If You Were President Of Nintendo...

[Sheik]

...and you had the power to govern all of the company's decisions, what would you do to bring the company back to better sales and mainstream popularity?

So, I think this goes without saying, but Nintendo is kind of a joke. Not the company, but the name. And it isn't exactly the name 'Nintendo' as it is the names 'DS' and 'Wii'. Anything with 'Wii' in it is a laughingstock among hardcore gamers and middle school kids alike.

I think if Nintendo wants to re-enter mainstream popularity, they'd have to wait until this generation ends and then release a new console with the same amount of graphical power and third-party support as Playstation and Xbox. But what should the console be named? What should be the price tag? How should it be advertised?

Basically, if you controlled all of Nintendo's decisions, what would you do? Would you keep releasing gimmicky Wii consoles? Would you release a "hardcore" console that would have the same specs as the competing consoles? Would you ditch consoles entirely and become a third-party company for Sony and/or Microsoft? Would you support the Oculus Rift?

Speak!

 

[Hanyou]

If I were in a position to do so, I'd prioritize the development if a sane cross-platform account system. Liberate VC games.

I'd also prioritize development of first party titles in both new and old franchises. The 3ds and WiiU had a dearth of games on launch. People buy Nintendo consoles for Nintendo games. Feed them.

I'd also feed niche market. JRPGs have been popular on the ds and 3ds. Appeal to markets other console developers have ignored, and promote the damn games. How much did we have to beg for Xenoblade, one of the Wii's best games, and then fight for scraps once it came out?

I'd fix the ridiculous naming schemes for hardware and games. No more "New 3ds" type names. There's just no excuse.

Realistically, as President I'd still have to listen to and appease shareholders who don't understand gaming and don't care about any of this, and I obviously wouldn't have full control over things like distribution in all markets. I'm also certain the market looks really different from that chair and much of what I've said is naive. But this post isn't about realism.

So, I think this goes without saying, but Nintendo is kind of a joke. Not the company, but the name. And it isn't exactly the name 'Nintendo' as it is the names 'DS' and 'Wii'. Anything with 'Wii' in it is a laughingstock among hardcore gamers and middle school kids alike.

While I agree that the Wii name at least has overstayed its welcome, Nintendo shouldn't try to appeal to hardcore gamers--I don't think they've ever been a target market. And if they can market well enough, middle schoolers will follow.

I think if Nintendo wants to re-enter mainstream popularity, they'd have to wait until this generation ends and then release a new console with the same amount of graphical power and third-party support as Playstation and Xbox.

Third party maybe, if they could secure exclusives, but I doubt anyone who buys Shooty-Shoot-Shoot 15 would have an interest in playing it on a Nintendo console. Appealing to third parties for multiplats seems like a pointless exercise.

So long as the focus remains on exclusives, they don't even need a powerful console; games developed with Nintendo's console in mind will look and sound more than servicable. See Xenoblade Chronicles X.

 

[the8thark]

If You Were President Of Nintendo...

I would be a little Japanese man.

Past that I would:

• Link 3DS and WiiU Virtual purchases. Buy it one, bought it for all purchases.
• create a club Nintendo channel and do all of that on console.
• Have a way to convert club Nintendo stars to eShop credits. The exchange rate would be low but better than nothing.
• Bring N64 and GC to the WiiU VC
• Move all the Wii VC content to the WiiU VC.
• Bring the originals of 3DS remakes to the WiiU VC. As in games like Xenoblade, Ocarina, MM etc etc. All would be moved tot he WiiU VC. But the original versions would be on the WiiU VC, not the 3DS remakes. This is simply to cut down on time to port each game across.
• Have the old console emulators on the console itself and not bundled in with each game. Or in other words, each download is the rom only, and the emulator comes with the WiiU OS. This will make each game smaller in size a little as you'd not be downloading the emulation software each time.
• Publicly thank the indie developers who choose to release on the WiiU again.
• Ensure all new console releases have a 1st class exclusive release to make people want to play the game and therefore buy the console. N64 had Mario 64. GC has SSB Melee, Wii had TP and Wii Sports. The WiiU had NintendoLand and nothing else really. No compelling reason to buy a WiiU on launch.
• Focus on exclusives mostly. No one really loves Nintendo for their hardware. Nintendo are loved for their games and fun. The hardware is just the price of admission to play the games.
• keep the main aim of Nintendo development to be about putting the fun into games.
• Try to understand Nintendo's target market more. And the balance between less quality games (WiiU and GC) and more games but loads of unwanted shovelware (Wii and NES)
• make the next post WiiU console game development kit a dream to use. Listen to the developers. Apple have Xcode and their Apple APIs. Nintendo need to do similar, have it's own Xcode. So it's (almost) fun to code on Nintendo consoles.
• Try to keep the console costs down for the next console but still enough specs to have good games. Nintendo has proven that fun and highly optimised games outweighs poorly made HD games. The best example is the Metroid Prime Trilogy. MP 1 and 2 are GC games re-released on the Wii and now on the WiiU. And people still today think they look amazing (and they are not wrong). And past looks, people remember all the great times playing the games cause they were fun.
• Push more into the eSports market with games like Smash Bros 4, Mario Kart (latest one), Splatoon etc etc. I'm not saying SSB Melee as Nintendo can't keep supporting a 2002 game anymore even if the fans still love it.
• Keep a good eye on stock in their inventory channels to ensure just the right amount is there. Stock shortages just piss us customers off and an overstocked inventory channel is just dead stock.
• Do more to combat eBay scalpers. The WiiU VC is the way to go here. It worked with Metroid Prime Trilogy. Those hundreds of ebay $$ are not going to Nintendo. But the $13-$26 from a Wii VC title goes right to Nintendo.
• Have limited editions of games with all the appropriate (for that game) Amiibo cards packaged in the box too. Sure you'd only get the card with the Amiibo chip and not a little figurine. But I think people would appreciate this as they would get the full content with their game. And the people who miss out of the limited editions can just buy the Amiibo cards separately. So no one misses out. For example Mario Party 10 Limited edition under my system would come with all the Super Mario edition Amiibo cards (5 of them I think) so you can unlock all the Amiibo boards.
• Expand the Nintendo garage studio and make it like the Apple University. In short this is a set up where the existing talent teach and help the new talent thrive and understand the culture of the company. This is very important. You can't just look for a replacement for Iwata or Miyamoto or Aonuma etc etc when they retire. You need to be training up their replacements now. And these blokes are not young either. They will hit retirement age sooner rather than later. There should always be new talent up and coming which the existing talent is teaching to one day take over. THis process should be never ending. You don't want a brain drain at Nintendo because a few of the old masters retire.
• Aim to stay in the black. Personally I don't care if Nintendo gross dollar one only. As long as they stay out of the red, that's all that matters. Nintendo don't have other non gaming parts of their business to prop up a loss leading gaming sector like Microsoft and Sony do. if hard decisions need to be made, so be it. Fun games and staying in the black are the two most important things for Nintendo.

If I can think of more later I'll list them in this topic.

 

[Batman]

I would immediately decentralize the corporation and help turn it into a worker's self-managed industrial syndicate, where labor would be freely undertaken and in the hands of the producers.

 

[Terror Drone]

this is an easy question duh. I would first give the games a make over and make them like infinite times cooler. Link would wear shiny blue clothes and Mario would finally get a wardrobe change, the guys has been in overalls for like 50 years, time he took a bath and changed. lol
I would then re-release all the older games on a compilation disc and sell that for loads of money. I would easy jump in giant baths of money.

 

[Iridescence]

1. Start production on Advance Wars 5 and Metroid Prime 4
2. Contact all in-house studios sans the ones that make Mario and Zelda ; and counsel them on how to not make their games stick rigidly to a formula
3. Invite reps from EA, Rockstar, Bethseda, etc. to dinner and ask them what specs they want for a future console (with 2 years notice)

 

[Salem]

I would catch the "please understand" virus.

Okay to be serious, the only thing I can think of the moment is to try to improve relations with third-party companies, try to convince them to make their games for Wii U, because it seems a lot of them get released for last-gen consoles.

 

[Iridescence]

It's not that third parties need to be persuaded. It's that they need to be listened to.

According to Bethseda, Nintendo approached them last-minute and said "hey, we have this new box. want to develop for it?". Meanwhile Sony and Microsoft approached them years earlier, gave them lots of details about the console and took their feedback.

I'm a Nintendo fan, but if I were Bethseda, I would ignore the Wii U as well.

 

[Heroine of Winds]

Three things exactly.

1. Hire and train some new blood before people like Miyamoto retire.
2. Give their consoles better names without overusing the Wii brand and the word 'New'.
3. Get better third party support.

 

[Salem]

It's not that third parties need to be persuaded. It's that they need to be listened to.

According to Bethseda, Nintendo approached them last-minute and said "hey, we have this new box. want to develop for it?". Meanwhile Sony and Microsoft approached them years earlier, gave them lots of details about the console and took their feedback.

I'm a Nintendo fan, but if I were Bethseda, I would ignore the Wii U as well.

Apparently, this is how it was with the GCN, Microsoft was more helpful with their development kit, they were available long before the first X-Box was re;eased, while Nintendo was late.

 

[Iridescence]

Gamecube, though, had the best 3rd party since NES. Especially compared to N64. But how many times does Nintendo have to make the same mistake.

I'm not expecting their next console to get full third-party because the first step to curing a problem is admitting you have a problem. And Nintendo isn't admitting it.

 

[Heroine of Winds]

Gamecube, though, had the best 3rd party since NES. Especially compared to N64. But how many times does Nintendo have to make the same mistake.

I'm not expecting their next console to get full third-party because the first step to curing a problem is admitting you have a problem. And Nintendo isn't admitting it.

The GCN was probably the last Nintendo console to have decent third party support. Nintendo dropped the ball big time with the Wii, though. I don't know how in the world Nintendo keeps making the same mistake without even bothering to fix it. It's no wonder every other company isn't making games for the Wii U. Nintendo's nothing but a joke to them.

Of course they're not gonna admit it. They're too blind to admit anything.

 

[Wolf Sage]

What does the President of Nintendo even do? Like... If it's anything like being the president of a country or something, then I think I'll pass. Must be tough for the President of Nintendo, in particular, because Nintendo fans are never satisfied with anything ever.