My theory on why Nintendo is so dominant in software sales

[silicon]

OoSnap said:

I read somewhere that Nintendo sells as much software as the next top 4 publishers combined! Vgchartz' numbers seem to support the claim.

How can this be, Nintendo has been making the same type of games since the NES days you say?

That's exactly the reason why Nintendo is so dominant software wise (aside from making quality software). Over the past 15 years or so developers have been shifting more towards the male power I'm-a-bad-ass type games with a darker and more serious tone. Those type of games have a very limited appeal to the broader market.

What about the gamers that just want to have fun and don't take gaming so seriously? What about the gamer that likes lightheartedness and not keen on realistic violence? Nintendo's game catalog provides gamers with such elements and since Nintendo has less competition in that area it is much easier to be successful. And hence that is why the Wii and DS are so successful.

New Super Mario Bros. Wii has already sold 10 million and mostly likely reach at least 20 million. Yes it is pretty much the same Mario Bros. game you played when you were a youngster with added multiplayer, but there are hardly any other games like this in the market that are simple yet really fun and thus it sales like candy. The super hardcore gamer may have grown out of Mario Bros. but what about the next generation?

Kids make up a large part of the gaming market. Do publishers expect them to play Call of Duty or Left 4 Dead with complex controls, realistic violence and mature themes? When they do come out with kid friendly or broad market friendly games they are typically shovelware made by their third rate developer teams. They are leaving a lot of money on the table with their focus.

If developers or publishers were as half as smart they should take some notes from Nintendo.

Just my two cents.

 

While NSMB wii has sold more then Call of Duty MW2, the game has still sold a HUGE amount of copies.

My take on what you wrote is that there are a variety of demographics that video games can appeal to. Nintendo makes games that appeal to the greatest number of people due to being accesible games, part of which is simple gameplay, cartoon violence, and local multiplayer. The games that Nintendo is moving towards are games like Wii Fit and Wii Sports. However, while there is a market for those kinds of games, they don't appeal to me, and I am also part of a market.

I do agree that making a game for a specific market can effect the sales of the software, i.e. a fantasy RPG limits the number of sales. At the same time, developers hire artists and developers with their own inspirations to make a great game. Ask yourself the game that you would want to develp, would it be a Just Dance type of game or Mass Effect? Developers can still make money doing something they love doing.

I believe publishers lose money by making too many gambles on devs without the talent. This is good for the video game industry because developers will hopefully learn from their mistakes and eventually learn how to make great games, but it's bad for the bottom line. There's also a train of thought that the first game in a series doesn't necessarily need to be huge. It is an investment into a series/brand where success can mean huge sales in the future and make a money on sequels with relatively lower dev costs ( if they use the same engine).

 

Also sales are complicated, since advertising and branding play a huge part  in the success of a game. There are games that fit your description that don't sell well. Also, I would argue that casual gamers tend to purchase new games on average more then the hardcore gamer. This is becuase a more serious' gamer is more likely to go to a Gamestop/EB games (since they target these types of gamers). Casual gamers would buy a game from BestBuy and Wallmart, which until recently only sold new games.

At the end of the day, Nintendo expanded the gaming market and with good marketing, taking advantage of branding, and creating new ways of gaming were able to create a demand for their software.