Namco is gravitating toward Nintendo because it sold them a studio five years ago?

This piece is spottier than Steve Forbes' complexion.

I for one welcome our new Nintendo overlords. They say competition is necessary, but a lack of competition never hurt the GBA.

Too much shit bolded, didn't read.

Nintendo just needs a mainline Final Fantasy and a Tales of... game, and they're all set for Japan donimation!

A probably incomplete list of notable Japanese franchises with at least one big Nintendo-exclusive game in the past few years:
Resident Evil (Revelations, I say)
Dragon Quest
Monster Hunter
Kingdom Hearts
Shin Megami Tensei
Fatal Frame/Project Zero
Vs. Capcom
Sonic the Hedgehog

Now we can anticipate Bayonetta to join the list. Will we see more? Could a theoretical future Ninja Gaiden game become exclusive?

I'm surprised they didn't figure it out sooner.
Could Microsoft feel threaten, so much so as to re-establish their trademark over Killer Instinct? I think so.

I think Nintendo has put themselves in a really good position. The 3DS is greatly outselling the PSV, and that doesn't look to be changing anytime soon. The WiiU has a great launch lineup and looks to be another sell-out at launch. I've long thought that Nintendo needs to aquire more IPs and studios to stay relevant in the future, and it looks like that is exactly what they are doing. I think the Bayonetta 2 exclusivity is actually extremely important, perhaps more than people think. Sands are shifting, and the "hardcore" gamers know it, and that's where all the hate is coming from.
There will always be the hardcore PS360 fans that will not change their console preference, no matter what, but most of us know that that is a small portion of the gaming population. Most people will go to the platform that has the games. WiiU seems to be going in the right direction on that front. Slowly, but surely. I don't think the surprises are done yet.
PS4 and 720 are yet to be announced, but they will probably go for power again (surprise surprise?), and may price themselves out of the market. Also, devs may not want a repeat of this gen and go for the extreme again. I suspect that's why we're seeing a shift to Nintendo particularly from Japanese devs lately.

Nah, don't ruin the thread now! This is an awesome article you just posted, let's not get sidetracked in your KI anectodes.

Indeed, the article is very enlightening. For one I always thought Iwata to be an incredible strategist. He looks like nothing, but look at how far he has brought Nintendo (bar the 3DS pricepoint slip).

"Still, it’s much too early to say whether Nintendo actually poses an existential threat to Sony, or whether the latter’s current woes are merely a phase. It’s possible Sony is simply undergoing the same growing pains the rest of the industry is going through."

lol I read that as "growing PENIS"

Nintendo is doing a great job so far and there is no telling what we will see in a couple of days at TGS! keep up the good work Nintendo!

The only real threat to Sony is the internal mess of politics that prevent the company from making profit, even when they get so many things right... they fumble on a few big things and those big losses wipe out any positive revenue in other sectors.

Its an incredibly smart decision for two reasons. The exchange rate is hell for Japanese companies right now, and the stupidity and short term ignorance of Western third parties (devoted to exponential power increases and game budgets on home consoles, alongside the self flagellation over free mobile game development rather than handheld games).