If there's one thing I sense from Nintendo this generation, it's that they love to sit back and preen themselves, pretending the Wii wasn't an accidental success story, that they planned it all along, and now they're better than everyone else in the world. Don't get me wrong, Nintendo's marketing since the Wii caught on has been amazing, but statements like Miyamoto's latest just drip in self-satisfied smugness.
"The more we competed with new companies entering the market, the more we started acting similar to them," claims Miyamoto, probably wanking himself off and sighing with utter self-love as he spoke. "But is being number one in that competition the same as being number one with the general public? That's the question we had.
"Entertainment is something that you have to look at the world with a very wide eye as you create it. I always thought that, but there were a few years where I was unable to get off other people's trends. It was a dilemma in my mind."
Miyamoto claims he's been miserable since the N64 era, which I personally think is complete bollocks and yet another slap in the face to long-time Nintendo fans. Pretending that you never wanted to appeal to the gamers that kept you afloat during the bad years is a lovely attitude, right?
I don't care that Nintendo is chasing a new type of consumer now, they're a business and this is where the profit lies. However, this ludicrous "we're better than you people and we exist on a higher plane now" attitude is pretty effing disgusting. Crap like Wii Play and Wii Music might sell a lot of copies to idiots, but let's not pretend we're serving some higher purpose by creating that toss.
Jim Sterling serves as reviews editor for Destructoid.com, head of the Podtoid podcast, and produces a number of news stories, original features, one-of-a-kind videos. With his passionate argumentative style, controversial opinions, harsh delivery, and dedication to brutal honesty Sterling is a name that you can't help but recognize.
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Contest:
8:00 AM on 03.12.2009
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Sega, of course, excelled at bringing the bad ass, and had little conflicting thought about it.
I think Miyamoto's a toymaker that watched rag dollies become blowup dolls and lamented the need to respond to that paradigm shift. Now, he doesn't have to, and he's back to making pickup and play, polished but uncomplicated games.
But you know, have a go at his expense. Whatev.
o how the mighty have fallen, you could say.
Seriously, the next fucking update of Elephant needs to include an "ignore all commentary by Jim Sterling" option for users.
"Entertainment is something that you have to look at the world with a very wide eye as you create it. I always thought that, but there were a few years where I was unable to get off other people's trends. It was a dilemma in my mind."
Jim I think you are taking it one possible way. But I think his statements are not saying all the GC and 64 games sucked but rather he got caught up in the competition in the market rather than focusing on innovation in gaming. If you read several of his statements over the last few years these ideas and concepts he has made, novelty, ingenuity, and creative gaming for the masses has long been his impetus all the way back to Mario. Nowhere in his statements is he saying everything he did before the wii sucked, just that as he looked back he can see he was sidetracked from his modus operandi and was trying to make his games match up and compete with others. He is Miyamoto, and although a human and susceptible to the lures of capitalistic greed and losing ones focus, his one focus has always been innovation and reaching the masses not keeping up with the Jones'. Sure the innovation of Mario and other past acheivements are by and large more appreciated by me than the majority of wii nonsense but I think we should not be so quick to give up on miyamoto.
Also, what a coincidence! The Wii makes me sad! We should get together for lunch sometime, Miyamoto. Introduce me to that babe Perrin Kaplan if she doesn't have anything going on.
They didnt try to play the same ballgame as the others. They simply tried playing it the wrong way by sticking to cartridges and then going with goofy little mini discs that make RE4 a 2-disc title. That's been Nintendo's signature ever since the end of the SNES, we're going to try to compete but do one common thing differently just so we can say "we're different".
Gabe Newell is now better than you.
nice post jim
personally I believe this bull is bull. If anyone should be sad, it should be us for Nintendo being 1 step behind in every generation. This also includes the Wii. I get the "casual love" in a business standpoint. But with the real gamers, the wii is pretty much dead...until something really good hits.
The cartridges I can give you, but the GameCube's failures in no way had anything to do with mini-discs. Seriously, c'mon. DVD capacity certainly hasn't hurt the 360's chances in the face of the PS3's Blu-ray capactiy.
This has been my problem with Nintendo since Wii started going 'casual', as it were. They're so quick to write off the loyal buyers who kept them in business during their rougher years. I hope that once their fad system wears off, and the public moves on to something else (as it inevitably does), they come crawling back. That's when I'll tell them I'm taking the dog and the car and moving to Bermuda.
I think it all started with the way they handled the Nintendo message board. Then the marketing changed, and the image. And finally the games. It was like having a best friend for years and then suddenly they get popular and start ignoring you, slow at first, and then escalating. Sure they might throw you a bone here and again, but it is obvious things aren't the way they used to be, and that is cool. They can dilute themselves and go after the big bucks, I'm fine with that, more power to them. During the days of the cube, they would have never made a game like Wii music, I guarantee you that.
I have a new friend named PS3 and we get along great. Not to mention that since I ignored the PS2 (because I was a nintendo loyalist) I am now discovering the galaxy of games it had to offer! Thank you sony and thank you goozex.
Everyone I knew never really talked about about Nintendo consoles after the SNES, well N64 had it's few games like GoldenEye but the vast majrity of the media concntrated on PS1 and then PS2 because it was providing the better games.
Heck, Sony plans that the PSP or the PS3 is a success even if it may not be. How long has Nintendo been preaching about wanting to make games that will get everyone playing. How long has Nintendo been saying that they wanted to grab the moms and grandmothers who don't play, or the dads that don't play games, broaden the market. Have they done that? Pretty much. So yes, they have planned it. Whether it sucks or not is a completely different story.
I also enjoy all the folks that continue to bitch about the Wii and Nintendo's 'new direction' and clamor for new core games yet ignore titles like Madworld, Mushroom Men and No More Heroes. Then they all have the audacity to wonder why publishers release less core games on the Wii.
(slow clap)