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Nintendo Aims At Oprah Crowd
Next Gen's DICE coverage includes commentary by Reggie Fils-Aime, who tries to convince publishers to expand the gaming market. Even if it means running ads during Oprah. From the article: "He said that Nintendo would be using new marketing channels, such as daytime television shows, Oprah and Ellen ... In what has become something of a Nintendo mantra, he said Nintendo was seeking to attract female gamers and older gamers. He also warned that the number of teenage males is declining in North America, and high school students are saying their interest in games is declining."
.. is it a good or bad thing that High School kids are becoming less interested in video games?
On if you think time spent on myspace.com is better then time spent with video games.
You have to eat as many cakes as you can whilst hyping the books of liars and pop-psychologists...
They're turning into adults! They have other things to doa gaming might be cutting into work time!
Everyone look under your seat!
IT'S A FREE REVOLUTION!
Actually, that wouldn't be too bad of a campaign. AFAIK, most of Oprah's audience are parents to some extent, mainly females. Giving them all a free Nintendo DS, a free copy of Nintendogs, and a free copy of Mario Kart would probably do a lot of good. While they probably wouldn't be visably extatic on the show (though, you never know), they'll probably adore it once they get into Nintendogs, especially those with a lot of free time. Mario Kart is a great game that everyone can enjoy, and the males will probably be more interested in it than the females.
In either case, the parents, who may not have even known about it before, will find out how much fun it is, and get one for their kid(s), cause "This DS is for the adults (and we don't want you breaking it). Plus, the value of peer recommendations should never be underestimated.
And, of course, any kids who were dragged along to the show will scream with delight.
Sounds like a smart move by Nintendo. Alot of moms watch Oprah, so if you were making the niche for kid games you would target the kids and the moms. You'd show the mom's all the kid safe games on your system. You'd basically say our system is rated G so you can buy any of our games without worrying about the sex or violence issues that those other systems have. ;)
Does this mean that they're actually going to, you know, be making GAMES targeted at women and other nonstandard gamers?
So far for the DS they've got that Nintendogs thing, and that Brain Training thing coming up. These both did very well with "nongamers" in Japan-- but, while they're some kind of similar effect in America, they seem to be not the same kind of smash hit material with american audiences.
Other than those two games, Nintendo doesn't seem to have any other "zomg aimed at women" games coming up for the DS, and they've certainly announced nothing of that sort for the Revolution-- so far Nintendo's stated plans for Revolution games come down to pretty much "mario smash brothers metroid", all traditionally male-oriented titles. So if Nintendo advertises during Oprah... what exact PRODUCT do they intend on advertising?
Will we be having the guy pop up in the middle of our games and lecture us to "GET REAL" and get a higher score, don't quit, and other psychobabble like that? Will we get more than 3 colors, to accent the room the console is located in?
A high school teenager wants to stop playing video games so much, go to a party, and get laid?
Who would've guessed?!
What else can happen when an unstoppable force collides with an immovable object?
Kids ALWAYS say their interest in video games is declining when we're in the transition between console generations. Always. When the new systems hit stride, WHOOPS, all of a sudden it's boomtown again. Stop asking kids to participate in polls. It's as useless as student council elections.
"...high school students are saying their interest in games is declining."
Let's see, back in HS I cared about two things while others cared about three. I cared about having fun activities (billiards, bowling, friends) and girls. The third thing which was popular in my HS was drugs. With the cost of gaming, who wouldn't rather spend that money on any or all of the three I mentioned?
Causing Chaos Everywhere,
Nik J.
The strange world of a loner, in a populous city, drowning in society
I'd pay very well for a FPS in which I could shoot Dr Phil.
Slashdot Burying Stories About Slashdot Media Owned
Several folks here are pointing out that it's great for Nintendo to go after "the mom crowd" - that it's good marketing to get the product in front of moms, who will buy Revolution for the kids.
NO NO NO!
His whole point seems to be DIRECTLY marketing it to these moms. The games being TARGETED at 50 - 60 year olds. An excercise for your MIND.
Get it?
You know - it's that whole market that is completely ignored right now.
Yes, moms are a great way to get at kids.
BUT THAT'S NOT THE POINT.
Video Game News, FAQs, etc
Thats a-okay in my book.
---space.is.the.place---
Nothing there, lying bastard.
"We shall grapple with the ineffable, and see if we may not eff it after all." - Douglas Adams
For example: analysis of the Japanese marketplace indicates that their economy is coming out of a long recession. Why? Japan has a dangerously low birth rate. Japanese women are educated and entering the workplace at a breakneck pace. They are not marrying and they are not having children. They don't feel the same amount of social pressures to succeed that the men feel, so they experience less stress and have loads of disposable income. For these reasons, the JApanese economy is becoming pegged to the spending habits of professional working age women. They overconsume ALL ACROSS THE BOARD.
If Nintendo chooses to focus its efforts on this group in Japan, it's only fair to assume that a similar trend will emerge here, given the standard delay of 5-15 years between our cultures.
We mirror Japan in other ways. JApan has a high suicide rate amongst males specifically. The US suicide rate amongst males is steadily rising. We've mirrored them in reality television shows and the steadily increasing amount of time spent watching it (The Japanese watch the most television in the world). The US is becoming increasingly a-religious as its urban centers grow, mirroring a largely secular Japanese culture.
I've done some freelance work for MTV and its no big secret there that their second biggest audience is urban professional women. They are a critical mass audience.
It's always funny that slashdot guys complain about not meeting/having chicks. The numbers are totally in your favor, dudes.
un burrito me trampeó.
Surely you do not mean to suggest that an institution as valuable and entrenched as the Student Council is without use! Why, I remember when I was president of the Student Council I was able to enact sweeping changes to my school that are in effect to this very day. For instance, I promised an end to homework and I delivered on that promise. The students wanted Coke machines in every single classroom and as soon as I was elected I made that happen by dint of sheer will. Also, every day was pizza day and all of our teachers were fired and replaced by highly qualified young ladies from Hugh Heffner's very own School for Buxom Ladies.
"We shall grapple with the ineffable, and see if we may not eff it after all." - Douglas Adams
offcorse they are losing interests in gaming
they are 2 busy to have unprotected sex now that a new effective aids medicine has been discovered
I'd rather Stedman: The Video Game! Perhaps we could get Robert Smigel to produce and direct it? He could have a dual-life in the game, avoiding Oprah's romantic advances in one half of the game, and being an undercover international man of mystery in the other half!
:P
It'd be sweet!
As much as I like the direction Nintendo is taking, trying to bring some new innovation to the industry with their radical new controller, and their emphasis on making it easier for everyone and their grandparents (literally!) to get into games ... I wonder what the typical Nintendo fanboi is thinking. Do they understand and appreciate what Nintendo is doing? When I say "fanboi", I'm referring to those ardent Nintendo supports in forums who consider themselves hardcore gamers, are often immature (fans of l33t sp34k and the like), and want the big N to kick the crap out of the PS3 and the 360 in every possible way.
/. audience does as well. I think it's risky, but it can be damn effective. But if the ardent Nintendo fanbois don't, and the "gaming buzz" starts to sway negatively for Nintendo, I'm afraid it could mean bad things.
... it'll have to start by getting it for their kids and THEN maybe seeing the benefit for themselves) If that doesn't happen, then Nintendo is in for another disappointing console cycle (again, not referring to handhelds, where the DS > PSP)
I used to be a fanboi when I was kid, arguing with friends that "64 bits is better than 32!" and dissing the PSX whenever I could (although I secretly caved in later, because I had to get my fill of Square games). I'm sure there are a lot of these kids today, who still think that Link is the bomb (although they hated his kiddie look in Wind Waker), that good graphics = good games, coolness is everything, and that anything less is just lame. I'm not sure these fanbois appreciate that Nintendo is aiming to bring in Oprah or their moms into gaming, and deliberately "dumbing down" the game experience to do so.
It's obvious to me that Nintendo is aiming for a difference audience than Sony and Microsoft. The latter two are still placing a lot of emphasis on having a more powerful console, better graphics, everything in HD, media functionality, etc. (Personally, I don't think that's a BAD approach, but it'd better not stop the most important aspect, which are the games themselves) It appears that Nintendo is opting not to go that route. So what if the console is not as powerful? It'll cost less. It'll also be more innovative, and you'll still get those wonderful Nintendo games everybody loves so much.
But I think there's the danger of upsetting the "fanboi" audience, since Nintendo is no longer playing the console wars the same way as everyone else. I understand what they're doing, and I imagine most of the
We already know that 3rd party support for Nintendo could be better (referring to the GameCube, NOT handhelds, which continues to be stellar). I will also say that most Revolution purchases will STILL come from gamers, at least in the beginning. (I honestly don't see parents picking up a Revolution for themselves anytime soon
Anyone else get this feeling? Or am I smoking something here?
-- jchenx
It's an exact science to 'predict' the teen male population for the next dozen years.
Take the current 13-19 sample size and project out each year by dumping the group
that turns 20 and replace with the population of those who were twelve.
Demographics people have acted surprised for the past 40 years at age-dependant
statistics for the baby boom generation, even though its size is a known entity.
Phenomena like "crime waves" can be predicted by boom/bust population cycles.
I think it's interesting that Nintendo is going after older women at all. This demographic is regularly behind the times in many new techs that are considered the hottest thing among their children. This generalization can even extend to single women around this age. These people often look at things like text messaging via cell phone and trends such as Myspace/blogging as a waste of time. As such, I commend Nintendo for being adventuresome and targeting a group that is certainly off the beaten path when it comes to tech marketing.
Funny mods don't affect your Karma. Stop trying so hard.
Controversy as Mario went on to Oprah to promote his new Revolution game Million Little Marios about Mario's mushroom addiction, Doki Doki hallucinations and his "friendship" with Toad. The Smoking Cannon has learned that in fact, Super Mario 2 did not really exist, Mario is in fact a carpenter, not a plumber and most shocking of all Mario is in fact Japanese not Italian.
I remember Sega gave away Sega Dreamcasts to everyone in a Rose O'Donald show. I thought it was a cleaver marketing idea. If Nintendo gave away Revolutions on Oprah, it would be great PR and a semi-effective Anti-PS3-hype bomb if they drop it before Sony releases, assuming Nintendo launches before them. Though I suppose they might be able to get away with some sort of coupon.
Demented But Determined.
what the heck oprah IS, see this wikipedia article
Apparently it is some sort of talk show.
Sources suggest that he spends all day playing his DS in the closet.
Dr. Phil plays tennis, so I'd imagine some sort of Dr. Phil tennis game but with bad knees.
Bill Clinton: Pimp we can believe in. - The Shirt!!!
These were adults who had, or whose employer had, shelled out hundreds of dollars in part so they could play 'Drug Wars' or whatever on a plane.
Similarly, on a plane to Australia from Thailand there were again, heaps of older men (and it was offputting) coming back from Thai holidays. This time, many, many of them had Gameboys.
Who hasn't seen their, or someone else's parents or grandparents playing a raft of card games on their computer.?
Nintendo is dead right. Many adults want something to play while waiting for things and riding on public transport. And with the DS you could do some interesting things - hey, on Oprah you could run a competition to do something while the show was running and then call some woman and give her credit for whatever. It'd be like voting for reality TV on steroids.
If Nintendo can take away the game playing is for younger folk stigma on their devices, particularly on their handhelds they could well exploit or create a large, successful new segment of the market.
The Uncyclopedia version is much better.
How long before they start advertising for Maury?
"In the case of 3 month old Mario Jr., Mario... you are NOT the father"
*Peach runs off stage in tears*
we will soon be entering a time where the majority of adults and parents have had direct experience with video games. this will change/mature the entire industry. the same thing happened with movies. they weren't taken seriosuly until the people who had seen them as kids grew up.
He also warned that the number of teenage males is declining in North America, and high school students are saying their interest in games is declining.
So, instead of the obvious solution -- make games that don't suck -- they'll just try harder to market games that DO suck. Makes sense to me!
4) Profit!!!
https://www.eff.org/https-everywhere
My fearless prediction?
Nintendo commissions an exercise program that uses a controller you step on. Sound familiar? Only unlike DDR pads, this controller has a second level so that you can do something similar to step aerobics. Also unlike DDR, the music isn't hyperactive techno and J-Pop, but smooth Jazz and R&B. And Oprah's brand is all over the program.
Suddenly fitness-minded women all over America buy Nintendo Revolution consoles bundled with the step controller and Oprah's Fitness Dance Studio game. If Nintendo manages to get Revolution out in time for the Holiday Season this year, watch Sony and Microsoft get jealous as the Revolution gets a New Years Resolution-fueled spurt of sales just as PS3 and XBox 360 cool down.
Knowledge is power. Knowledge shared is power multiplied.
Here I figured RockStar had paired with Nintendo, and come out with a new game where you shoot up the audiances that fall for the "Violence hurts children (ok, ok, only when it's real violence.... against them...)" line...
hmm.... idea...
Want to find other gamers to play board and role playing game
The interesting thing is that as far as I can recall, no Nintendo controller other than the "normal" controller got used very much.
:)
Thinking back to the NES, there was a few innovative gadgets you could hook up, such as the ROB robot, the "Zapper" light gun and the "Power Pad" step-on mat (like DDR)... all very cool addons but only used by a couple of games. Since I got the NES for Christmas 1990 (if I remember correctly), the "fad" of having the power pad and Zapper was starting to fade. My mom said that she would have got me the power pad set but the saleskid at Toys R Us told her that it was discontinued. At the time I was in sixth grade and since I was no good at sports, my time was divided between playing Nintendo and playing with my Commodore 64.
Then came the Super NES, with its "Super Scope 6" - I've only seen one of them and from what the owner told me, there was only one game for it. Of course, there was a mouse for it, but the only two games I can think of that used it was the painting game that came with it, and the NES version of SimCity also used it. This came in, about 1992 (the system had in fact been released the year before so I am not sure if my memory is correct) and I did have a few cool games for it, such as the Donkey Kong series, and the Zelda and Mario titles of course. I did have a few other games, as well as my siblings (both younger) also had "their own" games to play as well. At the time I got it (Junior High) the computer was starting to become a tool to do homework on as well as to play games on. As time went on I ended up spending less time with my Nintendo and Super NES.
And, of course, the N64 - I was graduating high school when this system was released so I dont know that much about it. While I did enjoy the Mario game for it, and of course, the Zelda games, I never really paid much attention to the "other" controllers that were released. I did not in fact own one until 1999 or so, when I got it used at a local Funcoland. Of course I had played a few games on it, since when I was in college, a few of the dorm-mates had one. One day I stopped in the Funcoland on the way to a service call and decided to pick up a N64 and visit my friends Mario and Zelda again for old times' sake.
Now I have a GameCube, and while I do in fact have a wireless controller, it is, still, in fact, a "normal" controller. The fact that the GBA can be connected to the GameCube and become a "second" display as well as another controller is kinda cool. I've used that a few times, again, in Zelda and Animal Crossing. Other than that, (and the copy of Harry Potter and the something or other) those are the only games I own for the GC. It's kinda sad really but, there are not that many games I see that really interest me.
When I go to the mall with $50 in my hand, I look in the video stores to see if there are any games that interest me -- I can't say that I want to play many of the games I see. Most of the time, that $50 ends up going to the local Barnes and Noble or to the computer store.
I've often thought about why I don't play games as much as I used to - and the answer is that most of the games, at least to me, are the same. I mean, I see sports games (ESPN ${ATHLETE_NAME) ${SPORT_NAME} ${YEAR} series) the fighting games (like Mortal Kombat and the like), the racing/car driving games (like the Grand Theft Auto series), shooters (Doom, Quake, Halo, Dans-Mod, and most of the X-Box titles), and the RPGs (like Zelda, Ultima, Final Fantasy etc) When I used to play the NES games, every time I rented one at the video store, it was like nothing I had ever played before. Now, most games are the same.
My thought is that games are too focused on the "graphics" (look at this system - we can make blood spatter in seventeen different ways!") but in the "oldschool" systems, the focus was on gameplay - the graphics were nice, but the game designers could not rely on that to make people buy the game.
Of course, this is just my opinion, and again, this is coming from someone who is lucky to get an hour of video game time played per week. Feel free to disagree with me
Just my jump-here-to-get-a-1UP's worth...
-RickTheWizKid (now 28!)
Eh? Why not funny? Since it's funny and not informative. Or did you just read the title?