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Why the Gamecube is the Last Nintendo Console I'll Ever PurchasePart ISeth Waddingham

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I have to be completely honest about something. I hate Nintendo.

There, I said it.

It hurts me deep in my bones to admit that, but its the truth. The worst part is that it wasnt always this way. My first game console was a Nintendo Entertainment System and as I grew up, Nintendo was right there with me.

And then things changed. To make sense of it all I have to go back several years

Looking back on it, I'm surprised I had such a hard time with this decision. I rifled through Toys "R" Us and Best Buy holiday ads: studying, analyzing, trying to make to make an informed choice on what would be the biggest decision of my young life.

PlayStation 1 or Nintendo 64.

The Greatest Battle of Our Time

It was Christmas time in 1997. After months of begging, my father finally caved and agreed to buy me a new console for Christmas that year. All that was left for me to do was pick which one I wanted; an absolutely agonizing decision. I would spend hours analyzing game libraries, cost of games, 2 versus 4 controllers, I used any information I could obtain to compare the two against one another. Then everything changed.

I was visiting a friend who already had a Nintendo 64. He owned every launch title and the more time I spent with Pilotwings 64 and Wave Race 64 the more I felt the PlayStation was a better choice for me. Until he put in a cartridge for a new title he received for his birthday, a game developed by Rare known as GoldenEye 007.

What do I remember most about that first playthrough? How clunky the controls were, how awkward it was to hold that controller, and how frustrating it was to have an inverted C-pad. I barely made it past the first enemy on the Dam because I couldn't figure out the C-pad. After a multitude of brilliantly placed shots at his legs and lower torso I eliminated my target, although I emptied more bullets into the ground than my foe.

"Just like how James Bond would do it", I thought.

I looked ahead to see my next victim, meticulously studying his movement patterns. Making note of when he would walk, when he would stop, until this fool made his last mistake and turned his back on me. I sprinted across the bridge and pressed the R-button, positioning my silenced PP7 for the perfect killshot, and I completely whiffed.

The gig was up, I had been discovered.

The supersoldier in his ridiculous ensemble proceeded to turn around and raise his weapon, hellbent on stopping me from bungie jumping from his precious dam. We pointed our weapons at one another for seemingly an eternity, staring into one another's souls until a single shot was fired. I watched as a large red pixel blob filled this man's chest; he slowly collapsed to his knees and finally to his stomach. Two shots, one kill.

At that moment, my brain proceeded to melt in my skull and run out of my nose all over the carpet. The Nintendo 64 had won.

To this day, GoldenEye 007 is the only game I can play with the C-pad inverted. I didn't know how to change it so I was forced to learn, and I was determined to be great at the game. If you gave me a blank sheet of paper, I could still draw every level in GoldenEye from memory, my obsession was that deep. I unlocked every cheat and beat it on every difficulty. My 007 file is one of my great early gaming achievements.

I went on to play incredible titles on the Nintendo 64. Rare went on to make Perfect Dark, which was the spiritual successor to GoldenEye. Rare also went on to make Conker's Bad Fur Day and Jet Force Gemini, highly underrated titles for the Nintendo 64. There was Winback, the Turok trilogy, and several Mortal Kombat titles in addition to Nintendo's fantastic original content. The Nintendo 64 was an undeniable high point for Nintendo, and for my money is the greatest console ever.

Riding high on what had been established in the 5th generation of gaming, Nintendo came to a fork in the road with the 6th generation of gaming consoles. Microsoft would be launching its Xbox, and Sony had secured a huge portion of the market due to the success of game series such as Metal Gear Solid, Final Fantasy, Gran Turismo, and Tomb Raider.

PlayStation 2 would feature backwards compatibility, a DVD player, several exclusive highly sought after franchises, and online capability. The Microsoft Xbox would feature a strong emphasis on online play with their Xbox live serivce, completely changing the market as a result. They also had a little known developer named Bungie create a launch title for them known as Halo that eventually drove flocks of gamers to the new console.

The Nintendo Gamecube had online, but only as an afterthought as they never developed many titles that made use of the functionality. They were transitioning to discs, so no previous Nintendo titles could be played on the console. They made use of mini-discs, so it wasn't possible to play DVDs on the console either. Nintendo went into the 6th generation of gaming riding the wave of what they had accomplished in the 5th generation, seemingly relying on the strength of their game library and original titles to attract customers.

The decisions from this point onward started Nintendo down a dark path. One that would lead to record sales numbers and profits, but at what cost to their fanbase?

Next time we'll look at the Gamecube, its impact on the 6th generation gaming market, and how it shaped Nintendo's direction going forward.

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Why the Gamecube is the Last Nintendo Console I'll Ever PurchasePart IISeth Waddingham

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In case you missed Part I of this series, please check that out HERE (insert hyperlink).

When we left off, the 6th generation of gaming was set to begin. Microsoft would be entering the market for the first time with significant financial backing for their Xbox console. Sega would make its last stand with the Dreamcast. Sony and Nintendo would hope to build on what they had established during the 5th generation of gaming with their PlayStation 2 and Gamecube, respectively.

Relative to its competitors, the Nintendo Gamecube was severely lacking in features. Nintendo made the necessary decision to utilize discs for their video games, but they made the curious decision to go with mini-discs. Obviously backwards compatibility was not an option, but the mini-disc choice also removed the ability to play DVDs. The Gamecube was also severely lacking in online support. These were features that all of Nintendo's competition excelled in. Even the Dreamcast, which was released 2 years prior to the Gamecube, had a well fleshed out online environment.

All of these factors combined lead to abysmal sales numbers for the Nintendo Gamecube. For as much as I enjoyed the Nintendo 64, it even took me a few years to purchase a Nintendo Gamecube. Frankly, I was more excited to play Metal Gear Solid 2, Halo, and Grand Theft Auto III. The Nintendo Gamecube had some really interesting games like Eternal Darkness and Dead to Rights, but the bulk of their best-selling titles were centered around their colorful, family friendly original characters.

The fact that I can only remember two exclusive Mature games for the entire life of a console is a major issue. My games don't need to be saturated with gore and sex but for the majority of gamers my age, Nintendo was the company that got us into gaming. Now we've all grown up and it feels to me like Nintendo turned its back on us, like they're the Peter Pan of the gaming world, refusing to grow up and give us the content that we want. This emphasis only helped to further alienate their adult demographic, pushing those customers to either the Xbox or the PlayStation 2.

This is how the Gamecube shaped Nintendo's future going forward. Nintendo had too few features and too few exclusive adult titles to attract new customers or maintain existing customers in the 18-24 demographic. If Nintendo was going to go into the 6th generation of gaming, they would be significantly behind both Microsoft and Sony.

With this realization, Nintendo made a choice.

That choice was that it could not compete with Sony and Microsoft in the adult gaming market and instead, they would throw all of their efforts into developing content that emphasized their family friendly image. In essence, since they were so far behind Sony and Microsoft in the mature gaming market they decided instead to target children and families.

This decision was an absolute masterstroke by Nintendo. By the time the 7th generation of gaming rolled around, Nintendo was ready to release its Wii console. The Wii was unique in that it was the first major console to introduce motion sensors to gaming, and this was a pioneering move for the industry. Microsoft and Sony quickly followed suit, introducing their own motion technology but both became a distant second to Nintendo's dominance in this market.

The Wii, together with the Nintendo DS, went on to produce records profits for Nintendo. However, let's take a quick look at the highest selling titles for the 6th generation of video games.

Notice any difference between these lists? Every one of Nintendo's best sellers is either based on their classic roster, an exploit of their motion technology or that absurd balance board, puzzle games, or a game based around puppies. Not a fan of any of those genres? Well enjoy your middle finger, compliments of Shigeru Miyamoto.

The days of Nintendo developing their own Mature content for their consoles have long passed. The days of Perfect Dark, Conker's Bad Fur Day, Dead to Rights, and Eternal Darkness are gone. Instead, they would prefer to release games that rehash the same classic characters that they've been milking for the past two decades.

Why would they do this? It's simple, because they can. Their characters are cute, fun, and wholesome. This makes them appealing to both children and adults alike. Their games are simple, so it provides a console that young children and inexperienced adults can play together.

Their characters are also absolute classics. Since so many older gamers these days were raised on Nintendo, they have a bond and an attachment to these characters. Nostalgia is a powerful force, and has made it such that these dedicated Nintendo fans will always be eager to purchase the next Nintendo console.

Normally I wouldn't think this is an issue, I understand a company has to turn a profit. However, along the way Nintendo switched from being at the forefront of games to being the console of choice for the casual or the nostalgic gamer. This is a far cry from what Nintendo was supposed to be. Their foray into mobile gaming is yet another attempt to pad their financial bottom line and to reach more young gamers with their colorful, simple games.

For this gamer, Nintendo has squeezed the last metaphorical drop of water from the stone. Nintendo's company focus on exploiting untapped markets, while ignoring the adult gamers that brought them to the apex of the industry is unacceptable.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_video_game_consoles_(sixth_generation)#Dreamcast

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_million-selling_game_consoles

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_video_game_console_launch_games#Microsoft_Xbox

http://vgsales.wikia.com/wiki/Best_selling_games_%28fifth_generation%29

http://vgsales.wikia.com/wiki/Best_selling_games_%28sixth_generation%29

http://vgsales.wikia.com/wiki/Best_selling_games_%28seventh_generation%29

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