1: zynga makes "billions" from advertisements. that is a fact. if they only sold games, they would make considerably less. as for why retail sales are down, i can only assume that is because of the recession we are in and that neither of your two choices are correct. digital distribution sales "tripling" doesn't mean squat and you know it. how much did those games cost? were advertisement based "sales" factored in? what would happen if we compared the Nintendo DS to the iPhone directly? how much total profit did game software for either make? if you're going to use data, at least use it in the right context.
The recession was in 2008-2009, not 2009-2010. I never said digital sales tripled, I said triple-digit, meaning 100% growth. How does that not matter? If iOS went from $400 million to $800 million in gaming sales in a year, how does that not mean anything?
Sales didn't include advertisments. I was talking only actual game sales. If you took iOS revenue in a head-to-head comparison to the DS, you'd find that the DS probably led it about as much as it did the PSP last year. Of course, the big issue with it is that iOS had major growth, where as the DS has crested. Take it for what you will, but my arguement has been that the iOS has a lot more blue ocean ahead of it.
2: smartphones are not foremost made for video games. you just proved it yourself by saying 30-40% of software sales are game sales. that number is not 100%. it doesn't matter how PC software sales compare (though that argument is flawed as well, since it's hard to track paypal based games, advertisement based games, item mall MMORPG games, etc. and smartphones can't stream flash games) to smartphone software sales.
If gaming products only mattered, then why did Nintendo announced a partnership with Netflix on the 3DS? Why are most console manufacturers securing deals with digital content providers and turning their products into set-top boxes instead of games alone?
3: arcade games saw a decline because video game consoles meant arcade games at home. computer games were not arcade games at home. smartphone games are not arcade games. arcade machines were designed with one game in mind. video game consoles were designed with first party games in mind. smartphones were designed with no games in mind, letting third parties fend for themselves. i will repeat this as many times as it takes.
Does it matter if games weren't the original intention?
4: i don't have a clue how you decided that anyone who has a different opinion as you is a Nintendo fan. that's just ignorant.
I wasn't trying to argue that anyone that disagreed was a Nintendo fan, but there is an awful lot of correlation between ones' ownership of Nintendo products and their reaction to my post. I'm just trying to state what I believe will be in the future for the market, and since I believe its a future that has Nintendo playing a different role in the market, you and other Nintendo fans are up in arms at my statement.
Back from the dead, I'm afraid.
