The ideas of, the customer always being right and doing anything and everything possible to make sure the customer is happy, seem to be all but dead these days. Most companies view there customers as numbers and a sort of necessary evil in the world of large enterprise.
But I'm happy to say that the gaming industry is proving itself to be a shining light of customer service in this dark world. My experiences with Nintendo's customer service department have been an absolute pleasure. I've had my Wii since about a week after the North American launch in November of 2006. In the time since then I have had reason to pick up the phone and call Nintendo's 1-800 number a couple of times. Both times Nintendo amazed me with their willingness to do whatever it took to make sure I was taken care of in the best way possible.
The first time I called Nintendo it was because of a graphic problem that started showing up on my Wii. After having my Wii for about six months I decided to go out and buy a 42" Plasma TV. Apparently the higher resolution on my new TV set allowed me to see some graphic flaws that were unnoticable on my old TV. Within a few minutes of talking to their friendly and knowledgable staff my Wii problems were well on their way to being remedied. Nintendo and I decided it would be best to send an advance replacement system so I could test the graphical quality of two systems side by side. This was the only way that I could be sure it was my Wii and not my brand new television that was causing the problem. The replacement Wii arrived ahead of schedule and Nintendo paid for the return shipping of my faulty unit. I was impressed to say the very least.
I recently called Nintendo again, this time simply to inquire about the possiblity of getting back the Virtual Console games that I lost when the advance replacement Wii was sent to me. Now I knew full well that I had agreed to Nintendo's own legal statement when I downloaded those Virtual Console titles. I was also very well aware that an advance replacement system meant I would lose all my saved data. I decided to call them anyhow, I had nothing to lose. After talking with Nintendo's agents for awhile I was excited when they offered to compensate me for the games I had lost nearly two years ago. As far as I'm concerned there was no way that I could reasonably expect Nintendo to do anything about my lost games and I know that most other companies would have dismissed my call without a second thought. They went out of their way to make sure that I was happy and I am pleased to say that Nintendo and I will have a strong relationship for many years to come.
Digital Foundry : Doom: The Dark Ages is now receiving its path tracing upgrade on PC, so Alex and John tested it versus the standard RT graphics - and found some surprises.
The PC version is still on schedule but the console versions have been delayed.
There are many exciting updates this month for Xbox. Copilot for Gaming is available now for early preview on mobile and will be coming to PC soon. Xbox PC app introduces a wave of new updates: Aggregated gaming library gives players quick access to games from Xbox, Game Pass, and other leading PC storefronts, and with publisher channels players can browse their favorite franchises. Updates for the Xbox Console includes customization for Most Recently Used, free-to-play benefits, Game Hubs, and dialog improvements for game saves.
"Players can now hide system apps, pin favorites to the list, and reduce the number of tiles displayed. This update is part of our ongoing effort to make Home more personal, flexible, and responsive to feedback."
This is welcomed, i like a less cluttered home screen.
This is why I love Nintendo, and people ask me how come I only have a Wii, and wont buy a PS3/360 I tell them "Well Nintendo has been good to me over the years, I enjoy their games, and PS3/360 are too expensive and don't have good track records with their systems working perfectly out of the box."