Topic: Is Nintendo Becoming Lazy?

[Kytim89]

I asked this question because it is becoming increasingly clear (atleast to me) that Nintendo is getting increasingly lazier with their stuff. It seems like everything is half-baked from them any more. They always seem to have their own interests in mind rather than those of their customers. The recent E3, and subsequent Direct videos, have shown me that Nintendo is becoming like on of those people who expects to sit in their living room and get check from the government without actually working (no offense ).

[Adrock]

I haven't gotten that impression from them at all. I'm excited about several upcoming games on 3DS, less so on Wii U but I'm definitely going to get one in the future, probably around March next year if I don't just fold and buy one in November.

[AnGer]

I wouldn't call it "lazy" but it would appear they are somewhat not recognizing what their customers expect from them. They do their work, they do it properly, but they aren't showing off anymore – something that may become a problem.

[Chozo Ghost]

Nintendo discovered an easy way to make money with very minimal effort and they've just stuck with it. I guess that does count as being lazy.

[ejamer]

I don't think they are being lazy.  They seem to be making a lot of changes to adapt to the marketplace, are still putting out some of the best software around, and offer as much innovation as anyone else in the business.


I do find their marketing a bit confusing at times and wonder if I'm part of their target demographic any longer... but that's a whole different discussion.

[NWR_insanolord]

Nintendo is the same Nintendo that Nintendo has always been. The only thing that's changed is the way they market it, which is now more focused on the short term and therefore makes it seem like they're doing less when they're really just showing things for a much shorter timespan.

[Chozo Ghost]

Since Iwata took over, Nintendo has been increasingly becoming more Apple-like. They are not the same company they used to be.

[NWR_insanolord]

Since Iwata took over, Nintendo has been increasingly becoming more Apple-like. They are not the same company they used to be.

Yes they are. The marketing has changed substantially, but Nintendo at its core is more or less the same as it's always been.

[Evan_B]

They've had some questionable marketing choices, but they really do seem to be trying. I mean, the business aspect may be a little lazy- especially on Nintendo of America's behalf- but the quality of their software and hardware has been fantastic.

So no, I wouldn't say that.

[nickmitch]

The Nintendo I knew used to make fun, innovative Mario games, 2D side scrolling Donkey Kong games, Kirby titles that had a unique twist to them, the best handheld systems and systems that had controllers that seemed a little crazy at first but turned out to be genius.

Now, look at them.

[Oblivion]

Hm...

[ShyGuy]

When was the last culture-changing-killer-app game from Nintendo? Wii Fit? that was in 2008? I don't think the 3DS has had that killer app yet. DS has Brain Training and Nintendogs.

[ThePerm]

I was a Nintendo fan before n64 came out, but I wasn't a die-hard Nintendo fan until then. What made me obsessed with Nintendo was Mario 64 and Zelda Ocarina of Time. OF course rare games on 64 were a huge draw..i loved: Goldeneye, Banjo Kazooie, Diddy Kong Racing, and Conker's Bad Fur Day. With Gamecube they kept me involved with their own games especially Metroid and big exclusives series' like Resident Evil. There was always a line up of killer apps to keep me plugged in. The last wii generation there were some good games from Nintendo, but I felt like I was missing out in ways like never before because the competition was really bringing it.

At this moment, as cool as Wii U is, it doesn't seem like Nintendo is really bringing it. Even Pikmin 3 which i'm still excited about seems unusual. The one game I thought could benefit a bunch from the new controller is apparently super traditional, so its like "Que?"

[Evan_B]

I feel that, although Nintendoland won't be a killer-app, it will definitely show off the possibilities of the gamepad very well.

The thing with the Wii U is that it has so many different factors going into it, it seems that Nintendo is having a difficult time really covering them all- and they say they still have MORE to reveal. It's kind of difficult, because they've jammed so much into this system- online, tablet streaming, integrated gaming, asymmetrical gaming, NFC, etc and they probably don't have a lot of games that feature uses for this stuff, themselves.

I see the launch utilizing a lot of its streaming/motion tech, but probably by next year Nintendo will be churning out more unique ideas for the gamepad.

[marty]

I don't know if nintendo has become lazy but I can't think of any game from them that really seemed to be ambitious and well crafted in the last few years, Smash Bros Brawl i guess comes close with the exception that the sub-space emissary section was a bore and not ambitious or well-crafted at all.

[bustin98]

They aren't becoming lazy. They've always been lazy. That doesn't mean they don't produce some fun games. It just means they put in a minimal amount of effort to make their products. They certainly can't be accused of going above and beyond expectations with anything. For example, the new 3DS XL.

[house3136]

 For me, being lazy would equate to: no GamePad; just throw together expensive CPU/GPU, charge $600 most likely at a loss; make sure controllers, peripherals, and games are not backwards compatible; block used games. Don’t bother supporting your system with creative games like Galaxy, or demonstrate the initial vision of your hardware (motion control) with games like Wii Sports or Skyward Sword. Bring up to 3-4 versions of your biggest franchise to one console without significant changes or reasoning other than cash.
 
The real motive seems to be: Pick one of the following games that hasn’t been announced yet (Metroid, Zelda, 3D Mario, Starfox, SSB, F-zero, anything Retro) and come up with borderline insane reasoning why it hasn’t been shown 6 months before the console launches. Take Nintendo Direct for instance, having Sakurai announce the partnership with Namco, is most likely because of so much outcry from E3. Even though Sakurai has stated multiple times “we’ve just started the project” it’s not good enough. So Nintendo made them personally address the fans with a letter restating this. “Please be patient.” – Sakurai. They were probably planning on doing this anyway, and it worked out well, now the fans know.
 
And I’m convinced anyone upset about no Zelda didn’t even touch Skyward Sword, but saw the HD tech demo and jumps to “I want that game NOW!” even though Aonuma and Miyamoto have reiterated it was just a demo and not to even expect the final version to look like that at all. Just imagine all the butthurt that would happen if Nintendo revealed another cel-shaded Wind Waker-esq game. “Nintendo, you just lost a huge “fan”.”
 
Or how about: Why have third parties been so tight-lipped about Wii U? Take Call of Duty for instance. Maybe they’re waiting to showcase that game to introduce their online strategy in more detail with a tangible source that clearly illustrates to millions of gamers the new system is competent online and works this way in conjunction with leaderboards and MiiVerse? And maybe it’s just not ready yet?
 
None of these thoughts or questions are aimed at anyone here, but just in general. I’ve been reading some NeoGAF lately, and have just come to the conclusion people are going to be upset no matter what Nintendo does. People will scream all day long about Nintendo but have no intentions of buying Wii U or its games. It’s as if people are trying to reason and convince themselves why they are against a company using any desperate excuse they can muster. “2D Mario isn’t a real Mario game.” I’m sure Nintendo could have revealed their next big 3D Mario, but they already had 3 Mario games at the conference, and because NSMBU was the finished game, that is the one that got the spotlight this year. Nintendo will undoubtedly have more Nintendo Direct presentations later this year for 3^rd-party support, and there are still months to lay out and show those games, and present an advertising campaign for the public still unaware of Wii U’s existence. Can Nintendo try harder? Yes. Should we all hate Nintendo now because of ambiguity toward the future? No.  Let’s all relax, pop in a Wii game and remind ourselves why we’re interested in this new system in the first place. Hell, I’ve got the N64 hooked up. Where’s Goldeneye…

[Evan_B]

Yeah, NeoGAF is a wretch hive of scum and angry people.

[house3136]

 Yeah, I think I may have accidentally moved the bitching forum over here, whoops. I will say one game that stood out to my was Assassins Creed III, even though this is the fifth, arguably sixth game in the franchise, it’s bringing so many new qualities that it’s exempt from my statement about multiple games on one console that make a series stale; and I’m looking forward to playing it on Wii U.  However,  if NoA doesn’t offer a neutral color option for 3DS XL by this holiday, I will say that is lazy; there is no excuse considering all other regions are getting a neutral color, when NA account for many 3DS sales. I can’t justify another $200 unless I can get white; which looks beautiful. Also, I realized how much I suck at NSMBWii because I haven’t played it since I beat it two years ago. I have to make sure my body is ready for this holiday.

[oohhboy]

Yes and No. they have been lazy when they remade Starfox 64 and Ocarina of time. Sure it sold, but no one asked for them and with a little extra effort they could have just made new games. The upcoming Mario platformers are lazy when they have shown they can still make compelling 3D Mario games.

Their biggest problem right now they are far too concerned with PR and control of the message rather than "Here are games, enjoy". The PR is force feed and saccharin. E3 beside Shiggy was a parade of suits that had no place on a stage. If you don't have charisma, have passion, something suits don't have. Steve Jobs wasn't a suit. He had real passion for what he was doing and that's why his brand of Apple style PR works, even if you disagree with him, you can't deny that aspect. It's also the reason the Shiggy portion of E3, Nintendo direct and Iwata asks works. Sure it's plan and scripted, but they are real people who are right in the middle who can offer real answers.

People hate BS and E3 was full of it. Stage after stage of people who didn't belong trying to be hip and cool. It was fucking embarrassing. It looked like everyone was using some standardized PR playbook only to get blown up like the FBI agents in Die Hard. Instead of an entertaining flaming ball of fire, they just fell over dead and forgot to leave a corpse.

At their very core Nintendo isn't being lazy. The games are still great, but the facade doesn't work and they have made some strange decision like not integrating CCP on the XL since "portability" is going out the window anyway.

House 3136, what is wrong with your posts? It changes font and size with every paragraph. Plus they are constructed like a copy and paste Frankenstein from multiple authors.

[ThePerm]

Sakurai was mentioned LAST year to be working on it, so it would be bullshit to say "he just started on it"

also, really for any sequel there is no such thing as "Just started on it", one of the biggest things about Smash Bros is its since Melee been one of the best looking series on a Nintendo console, all they really need to do with this one is make it hd, and maybe make the camera closer or making it more like Power Stone. Actually it would be kinda awesome of you had a 3d and 2d view on the gamepads

[vinniebrock]

Lazy isn't the right word. IMO they might be rushing a lot of their stuff lately. 'Careless' might be closer, but certainly not to that extreme. I agree that they do things how they want, and that was evident with the E3 conference (pretty much from the Revolution announcement - present), but i don't feel like they've left us behind or anything. True, they are trying hard to bring that casual audience over to the Wii U. But i really don't get it when people accuse them of being lazy.

[oohhboy]

Schizophrenic might be a better word.

NOA is a company of suits that is disconnected from it's own market. NOJ is still a videogames company with Japanese sensibilities NOA can't hope to understand. While NOE is subservient to NOJ, they have shown independence where it matters. It helps they don't have to put on a big show like E3, but they understand their role implicitly. Get games, make them available to be brought. "Selling" is an afterthought to the concept of availability for NOE. NOA is an oversized marketing department that expects games to be handed to them.

Because NOA resides in the "biggest" market, therefore gets the face time even if it doesn't represent Nintendo as a whole properly. This relationship is what is producing the all the disfunction we have seen.

Solution? Firing Reggie would be a start. Finding another Perrin Kaplan would be amazing. Non-specific action figure is an improvement at this point for NOA.

[Chozo Ghost]

They could also dig Howard Lincoln out of retirement. He was the man who lead NoA to greatness in the 80s and 90s.

[Evan_B]

Yeah, I dunno... Reggie just doesn't have his heart in the right place. It seems all he's ever excited about are first and third party titles that are really recognizable, and shoving those down people's throats. The end of the Wii was a sad, sad thing, and it could have been the opportunity to bless the console with some games that we never had the chance to see.