This generation of consoles has been a strange one for Nintendo so far, when the Wii U launched in late 2012 there was, for the first time in a long while, confusion regarding what a particular videogame console actually is.
When the Wii was announced, the video package and conference that Nintendo put together did wonders for the sales of the console, millions of people bought it purely due to the fact that it was a Nintendo console, a successor to their Gamecube, N64 or Snes, or whatever console they last remember playing Mario on. Millions of people bought it because of the simplicity of it, swing the remote like a tennis racket to hit the ball back, retirement villages alone must have accounted for a couple of hundred thousand sales due to the pack-in of Wii Sports.
Millions of people, however, like myself, bought it purely for the inevitable games that Nintendo themselves would put out for it, your Zelda’s, your Mario’s, Donkey Kongs, Metroids etc.
This early interest gave Nintendo a huge boost in sales, funds and public mindshare, but it wasn’t enough for the long-term life of the console. The significantly lower spec of the console prevented games from looking as pretty or being as complex as their 360/PS3/PC counterparts. The early Wii Sports adopters were happy with just that one game, maybe also Wii Fit but the point was that after many years of capturing our childhood hearts with whimsy and charm, Nintendo was starting to stagnate. Their games were fantastic, but they were few and far between.
Fast forward to the launch of the Wii U and Nintendo’s woes were not over. The console itself looked kind of like the Wii we already own, the Gamepad just seemed like a tablet add-on for the old machine, even Jimmy Fallon, a guy who seems pretty switched on and into games, mistakenly described it on his worldwide viewed show as an add-on for the existing Wii.
Sales were low, public opinion was scattered, third parties weren’t bringing their games to the system and all seemed lost for the legends of my childhood.
E3 2014: Nintendo formally show Bayonetta 2, Hyrule Warrriors, Kirby and the Rainbow Curse, The Legend of Zelda, Mario Maker, Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker, Code Name S.T.E.A.M, Mario Party 10, Mario vs Donkey Kong, Shin Megami Tensei X Fire Emblem, Splatoon, Amiibo, Star Fox, Super Smash Bro’s, Xenoblade Chronicles X and Yoshi’s Wooly World, plus a few third party exclusives.
The next year should be pretty good for Nintendo.They did it, or at least seemingly so. On the far side of E3 2014 and Nintendo seem to have finally got it, with what I would describe as a fantastic showing where they showed a plethora of titles that excite the 5 year old inside my heart and the 27 year old writing this in equal measure. The big ship that is Ninty appears to be finally turning around and joining the rest of the fleet whilst still keeping that charm that the Kyoto based games giant has had since the 80’s.
With sales as low as they were and little hope for much software on the horizon, I was worried, I assumed that Satoru Iwata would have been voted out of his position at the recent meeting of shareholders, he was not, E3 must have impressed and seen an upward turn for growth, especially with the news that Mario Kart 8 has sold over 2 million copies. He’ll remain at the helm for at least for another year and my worries for Nintendo have subsided, at least for now.
Iwata, Miyamoto & Co. appear to have set the table for a great gaming feast, and I for one can’t wait to dig in.
