What was your first Nintendo console?

[sumo73]

The Commodore 64 sold between 12 and 17 million units.

The Spectrum sold 5 million units.

The NES sold 62 million.

 

Yes a lot of people had a Commodore 64 but most then moved onto the NES and that's when video games really took off as a global mainstream thing. To say Nintendo weren't popular during the 8 and 16 bit generations is a little silly considering, Wii apart, those were their two best selling home consoles.

 

I'll state for the second time....I said weren't so popular. I did not say not popular. There is a difference between what I said and what you and dazzlebee thought I said. I hope that clear things up a little. : peace:

 

I did however go back to my original post upon reflection and add 'early' - '...popular during 8 and ''early'' 16 bit era' because the 16 bit era lastly longer than I had remembered. By the very late 80's/early 90's Sega and Nintendo were making inroads in the UK at least from what I remember.

 

Also I am saying this from a British perspective (not a global one) so giving me a figure of 62 millon NES units sold you need to factor in that only around 8.5 millon were sold in Europe. I don't know how many were sold in the UK but I can tell you they were not as popular as the 8 bit computer market especially around the mid to late 80's.

 

As for people who had a C64 moving onto a NES you have to see that the Commodore Amiga or Atari ST (also Megadrive) were more attractive options. I'm not saying that people didn't move from C64 to NES either. I don't want to get misquoted here again.

 

Of course Nintendo were successful globally with the NES but in the UK they really started to make their mark with the Gameboy in 1989 (a year after it's NA and JPN release).

Edited November 9, 2016 by sumo73

[Grazza]

I just remember the NES and Master System seemed extremely expensive when they first arrived, especially the games. In the UK we were used to the computers sumo73 mentioned. Games cost about £2.99 (sometimes cheaper), with a £9.99 cassette being as expensive as it got.

 

Then the Sega and Nintendo consoles came along and, if I recall correctly, weren't even sold in that many shops. I know Boots was one of the main places I saw the NES. To my mind consoles in the UK really took off with the Sega Mega Drive, but even that was limited to certain retailers at first. It was really ground breaking stuff. That said, I felt the SNES was a lot more mainstream (than the NES).

[Pestneb]

about 7 million masters systems in EU vs about 8 million nes consoles.

 

Megadrive sold about 30 million vs 45 Million for the Snes worldwide.

 

obviously we only have personal experience which doesn't necessarily fit into the general rules, but for me, I knew of 6 Nes gamers, while I only knew one individual who owned a master system. Snes generation though, it was more a parity, 1 Megadrive and 1 Snes owner, so my exposure was fairly even. But then seeing as the % of owners I knew was like 0.0001% of the owners in europe for the nes... my situation can hardly be read as typical!

 

But Ronnie, you have to take into account where sales were.

The ZX sold 5 million mainly in the UK I believe. The Nes sold 8 Million over the whole of europe.. I find it unlikely that over a third of those sales were in the UK market. Add onto that the commodore 64 (yup, I played on one of those) and the Dragon 32/64 (had one of those before a nes) bbc micro (yup, played one of those at school) and the amstrad cpc and I think you'll find home computers that played games are very likely to have been a more popular option. Sure it is plausible that the nes held a bigger slice than any single one of those home computers, but I am comfortable with the assertion that the home computer market > home console market back in the 80's.

in the early 90's I suspect that consoles were taking a more prominent place, but certainly for me the old "I need a PC for homework" line (that was VERY rarely ever the case!) meant that lots of people had PC's that were capable of running games that were a bit more advanced than anything a console could offer.

The only thing that pulled me back to home consoles was Nintendo's unique IP that doesn't appear on PC's (at least not legitimately :P)

Why X1 and PS4 do so well baffles me as the vast majority of the games available are out on PC as well. But then I guess perhaps PC's aren't as common place as they were a decade or so ago.

Edited November 8, 2016 by Pestneb

[sumo73]

about 7 million masters systems in EU vs about 8 million nes consoles.

 

Megadrive sold about 30 million vs 45 Million for the Snes worldwide.

 

obviously we only have personal experience which doesn't necessarily fit into the general rules, but for me, I knew of 6 Nes gamers, while I only knew one individual who owned a master system. Snes generation though, it was more a parity, 1 Megadrive and 1 Snes owner, so my exposure was fairly even. But then seeing as the % of owners I knew was like 0.0001% of the owners in europe for the nes... my situation can hardly be read as typical!

 

But Ronnie, you have to take into account where sales were.

The ZX sold 5 million mainly in the UK I believe. The Nes sold 8 Million over the whole of europe.. I find it unlikely that over a third of those sales were in the UK market. Add onto that the commodore 64 (yup, I played on one of those) and the Dragon 32/64 (had one of those before a nes) bbc micro (yup, played one of those at school) and the amstrad cpc and I think you'll find home computers that played games are very likely to have been a more popular option. Sure it is plausible that the nes held a bigger slice than any single one of those home computers, but I am comfortable with the assertion that the home computer market > home console market back in the 80's.

in the early 90's I suspect that consoles were taking a more prominent place, but certainly for me the old "I need a PC for homework" line (that was VERY rarely ever the case!) meant that lots of people had PC's that were capable of running games that were a bit more advanced than anything a console could offer.

The only thing that pulled me back to home consoles was Nintendo's unique IP that doesn't appear on PC's (at least not legitimately :P)

Why X1 and PS4 do so well baffles me as the vast majority of the games available are out on PC as well. But then I guess perhaps PC's aren't as common place as they were a decade or so ago.

 

I completely agree "obviously we only have personal experience which doesn't necessarily fit into the general rules" so I'm just remembering what it was like growing up back in the 80's. I'm no video game history expert. : peace:

 

The NES wasn't even released until late 1986 across Europe (three years after it's Japanese release as the FC) and I think the UK home computer market was already quite well established by then so Nintendo did struggle a bit. I think also it had a little bad publicity in Europe with it's (for the time) high game cartridge price.

 

I think in the North American market it did better because it was released a year earlier and that market was still recovering from the video games crash which had killed (in part) some of the competition.

 

As for -

Why X1 and PS4 do so well baffles me as the vast majority of the games available are out on PC as well. But then I guess perhaps PC's aren't as common place as they were a decade or so ago.

 

One of the things I really like moving from PC to GameCube (my first Nintendo console) gaming back over ten years ago was the lack of installing/patching for video games. The fact that you could pretty much turn on the console and starting playing more or less without waiting. The problem with X1 and PS4 is that they have lost that art.

 

Jim Sterling sums up this mess -

Edited November 8, 2016 by sumo73

[Rummy]

To say Nintendo weren't popular during the 8 and 16 bit generations is a little silly considering, Wii apart, those were their two best selling home consoles.

 

He's literally already clarified the point to be completely not what you're seeming to argue against.

 

I think I said "weren't so popular" not weren't popular.

 

I think one of the biggest problems on this forum atm is people seemingly refusing to acknowledge/address other people's points. Given we're all here to discuss, I can understand if and when some people get upset/offended when their posts/points appear to be completely ignored.

 

Obviously not something I can heavily do much about - but can we be careful to both read/acknowledge what someone is saying as well as doing our best to avoid discounting people's opinions/experiences. Just noticing it on occasion lately and it's certainly the sort of thing that leads to tensions imo.

[Shorty]

I got a NES. It took me many, many years to realise that the reason it came in an old camcorder bag was because a) it was second hand and b) it had previously belonged to the son of a friend of the family, and I'd actually played on that NES before.

 

I'd had a Commodore 64 before that.

[Ronnie]

 

I think one of the biggest problems on this forum atm is people seemingly refusing to acknowledge/address other people's points. Given we're all here to discuss, I can understand if and when some people get upset/offended when their posts/points appear to be completely ignored.

 

Obviously not something I can heavily do much about - but can we be careful to both read/acknowledge what someone is saying as well as doing our best to avoid discounting people's opinions/experiences. Just noticing it on occasion lately and it's certainly the sort of thing that leads to tensions imo.

 

Weren't you literally just belittling someone'a opinion before you realised you hadn't read their post properly?

[Sheikah]

Weren't you literally just belittling someone'a opinion before you realised you hadn't read their post properly?

He made a mistake, and unlike you, had the grace to admit fault immediately...

[Ronnie]

He made a mistake, and unlike you, had the grace to admit fault immediately...

 

I have nothing to admit fault about? Unless my sales figures and suggestion that the NES and SNES were two of Nintendo's most popular consoles is incorrect.

 

And fair enough rummy admitted a mistake, I just found it a bit rich he was complaining about others missing the point and mis-reading posts mere hours after he did the same.

[Sheikah]

I have nothing to admit fault about? Unless my sales figures and suggestion that the NES and SNES were two of Nintendo's most popular consoles is incorrect.

 

And fair enough rummy admitted a mistake, I just found it a bit rich he was complaining about others missing the point and mis-reading posts mere hours after he did the same.

 

I just find it a little strange that you jump on someone for a mistake that they immediately owned up to in another thread, while being seemingly oblivious to misinterpreting somebody's post even when it was pointed out to you.

 

Regardless of Rummy's slight slip up, it's good advice he's giving...so what's there to gain by trying to be smart with him?

Edited November 8, 2016 by Sheikah

[Ashley]

Anyway....my first console was a NES although weirdly the only game I remember us having (although we did have more) was Home Alone.

 

And I swear the cartridges had teeth marks in them because my brothers found them difficult to pull out so they used their teeth (obviously) but given the loading mechanism maybe I'm thinking of the Master System...

[Ronnie]

I just find it a bit disgusting that you can jump on someone for a mistake that they immediately owned up to in another thread, while you are still seemingly oblivious to misinterpreting somebody's post even when it was pointed out to you.

 

Regardless of Rummy's slight slip up, it's good advice he's giving...so what's there to gain by trying to be smart with him?

 

Because he's condescendingly telling people not to misrepresent, "the problem with people on this forum", hours after doing just that. Simple. No big deal. I will take his advice as well.

[Ashley]

Well I assume Rummy considers himself a person too, so he is acknowledging that he is problematic too. Let's all try and learn to be better and if we find ourselves being outraged at someone's posts ask for intentions before raging. Nobody wants egg on their face like Rummy.

[Emerald Emblem]

My first console from Nintendo was the Game Boy Pocket, came with Pokemon Red and Blue plus Tennis.

[martinist]

NES, I only remember two games from back then. One being Super Mario Bros. and the other being a game called "Digger T Rock" I remember renting a Super Nintendo cart once and trying to jam it in the slot but it wouldn't fit >_<

 

I never did get to play Street Fighter 2 back then >_>

[Pestneb]

a game called "Digger T Rock"

 

I envy you! I wanted that game so badly!!!

[Jimbob]

You've had pretty much everything but the SNES? How did that one slip you by?

 

One year, had to choose a Mega Drive or a SNES. Decided to go for a Mega Drive, no regrets.

[bob]

One year, had to choose a Mega Drive or a SNES. Decided to go for a Mega Drive, no regrets.

That's surprising, because Nintendo were incredibly popular around that time. /f

[Ronnie]

In hindsight, what a weird name for a console: Mega Drive. I know that was only for Europe, but still.

[sumo73]

In hindsight, what a weird name for a console: Mega Drive. I know that was only for Europe, but still.

 

That system had the same name in Europe as it had in Japan albeit pronounced slightly differently (*Mega Doraibu = Mega Drive) but in North America it was called the 'Genesis'. The name had to be changed from Mega Drive to Genesis in North America, I believe due to trademark issues.

 

* (source - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sega_Genesis)

Edited November 9, 2016 by sumo73

[Ashley]

Was Phil Collins having none of it?

[dazzybee]

Yet another bizarre discussion I had a spectrum, I had three spectrum, 48k Plus 2 and plus 3 with the tap deck, I loved the spectrum. I also had a nes and a master system. I can honestly say in my experience at school and such, the NES was easily the most popular out of eveytrthing.; moving into Amigo and SNES years they seemed very popular.

 

To say it's when Nintendo weren't as popular, even if you're just taking the UK, I mean surely you can't say they're more popular now than they were in the NES?! And the SNES seemed even more popular than that.

 

Does anyone have any stats on how much each nintendo sold in the UK? Quite interesting.

[Happenstance]

I've definitely always heard that Sega was more popular in Europe during the Mega Drive/Snes era. No numbers to back that up, it's just something I've heard multiple times. I know I never knew anyone with a Snes growing up. There was also something to do with Europe having a lot more developers who were used to creating games for the architecture the Mega Drive used.

[Eddage]

It was always the NES and SNES where i grew up, only knew one kid with a Mega Drive.

 

It wasn't until the N64/PS1 generation that the 'console wars' really started and the playground arguments kicked in!

[sumo73]

Yet another bizarre discussion I had a spectrum, I had three spectrum, 48k Plus 2 and plus 3 with the tap deck, I loved the spectrum. I also had a nes and a master system. I can honestly say in my experience at school and such, the NES was easily the most popular out of eveytrthing.; moving into Amigo and SNES years they seemed very popular.

 

To say it's when Nintendo weren't as popular, even if you're just taking the UK, I mean surely you can't say they're more popular now than they were in the NES?! And the SNES seemed even more popular than that.

 

Does anyone have any stats on how much each nintendo sold in the UK? Quite interesting.

 

I did go back to my original quote and edit it to...weren't so popular during the 8 bit and 'early' 16 bit era. I'm not here to say I'm right because I can only speak from my experience and I'm not here to have an argument with anyone. : peace: So I can only say without having any sales figures in front of me Nintendo had competition from the home computer market in the UK (I'm not talking about elsewhere) during that time from the mid to late 80's.

 

I do remember now in the very early 80's Nintendo were popular to some degree with the game and watch series but the NES did not make the dent in the UK that it did in Japan or North America. I already said before that when Nintendo released the Gameboy was when at least for me Nintendo started to increase in popularity. By the early 90's the home computer market in the UK was already dying and Nintendo and Sega took over. That's from what I remember.

 

Oh I had a C16, ZX81, C64, Spectrum 48, Spectrum+2, Amiga 500 and Amiga 1200 back in the day.

 

I tried to find official sales figures for purely the UK for the NES but couldn't find anything but this might be worth reading, just found it - http://www.gamespot.com/forums/games-discussion-1000000/is-nintendo-less-popular-in-the-uk-29399186/

 

This is also worth watching-

Edited November 9, 2016 by sumo73