A Lot Of Nintendo
It was reported on this morning's news that while they had them in stock, Amazon.com was selling 17 Nintendo DS video game units PER SECOND. Further, the Nintendo Wii was the top Christmas toy for two years running. Despite not getting a DS this year (although I didn't really ask for one but figured my odds were good with that sales velocity) I find this a pretty fascinating exercise in Brand mechanics.
When the Wii was announced a couple years back, a colleague and I got into a heated debate. He posited that the Wii would fail because technically, it lacks the computing and graphics capabilities of the XBox 360 and the PS3. It's built on the core engine of the Nintendo Gamecube, a competent but aging system that failed against the original XBox and PS2. I argued that the Wii would be a success because they were trying something different. At the time, we didn't know that families, the elderly and very young children would actually take to it. What was apparent though is that Microsoft and Sony are just further narrowing their consumer base.
When you continually separate your audience into the haves and have nots (choice of playing their good Xbox games as opposed to getting the better Xbox 360 games) you're going to lose market share, UNLESS you take share from the competition. So Sony and Microsoft control pieces of the overall pie and the knife lines are shifting back and forth. What Ninento did was exactly what they did back in the 80's when they released the Gameboy. They increased the accessibility of their product. The market share of video gaming is big, yes. But there's a much bigger market out there that includes groups that are further being disenfranchised by the cost and complexity of video games. With the Wii remote and Nunchuka and games that require real motion over button mashing, more people are willing to try video games and (almost more importantly) in groups. This is something that's a huge after-thought to Xbox and Playstation.
Now, I'm not saying that the video gaming industry is in trouble. It clearly isn't. Xbox 360 had a great year led by the marketing juggernaut of Halo 3. The PS3 did not have a good year, with no killer app, a too high price point, and Sony's planting of their flag in the Blue-Ray vs. HD battle (which is still undecided who will win). The industry is still roughly on par with the movie industry and will only continue to grow as video gaming is quickly becoming the home entertainment choice. What Nintendo did was start with the question that every Brand Manager should. "What does the customer want?" Sure, there are lots of customers who want the better graphics and such, but the much larger and unsolicited group is saying "I would like to be able to play video games."
I think the Wii and the DS is going to greatly change how the world looks at video games. My kids (4 and 6 years of age) couldn't play even the easiest Xbox games I could find. They didn't understand pushing buttons to make things happen like driving cars, moving characters, etc. With the Wii, they have now been introduced to video games at a much younger age then they normally would have. One day they will no doubt outgrow the Wii or the DS and want more, but they will have had a much smoother introduction to the entire genre.
Now if only I could get my DS...
When the Wii was announced a couple years back, a colleague and I got into a heated debate. He posited that the Wii would fail because technically, it lacks the computing and graphics capabilities of the XBox 360 and the PS3. It's built on the core engine of the Nintendo Gamecube, a competent but aging system that failed against the original XBox and PS2. I argued that the Wii would be a success because they were trying something different. At the time, we didn't know that families, the elderly and very young children would actually take to it. What was apparent though is that Microsoft and Sony are just further narrowing their consumer base.
When you continually separate your audience into the haves and have nots (choice of playing their good Xbox games as opposed to getting the better Xbox 360 games) you're going to lose market share, UNLESS you take share from the competition. So Sony and Microsoft control pieces of the overall pie and the knife lines are shifting back and forth. What Ninento did was exactly what they did back in the 80's when they released the Gameboy. They increased the accessibility of their product. The market share of video gaming is big, yes. But there's a much bigger market out there that includes groups that are further being disenfranchised by the cost and complexity of video games. With the Wii remote and Nunchuka and games that require real motion over button mashing, more people are willing to try video games and (almost more importantly) in groups. This is something that's a huge after-thought to Xbox and Playstation.
Now, I'm not saying that the video gaming industry is in trouble. It clearly isn't. Xbox 360 had a great year led by the marketing juggernaut of Halo 3. The PS3 did not have a good year, with no killer app, a too high price point, and Sony's planting of their flag in the Blue-Ray vs. HD battle (which is still undecided who will win). The industry is still roughly on par with the movie industry and will only continue to grow as video gaming is quickly becoming the home entertainment choice. What Nintendo did was start with the question that every Brand Manager should. "What does the customer want?" Sure, there are lots of customers who want the better graphics and such, but the much larger and unsolicited group is saying "I would like to be able to play video games."
I think the Wii and the DS is going to greatly change how the world looks at video games. My kids (4 and 6 years of age) couldn't play even the easiest Xbox games I could find. They didn't understand pushing buttons to make things happen like driving cars, moving characters, etc. With the Wii, they have now been introduced to video games at a much younger age then they normally would have. One day they will no doubt outgrow the Wii or the DS and want more, but they will have had a much smoother introduction to the entire genre.
Now if only I could get my DS...
posted by Mkae at
8:21 AM
2 Comments:
What Ninento did was exactly what they did back in the 80's when they released the Gameboy. They increased the accessibility of their product. The market share of video gaming is big, yes. But there's a much bigger market out there that includes groups that are further being disenfranchised by the cost and complexity of video games.
This is why Apples to Apples is in Wal-Mart and not Settlers of Catan.
By
Jason, at 12:15 PM
My daughter loves her DS. More than food. I can prove it.
By
Beanie, at 6:57 PM
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