Pokémon Boss Didn't Think Switch Would Be A Success In The Age Of The Smartphone

Sligeach level of honesty/negativity 😅

"Currently, it’s popular among the early adopters, but there needs to be one more step to attract a wider audience. I see more potential in Switch, but one shouldn’t overestimate its potential."

I especially agree with this statement, I have no doubts Sony are planning something soon to try and divert attention from the Switch. So the major test of the Switch is this holiday season with Super Mario Odyssey.

Hurry up with that Pokemon game and watch that thing disappear from shops.

@Sidon_ZoraPrince It's good to be honest and he's right to be cautious, like myself.

@SLIGEACH_EIRE I agree (about being honest and about your own caution)

What's up with game industry "experts" and their age of smartphone paranoia? Have they ever played a smartphone game, do they really think angry birds or horse dating sim can pose a threat to any of the consoles? I still remember that opinion of an expert before Switch came out, "why would people buy this thing if they can play games on the go on their smartphones" like really, REALLY? Obviously a person who isn't interested in games and plays angry birds or whatever on their smartphone to kill the time while they're waiting for the bus won't buy it.
It makes me a little angry someone who's supposed to be knowledgeable in that field would even think comparing android/ios games to console/pc games. You just don't do that.
Maybe in 20 years smartphones will be able to run ffxv or skyrim (because let's face it it's gonna be still relevant with how it is handled now lol), but they will be still incomparable with consoles we'll have by then. Unless they stop all development and wait for smartphones to catch up.

They're not entirely wrong. The Switch is still young.

"I told Nintendo that Switch wouldn’t be a success before it went on sale because I thought that in the age of the smartphone, no one would carry out a game console."
This is a bit weird considering they've been on and supporting the DS line for years.

Well, he obviously wasn't alone in thinking that. Seems like most people (me included) and even Nintendo themselves were surprised to see the Switch do as well as it did/is doing (both commercially and in terms of pure sales).

@-Green-
Not really. A lot has changed since the original DS (and even 3DS) was introduced, I mean, Ipad's and Iphone's didn't even exist back then which are products that have paved the way for a multitude of other- and simliar product to flood the market ever since.

We are in a very very different marketplace now compared to back then.

And if that's what the boss of Pokémon is thinking, a franchise that's made literally billions of dollars on Nintendo hardware, then you can just imagine what 3rd parties are saying to themselves. The proof is in the pudding. There's very little support from significant 3rd parties.

Thank you! It's nice to see an actual voice of reason amidst the blind faith optimism that has been permeating Switch news. The Wii U had a solid start, after all. It's best to proceed cautiously and analytically to avoid the pitfalls of the past.

"but there needs to be one more step to attract a wider audience."

Yeah... Pokémon ofcourse. Many of my friends bought a 3ds with X/Y or with Sun/Moon, this is the real system seller.

Nicely put. Can't disagree at all

@SLIGEACH_EIRE mehhhhh while your opinion is welcomed, u are Not on the same. While he's being skeptical, your on the negative level when it comes to switch.

"I thought that in the age of the smartphone, no one would carry out a game console" - CEO of a company which has control of a franchise that has consistently sold ~15mill copies per major release on portables since the 90s

@Grumblevolcano
I highly doubt that Sony could release anything that's takes momentum away from the Switch. Traditionally the way portables went Nintendo would push the exclusives angle, Sony would win on indies and horsepower. This time the Switch is insanely powerful as a portable and they have a head start on the indies.

@19Robb92 I know, it just sounds funny when you think about it. Maybe that's just a me thing though.

That next step? Pokemon. That game will shift 10's of millions of Switches

My phone is a device to connect myself to the rest of the world. I'm not really going to waste its battery on games when I can instead have a device that is completely geared and focused towards games.

I hope the Switch is how handheld consoles will be, going forward.

Whilst I see the Switch as a success and on track to further cement it as such I do agree that future horizons remain unknown.

If anything its a message to Nintendo to fix any ningling issues and keep a continuous stream of titles to attract future buyers and hang into current ones.

At least the article went for a balanced tone rather than highlighting ONLY THE NEGATIVES.

As a certain common "contributor" to these comments somehow saw as a reasonable action.

It also helps that portable consoles and hybrids like Switch are dedicated gaming-friendly devices, and Switch has extra plentiful control options to boot. Mobile gaming has long shot itself in the foot by seemingly trying to erase the "button" word itself from its dictionary, forgetting that touch screens, even capacitive ones, are nowhere near the proper replacement stage yet. Prioritize smartphones for gaming and you'll either limit yourself in your choice of games and genres or face a bluetooth controller purchase (with variable effectiveness depending on compatibility and another hungry mouth to feed on the phone battery already strained by the gaming duty at the moment).

Not to mention another aspect I addressed elsewhere recently - mobile games' increasing dependence on internet connection. Coupled with the spreading freemium business model (which encourages the developers to have the game checked every other second lest it should be hacked and exploited without IAPs), it's not only becoming harder to find an offline mobile game, but some games need server data exchange for literally every menu/screen movement. And many games I've experienced add a perplexing habit of rebooting or simply crashing when they fail to connect. Really, tell me more about mobile gaming's domination. :V

@TheBigK The Wii U had a great start for a Month and a half, with no other big titles in sight. Switch had been great for six months with big hitters since launch, all the way into next year. They don't even compare.

@zet alas, it's not uncommon for industry people to misread the market - and, more tragically, cave in under the silliest trends. Remember how 2D feature animation was all but driven comatose in Hollywood last decade? All because the big players starting with Disney and DreamWorks misinterpreted box office data and thought that audiences are bored of 2D animation and CGI is "the logical evolution". Good thing the same thing didn't happen to portable consoles, although 3DS getting its second wind and racking up PS4 tier numbers likely helped prevent it in its own right.

"...I thought that in the age of the smartphone, no one would carry out a game console"

Correct me if I'm wrong, but hasn't smartphone gaming been a "thing" with non-gamers for years now, and hasn't Pokémon Company produced several million sellers on handhelds during that time regardless? Such a strange and puzzling statement considering where it's coming from...

"Currently, it’s popular among the early adopters..."

His definition of "early adopter" also seems to be off... Doesn't "early adopter" refer to a new technology in general, and not to a certain device? Like for example the first people to embrace VR, who bought an Oculus Rift or HTC Vive in the first few months (or even the DK versions before CV release) regardless of the price, before it becomes a mainstream technology?

Even if using a different approach to the definition of the term, i.e. if referring to an individual new product, it still doesn't feel right: In that case, to my mind, the early adopters would have been eveyrone who pre-ordered the thing even before release, maybe a few that were indecisive and got it a little later. But even then I think we'd be way past the "early adopter" phase.

I don't think that either of his statements hold much validity. Doesn't seem like he really knows what he's talking about, and possibly stuck in the past. Curious.

Then again, the games they produce appear to be stuck in the past, too, with little innovation for the past few iterations (not saying anything about the quality of what's there; the audience seems to be quite content with that), so why expect anything else from the CEO. It's at least some sort of consistency.

Six months after release the problem is not just stock shortage. Its not a mega hit like Wii, not a complete failure like Wii U. Switch need a price drop to reach a wider audience. Also i don't like the fact that games are so more expensive than 3ds (even if you can play them on tv). Better 3d party support wouldn't hurt either.

What have smartphones got to do with gaming? When will these people learn many gamers don't even see smartphones as an option. I've been gaming since the Atari 2600 days and couldn't even begin to count how many games I've played yet I don't have a single one on my phone. Not to mention the Switch is also a home console and I suspect many like myself use its portable mode almost exclusively at home anyway

@zet
Psst...
You can tell to that moronic people "Yeah, but your smartphone game is cheap & suck. Nothing compared by my Switch games."

Well, pretty offensive I guess... but you can fight back their wrong mindset.

He got a point as the limited stock could be a problem. People will not wait forever as I think I was pne of the lucky ones who got the switch a week after I placed a pre order.

Still the mobile phone market would not be a threat so he was wrong their.

I'm an old man, so my phone is for calling, texting, and a bit of YouTube before going to sleep, and that's it. I'll always use a 3DS or something similar for handheld gaming, something with the games and dedication to play it properly, without suddenly leaving me without battery to call/text.

But sure, Ishihara, let's hope the Switch fails by what you'd have loved to see. Then what will you do? Make your game for 3DS again, that's on the way out? Wholly embrace mobile?

And what does he even mean by "wider audience"? The Switch has far more reach then any other home-console as is, what wider audience do you speak of? The mole people?

@TheBigK
To be fair the Wii U didn't do anywhere near as well at the start as the Switch has. 20 weeks after launch (and ignoring the Christmas factor for Wii U, PS4, XBOne):

PS4: 7mill
Switch: 4.9mill
XBOne: 3.9mill
3DS: 3.2mill
Wii U: 2.7mill
Vita: 2.4mill

"one more step to attract a wider audience"

Going by sales figures of the 3DS, there is something your company can do to give it that one more step. Pokemon sells systems.

@Grumblevolcano What is with you and Sony conspiracy theories?

I can't believe we're still having this conversation. The DS was certainly around when mobile phones were booming and yet it still found unmatched sales. People only really use their phones for looking up pictures, the internet, calls and social media.

You'll never find a person who has access to all these things just drop them in favour of a mobile game. Its people who, for example, ride the underground trains and no longer have access to the internet, books, or anything else that they'll pull out a game. And even then, that's just to keep from staring off into space.

Switch is a games console. It can't be compared to a phone.

I feel that currently the Switch's worst opponent is the 3DS, many games which could've been spectacular titles for the Switch instead end up on the 3DS. I still feel I haven't really gotten my money's worth from the Switch.

@SLIGEACH_EIRE I still can't quite seem to fathom why you're so negative when it comes to the Switch. I mean, it is quite obvious you're biased as hell and want the console to fail (and Wii U to do a glorious takeover again despite being a massive failure) or something along those lines, but there's really nothing to worry or be cautious about. The console is a success, and it'll only continue to be so even more as time passes.

Super Mario Odyssey is going to sell many systems, and so will the next big titles too. There's pretty much not a chance in hell that this will be a repeat of the failure known as "Wii U".

No kidding. It's glaringly obvious that TPC has had a thing for mobile, about time they realized it's not the end all be all. Maybe now we can get some quality Pokémon games again.

At this point it's on Nintendo to actually meet demand and get stock up before holiday season rolls around, which is in two months. Otherwise, parents and people with money to burn will be looking at XB1 and PS4, since they're cheaper and always available, instead of having to fight for a hard to find system. That will be part of what determines whether or not the Switch is considered a failure a year from now.

@SLIGEACH_EIRE
Oh...
We have got LEGO WORLDS just now.
We will get FIFA 18, NBA 2K18, Ben 10, LEGO NINJAGO Movie, LEGO Marvel Heroes 2, Portal Knights, Lumo, Rime, etc.
They are 3rd Parties and some Indies !
Who cares if those 3rd parties & indies are NOT AAA level ?!

"I told Nintendo that Switch wouldn’t be a success (...) because (...) no one would carry out a game console"

You're the head of Pokémon - the definitive handheld gaming experience - with 3DS games selling like hot-cakes year after year...yet you thought that a Nintendo-branded portable gaming device may not be the way to go?!?! ... **face palm**

After the Wii U it's understandable.

@Blizzia The Switch isn't a success yet, it's a success so far. Sales could nosedive at any point, though not until after Christmas at least. I still think it's selling to Nintendo fans mainly. And nothing could ever sell as badly as the Wii U. That's Nintendo's lowest point(not including the Virtual Boy).

@NaviAndMii he's the head of Pokemon company but i don't think the pokemon company is really involved in game freak main games (correct me if i'm wrong). There may be some competition between them.

Fair enough. I was skeptical at first, and I'm still skeptical to some extent.

@electrolite77 Forget about third-party? No, they can work very well on the Switch. Just forget about multiplats, but if third-parties "can't work" then Rabbids would be doing absolutely crap.

@Anti-Matter Judging by all the talk about Skyrim and FIFA, it would seem like a lot of people care care about the AAA 3rd parties.

"What do you make of Ishihara's honesty, and his seemingly cautious comments about the future of Switch?"

STRANGE.
Too strange for a person in his position.

@SLIGEACH_EIRE A success so far, you say. Well sure, it is a success so far, but judging by the future lineups and our knowledge of franchises with games in development, it certainly won't have sales nosedive at any point in the next year or two. After that, sure, I could see it going bad if content gets stale. But the console and the whole concept it is based on is already rock solid, and has been embraced by the world. So the only thing that could possibly make the Switch "bomb" was the absence of continuous quality content.

@crimsontadpoles
AAA games are not a guarantee I will like them instantly.
Even some Underdogs games that most people almost never talk about, I have interest about them instead.
I'm the Opposite with Most people here.
I'm the Anomaly, Quirky One.
And that's why games like Miitopia, Tomodachi Life, Cooking Mama are Instant Buy for me.

Why would you trust a guy that refuses to change a game from its first iteration. I mean c'mon!

He is clearly a dumb as PokemonGO was quickly over and done with. He also clearly doesn't pay attention to the community or indeed to trends. Games on phones aren't full games. And the DS still sells, as do those tablets that claim to be gaming ones with hard controls instead of soft touchscreen ones. What a monumental idiot. Please get someone smarter to head up Pokémon and maybe just maybe the series can be saved from weeb furry idiots. Maybe it can get back to being a good game instead of a game stuck in the mid 90s.

With a Killer App at launch, Switch didn't need anything else.

Pokemon Go was a Killer App for Smartphone last year, he should know better that hardware is driven by software. Science and technology is to serve the Arts: scientist and engineers made the hardware for the creative people to produce their Arts. 🎮

@Anti-Matter Okay. I wasn't suggesting that everyone should like AAA 3rd parties or that they're all good games. However, a lot of people do like them, so it can only be a bad thing that the Switch only has minimal 3rd party AAA support.

@Grumblevolcano you mean like the PSP was for the DS? And the PSPGO was to combat the DS lite? And the Vita was 3DS? Tell us how that went. Why are people so dumb at times. To research and develop mobile tech costs more than a normal home console. Sony lost the last gen war to 360, only winning in Japan and Asia (minus China that didn't allow the sale) and have had problems with all their departments. So much so that different departments are now trying to vie for control of SCEE because of their success. Unfortunately the mobile market hurt them. I doubt their shareholders would allow such a fiscal gamble. The company has shrinking profits and has departments that are hemorrhaging money. That is why they have been selling off their brands. Heck, it's why they have shrunk their "cellphone" and mobile phone divisions.

Crimson tadpoles, that didn't harm the Wii. And Destiny and Titanfall were AAA... Whereas Minecraft wasn't... So your argument is dumb. Especially since Ninty has lived and died by its first party IPs.

@electrolite77
Exclusives are the key for Switch. Forget about third-party, especially Western AAA's already on three machines. That's background noise. Once 3DS fades into the background Switch will be the only place to play Mario, Zelda, Pokémon, Mario Kart, Smash Bros, Animal Crossing, Fire Emblem, Metroid, Splatoon etc. It will sell

Precisely. Once 3DS fades out, Switch will be the ONLY option to play these games. And tens of millions of 3DS gamers who love the games they play will have nowhere else to turn for their Pokemon fix, for their Mario fix, their Zelda fix, their Metroid fix, their Kirby fix, their Fire Emblem fix, their Xenoblade fix, their Yoshi fix, not to mention the slew of games not available on 3DS like Splatoon, Arms, Mario Kingdom Battle, Pokken Tournament, Skyrim, actual good sports games (not those crap legacy portable editions on Vita and 3DS)

@JaxonH While still providing those of us that love the Switch for the other part of it's name, our home-console fix.

@Expa0 That shouldn't last long, i think this fall/Xmas season will be the 3DS' last, a few big games and then life-support...

It's a tricky balancing act, abandon the old console too soon (Before the new one has enough games to be an appealing alternative), and you stand to lose customers to competitors (Or the dreaded mobile gaming), but wait too long before taking the leap and the new console suffers or might stall completely.

Nintendo are taking things at just the right pace, With Mario, Zelda and a good supply of indie games either out or coming soon, the Switch should be all set to take over from the 3DS by Christmas '17/Early '18...

@crimsontadpoles
Switch games during March 2017 - March 2018 = So far are the Best for me, Even better than 3DS games during 2016 & 2017. Even with less AAA 3rd games, I like the titles for first year so far.

Guess what ? So far, I have collected 14 Switch game names and Almost No AAA 3rd parties at all (Just some AAA 1st parties).
Here is my list:
1. Zelda Breath of the Wild
2. Super Bomberman R
3. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
4. LEGO CITY UNDERCOVER
5. Puyo Puyo Tetris
6. ARMS
7. Mario + Rabbid Kingdom Battles
8. Pokken Tournament DX
9. 1,2 Switch
10. Super Mario Odyssey
11. Xenoblade Chronicles 2
12. Portal Knights
13. Lost Sphear
14. Overcooked (e-shop)

AAA 3rd party that I really want = Final Fantasy XII The Zodiac Age, The Sims 4.
Just very few titles.

@JaxonH
And don't forget about Bokujou Monogatari, Girlie games from 3DS, Pet Simulation games from 3DS.
Switch will be a HD Girlie Paradise games too.

@R4z0rGr1nd3r You could at least @ me if you're going to say my arguments are dumb. Anyway, the Wii does show that Nintendo can do fine without the AAA games, but that doesn't mean that the Switch is better off without having them.

@zet 20 yrs!? I am pretty sure if flagship phones aren't already more powerful than the switch, they will be soon. The other consoles are many years ahead but we are talking about the switch. "Real" gamers will pay real money for "proper" games. Mobile gamers shy away from 5 dollar games. Change this attitude and mobile gaming will have won.

Cant really blame Ishihara-san for the negative outlook:
1) The Wii U was a complete and utter disaster
2) The 3DS, while successful, is the lowest selling Nintendo handheld
3) Smartphones have eclipsed the dedicated gaming sector, and more specifically, the dedicated portable gaming sector
4) The market for home console/handheld hybrids is largely new completely unproven
5) At $300/¥29980/£330/£280, the Switch is the most expensive Nintendo portable gaming system ever by quite some margin
6) At a cursory glance, the Zelda franchise isn't "that" big (Twilight Princess on Wii is the only Zelda SKU from this century that has sold over 5 million copies thus far) so launching the Switch with Breath of the Wild may have seemed risky

Obviously, the Switch and Zelda have blown past sales expectations, which is great.

It's good to hear some genuine pre-launch thoughts about the system rather than the traditional "everything is fine and awesome" PR that surrounds a platform's early days on the market.

Ishihara is right in a certain sense. Most over 50 and under 12 still haven't heard about Nintendo Switch.

It's popular and sells out, but it doesn't quite have the same immediate impact as the Wii. Which might prove a good thing down the road. Production can scale up slightly better as demand increases, like the case was with the DS. The Wii Was in trouble because it ran short of demand for almost three years, and when supply was finally there, the public had grown tired of the waggle cash grabs.

@Grumblevolcano

The problem is that Mario Odyssey has very limited appeal, all Nintendo games have limited appeal.
Everyone I know plays FIFA or COD. Sports and shooters/war games.
The Switch needs scaled down versions of COD, Battlefield, Mass Effect, Assassins Creed, Overwatch and more of those types of games.
Basically the games that sell the most is what the Switch needs. If they were scaled down but work well functionally on the go, that would be enough to get another 10 million buyers, easily.
The problem is of course that these developers are not going to take a chance, so it's a chicken and egg situation, like with so many products.

Start with COD

@MIDP
May I interrupt ?
Sorry to tell you but your friend's gaming taste are horrible.
Those typical stupid games ?
Ew.... Yuck !
Not even a games for me.
Selling most like that = Real Toxin.
Not a Profit At All.
They must have some Mindset Healing, try to like Different games, more Kid friendly.
Sorry about my harsh comments.

The man is wrong. I hate cell phone gaming, despite wanting to like it very much as I have a cell on me at all times. But the small screen and lack of proper controls kills the experience for me.

However, I find myself gaming on the couch, bed, while BBQing, etc...all the time with the Switch. It's a resoundingly superior gaming experience. And cell phones have throw away Nintendo experiences and don't deliver the real deal.

I occasionally use my iPad to game, but that is it. The Switch is a clearly superior experience for gaming.

Lots of people here dismiss Nintendo's games as having very little appeal, which of course is contrary to the facts of life. Or did Splatoon, Zelda and Mariokart not top the charts each this year? Isn't Zelda the #2 best selling game behind Wildlands this year (in the US)?

Also, The Switch's form factor is a huge advantage no other console has. It's being dismissed here as somehow inconsequential, which totally misses why the Switch is great. It's a combination of a good marriage of hardware and software, that no doubt will become even better over time.

I love GTA, Battlefield and other great third party games, but if you just game on non Nintendo consoles, you don't get to play Nintendo's games. I of course choose to buy all consoles so I don't miss out on anything, but unless Microsoft starts making better exclusives again, I do not see myself buying an Xbone 2 when it comes out, as I can play all the 3rd party games, plus Sony's great exclusives, on a PlayStation.

So unless things change, and especially once the 3DS dies out, the Switch's combination of a superior form factor and Nintendo exclusives will give it a top two finish. The Xbone, without a game refresh exclusive to it, looks in trouble to me as a brand, a few years down the line. And I own an Xbox S and use it all the time, but the future for that brand and it's sales look very bleak. The Switch has the clear upper hand.

@Anti-Matter Why is it so difficult for you to understand that some people have different tastes than you do and there is nothing wrong with that! Stop judging and let people enjoy what they want to enjoy!

@Anti-Matter sorry to say but I think your gaming taste is rotten. Let people enjoy whatever games they like and stop judging them

@redd214
Sorry, mate.
Those differences are really sick for me.
Very unacceptable.
Really overwhelming for me as Underdog type / Magnitude 6 star.
And that's why I tend to give comments like that.

@MariOnline
Sorry, mate.
I disagree.
At least there is One gamer who is Against those nefarious games.
Probably 1 from 1 Billion peoples in the world. Like David (Yes, my real name) against Goliaths.
And gamer like that is very very Rare.

@Anti-Matter wow. Happy gaming

@Anti-Matter sorry to stray too far off topic but that is the exact mentality that's causing a lot of the problems in the world today, not being to accept that different people have different views, opinions, and ways of thinking than you. No offense, but the fact that other people's gaming tastes makes you "sick" is really an issue dude.

In the hours since, looking around the net, this story is absolutely everywhere. It's not disastrous but it's not exactly a good story either for Nintendo.

@electrolite77 On a more positive tone, I look forward to seeing what devs can do with the hardware, and arguably the access to Nintendo's IP. Rabbids was a very pleasant surprise.

@SLIGEACH_EIRE He should've thought this through more carefully. Those words, from one in his position, weigh heavily and they're far from enthusiastic and positive, with the whole "Overestimate potential" thing. I know this message has severely dampened my excitement for Pokemon Switch, because I know this... suit, is involved in the creative process.

"I told Nintendo that Switch wouldn’t be a success before it went on sale because I thought that in the age of the smartphone, no one would carry out a game console." Are these the words of a man, who is the CEO of a such a big company and seriously good selling series across the world? Those are the words of someone who is ready to ditch traditional gaming for a phone in the blink of an eye. I can't stomach someone like that being in the position of CEO.

@UmniKnight
Umm...
If I am a consumer in front of him, I will say "I don't think so! Look at me! I Bring my Nintendo games on the go and I LOVE IT ! Who said game console is dead ?! Smartphone gaming like that is not cool at all ! "

Well... probably like that.

Lol saw the thumbnail and thought Pokemon hired that 20 year old as the new CEO

Wait a minute... So you're telling me... That Ol' Sliggy is actually the Pokémon CEO!?

@SLIGEACH_EIRE
I dont understand how the Pokemon CEO's comments are "bad" for Nintendo. He was being honesty about his initial reaction and acknowledging that his initial reaction did not pan out in reality.

I was a bit skeptical as well. I am still perplexed and don't understand why Nintendo added all the extra retarded sensors to the joycons. Like the one that tells if you're holding your fingers up or not and such as that to me that is just a waste of money. Especially since it's going to work with one game.

that came off a bit harsh LOL, I think the Nintendo switch is going to do great but I am still a little bit perplexed about some of the decisions Nintendo makes.

@electrolite77 "Currently, it’s popular among the early adopters, but there needs to be one more step to attract a wider audience. I see more potential in Switch, but one shouldn’t overestimate its potential." What wider audience? It has games for a ton of people already, and has access to both handheld and home-console market.

What this man needs, is retirement.

Well, a gaming CEO just admitted to have been wrong.
What a time to be alive.

@zet "Have they ever played a smartphone game, do they really think angry birds or horse dating sim can pose a threat to any of the consoles? "

Clearly you haven't played a smart phone game if that's all you think smart phone users have at their disposal.

I'm literally playing Secret of Mana between my Pixel and my Android TV at the moment.

@skywake
Don't forget Nintendo emulators!

@Blizzia
If you don't mind Im going to quote that last part from now on.

@electrolite77 But then why put it so cryptically, and not just allude to those games instead? I'd have understood that!

@HistoricDuel Feel free!

@MIDP

All Nintendo games have very limited appeal?..... Yeah, you might want to check sales figures on games like Mario, Zelda. Pokémon, Splatoon, Kirby and Smash Bros. Yes, those third party series have mass appeal, but so do Nintendo's.

Eh, it's still on track to outsell the Wii U by next year, so that's a milestone by itself (well, more like a footstone or a meterstone)

Ishihara is a smart and realistic man.

Big things will happen when pokemon switch releases.

@electrolite77 Let me guess, Mario Odyssey? Damn man, if I'm to believe all these people that are jumping out of their roof for this game, it's set to be the best game ever or something. I don't see what all the hype is for....

The reason phones will never be a real non casual gaming platform is that it lacks any uniform specs, every year theres new phones with better specs. Same reason there will always be home console and PCs. Also no uniformal control added scheme, phones are limited to touch controls, great for casual games.

@electrolite77 You mean that many copies sold for Odyssey? Seems like a tall-order to me...

@electrolite77 Oh, yes possibly. But aside from Odyssey, and maybe FIFA for the interested, I don't see much that really gets people moving. Xenoblade is still very much niche.

Further to my earlier post, this story is literally everywhere. Those who know me, know I couldn't care less about Pokemon, but this story has spread like wildfire. Whether people realise it or not, it's huge. Is it a good story or a bad story? Overall, I think it's negative.

@Joelols Lack of proper controls is the biggest negative for me with mobile phone games.

@KryptoKrunch
Not really, they appeal to the same people, Nintendo fans.
Almost no one I know even knows what Smash Bros is, and they see Mario as a kids game or nostalgia novelty.
Almost everyone I know have an XBox or a PS, on top of my head I can think of 100 people on my FB friend list.
One person I know has a Switch, the same person has a 3DS and is also one of only two people I know with a 3DS.
You can look at sales numbers of the other platforms and the games for them. It is very clear that they sell more, and that Nintendo is mostly appealing to their core base.
I mean, when I used to play my 3DS, no one knew what it was. Some people asked if it was a GameBoy.
Nintendo needs mass appealing games or make their consoles super cheap to produce(if the Switch isn't already).
If they can produce cheaper products and get their profits that way, then sure, they will be fine selling 20-25M consoles every life cycle, or even better, sell it even cheaper and they could easily sell 50-60M like the 3DS. I don't know their exact business model of course, but it all comes down to how much they expect to make and how, and in that sense, 60M might not be better than 30M.
But one thing is clear, they won't sell 60M units or near that with the Switch unless they get mass appeal games, OR if they make a price drop.
Right now I've seen PS4 bundles for 299 or 249.
Why would anyone buy a Switch for the same price if there are more games that they want to play on the PS4?
Just on FIFA alone Switch are getting problems as many get the PS4 and/or XBox only for that.
The Switch is getting it watered down version(which is a great thing!), but that core audience are still mostly on PS4 and XBox.
In order for people to see that it can be fun on the Switch, the Switch needs to make it expectable that they have those games.
But they can't afford FIFA 18 being bad, and then FIFA 19 not coming out.
Also, NHL is another big one, NFL, NBA etc.
So yeah, they need it.

@electrolite77 (puts on Devil's Advocate hat) Because the Switch may be attractive enough to be people's only console for once, instead of playing second fiddle to PS4/Xbox One. It has always miffed me greatly that Nintendo allows themselves to be shoved to the back-seat and remain there, if you catch my drift.

@electrolite77 Well, let's hope that Sony doesn't do a hybrid then, because that would crush the Switch and drive Nintendo out of the business is my guess. What could they possibly leverage against a stronger, far better supported hybrid?

@electrolite77 So you're kinda like me then? Buy Nintendo's hardware, because you've no choice when it comes to wanting their games?

At any rate, we'll see what Sony does, but it'd get Nintendo to scramble and get something done real quick, though arguably there's nothing they can do against something like that, save for exit stage right. Maybe Sony will get their wish of a monopoly in the Games Industry.

@electrolite77 Oh I'm well aware, and I'd like to see it avoided, but, whenever I take a read around the internet, for every bit of enthusiasm I see, I'm also reminded of the fact that Nintendo is missing out on so much, and in some of these cases, it seems a lost cause to expect anything else. If a successful test, is met with just more tests, then how can one ever please a third-party? Is the Switch doomed to become a Nintendo machine yet again? Is Rabbids a one-off? It seems that way. I'd just like to know where I can have some faith in, but all I get is that I was right to drop any and all faith I had, when Capcom showed off World, and denied XX's localization.

@electrolite77 I'm sadly aware that those days are gone, but Nintendo needs third-parties, they can't keep banking off their own IP, that's just not possible. It'd last them for a couple of years, sure, but it'll become Wii-U again otherwise, and I'm sure Nintendo has had more than enough of that.

I've had major issues with the Switch at first, and how many people perceive it as handheld, the sacrifices it made to what one expects of a home-console, and how the machine itself is, technically, a handheld. I'm still not 100% onboard with this being the home-console success to the Wii-U's failure, but I've no choice if I want Nintendo IP, so might as well go with it. That, and the entire name of Switch has no meaning without a dock, so I'll confide some paltry faith in that.

As for third-party games being sold, what's your take on all this "water-testing" then? A ton of people are annoyed by it, and rightfully so, but what is one to do? Suck it up and buy whatever game to "hope" for more support? Or just ignore it and keep demanding W game over X that is being offered? (Xenoverse 2 and FighterZ) I honestly don't know anymore. I've supported third-party whenever I could and their games enthralled me, and I'll continue doing so to hopefully make a tiny, bit of difference.

@electrolite77 Hm, but I've got a feeling that the Switch is attracting a different crowd beyond those who have that "Nintendo machine = Nintendo games" mentality is what I've been seeing. Personally I've got only 2 Nintendo games and 3 third-party (Yes rabbids, you have Mario, but you're still Ubisoft's brain-child.) and 3 third-party, and I'm hoping there's enough people who care to buy what they like of third-party to change things around. And, perhaps it wasn't just Nintendo who were shook-awake with Wii-U, but the people who usually buy Nintendo's stuff as well.

The 3DS is hard to say, it's still here, and will continue to be here for at least a while. Nintendo will be 80% Switch 20% 3DS is my guess, but there's just too many 3DS people to drop just like that. It'll take a steady build-down over-time.

Can't exactly do more than one's own contribution, now can we?