How can Nintendo go on the offensive against Apple?

[Joelcool7]

milkyjoe said:

Joelcool7 said:

Iwata didn't specifically say Apple, he said 99cent smart phone games. Iwata states that the cheap smart phone games are destroying the industry and are unsustainable. I don't need to check Google I followed the keynote.See my OP below, you'll see I never said anything false. You made that up completely, Iwata has directly said that 99cent cell phone games are the biggest threat to the industry. He was obviously refering to iOS software and that was what was widely reported and everyone agreed that it was what he was getting at.

Reggie "Angry Birds is a great piece of experience, but that is one compared to thousands of other pieces of content that for one or two dollars I think actually create a mentality for the consumer that a piece of gaming content should only be two dollars.

I watched that keynote live, and then I saw the gaming media spin it into something it wasn't. Iwata didn't attack cheap smartphone games in general as was reported, he attacked poor quality cheap smartphone games, which is why he cited Angry Birds as something being done correctly.

He talked about needing to create the next must have experience, which is where he cited the likes of Nintendo's own Mario, or third party franchises like COD, Guitar Hero and Angry Birds, and that you most likely won't create the next must have piece of content on any platform if it's of poor quality. Content is king, he said.

When I go on the app store and I see stupid sound apps alongside the app stores better games in the top 25 (as of right now, there's a £1.49 app like that just outside the top 15), or I see things like 'Hair Plucker' or until recently, 'Milk the Cow' near the top of the free chart, then I understand exactly what he's talking about. No matter how well other developers are doing by creating good successful games, their efforts are undermined by people creating utter crap like that alongside them, and it's those kind of things he's refering to when he talks about devaluing the market.

It gets more hits to say he's attacking every single smartphone game in existence though.

I too watched the Keynote live and then the interviews with Reggie and such. I must say the media did spin it but Nintendo never corrected them or said contrary. Also I have chatted with NOA employees about the subject though nobody high up and with so many employees I'm not about to start quoting.

Fact is at PAX I was asking all the developers all kinds of questions and smart phones were definitely a big subject I brought up. This coupled with what other publishers like EA are saying and what Nintendo hinted at but never directly said. I have concluded that smart phone games are a real threat. Iwata's comments weren't the only ones suggesting Apple is a competitor to Nintendo. Actions speak louder then words and EA isn't alone in investing millions in developing mobile games. If developers and publishers are shifting finances and development away from your game console to another device. Then that other device is competing with you, whether it is for consumer dollars or developer support. Competition isn't exclusive to what the consumer spends their money on if you have developers leaving your product to support another product then you are competing directly with that product for developer support. Also if developers and publishers are shifting support from your console then the titles they sell are titles that should have been on your console so they are directly effecting your business.

Fact is Iwata did talk about how cheap software was a danger to more expensive software. He mentioned 99cent games and such though he did also praise Angry Birds as did Reggie. He also mentioned several things about smart phones “They are not like gaming consoles, there’s no motivation [for] high-value video games,”.

Now I don't have time or audio on my computer to re-watch the GDC conference and add quotes of my own. The gaming media blew alot of what Iwata said out of proportion but they were quoting him and nobody at Nintendo said otherwise. In fact interviews and press conferences since have also hinted at smart phones being a competitor to Nintendo. Most of the major third parties have also aknowledged smart phones as a competitor to handheld game consoles.

Its not like the gaming media twisted every single publishers opinion. Can't say the game media lied about EA openning mobile studios and investing in mobile gaming companies. Or the other publishers doing like wise, its not some big conspiracy by the media the media might be blowing it out of purportion a bit like the articles that say Nintendo is going to go under or has lost and will never come back. But they are right in the fact that smart phone games pose a threat and that developers, publishers and Nintendo themselves have either hinted or confirmed this fact.