Did Nintendo save gaming with the NES?

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The way I see it, Nintendo rescuing gaming and "someone else would've done so at some point if they hadn't" aren't mutually exclusive.

Say you're adrift at sea with no raft or anything, but in an area where fishing ships often go. The first ship to pick you up and pull you alive from the sea can be said to have "rescued" you even if there's a likelihood that if they hadn't, another one might have come along later.

I personally think gaming would still have made a comeback eventually without Nintendo, but it still seems accurate to me to say that the NES drove its resurgence after the 2nd gen crash.

Just the way I see it anyway.