Nintendo - Adult Software Leader

[Bodhesatva]

shams said:
Nintendo is trying to maximise profits. Historically kids play much more video games than their parents ever did. They have more free time, and excellent buying power (i.e. "whinging"!). A game that targets adults only (i.e. 25yrs +), may only hit 10-20% of the total possible market. This severely restricts sales, and profits. Not smart. Of course as time progresses, more of us that grew up with gaming are becoming adults. The situation will starting to change, and we are seeing more games that adults (primarily) would buy rather than children. GTA is the perfect example... it is NOT a game targeted at adults. I know several children under the age of 10 who actively play it, and many, many teenagers around the 15yr bracket. It might deal with more mature themes (violence, drugs, sex, killing) - but it is not a game for adults. A daily/time organiser may be an example of an "Adult" piece of software. Its boring, and only had a practical, everyday use - primarily for adults. You don't see a lot of these released for game machines (surprisingly they wouldn't really sell).

Yep, I largely agree with this, Shams. I always think it's odd when people suggest that Metal Gear Solid, Grand Theft Auto, God of War, or similar titles are for "adults." I certainly wouldn't say that they're focused on children, and I wouldn't deny that some adults play them, but I'd say all of those games (and similar titles) are focused on young men (specifically men) age 18-25. I'm not slandering them, by any means: I really enjoyed the original MGS, for example. I'm just saying they're not for adults anymore than, say, Mission Impossible or 300 are for adults (and I think those two movies align quite well with MGS and God of War in terms of theme and market direction). The 18-25 year old age bracket is huge. Not just in video games: 18-25 year old males are an enormous profit maker in any entertainment venue, be it TV or Movies or Music. And it's an even bigger deal in Video Games than in those other venues. So it makes complete sense to make games for that age bracket. Ultimately, I think Nintendo is better at making games for kids and adults than either Microsoft or Sony -- again, assuming by "adult" we mean "people age 25+" and not simply "something that has lots of sex and violence." What I believe Nintendo is weaker at is reaching the 18-25 year old age bracket. Again, that has its advantages and disadvantages: traditionally, it's mainly been a bad thing, because the 25+ market for games has been smaller than that of 5-18 or especially of 18-25. That's clearly changing, so it's not such a bad thing anymore, but we don't really know the full extent of it yet.