Malstrom: "I blame Mario Galaxy for the Wii´s problems in Japan".

[nintendo_fanboy]

I think I can agree with him to some extent.

noname2200 made a great work in explaining a (possible) reasoning behind Malstroms statement, I don't think I have much to add. I'll write my thoughts down anyway though.

First of all, I think it would be wrong to blame the game; I haven't heard a single person saying that she didn't like the game, and I think the game is designed in a genuine way to give fun not only to longtime-fans and hardcores, but also to casuals that have started playing with the Wii.

The game was intended to be your typical "bridge game". A game that is really pick up and play, but offers a lot more depth than Wii Sports and the likes. A game that trains your skill and makes you ready for other challenges.


I think that was the intention behind Galaxy, and I think these goals were reached.

However, the mass market didn't jump on the bandwaggon. For some reason Galaxy failed to get these people playing that would need such a bridge to traditional games. I guess Nintendo themselves are struggling to find a reason for this. I don't know about advertisement, but here I haven't seen much. Failing to deliver the nostalgic factor like 2D marios could be another reason, and the people just don't want to play such games anymore could also be a reason, a fearful one though.


Of course one can't say that the Wii's bad recent performance in Japan is to blame on Galaxy, especially since the Wii was selling great during Galaxy's launch time and the following year. Still, Galaxy was one key title that failed to do its job done. Luckily enough, Mario Kart on the other hand could do it, so only one out of two was a failure.

This was more or less the same as noname2200 has said, although I think I couldn't write it down as good as he did.


Now let me add something else.
As many have pointed out, it is somehow crazy to call Galaxy a failure with sales of eight million, probably going up to nine million until everything is said and done. This is why we shouldn't fear to much about Nintendo abandoning the hardcore and stuff.

Originally, Nintendo tried to unify its fans with the help of bridge games. For that, some classic franchises have recently seen installments which were a bit dumped down; I'm especially thinking about Zelda: Phantom Hourglass now, since Mario Galaxy wasn't really dumped down, but just created in a way different audiences could enjoy it.

However, the numbers are showing now that the new audience isn't buying into these existing franchises. Most games have sold about the same amount as other games in the franchise.

So at this E3, Nintendo took a different approach. Instead of showing games for everybody, they were showing games for new gamers and old ones, which leads to a bigger amount of games overall.
This is definitely a good thing for gamers, while it is only the second best thing for Nintendo. Still, it doesn't need much thinking about making a sequel to an eight-million seller, so rest assured that also the 3D Mario's will be coming in the future.