Damn, all the other sensible members got here before me.
I was essentially going to say the same as that which RolStoppable already has...Though perhaps less eloquently.
As an addendum, I believe without Nintendo a number of things would probably not be as commonplace or as well refined as they are now.
I think they were the first to introduce the d-pad/+pad, perhaps without that innovation directional gaming would have continued with the giant joysticks. Personally I think the d-pad has now had it's time, there is no need for it anymore and it is generally used just as 4 buttons.
They were not the first to introduce an analogue control stick, though I think they were to combine both directional and tilt-based analogue (ie you could move in more than 8 directions AND at different speeds)... I don't really see how something like the control stick wouldn't have become the norm for gaming at some time though as it's a natural progression from joysticks. I think in that case Nintendo just made it work first (maybe it would have been 5-6 years later when it took over)
They also introduced rumble, something which I don't really understand the appeal of in most cases (the only game I've played where I think rumble actually added anything was Eternal Darkness) but it was that kind of thing that helped push the "immersive experience" of games (like some tech for PC games now that changes lighting and blows air on you depending on what happens in game... again though I don't see the appeal, I would find that more annoying than immersive)
