Reality check: The NX MUST be successful.

[sc94597]

Soundwave said:

StuOhQ said:

Everyone seems to neglect the fact that Nintendo made good money on every GCN and N64 sold. Many financial journals were quick to point out that Nintendo made more money on the Gamecube than Sony made on the PS2. Nintendo was sitting on mad loot before they even launched the Wii. That's why they turned down Microsoft's billion dollar offer for Xbox 2nd party exclusitivity. 

The NX can be a failure without ending Nintendo as we know it, so long as it's a profitable failure like the N64 and GCN. 

Somewhat misleading. The GameCube almost assuredly didn't make Nintendo more money than the PS2 did. However when you factor in GBA sales, which averaged about 18 million units a year (huge numbers) then yes they did make more overall profit than just the PS2 alone. 

If we talk about hardware, it is quite simple. The GC didn't cost as much to manufacture as the PS2 and therefore, even despite the price cuts the profits Were quite decent. The PS2 was selling a lot, but selling a lot at a loss per system means you are in a hole, and all future profits are neant to get you out of said hole. HW the GC likely made a slight profit and the PS2 a slight loss. The big killer is software, and despite Sony making considerable platform royalties on third parties their first party games didn't sell at the Nintendo level. Nintendo also edged out in software profits for this reason. Handhelds just make a small profit win a much larger one.