Ive been Playing New Mario Part 2 and the game is great! The only gripe I have with it is the music is all rehashed with a couple more wahs wahs here and there. But from a pure platforming perspective its another Nintendo classic! You guys just go all over analtical about Nintendo as a company. its a company run by men who were young geniuses in the 80s and grew up.. now they are old and running their company in their old ways wait 10 years for the young blood to take over….
We said that ten years ago.
Let me ask you this: how was Sony regarded right before the PS3 launched? Sony was mocked online of course. The PSP not performing as people thought certainly gave people pause. But Sony was still in a good light because you are only as good as your last console. The PS2 was still king.
When the Eighth Generation replaces the Seventh, Nintendo’s reputation will radically change especially once it gets outsold by a competitor.
I’ve been writing about Nintendo for seven years. When I said the Wii was going to be huge, very few people believed it. Why? The Gamecube crystallized the thoughts concerning Nintendo. And analysts liked to point out that all Nintendo home consoles showed periodic decline. The idea of the Wii outselling the Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3 was not even permitted on most gaming forums. The most common view was that Nintendo was going to stop making hardware and go third party.
Now, I am told that I am cranky. I am told that I am ‘trolling Nintendo’. Why? I think Nintendo is in a very confused situation at the moment, smarting over the 3DS situation, and very concerned about the Wii U. The transition time is the hardest. Six years ago, I was called a Nintendo viral marketer. Today, I am called a Nintendo troll. I haven’t changed in that time. However, perceptions have.
The perceptions will realign themselves as they lag behind the market.
About the waiting, well, I’m not getting any younger. The older you get, the less patient you getbecause you literally have less time in your life. Remember, I spent 18 years waiting for a follow-up to Super Mario World.
The problem with the ‘young blood’ theory is that it was said a decade ago. The reason why you’re not seeing ‘young blood’ taking over is because of mismanagement back in the 16-bit generation and N64 Era. Nintendo did not hire the best people. Instead, they hired people who were ideologically of the same mindset. Why was Aonuma hired and allowed to take over the Zelda series? It was because he made toy dolls in college. That’s it. He wasn’t responsible for making best selling games. Miyamoto saw a similar ideological mindset in Aonuma and hired him based on that.
Many of the people hired inside Nintendo a decade or two ago were ideologically chosen to think like the ‘old blood’. In other words, they were largely hired because they, too, believed that ‘now is the time for 3d’. They believed in the ‘3d Manifest Destiny’.
One of the principles of disruption (business management) is to have devil’s advocates inside the company. It’s clear there are little to no devil’s advocates inside Nintendo. Why was the ‘Manifest 3d Destiny’ never challenged? Why was 3d Mario, replacing 2d Mario, never challenged? Why was the Aonuma direction of Zelda, as a PC adventure game with ‘puzzles’ and NPCs who talk too much, not challenged? Why was Sakamoto’s ‘the baby, the baby, the baby’ take on Metroid not challenged?
I don’t see myself as being ‘cranky’. To the contrary, I see the Nintendo developers as the ones being cranky. I guarantee you that Miyamoto probably threw tantrums that Mario in 3d Land failed to achieve what 2d Mario does (after nearly half a dozen 3d Mario attempts). How did Sakamoto react when reactions resulted from his Other M? I bet he was cranky.
The question, emailer, you should ask is why is Nintendo so cranky? Why is Miyamoto so cranky? Why does he keep, insanely, trying to convert 2d Mario fans to 3d Mario? Why do they keep insisting Zelda is a game revolving around puzzles and pretend sword combat doesn’t exist? Why are they now saying Metroid is about the character of Samus Aran and her ‘feelings’ and not about exploration, alone-ness, and getting stronger by gearing up your suit?
Why is Nintendo so bitter?
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