N-Sider Q&A
Got a Question? Send it here.
April 27th, 2001
After being betrayed by crappy IGN, I was wondering i you guys need help surviving. I really like this site and wonder if you're having money probs like IGN (hope they die!) and if you need our help somehow.
-Nickclone
Pete: Well, seems like there isn't much love lost between you and IGN. As for our situation, right now we're doing alright. The online scene is changing so rapidly we honestly don't know what's going to be happening five or six months from now, and that's one reason I think Snowball/IGN are exploring a subscription based system. Our big thing was getting ready for E3, and we're set for that (thank goodness).
Do you guys have any idea how many Gamecubes might be out in november. And are we going to find out the color of the Cube at e3 because im not really likeing the whole purple thing. ooh yeah great site.
-Rob
Pete: I have no definite idea. I would guess Nintendo will go for between 8-12 games at launch, which includes third-party stuff. I don't think they're too keen on having 15+ titles flooding the shelves right away. The color issue will definitely become clearer at E3, although knowing how Nintendo does things, they could change it again right before the launch (similar to what happened with GBA).
First of all, great site! Heres my question- What is the 64DD? I never really knew exactly what it was and every person i have asked gives me a completely different answer. So, please could you tell me what it really is?
-Chris S.
Pete: The 64DD was an add-on drive for the Nintendo 64 system that attached to the bottom of the N64 (similar to the Sega CD). The 64DD used a rewritable 64MB disc format to play its games on. The discs were cheaper than cartridges, generally bigger in terms of storage than cartridges (especially in 1997), had faster seek times than the PSX or Saturn CD-ROM drives, and most importantly, had rewritable game properties. That meant you could save a lot of custom data (ie: custom designed cars, tracks, levels, characters, etc.) onto a game disk, download more custom game data, and the game designers could create game worlds that would evolve and "grow".
Sounded like a great idea in 1995, but the two main 64DD killer-apps, Dragon Quest 7 and Zelda 64DD were moved. DQ7 was switched by Enix to the Playstation while Zelda hopped on over to the regular cartridge format. The other big 64DD title, Mother 3 also hit major delays. Internally, Nintendo just couldn't get its ambitious plans for the add-on to become a reality. The device was finally released last year in Japan, with a so-so offering of games and internet capabilities, but it was a case of too little far too late.
With this new delay will there new games from some companies like Silicon Knights(I need to get Too Human) and Rare(Perfect Dark 2..please!!!)?
-Clinton
Pete: I don't imagine the delay will be enough time to get some of the newer projects done in time. All I see happening is companies like Silicon Knights and Rare possibly having a little more time to polish their launch titles.
very serious question.......If Nintendo gets rid of the reputation of being a KID system, would this loose pokemon and mario sales? Pokemon saved Nintendo's ass and everyone knows it, and you know Nintendo will bring them back. But what if the press gets to mr. mitityato (or whatever) ... Nintendo is trying to bring want they want....but no company I have seen have please young and old adults ..... not n64.....not PS one....or two........DC.....no off brand systems............My main question is.......why do people keep insisting that the X box and the Playstation 2 will over run over the gamecube....because if there was ever any company anywhere that could please both generations......and do it well.....its not going to be Sony or Microsoft..........Nintendo made a minor mistake....those chose a hard chip system to have in there machine ..... and they chose cartriges......everyone is going to make mistakes.........and Its sony's turn.......And personally.....I think if someone sees the gamecube and the x box and had to choose one......8 out of 10 would choose nintendo..............i talked and asked questions......please gimme some kinda response............
-stephan
Pete: Well, for starters it's Mr. Miyamoto. I think what you're asking is where Nintendo's focus will be. Can they walk a tight rope of making products for different audiences while still maintaining a strong hold on the younger kids? I think so. I believe Nintendo is very aware the kids that have been playing Pokemon for the last few years (almost five years now in Japan, believe it or not) will begin to grow up during this generation and they don't want to lose these kids. Hence I think you'll see them come up with new ideas and not rely on the traditional stuff so much. We're already seeing this with the Game Boy Advance lineup in Japan are we not?
hey,
about the upcoming E show, do normal kids, and/or adults without a press card get in? and is that the same with the ECTS show?
thank ye' fo' ye' time,
-Mate Pavic from the Netherlands
Pete: For E3 you need a press pass to be able to get inside and visit the show booths. The E3 people have really clamped down on this rule lately. I'm not exactly sure how the ECTS show works, however.
How come Nintendo gives a whole bunch of information about the Game Boy Advance like the games that are in development and so on (without waiting for E3) while nothing is shown about the Gamecube? So what if they reveal it anyway?
-Nate
Pete: I personally think the reason is two-fold. For one, Nintendo knows the expectations for their GameCube software are really high. After doing more than a few things wrong with the N64 I believe they want to immediately change people's perceptions about Nintendo's consoles with GameCube right away. And its hard to blow people's socks off if you're showing early games that really don't represent the final product well (look at Microsoft's Gamestock showing for instance).
The other thing, I think Nintendo genuinely has some cool ideas cooking for GameCube. That means new types of gaming interaction within their GameCube software. If they showed that off right now, it wouldn't really be hard for Microsoft or Sony to copy it -- after all, you can't really copyright a game idea.
Will N-Sider ever show video once it becomes available?
-Tommy D.
Pete: We will try to get a good E3 video for our readers to purchase if they want that sort of thing. During the actual E3 show, we'll also try to bring video from the show floor as E3 "week" goes on.
How will the GCN's button setup will certain titles play under? And with all these titles N 64 titles being push back to GCN titles. Would any other last date N64 farewell titles be GCN titles?
-EvolutionCyclop
Pete: I think the GameCube's button layout is fine overall. Even looking at fighting games like Virtua Fighter 4 where there is emphasis on pressing two action buttons at one time, the GameCube pad seems well suited. With sports games, there is generally one "main" button or action (ie: shoot or throw), so again that doesn't seem to pose a problem. And no, I don't foresee any more N64 games being switched over because there simply aren't any high profile N64 games still in development now that Animal Forest has been released in Japan.
This is my first time writing you guys, but I've been a frequent visitor since I found your site last year. Anyway, I know how everyone says that Nintendo NEEDS mature games to survive. In my opinion, I don't think that's true, I think people are just letting opinion get in the way of fact. Don't get me wrong, I think its great Nintendo's focusing more on adult gamers, and the trend will improve with Gamecube, but what some people can't realize is, the "kiddie" market is and always will be the big money makers for Nintendo.
For example, look at the new report out this week from the IDSA. There was only ONE mature rated title on the Top 20 list for consoles, and that was Rare's own Perfect Dark. Take that with the horrible sales of Conker, and it just looks like Mature games for some reason aren't selling well right now. This IS surprising, don't you think, since according to the IDSA, 58% of gamers are 18+ years old.
Maybe Nintendo will be able to turn things around. Personally, by a more mature title, I would be happy with a Teen rating. Goldeneye got a T and it was one of the most acclaimed and famous N64 games. I believe personally that Rare tried WAY too hard with Conker to make it appeal COOL and mature, and it showed. I think though, with games like Too Human, Eternal Darkness, and PD2 in the future, it's possible Nintendo will win over mature gamers, while keeping the crucial under 18 market, while leading the way in expanding the gaming market even more to older gamers.
-aaroy
Pete: Yeah, it seems like the "M" rating is almost akin to the R-rating for movies. Most R-rated movies don't make as much money as their PG-13 counterparts. It is nice to see that Nintendo has no problem publishing M-rated software however. That ability to market and sell different kinds of content to different audiences will be important to Nintendo in the next five years.
This is part of an e-mail reply I got from Nintendo:
Nintendo wrote:
So far, I have not heard of any plans for a sequel to Conker's Bad Fur Day. However, rest assured that there will be many great mature-themed games released for our upcoming systems. Stay tuned to www.nintendo.com for the latest news on current and upcoming Nintendo products!
Sincerely,
Nintendo of America
Yes, I do realize that last 2 sentences were merely obligatory standard responses and likely repeated 10 or 200 times by Nintendo staff on a daily basis. However, since BFD was left without mention by either their website or their magazine, it is of tremendous irony to hear those 2 sentences pieced together by a Nintendo staffer. If I do visit nintendo.com religiously, will I find any details on upcoming mature games? Based on how BFD was shoved to the darkness like the black sheep of the family, I'm guessing no. BFD was released at a bad juncture of the N64's lifespan, but the misguided marketing of the game did not help the game either.
When I try to initiate discussion of the game to friends and acquaintances, all they know of the game is "some trashy hooker giving a handjob to a squirrel." None of these twenty-something videogame players have any inclination to purchase the game based on that exposure. Serious mature gamers are not drawn to the most bloody and perverted game they hear about. I have no marketing degree, but BFD would have probably sold better if the merits of its gameplay variety and graphics achievements were just as well-highlighted as the mature content. Instead, the advertising focused on all the vulgarity and violence (and subsequently made people believe that was the only draw to the game.)
The game deserved better treatment, by both the gaming public AND by Nintendo. I guess Nintendo is new at advertising to mature gamers. Let's hope this experience has been educational to their advertising department.
-jhmbb6
Pete: Well, if I may play devil's advocate here, for one it's probably a very good thing Nintendo kept Conker's Bad Fur Day out of their Nintendo Power magazine and the like. Reason being is if they put that on a magazine with such a young demographic, Nintendo could be held liable for trying to sell this content to kids and could be sued for that. For instance, right now there is a lawsuit from some of the families involved in the Columbine tragedy that cites Nintendo, Sony, id Software, (among others) in a lawsuit.
Now personally, I don't see where their case against Nintendo would come from, especially because Nintendo has been so responsible in marketing and selling their mature games for a mature audience. As for the TV commercial, well you know, Conker is a lewd game. Nintendo's marketing staff was given the same license to go nuts with the commercial that the game designers at Rare were, and thats what they came up with. I thought the commercial was pretty funny, actually.
With the N64 market as it is, however, Nintendo could've honestly marketed the game any way they wanted to and it probably would not have sold any better. It would have been interesting to see how much better Conker would've sold had it come out in 1998 or 1999. I think it would have been a million-seller, but it just came out too late and there isn't a large older demographic on the N64 right now. My thoughts are Nintendo used Conker to gauge whether or not they could market such a game without tarnishing their image for other audiences and also, after four years in development, I think the Conker team just wanted to have something to show and then possibly do a sequel for GameCube.
Excellent questions everybody! We'll be back next week with more Q&A.
(Artwork By Niklas Jansson)