Nicktendo
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Posts posted by Nicktendo
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Is that true?
People said the same thing last gen and then the PS4 sold gangbusters and XB1 still sold significant units.
I don't disagree with you at all, but it would be interesting to see how much Sony and Microsoft spend on development and marketing now, compared to 2006 and whether they are making more or less percentage profit. Microsoft has already announced that Xbox games are coming to PC as cross buy for the windows store. To me that's an admission that their home console division is failing.
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But that's not happening - people are still paying high prices for season tickets, people are still paying high price tickets to see 3D films in cinemas - I'm sure even in the depths of a recession people will still seek entertainment and pay the price. Does it make sense? to answer that would be to answer the nature of Man.
I know it's still happening, when I come back to the UK I'll subscribe to sky sports and go to Leeds games despite being appalled by the price! I know, I'm a sucker. Eventually there will be a line, which each person will draw when they don't feel they get their money's worth. I did that with cinema going years ago and with having a second home console before this gen. Gaming is a hobby, a time killer or a form of entertainment. As budgets go up, so does the price for the consumer. One by one they'll say enough is enough and find something else to spend their money on.
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But that's happening all over the entertainment industry - bigger budgets etc. I don't have the figures but I would imagine good and well marketed games are making a profit for their respective companies. I hear indies are having a good time too and they seem to have established a good home on the PlayStation.
There definitely are no saints here, when Nintendo were the dominant force their rigid licencing practices were far from liberating for developers. And I really hate the way Nintendo seems to want to dictate to me how I should be playing games - most notable annoyance being forced to play Skyward sword with motion controls - as if I've had a burning issue with playing games with a standard control pad for the last 30 years.
Sure it's happening everywhere, especially in film. But Hollywood films are mostly garbage and a good low budget Indy film can still make a decent profit, people vote with their wallets. Marketing plays a role for sure, yet more money. When is it going to be too much though? Are people going to pay £20 for a cinema ticket? The same is happening football, which is unsustainable and heading for a big crash in the future. It's obscene. Gaming is in someways becoming a copy of the film industry with microtransatcions etc. grinding more and more money out of the consumer. People only have so much disposable income. That means people will buy less games, see less films, skip a week of the football.
Nintendo did what was necessary in the 80s to ensure the survival of their video games market, now their doing the same, but in a different way. It's really very simple in my view. Don't like the look for a film? Don't go see it. Don't like the price of your local team's football match? Don't go. Don't like motion controls? Don't buy the game. Nintendo is doing what they need to do to survive. Nobody is dictating anything. If enough people do like what they're doing, they will buy their products and Nintendo will continue down their chosen path. If not, they'll do something else until they go bust when enough consumers reject what's offered to them.
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If it ain't broke, why fix it? We ALL appreciate a beautiful game with a full scale soundtrack - in fact power was the N64's mantra and gloating point over the competition then.
I feel Sony and Microsoft's straightforward approach in making obvious upgrades and keeping their controllers the same have helped game developers put full creativity in the game (scope, scale, story, soundtrack). Even as not a real Sony or Micro fan, I feel these two have aided in keeping the traditional gaming hobby alive, consistent and relevant. In some sense also a safe haven - I know if this NX experiment doesn't work out I would get all I need in gaming from the PS4.
I think quite the opposite, and that Sony and Microsoft's safe approach as you describe it is what's going to end up being the death of gaming in it's current form. The amount of money these big budget titles demand is constantly growing, and the profit margins are getting smaller and smaller (unless you're Rockstar or Activision).
A huge number of companies have gone under in the past 10 years for exactly this reason. Innovation comes with huge risk and generally the most profitable titles are those which receive yearly updates or have big brand names. Namely your FIFAs and your CoDs etc. I'm not for one second saying innovation is non-existent, but one could argue how the need to make a profit would either stifle it or force a developer to "play it safe".
Now I admit that I don't own a next generation console but I've read many complaints both on here and through friends that the PS4 and Xbox One have been disappointments. I'm sure there are plenty of great games which have huge scope / scale and do things which were simply not possible on previous generation tech, but at what cost? As for story and soundtrack, I think you could argue that the tech doesn't matter as much, but how it's used. And for how long can it be kept up? GTA5 cost 100 million dollars (or more?) to make, how many other developers would be prepared to make that kind of investment? Granted a GTA game was always guaranteed to make that kind of cash back in a matter of days!
Mobile and indy games have shown that developers can make a tidy profit where this kind of beefy hardware isn't a development requirement and I genuinely believe Nintendo is making the right decision by going down this road. It was a choice between possible death or certain death
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You seem to be arguing with yourself - people buy a console if they see a game they want to play; yet you then said this didn't happen with Platoon, mario maker and mario kart 8 - make up your mind. Plus many other ps4 owners telling me nintendo games would sell more on ps4 because people don't want to buy a console to play nintendo games but would love to if they were on a ps4.
Not really. I said software sells systems, but if people don't know about that software then it can't and won't sell them. Nintendo is larely ignored by the popular gaming media (take their ridiculous YouTube policy for example), therefore if Nintendo want their games to be seen, they need to do more from a marketing perspective.
Nintendo games on a PS4 will never happen, so Nintendo need to market to casuals, and these gamers that their games a WORTH buying a Nintendo console for, because they can't be played elsewhere.
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Absolute myth. And if it was ever true it certainly isnt now. It's about so much more than just software.
If it is about software then Nintendo will be okay as their output should be insane for nx.
If people see a game they want to play, they will buy the system they can play it on. One could argue that this wasn't strictly true about the Wii U, however. Splatoon, Mario Maker and Mario Kart 8 should have shifted way, way more consoles, but didn't mainly because of poor marketing. The attach rate for all of these games is on levels that Sony / Microsoft could only dream of. Had Nintendo done more marketing wise, the Wii U would be in a lot more homes than it currently is.
People buy a games console primarily to play games, therefore software is generally king when it comes down to it. No software, no purchase. In this regard, as you say, Nintendo should be fine, but they have to market the damn thing.
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The plot thickens. Eurogamer posted this article in 2009 claiming the 3DS would use nvidia chips. Could they be wrong again?
http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-ds2-vs-psp2-article
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While this news should definitely be taken with a pinch of salt, I'm feeling pretty confident about these developments and the direction in which Nintendo seems to be headed.
For me the biggest news, and undoubtedly the most sensible, is consoildating handheld and console development onto one device. Specs for me personally are not much of a worry because the 3DS is still consistently pumping out great games and the Wii U proves that big hitters needn't be multi-million dollar projects to be original, innovative and engaging. If it's a step above Wii U, great, if not I won't be too fussed, but I do think directing focus towards "mobile" gamers as opposed to the "hardcore" is a battle Nintendo is much more likely to win in terms of both audiences and developers.
As for the device itself, I have no objection to anything demonstarted in the tech video above or in Eurogamer's article, but I would prefer to make more solid judgements once Nintendo reveal it for themselves. The idea does have tonnes of potential though. As someone who regularly games on a 3DS at home and uses off-TV play, I don't see this as a huge deviation from what I've already been used to for the last 2-3 years, but the thought of one Fire Emblem, one Animal Crossing, Mario Kart or Pokemon that can be played on the small screen or on the TV is awesome and the end of splitting time between console and handheld is something I'd definitely welcome! It seems to be the ultimate system for those who love to game alone, but also want the big-screen multiplayer experience every once in a while, or even vice versa.
I really hope Nintendo really nail the OS though. This is my biggest worry. I want an end to the rebuying of VC titles every generation and the need to "empty the fridge" every so often. Give us a decent OS, cloud saving and a decent amount of HDD space, please! I have absolutely no objection to an Android or iOS style system which is often updated and heavily integrated with things like My Nintendo, the E-Shop and promotional discounts. Even something along the lines of badges or acheivements would be fantastic, didn't they say something at E3 about rewards for playing? If it were something so simple as themes or background music, I'd be all over it. Smoothness and real personalisation are what I'd like to see in the OS.
It may not be popular with all gamers, but I want them to completely do away with the console generation cycle system in favour of a more smartphone oriented one. For those of us that want to adopt to a more powerful device every 18 months / couple of years, give us the option. Give the market a choice and, where appropriate, scale games appropriately to each device (Pokemon Go is advertised as iPhone 5 and up, but Miitomo or Pokemon Shuffle are compatible with older ones, for example). If a device is 4-5 years old, maybe it can't play the very latest releases, but would appeal to younger or casual gamers at a much lower price point as a way in to the ecosystem. This would hopefully end the droughts, end the endless waits (especially for new console news) and allow the company to grow steadily as opposed to taking a huge risk every four or five years. Imagine and brand new and updated Nintendo every two years :awesome: Just call it a "Nintendo" as well, please. No nonsense.
-"Wanna come to my house and play Nintendo?"
-"No need, I have my Nintendo right here!" Nostalgia speaking.
Whatever NX ends up being this is all pretty f-n exciting and I can't wait for September, at least until they inevitably delay any announcments until November.
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Pestneb hits the nail on the head. Corruption is inherent in the Russian system. The building of the new stadium in St. Petersburg is a perfect example of this. It was started 10 years ago and still isn't finished, it has cost millions and millions of pounds, yet they periodically complain there is no money left, and get given more. More than half of the money is uncounted for, i.e. it's found it's way into someone's pocket.
I've bribed police officers on a few occasions in order to evade punishment for minor crimes, such as drinking in the street or not having the correct documents with me. Nothing major, but £15 or so is better than being taken to jail or officially fined. Traffic law violations are almost exclusively delt with by bribes, but usually upwards of £100. Punishments for speeding in Russia include year long bans, so it's much better for people to just pay a hefty bribe. The fact that the police get such a low wage doesn't help, but corruption is widely accepted and is seen as the norm. Can you imagine even offering a police officer a bribe in the U.K?!
Having a "white salary" is also seen in Russia as prestigious, and is usually found in the big ineternational companies. Most regular jobs pay a "black salary" where the majority of your wages are paid in cash in an envelope and maybe a small, token amount will be paid into your bank. The tax laws are so regressive and anti-business that for smaller companies, this is the only way they can survive. So tax evasion is also considered normal.
Apart from the influece of the French upper classes in the 18th Century (The Russian elite even took on French as the political language), Russia has had almost no influence of European civilization, especially if we talk about the peasents at the time. Peter the I saw Europe as something which Russia could work towards, as something that could help Russia become stronger if it tried to emulate Europe, hence why St. Petersburg was built to look like a European city, but in reality this never found it's way outside the upper classes and royal family, who of course were eventually overthrown in 1917.
Again Pestneb is right that this will be turned into a political victory for Russia and I already have heard people talking about it in this way, how it's the fault of the USA, that WADA is based in Canada and is biased... But it was always going to be this way because "cheating the system" is accepted here. Now, I'm not making excuses for what Russia has done, not at all, but the way they see it is that everyone else is just as corrupt as they are, they just don't like to admit it. The USA is corrupt, just not in the same ways. And when they present themselves as the clean, honest, and fair leaders of free society, the Russians know they are being fed a load of lies and take particular offence to being dictated to by this kind of self-righteous people. Hence partially the general dislike of America and/or the West.
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If by "don't expect it to have Western values" you mean "don't expect people to be allowed to say what they want without maybe going missing" then yes...yes, I expect every nation on Earth to start having these particular Western values.
And how long would I last in the U.S or Britain if I started telling foreigners to go home? How long would I last if I started saying homosexuality is an illness? If I advocated Sharia Law? If I wanted to legalise paedophilia?
Freedom of speech does not exist in a politically correct world. Russia has freedom of speech but it's political correctness is very, very different from ours. Or that of Iran. Saudi Arabia. Poland, even. Each country operates within its own legal framework based on history, culture, religion and politics. In Amsterdam I could say I want to shag a 15 year old and it would be perfectly acceptable within the legal framework of that country. In the U.K., U.S., or Russia for that matter, I'd be set on by an angry mob.
Peter Hitchens is a mostly a vile human being (imo) but he's lived and worked in Russia and gave a great lecture on it at Oxford University. Video's on YouTube. His views on political correctness as a way of controlling dissent are also fascinating. Just because we have 'a great system' doesn't mean it should fit everyone else.
Whether it's right or wrong I think that's just a by product of being a western country. Places like China are very much out of sight, out of mind for the western world unless it's fits their agenda for something. The culture of the middle east is completely different our own and so we don't try to compare the two where as you've said we kinda see Russia as a failure because they don't perhaps do things they we believe they should be done.I honestly think it comes down to the fact that Russia is a mostly white Christian nation and therefore we are inclined to see them as we see ourselves. Crucially though, they have a very different culture from ours, an incompatible one even, maybe... And therefore we tend to view them more critically than we would than those who are more ethnically different from us.
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Yeah, fair enough, I apologise, didn't mean to make out you have no idea about anything regarding Russia and it's history, you clearly do.
I don't have anything against Russia at all, it's a country I've always wanted to visit due to the way it operates so differently from the rest of the typical western world. In regards to your comments about China, I was totally against their awarding of the Olympics, they have blatant disregard for human rights and only got it because because the world seems to be in awe of this rising super power. God knows the Olympic movement is corrupt as hell, it stands for integrity and that's probably the last thing that comes up when it comes to awarding competitions to countries and cities.
There's nothing wrong with wanting to be the best but for it to reach this stage is beyond disgraceful. I literally cannot see any mechanism of defence that can be made for Russia in this regard. I feel comfortable saying that I don't think would ever have happened in our country.
I agree completely with what you're saying, particularly about how the U.K. would be very unlikely to get caught up in this sort of mess. I do wonder though, if this had been China and not Russia, would the reaction have been different? I was also against the Beijing Olympics and didn't watch any of it, but the fact that we have many mutual financial interests and that they are more open financially to the West, seems to warp the view of our leaders when it comes to things like human rights. Russia still seems to get treated as the old, uncooperative enemy.
Incidentally, despite the shaky start, there seemed to be a lot of international goodwill to Russia following Sochi. The controversy based discussion was mainly around the Olympic ring that didn't light at the ceremony and little else. It seemed to be a success. Two weeks later Crimea happened, and the rest is history.
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You don't seem to understand how Russia works. You don't simply move to the west and speak out against the regime, Russia doesn't take well to what they clearly see as some form of treason, look at the man who lifted the lid on this whole process. He's in hiding in the US for a reason, he wouldn't have lasted long.
Considering I have a Master's degree in Russian history, live in Russia and speak Russian to an advanced level, I find that comment pretty insulting. I don't claim to know how Russia works but I could give you a much better insight than any Western media source. I am by no means a supporter of the regime in Russia, but I understand, in the context of geopolitics why it exists in its current shape. The 90s was a very harsh lesson for everyone in Russia with regards to what happens when they play by Western rules, the poverty and sheer economic destruction went largely unnoticed by the rest of the world.
I'm sure Edward Snowdon and Chelsea Manning will attest to the fact that no government has a perfect record. Would Snowden last long in the US?
The sense of patriotism and love for their country runs deeper in Russia than anywhere I've ever experienced. Not in the balls to the wall cries of USA, USA sense you see in America, but it's deeply rooted into people's sense of personality, culture and history. There's a reason the 'Russian soul' exists as a concept. Speaking out internationally against Russia amounts to treason in many respects, not that it's right, but it's simply how it's viewed. It's fine to criticise and disagree, but to do it so openly on a global scale is seen as a betrayal.
There are many, many issues which exist today in Russia. A number of which are looked at unfavourably by the West, of course, with good reason. But similar problems also exist in the West and it's the level of hypocrisy that infuriates me personally. I have no trouble criticising Russia or the government, but I would prefer to do so from a neutral standpoint, and not one where the mirror of the West is held up against them. That mirror is just as dirty as Russia's.
Critics of Russia should stop judging it by Western standards, especially when China is rarely afforded similar treatment. Russia is not, and has never been a traditional 'Western' nation and expecting it to behave like one is like expecting apples to taste like oranges.
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Is anyone really surprised by this? Russia knew they were hosting Sochi and were damn lucky to be doing so considering their recent actions, hardly in the vain of the Olympic movement. It really doesn't surprise me that this came from the top, Russia always want to be seen as the best and they damn wanted to make sure on their home soil that they would be, whatever it was
See, I don't understand this. Why were they damn lucky? Should London 2012 have been boycotted because of Libya, Iraq or Afghanistan? What about Atlanta 1996 after the first Gulf War? The Olympics are supposed to be apolitical... Even if Moscow 1980 was boycotted, precisely because of the Soviet's intervention in Afghanistan. It's this kind of hypocrisy that makes me sceptical to the real extent of this doping scandal, or whether it's just another political tool to publicly punish Russia. After all, it's not only them that want to be seen as the best at everything. The USA, China and the U.K. are just as guilty of this.
Competing under the international flag is a compromise which makes sense, but if outright banning all athletes is the goal of the international community in the hope that it inspires some kind of political change within Russia, then they are delusional.
The West has used this 'dissidents' tactic for around 100 years and it has never worked. All that will happen is those Russian athletes who are outraged with the government will move abroad and be rolled out as a spokesperson in front of the Western media to criticise the regime. They will be forgotten in Russia, forever. Those that don't speak out will stay and get on with it.
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Who do you guys think should get the England manager's job. I was against Allardyce 10 years ago, but now I think it wouldn't be such a bad move. He may be perceived as a bit anti-football but I think he's the only one who would select players on form and not reputation.
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A total ban would be completely ridiculous. There are doubtless hundreds of athletes, who have dedicated their whole lives to their chosen field and are clean.
Despite evidence of state supported doping, this is not the way to go forward. Placing all Russian athletes under constant independent testing for the duration of the games, given the accusations, would allow those clean athletes to freely participate without incriminating or punishing them. This, surely, given the resources available to the IOC is a viable option.
A blanket ban is just political point scoring and yet more evidence that the West is only looking for regime change in Russia and has absolutely no intention of cooperating with the current government, irrespective of their policies. Clean athletes have nothing to answer for and are being unfairly and harshly treated.
Throughout history the home nation has performed exceptionally well at the Olympic Games. Britain took an unexpected third in 2012. China dominated 2008. Was that because of doping? No, it's because the government invests in sport in order to achieve a good result years in advance of the games taking place. That medal table proves absolutely nothing, even more so when one considers that Russia often finishes in the top 3 at the Winter Olympics.
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My ISA matured about 6 months ago and I seriously considered doing this in the run up to the NX launch, but felt it was too much hassle to arrange and had never invested before. Really regret not doing it now...
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Does anyone know where I can find an official UK power supply for the Wii U? Had a look around Nintendo's website and not finding anything. Amazon seem to only have 3rd party ones.
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Does anyone know where I can find an official UK power supply for the Wii U? Had a look around Nintendo's website and not finding anything. Amazon seem to only have 3rd party ones.
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Got disconnected 3rd race GP3. Waiting to rejoin now. I actually quite enjoy that track too!!
Me too, points got wiped
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Got disconnected 3rd race GP3. Waiting to rejoin now. I actually quite enjoy that track too!!
Me too, points got wiped
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Got disconnected, please let me know when GP3 will start!
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Got disconnected, please let me know when GP3 will start!
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In this week
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In this week
Nintendo Switch - Happy Switchmas Everyone!
in Nintendo Gaming
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Games have gotten much cheaper as the culture has shifted more to the mainstream, and thank god! But these games you talk about which are F2P generally don't push the latest hardware like the blockbuster games seen on the next gen consoles and cost a fraction of the price to develop. The blockbusters may cost the consumer less from the offset but then you have to deal with microtransatcions and season passes which bump the price up considerably, granted they're a choice but necessary if you want the "full experience" (also day one patches, while not an expense, demonstrate just how stressful and maximum profit driven the industry has become). There's a reason the last 3 GTA generations have seen sequels or expansion packs, to get more profit out of the gamer on the technology they were developed using. The same is true for games like FIFA, CoD or Assassin's Creed.