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As Nintendo continues to keep the NX behind lock and key, making fans and industry followers sweat over whether it truly is going to hit that target of a March 2017 release, plenty are considering what the system could try to achieve. Beyond guessing the format of the platform, some of the interest is on the audience that Nintendo can target in order to get back to the impressive sales it enjoyed with the DS, Wii and - to a degree - the middle years of the 3DS.

DFC Intelligence, in its latest reports on the gaming industry - via Games Industry.biz - has shared its belief that a major opportunity for Nintendo could lie in the under-12s market. The market research company observes that the current generation of dedicated games consoles have largely ignored this age group - described as a "lost console generation" - and that Nintendo is well placed to target that segment.

One of the ironies of the latest generation of console systems is how children under the age of 12 have been largely ignored. The Nintendo Wii U is the only dedicated system remotely targeted at kids and it has been a failure. Twenty years ago many casual outside observers viewed children as the ONLY market for video games. The fact that console systems can thrive without targeting a younger audience speaks volumes to how the industry has grown. However, it also highlights a major missed opportunity.

Arguably Sony and Microsoft don't need younger gamers and can simply rely on the trickle down effect where kids come on board several years into the lifecycle. Really it is hard to point to major specific new generation games targeted for kids outside of Lego titles and toys to life products. Furthermore, these products play fine on older console generations and do not really justify an investment in expensive new hardware.

Of course, the company that has had the greatest success with targeting children is Nintendo. Nintendo is currently in a holding status until they can launch a new console system but the company has a real opportunity to reinvent the groundwork in the game space by introducing an easy to use system that targets the entire family.

...The original beauty of the console business was a kid could push a button and in seconds be playing games. In the current generation, that appeal has been lost and the immediacy of being able to play games is now found on Apple devices, the Nintendo DS and even PC games. Of course, it is not only kids that want to get in and out of games as fast as possible. Apple, Supercell, King Entertainment and other major growth stories are all about giving consumers quick access to games.

The current hole in the market for accessible high-end games that are NOT on Apple devices could be a real opportunity for Nintendo. Nintendo really helped pioneer the easy in and out accessibility that is a major appeal of Apple devices. Of course, saying there is an opportunity and doing something about it are two different things. The market is ready for an easy to use system that targets the family. The question is will Nintendo be able to capitalize on what is clearly a major vacuum in the game space.

Someone is going to come along and take advantage of the opportunity to make games simple again... Many observers are rightly skeptical of Nintendo's chances. DFC also believes Nintendo is a dark horse... Poor recent execution has not been encouraging but the opportunity to turn things around is clearly there.

It's an interesting and, we'd suggest valid, set of observations. Chatting amongst ourselves this week in the team we were speculating whether multiple SKUs could be a factor with NX, even beyond potential 'home' and 'portable' options. Nintendo has no doubt learned lessons from the 2DS in terms of targeting products at young gamers, so a durable and affordable iteration of a new platform, for example, could appeal to young gamers and their parents. Beyond that, of course, many of Nintendo's games are typically suitable for players of all ages.

Nintendo is clearly going to the effort to appeal to younger gamers, with the 3DS getting a big push to that audience at the moment in Europe and North America. Quite whether the NX will also target that audience will be interesting to see.

[source gamesindustry.biz]