"if nintendo never existed what would gaming be like?"
is it just me or is this question a kin to asking: "if the roman empire had never existed how would that change the history of western culture?"
Nintendo MADE gaming what it is today (actually sony made gameing what it is today, but nintendo made gaming what it was so sony could do that.)
Without the existance of nintendo you would not have all of their wonderful franchises (Mario, Zelda, Metroid, Pokemon, etc. etc. etc.) and all of those gems that started on the NES probably wouldn't (or might not) exist today either. (Final Fantasy is the first thing that pops into my head.)
Nintendo is a beast, the largest and most influential video game developer/publisher ever and yet I think the more interesting question is:
"What would gaming be like if Nintendo were better?"
Currently dreaming of: DKC4 or Sonic the Hedgehog 4 (classic 2D platformers) for WiiWare, Smash Bros. for DSi, New Super Mario World for DSi, a Wii remake or true sequel of Final Fantasy Tactics.
One down, hopefully more awesomeness to come.
