The Engadget Interview: Reggie Fils-Aime, Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Nintendo
By Peter Rojas 
posted Feb 20th 2006 12:54PM
posted Feb 20th 2006 12:54PM
I hardly ever agree to do phone interviews
– there's something about actually being able to sit face-to-face with someone that makes a conversation flow
– but when Reggie Fils-Aime, Nintendo's Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing, calls, you gotta accept
the charges. Read on to see what Reggie has to say about the new Nintendo DS (and how it's not
“unreasonable” to assume that a third DS is in the works), the current state of the Revolution (and how
that really is just a code name), how they're planning to introduce a new franchise on the level of
Zelda/Mario/Nintendogs at E3 this year, how underwhelmed he was by the Xbox 360, and how he absolutely, positively has
not seen that Nintendo ON video that was circulating last year. Thank you for taking a few minutes to chat with me today, I know you have a very busy schedule right now. One of the first things I wanted to ask you about is the new Nintendo DS Lite which was announced in Japan a couple of weeks ago. Is this what the DS should have been when it was first introduced back in 2004?
When the DS was first announced our focus really was on communicating to consumers and to developers the innovation that’s in that unit: two screens, a touch screen, voice activation. And we’ve certainly done that to the tune of multi-millions of units sold across the world. We really a leadership position in every market we compete in versus our competition.
In terms of the physical unit itself, from the day we first showed pictures we’ve been ongoing making tweaks and adjustments, looking to get it as beautiful and as distinctive as possible. What we showed at E3 ended up being different than what we launched with. And certainly what this iteration represents is our ongoing effort to leverage product design to make our innovations and products as attractive as possible.
We will continue to make ongoing adjustments and tweaks to our product design, always with the eye of the consumer in mind.
Does that mean we could probably expect a third iteration of the DS about 18 months from now?
I wouldn’t say that that’s an unreasonable assumption. Look at how many times we’ve improved on the Game Boy Advance in terms of the look, the feel, screen changes, and everything else. We believe that type of constant innovation is critical to driving this industry, and certainly if you look at the world wide sales of Game Boy Advance, I don’t think anyone would disagree.
Have you set a timetable for when the DS Lite will be available here in North America?
We have not announced the date and we won’t be announcing a date for the foreseeable future. We are working through our inventories and our allocations of product and frankly, we are doing everything we can just to meet current demand. Japan has already announced that they will launch in early March and they have the same challenges of meeting that very high level of demand.
We need to make sure that we have enough product in hand for us to launch effectively here in North America and as soon as we feel we are in that position we’ll announce it.
Do you think that announcing this new
version so early, before it comes out, risks cannibalizing sales of the current DS?Yeah, that is certainly a risk. But unfortunately it was a situation that couldn’t be helped in that our Japanese sales have been so strong, we’ve been out of stock essentially since the last few days in December. And that’s what drove us to announce the new design as early as we did so that we could let those consumers know that it was coming.
What sort of response have you gotten to the new Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection service for the Nintendo DS?
We feel the launch has gone spectacularly well. We launched Nintendo Wi-Fi connection with advertising that communicated the ease, the accessibility, and the match-up service that allowed consumers to play against people of their own skill level. The launch of Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection in the U.S., in Japan, and in Europe has been phenomenal. We are on track to break all types of records in terms of number of connections and number of unique users. And the software that we’ve launched is what’s driving really it.
The Tony Hawk title from Activision, our own Mario Kart DS, and Animal Crossing DS and we’re quite excited with the titles coming up. We’ve announced Metroid Prime: Hunters and Tetris DS, both WiFi compatible, both launching on the 20th of March. So we think we’ve launched extremely well, we’re quite happy with the numbers. And quite frankly, we’re prepared to bring out more and more titles to drive the service and ur objective is to get every single consumer to try Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection at least once, that’s our objective.
Now how do you respond to some of the criticisms of the service, like the lack of persistent friends?
Well, a couple of things. First the number of concerns or questions that have been raised by consumers who use the service are extremely modest. I mean we are talking hundredths of a percent of actual connections in terms of any consumers who are saying something negative about the service or the approach.
And the second point, in terms of having to have new friend codes for every game, quite frankly, what that does is put control in the hands of the gamer. So there are some people that I want to let into my house with Animal Crossing and others that I don’t, and that friend code set up allows me to manage that title by title. We think that’s the appropriate way to go.
Where is
Nintendo right now with the development of the Revolution?We have been sharing the controller mechanics with developers across the world. We have shipped over a thousand controller dev kits to developers so that they can begin getting experience with the controller mechanics. The response to the controller has been fantastic. Developers are truly embracing the innovation. They’re embracing the approach and quite frankly, they’re embracing our vision; our vision of creating games that are as sophisticated as the core gamer wants it to be but could also be as straightforward and as accessible as brand new gamers. And that vision, that strategy is what Nintendo is all about. We want to create a system with Revolution that appeals to all types of gamers versus going down a path that, frankly, is a bit exclusionary.
You mean in terms of the competition and what they’re doing?
Exactly. They have gone down a path that is very expensive for consumers, very expensive for developers to create content against, and they're providing a level of horsepower technology that not many consumers want. We in providing to consumers and to developers an approach that is certainly high-tech and certainly powerful enough to create the most sophisticated games, but also has an approach that is open for developers to create whatever type of content they want.
Do you think that not having support for high-definition will put the Revolution at a disadvantage with respect to the PS3 and the Xbox 360?
Ok.
I’m certainly not going to get into it today but, suffice it to say, the approach we’ve taken with Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection, which is all about great game play, ease of access, total control in the hands of the consumer and a fantastic experience, all of those principles will be applied to the virtual console. We fully expect that consumers who are exposed to the approach will love it. And we’ll be prepared to share that information at E3.
So networking and all that other stuff will be built into the console?
Well, you’ll see more at E3.
Has the release of Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess been pushed back once again?
No, it has not. We have gone on record that we are launching it in 2006 on GameCube and that is still the plan.
I ask because some retailers are showing June 1, while others are showing May 15. Is that about when we should expect it?
No, we have not told retailers a specific launch date and we’ll be working with all of our key retailers and sharing that information shortly, getting pre-sales set up, and really driving the buzz and the interest in this title in the way our fans want it to be. We know -- and our fans know -- that Zelda certainly will be the biggest and best title ever for GameCube. And we will market it as such and we know the consumers won’t be disappointed.
Speaking of GameCube, if you play a GameCube game on the new Revolution console, will you be able to use the Revolution controller or will you have to use the older style of controller?
Well, all of the GameCube games will be compatible only with GameCube accessories, so whether it’s a WaveBird or whether it’s a wired controller, you’ll only be able to play those titles with those accessories. Essentially what we’re saying is that Revolution titles are the only ones that will leverage the new controller.
Nintendo has said all along that the Game Boy and the DS are of parallel platforms and that the DS is not the next Game Boy, but how long will it be until we see a new Game Boy come out?
You know, that’s a great question better posed to Mr. Iwata. From my perspective, our focus is on driving Nintendo DS, launching the plethora of titles that we have coming up for this platform over the next time period, as well as driving Game Cube successfully until the Revolution launch, as well as driving Game Boy Advance.
We’ve just talked to retailers about some new titles coming for Game Boy Advance; obviously Drill Dozer has just launched and is getting very positive reviews out in the marketplace. Our plan continues to be to support all three lines of our business; the home console, DS, as well as Game Boy Advance.
Do you ever think that having two different portable platforms is confusing for the average consumer, at least from a marketing standpoint?
We have not seen that at all. Consumers understand that Game Boy Advance today really is a mass market platform. The titles available, while there are RPGs and other, more complex games, but certainly what is selling most right now are games targeted to a slightly younger demographic and it’s doing extremely well. DS, with all of the innovation, commands a higher price point and has a variety of different titles to meet those consumer needs. We have not seen any consumer confusion or misunderstanding of exactly what those two platforms are all about.
How have sales of the Game Boy
Micro been?Sales of Game Boy Micro have been exactly where we predicted them to be. It's ten to fifteen percent of total Game Boy Advance sales, targeted against a very specific demographic who want something high image, who want something unique, and that’s exactly where that product has delivered. We continue to sell it and we will continue to sell it for the foreseeable future.
Earlier you touched on the difference in philosophy between Nintendo and Sony and Microsoft. Lately when people from Sony and Microsoft talk about Nintendo, it seems like they're always trying to position the company as creating games solely for a younger demographic. How do you respond to that?
It’s categorically false. I find it quite interesting that our competitors are more interested in trying to pigeonhole us versus articulating a clear strategy amongst themselves that differentiates where they’re trying to do in the marketplace. We have been very clear in our positioning. Nintendo is about innovation and bringing new and unique game play to the consumer -- both the core gamer, as well as new gamers. And we view that mission as critical because as you look at all the demographic data, this industry can no longer rely simply on more and more young men coming of age to try gaming, and being in that, call it ten to twenty year old demographic. The fact is that that demographic is shrinking and the next cohort, their younger brothers, is even smaller.
So, for us, we view it as critical to find new ways to bring gaming to the masses. That means women, as we’ve successfully done with Nintendogs. That means older consumers, as Japan has successfully done with Brain Age and that product’s sequel. That is exactly what we will be doing here in this marketplace, not only with DS, but with Revolution as well: bringing innovation to the marketplace that satisfies the hardest of the hardcore as well as brings new consumers into the marketplace.
Is there an over
reliance on Nintendo’s long established franchises and characters, like Mario, Zelda, Metroid, and the others? It
seems like we see a new blockbuster franchise like Nintendos with decreasing frequency. Absolutely not. Nintendo has an enviable position of having the best franchises in this industry in terms of Mario and Zelda and Metroid and Donkey Kong and all of those great franchises. Together those are a library that any developer would kill for. In addition, we have the ability to create new franchises; Nintendogs, a great new franchise and the innovation that’s captured in that software is fantastic.
The Brain Training series is another new genre that has taken Japan by storm and I’m firmly convinced will take the U.S. and Europe by storm. So if anything, what we have seen from Nintendo is an ability to innovate its greatest franchise characters in brand new ways, as well as develop brand new franchises that create million unit selling titles. That’s a very enviable position to be in.
Will we see some brand new franchises for the Revolution?
Yes we will.
Something that will be as big as a Nintendogs or a Zelda?
That is certainly the goal, but you’ll have to tell me when you see it at E3. We will be showing a lot of information about Revolution at E3. You know we’ve said publicly that this year’s E3 will be Revolution’s coming out party. Now, we’ve also been quite clear that there are innovations inherent in Revolution that we will be sharing ongoing. That it is simply not a one time event for us to share information about Revolution and all of its innovation. I have seen blog entries on your site and other sites that criticize us for that, but quite frankly, it’s just good business. In terms of letting the consumer know what’s involved and sharing that information all the way up until launch.
Is Revolution going to be the final name or is it still a code name?
It is still a code name.
Will you unveil the new name at E3?
Maybe.
Have you played with the Xbox 360?
I have played with a 360.
What did you think about it?
Honestly, I was underwhelmed. And let me be clear: I played with pre-production units at last year’s E3 as well as at other industry events, I’ve played with production product, and while certainly some games look fantastic, I found the game play for many of the titles lacking. And so for me it was not something that held my interest for very long.
We certainly are looking at what they’re doing from an online perspective and I think to give Microsoft some credit, what they’ve done with Xbox Live has been very intriguing. But as a console, as a consumer, would I have shelled out what is close to $700 when you look at the premium unit, some software, some accessories? If I would’ve done that I’d be disappointed right now.
If you'll indulge me, I wanted to ask you something that I also asked Miyamoto when I sat down with him a few months ago, and that's about that Nintendo ON video that was circulating around E3 last year . It's the one where all the game play is done wearing a sort of virtual reality helmet. Have you seen it?
I have not seen that one.
You haven’t seen, but are you aware of it?
I am aware that it was done, but I have not seen it.
It sparked a lot of speculation and enthusiasm from the Nintendo community. Why do you that something like this resonated so powerfully with your fan base?
Well, a number of things. First, Nintendo is blessed with the best, most dynamic, most vocal community of players and fans of any brand in this space. And quite frankly, I am always in awe of what our fans come up with and share. It really is compelling and it really highlights the love that they have for this brand. And it’s a situation that most companies would, they certainly envy our position. Second, in terms of an innovation like a virtual reality helmet, I think that the industry, our fans – and even our competitors -- expect that type of innovation from us. They expect that we will be the ones pushing the industry and pushing the envelope with brand new ideas. And I think that’s another reason why that video resonated out in the marketplace. That’s my reaction.
So it wasn't passed around the office there?
I didn’t get a chance to see it but who’s to say if either Perrin [Kaplan] or some of my other executives didn’t get a chance to see it.
I know we don’t have a ton of time left, so one of the last things I wanted to ask you about was about how Sony and Microsoft are positioning their new consoles as multimedia digital entertainment devices in addition to gaming devices, something which Nintendo has not emphasized. Sony talks about the PSP and how it can play music and video, and while the DS can have those capabilities, it's not something Nintendo talks about very much. What is Nintendo's philosophy about all this stuff going forward? Do you see multimedia as a distraction from gaming?
Our philosophy is that consumers want great gaming experiences and our passion is delivering great gaming experiences. In the home console space, we believe that the best way to do that is with a dedicated machine. In the handheld space, as you’ve said, the DS does have other capabilities in the multimedia area, but we believe it’s important to first establish its credentials as a superb game playing device.
To be perfectly clear, the Microsoft and Sony strategies are based on overall corporate objectives versus what’s right for the consumer. That’s a reality. Microsoft is essentially trying to get you to put a PC in your living room because they are fundamentally a PC software company. Sony is trying to get you to put an entertainment hub that has Blu-ray technology because that’s important to their movie business and the rest of their entire electronics business.
We are a gaming company. We are gamers at heart. We love creating great, innovative content and superbly designed hardware, that’s what we do. And with that passion comes a laser like focus to do things that are right for the consumer and right for the business. That’s the fundamental difference in our strategy versus our competition.
Thank you so much for your time. I know this was very short notice, but it’s very much appreciated.
I have to tell you, I read both Engadget and Joystiq on a regular basis. So keep up the great work.
How many times can a single person use the word "frankly"? ^_^
Good Interview!
Yeah, good read.
Looks like we'll be importing DS Lite's for a while... :(
Fairly pointless interview where he says nothing, but the man must be crazy to say he was underwhelemed with PGR3 and CoD2 if he had any sort of proper setup (5.1, HDTV), which I imagine he has since he is an executive at Nintendo.
I'm looking forward to the Revolution but I don't think he understands that most people (esp. those who were and remain frantic for a 360) were not underwhelmed by the "regular" upcoming next-gen consoles.
A lot of industry execs seem to read engadget. You could really fix a lot of stuff wrong with the world today if you get them to listen to you guys.
"PGR3 and CoD2 if he had any sort of proper setup (5.1, HDTV)"
That's the point: very few people have that setup, and those types of folks are not necessarily who N is aiming at. I know a number of hard core gamers who are kinda done with 360 already and play their DS and PSP far more now.
ALSO: It's TOTALLY stupid to be producing anything but the DS lite now . . I cannot believe it's not on sale here at the same time as Asia. Bone. Head. Move.
I bet Ken reads Engadget, too.
Interesting...
I wonder what game franchise could compete with Nintendo's first-party lineup. "...but youll have to tell me when you see it at E3." I wonder what "it" is... could it be an e-bay game where you can always find "it" online? Or, could it be a new Segway Human Transporter game?
What is "it"?
The lack of hi-def gaming is really bugging me. Mainly because lo-def inputs look horrific on most LCDs and Plasmas.
Well to tell u the truth I own a xbox 360 and its nice but I was also underwhelmed by it, the games are nice and polished but its really nothing new and most of the time I don't even play it. I own six games on it, and thats quite abit of cash I spent on this thing hopefully things will get better, but if not ill always have my REV and ps3 to make me happy when there out.
quite frankly, every time he's says "quite frankly", a newborn puppy, quite frankly, dies. Quite frankly.
is it just me or does this guy Reggie look like a neanderthal?
I am excited for the Revolution, I think it will be the best next generation console. I wish it had HDTV support, but being that the cost will be much lower than the 360 or the Sony Ps3, I think it will sell well, even with its short comings. I really am hopeing for a Mario 64 type game, I really didnt like Mario Sunshine and it upsets me they havent made a Mario game that is as good as Mario 64. Its been way way to long. Didnt it come out in 97? almost 10 years, come on nintendo!!!
Five. That's how many times one is allowed to say "frankly". Seems to me like a certain Nintendo executive doesn't like to follow the rules...
He is playing with our minds. At the round-table discussion at E3 with Gamespot, he said that he had seen the Nintendo ON video. Now he's saying that he hasn't.
Yeah, I believe Reggie's opinion on the 360 was that it's $600+ to get everything you'd want for the console. After writing the hefty check, was the huge receipt really worth it?
"1. How many times can a single person use the word "frankly"? ^_^"
Hahaha, I was thinking the exact same thing.
Im very much anticipating the revolution, it seems like a fun console.
To be honest I was underwhelmed by the 360 too... I mean it didnt have the same effect on me when ps2 got launched. weak launch titles too.
Prateek: Certainly, a lot of people enjoy the HD graphics, but I was underwhelmed by the Xbox 360, as well. The only game I like on the system is DoA 4. Also, I know that there are a lot of gamers that may have been huge gamers in this past generation, but are bored with the next-gen. I know someone who reads ALL the gaming news sites, subscribes to IGN, EGM, and several other magaizines, owns all three systems, owns all three handhelds, and is totally obsessed with gaming, but he, as well, is just not interested in the Xbox 360, right now. It's just the same thing, with better graphics.
Most certainly there are many gamers who, for some reason or another, are entirely satisfied with better graphics. At the same time, however, there are also many gamers who want something new. Like with the movie industry, they're tired of sequels with more explosions.
Not bad. I don't think anyone was expecting any bombshells to be dropped at this time, it seems we'll have to wait for E3.
I'm glad that engadget is now getting enough attention to attract the bigger players in the business on a regular basis.
I must say I have been underwhelmed with my XBox 360. It was the biggest possible hype ever, yet, I play these games (on a 60 inch HD TV) and wonder where the big games are. XBox comes out of the bag and I mostly have bad, recycled sports games at my disposal (I choose not to mention most of the other games as they are not worth mentioning.) Yes CoD is a good game, but when I bought my "Next Gen" console, I was expecting a Next Gen experience. Bring on the Revolution.
" ...a laser like focus ...", there you go, he just hinted at the that tiny new laser projector, now I'm 100% sure that Revo will have one, and no need of a tv, imagine having a revo at a low price , and you get an awesome projector , you can even use it for DVDs or watching TV with the appropriate connections, this is the Revolution guys.
Good try Peter! Sadly he had absolutely no plans to reveal anything interesting... all PR speak - they have the best platforms, franchises, and fans. Xbox 360 underwhelmed him. No dates have been anounced on anything. Yadda yadda.
No support for HD is going to be a problem for them... given the several year life span of these consoles, a good percentage of the market will be HD. If they market to young kids it may not matter, but any teenager and older will know the system won't have the same visual ummf of a PS3 or 360.
"Microsoft is essentially trying to get you to put a PC in your living room because they are fundamentally a PC software company. Sony is trying to get you to put an entertainment hub that has Blu-ray technology because thats important to their movie business and the rest of their entire electronics business."
Thank god a company understands what most gamers want. I'm getting tired of companies trying to pack in as much as they can these days cause we "need it".
Owned a PS2, xbox, and now xbox 360...I'll be switching to revolution the day it launches. Yes underwhelmed with 360, graphics are amazing sure, but I'm ready for REAL innovation...
This was kind of sad. Just like every other spokes person they always have an excuse about an answer and covers it up with something else way off the point.
I don't get why fils-Aime said "Our philosophy is that consumers want great gaming experiences and our passion is delivering great gaming experiences". WHAT then why are the adding to the DS a Web Browser and a T.V. Tuner. Nintendo is one of my favorite companies and they are slipping.
I agree with #7. I was one of the few that waited in line for a 360 and got one. I played it a little, but now it just stares at me like "but, but...WTF?" while I am playing my DS.
I am currently using a game rental service and find myself renting more DS games. Maybe if the 360 gets a game that's not another FPS or racing game, I will look toward it again.
Here is a link to the "Nintendo ON" video.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-2863158454693395534&q=nintendo+on
Nintendo will definitely have the most unique system out of there three and honestly it looks like the most fun to me. I'll probably own all 3 which has always been the case in the past(thank you mommy :)) but graphics can only take a game so far. High AA and AF and soft shadows don't make a game fun and gaming needs a change of pase. I remember playing doom 1 on pc and it still has a very similar feel than todays fps just doesn't look as nice. Point is I, and I'm sure others, are ready for something new when it comes to gaming. Having been a gamer since I was 3 and playing them now for the last 16 years I'm ready for something to knock my socks off and I hope nintendo does it. I like how he explained Nintendos approach to the next gen consoles and it gives me faith that they will be able to develop a unique gaming experience for those of us that really want it even though it may not be as pretty as the 360 or PS3.
You should have asked him how Nintedo will be implmenting Revolution kiosks in stores, because the controller can't stay glued in place like it can for the other consoles.
Response to number 4: Speak for yourself. You don't speak for 'most' people.
Secondly, you should read the interview a bit more carefully. He said some of the games looked fantastic. Gameplay was lacking though. Thats a fair argument.
I'm 24 and I've been playing Nintendo since it came out. Now lets do the math here. The NES was launched in 1985. It's 2006. Did anyone really think that Rev, a system with 21 YEARS of backwards compatible standard definition games, was going to launch in high definition? Please. That would be retarded. It makes perfect sense why they didn't go HD. And in the process they save us some cash too.
My two cents Reggie: Call up all the old competition. Get all the old games from all the old platforms. Lock up the downloadable game marketplace fast, before Microsoft or Sony does. Become the iTunes of the video game world. And for God's sake, charge by the game. None of this month to month nonsense. If I want Zelda 2, I'm gonna drop some cash for it, and that's that.
And if you're still reading... why has the gamecube not gone portable yet? Those small discs? Think about it. You could do the same backwards compatibility as the revolution in a portable, just one generation behind. The whole wi-fi back library in the palm of your hand. It could be the iPod of the video game world.
And finally, you sure as heck better get your handheld library available for download on BOTH the DS / Next gameboy AND the Revolution.
Nintendo. All the games. Anytime. Anywhere.
-Blake
http://www.filmman.com
Well, I wasn't underwhelmed by my 360 when I got it. I thought it was great. As a matter of fact, I'm really enjoying playing Condemned right now on it. Anyone who owns a 360 and not this game is doing themselves a disservice AND you don't need an HDTV to enjoy (I've played it with both setups).
I think the lack of innovation comes from developers not hardware manufacturers. Nintendo happens to be both a hardware and software manufacturer so it may be easy for him to confuse the two. If people would invest in those companies creating and attempting to innovate the gaming industry, things would get better. As it stands now, people don't want that and keep buying Madden over and over and over again.
I agree with his comment about M$ and $ony's attempts to make you buy more of their stuff. This makes perfect sense, but at the same time, this kind of hype is the thing that a lot of hardcore and new gamers tend to fall for.
Good interview. And yes, I can't wait for Revo, DS Lite, Zelda: TP, etc.
But man (or should I say, "frankly"...), I'm so sick and tired of Nintendo telling us what *they* think we want. Nintendo has gotten nearly every major market turn of the last ten years wrong.
They stuck with cartridges when everyone went with CDs. They went with a propietary 1.5Gb format when everyone went with DVD. They pooh-poohed DVD playback, hardrives, online play, HD-functionality, and totally missed the boat on EyeToy, DDR, Guitar Hero-style innovation. Oh, and don't even get me started on their failure to embrace Americans' and Euros' love of free-roaming, realistic third-person shooters.
Perhaps their greatest crime is consistently saying that American gamers crave simplicity while they have given us arguably the most Byzantine interface ever devised: GCN-GBA Connectivity. Argh!!!!
"I don't get why fils-Aime said "Our philosophy is that consumers want great gaming experiences and our passion is delivering great gaming experiences". WHAT then why are the adding to the DS a Web Browser and a T.V. Tuner. Nintendo is one of my favorite companies and they are slipping."
HELLO!!!! these are third party addons, you don't have to buy them if you don't want to, but why not let a third party add these sorts of functionalities? the whole point of Nintendo's products is that they're gaming systems at their core and their price reflects that, but why not support third party extensions to their functionality for people who want it.
in other words, do you wanna buy a DS for $140 and add a browser (if you want) for $35, or do you wanna buy a PSP for $250 when all you wanna do is play games on it?
Great interview! And it did clear up some things. This was the clearest denial of Revocontroller compatibility for Twilight Princess I've seen so far...
@Prateek
Maybe he was underwhelmed because he already played Revolution games? :P Nah just kidding... The man stated why he was underwhelmed: for him it was lacking gameplay and no amount of pretty graphics or good audio will offset that...
the regg-anator is the man. he shines light on sony and M$ and tell u you what they really are. that, and he speaks in plain english. i'm no fanboy, but i,ve always liked nintendo for their games, and with the ds and "revolution" it's easy for them to make A+ games because they can focus on just that. with sony and M$ that isn't the case. when your console can do everything, there's no way it can do it all extremely well. that is why i can appreciate nintendo's 'laser focus' philosophy.
I agree with him about XBox 360 being underwhelming. It is a powerful machine, but nothing else. What a waste of money. In my opinion, none of the 360 games are spectacular or memorable. I'm feeling buyers remorse right now with the XBox 360. For those of you who haven't bought a 360 yet...wait. Wait for a worthwhile game to come along before buying a 360. I should've taken a wait and see approach with the 360. Right now I enjoy playing my GBA and PS2 games more than anything else. The Xbox 360 just sits there collecting dust. Disappointing.
I am definitly a fan of nitendo's divotion to the gaming world and I think they are going to do a great job with the revolution.
The only option that I think they should have reconcidered is adding HD support to thier system.
This is similar to when they released the gamecube to be the only system taht couldnt play dvd's which is inline with their devotion to gameplay, but was one of the only things that detered me from buying a gamecube for a while.
Also they should realize that in 2 years there a going to be a ton more homes with HD tv's (I hope to be one of them)
I think the DS proves you dont need better graphics over gameplay to be successful.
I'd personally like HD myself, but after seeing that they are aiming for gaming innovation over eye candy, I feel confident that they'll bring us this.
All in all, a great interview.
I love my Xbox 360! PDZero single player ONLY (Multiplayer is garbage). Condemned is actually a brilliant game, you REALLY are doing a disservice if you own a 360 and haven't played this game yet! And CoD2 really is great.
Not to mention FIGHT NIGHT ROUND 3 IS COMING OUT IN 2 DAYS WOOOOOOO!
I love the feel of my 360. I like how it links up to my main comp so I can stream music to any game. I like LIVE service, because keeping friends across ALL games really is alot better than every game having a different interface.
I am a huge MS and Nintendo fan. I did like PSone but Sony lost me as a customer with PS2. The launch was terrible and BUGGY! My PS2 died within a year. And they were accessory whores which made ALL devs reconsider ALOT of options!
Want to save your games on a PS2? Buy a memory card
Want to player 4 players? Buy a Multitap
Want to play FFOnline? NEED! a harddrive
Want to play online? Buy a network adapter or SLIM
All of those factors PLUS Sony's hype machine have REALLY made me sour towards anything Sony. If they get there act together I will think about a PS3, but right now, I am not interested.
Nintendo and MS FTW!
He says: Customers dont want a media experience from their gaming console
The truth is: We arent able to compete with the other companies in this area
He says: "They're providing a level of horsepower technology that not many consumers want."
The truth is: "They're providing a level of horsepower technology that we cant match"
He says: Innovation is important!
The truth is: Console redesigns (to screw people into 2nd purchases), identical games (pokemon sets) arent really innovative: Also, nintendo screwed up trying to be innovative so so many times.
Thank you Peter,
You asked some of the questions I had about the DS Lite release date, the next Gameboy and the Revolution online service. It sounds like E3 will be exciting.
"They have gone down a path that is very expensive for consumers, very expensive for developers to create content against, and they're providing a level of horsepower technology that not many consumers want."
I'm happy Nintendo understands this. I can not with a clear conscience pay $500 (Can) for a 360 then $60 for software and 15% tax on top of that. That's the same amount as a morgage payment for me. I just want a gaming system and that's all I want to pay for also. I'll be buying a revolution this fall but I'll be waiting awhile for a 360.
I'm also a buyer of the Xbox 360 (I stood in line overnight to get one) and I recieved Kameo with it, then I went out to buy PGR 3. I've played CoD2 at a friends house, and am on NFS:MW currently. Seriously, I am regretting trading in my Xbox for store credit. So many good games are coming out on Xbox and are NOT supported for the Xbox 360 (or atleast, not currently). I also traded in my PS2 2 years ago to get an Xbox, which was fine at the time, but now a ton of games have come out for that.
Basically, what I'm trying to say is that the Xbox 360 is a fine gaming platform, but they (Microsoft) pushed it too quickly. The games at release are not great. I'm tired of Racing games and there isn't even an RPG on the console yet (waiting for Oblivion!). If it offered true Xbox compatability, it would have been great. Alas , it does not. Their "backwards compatability" list has not been updated except to support a few Tom Clancy games. No new games have been supported. Why? Microsoft doesn't care about that. They are so focused on the Xbox 360 now. I wish I had the cash to go buy a PS2 right now, there are so many gaming experiences on that :(
"is it just me or does this guy Reggie look like a neanderthal?"
I thought he looked like the Creapy Thin Man from Charlie's Angels.
I don't care if it's the most innovative machine ever, if Madden plays in 480p on the Revolution and in 1080p on the PS3, the average person just won't buy a Revolution.
Madden is the top selling game every year, and there are millions who will make their console decision solely based on that one game.
This is a great interview. Wait, no, let me correct myself. Those were some great questions; it would have been a great interview had he answered any of them.
I understand that there's a need to keep time-sensitive secrets a secret until the time is right, but he either dodged every question or neglected to answer it outright.
What he did seem to let on, though, is something many have occassionally noted about Nintendo: They often criticize MS or Sony for trying to persuade people to want something other than gaming out of their consoles, while instead telling gamers who we are, and what it is that we want. Doesn't that offend anybody but me?
I find it interesting that so many people are "underwhelmed" with the Xbox 360. The assumption is that the PS3 and Revolution will be any different? There is no "hot content" available for any of the systems, and likely it will come first to the 360. The PS3 and Revolution will follow suit in respective time after their launches.
Before I continue, I will say that I am planning on getting a Revolution at launch. I have high hopes for the backcatalog and the new controller. But we cannot assume it will work out to our expectations in the end. As far as the PS3 goes, I will put off purchasing that as long as possible. It just sounds to be another Sony over-priced proprietary mess.
Anyway, none of the consoles really matter that much. What we are missing is a slew of new, interesting, and involving games. Whether a game is on the 360, Revolution, or the PS3, it doesn't matter as long as long as it is captivating.
I bought a PS2 for Final Fantasy, a Gamecube and DS for Metroid Prime, and an Xbox for Halo 2 and Ninja Gaiden. My point there is that games drove me to buy the consoles, not the systems themselves. We need to see more of that. It seems to me that the Nintendo DS is the only gaming system providing anything close at the moment.
These companies can say whatever they want about their hardware and/or innovation, but if the content doesn't drive the system, then power and/or innovation doesn't mean squat. Ask Sega.
Look, we already know they won't be doing "HD", but will some interviewer please please ask if they are at least supporting 480p.
Its hard for me to understand where the industry gets the low adoption of HD statistic. I would say 80% of the people I know have HD or use a computer monitor capable of 720p or higher for gaming. Lets face it, on a 720p LCD/Plasma, games that are in standard definition 480i look like shit. Progressive scan helps, but the pixelation is really glaring unless the characters are taking up most of the screen. With PC games, I can run them at 640x480 and then switch up to 1280x768 and the difference is absolutely amazing on games that DO NOT HAVE SUPPOSED "HD" textures. The higher geometry is a big win. I look at consoles from the last several years, DC, PS2, Cube, and Xbox, and I know that they could look so much better if their resolution was increased. It pained me at times to play through Dragon Quest VIII (480i) on my $1500.00 1080p screen because I know how much nicer it would look if the resolution was doubled. Those of you who have played with emulators for next gen consoles know what I'm talking about. Halo on the Xbox360 is another easy example.
Sure, graphics aren't everything and I will continue to play my SNES, Genesis, and Dreamcast possibly more than my PS2. I'd rather play low res 2D games than low res 3D games (psx anyone?) any day of the week. I will also buy a Revolution, but failing to take advantage of higher resolution and scaling up gamecube games, will make me very said. In fact it will drive me to enhance games through emulation to get the most out of them. I guess I'm just a snob thats not in Reggies target demographic. Time to go out and buy an old 32" SDTV with MAD INTERLACING SKILLZ!!!!!
"Madden is the top selling game every year, and there are millions who will make their console decision solely based on that one game."
ignorance is bliss...
There will be a lot more households with HD TVs in the future, but during the life-span of the 3 new consoles there will still be more normal TV sets than HD ones.
My point being, the majority will have low definition TVs and not be able to see HD contents.
On normal TVs Revolution games will look as good as XBox 360 and PS3 games. I'm quite sure of that.
I played some XBox 360games on a 50inch HD station in a store and wasn't overwhelmed. Sure, the graphics are very beautiful (DoA4's girls are really nice :), but that's it. The games PLAY exactly like games from this generation.
I'm fine with the graphics Gamecube, PS2 and XBox can do now on my low def screen. I don't really need better graphics, because I'm already content with what I have now.
What really would be neat is a new approach to gaming.
I hope very much that Nintendo Revolution will add something fresh and new to the gaming experience. If not, I can also stick with my old consoles from the 2 decades before.
Frankly (yeah), I don't understand some people bashing Reggie. Do you expect him to praise the competitors' machines? Come on...
I (for one) like the fact that Nintendo only makes games. I like video games. I don't want Sony's trojan horse Blue-Ray player or Microsoft's Media Player Extender. When those technologies mature, I'll take a look. Right now, they're not worth the money...
Great interview, Engadget. You ask tough questions without being confrontational, and you get out as much as possible from people that really can't share all the information they would like to. Kudos.
Best quote of the interview:
"We are a gaming company. We are gamers at heart."