Former Nintendo UK general manager says hardcore gamers in the team initially “poo-pooed” Nintendogs

Nintendogs is one of Nintendo’s most successful DS games having sold over 20 million units. The journey to get there wasn’t easy though. Even within Nintendo’s internally, there were doubts as to whether the game would actually succeed.

David Yarnton, former Nintendo UK general manager, told GamesIndustry that “a lot of the hardcore gamers in our team poo-pooed it.” Once they got some hands-on time though, it didn’t take long for them to be “converted”.

Yarnton said:

“I remember having seen a demo of [Nintendogs] at head office, a lot of the hardcore gamers in our team poo-pooed it. I had to laugh because weeks later, when we received samples, you could hear people talking to their puppies all across the office — the hardcore were converted.”

Yarnton also mentioned that he “had such great expectations for Nintendogs and its potential that when I put our forecasts and orders into Japan, they didn’t believe them.” In the end, “we exceeded these many times over.”

Nintendogs originally released on DS in 2005. There were three versions: Dachshund & Friends, Lab & Friends, and Chihuahua & Friends.