The "Nintendo Switch" News and Discussion Thread

[River26]

Nintendo plans on bringing their IPs to a new mobile device, the smart device. Which they plan on partnering with DeNA. The new project is supposedly titled; Project NX.

Still, they haven't forgotten gamers who own a Nintendo game console.


MOD EDIT: Press Release: http://dena.com/intl/press/2015/03/nintendo-and-dena-form-business-and-capital-alliance.html

 

[GWOtaku]

So Nintendo's "no smartphone games" doctrine has become "we'll let someone else make them with our IP." I don't engage this area at all so I have no idea if this is really a good thing. Apparently this company made a similar arrangement with Disney in 2012 though, and they've been around awhile.

 

[Jave]

Press Release: Nintendo and DeNA Form Business and Capital Alliance | 2015 | News | DeNA Co., Ltd.

This... will be interesting. I'm curious to know what kind of games they'll develop.

 

[GWOtaku]

The membership service, which is targeted to launch in the fall of 2015, will be built on DeNA's extensive experience and capabilities in online membership services.

Well, if this means a rewards site that isn't down a large percentage of the time like Club Nintendo, I'm all for it. I don't suppose anyone knows of examples of DeNA doing this well before?

The PR also says "both companies will develop and operate new game apps based on Nintendo's IP, including its iconic game characters, for smart devices." So I guess Nintendo actually will spend some effort on this, although from the sound of it I don't doubt the dedicated platforms will be their focus.

As I listen to the video, this sticks out. Here's exactly what Iwata said on the new device: "As proof that Nintendo maintains strong enthuasium for the dedicated game system business, let me confirm that Nintendo is currently developing a dedicated game platform with a brand new concept under the development codename NX." He also says there won't be anything substantive about it until next year. So, for one thing, it's not explicit that this is a device intended to exist in parallel to the 3DS family to focus on smartphone software. For another, I'm just saying...around 3 years passed between the release of the Nintendo DSi and the Nintendo 3DS. Before that Gameboy Advance SP came out early 2003, the DS came out in November 2004. Nintendo's been adamant that the Wii U has some legs left. Given all that even money says project NX is the thing that will supplant the 3DS altogether, which has after all recently turned four.

That said, it's also unthinkable to me project NX won't support the mobile software. I expect that, true to Nintendo's PR speak today, it will support that and the bigger kinds of games that people have come to expect from the DS line.

I'm also struck by Iwata's rhetoric about how not only do they not believe this mobile game move will diminish its game hardware business, they think it's an opportunity to promote that and the Nintendo brand. This is quite the change in attitude.

 

[mumbo]

Nintendo's been playing around with smartphone-type games like Pokemon Shuffle and Steel Diver recently, so the writing was on the wall. I think if they put the Virtual Console titles on smart devices, too, they'd get much better sales than just having them on their own systems, with pretty minimal effort. Everyone would play the original Super Mario Bros. on their phone (which I know Iwata has been adamantly against in the past, but he seems to have changed his tune).

I'm sure he felt the need to mention NX at the same time, so as not to scare people that delving into apps means the death of their handheld system line. The NX will probably be for "real" games, while they'll put fluffier stuff on smart devices, where it will be received better. And yeah, I'd guess the NX would have some smart device-type functionality to allow it to play apps like that.

 

[Dudley]

So this means we can finally get Mario or Pokemon on iPhone then I'm all for it!
I guess Nintendo finally decided to get with the times!

 

[GWOtaku]

Well, I wouldn't wait up for Super Mario Bros on your phone. All Nintendo IP is on the table, but the company still believes original games designed for the format are the way to go. Here's Iwata via Wired.

“There are significant differences in the controls, strengths and weaknesses between the controllers for dedicated game systems and the touchscreens of smart devices,” he said. “We have no intention at all to port existing game titles for dedicated game platforms to smart devices because if we cannot provide our consumers with the best possible play experiences, it would just ruin the value of Nintendo’s IP.”

Of course, it's possible they'll come up with new games that can recapture some of the feel of the old classics. We'll just have to wait and see.

 

[mumbo]

Sigh. It's such an obvious solution for getting more money out of their old games in my mind. But yeah, while we may not see a straight port of Super Mario Bros., we will definitely see a Super Mario Bros. platformer game designed with touch screen controls in mind.

 

[GWOtaku]

We probably dodged a bullet, honestly. I remember when a mobile version of Mega Man X came out. People seemed to HATE it and understandably saw the whole thing in terms of ways it wasn't like the SNES original. Starting fresh seems like the way to go for both delivering a better game and not disappointing expectations.

 

[Harmonie]

So, the NX has absolutely nothing to do with this smartphone move? That's good news. It feels a bit too soon, but I'm sure by the time that the next generation console is actually shown to us and then released it won't feel so early.

The smartphone decision worries me, though. Once again, Nintendo turns on their words. Resisting the temptations of the stockholders in this regard was one thing I always was proud about for Nintendo. Although their intention may not be to make the smartphone games the best of the best, this could still be problematic. I think about all of my friends who had taken breaks from Nintendo systems for years, but then eventually they all got 3DS's. If Nintendo starts releasing games on smartphones, I'm afraid that will all be lost. They'll just switch to the games on smartphones, since they will already have smartphones.

Either way, I'm not very interested in this myself, as I really do not like the phone as a gaming platform. Mobile games are just so... daft? And the touch screen interface is just bad for games.

But whatever... Nintendo has to go where the money is, I suppose. I just hope that this doesn't hurt their handhelds. I suppose if it's just titles like Pokemon Shuffle it can't hurt much. Hopefully that's all they'll be.

 

[mumbo]

Nintendo would never do anything to threaten their handheld system line. It's vastly outsold their home console line, generation after generation, from the GBA and the Gamecube, the DS and the Wii, the 3DS and the Wii U. Them mentioning the NX now, when it's too early to demonstrate anything about it, shows exactly that. All this is is Nintendo finding another revenue stream, in this case making inexpensive smartphone apps. I think all this means is that the type of stuff they put out on the eShop, like Dillon's Rolling Western, Pokemon Shuffle, etc. will now be showing up on smartphones.

Iwata said there was nothing to show about the NX until next year. So it'll probably be revealed next year, and then actually released a year later, in 2017, making it six years after the 3DS, which is a standard cycle. I just hope they learned from the weak start for the 3DS and launch the NX with a killer app. We should be due for Pokemon Gen VII right around then...

 

[GWOtaku]

That mention of Pokemon reminds me. Seriously, NOW can we get a Pokemon deck building game in the league of Hearthstone?

Wired has some great analysis about this, although I don't share concerns listed at the ending. To me this is about reaching an audience that's using the mobile platform as a default choice.

http://www.wired.com/2015/03/nintendo-mobile-analysis/

 

[Leviathan]

We're DEFINITELY going to see some kind of Virtual Console for this. It would allow Nintendo to crush the existing piracy of their games on smartphones, and make easy money off selling their games again.

They said they won't, but it wouldn't it be the first time Nintendo has done an about-face on a proclamation. I'd be baffled if they didn't put at least the puzzle games (Dr. Mario, Puzzle League and the like) on there.

 

[River26]

Yeah, and more of what gamers got to do with the tablet controller.

Kinda like playing Tales, or the next flagship FF game with touch-based controls.

 

[mumbo]

The obvious one to put on mobile devices is Pokemon. It's a turn-based RPG. It doesn't matter if the controls are touch-based or not, all you need is a direction pad and two buttons and you're golden.

If they just ported some of the old Pokemon RPGs on there, like Red and Blue, they would do gangbusters. Trading and battling Pokemon with Facebook friends? Come on, it opens up so many possibilities. And I'm willing to bet the Pokemon games are some of the most pirated on cell phone emulators, so that would stomp that into the ground. But yeah, like GWOtaku said, at the very least put the Pokemon TCG on there.

I think it would be smart if they made a sort of companion mobile game to go along with their next mainline Pokemon release, be it Pokemon Z, Delta Emerald, or whatever. That way, they're both advertising a game for the 3DS and getting a really strong entry into their mobile foray. The social media integration would work sooooo well with that series.

 

[Light Lucario]

I'm not sure if I can see Nintendo putting older Pokemon games on cell phones. While I agree that putting games such as Red/Blue available on mobile devices would do really well, they just started to put older Pokemon games on the eShop last year and only with some spin-off games. If they haven't put older generations on the eShop, I'm not sure what are the chances of them making them available on mobile devices. A new Pokemon trading card game sounds like a strong possibility though. I can see them making Pokemon games like that available for these devices at least.

I do like the idea of some companion piece for whatever new Pokemon game comes out next. It might be a bit early for that to happen and there might be a better chance that it would be used to get some event Pokemon or important item instead, but that would be one way to help give more attention to their new mobile games without being at the expense of their 3DS games.

 

[Dudley]

I have Mino Monsters on my iPhone, which is a very Pokemon-ish game. I rather have an original game than a port, and it'd make sense for the game to play similar to that. You don't need an onscreen D-pad or a button. Just an over-world map, where you then touch the screen to where you want to go.
I think the game can still be fun while simplified.

 

[River26]

Nintendo's next system will supposedly combine both it's console and handheld.

http://kotaku.com/report-nintendos-next-platform-nx-is-a-console-handhel-1736904323

 

[RetroX]

While I personally won't be partaking in any of the mobile phone Nintendo games I'm happy that they've decided to take this step as it should bring them some financial success being yet another revenue avenue for Nintendo to reap the benefits from. I'm a proud Wii & Wii U owner with hundreds of retro virtual console games downloaded, I own a 3DS with a ton of games, I own dozens of Amiibo's and World of Nintendo action figures, and I own 20 shares of Nintendo stock, so to say I'm a fan is probably underestimating my love for Nintendo. So with that said I'm of the opinion that anything they can do to profit more I'm all for it as it makes them a stronger company and puts money into my pocket.

Long live the "Big N".

 

[GWOtaku]

From the rumormill: Serkan Toto, the CEO of a Tokyo-based game consulting company, tweets that Smash Bros will be available on the "Nintendo NX":

Bandai Namco is currently developing several NX titles. Smash Bros is planned to be a launch title. I am not sure about the date - yet .

To follow up on my last tweet: I haven't heard if it's a completely new (numbered) Smash Bros or not. Otherwise, source situation is solid.

The likely scenario, it seems to me, is that a version of the current game will be ported over (as an enhanced port?) with a similar roster and maybe features based around whatever they have planned for the NX. As rumors go, this one seems very believable and even obvious. Beyond the source, Smash Bros is still relatively new and a best seller. It'd be very much counter-productive to make a title like that yesterday's news by keeping it off a piece of hardware they clearly want to move in significant numbers.