Biggest gen ever or will every gen outdo the last?

[Michael-5]

Pineapple said:

 

As a kid, I could never finish Zelda, it was too confusing for me. I only think Nintendo has made games like Brain age to expand their audience. All Nintendo games are puzzle filled, and that is a premise as to what a game is for Nintendo. By taking the story, plot, characters, and any theme out and just making a pure puzzle game, they can appeal to others. This isn't necessarily a new trend, Nintendo had Tetris as a launch title for the Gameboy, and they did make Mario's Picross back in the day.

I don't really agree with your statement of the "old" Nintendo not targeting adult gamers. Super Mario RPG, Killer Instinct, and Zelda on the SNES were clearly games that weren't specifically designed for children. Yes they didn't allow blood on Mortal Kombat in their games, but overall most of the 3rd party mature games were built for the Nintendo consoles.

I understand the point you are making, but I disagree. I think Nintendo doesn't like to make games like Gears of War, or Killzone because Nintendo wants games to be more moral. they do make games for adults, they just don't invest in shooters. That said, I don't know why Nintendo doesn't have a proper racing simulator, maybe too much competition?

Nintendo is a developer that does make games for adults, but they do it in a very different way. First of all, I don't think gamers above 30 are too interested in shooters. They have families and other things to take car of. It's only the young adults who car about shooters. I agree with you that Nintendo targets those gamers mainly through nostalgia (meaning they grew up on Nintendo and may want to stay with them), but many of Nintendo's games are just wicked fun. Fire Emblem, and Metroid Prime are two franchises young male adults will love.

I will agree with you that Nintendo doesn't have a strong focus on young male adults, but my girlfriend loved Pikmin, and Mario Kart, and my parents actually want a Wii for Mario Kart and some of the more laid back games. It's because to them, games are just something they do in their free time. They need something simple that doesn't require too much time to invest with and it has to be easy to pick up.

Children are the same, this is the group of people Nintendo mostly targets

I understand what your saying, and I think I can sum up things quite nicely. Nintendo doesn't put a strong focus on young male adults, those interested in shooters, and more violent games. However they do publish a good game now and then for this age group (Conkers Bad Fur Day for N64, Eternal Darkness and Geist for GCN, The Last Story for Wii), and they do develop some games for this group (Metroid Prime, Fire Emblem). Other then that the only way Nintendo focus's on this "hardcore" group is through Nostalgia. Donkey Kong Country, Super Mario Galaxy, and Super Smash Bros Brawl are great games, anyone of any age group can pick up and love, but it's generally more targeted at the younger audience, or the older more casual audience.

This said, Most of Nintendos games are focused on the younger, or more casual audeience, this doesn't by any means imply that a teenage male can't enjoy their games. Isn't Avatar the best selling film ever made? They do make all their games challenging by including puzzles, or by directly making games difficult (DKCR, Metroid Prime 3 Corruption, Advance Wars), and to Nintendo, thats what gaming is.

That's my view on it. Next gen, I think Nintendo will try to expand their target audience, by working with 3rd party publishers more frequently, focusing on the female audience more, and just making their next console easier to play.