I've often felt that while Iwata isn't the worst CEO -- he's not the best either.

At certain point of years of losing money, Nintendo needs to shake up the management structure. Put some Western and BRIC-based executives on the board and across the company. Get a CEO who with a lot of ambition who insists on this and who doesn't care if everyone is happy, but rather puts Nintendo in a direction in which it's not atrophying itself.

They need an epic dealmaker in the head office with a global vision for gaming. Bayo 2, Devils Third, MH exclusivity are all interesting deals but they're all Japan based and focused. It's sort of predictable. They need someone who can take the charge of ideas like "We're going to revive the Turok IP and make it just as big as Halo" "We're going to Disney to lock down exclusive Star Wars games" "We're going to launch a portable handheld system in BRIC countries that will be the de facto mobile computing device". 

A Western person high up on Nintendo's board will never happen. Not in the next 10-15 years anyway, the old guard will basically have to die off first. 

Howard Lincoln is the only foreigner ever allowed on Nintendo's board and that was likely only because Yamauchi oked it and no one at Nintendo dared to question Yamauchi. And even then as I recall Lincoln was always kept fairly far down the ladder. 

The politics and red tape of Japanese business culture is pretty interesting. Unfortunately though it seems that so many Japanese businesses are having big problems adjusting to the modern age. I remember in the 90s when Sony, Nintendo, Panasonic, Toshiba, Sharp, etc. etc. were all huge brands, today really its only the Japanese carmakers (who are far more flexible) who are anywhere near as relevant as they were in the 80s/90s. 

Nintendo will probably be more profitable than Microsoft this gen (gaming departments only of course). XBONE is a failure, even with it selling so well. Just like PS3 was a failure. Numbers don't say everything. Microsoft is practically giving XBONES away for free, Nintendo can't do that because the gaming industry is the only way they make money. Microsoft makes a lot more money with Office and what not. You can't compare Microsoft's tactics with those of Nintendo. Nintendo can't just throw money at something and expect it to work.

Yeah but this doesn't really have anything to do with Microsoft, and honestly MS doesn't need any money from the game business, it's all just peanuts to them (much like a billionaire who buys a sports team ... it's a hobby for him, not a core part of his business). 

This does explain a lot about Nintendo though. 

Doesn't change the fact that the XBOX brand is not what Microsoft had hoped it would be.

To make the analogy with a billionaire buying a sports team:

Zdenek Bakala was very unhappy about the cycling team he sponsored in 2011 and demanded better results. In 2012 they dominated the cobblestone classics and won over 50 races in one season. 

So just because it's a "hobby" doesn't mean you can't be unhappy with it (and demand better results). 

Everyone should read the whole article. It's actually a very interesting read. That being said, there are pros and cons to Nintendo's business approach. The good thing about it is a lot of people are on the same page and know what's going on, unlike at Sony where every division is treated like a company within itself and we end up with corrupt film executives who make more than the company CEO and having to introduce a $1200 MP3 player. Bad decision making like that won't happen under Nintendo. The bad thing about it is the lack of actual leadership. In Nintendo of America, Reggie Fils Aime should have the most say of wether something will get done or not. In Japan, Satoru Iwata should be the guy to put his foot down.

That's fine and all, but that doesn't really have anything to do with Nintendo. I don't think MS really is all that invested in whether or not the XBox brand does great anyway. It's fun little "toy division" distraction for them a nice way to get their brand out there in a different way. 

Which is maybe a good thing because if MS really cared about the game business and winning the "console wars" they'd simply just spend Sony and Nintendo completely out of the market. 

Do you honestly think there aren't a lot of people at MS that had enough of the XBOX brand? Like I said, it's easy  to predict the fate of the XBOX. The only question is when. 

Nintendo has accepted it failed this gen and are now looking to make whatever profit they can. Next generation is a different chance for them to try.

Well I think Nintendo's issue is bigger than just one generation. 

Their issue is they're a company run by old Japanese farts who don't know the first thing about the modern market. As such I think the modern console market at least, which is almost entirely now made up of Western gamers and Western publishers, has simply passed Nintendo by. The generation can change, but if these factors are still the same then I think the result will largely be the same. 

They had a great run though particularily in the 80s/90s but I don't think they can be a force in the mainstream console market again unless they stumble onto a controller/gimmick miracle that can fuel them for another few years (and even then they will probably find a way to mismanage said fad after a few years). 

That said, I don't think Nintendo will ever go anywhere entirely, they can still make enough money to get by. It's just their relevance in the market probably won't ever be what it was in the past. But you can say the same thing about a dozen other giant Japanese companies ... does anyone give a sh*t about say Panasonic as a electronics brand these days? A lot of these once proud, giant Japanese brands are today bordering on irrelevance. 

So, shouldn't this shut-up people complaining about slow release of VC games and/or accusing Nintendo of doing nothing with their old library of games. Also, partially shuting up people always blaming and calling for Iwata's head.