What Nintendo Has Done in the Past Five Years

http://kotaku.com/5569301/

Kotaku does a great job of discussing what Nintendo has done at this year's E3 that makes up for what most serious gamers would call a pretty lackluster attempt on Nintendo's part in keeping its core fanbase happy. Read it if you so desire. But what I want to talk about is the effect of Nintendo's strategy, and how in the end, everyone wins because of it. You win, I win, and Nintendo wins.

Back five years ago Nintendo had announced the Wii, known as the 'Revolution' at the time, during its reappearance at the Tokyo Game Show. The console was built to be able to use a unique control system to make it easier and more intuitive for new or rusty game players to jump right in to playing games. Nintendo invested the vast majority of their resources into making games that supported their new mantra of easy access, simple to use software from that point, and practically released a handful of the games from the series it is traditionally known for.

Ultimately, those people who were die-hard fans wanted more. Nintendo seemed to be ignoring them, making games at its own pace and making the Wii look like a GameCube with waggle (a term gamers use to describe the new Wii Remote control functionality). Third party support was much better than it was with its predecessor, but the Wii was still a fairly dusty system in 2008 and 2009, aside from a few blockbusters like Smash Bros Brawl and Super Mario Galaxy from Nintendo and a boatload of 'shovelware' games from third parties.

But was Nintendo really ditching its faithfuls in exchange for a new family appeal? I didn't care. I'm here in Bothell for a reason, and its to be able to work for them, and I had no idea what was to become of them until last week, when E3 happened.

Nintendo unveiled to us so many titles that we longed for, all on either the Wii or on their super-hot, new handheld system, the Nintendo 3DS. And boom, just like Kotaku said, in one hour the poor little booths held by Sony and Microsoft, vying to show off their answers to Nintendo's motion control success, were emptied as Nintendo set off a call heard around the world: they were back in business to steal the hearts of their faithful followers once again. Kid Icarus, Zelda, Kirby, and even the support of over 20 world-renowned developers.

I feel a bit sorry for Sony, having been destroyed by Nintendo in the handheld market with the announcement of the 3DS, while the PSPgo eats dust and falters as a platform. And Sony's approach to 3D on their PS3 is a joke.

I feel a bit sorry for Microsoft, because they as a company have no reason to exist anymore aside from their computer programming and video game development sectors. It's the Xbox brand I am most excited about, because they will be the only true way for future indie developers to get their hands in console game design. And the new Kinect looks cool!

But Nintendo has, moreso than anyone, struck the jackpot with this announcement at E3. They truly are leaders in innovation. Others follow them, and it's hilarious to watch.

Lucky as I am, I was in college and abroad in Asia while Nintendo was experimenting with their Blue Ocean strategy (collecting as many new followers as they could), so I didn't have time to play games anyway. And during my senior year, Sony gave me enough reason to buy their George Foreman-esque PS3 for its awesome Blu-Ray player, ability to give me access to Japanese content, and handful of great games that I had time to play.

Making sure not to miss out on Microsoft's game library, it's as simple as getting a new Mac Mini, installing the Windows 7 software that my school gave me, and downloading my favorite games from Steam. Most of the games I want to play on the 360 are or will soon be playable on PC, such as Mass Effect and Fable 3.

Getting ready for Nintendo's triumphant return to the hardcore market, I already have a Japanese Wii with the absolutely amazing Wiiの間, a free television broadcast and movie rental service for Japanese Wii owners. When the games actually come out within the next year or so, I'll be back in Japan buying them up in May or June, translating their manuals in my free time.

You'll notice that I'm in a good position right now. Banking on this company as a major success was the greatest thing I could have ever done, and the timing was just right. All I need to do is work there to help them usher in a new fanbase, and in turn, another thirty years of uninhibited success.