Doug Bowser: Nintendo “learned a lot” from the NES Classic, licensing, no focus on VR right now
Posted on 7 years ago by Matt(@OnePunchMaz) in General Nintendo, News | 8 Comments
Doug Bowser, Nintendo of America’s Senior Vice President of Sales & Marketing, gave TechCrunch an interview at E3. Below are a couple of his key statements:
On the NES Classic:
“We’ve learned a lot from the NES Classic. We’ve learned there’s a real passion for retro gaming. The NES Classic was originally intended to be a holiday item and obviously there was high demand. So we doubled down and continued to produce it as we went into the next quarter. But we decided we wanted to focus on other areas. So we’re not producing any more at this point. But we’ve learned a lot.”
Miyamoto still not ready to pursue VR
Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 25 Comments
Nintendo made a big announcement yesterday by revealing that its biggest IP will grace mobile platforms. In December, Super Mario Run will be out on iOS.
While Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto acknowledges that having Mario on new platforms can keep him relevant, virtual reality is another story. He feels that the reclusive nature of the technology isn’t a good fit just yet. nintendo also wants people to play “for a long time”.
Miyamoto told USA Today in a new interview:
“I would agree that adapting Mario to new platforms is a key to keeping him relevant. But we want families to play together, and virtual reality (which requires players to be closed off from the real world) doesn’t really fit well there. We also like people playing for a long time, and it’s hard to do that in VR.”
More: interview, Shigeru Miyamoto, virtual reality
Kimishima says Nintendo needs more time and effort to assess VR tech
Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 23 Comments
Earlier today, we heard from Nintendo president Tatsumi Kimishima that the company is “looking” at VR. But not so fast: there likely won’t be any movement in this area anytime soon.
The Wall Street Journal reporter Takashi Mochizuki spoke with Kimishima following the release of Nintendo’s financial results. When asked if there’s interest in VR, he again said yes, and added that as the head of a game firm, no one can say “not interested”. However, Kimishima added that more time and effort are needed to assess technology.
More: Tatsumi Kimishima, top, virtual reality
Nintendo is “looking” at virtual reality
Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 74 Comments
Nintendo said at a financial results briefing that the company is “looking” at virtual reality. No concrete details were provided, however.
Nintendo also provided a brief update regarding its mobile plans. There are no changes in the roll out of apps.
More: top, virtual reality
Reggie: VR tech “isn’t quite there yet”
Posted on 10 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 5 Comments
Nintendo won’t be jumping on the Virtual Reality bandwagon any time soon. While it’s something the company is looking into (and “a wide range of technologies” for that matter), Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime told the Associated Press that “the technology isn’t quite there yet”.
He said:
“For us, it’s all about fun gameplay. That’s what we want. We want a fun, compelling experience. Right now, the technology isn’t quite there yet, in our view. Certainly, it’s something we’re looking at. We look at a wide range of technologies. When it’s there and enables a fun experience, we’ll be there, too.”
More: interview, Reggie Fils-Aime, virtual reality
Masahiro Sakurai talks about his interest in VR tech
Posted on 10 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 5 Comments
Masahiro Sakurai published a new Weekly Famitsu column in the magazine’s most recent issue. In his latest piece, the Smash Bros. director touched on his interest in VR technology.
First, Sakurai expressed interest in seeing VR tied into driving. “I often think to myself, ‘if only this dashboard and stuff around my feet were transparent’,” he wrote. Sakurai most enjoys seeing the world around him while driving, but he can’t see below the front of the vehicle. This is something that he believes would feel exhilarating, and the combination of gaming and VR would make it possible to experience.
Sakurai also feels that VR tech is better suited for games in which the direction of movement is fixed (think driving games). “Because, having two concepts of direction – like with movement of a tank and the rotation of its cannon – is quite complex.”
As for what sort of titles he would like to play, Sakurai commented:
“Personally, I’d like to play Jumping Flash! It’d probably be quite scary, though. You could probably make a crazy Love Plus game as well. A horror game like Resident Evil or Fatal Frame could be good, too.”
Of course, we won’t be seeing any sort of virtual reality elements in the new Smash Bros. titles (“Sadly, such a device is ill-suited for the Smash Bros. game I’m working on right now.”) But Sakurai did say he would be interested in using the tech in a first-person 3D game.
