Nintendo, as recently as 2005 looked to be on the ropes. Sony’s Playstation and Microsoft’s Xbox had stormed the video game industry and many folks, not to mention video gamers, were quickly forgetting the once dominant player in the video game market.
Listen to our interviews with Nintendo ~ HERE (or visit the link on the bottom of this post to listen and download the interview)
After the success of the Nintendo DS and Wii however, the same systems that looked to be on the verge of knocking Nintendo out are now chasing the red hot video game company. Not only are the DS and Wii both red hot, their games dominate the sales charts, responsible for..
- 6 of the top 10 top selling games for the Christmas season
- 7 of the top 10 games for the year 2009
The most amazing part of the comeback though is that rather than adding more graphics and more intense games they did what many thought was idiotic ….. they went after non-gamers.
Specifically, they targeted younger children, women and grandparents with games that were fun but less graphic and less intense. Their commitment to this market was so complete that when they rolled out the Wii they advertised the system in such video game powerhouse outlets as …… Reader’s Digest and AARP.
AARP? Reader’s Digest?
While other systems were rolling out high powered first person shooters Nintendo focused on games like …. bowling, ping pong and Nintendogs.
While at the time many folks laughed and shook their heads now those same critics point out the genius of their strategy. Not bad for a company that started out in 1889 as a playing card company.
I have to confess that I grew up playing all of the great older Nintendo games (Super Mario Brothers, Contra, Tecmo Bowl, etc.) with my younger brother.
When I went away to college I got hooked on Sony’s Playstation and the fancier graphics they brought along. When the Wii rolled out I couldn’t really figure out what the heck Nintendo was thinking.
That was then …. now?
My old outdated Playstation is disconnected and collecting dust while my family, my sister’s family and my parents (who used to shake their heads at our love of video games) all have, and play with, our Nintendo Wii’s.
My new video game favorites ….. Wii Wakeboarding, Wii Frisbee Golf, Wii Dogfighting (little planes dragging balloons – not animals) and Wii Bowling.
Enjoy our interview with Nintendo where we cover this amazing comeback and where the company is taking us in the future ….
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
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