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Should nintendo drop the gimmicks?

Posted: July 10th, 2017, 1:02 am
by DaHeckIzDat
The past few consoles Nintendo has released have, to me, seemed more worried about off the wall gimmicks than being actual good consoles. Not to say that I don't like the Wii, Wii U, or 3DS, I do, and I appreciate that they're trying to be innovative, but I can't help but wish they'd just drop the gimmicks and make an awesome console to play awesome games. No motion controls, no 3D, no turning into a portable console, just a good machine with good games. Am I alone here?

Re: Should nintendo drop the gimmicks?

Posted: July 10th, 2017, 2:31 am
by Sut
It's not the gimmicks I have an issue with it's the same old games released on every console. New Mario Kart, New Zelda, new Mario, etc. It's no better than the COD iterations.

Re: Should nintendo drop the gimmicks?

Posted: July 10th, 2017, 6:22 am
by Rookie1
I didnt like the motion gimmick on the Wii, and every iteration after that. I dont care if it exists, but Nintendo pushes it heavily in to the mainstream titles. Like when Twilight Princess came out, I got it for the Wii. After about 3 hours of playing that game, I got rid of it and got it for the Gamecube. I gave Skyword sword a solid try, and just couldnt do it. I just cant stand playing these long in-depth games and having to waggle my arms over and over and over.

Re: Should nintendo drop the gimmicks?

Posted: July 10th, 2017, 11:21 am
by JWK
Nintendo's biggest problem isn't hardware gimmicks or sequel fatigue. Their biggest problem is meeting demand for their systems. I've never seen a company behave the way they do. It seems they're more concerned about lining the pockets of resellers than they are with respecting their customers. Instead of this problem improving as time goes on they're doubling down.

Re: Should nintendo drop the gimmicks?

Posted: July 10th, 2017, 12:10 pm
by bluenote
Sut wrote:It's not the gimmicks I have an issue with it's the same old games released on every console. New Mario Kart, New Zelda, new Mario, etc. It's no better than the COD iterations.


Yea, I'm getting pretty burned out on the sequels too. I've played enough Mario Kart, I'm good with the 7 previous versions. Zelda? Much too long for me to be honest. Mario looks good, in that they are trying something different.

I was super hyped for the Switch before it came out, but I still haven't bought one. I'm going to wait until 2018 and see what's out for it at that point.

Re: Should nintendo drop the gimmicks?

Posted: July 10th, 2017, 4:30 pm
by eneuman96
DaHeckIzDat wrote:no turning into a portable console


It bothers me when people call this a gimmick. The portability option is anything but; it's there to give you the choice of playing games reasonably close to PS4/Xbox One quality on the go, which is something currently no other system can offer (unless you count Vita Remote Play, which is unreliable and awkward to use). I guarantee it's a huge reason the Switch is flying off the shelves even with only a few exclusives to its name out so far.

The motion controls *could* be considered a gimmick, but aside from 1-2-Switch, I can't think of any first party title that's required the use of them (even ARMS has the option to use regular controls, though the motion controls work pretty decently provided the Joy-Cons are facing the right direction), and the multiple control options are fairly convenient and interesting in theory, even if they could use some improvement in practice.

HD Rumble could also be considered a gimmick, but I think there's a possibility that Sony and Microsoft will eventually copy the idea to some degree in the future.

Re: Should nintendo drop the gimmicks?

Posted: July 10th, 2017, 5:00 pm
by Paul Campbell
Why would they want to get rid of "gimmicks?" Why not try to push the envelope a little? You only consider it a gimmick because you don't like it. But "gimmicks" can sometimes bring. Good gamers new ways to play. In case you weren't aware, not all gamers are "hardcore shooter" fans. New ways to play can open a console up to new customers. I own an A/V business. I was BLOWN AWAY by how many retired, senior couples bought the original Wii and a few games just so they could play the Wii bowling game that all of their other senior friends were playing. I got so many calls from people wanting me to come add a Wii to their system, who would never in a million years buy a Playstation or an Xbox. My kids still play some version of "just dance" on the Wii once a week or so. Is that worth the "gimmick" to you? Opening up the customer base? It is to me. Just dance is the only game my daughter plays, and we've bought 3 different versions of the game just for her. What good is it to anyone if that didn't exist? Why does it bother anyone? I don't get it. Should Sony scrap the VR immediately because it's a gimmick? Or should they allow it to flesh out and see what kind of playing opportunities it gives people? As you can see I'm getting weary of people dissing on anything that isn't a plain controller with two analog sticks because it's a "gimmick".

Re: Should nintendo drop the gimmicks?

Posted: July 10th, 2017, 5:41 pm
by Retro STrife
Nintendo has to resort to gimmicks in order to survive. Sony and Microsoft have crushed Nintendo in the traditional console sphere and Nintendo can't compete with them anymore. Many gamers forget that Nintendo had many financial woes in the late 90's and 2000's and many experts opined that they might have to switch to making software only, like Sega did. Even if you like the N64 and Gamecube, fact is they were financial disappoints for Nintendo. Sony killed them with the PS1 and PS2 and took a huge part of their market share. Back then, Nintendo's saving grace was the DS, which sold like crazy and kept their hardware division alive. The Wii, despite its gimmicks, was a huge success and finally brought Nintendo back to financial security. With that, Nintendo now realizes that they need to differentiate themselves from Sony and Microsoft in order to survive, so, rather than competing directly, they focus on unique capabilities (which some people would call gimmicks) to reach different consumers (like young gamers and casual gamers) or consumers who can justify owning two consoles. They couple that with underpowered specs to keep costs down.

Nintendo's biggest problem, in my opinion, is its complete inability to garner quality 3rd party relationships, which has really hurt every console starting with the N64. One could argue that Nintendo is the best developer in the world. But, one developer can't carry a whole system. When you own a Nintendo console you get 3 stellar games per year (all from Nintendo), with wide gaps of nothing-ness in between.

Re: Should nintendo drop the gimmicks?

Posted: July 10th, 2017, 6:50 pm
by Retro STrife
Paul Campbell wrote:Why would they want to get rid of "gimmicks?" Why not try to push the envelope a little? You only consider it a gimmick because you don't like it. But "gimmicks" can sometimes bring. Good gamers new ways to play. ..... As you can see I'm getting weary of people dissing on anything that isn't a plain controller with two analog sticks because it's a "gimmick".


I'm with you on that and enjoy all the innovative different ways to play games. But I think sometimes it's fair to call something gimmicky if it rarely ends up adding anything to gameplay or if it actually detracts from gameplay. Take the Wii, just because it's the easiest example... How many times did you think, "man, this game would be better without motion controls"? For me (and most people), plenty of times. And, outside of Wii Sports, how many games really utilized motion controls effectively and were good games to the mainstream public? Not many... I'm sure Nintendo had the best of intentions, but motion controls never really came to fruition, so I can understand if they ended up feeling gimmicky to people.

Then look at the 3DS..the 3D adds nothing to gameplay; it just looks a little better (maybe). If someone calls that a "gimmick", then I can understand that, because Nintendo played it up like a much bigger selling point when they first released the handheld. Count me among the people calling it that.

Re: Should nintendo drop the gimmicks?

Posted: July 10th, 2017, 7:25 pm
by VideoGameCritic
I think Nintendo has needed gimmicks in order to justify each new generation of hardware. They wouldn't want to compete with Sony or Microsoft in terms of raw horsepower because that really doesn't benefit their games. The motion and controls did the trick, not only moving a lot of hardware but also helping them sell first-party games.

Fortunately the Switch is their least gimmicky console in a long time. Being able to play it as a portable or full screen doesn't really compromise the gameplay (does it?)