480°

Rubin: "Nintendo Is Irrelevant As A Hardware Manufacturer In The Console Business”

GameRevolution: "Former THQ president Jason Rubin recently discussed Nintendo's current state as a hardware maker, saying that the company is essentially "irrelevant" in the console space."

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gamerevolution.com
dbjj120883792d ago

And Jason Rubin should know...

Mikelarry3792d ago (Edited 3792d ago )

oooh BURN!!!!

lol if you watch the episode he was already scared after uttering those comment he had to clarify

nosferatuzodd3792d ago (Edited 3792d ago )

Nintendo will be fine 3ds is the hottest handheld right now i have a vita and i'm
getting the 3ds to play Zelda when a serious Zelda game drops for the WiiU I'm getting one has well srew the haters they hate on every company that's not Microsoft

ShinMaster3791d ago

""However, that isn't to say that he doesn't believe there is a lot of value at Nintendo, it's just found in the software.""

Let's not leave out the rest of the quote.

The thing is, Nintendo consoles and Nintendo handhelds are in two entirely different realms. Nintendo handhelds have always been extremely successful no matter what.

minimur123791d ago

and THQ are irrelevant as a publishing company :D

Cuzzo633791d ago

@ Shin
So Nintendo is to survive off just 3ds sales. Hmmm. Interestimg

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 3791d ago
3-4-53792d ago Show
colonel1793792d ago (Edited 3792d ago )

I wonder how this generation would be if Nintendo had made a console with specs on par with PS4 and Xbox One.

They have never had problems with first party. Their games are great and have heat quality and great gameplay, but they should've learned that they cannot survive on just first party, and the Wii U lacks almost every third party support.

Just look at the 3DS, the reason it is successful is because of the software it has, but most importantly, it has great third party support. Looking back, the SNES was also very successful because it had incredible support. PS1 and PS2 also dominated because of third party support.

Third party developers might be right in not wanting to develop for Nintendo because they will need to optimize their engines and games to fit in the Wii U. The same thing happened on the Wii. However, I think this time is worse since both the PS4 and XBO have the same architecture, and now it's the Wii U which is different. In the case of the PS3, the different hardware and the difficulty was something they had to deal with because the PS3 was a console that was selling well.

So, Nintendo made a big mistake going for the weakest console again. Had they released a console with specs comparable to XBO and with the controller to have the ability to use it wirelessly (like PS Vita, but without the ability to play own games), at the price of the XBO, it would have been an epic win. You would get a console with comparable specs as the XBO, a controller that you could use to play games with remote play anywhere, for the price of $450-$500, and every third party game available on the Wii U, it would have been awesome.

MONKEYDLUFFY3792d ago (Edited 3792d ago )

It simply is not true. The gamecube was the technological equivalent if not superior to the ps2 abd xbox and it still fared poorly. The gamecubes failure was solid proof that the only way nintendo can win is to make a different experience than the power console twins

colonel1793792d ago

I didn't say that it has to have great specs to sell well, but need third party support. However, in this time and age, third party publishers want as much money as possible with at least effort as possible. They won't make a modified version of their games in order to make it playable to the weaker Wii U. Maybe if it was selling much, much better, but as it's currently, Nintendo should have been better releasing a console with specs compared to PS4 and Xbox One, so that third party can easily port their games and make them available to Wii U.

It didn't happen, so Nintendo will struggle to convince developers to make games for Wii U. They have Bayonetta, and if that sells well, it would be a testament that things can get better with Wii U and third party devs might start considering the Wii U again.

So in short, third party developers won't spend more money trying to make a game for a weaker console. So Nintendo either has to sell Wii U much better to convince them. Otherwise, they should have released a more powerful console.

Prime1573792d ago

Nintendo had always done what they wanted, and they have done well with their mission statement, whatever it may be.

@monkeydluffy

GameCube didn't (exactly) fair poorly. It turned a profit. The fact that people cat that system out AND it turned a profit is an interesting thing to say about Nintendo; not good, but not bad.

ABizzel13792d ago

@colonel179

It would have really suffered IMO. Nintendo needs to market itself as a entry console and price itself at $199 - $299.

Wni03792d ago

Coulda! Woulda! Andddddd Shoulda!

lizard812883791d ago

Well, atleast the Wiiu can output 1080p, unlike the Xbox One....

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 3791d ago
fenome3792d ago

@dbjj1208

I know right? THQ went bankrupt, but now all of a sudden I keep seeing his name pop up on here when I never really heard about him before that. Now he's got all kinds of things to say.

MONOLITHICIDE3792d ago

Did you know he was the co-founder of naughty dog.

Death3791d ago

All the nice things people generally credit Mark Cerny for, they actually mean Jason Rubin. Jason was the creator of Crash which also turned out to be the mascot for Playstation for some time.

fenome3791d ago

Oh, right on, I stand corrected. Guess people didn't give his words much credit in the past then for some reason because I never saw articles about little things he said before. Looks like I'm the one with all kinds of things to say, my bad :p

Muffins12233791d ago (Edited 3791d ago )

Well do you have a wiiu?No one has one,he stated "irrelevant" and "console" he meant no one cares or buys the wiiu compared to ps4 and even xbox one.

itBourne3791d ago

I have had plenty of arguments about this, If I do get something outside my pc/ps4/ps3/handelds, it will most definitely be a Wii U over an Xbox One, why? Because Nintendo although I think it is absolutely insane to own just that console, as a secondary console Nintendo does have exclusives actually, where as Microsoft has no studio/games for me to get it as a second or first console. So for me Nintendo actually makes more sense as another console then Microsoft. Now if I was not able to get a ps4/ps3 for whatever reason then I would 100% get an Xbox One/360 over a Nintendo console.

Ol_G3791d ago

says the person who went bankrupt

Magicite3791d ago

In my time I would never believe SEGA will fall out of console business, but now I see than any company can fail, Nintendo is a no exception.

+ Show (5) more repliesLast reply 3791d ago
n1kki63792d ago (Edited 3792d ago )

Can't say I disagree from a hardware perspective, when looking at the hardware exclusively. But, I'm torn on what would happen if Nintendo would develop games for other platforms. After the Wii-u launched they said they under estimated the labor that was needed for even just a hi-def game let alone developing for multi platforms. They may benefit software wise being able to focus on their own platform, but when that platform isn't selling, than something is better than nothing.

admiralvic3792d ago

I think a lot of that has to do with Nintendo's insistence on quality over quantity, which is part of their "problem". Going off what people say about the Wii U and Nintendo in general, it seems like they would want Mario, Zelda and Metroid to be yearly series, with a development cycle similar to say Call of Duty. Like, they year 1 we get a 2D Mario, 3D Zelda (like OoT) and FPS Metroid (like Prime), then the next year we had 3D Mario, top down Zelda (like Between Worlds) and classic Metroid (like the originals).

However, Nintendo puts a lot of time and effort into their games and it shows by them lacking glitches and such you see in titles like Battlefield 4, plus they don't rely on updates (the only one I've ever seen was to fix the save bug in Pokemon...). Not putting down other games or praising Nintendo, but I am saying that they choose to develop their games that way, which is why you don't see a lot of serious problems and extremely high review scores / consumer praise.

spektical3791d ago

nintendo games which are often single player do not scale to many of the multiplatform, and physics intensive games from other publishers.

Nintendo is on a one man boat. They are churning out the quality content, but like you said its just them.

TheDivine3791d ago

True. I love Nin because of their high standards but I'd love a new handheld Fire Emblem every 18 months, a new 3s and 2d Zelda alternating every year, a 2d and 3d Metroid alternating every year, and a new Kid Icarus every 18 months or two years (all on 3ds mind you). For big console releases every three years for Zelda, Metroid, Fire Emblem, and Xenoblade would be fine. Mario is already annualized and it does fine although the New series has become genric but that's due to using the same sub series and artstyle, not being annualized.

They need to maintain quality but I can't wait a whole gen for one great console Zelda, Metroid, and Xenoblade. They need to hire more people and split their best teams into two. I'd also like Myamoto to allow their best devs to create entirely new ip's instead of being stuck on one ip or shuffled around to direct different established ip's. the main Zelda team creating an entirely new action adventure rpg would be ridiculously awesome. Same with retro creating a new scifi shooter rpg or Intelligent Systems creating a jrpg. There's so many generations of the best talent in the industry stuck directing new Kirby, Nintendoland, Wii Sports, and other not too important games.

Just my opinion though. A link Between Worlds, Kid Icarus, Metroid Prime, Xenoblade, and Fire Emblem Awakening prove why Nintendo is hands down the best devs in the industry. Sony and MS don't really have a single ip as good as a dozen Nin ip's and most are forgettable. They do get a lot of games out and far more frequently though.

itBourne3791d ago

See to me Nintendo plays it completely safe with consoles. If you keep 1 or 2 Mario and Zelda games per console gen you preserve the franchise over a longer period of time. Also, Nintendo has done nothing to innovate. Zelda/Mario games have not changed almost at all since the 64 days, why not innovate them for once? Better yet, if those games are soo good(not just getting a free pass because of the name) why not have those talented devs actually make something new. Also, why has there not been a full on Pokemon game on a console. Nintendo has no interest in actually doing something new, EVER! They literally play it safe 100% of the time. When in fact a full fledged Pokemon game or a Pokemon MMO could almost single handedly save their failing console.

admiralvic3791d ago

@ itBourne

1) Please, don't use innovate. This is quickly becoming my least favorite word used in an argument / debate / discussion (almost as bad as entitled), because people say innovate, when they actually mean something more like revision or restructuring.

For those wondering, this is what innovate actually means...

"make changes in something established, esp. by introducing new methods, ideas, or products."

Speaking literally, adding the cat suit in Mario, dog to CoD, owl to Killzone and many such things are, in fact, innovating. So while it might not be the drastic change you want, don't blame a game for not doing something that it's actually doing.

2) "Also, Nintendo has done nothing to innovate. Zelda/Mario games have not changed almost at all since the 64 days, why not innovate them for once? Better yet, if those games are soo good(not just getting a free pass because of the name) why not have those talented devs actually make something new."

I don't know what kind of drastic changes you want, nor do I know what other games have made these drastic changes (I mean, on a fundamental level, Killzone 1 and Killzone SF are about the same as Mario 64 and Super Mario 3D World using your logic), but Nintendo has changed these games up. Since the 64 days, they created Paper Mario, which is a completely different approach to the standard Mario formula. They also spun Luigi off in his own adventure called Luigi's Mansion, which has almost nothing to do with Mario and is fairly unique next to other games. They also made a portable series called Mario and Luigi, which is an RPG and plays completely different than the standard Mario Bros. games. Sure, Super Mario Bros. plays like Super Mario Bros., but the second you change it from a platformer (which lets be fair here, how different can the game get before it changes genre?), it starts to become one of the various spin offs Nintendo has done in later years.

3) "Also, why has there not been a full on Pokemon game on a console. "

I forget where I read this or when I read this, but Pokemon is a game they feel is right on portable consoles and is a social game, which is how they justify releasing 2 versions like X and Y. While some people would love an HD Pokemon game, I can understand where they're coming from. A lot of RPG fans have noted they prefer games on the PSP / 3DS / DS / PSV (hence why so many of them release on portable systems when compared to consoles), because it gives them a pick up and play feeling. I understand this to a degree, since I can pick up Pokemon for 5 - 20 minutes, do a few battles while waiting for someone or to pass the time at my desk.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 3791d ago
Ausbo3791d ago

i love nintendo. I grew up on thier consoles. But I have to say i agree. Playstation and xbox just have so much more for us since the third parties don't support the wiiU. Although it would be wierd to see, i wouldn't mind seeing mario and zelda on playstation and xbox.

knifefight3792d ago

I hope Nintendo's sales improve. Mario 3D World is great.

dbjj120883792d ago

It is. It feels a little derivative, but it is still so much fun to play in co-op.

spektical3791d ago

agreed. seen everything before in the mario game. slap on a different paint.

really fun with friends though.

for we are many3792d ago

Nintendo= Biggest Video Game company in the world.

rubin= Jobless Tool.

theDECAY3792d ago

What makes him a tool? Nintendo isn't really giving developers any motivation for putting games on WiiU. Now that the PS4 and Xbox One are out I can only see the WiiU selling less as time goes on.

Metallox3792d ago Show
for we are many3792d ago (Edited 3792d ago )

He is even worse than a tool, the guy's sinked a big name 3rd party publisher for goodness sake and still has the audacity to dismiss an essential pillar of this industry like this. You liked what he said despite the success of 3DS and the innovation in the Wii U and the level of quality in its games that use the features of Wii U to conduct the full experience. Wii U is on the comeback whether you and mr. rubin like it or not, and that's the best time for useless reports like this one, convenient isn't it?!

Soldierone3792d ago (Edited 3792d ago )

@for we are many

THQ was sunk before Jason stepped in. Paying attention to the timeline, he actually nearly saved a company that should have already went bankrupt a year before he stepped in. If he would have come sooner and had the chance to stop UDraw, I believe THQ still fights today.

PlayGamesNotConsoles3792d ago ShowReplies(2)
InTheLab3792d ago (Edited 3792d ago )

He co-founded Naughty Dog and inherited a company that was already on a downward spiral. THQ was a mess when he took over and despite trimming a lot of fat that was killing THQ, it simply wasn't enough.

Meanwhile, that little developer he started with friends has become one of the top devs in the business if not THE top.

So you might disagree with his opinion, he's most certainly not a fool.

Only a fool would blame a man for ruining a company that was ruined years prior to his arrival...

edit:

Most of you are just mad he said something you don't like about your favorite console maker and are spouting nonsense about Jason and THQ when you really don't know what you're talking about so here....I've done the work for you...

http://www.mcvuk.com/news/r...

PlayGamesNotConsoles3792d ago

@ inthelab: Tool is different from Fool, good sir.

Nintendo is successful through generations upon generations of gamers, young and old, and their franchises never faltered in quality and their hardware never cease to introduce new ideas and innovations that get adopted by the the ever changing competition almost every time and in every generation. It is really "corny" to say that Nintendo is irrelevant when they seem to be on the comeback in sales for their Wii U and achieving milestone after milestone with their 3DS and software quality while the 1st party exclusives introduced by their competitors are shrouded in mediocrity.

@Blacktric: Thank you my friend. This same effect happens sometimes in sports where fans of a newer team hate on the older and more historically established team, or sometimes more conservative team, than they love their own. It's an intriguing part of human psychology.

Back-to-Back3791d ago

I am so happy he is not apart of Naughty Dog. I personally would like to see him go to Activision or EA and send them bankrupt too.

KillrateOmega3791d ago (Edited 3791d ago )

THQ was in a downward spiral long before he arrived. If anything, he slowed down their descent into bankruptcy.

So many people here are disappointingly uninformed concerning this subject.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 3791d ago
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80°

Nintendo's Massacre Of The 3DS And Wii U Is Finally Complete, Regrettably

Hanzala from eXputer: "The cruel hammer of Nintendo has fallen. Farewell, 3DS and Wii U, you surely brightened my life and many others; you won't be forgotten."

280°

Xbox's Preservation Step Sets A Much-Needed Example, Especially For Nintendo

Hanzla from eXputer inquires: "If Xbox can care about preserving its games and legacy, what exactly is wrong with Nintendo, trying to kill game preservation single-handedly?"

purple1016d ago

Ahh yes the good old game preservation of saving all your games to a removable hhd on the Xbox 360, taking it round your mates house, setting up multiple tvs to
Be met with “save data corrupted, please re download”

Or how about removing 360 games
From the store
, download them now or else, and, better hope to god that save data doesn’t corrupt, or it’s lost for ever

Nice one ☝️

Zeref5d ago

It's better than what Nintendo and Playstation is doing. It might not be perfect but at least they are TRYING. Unlike the others.

DarXyde5d ago

Trying? Take off the blinders for a moment, mate.

1. A failure to preserve games is just that: a failure to preserve games. Don't try to sugarcoat it: NO ONE is doing it properly. Better than awful is nothing to write home about.

2. At the time of this comment, isn't it the case that you need an internet connection to play Xbox games even if you buy physical discs that are hardly in circulation anymore? I don't have a Series X and I can't verify, but I think that is correct. I'm fairly certain you can at least play PS5 games at version 1.0 (not much of a win really when many games require day one patches). I think Microsoft's all digital, licensing approach is by far more aggressive than anyone else's. They really try to push you to game pass where you lose your entire library by umm.... Skipping a month of payments.

I don't think anyone is doing it right whatsoever. Don't get me started on Nintendo, who goes after anyone looking to preserve their games better than they ever would with extreme litigation.

Don't be a simp for any of these companies. Get it together.

PhillyDonJawn5d ago (Edited 5d ago )

@DarX never speak on Xbox again. You lost all credibility with your internet connection comment. Smh you have 0 clue and misinformed yet speaking on something you don't no squat about.

Einhander19725d ago

What has Sony done exactly? You guys keep deflecting to Sony but I am not actually seeing any results, and ai am certain nothing that you can come up with even comes close to what Microsoft has done and what they have tried and failed to do, like tie all your disks to your account on xbone.

Microsoft removed their whole indie section when they moved to the xbone because they were going to only allow games on the service that came from a publisher, id@xbox started after xbone launched and it only exists because Sony embraced indie and Microsoft was forced to cancel their plans and reverse course.

And every single game that was part of games for windows live including disk games (I have gta 4 on disk that won't work) so hundreds of games that use that DRM no longer work unless the company themselves patched it out which of course very few did.

MrBaskerville5d ago

Not trying. Tried. they killed of the backcomp program years ago. They set something up again, but sounds like it's more of an attempt to save the current library on whatever they are planning next. With luck they save everything and more, but let's see. I could see them killing off parts of the OG xbox and 360 libraries. Can't imagine that they would allow us to play Forza 5-7 in the future.

With that said, I do like what they've done and really wish they could have done more.

shinoff21834d ago

Zeref

So killing off physical media is trying what exactly. Ms don't really give a fk if you think they do your kidding yourself.

Profchaos4d ago

They are not trying this team is established for forward compatability the team is. It interested in preserving Xbox or 360 games.

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 4d ago
isarai6d ago

Is that why Hellblade 2 is digital only?

Zeref5d ago

Just because it's digital only doesn't mean you can't preserve it. Just put it on an external and you have the exact same functionality of what a disc does.

MrNinosan5d ago

Guess you're trolling, but if you actually think that's how it works, I'd recommend buying some braincells.

mkis0074d ago (Edited 4d ago )

Volitile vs nonvolitile data. A disc will not corrupt either. A drive can be corrupted.

Einhander19725d ago

This is just a scammy PR move to distract from the fact they are going digital only and trying to push streaming and subscriptions only.

No gaming company has pushed harder to remove ownership than Microsoft.

Without discs there is no preservation, preservation can't be done by the rights holders it can only be done by the consumers, anything else is a lie.

5d ago Replies(3)
Einhander19725d ago

Anyone remember xblig which Microsoft removed their whole 360 indie section removing hundreds of games from people?

5d ago
5d ago
Zeref5d ago

Do you know you can put your games on an external and preserve them that way? There are no benefits to discs. ZERO. Idk why some of you are still obsessed with them.

DarXyde5d ago

Because games like Persona 5 exist. It's STILL V1.00. On Playstation, that's a win because 1.00 is installed on the disc—no need to download anything.

If a game does not require any updates, it's all on the disc.

Extremely low bar in the modern era, of course. It's not much of a win by any stretch.

But for now, physical media does have a purpose, at least on Playstation.

Einhander19725d ago

That is factually not how game licensing works, try plugging your hard drive into someone else xbox, It's not going to work, and it won't work if the licensing servers ever go down.

Einhander19725d ago

Anyone remember games for windows live.

I have around a dozen games, some on Steam itself that will not work because Microsoft shut off the licensing servers.

BehindTheRows5d ago (Edited 5d ago )

I do. I STILL have games (Gears of War being the big one) I cannot access because Games for Windows LIVE is total garbage and no one has held Microsoft accountable.

Zeref5d ago (Edited 5d ago )

You don't have an Xbox apparently. Because you can 100 percent plug in your external and play games from it on any Xbox console lol. You just have to be logged in to prove ownership.

Chevalier5d ago

"You don't have an Xbox apparently. Because you can 100 percent plug in your external and play games from it on any Xbox console lol. You just have to be logged in to prove ownership."

Damn how many times do people got to explain your idiocy to you? You can take a copy of Persona 5 like someone used as an example and play that game on ANY console WITHOUT logging in which means I can lend the game to a friend without internet and they can play my game. Can you lend your hard drive to anyone without logging in for them to play? NOPE. That is a huge difference and if you think otherwise then sorry you're an idiot.

Tacoboto5d ago

"No gaming company has pushed harder to remove ownership than Microsoft."

Ubisoft is literally erasing games people bought from their libraries... My PS1-3 discs are useless on modern hardware. Nintendo's re-published and resold almost their entire Wii U library, and the eShop is completely dead with no BC mechanism in the Switch software. Microsoft publishes everything they make today day one on Steam and Xbox/Windows. Sony only brings to PC the titles they think you might want some years later and Nintendo won't even design a functional long-lasting joystick.

You're absolutely trolling and not serious if you think Microsoft today is the worst offender.

shinoff21834d ago

Yay steam

Not everyone fks with computers though. The disc is still the best way as a console player. Period.

Tacoboto4d ago

How do Sony and Nintendo feel about these discs from 2001-2013?

Don't be stupid, you know Xbox is the best at this today.

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 4d ago
Hofstaderman5d ago

Nobody wants this. Sales or the lack of it in the case of XBOX is very telling. I wonder how the adorably all digital series X will fare. Adorably dismal perhaps?

crazyCoconuts5d ago

Only time will tell, but for from someone like me suspecting that Xbox is trying to gracefully exit the console market, that "forward compatibility" team is trying to get Xbox games playing on Windows PCs. I mean, it's nice that they're not planning on exiting with a "enjoy your games while the hardware still works" message, so that's nice. They still have a brand to protect via Microsoft so probably feel obligated to have a better exit strategy.

Xeofate5d ago (Edited 5d ago )

That is not their plan, their plan is to transfer users accounts to the cloud.

Phil Spencer himself said as much a few months back, plans could have changed but I think people are reading way too much into one statement where Phil said he would allow Epic on xbox because he wants to be able to sell xbox games directly on other platforms. Aka, instead of selling Sea of Thives through PSN he wants to have an xbox store to sell his games on PlayStation without giving PlayStation any money.

Again, it's extremely unlikely that Phil plans to put PC on xbox and licensing would prevent them from just giving out other publishers games purchased on xbox copies of thier games on PC, Microsoft does not own their games.

crazyCoconuts4d ago

The thing that doesn't align with the cloud strategy is the giving up on exclusives. You'd still need strong exclusives for cloud streaming - it's still a "platform" , just with a lower upfront hardware investment. I feel like they've learned what PS learned with PSNow long ago. We're not ready to stream games and it's only gonna lose them money to try at this point

FinalFantasyFanatic4d ago

I would love that, I'd buy up some of the Xbox games if they could run on PC, like the Rare Replay, Lost Odyssey and Dead or Alive Ultimate, probably a pipe dream though.

Show all comments (43)
90°

Nintendo's War Against Player-Made Content Will Hurt The Company In The End

Danish from eXputer: "Nintendo has historically gone against player-made content and emulation of its games. This has done much to harm the company's image."

XiNatsuDragnel12d ago

I agree nintendo hire some these folks to help in your games it'll help imo.

banger8811d ago

They need to stop announcing these mods and fan remakes until they're finished. Finish it, upload it, and then if Nintendo dmca's it tough shit. Once it's online, people can share it around, even if the original download gets taken down.

Jingsing11d ago

True, but most modders need constant admiration during the process to motivate them.

PRIMORDUS11d ago

Yup, once it's a torrent nothing can be done Nintendo is helpless at that point. But it would be wise if they just had a site on the dark web, it's also easy to use with Tor and no one will bother you.

mastershredder10d ago

This is all coming from the mouth of short-sighted fandom and grifting madness.
No.... it wont. There is a clear defined reason why they don't. This is nothing new. Make your own shi7 from your own original ideas especially if you are trying to capitalize of it it. Duh.

Yeah, hire people that have zero respect or understanding for an established process. Wow. Yep. Totally makes sense.

shinoff218310d ago

Those guys that made that sonic game got a gig from sega or something along those lines and that game was dope as hell. One of the best sonics as of late.