I agree that Nintendo becoming a 3rd party wasn't going to happen because Nintendo has gone on record saying they will CEASE TO EXIST before they go 3rd party, and from a Japanese company, that actually means something.
However, it's the part where he demanded that people not be blind to Nintendo's failings, which were real, like it or not, which I'm addressing.
On the subject of the Wii and giving Nintendo credit, of COURSE they deserve credit, but you have to realize that much of their success with it is thanks to the shift in media opinion that Nintendo is a maker of children's entertainment to Nintendo being an innovator.
However, that didn't happen JUST because it's true. We all knew Nintendo made excellent games on the Gamecube yet that didn't change the general media opinion of it, no. It was the absence of Sony's strong-arm media tactics which allowed Nintendo to flourish to the point where it did.
Many, and I mean MANY, people get their opinions and purchasing decisions from the media. Normally, anything from the gaming world would be "Playstation", period. No exceptions. But when Sony dropped the stinkbomb that was their E3 conference, the cracks had already begun forming in their foundation, mainly in the sheer number of developers who must have dropped their jaws in horror at the price of the unit.
For the longest time, it was fashionable to bash Nintendo and those who patronized them. This angst typically came from the Sony camp, as nothing gives those in first their jollies like ragging on those in last. With that camp basically gone, Nintendo profited. I'm sure there were easily 1,000,000+ people who were planning to buy a PS3 (especially if they had a PS1 and PS2 before it) but opted to give the Wii a try instead simply because of the pricetag alone. Had the PS3 been $300-400, it would have been another story.
All Sony had to do to stay in 1st was keep doing what they had been doing previously. Before the price was revealed, most people were still intent on getting a PS3 because they expected the same iconic brands to go along with it. Now, they're hemorrhaging exclusives all over and don't think for a moment that the press hasn't caught onto this.
Even in the gaming press, they like to feel like they're in the "winning" camp, and that has been synonymous with being a Sony fan for the past two generations. With that changing to Nintendo's favor, Nintendo benefits.
Been to multi-system boards lately? They're CRAWLING with Wii owners. I don't need to crack open an entire research project on the study of human behavior in order to remind everyone here that people make decisions with the grain, not against it. If a friend has a Wii and all of your mutual friends like it, it's much, MUCH easier to buy one, even if you don't like any of the games for it, than it is to buy a PS3. Peer pressure and price together are a VERY potent combination. Same goes for message boards. It's impossible to be a PS3 fan, and it's getting harder to be a 360 fan every day.
All this together worked in Nintendo's favor. Yes, Nintendo deserves plenty of credit, but let's not be having any illusions about the fact that the former market leader basically bowing out of first place also deserves credit for aiding the Wii along. Hindsight is 20/20 so there's no point in dragging Art through the mud because he didn't see Sony's megaflop of a conference and the Nintendo Wii success coming (especially since the Wii didn't start to shine until E3), and do I need to drag out the fact that everyone thought you could walk into Wal-Mart and pick one up at noon the next day?
And to address one final concern, Artimus was addressing the same Nintendo leg-humping which likewise irks the hell out of me. Ever been to the official Nintendo forums? I consider myself a devoted Nintendo fan and I can't even hope to relate to those people. Don't bring that sh*t here, thanks.
Topic: Can Artmimus Explain This Post? (Read 6561 times)
