Support NeoGAF

[Mpl90]

Being on the matter: this is the approach many of us thought Nintendo would have had (at least at the beginning). Marketing apps, little gaming experiences...a little like Sony's doing right now. I think this is not a bad approach, especially if they do things right.

Still, it's obviously not the only thing Nintendo should do. And, given Iwata's words last week, this seems like just a part of what's going to happen in the future, not the overall picture (that comment about Premium experiences, especially comparing it to what Iwata was saying back in 2010/2011). Hopefully, we'll know something about that as well on Thursday.

 

[Steel]

The seal shall be broken.

I'd like to play a game of chess. If I win, then Nintendo keeps going in the dedicated handheld department.

But in seriousness, what're the chances that nintendo starts seeing that their phone minigames outsell(Well, they are free) their Wii U games and eventually goes mobile?

 

[Insaniac]

eh, i don't see a problem with it. Its probably the next best idea instead of actually going full on mobile.

 

[Osiris]

So their approach to mobile is...Glorified trailers?

Glorified trailers, on a platform where advertising is considered utterly anathema and despised.

They have obviously done zero research into the mobile market at all if they think this will increase the number of customers on their platforms.

Utterly baffled how this can be thought of by them as a good thing, this has to be a feint designed to shut down the investor sentiment for mobile, nothing else makes sense, they are not that clueless, surely?

 

[Sammy Samusu]

Nintendo logic.

Already some people defending the aproach.

You expect us to support the idea of a full Mobile approach? :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol

 

[BoboBrazil]

How does this make any sense....

Iwata needs to fucking go now. It's long overdue.

 

[Riki]

So they'll do... Exactly what Reggie and Iwata said they would.
Absolutely shocking.

 

[BlitzEngineer]

I never understand why Nintendo, their audience, or even some people here over complicate what it would take for them to be successful.

You don't need a fucking mobile app, Nintendo. You need fucking games. GAMES? You know? The thing I would ostensibly buy your console for?

Wtf is a mobile app going to do for you? Your going to get my sister who spends all her time playing words with friends to pay attention to your under powered console which has no fucking games?

People talk about how the branding is bad for the WiiU, how the online infrastructure is bad, how the account system is stone-age, yada yada yada.

All these things are true but they are all completely secondary to the fact that the console has so few good games on it it's laughable. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out why the console is failing. I'm lucky enough to have disposable income such that I frankly buy way more gaming related products than I can use, but even I can't justify buying a WiiU for just Mario and W101.

I have no idea how you take the mythic, all encompassing, iconic stable of Nintendo IPs and just just do fuck all with it. Just give up and resign yourself to the hellhole of mobile marketplaces instead of catering to an audience which has stayed with you since the beginning. Japanese publishers, man.

 

[maquiladora]

I think people were expecting too much from Nintendo's initial footsteps into the mobile world. A company known for not always adapting to change very quickly. Give them time. This will start with advertising and demos but clearly this opens the door to a gradual introduction to some complete gaming experiences migrating to mobile platforms in the future. It's just the start.

 

[liger05]

So basically mobile marketing. Expected, why are so many people surprised by this?

Cos people seem to still have this crazy idea that Nintendo are going to join the smartphone party.

I'm not surprised but I dont really think mobile marketing will do much to drive Nintendo hardware/software sales.

 

[nckillthegrimace]

Because they wanted Nintendo games on iOS.

ie they don't actually care about playing Nintendo games.

 

[Relaxed Muscle]

To be more concrete, The Nikkei writes that Nintendo wants to use smartphones to expand its potential user base by spreading information about new game releases, i.e. by using video to introduce future titles. (This will probably happen through some kind of official Nintendo app.)

In addition, Nintendo is said to be planning to put so-called “mini games” on smartphones, playable demos of console games – content that can only be purchased in full on Nintendo hardware. The reasoning here is to give smartphone-only players a taste of the experience without making the actual game available on non-Nintendo devices and convert these users into Nintendo customers.

This is the worst approaching to mobile gaming and still not acknowledges the probelms of their core business. I told ya, Iwata didn't learn anything.

 

[Gannd]

A good idea is to develop demos on smartphones where it ends saying play the full game on nintendo 3ds or whichever. This way they create a free exposure on smartphones and customers realise these demos are worth getting a dedicated handheld. All they need is exposure and that is perfect. Dont create a full game, rather a demo of how it would play

Why do I need to buy a 3DS or Wii U for this game when I just played it on my iPhone, for free, and I can play all of these other games for free.

Guess what GAF: This problem is going to hit Sony and Microsoft, too. The millions of casuals that purchased the PS3 and Xbox 360 aren't going to be purchasing the new platforms. This is a traditional games industry problem much more than a Nintendo problem. If the industry doesn't change the industry is doomed. The AAA hit or kill your company is bad for the industry. The pricing structures is bad for the industry. The barrier to entry is bad for the industry. The cost of entry is bad for the industry. I cannot wait for this to be more apparent to the general GAF poster and we get to see a lot of "core" gamers reap what you sow when it comes to hating on or giving advice to Nintendo while having the comfortable blanket of "THE PS4 is awesome!" the market is about to shrink.

 

[7DollarHagane]

Glorified trailers, on a platform where advertising is considered utterly anathema and despised.

They have obviously done zero research into the mobile market at all if they think this will increase the number of customers on their platforms.

Utterly baffled how this can be thought of by them as a good thing, this has to be a feint designed to shut down the investor sentiment for mobile, nothing else makes sense, they are not that clueless, surely?

Why then do many retail stores, TV shows, fashion brands, and every other company have a mobile app that drives people back to their core business?

Target or Walgreens or CBS's mobile app are all advertisements. The majority of the apps that exist on smart phones are advertisements for something.

 

[TheGreatMightyPoo]

Wtf is a mobile app going to do for you? Your going to get my sister who spends all her time playing words with friends to pay attention to your under powered console which has no fucking games?

Why would your sister know/care if it's underpowered???

 

[fallagin]

How are they going to put demos on ios? Are they actually going to port a game engine to ios just for a demo?

 

[Cbajd5]

Emergency Direct

Nah, it's actually about time for a direct based on "number of days between Directs" measurements.

 

[Seiru]

An app for Nintendo trailers?

This is their answer to turn the Wii U around?

 

[Morfeo]

So let me get this straight. Sony gets downgraded, MS buy Gears, Source 2 leaks AND Nintendo announce its mobile strategy? All in one day? Its definitely an interesting business, thats for sure!

 

[Gannd]

This is the worst approaching to mobile gaming and still not acknowledges the probelms of their core business. I told ya, Iwata didn't learn anything.

Anybody who thinks that if Nintendo switched to releasing their games on mobile platforms is going to do anything to drive consumers to their platforms is nuts. That is going to kill their platforms. If they start releasing games on their competitors platforms they are done as a platform holder. Done.

 

[XenodudeX]

This seems like something they could have done a long time ago. I won't have a problem with this as long as it isn't the only thing they're doing.

 

[Guevara]

The more I think about this idea, the worse I think it is. I actually think it's worse than doing nothing.

 

[kadotsu]

Might as well put every WiiU game on XBOX/PS now, too.

 

[Rubixcuba]

Nintendo logic.

Already some people defending the aproach.

Its a sound approach, advertise to mobile and drive people to full purchase of nintendo software/hardware.

 

[Nirolak]

And which investors would these be? The institutions? controlled persons? I hear a lot about "this won't work with investors!" "the investors won't be happy!" Which investors? The company is mainly held by institutions and controlled persons. Small investors don't hold enough to do anything and institutions tend not to be activists. I just want to know what investors aren't going to be happy.

The largest institutions that have been downgrading their stock and saying that their best comeback route could be mobile.

Also the ones who have been steadily lowering their approval rating of Iwata: http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=609746

 

[Onesimos]

Sounds interesting to hear if true. Mobile can be useful for marketing purposes.

 

[RM8]

Cos people seem to still have this crazy idea that Nintendo are going to join the smartphone party.

I'm not surprised but I dont really think mobile marketing will do much to drive Nintendo hardware/software sales.

I don't think mobile marketing is going to help, but it was super obvious that this was going to be their approach. I love how people who want a Mario runner can't see the drawbacks of effectively going third party. Being in a tough situation doesn't mean literally any other alternative is better.

 

[Father_Brain]

How are they going to put demos on ios? Are they actually going to port a game engine to ios just for a demo?

I suspect that that part is either mistranslated or misinterpreted on Nikkei's end.

 

[kick51]

I don't know how it'll affect them in the long run, but they might end up printing more money than ever before if they do this right.

 

[Buddha Beam]

Demos on mobile devices? I do have to wonder how that would work if true. You know, with the whole lack of physical buttons might not help portray the actual game well.

Probably just video gameplay demos, like you'd find on the display Wii U in any given store.

 

[Osiris]

I honestly can't wait for the reviews on Google Play, they may give Samsung a run for it's money on most entertainment provided for free ever, but just not the manner expected

What is their reaction going to be when they find out Google Play reviews cannot be moderated?

Why then do many retail stores, TV shows, fashion brands, and every other company have a mobile app that drives people back to their core business?

Target or Walgreens or CBS's mobile app are all advertisements. The majority of the apps that exist on smart phones are advertisements for something.

Because they generally have a core functionality that is useful, and are not apps targeted at the 16-30 mobile gamer.

 

[TheBaronOfNA]

You expect us to support the idea of a full Mobile approach? :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol

I expected an actual approach. Not some half assed idea to try to shut up the investors.

 

[hongcha]

If they just plan to make an app where they can show Direct videos and the like along with some "demos" and "minigames" that point you toward 3DS software, this will do little to help their financial problems. People aren't going to go "I love this little Kirby demo. I am going to shell out $200+ for a 3DS and Kirby!". Instead, they'll say to themselves "why should I have to pay $200+ to play a full Kirby game? I'll just wait for Nintendo to release the full game on my ipad."

It's like having an appetizer at a restaurant, enjoying it very much and asking for an entree from the same chef only to be told "you have to go to a different, more expensive restaurant across town if you want their entrees."

 

[Effect]

So basically mobile marketing. Expected, why are so many people surprised by this?

No one really should be. Anyone that used common sense should have known very well they would not be releasing games from established IP on mobile platforms. A case could be made for brand new IP specifically made for mobile that also shows up in the Wii U and 3DS eShops. However that isn't what some people wanted. They wanted and somehow expected that a full Mario platformer might be released for mobile. That's craziness of a high degree.

Edit:

People. The problem is getting Nintendo hardware to sell. You don't address the many issues that are causing problems on that front by putting content on another piece of hardware. That makes no sense people.

 

[7DollarHagane]

Why do I need to buy a 3DS or Wii U for this game when I just played it on my iPhone, for free, and I can play all of these other games for free.

Guess what GAF: This problem is going to hit Sony and Microsoft, too. The millions of casuals that purchased the PS3 and Xbox 360 aren't going to be purchasing the new platforms. This is a traditional games industry problem much more than a Nintendo problem. If the industry doesn't change the industry is doomed. The AAA hit or kill your company is bad for the industry. The pricing structures is bad for the industry. The barrier to entry is bad for the industry. The cost of entry is bad for the industry. I cannot wait for this to be more apparent to the general GAF poster and we get to see a lot of "core" gamers reap what you sow when it comes to hating on or giving advice to Nintendo while having the comfortable blanket of "THE PS4 is awesome!" the market is about to shrink.

Except those consoles are selling at a record pace and PC is also a more lively and active platform than it has been in years.

Smartphones aren't changing anything. The market that makes so much money on there never bought an Xbox, or GameCube, or a ps2. Maybe they did for their kids or their significant other but they weren't playing super Mario 64 in 1996, or halo in 2002.

 

[Mpl90]

Why then do many retail stores, TV shows, fashion brands, and every other company have a mobile app that drives people back to their core business?

Target or Walgreens or CBS's mobile app are all advertisements. The majority of the apps that exist on smart phones are advertisements for something.

...Yeah, there are already so many advertising apps on iOS / Android. I seriously don't understand why people don't accept such an approach from Nintendo.

protip: What I'm saying is related to only their mobile approach, NOT what they should do overall, which (hopefully) doesn't result in just this kind of mobile approach, but in changes in games pricing as well, just to say an example.

 

[Shard]

Its a sound approach, advertise to mobile and drive people to full purchase of nintendo software/hardware.

It helps if you understand that Nintendo will be dragged into the mobile space kicking a screaming and will not break the game seal unless true desperation or radical reinvention transpires.

 

[Tobor]

It's good that they're starting small with demos.

Nintendo handheld developers will need practice working on devices with a proper resolution, capacitive screens, and a decent amount of RAM.

 

[JetBlackPanda]

Can I train my Pokemon on my iphone? or buy goods from Nook while taking a shit?

if so..

 

[Dark Octave]

 

[Somnid]

I get the sense that this involves cloud streaming which I think would be the most appropriate use of cloud streaming.

 

[ZombiePlatypus]

Along the lines of what many suspected. Using smartphones for advertising of various games that are only available on Nintendo owned hardware. Redirecting people to the eShops and the Wii U and 3DS themselves. Not actual games being released for purchase. Which would be a completely self-destructive and suicidal move for their hardware business. The rumored mini-games might very well just be interactive advertisements as well.

Yeah, that'd make sense, and be pretty smart as it'd satiate cellphone consumers' expectations of immediately getting to play something, while nudging them to gaming-hardware. People are already used to games asking them to pay for content anyway since the advent of F2P/P2W/Freemium. It's just that with this, you'd pay once for a full, competent package.

Because they wanted Nintendo games on iOS.

So it all stems from port-begging.

 

[Stumpokapow]

The mobile business isn't about valuable ip. It's about volume and making the buck and riding the hype and hitting the next fad.

What you're describing seems to better fit the Facebook approach to gaming, which is currently out of favour. Most of the top tier mobile hits these days have been franchised, sequelized, and built into merchandise tentpoles. Look at Fruit Ninja, Jetpack Joyride, Temple Run, Cut the Rope, Angry Birds. Or those that haven't have been around for a while, not rushing to the next fad. Look at the longevity of Clash of Clans, or Puzzle & Dragons or Candy Crush Saga.

I think probably the last flavour of the week mobile success was probably Draw Something, which incidentally was bought by Zynga, the pioneer of the Facebook model. Zynga is currently nursing their wounds because their strategy has not worked very well at all in the mobile world. I think at this juncture they're moving towards gambling games as their primary product.

I get the sense that this involves cloud streaming which I think would be the most appropriate use of cloud streaming.

Has there been any indication that Nintendo has staffed up to be able to support the infrastructure for cloud streaming? Cloud streaming--really any kind of global video delivery, but especially cloud streaming which requires low latency to the end consumer--requires significant, enormous datacentre investments all over the world. That's pretty well outside Nintendo's core competency, I would be surprised if they managed to build up that kind of infrastructure without anyone getting a whiff of it.

 

[StoppedInTracks]

If they do demos and mini-games... full titles will be coming not much longer after that.

2015 - Year of Luigi (Monbile Edition)

 

[MilkyOctave]

Imagine the shittiest app you can that basically only delivers choppy videos of Nintendo Directs and trailers for upcoming games. That's what I expect.

That's the image I had in my mind after reading the news. Can't wait to see how they're going to handle it in practice if they're going for the mobile market. Having playable "one level" demos on a different hardware sounds kind of weird to me. But then again there was something like that for Ace Attorney series where they had demos made in flash for a PC when the actual game was released on the DS. Maybe it makes sense if a person tries multiple "one level demos" of games and sees that maybe he/she should invest in a Nintendo console afterall.

I wonder if any old minigames like the ones from SM64 DS are going to make an appearance on a smartphone.

 

[BoboBrazil]

Its a sound approach, advertise to mobile and drive people to full purchase of nintendo software/hardware.

No it's not. It's the worst idea since putting all their gaming news in Nintendo Directs. The only people that will download that app are Nintendo fans. Noone else gives a shit about videos of Nintendo games. It's still keeping them insulated in their own bubble.

 

[xandaca]

Should do a Virtual Console of NES and maybe SNES games, as most people who own an online device can already easily find and download most of Nintendo's early classics for free. Being simple to control and (particularly the Mario games) relatively bite sized, they're a good fit for the format and would introduce a whole new generation of players to the characters without impinging on the new stuff Nintendo is putting out. At the same time, they could patch trailers into the game (maybe accessible through the main menu) so players could see relevant titles coming out on 3DS and Wii U.

And if they wanted to be a bit shitty, they could add a F2P element into the older games to start a level with a fire flower, see ghost runs, or get puzzle hints/directions in Zelda. Stuff that doesn't intrude on the main game, but gives a small advantage to those who need help.

 

[TheBaronOfNA]

No one really should be. Anyone that used common sense should have known very well they would not be releasing games from established IP on mobile platforms. A case could be made for brand new IP specifically made for mobile that also shows up in the Wii U and 3DS eShops. However that isn't what some people wanted. They wanted and somehow expected that a full Mario platformer might be released for mobile. That's craziness of a high degree.

I didn't expect Mario. I expected a game, New Ip or App to work with a game. No bad demos and trailers.

 

[Tempy]

Glorified trailers, on a platform where advertising is considered utterly anathema and despised.

If it's so despised, why do people keep downloading ad-supported free apps?

 

[Riki]

Should do a Virtual Console of NES and maybe SNES games, as most people who own an online device can already easily find and download most of Nintendo's early classics for free. Being simple to control and (particularly the Mario games) relatively bite sized, they're a good fit for the format and would introduce a whole new generation of players to the characters without impinging on the new stuff Nintendo is putting out. At the same time, they could patch trailers into the game (maybe accessible through the main menu) so players could see relevant titles coming out on 3DS and Wii U.

And if they wanted to be a bit shitty, they could add a F2P element into the older games to start a level with a fire flower, see ghost runs, or get puzzle hints/directions in Zelda. Stuff that doesn't intrude on the main game, but gives a small advantage to those who need help.

No. Please. People, stop asking for more classic games to be ruined by being shuttered to mobile.