too, and Nintendo clearly cannot single-handedly support two pieces of hardware simultaneously.

Hopefully Nintendo has something up their sleeve for the 3DS this year to keep it strong. My bet would be that Xenoblade Chronicles will not be the last port of a Wii (or GameCube) game for the system. As no company does more ports or remakes than Nintendo, I fully expect another one to be revealed by or at E3.

I hope for Eternal Darkness, but I expect something more like Mario Sunshine or the original Luigi's Mansion. Though, if Nintendo really wants to sell the New 3DS, they'd find a way to work with Disney to revive the entire Star Wars: Rogue Squadron trilogy for it.

Japan loves their Warriors games!

Somehow I picture this song still popular in Japan.
[youtube:47y5bo8wtqM]

This is why getting DQXI on the Wii U is so important.

I don't understand why they don't consider all the 3DS systems as one, or atleast put it into two categories the new 3DS and the old 3DS. But if you look at the bigger picture Nintendo sold approximately 41000 units , including the Wii U, between all categories, which isn't too shabby.

@unrandomsam

There's no way in hell that's going to happen. Nintendo couldn't even be bothered to bring the game to the West (along with two others) after publishing multiple DQ games on the DS over here. Dragon Quest appears to be returning to Playstation, which has been it's home since the PS1.

Beyond that, sales of DQX were reportedly not very good.

@Quorthon
3DS actually does still have some Japanese third party support. I think.
It's nowhere near as much support as the Vita is getting in Japan (tons of third party games coming to Vita, some of them big names), but it does exist.
For example there's that Popolocrois game or however you spell it.

@AVahne

Right, that's a good point. In Japan, at least, there is some third party support for the 3DS. I should have clarified, but the 3DS is lacking major Western hitters such as Take Two, EA, Ubisoft, etc. I think Activision is still supporting it, but mostly for the throw-away kids' games, and some Disney stuff here and there for movies.

Outside of Japan, though, the 3DS looks every bit as barren and lifeless as the Wii U on the retail side. And consumers will come to use this as a measure of which systems to support. Are you going to go to the console with huge shelves of games, or small shelves where the games are dominated by Mario on the cover?

Already, when I'm looking over PS4 games in, say, Best Buy, it takes me longer to scan everything and see what's available or what's dropped in price (because the library is so much better supported) than to look over Wii U or 3DS game shelves, which is mostly tipping a couple games forward, and walking away a few seconds later as nothing has changed.

I think I'm pretty well informed of new game releases, and I like when there are games that shot to retail under the radar that become fun discoveries on retail shelves. For the Wii U and 3DS, I know there's nothing coming out and what under-the-radar titles do appear tend to be games based on movies or kid's shows that I was never going to get anyway. I know that this fun of actually looking for missed gems at retail is going to pick up for my PS4 (and for my girlfriend for her XBO) as the generation goes on, but the odds of that happening for the 3DS and Wii U are disappearing. I am always going to be aware of what's coming to retail for those systems, because there's very little for either. That's my anecdote. I love that search for hidden and missed gems--like when I finally found Castle of Shikigami III for the Wii (new no less, last year)--but those kinds of releases aren't going to happen for Nintendo this generation. To me, that's kind of a bummer, as it gives me little reason to ever go looking through the games, and I think regular consumers simply see a lack of variety or options as compared to the competition.

For instance, if you're buying a new tablet, and have settled on two largely identical devices with identical power and price, you're going to pick the one with more accessories, features, and options. Nintendo fans care about Mario and Zelda. Average consumers do not--they care about getting the most bang for their buck--and small, empty store shelves send the message to avoid certain products.

Nothing surprising here. I wonder if the higher number of physical releases for the Vita in Japan makes a difference in how well it sells. We get fewer here and we don't get the largest memory card, so we pay more for the same game. It's a good system; a shame it isn't working in NA.

@Quorthon This is what I have been saying. People may not like games like Call of Duty, Madden, Fifa, and Battlefield on here, but the reality is that those are the games that top sales charts year after year.

And this is the battle that Nintendo is losing. More and more, they are losing shelf space to Sony and Microsoft, and gradually becoming that "other" company the way that Atari and Sega were in the past. When people think of video games or discuss them its almost always about the Xbox and Playstation.

More importantly, those systems are more appealing to a consumer looking for a new system.

You have a good point. Which is likely to sell better to a consumer? A PS4 or Xbox One that has all the games that they want to play along with good exclusives, or a Nintendo platform that has great Nintendo games, but misses out on 99% of the major third-party releases?

I love my Wii U, but it bothers me that it misses out on games like Dead or Alive 5 Last Round, Dragonball Xenoverse, Mortal Kombat X, and Call of Duty Advanced Warfare. To play those games, I have to play them on a PS3.

Those games are on virtually every other platform on the market, why can't Nintendo get them? This is the issue Nintendo will be facing as this generation moves forward, every other platform on the market(barring the Vita) will have more games then NIntendo's platforms.

Which means people either have to buy two systems to enjoy Nintendo games and games on other platforms, or if they don't have the money, pick the console that gives them more bang for their buck.

And that is not Nintendo.

Some people on here may cheer that Nintendo does not get Call of Duty and Madden or act like its no big deal. But the lack of third party support is only going to hold Nintendo back.

@Quorthon
Aye, I'm not disagreeing with you. It's kind of sad that is gotten to this point for 3DS and Wii U.

Personally, despite it being in a sort of similar situation in the west, I prefer my Vita to both my Wii U and 3DS.

@Ryno If not there it is still in my mind lol. I listened to the whole thing!

It's Dragon Quest - and Japan still loves Dragon Quest, in addition to this game being a Musou-type that combines EVERY SINGLE DQ CHARACTER into one single game. How can such a thing not sell?
Anyway, I'm just glad that the PS3 version is selling better (the only difference is the framerate, and while 30fps are a freaking shame, the game was designed around these 30 frames, so the 60 frames for the PS4 version are practically useless).

@Caryslan
Actually, even the Vita will be leaving Wii U and 3DS in the dust when it comes to games support, at least in Japan. It has plenty of 3rd party games coming out in multiple genres and shares some games with PS3/PS4.

@Ryno Darn it Ryno, now it's going to be stuck in my head all day.

I'm sure 3DS will be back up there in a few weeks time. Lol. It's crazy that games like Smash and more impressively Animal Crossing still make the top 20 after all this time, but then again, they don't call them evergreen titles for nothing. Also when you're selling 30K+ systems combined in any given week, then some of those valuable titles tend to creep back on the chart or tend to hang on...

Though I'd love to see some more third party games this year, so hopefully there's some surprises we don't know about.

Bring on the obligatory 'Nintendo is doomed!' posts!

.....and there's been at least a couple already

@Spoony_Tech: Sorry Man, it is a great song to play in the background though when you are playing Hyrule Warriors!

@Ryno so much yes with that song... Now I'm going to sync it up when I play Hyrule Warriors later today!!

No surprise there, Japan will pick up anything Dragon Quest up there. Hopefully Nintendo learn from this and snatch up Dragon Quest XI for Wii U before Sony put their hands on it. You want to be successful in Japan, reserve Dragon Quest (or just release another version of Pokemon and Monster Hunter).

One week on being number three on the charts and people act like Nintendo is doomed. Doesn't get much more ignorant than that.

Fact of the matter is that no matter where PS4s are sold, Sony is only making an average of ~$20 per unit. Nintendo has made an average of ~$70 per Wii U sold, and that was after the price drop. Each side has to snatch whatever little victory they can get. This instance is no different.

As far as third party support is concerned, I'm starting to care less and less about it since the investors in each developer's stock is calling the shots now. They don't care about quality or balanced competitive gameplay. It's all about whatever pre-pubescent dolts buy into. I'm a gamer, not a marketing niche for suits to cash in on.

All I want this year is Xenoblade X and Devil's Third. That's it.

On the models head the + looks like a PS plus logo mabe that did not help. It looks like she is holding a new 3DS with a psn plus + on her head.

@ToxieDogg I personally am in the "Nintendo is in a spot of bother and need to work on it"-camp, but denouncing everybody who doesn't sing "Everything is awesome" about Nintendo as doomsayers isn't helping in getting a decent discussion going.

@Quorthon I aggree with everything you said. Regarding the 3DS, my guess is that we'll see another Pokémon game by the end of the year. I was thinking that Game Freak would take a longer break, but looking at the non-existent line up of 3DS retail games, it looks like trainers will be catching'em all again in october~november.

@Tulio517 Yeah, we should expect to see the usual release time this year, and details coming within the next couple of months.

@Quorthon Even split between Playstation / Nintendo for the main series games. (PS1 era plus ignoring the first VI being Nintendo exclusive).

VII / VIII PS
IX / X - Nintendo

@Caryslan

Oh exactly. As I noted in another article, Nintendo fans are the only gamers I've ever seen to actually appear to be happy to lose games and options, not saying they'd want Call of Duty or a game made by a developer who created Saints Row. Any other gamer would want more to play. And if we want the chance for more people to enjoy Mario or Zelda or Punch-Out, then we need to have other games to draw them in first.

I see it two ways:

1. If Nintendo wants the next console to succeed, no matter what it is, they need to get 3rd parties back on their side with the Wii U, this generation, the way Sony got 3rd parties back on-board after the embarrassing launch of the PS3. If they don't get third parties back with this generation, then they're automatically starting from a losing position with the next hardware.

2. If Nintendo isn't going to get 3rd parties back, they should go third party, and they should do it sooner rather than later, while they still have money in the bank, ample influence, and can get attention from news sources. That way they ensure they not only enter 3rd party status strong, but with the ability to basically influence direction in the industry with their heft. When Sega and Atari went 3rd party, it was with heavy losses, debts, and heavily damaged public image. Sega was literally given a chance to survive in an event so unbelievable, it'd be a Hollywood trope--their primary debtor (at the time) actually forgave their debts on his deathbed!

I've been a Nintendo fan since I was a kid, but have never been just a straight follower of Mario-Zelda-Pokemon (don't even like Pokemon), and my favorite Nintendo platforms have been those that appealed to my tastes as a gamer, not just a Nintendo fan (NES, SNES, DS, GameCube). Sure I want Metroid and Punch-Out and Kirby. I also want Contra and Witcher and Fallout.

@Tulio517

I fully expect another Pokemon game this fall. That's very much one of the franchises Nintendo tries to feature every year with newly released retail titles. Just like Mario and Zelda, which is why I closely associate these three.

Every year, there are 3~6 games with Mario on the cover.
Every year, there is another Zelda title released or re-released for full price.
Every year, there is another Pokemon set.

Not being a fan of the franchise, I can go backwards starting with last year: Ruby & Sapphire remake, X&Y, Black & White 2, Black & White, Silver & Gold (maybe?), etc. The DS seemed to have enough Pokemon games to cover about three per year (if you count doubles like X & Y separately). I don't know why I know this. I don't even like Pokemon.

Just like Madden or Call of Duty, Pokemon games are released like clockwork.

@Sir_JBizzle

Seriously, who just bought Animal Crossing yesterday? I downloaded that game at midnight when it released.

Like a nerd.

@Caryslan May top sales charts on other consoles, but western AAA games never top the charts on Nintendo hardware.

Idk why people keep beating a dead horse. There's a reason those games don't come to Nintendo platforms- cause nobody buys them. People keep complaining about games not being on the system that nobody cares about. The people who play those games don't want to play them on Nintendo, they want to play them on PS and Xbox where they've always played them. We've seen what happens when western 3rd party games come to Nintendo hardware- they rot on store shelves.

It's like trying to make an apple an orange. Nintendo will never have those games, not in a million years. Nobody wants them except for a few thousand vocal fan site gamers. The rest of the fanbase doesn't care and the millions who play those games already have a favored system to play them on.

Nintendo will continue to provide different games than the multiplat systems. I realize the multiplats systems are popular, and Nintendo will probably never see that level of popularity. But it is what it is. Simply having western AAA games on the system won't solve anything, cause they'd all flop like they always do and 12 months later you'd see 95% of developers retracting support again.

It's like trying to peddle a Koran to a Christian- multiplats on Nintendo hardware are a waste of time and money. Developers know this- that's why there are none

@Quorthon strange enough, I don't have it yet. It was on my list, but never got around to it because it didn't seem like my cup of tea. After buying and messing around with Tomodachi Life, I think I might get more enjoyment out of Animal Crossing, than the former. So I'll probably end up getting it this month.

@Sir_JBizzle

Animal Crossing is a "once every other generation or so" franchise for me. Like Mario Kart. They don't change enough for me to warrant buying them every time, and New Leaf was the same way. The going to other towns was cumbersome and it's rare that I'll fire it up these days. My girlfriend plays Tomodachi Life more often, I think because that game is simply more lively.

@JaxonH I will never buy those games on the Wii U there has not been a single one I think is of acceptable quality. (Compare to the Gamecube where all of them I was perfectly happy with the port quality).

@unrandomsam

Then you must not be aware of what was actually released, as several of the games released with notably high quality and praise. Arkham City, Deus Ex, Mass Effect 3, Need for Speed, etc. Even the Call of Duty titles were largely identical to their console brothers, and had the best online on the Wii U until Mario Kart finally released--and even then it's debatable. Hell, Arkham Origins on the Wii U was notable as the most solid version of the game and the only version that didn't need heavy patching to fix bugs. The highest-rated version of Ninja Gaiden 3 was the Wii U version. Rayman Legends reviewed and played absolutely beautifully on the Wii U.

I can't help but wonder what you think is an "acceptable quality?" Did you buy Game & Wario or Wii Party U, or download Pokemon Rumble U or pick up Nintendo Land? These all reviewed worse than the games I listed. Are you sure that you don't mean to say you didn't want them because they didn't have the Nintendo logo on the front?

Wait... Ninja Gaiden 3 does have the Nintendo logo on the front! They published it!

Quorthon is dead on as per usual

@unrandomsam yeah they half-assed a lot of the Wii U ports. Even the decent one were hampered by not getting DLC or having it pulled. Not to mention they were late ports for that most of everyone had already played on the other systems. Which is probably part of the reason why the exceptional Need for Speed poorly sold.

Though to @JaxonH point, I'm thinking Nintendo will just continue to be the supplement system to the other two, which isn't a bad thing in and of itself, unless the fanbase dwindles down to unsustainable levels. Which I doubt, but on the other hand, they still need to do something to get 3rd parties on board, even if they opt to co-publish some titles.

@AVahne You see this is the problem with the Vita. There just ain't many good games on there and the good games can be played on the ps4 or ps3. What's the point in owning one? The 3ds on the other has tones of excellent games and the experience is unique.

The vita is getting games, but they are forgettable. Quality is always more important than quantity. Don't let me get started with the PS4. The only games I have in it right now is COD and far cry. The recent releases has been a joke and it's very disappointing. I hope bloodborne and the upcoming gundam game will fix this.

@kensredemption I haven't seen anyone acting like that. You must have just run into a couple of fanboys is all...

@Quorthon you shut your mouth about Game and Wario!! No seriously spot on. To add, Darksiders II was also pretty decent and one of the only titles that had most of the DLC included.

@Quorthon Up until this point I have accepted the Wii U is a different machine that provides a unique experience. That is why I got a PS4 so I won't miss out of the 3rd party titles.

I think this situation is not exactly a bad thing as this gives each system an identity. But commodity games such as Fifa is not coming to the Wii U definitely sucks tho. But as a person who own the Wii U, 3DS and PS4, I'm fine with anything as I have access to all the great game

@Hy8ogen
A very biased view, but a view nonetheless.
I wholeheartedly disagree with you as someone who owns both 3DS and Vita. But I'll respect your opinion, even if it's a sadly common one.

@Hy8ogen There aren't many big games on it but there's plenty of great indies. I don't think many people see it as worth the price though. For $200 you could just get a PS3. Which has a far better selection of games.

my avatar! and without my consent!
on-topic: looking forward to Dragon Quest Heroes even though its not on Wii U

@AVahne You see, I'm not a fan boy. I genuinely enjoy games and I've been wanting to get a Vita for the longest time but there was just no incentive. Games I wanna play on the Vita is on the ps3 or ps4 which I both own. If you don't own the ps3 or ps4 then it's definitely worth it. My opinion anyways.

@Hy8ogen
Didn't claim you were. I'm not a fan boy either. Really, the Vita is enjoyed by people who are able to find their appeal. Personally I prefer portables, so having many home console type games on it is a godsend for me. I no longer own a PS3 either, as I sold it to buy a Wii U, which I unfortunately don't play very much. It's great not only cor people who don't have Sony home consoles, but also for people who simply enjoy portables more.
Yes there are many ports, but plenty of great exclusives, too. Whether a console contains enjoyable games or forgettable ones is different with everyone. I've owned a 3DS since late 2011 and bought many games for it. At the same time, I've traded in or sold many of those games. To me, even though I like the console for some games, there are a LOT of forgettable games on 3DS.
Sorry if that sounded like a lecture, I'm just a little sick of people putting down the Vita by saying it has little to no games.

@unrandomsam
Though the games you mentioned were of great quality, the issue is they were released on the U a long time after they were already out in the wild for 360/PS3. People had already beaten games like Deus Ex, Mass 3, Arkham City and in some cases beat them twice with the GOTY versions. Having a U version come a year later was doomed from the get go. People just aren't going to care enough to triple dip for some slight tweaks let alone buy a brand new console to play them.This though is a big issue with the 3rd party support. If you are late to the show, you will always lose out. Nintendo often gets these titles after they've been released elsewhere or they often get the weakest version if its released in conjunction with the other system releases.

Part of this is Nintendo's problem though. A lot of big market games such as Madden or COD are made around online gameplay, and the U has the weakest online infrastructure of all the current and previous generations. Nintendo largely ignored online play with the Wii which set a bad precedent and with the U it rarely pushes games with online multiplayer. People roll with Microsoft largely because of online play. If you like online play, you know you'll have a lot of choices with both Microsoft and Sony, but will only have a few options with Nintendo.

Then there is just the graphical abilities. The Wii lost a lot of quality 3rd party support with its decision to ignore HD (as well as opting for non-traditional controls). Now with the U, they once again went with a cheaper internal design and so it can't compete with what the One/PS4 will be capable of pushing out. Developers love to push pretty graphics as that nets them a lot of buzz, so with the U's low market base they see no reason to make a downgraded version for it.

@AVahne Claiming the Vita has no games is entirely false. It has games, but none that appeal to me since I got the console counterpart. It's all about preference and it is entirely subjective. If you don't own either a ps3 or a ps4, the vita is definitely worth it.

@Sir_JBizzle

Ha, I'm sure Game & Wario is enjoyable to some folks! It's average score on Metacritic is 61, which to me is a flawed experience, but will still appeal to someone. Like Splatterhouse on the X360, which only garnered a 62, but I had a blast with it.

G&W is an easy go-to title that was fairly recently released from Nintendo that simply did not ring the "Nintendo quality" bells and is evidence that the company is not infallible. Granted, there's also Pokemon Rumble U, but I think that one was maybe a little unfairly negatively reviewed for doing the things Skylanders is praised for.

@Hy8ogen

I've accepted it as well. My disappointment, though, stems from this. I would like Nintendo to be to the same level they were with the NES or SNES or even the N64, where they were a primary competitor with a huge variety as well as unique exclusives. Now they're just "the other guy," that maybe you get as an afterthought. And that is not a very respectable position for a company that, at one time, single-handedly defined this industry.

@darthllama

I just wanted to note that while the Wii U received a lot of ports it's first year, so did the PS4 and XBO... and X360, PS3, Wii, DS, PSP, etc. This is a norm for the industry. Easier and smarter to port a last-gen title to the new platform than build one from scratch. That way developers can learn a bit about the new system without risking too much money, and earn a bit of cash and experience to make their big next-gen titles really matter.

I never criticized the Wii U, PS4, or XBO for first-years of ports. This is just how it goes, and is arguably necessary for developers to make the transitions to the new hardware easier and more financially feasible.

It's also common-place for the ports to actually review worse than the last-gen versions, as seen with almost every early X360 title, which reviewed worse than their PS2 counterparts. That new hardware comes with different quirks and hurdles.

The Wii U arguably had the best selection and highest quality of games in it's swath of "first year ports." Mass Effect 3? Deus Ex?

@Quorthon I got G&W for free during that Mario Kart 8 promo last year. Suffice to say I haven't even booted it up yet. Ha. As far as the quality thing, I don't think Nintendo fans (the reasonable ones) think that all their games are top notch and infallible, they just get more right than wrong a pretty large portion of the time. If you don't mind the various iterations of Mario Zelda and Pokémon. Naturally you'll have the fanatics that will tell you Nintendo can do no wrong. But those types are in every camp.

I may need to look into this Splatterhouse though. I can't say I've heard of it for some reason...

We want more! We want More! We want more! Come on Nintendo get Dragon Quest for your system for more life waranty! You have to spend some money you know.

@kensredemption

Actually, Nintendo was losing money on the Wii U at launch, and after the price drop, was still losing money on the hardware.

This generation was the exact opposite of last gen--Nintendo launched with the console sold below cost and MS and Sony launched hardware they were profiting on. Everything went all topsy-turvy.

Note: After the drastic price drops, MS may not be making a profit on the XBO anymore. But it's selling better, so I doubt they care about that relatively little loss.

@Sir_JBizzle

I used to think Nintendo was a super "quality" company, but after this past two generations, I don't really think they're any different than the other major players--MS, Sony, EA, Ubisoft, Take Two, etc. (Activision publishes a lot of crap though, skewing their averages.) I think Nintendo is just the same as anyone else, with the exception that when Nintendo does a top-quality game, they tend to deliver nigh perfection. Like Mario Galaxy or Metroid Prime or Eternal Darkness.

The X360/PS3 Splatterhouse was a revival of the franchise. I thought the combat was tons of fun, but I'll give you the fair negatives: Long loading times, 10~14 hour story, enemies not as creative as classic Splatterhouse games, somewhat shallow, a few of the checkpoints were really awful. Not as bad as the recent Wolfenstein or Castlevania: Lords of Shadow, which both seemed intent on filling their games with terrible checkpoints, but a few of them really sucked.

I found the dialog of the Terror Mask hilarious (voiced by the guy that did Darkwing Duck), the environments looked cool, and the combat was a blast, if a tad floaty. Quicktime events were not a pain in the ass, and were actually rather enjoyable as opposed to that button-mash nonsense in God of War. Oh, and there was lots of splatter.

I grabbed Wii Party U for my MK8 freebie. My son and I played it once. Then never again. He always wants to play Nidhogg or Smash Bros now.

It Dragon Quest. Japan loves Dragon Quest. How is this surprising?

@Hy8ogen
Aye, you're correct.

@Quorthon I guess 1 million is not good enough.

http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2014-03-27/dragon-quest-x-online-sells-1-million-copies

@Quorthon I respectfully disagree. Nintendo is definitely not an after thought. People who thinks Nintendo as the "other guy" are probably dude bro gamers who only plays COD and GTA V. (Nothing wrong with that, just making a point). People who actually care about gameplay, replay value, fun, unique experience will always see Nintendo as the go to platform.

To me the PS4 is the "other guy" for me to play 3rd party titles on. Really though, again that's just preference. But you're right, Nintendo used to be the dominating company in the industry, and their draconian ruling is biting them back now. (CoughSquareCough) I'm just happy Nintendo is still doing well and still making awesome games.

@Hy8ogen Of course Vita has games!I'll name them
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Can't forget about this one! . Call of Duty blackops declassified! I think i got them all. Right?

XboxOne is doomed!

I wish they would bring Dragon Quest X over to North America on 3DS or Wii-U.

Nintendo should have tried to get DragonQuest Heroes on Wii U. Especially after the success of Hyrule Warriors.

Damn that DragonQuest Heroes looks good!

Congrats to the these games (as well as the Vita) doing well in Japan...and NO WHERE ELSE, lol. Ok, PS4 trumps the console sales worldwide, but the 3DS still is the king overall.

can't wait for dragon quest heroes to release in europe.

@AyeHaley Lol yeah, I had a feeling you were gonna comment when they showed that picture.

@midnafanboy

Well, that was certainly a "fanboy" post.

It really isn't hard to look up the games on the Vita or coming to it.

@Hy8ogen

My girlfriend doesn't have any interest in getting a Wii U, and she loves her Xbox One. For her, Nintendo is an afterthought. Is she a "dudebro?"

I'm getting annoyed by this Nintendo fanboy--and it is a Nintendo fanboy attitude--that anyone that doesn't like Nintendo or sees the company as an afterthought is some kind of hated, shallow, empty "dudebro" that only likes Call of Duty and GTA. With all due respect, grow the **** up. This comment makes you look bad, it makes Nintendo fans look bad, and it makes Nintendo look bad.

It illustrates an incredible ignorance of the world outside Nintendo. Personally, I played the Xbox 360 as my primary console last generation because Nintendo dropped the ball on the Wii and for a variety of reasons, the system couldn't handle the games I wanted. I didn't play Call of Duty until I bought the Wii U and was looking to expand my tastes. Yes, I enjoyed Gears of War--because I played it co-op with my girlfriend.

My favorite games don't come even close to the foolhardy stereotype you outline--Fallout, Kingdoms of Amalur, Alan Wake. On the PS3, one of my most memorable games was Ratchet & Clank: All 4 One, which I played with my son. You know what he wants to play on the PS4? Nidhogg. I actually do own GTA, but never got around to playing it (picked it up on sale). I preferred Fable II, Batman, Ace Combat, BioShock, Burnout, Transformers (Cybertron set), EDF, Crackdown, oh and a little game called Mass Effect. I suppose those are all just the same dudebro game to you?

I'm sorry if this seems like I'm going off on you (it just sparked a rant), but I'm a Nintendo fan, and I'm not blatantly ignorant of the world outside of Nintendo, and I'm tired of seeing Nintendo fans behaving that way. And while Nintendo is making some great games these days, they certainly are not "doing well." They're marginalized in the marketplace, their impact on the industry is now nil, their sales linger behind the competition, they have no competitive edge, and as you noted, they are stifled by essentially draconian concepts and standards. Hell, with the New 3DS, they aren't even trying to sell to a new audience, they're almost literally just taking advantage of their fans by not including a charger, but expecting you to rebuy largely the same hardware again.

For crying out loud, it's 2015, and the first competitive shooter they've made since Goldeneye doesn't even have online voice chat. Their home console is selling slower than the GameCube and the Dreamcast.

It's perfectly fine for your opinion to be that a PS4 or XBO is a secondary console. I don't have a problem with that--though over the course of the generation, you will likely end up playing them more given the sheer number of games coming to them. My issue is with the almost deliberate ignorance that "just because you don't play Nintendo first and foremost you're a dudebro that only wants Call of Duty or GTA." How about we knock this crap off?

For that matter, someone can enjoy games like Call of Duty or GTA and still not be some idiotic, imaginary dudebro stereotype. Saying so is no better than anyone outside of the Nintendo circle saying everyone who plays Nintendo is a little kid and all the games are kiddie platformers.

Get over that "us versus them" mentality. Try being a gamer instead.

I don't mean to jump down your throat over this, but seriously, your statement is easily, demonstrably wrong and it makes all of us look bad.

The rest of your post seems awash in almost insufferable arrogance coupled with a grinning, self-aware ignorance. Pretty much every gamer cares about gameplay and fun, and Nintendo is not the only place to find those things. To even pretend that's true could not be more absurd, and only makes one look extraordinarily sheltered or ignorant. "Other games aren't fun, just Nintendo." Sorry, that's either deliberately ignoring reality, or a blatantly sheltered opinion that becomes an obvious lie. I could rattle off a list of games not found on Nintendo consoles that defined pure fun for me, as could anyone who has played more than just games from this one source.

While this has gotten a little long-winded, one final note: You talk of Nintendo being unique. Sure, an argument could be made that the GamePad is, even though it's just a console version of a concept from the DS--but by all means, show us what this uniqueness has delivered? How is Pikmin 3 unique over the previous two? It's certainly more cumbersome, what with setting the GamePad in front of you and trying to tap that while playing with the Wii Remotes. What's unique about Mario Kart 8? It's curly F-Zero-ish courses? The game plays exactly the same as the previous versions. What's unique about 3 Zelda remakes in 4 years? What's unique about constantly porting and re-releasing the same games every generation? Annual Pokemon titles, 3~6 Mario-themed games per year, another Zelda title at retail every year--often as a remake. I don't see anything unique here, not only compared to the competition, but not even compared to Nintendo's own history.

I sincerely hope this was all a poor attempt at a joke, and that you aren't actually this closeted to the world outside your Nintendobox.

@TingLz

Did Nintendo publish it in the West? Is that number even close to Dragon Quest IX? Was the game ported to PC and mobile?

No, no, and yes, yes. It only got to 1 million because it was on two Nintendo systems, PC, and mobile. There is no breakdown of which platform had the most sales and this is a far cry from the sales of DQIX--which was only released on one platform.

By that measure, DQX is damn near a failure. DQIX sold over 5 million on one platform--and that could be the numbers for only Japan. Dragon Quest IX was one of the hottest, best-selling DS games. Dragon Quest X never rose above lukewarm.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dragon_Quest_IX:_Sentinels_of_the_Starry_Skies#Japan

@Quorthon Oh my god are you blind? It was a joke!Do you know what a joke is?No? Well that sucks for you Mr.Real Gamer.And stop calling people's fanboys,cause half of them aren't even one!You're just calling out people that for no reason it's annoying.But when they call you out,you leave with your tail between your legs.If you're going to call someone out at least stay and reply to their answer.And not just run away like what you been doing here many times.I'll say this one more time,you were once a guy who made interesting posts that made sense,now you're here spilling nonsense.

@Quorthon In its defense, it was an MMO. Bringing those to the west may be much more challenging.

Either way, Square Enix says that there are 300,000 active subscribers per day which still makes money for them. Hardly a "failure" in my books

@midnafanboy

That I don't return to comment on every single post does not mean I'm "running away," it means I A) have a life outside of an online forum and B) May not have seen any value in responding (i.e., a waste of my time) or C) Have moved on from whatever the discussion was. Once an article falls two or three pages in, most of what needs to be said has been said, and after that, it's just a hassle.

Do grow up.

Frankly, the quality and content of my posts have not changed at all. What is more likely to have happened is that the same reason and common sense that you claim to have (ahem) "admired" before ended up disagreeing with you on something you took personally, and now you're all sad about it.

Also, have you heard of Poe's Law? It states that sufficient satire of a position becomes indistinguishable from the real position holders. For instance, if I rambled off a compelling enough conspiracy theory, I might end up being indistinguishable from the "real" conspiracy theorists. You say it was a joke, but you're on a site--and this is my favorite callback--where a user literally thought raping people was part of Call of Duty. That's an incredible amount of ignorance. And even if he was a Poe, it was still believable that he was a sincere user as fanboys of all ilks (but perhaps specifically Nintendo fanboys) are well-known to utter such contrivances.

Interestingly, scientists trolled a bunch of conspiracy theorists (as if testing how far they could take a Poe concept), and conspiracy theorists couldn't tell the difference between totally invented bunk and the bunk their "experts" invented. http://motherboard.vice.com/read/scientists-tried-trolling-conspiracy-theorists

@TingLz

Regardless of what you feel, NoA evidently disagrees. Otherwise they would have brought it over as they did with several other DQ games.

Again, what platform is that 300,000 on? I'm guessing it falls more to PC and Mobile than the Wii U.

The girl reminds me to Sakakibara Yui.

@Quorthon You're not worth the trouble brother,go send your texts of paragraphs to someone who cares on reading them.Cause like hell i actually read that reply.And again this "Well, that was certainly a "fanboy" post.It really isn't hard to look up the games on the Vita or coming to it."It was a joke if only you knew what that was.

@midnafanboy

Ahh, so you don't read my posts, but you comment anyway? Indeed, it seems you are the one running away.

@B64111980

I've already pointed this out a dozen times before and, literally, the only way it is disputed is because the hardcore Zelda fans simply don't want to admit reality for whatever reason.

Nintendo has a clear focus to release something new for Zelda every single year, for full price, and at usually at retail. Since 1998, there have only been 3 years without a new Zelda release in some capacity, but there have been at least three other years with more than one Zelda game released.

If you want to start cherry picking platforms or titles, you're just wasting your time for nothing. Curiously, this is when Nintendo fans suddenly act like the portable Nintendo systems are some kind of worthless afterthought as if the games shouldn't be counted there. Given the huge hype over Majora's Mask 3D, only a complete fool would dismiss the strength of these releases.

It's this simple:

Is it a Zelda game in name or universe, and released for a retail price?

Then it counts. Everything else is petty, childish cherry-picking nonsense that boils down to semantic BS arguments about "what counts and what doesn't." If it's a Zelda game, backed by a promotional campaign, public appearance, retail pricing--it counts.

Nintendo very clearly intends to have something of Zelda to sell to the public every single year. If Zelda U isn't delayed until 2016, then I expect a Hyrule Warriors 2 will fill the void then.

Literally, the only reason to argue against this is because you want to deny reality. I suggest learning to accept reality. It's far more beneficial.

Educate thyself: http://www.mobygames.com/game-group/legend-of-zelda-series
(I don't count special editions released alongside regular editions as separate entries as it's technically the same game, but you can if you want to. It's still more Zelda being released.)

@B64111980

It's not an opinion. It's quite factual. Nintendo releases a Zelda game, in title or franchise, in some form almost every single year, for a full retail price, having only missed about 3 years since 1998.

As I said, you're cherry picking and not paying attention. The following statement is a fact:

Nintendo releases a Zelda video game, in title or franchise, in some form almost every single year, at retail/or for full retail price, having only missed about 3 years since 1998. Many of these are remakes or ports. That isn't opinion, that's cold, hard fact.

You're arguing against facts. You might as well try pretending that climate change isn't happening.

It is similar, but not exactly the same as Call of Duty or Assassin's Creed as when those get a new yearly release, they are actually new games. Nintendo keeps this yearly Zelda fix going through remakes and ports, for instance. If you are a hardcore Zelda fan, and have been since the N64, there have only been about three years where you did not buy a newly released piece of Zelda software.