Okay Geek Farm
Nintendo reports first year in red since 1981, loses over a billion dollars in 2011
Ricardo Trejo
Mario is dressed in red, but it’s not the kinda color Nintendo was hoping to see in their year-end annual fiscal report. So where did everything go wrong? Well, back before the 3DS was released, Satora Iwata and the folks who have been in charge of keeping your nostalgia on a consistent high, thought that pricing the 3D handheld at $250 was a bargain of a deal. Umm, yeah… that didn’t turn out so hot as we recall. So where does Nintendo go from here?
Let’s talk money
Before we move on, let’s clear up just how much money the Big N lost in 2011 — $1.32 billion.
As for what they’re projecting to make in the first quarter of 2012? — $264 million.
That cool 200 million bucks is what will make 2012 different than any other year in Nintendo’s recent history since 1981. Anyone know exactly what they both have in common? Well, how about that it would be over 20 years since last the gaming firm posted nothing but losses entering into the next fiscal year. That would mean that Nintendo was more profitable during the Gamecube and Gameboy Advance years than they were in 2011.
Where did it all go wrong?
o what caused the, what appears to be, sudden drop in company cash? Well, it’s a culmination of things. Mario’s employer say it was primarily the economic down-turn, and the “stronger-than-expected yen appreciation”. What apprently they don’t want to say outright is that they screwed up everything that Nintendo is about; the games.
While they did sell millions of 3DS systems, millions of Wii consoles, and the usual software hits that move the company forward (Wii Sports, NSMB) — the issue here is that there weren’t any notable games released anytime this year that would make their hardware fly off the shelves.
Where are the games?
Will they learn from this next year? Their E3 presentation this past summer did show off a number of releases due to launch within the next few months (Zelda: Skyward Sword, Mario Kart 7, and Super Mario 3D Land, namely), and a few others next year (Kid Icarus: Uprising, Luigi’s Mansion 2). But what exactly does this list clue us into? How about that the Wii is losing even first-party support.
Nintendo may be ready to drop the Wii from its primary support, looking foward to the more “hardcore” Wii U. But will the Big N have the right games to bring to the new system this late in the game to get 360 and PS3 owners to make the jump? If they aren’t going to be direct ports then what will make them different? If there’s anything that is certain is that Nintendo MUST change things up or give up the hardware game and focus on making Super Mario for the iPhone.
As a lifelong Nintendo fan, it’s hard to see the king of games fall so hard. But every mighty titan must learn the lesson of arrogance, and to me and just about everyone else, it seems pretty clear that Nintendo has been pretty full of itself, refusing to open itself up. I mean, people have called the Wii U a 1.5 system, but I would say the Wii itself was a Gamecube 1.5. The Wii U clearly is the next gen system we all wanted… half a decade ago!
New ideas with old favorites
But if there’s one thing that will always make gamers, no matter what their age, no matter what systems they already own — and that’s first-party Nintendo properties. I’m talking about Donkey Kong, Kirby, Metroid, Pokemon, Zelda, and none other than, Mario. But is Nintendo willing to risk new ideas and concepts with these classic titles? With Mario, we got Galaxy. And now with Zelda, Skyward Sword looks to be the ultimate Hyrulian experience. But if there’s one single gaming property that could turn the tables it’s got to be the cute and cuddly Pokemon game series. If done correctly it could become the next World of Warcraft. Does Nintendo have it in them to make our dreams come true?
With decades of success they certainly have the track record of keeping their fans happy. But in this modern day, it only takes one big mistake to make millions to turn their backs on you. Nintendo is in a transitional period. They may have prolonged it with the piles of cash the Wii and original DS printed for them, but it’s go time now. What 2012 brings will give us a glimpse of what will come of the one and only Nintendo.
