Speaking of lack of appeal, the second problem with franchise baggage is how it may end up limiting the appeal of a title in the franchise. A franchise title on the shelf immediately brings impressions to the mind of a potential purchaser. As I touched on previously, publishers usually like this effect since a new entry in a successful franchise brings effectively guaranteed sales as those who enjoyed the previous entries will flock to the new title (though it should be noted they get cranky if the game isn't what they expect--as exemplified by Zelda II.) The flipside of this effect is that someone who otherwise might enjoy a title may be put off by the franchise it's tied to. They may have already played a game in the franchise they did not enjoy, or they may have seen others playing a game in the franchise and decided it was not something they wanted to get into. Regardless of the game's potential for them, they've decided it's not territory they want to approach.
Nintendo could have opted to actually use this effect to their advantage by showing new entries in one of their proven market-expanding franchises, such as the Brain Training franchise or Nintendogs. They did not do this; they showed Metroid, Legend of Zelda, Super Mario, and Wario Ware, proven franchises from their old strategies. Of these, the first three would be rightly avoided by the types of people Nintendo is purportedly trying to reach with their Blue Ocean strategy. Their control schemes are based on the nunchaku-Remote combination. With the exception of Super Mario Galaxy, they do not even appear to be trying to be accessible. Wario Ware, on the other hand, is actually an accessible game, but its franchise (which appears on its surface to be Mario--and before you call me out, recall that the people in the Blue Ocean segment aren't going to be inclined to read up on the history of Wario) may limit its appeal.
The franchise-free titles Nintendo showed included Project H.A.M.M.E.R., a title limited in its Blue Ocean appeal both by the use of the nunchaku and its look. The latter puts it squarely in, as a Blue Ocean buyer would see it, the class of games you'd buy for your teenage nephew. This leaves Nintendo with two demos and a title.
It's no surprise Wii Sports was talked about a lot in mainstream press circles. To start with, it was showcased live on stage at Nintendo's pre-show press conference. It's simple, it's straightforward. It's a game my mother could play. Almost everyone who tried it out had great fun doing it. I played a few rounds of Tennis myself--picked up the Remote and swung it when the ball came my way. The compilation is, in short, exactly the type of thing Nintendo needs to pursue the Blue Ocean of buyers who currently don't look at console games. Its problem is this: it's one title. (Non-titles Nintendo showed included Wii Music, which was a simple conducting demo--other game modes, if they exist, weren't shown--and Remote Pointer Demo, which is, as its name suggests, a demo. Neither has been announced for release.)
Third party offerings also suffered by these standards. Sega brought Super Monkey Ball and Sonic. Activision, Tony Hawk. Namco, a stable of anime-based games--though they did also bring Final Furlong, which has potential for some comers. Konami became the standout in my view by pitching Elebits, the furniture-tossing creature-seeking game. In its present form, it does depend on the nunchaku, limiting its appeal somewhat. But Konami deserves kudos for helping to fill in the gaps Nintendo left by creating another game that says "this is what the controller lets you do", and has the potential to say it to the Blue Ocean--Elebits is a fundamentally unique and easy-to-grasp game that may well have what it takes to sell outside the traditional circles.
Nintendo could have opted to actually use this effect to their advantage by showing new entries in one of their proven market-expanding franchises, such as the Brain Training franchise or Nintendogs. They did not do this; they showed Metroid, Legend of Zelda, Super Mario, and Wario Ware, proven franchises from their old strategies. Of these, the first three would be rightly avoided by the types of people Nintendo is purportedly trying to reach with their Blue Ocean strategy. Their control schemes are based on the nunchaku-Remote combination. With the exception of Super Mario Galaxy, they do not even appear to be trying to be accessible. Wario Ware, on the other hand, is actually an accessible game, but its franchise (which appears on its surface to be Mario--and before you call me out, recall that the people in the Blue Ocean segment aren't going to be inclined to read up on the history of Wario) may limit its appeal.
The franchise-free titles Nintendo showed included Project H.A.M.M.E.R., a title limited in its Blue Ocean appeal both by the use of the nunchaku and its look. The latter puts it squarely in, as a Blue Ocean buyer would see it, the class of games you'd buy for your teenage nephew. This leaves Nintendo with two demos and a title.
It's no surprise Wii Sports was talked about a lot in mainstream press circles. To start with, it was showcased live on stage at Nintendo's pre-show press conference. It's simple, it's straightforward. It's a game my mother could play. Almost everyone who tried it out had great fun doing it. I played a few rounds of Tennis myself--picked up the Remote and swung it when the ball came my way. The compilation is, in short, exactly the type of thing Nintendo needs to pursue the Blue Ocean of buyers who currently don't look at console games. Its problem is this: it's one title. (Non-titles Nintendo showed included Wii Music, which was a simple conducting demo--other game modes, if they exist, weren't shown--and Remote Pointer Demo, which is, as its name suggests, a demo. Neither has been announced for release.)
Third party offerings also suffered by these standards. Sega brought Super Monkey Ball and Sonic. Activision, Tony Hawk. Namco, a stable of anime-based games--though they did also bring Final Furlong, which has potential for some comers. Konami became the standout in my view by pitching Elebits, the furniture-tossing creature-seeking game. In its present form, it does depend on the nunchaku, limiting its appeal somewhat. But Konami deserves kudos for helping to fill in the gaps Nintendo left by creating another game that says "this is what the controller lets you do", and has the potential to say it to the Blue Ocean--Elebits is a fundamentally unique and easy-to-grasp game that may well have what it takes to sell outside the traditional circles.