Miyamoto talks backwards compatibility, new hardware to focus on “new and unique gameplay”
Shigeru Miyamoto tackled a question this week during Nintendo’s financial results briefing this week regarding backwards compatibility. One investor asked about internal conversations Nintendo has had about this.
Miyamoto acknowledged that “software development environments have recently been gradually integrated”, which means that the concept behind backwards compatibility is now easier to accomplish At the same time though, the focus for Nintendo – which is usually the case – is “to offer new and unique gameplay that cannot be realized on existing hardware.”
Miyamoto said:
“In the past, we built a service called Virtual Console as a way for players to enjoy classic games on more modern hardware. In terms of compatibility, visual content has an advantage because it can be enjoyed continuously as long as you have a playback environment. However, legal rights for visual content can become quite complicated, so I have mentioned before that Nintendo is proceeding with visual content with a firm grip on the rights. Previously, software development for dedicated video game systems was conducted in development environments dedicated to each hardware platform. This meant that those environments could not be brought forward when the hardware changed, and it would become impossible to play software released for previous hardware without making changes. However, the software development environments have recently been gradually integrated. So, generally speaking, it has become easier to implement an environment where software released for past hardware can be played on new hardware.
Having said so, Nintendo’s strength is in our creation of new entertainment, so when we release new hardware going forward, we plan to continue to offer new and unique gameplay that cannot be realized on existing hardware.”
