February 9, 2016 at 13:10What Nintendo taught mobile game developers
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In May 2015, Nintendo announced its intention to enter the mobile application market and adapt its iconic games, including Mario, Donkey Kong and Zelda, for smartphones and tablets. Considering how rapidly the company has developed earlier, this decision is not surprising. Nintendo has been releasing games and game consoles since the 1970s. Just 5 years ago, company president Satoru Iwata spokethat Nintendo gaming systems "create an exciting gaming experience not available on other devices and represent a vital aspect of the company's development." At first glance, it may seem that a recent solution is contrary to Nintendo’s previous policies. Nevertheless, modern technologies and capabilities of mobile platforms make it well-founded. Nintendo’s new course not only portends the bright future of mobile games, but also shows how important they are in the gaming industry.
The release of the Nintendo Entertainment System , the first Nintendo console available worldwide, hit the gaming industry crisis when the market was on the verge of collapse due to a glut of mediocre games. Nintendo understood that only bright characters and exciting stories can be restored to consumer confidence, the creation of which requires large creative teams. But to support these specialists is possible only on condition of large volumes of sales. The story repeats itself - today mobile game developers are in a similar situation.
The NES console was a dizzying success thanks to games with simple addictive gameplay, which eventually migrated to smartphones and tablets. Super Mario Bros Game. taught us to pay attention to game characters. At the time of its release, the developers relied solely on game mechanics, but the Mario series added a new ingredient to them - catchy catchy characters that turned video games into more than just entertainment.
Today, colorful characters still help mobile game developers attract new players and fuel the interest of those who have been playing for a long time. Returning to the cult hits of Nintendo, one cannot but mention The Legend of Zelda. It was she who showed gamers and future developers what immersion means and how a simple set of pixels can create the impression of a limitless game world. Since then, the immersion effect has become one of the key elements in many games.
In 1989, Nintendo released the Game Boy handheld console, which was positioned as an entertainment tool for the whole family. Just as casual games like Candy Crush Saga and Angry Birds contributed to the development of mobile devices, Game Boy became popular in many respects thanks to one of the most successful games of all time - Tetris, around which a whole genre of puzzles was formed. And despite the fact that modern developers have already rubbed it into holes, Nintendo has proven that a competent rethinking of established concepts can bring many benefits.
At the time of the release of Nintendo Wii in 2006, mobile games (in the form that we know them now) were already available on the market, although they were not very popular. The appearance of this console was a major milestone in the entire gaming industry. While Sony and Microsoft continued to compete in graphics quality, Nintendo contrasted them with innovative motion controllers that respond to movement, low price, and exclusive games. At first, it paid off with interest: the console attracted the attention of casual gamers and outperformed the number of PS3 and Xbox 360 sales (today more than 101 million units have been sold in the world ). However, Nintendo soon became convinced by their bitter experience.that the interest of casual gamers in consoles is rapidly weakening, as evidenced by the current rather meager sales of Wii U. Therefore, the company's decision to create mobile applications is a step in the right direction. Fans of casual games do not have to spend $ 300 on the console itself and buy games for $ 50-60, and most importantly - they can play on the go. We can say that Nintendo determined the target audience of mobile games long before they appear.
It's no secret that Nintendo is currently experiencing hard times, but their launch on mobile platforms promises to be fruitful - provided that the company makes bold decisions. They recently announced the release of their first mobile application, the Miitomo messenger game, although they could start expanding with their popular Mario or Zelda franchises. According toanalysts , this suggests that the company is still not ready to part with the consoles.
Be that as it may, Nintendo created the perfect mobile experience long before the advent of mobile applications. We can only watch how they continue to raise the bar for quality and conquer the mobile market.
The release of the Nintendo Entertainment System , the first Nintendo console available worldwide, hit the gaming industry crisis when the market was on the verge of collapse due to a glut of mediocre games. Nintendo understood that only bright characters and exciting stories can be restored to consumer confidence, the creation of which requires large creative teams. But to support these specialists is possible only on condition of large volumes of sales. The story repeats itself - today mobile game developers are in a similar situation.
The NES console was a dizzying success thanks to games with simple addictive gameplay, which eventually migrated to smartphones and tablets. Super Mario Bros Game. taught us to pay attention to game characters. At the time of its release, the developers relied solely on game mechanics, but the Mario series added a new ingredient to them - catchy catchy characters that turned video games into more than just entertainment.
Today, colorful characters still help mobile game developers attract new players and fuel the interest of those who have been playing for a long time. Returning to the cult hits of Nintendo, one cannot but mention The Legend of Zelda. It was she who showed gamers and future developers what immersion means and how a simple set of pixels can create the impression of a limitless game world. Since then, the immersion effect has become one of the key elements in many games.
In 1989, Nintendo released the Game Boy handheld console, which was positioned as an entertainment tool for the whole family. Just as casual games like Candy Crush Saga and Angry Birds contributed to the development of mobile devices, Game Boy became popular in many respects thanks to one of the most successful games of all time - Tetris, around which a whole genre of puzzles was formed. And despite the fact that modern developers have already rubbed it into holes, Nintendo has proven that a competent rethinking of established concepts can bring many benefits.
At the time of the release of Nintendo Wii in 2006, mobile games (in the form that we know them now) were already available on the market, although they were not very popular. The appearance of this console was a major milestone in the entire gaming industry. While Sony and Microsoft continued to compete in graphics quality, Nintendo contrasted them with innovative motion controllers that respond to movement, low price, and exclusive games. At first, it paid off with interest: the console attracted the attention of casual gamers and outperformed the number of PS3 and Xbox 360 sales (today more than 101 million units have been sold in the world ). However, Nintendo soon became convinced by their bitter experience.that the interest of casual gamers in consoles is rapidly weakening, as evidenced by the current rather meager sales of Wii U. Therefore, the company's decision to create mobile applications is a step in the right direction. Fans of casual games do not have to spend $ 300 on the console itself and buy games for $ 50-60, and most importantly - they can play on the go. We can say that Nintendo determined the target audience of mobile games long before they appear.
It's no secret that Nintendo is currently experiencing hard times, but their launch on mobile platforms promises to be fruitful - provided that the company makes bold decisions. They recently announced the release of their first mobile application, the Miitomo messenger game, although they could start expanding with their popular Mario or Zelda franchises. According toanalysts , this suggests that the company is still not ready to part with the consoles.
Be that as it may, Nintendo created the perfect mobile experience long before the advent of mobile applications. We can only watch how they continue to raise the bar for quality and conquer the mobile market.