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Forums - Nintendo - Switch: a multi-wave console lifecycle (prediction)

 

The future of the Switch

A long life-cycle within 1 hardware revision 18 34.62%
 
A long life-cycle with ma... 28 53.85%
 
A short lifecycle then a ... 6 11.54%
 
Total:52
Louie said:
Soundwave said:

Turns out Furkawa never even actually used the terminology "longer product cycle".

It's a mistranslation added by some dumb little league gaming site. The actual quote is direct from Nintendo's site is:

https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/pdf/2020/200202e.pdf

“By placing our main focus on the Nintendo Switch, we feel we can have a very different hardware life cycle than previous Nintendo consoles.”

This was changed by Videogameschroncile site as they added the word "longer" in parentheses, this is something they pulled out of their ass for clicks and it worked because a bunch of other sites then ran with this as gospel:

https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/nintendo-is-considering-its-approach-to-future-console-development/

They mistranslated from the original Japanese version of the Q&A. The official English version supplied by Nintendo themselves does not have the word "longer".

The translation clearly was correct as that was what Furukawa was talking about! We also had the quote from a few days ago where they said the same thing. And Nintendo has been saying this for years. And by the way, when Nintendo talks about lifecycle they clearly mean the time it will take until the Switch 2 releases. You just have to read their statements! 

The translation from the B-rate gaming site was not correct, the one on Nintendo's actual website supplied for actual shareholders is the correct translation, he never used the word "longer".

Miyamoto has said it as an aspirational target but Miyamoto says 1000 different things from being fed up with casual gamers and not wanting to make anything for them anymore to making guarantees of reviving Wii U with great new uses of the second screen to the original 3DS being good enough and no new model being needed, he does not dictate business policy on a defacto level. 

Last edited by Soundwave - on 10 May 2020

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Soundwave said:
Louie said:

The translation clearly was correct as that was what Furukawa was talking about! We also had the quote from a few days ago where they said the same thing. And Nintendo has been saying this for years. And by the way, when Nintendo talks about lifecycle they clearly mean the time it will take until the Switch 2 releases. You just have to read their statements! 

The translation from the B-rate gaming site was not correct, the one on Nintendo's actual website supplied for actual shareholders is the correct translation, he never used the word "longer".

Miyamoto has said it as an aspirational target but Miyamoto says 1000 different things from being fed up with casual gamers and not wanting to make anything for them anymore to making guarantees of reviving Wii U with great new uses of the second screen to the original 3DS being perfect and no new model being needed, he does not dictate business policy on a defacto level. 

So, the one quote was apparently mistranslated (even though the meaning behind the words was clear - what else would Furukawa be talking about? A shorter lifecycle?) and the Miyamoto quote isn't enough. What about Nintendo's recent comments that have already been quoted in this thread where they said the Switch is just entering the middle of its lifecycle? Are these also not enough? Can you maybe provide a quote where Nintendo says the Switch will have a normal lifecycle or a short one? Because at this point there is no use in digging up more quotes where Nintendo says the same thing, as apparently no matter how often they say it it's never enough for you.



Louie said:
Soundwave said:

The translation from the B-rate gaming site was not correct, the one on Nintendo's actual website supplied for actual shareholders is the correct translation, he never used the word "longer".

Miyamoto has said it as an aspirational target but Miyamoto says 1000 different things from being fed up with casual gamers and not wanting to make anything for them anymore to making guarantees of reviving Wii U with great new uses of the second screen to the original 3DS being perfect and no new model being needed, he does not dictate business policy on a defacto level. 

So, the one quote was apparently mistranslated (even though the meaning behind the words was clear - what else would Furukawa be talking about? A shorter lifecycle?) and the Miyamoto quote isn't enough. What about Nintendo's recent comments that have already been quoted in this thread where they said the Switch is just entering the middle of its lifecycle? Are these also not enough? Can you maybe provide a quote where Nintendo says the Switch will have a normal lifecycle or a short one? Because at this point there is no use in digging up more quotes where Nintendo says the same thing, as apparently no matter how often they say it it's never enough for you.

Who the fuck ever says something is going to have a short product cycle? Nintendo never said that even about the Wii U.

The middle of a product cycle can mean literally a half way-point, if we're at a mid-point in March 2020 and the beginning with March 2017. If we're on an 8 hour flight and we're 4 hours in, someone saying we're in the middle of the flight isn't inaccurate or wrong. 

The point is the central quote that people use to claim that POV as gospel from Furukawa was never even actually said by him. When Nintendo releases fiscal year ends and Q&As quite often in a rush to get news out first things get mistranslated because NOA usually requires an extra day or two to put up the official English version, but that is the one people should read, not some amateur hour B-list gaming site run by 17 year olds looking for clicks. 

If you actually read the quote from Furukawa it actually seems to imply more that he's looking at different form factors for the Switch to expand upon the Lite model rather than talking about product cycle at all. The other thing is even that quote he says *software* development too, he's not talking about hardware there. 

A future software development cycle where systems can share games certainly would be different.

Last edited by Soundwave - on 10 May 2020


Who the fuck ever says something is going to have a short product cycle? Nintendo never said that even about the Wii U.

The middle of a product cycle can mean literally a half way-point, if we're at a mid-point in March 2020 and the beginning with March 2017. If we're on an 8 hour flight and we're 4 hours in, you saying we're in the middle of the flight isn't inaccurate. 

The point is the central quote that people use to claim that POV as gospel from Furukawa was never even actually said by him. When Nintendo releases fiscal year ends and Q&As quite often in a rush to get news out first things get mistranslated because NOA usually requires an extra day or two to put up the official English version, but that is the one people should read, not some amateur hour B-list gaming site run by 17 year olds looking for clicks. 

If you actually read the quote from Furukawa it actually seems to imply more that he's looking at different form factors for the Switch to expand upon the Lite model rather than talking about product cycle at all. 

Now you are talking about semantics even though it's obvious what Furukawa was trying to say. The quote about the Switch just entering the middle of its lifecycle is from the same Q&A by the way. And it's painfully clear what it means, yet you continue to argue semantics, no matter how many quotes we have from Nintendo implying the same thing again and again.

And no, he's not talking about product revisions. The question was clearly about the longevity of the Switch lol, new iterations of hardware were only mentioned as a way to prolong the lifecycle of the console. 

"Q: What are your thoughts on the business cycle, based on the trends for Nintendo Switch at the end of its third holiday season? Do you believe the Nintendo Switch lifecycle will be different from past cycles? And if so, do you think the business can expand even after growth in unit hardware sales has plateaued somewhat, or do you intend to prolong the lifecycle by diversifying the family with more hardware variations like Nintendo Switch Lite?

A: With Nintendo Switch about to begin its fourth year, the situation does feel a little different from the home consoles we've offered in the past. In addition to Nintendo Switch being a home console you can take on the go, we’re also offering Nintendo Switch Lite as a dedicated handheld version, and consumers can choose whichever best matches their lifestyle. In terms of the hardware, I think we will be able to consider a variety of ways to expand in the future. The software is no less important. As explained in the presentation, our focus now will be on the Nintendo Switch platform with its growing installed base. By focusing our software development resources on Nintendo Switch, I believe its lifecycle will follow a course that is different from our previous Nintendo home consoles."

It is painfully obvious Furukawa is talking about a longer lifecycle. But hey, he didn't use the word "longer", thus the quote doesn't count. And it's funny you accuse me of not reading stuff lol. I really don't feel like doing this anymore, as against multiple quotes from Nintendo over multiple years suggesting the same thing, against the Switch's sales trajectory and the shipment data I provided you with (and which you now simply ignore as I proved you wrong), you will just continue to argue semantics. 



Louie said:

Who the fuck ever says something is going to have a short product cycle? Nintendo never said that even about the Wii U.

The middle of a product cycle can mean literally a half way-point, if we're at a mid-point in March 2020 and the beginning with March 2017. If we're on an 8 hour flight and we're 4 hours in, you saying we're in the middle of the flight isn't inaccurate. 

The point is the central quote that people use to claim that POV as gospel from Furukawa was never even actually said by him. When Nintendo releases fiscal year ends and Q&As quite often in a rush to get news out first things get mistranslated because NOA usually requires an extra day or two to put up the official English version, but that is the one people should read, not some amateur hour B-list gaming site run by 17 year olds looking for clicks. 

If you actually read the quote from Furukawa it actually seems to imply more that he's looking at different form factors for the Switch to expand upon the Lite model rather than talking about product cycle at all. 

Now you are talking about semantics even though it's obvious what Furukawa was trying to say. The quote about the Switch just entering the middle of its lifecycle is from the same Q&A by the way. And it's painfully clear what it means, yet you continue to argue semantics, no matter how many quotes we have from Nintendo implying the same thing again and again.

And no, he's not talking about product revisions. The question was clearly about the longevity of the Switch lol, new iterations of hardware were only mentioned as a way to prolong the lifecycle of the console. 

"Q: What are your thoughts on the business cycle, based on the trends for Nintendo Switch at the end of its third holiday season? Do you believe the Nintendo Switch lifecycle will be different from past cycles? And if so, do you think the business can expand even after growth in unit hardware sales has plateaued somewhat, or do you intend to prolong the lifecycle by diversifying the family with more hardware variations like Nintendo Switch Lite?

A: With Nintendo Switch about to begin its fourth year, the situation does feel a little different from the home consoles we've offered in the past. In addition to Nintendo Switch being a home console you can take on the go, we’re also offering Nintendo Switch Lite as a dedicated handheld version, and consumers can choose whichever best matches their lifestyle. In terms of the hardware, I think we will be able to consider a variety of ways to expand in the future. The software is no less important. As explained in the presentation, our focus now will be on the Nintendo Switch platform with its growing installed base. By focusing our software development resources on Nintendo Switch, I believe its lifecycle will follow a course that is different from our previous Nintendo home consoles."

It is painfully obvious Furukawa is talking about a longer lifecycle. But hey, he didn't use the word "longer", thus the quote doesn't count. And it's funny you accuse me of not reading stuff lol. I really don't feel like doing this anymore, as against multiple quotes from Nintendo over multiple years suggesting the same thing, against the Switch's sales trajectory and the shipment data I provided you with (and which you now simply ignore as I proved you wrong), you will just continue to argue semantics. 

If you want to interpret it that way that's fine, my problem is when websites add words that are actually not in the original translation and pass that off as defacto news.