Nintendo is an
interesting company. On one hand they are as conservative as it gets,
but on the other they always manage to surprise us with some new
inovation. I think it's this duality that has allowed them to stay
relevant up to this day. They never forget their roots, but always
strive to move forward. Of course they sometimes go overboard in both
directions. Innovation for Innovations sake is never desirable, as is
complete stillstand.
But overall
Nintendo managed to achieve a good balance I think.
Still the company
is mostly seen as living in the past, being stuck in their old ways.
But as we fans all know this is far from the truth. Nintendo is an
ever changing company with one single focus. Creating quality Video
Games for us to enjoy. Now before this introduction sounds even more
like a glorified press release, let me introduce todays topic to you.
Overall Nintendo
is a traditonalistic company. We can always count on them releasing a
new Mario Kart on a console or handheld. We always know that the next
Mario adventure is on it's way, and we can be certain that a return
to Hyrule is already planned. And we know what to expect from these
games. Great, but familiar gameplay. But today I'd like to shine the
focus on the unexpected. The decisions that took us all by surprise.
Today I'd like to talk about the five times that Nintendo has thought
outside the box. The times the left their comfort zone and created
something truly new.
5: Breath of the
Wild
Who woul'dve
thought that a series like Zelda, which is filled to the brim with
history, would appear on a list like that. And to be honest up until
e3 2016 I would've never even considered it, but then this trailer
hit and changed everything.
In just 3 Minutes
and 19 Seconds Nintendo managed to throw everything we knew about
Zelda out of the Window. A completely open World. Survival Gameplay.
Breath of the Wild looked like a different game entirely. And the
simple truth is, it not only seemed that way, but also felt unlike
any Zelda title before once you've got to play it. The new world of
Hyrule, while familiar at first sight, was something you have never
seen on a Nintendo console before.
Zelda is a storied franchise with a lot of critical acclaim. Nintendo didn't need to change anything about the formula. Skyward Sword, the last truly classic console Zelda, sold well and recieved great scores. Still Nintendo and Eiji Aonuma opted to give the series a complete shake-up. It was a huge risk fundamentally changing, what is arguaby, your most important franchise so completely, but it was a risk that, in the end, payed out.
Breath of the Wild
was a new start for Zelda. Like the original game in 1986 or Ocarin
of Time in 1998 it has set the standard for future iterations of the
series. The Legend of Zelda Breath of the Wild is one of the best
examples of Nintendo stepping outside their comfort zone. And it is
glorious.
4: Virtual Console
Nostalgia is a
huge part of Nintendos identity. Heck if you ask the right people
they will tell you that it's the only thing about Nintendo. No other
gaming company can look back on such a storied history as Nintendo.
For over 30 years they've been providing us with great games and
great memories. But in 2005 this wasn't really the case. Apart from a
Handful SNES games they had ported to the GameBoy Advance Nintendo
didn't really capitalize on their long history of games. Nobody in
the industry did. Everything was focused on moving forward. If you
wanted to enjoy the classics you'd have to find an old console at
someones yard sale. But during e3 2005 while introducing the Wii
Satoru Iwata revealed the Virtual Console.
The Wii was the
first Nintendo console with actual backwards compability. But instead
of fullfilling the standard of being able to play games from the
previous console generation they went beyond that. Via the Virtual
Console the Wii was backwards compatible towards all former Nintendo
consoles. Of course you'd had to buy the games again, but for many
this was a small price for having all of their favourite games on one
console. Now you could play A Link to the Past and Super Mario 64
back to back without the need of switching consoles.
The Virtual
Console marked the first time that Nintend truly started capitalizing
on the massive value of Nostalgia. It was a genius idea and proved
that they were capable of adapting to a new market. The Wii was the
first gaming console for a lot of people and via Virtual Console they
were given the chance to catch up on over 20 years of gaming history.
3: Donkey Kong
It seems hard to
understand nowadays, but in 1980 the world was a very different
place. And even though video games were mildly successful during that
time their appeal was still very limited. They story behind the game
is well known nowadays. In 1980 Nintendo of America was left with a
large amount of Radar Scope arcade machines, because they failed to
sell. Hiroshi Yamauchi, the president of Nintendo during that time,
tasked a young designer called Shigeru Miyamoto to create a
replacement game, which could be insterted into the machines to
replace Radar Scope. This was Miyamotos first shot at designing a
video game. He was also supervised by veteran Nintendo engineer
Gunpei Yokoi (who you might know as the father of the GameBoy)
The two
immidiatelly started working on a game concept that, for that time,
was truly revolutionary. Yokoi and Miyamoto used the graphics as a
means to characterize the hero of the game. No longer were you a
faceless character, but you controlled Jumpman on his quest to save
the beautiful Pauline from the brutish Donkey Kong. Not only that,
but the two designers also included Cutscenes and different stages.
Unheard at that time.
Donkey Kong proved
to be a huge success and the jump start for Miyamotos legendary
career. It revolutionized story telling in video games. And all that
because Nintendo thought outside the box to find a solution for the
unsold Radar Scope machines.
2: Metroid Prime:
Let's see. You
have one of your most iconic franchises, which hasn't seen a new
release in over 8 years. You want to bring it back, but it has to
adapt and change to fit into the modern gaming enviroment. Whad do
you do?
If your answer is
you hand the task to a newly founded american studio, which hasn't
released any games so far then welcome abord the board of executives
at Nintendo. Because that's exactly what happened in 2002 when
Nintendo released Metriod Prime for the GameCube.
In 2000 Shigeru
Miyamoto visited the studios of Retro in Austing, Texas. He wasn't
impressed with the prototypes of games the studio was working on
during that times, but saw a lot of potential in their
Action-Adventure Game Engine. He suggested it could be used to
develop a new game in the Metroid series. And that's not the only
thing he did suggest. He was also the driving force behind
transitioning the game into an first person perspective.
This was a bold
new step. Afterall Super Metroid is often regarded as one of the best
games of all time. To throw nearly everything about this game out of
the window and create a new experience in Metroid Prime was a huge
risk. But like with Breath of the Wild it was a risk that was very
well worth taking. Next to Ocarina of Time and Super Mario 64 Metroid
Prime is often named when talking about the perfect example of a 2D
to 3D transition. And it has cemented it's place as one of the best
games of all time. Just like its predecessor.
1: Wii
In 2005 Nintendo
was in a difficult position. Their days of ruing over the console
market were long gone. Sony had dominated them the second time in a
row with the PlayStation 2 and the Gamecube had even fallen short in
defeating the new competitor X-Box. At the end of the sixth generaion
the PlayStation 2 reigned supreme with over 150 Million Units
followed by the X-Box with 24 and then the Gamecube with 22 Million
sales. During this time Nintendo president Satoru Iwata realized
something. Nintendo couldn't compete directly with Sony and
Microsoft. So instead of entering the ever evolving hardware and
power race Nintendo instead opted for something different. Instead of
fighting for a finite amount of hardcore gamers they instead decided
to tap into a completely new market of customers. People, which up
until then, wheren't even considered to be possible buyers. People,
who had never played a video game before. Nintendo literally jumped
out of the box of pre-existing customers with the Wii.
During e3 2005
Nintendo announced the Nintendo Wii. Barely more powerful than a
Nintendo Gamecube and instead focusing on motion controls. It took
everyone by surprise. Instead of making games look better and bigger
they introduced a completely new way to play. And the reletively weak
tech had another advantage. The Wii sold for a retail price which
none of the other two consoles could come even close to.
Nintendo had
created the perfect storm. Everyone immidiatelly understood the
appeal of Motion Gaming through Wii sports and the low price made the
decission to get a Wii even easier. No matter on which side you are
on the whole Motion Gaming experience in 2006 and 2007 the Wii was
the thing to get. And at the end of the console generation, despite
it's short comings and a lackluster support during it's latter days,
the Wii reigned supreme with over 101 Million Units sold.
When did Nintendo surprise you? Did they ever? Tell me in the comments.
and as always
thanks for reading
