GameCube production halted~Nintendo clears console inventory, hints at new product

Jewels · 08-10-2003, 01:41 AM

TOKYO, Aug. 7 — Nintendo is to press the pause button on production of its Game Cube consoles while it clears inventory of unsold machines, the company’s president said on Thursday. But Satoru Iwata promised the struggling games company was developing a radical new product to be announced next year — however he gave few details save to say it would be a departure from mainstream gaming consoles “that will have a big impact on the world”.

THE HALT IN PRODUCTION will last until autumn as Nintendo struggles against competition from Sony’s PlayStation 2, the leading console in the global market, and Microsoft’s XBox. PlayStation 2 has shipped more than 51m units since its launch in 2000 compared with under 10m for Nintendos competing Game Cube, which was launched in 2001.

Mr Iwata, who gave no figures on how much inventory was left to clear, acknowledged that the group had stumbled with the Game Cube console and conceded that it had made a strategic mistake by not ensuring that it had a consistent flow of attractive software for the Game Cube.
But he cast doubt on the ability of Nintendo’s competitors to continue attracting users with games that are becoming more and more graphically sophisticated and difficult to play.
“Games that are sophisticated require a lot of time and energy,” he said. As games became more complicated, players were given up playing and this was leading to the gradual shrinkage of the market, he warned.
“We are thinking of launching a completely different kind of game.
We are confident that we can develop a product that anyone can enjoy and that will provide people with a new kind of excitement,” he said. Mr Iwata declined to provide any more details about what kind of new product Nintendo is working on, saying only that the company would make a further announcement with details next spring.
He did, however, suggest that the new console would aim to return the games industry to its roots of providing fresh excitement through games that can be enjoyed by anyone, including those who do not normally play video games.
Investors are concerned that Nintendo has not risen to the challenge provided by competitors, such as Sony and Microsoft, by targeting the casual user, which is where most of the growth in games demand has been coming from.
Earlier this year, Nintendo’s share price plunged on news that Sony would launch a handheld game, challenging Nintendo in a market that it has dominated. It was hit again when Sony announced a new multi-function machine that would combine a DVD recorder with the PlayStation. Nintendo’s share price, which closed at Y9,690 on Thursday, is 19 per cent below this year’s high of Y11,890.

Nintendo’s mission is to develop simple games that anyone can enjoy, and by doing so bring back those people who have given up playing games into the market. If Nintendo succeeds in doing that, it might even achieve sales of Y1,000bn, Mr Iwata said. That compares with sales last year of Y504bn.

http://www.msnbc.com/news/949543.asp?0dm=T1FTT#BODY

GameMaster · 08-10-2003, 02:03 AM

Interesting. Is this "radical new product" the big surprise that has been speculated for so long now?

*cough*Megaton*cough*

Stonecutter · 08-10-2003, 02:46 AM

/me sits and waits for nintendo's "radical" product to be a system that hooks up to a closed network so that gamers can play eachother in multiplayer titles with a broadband connection for a reasonable price.

GameMaster · 08-10-2003, 02:58 AM

*wakes Stonecutter up from his wonderful dream and shows him Nintendo's crappy new E-Reader Advance aka, the radical new product*

Stonecutter · 08-10-2003, 03:54 AM

It wasn't so much a wonderful dream as it was poking fun at nintendo for potentially ripping off Xbox Live and making it their own, but claiming to be revolutionary.

Idiot · 08-10-2003, 08:12 AM

Well, I just hope that this new product meets the high standards I expect of Nintendo. On the issue of a temporary production halt, I believe that it makes sense for Nintendo, seeing as videogame sales are lowest traditionally around the summer season. All in all, a very upbeat message in my opinion, even ignoring Iwata-sans unnessecerly pessimistic message.

Jonbo298 · 08-10-2003, 04:07 PM

Jewel's....posting.....'Cube news?

meh

I heard about it a couple of days ago. Not the greatest of news, but it is useless to continue making a product for a period of time, if that time period is the slowest time of the year.

Jason1 · 08-10-2003, 05:19 PM

While a revolutionay new product sounds fantastic, Im not overly thrilled with some of his other comments...the ones about making games simple...I mean I guess we really dont know what exactly he means by that...I just hope we dont see games that are so simple to the point where they're not challenging anymore...thats my biggest concern I suppouse...

Shadow Fox · 08-10-2003, 09:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stonecutter

me sits and waits for nintendo's "radical" product to be a system that hooks up to a closed network so that gamers can play eachother in multiplayer titles with a broadband connection for a reasonable price.

Um, haven't you heard how much Nintendo is against the pay-for-play practice? If Nintendo is unvieling their Gamespy plans, I'm sure they'll be for FREE, considering how much they've harped on "gamers not wanting to pay again to play a game online they just spent $50 on".

Could it be an online plan? Sure. Would it be ripping off XBL? Hell no. Infact, it would be alot closer to Sony's model right now, since they still have free online gaming going on strong right now; alongside the glorious PC an Mac online realms...

Or, it could really just be the 64-bit GameBoy prototype they've denied for four years now...

-Official Ninja of [coming soon]...

Jason1 · 08-10-2003, 10:59 PM

Or it could be something horrible like Virtual Boy. We'd all be blind if we kept playing that thing, its good that nobody ever played it.

thatmariolover · 08-15-2003, 01:01 AM

[sarcasm=OH MY GOD!!! It's the MEGATON announcement!!!!!!!!!!!]NOT!
[/sarcasm]

All kidding aside, this had better be good. I'm rather getting tired of Nintendo's lackluster performance. I'm sticking it out for them, but I am REALLY sick of their, shall we say, non-traditional way of fixing things. But I suppose, that's what makes them Nintendo. I just wish their luck would change.

Crash · 08-15-2003, 01:34 AM

i bet its a nintendo flame thrower, or nintendo machine gun....maybe nintendo nuclear warhead!!!! They said that it would change the world...but is it video game related?

DeathsHand · 08-15-2003, 01:47 AM

It had best be good... And not expensive... I spent money on me Gamecube and I sorta regret ever buying it... 200 on the system, some money on games... Sure I wanted the games I got, but if I didn't get them I could have just spent the money on some of the many PS2 games I also want...

Bah... Stupid having to get Nintendo games on Nintendo consoles...

I bet it will just end up being a big overhyped bundle of nothing special...

But hey if it's something worth buying, fine by me

PuPPeT · 08-15-2003, 11:52 AM

Oh what a surprise!!! Why does every thing that comes out of the Nintendo’s mouth of late seem to be total crap? Nintendo big “radical” rethink well just be another mad cap way of trying to save the company which will end up hurting them. Any one recall the last couple of time Nintendo use the word “radical” the N64 so called dream team of developers was one of them and also one of the most stupid things the company has ever done. Why doesn’t Nintendo just ask it fans what they want for once instead of doing what some miss guided out of touch 45 year man thinks they do. =/ It would be really sad to see Big N drop out of the console market but how long can they keep in it like they are.

Neo · 08-15-2003, 01:15 PM

I say it's a headset peripheral with a tiny gyroscope. When you look left and right the screen moves accordingly. Good for 1st person shooters.