I dunno. I rather liked New Super Mario Bros., even if it was too easy, and while Phantom Hourglass felt a little awkward I think that might have something to do with it being the first baby step the Zelda's team is taking.

And there are a few other examples: as GriffinA points out, Mario Kart Wii is meant to be a bridge title, which incorporates elements of the old and new (successfully, might I add). Nintendo's also trying to do something similar with Mario Sluggers (Wii Sports meets Mario Baseball, essentially) and, most likely, Punch-Out! (Wii Sports meets...Punch-Out!...?).

I'll be the first to say I don't completely see how the two would match up. But then I'll also be the first to say that I don't have the vision that Iwata's Nintendo seems to have in droves. I could never have pictured a Wii Fit, or Wii Music, let alone thought either would work. And yet...

Mind you, you could still be right, and the whole thing could end in failure. But right now, I've got a ton of faith in Nintendo.

@flames_of:

Never! We've claimed this thread in the name of cogent thought and actual discussion. We outlasted the trolls fair and square!

@Never Try I don't mind but then again there might be a mod who does ;)

I think that a conversation about what differentiates Nintendo's game-making philosophy qualifies as legitimate discussion. Don't you?

@griffinA:

I tend to think the same thing, but one can never be sure!

@ Never Try

Not till 2009, AKA Teh Year of the Wii

To Ninty fans: what type of title would MSFT have to create to keep up with Nintendo on the casual front. Also, can the XNA Comm. section make inroads into this, iyo? I believe it has the possibility.

Never, Noname!
I shall take this thread back in the name of discord and biased judgements!
I shall undo all this reasoning; logic has no place here.

But really, must we make like Tolstoy, and write essays (i.e. more than two lines, sometimes even with a modicum of grammar) on the subject?! Why can't we confine ourselves to the Cliff's Notes?

I don't know. I couldn't say. I'm not Nintendo. And basically Microsoft would just be copying Nintendo - you know that whole thing about incumbents trying to hold back the supplanters by copying their features, and how it never works? Maelstrom talks about it a lot.

I don't think any single game, or even series of games, would be able to help the 360 match the image that the Wii has created for itself.

I use my 360 mostly for demos and arcade games. I only like a handful of the games on DVD. There is no way I'd get rid of my Wii if the Newton came out.

@Khuutra
I have to agree with you, that if Nintendo successfully manages to mesh the old franchises together with the new way, that would indeed be exciting! However, I am, unfortunatly rather pessimistic about the chances of that happening.

Regarding NSMB and LoZ:PH I would say that though the games were of really high quality, the meeting of the paradigms didn't cause sparks as much as muted the glow of the games. I can see we have a difference of opinion on this matter though, and will not persue it any further.

@GriffinA - You might be right about Mario Kart Wii. I've actually never played it for more than 30 seconds (and I don't really want to either, never was a fan of racers) so... I don't know really.

EDIT: I think that Mario Kart has many, many similarities to the Wii series. It's not as much a serious game as it is a party-game. Mario Kart is never as fun as with friends, and by connecting some of the physical attributes of the new gaming to it, it is really easy to show to people that it's sharing values. That's much, MUCH harder to do with the traditional single player experiences associated with Zelda and Mario Platformers.