Episode 374: Lost in a Crowd

This week’s episode of Gaming Podcast has a special guest co-host, Andrew Yoon, formerly of Joystiq and currently in card game and video game development. The Gaming Flashback is the one that started them all: LEGO Star Wars: The Video Game.

The slow news week includes:

  • DDoS service targeting PSN and Xbox powered by home Internet routers
  • Japanese console sales continued to slide in 2014
  • Evolve’s questionable bargain: pre-purchase to avoid the unlock grind
  • Sony delays PS4 in China

The Question of the Week: “What is your favorite, if any, LEGO videogames?”

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Episode 473: Jonah Bashes Zelda, Gets SnarkedEpisode 473: Jonah Bashes Zelda, Gets Snarked

This week’s episode features Jonah being seriously critical of the Zelda series and getting the aghast reactions from his co-hosts (and probably the internet at large). The crew also discusses games on laptops and dreaming about the games they’d played. There’s another Gaming Flashback this week, 2007’s Game of the Year, Yaris.

This week’s news includes:

  • Night Trap 25th Anniversary Edition to haunt PS4 and PC players in August
  • Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy spotted with Xbox One controls
  • Dragon Quest XI coming West next year
  • Assassin’s Creed Origins director says game won’t be on Nintendo Switch

The Question of the Week: “What game do you play most on your laptop?”

Nintendo Wants More Wii and DS SalesNintendo Wants More Wii and DS Sales

At E3 Reggie Fils-Aime let the world know he wasn’t satisfied with the sales progress of the Wii or DS in 2007 and hopes Nintendo can do better this year. Perhaps Nintendo is playing the humble card? No doubt they bragged about their 10 million sales of the Wii and 20 million sales of the DS but quickly followed it by saying they’re not satisfied.

Or, is this a threat?

Nintendo has built some steep competition while both Sony and Microsoft scoff at their product and tell everyone its a novelty and it doesn’t really “count” in this next-generation console battle. It doesn’t count… really?

Perhaps Microsoft and Sony are right; maybe every Wii owner that wanted a PlayStation 3 and/or an Xbox 360 purchased their console too. There may be some truth to that as hardcore gamers may purchase a Wii for many reasons:

  • They want every console so they have the widest array of game purchases
  • They’re hardcore nature forces them to spend money on all products
  • They want to get their kids in on gaming early, to grow them up in their image
  • Mob mentality, if everyone has a Wii you must as well!
  • The technology is cool and you want to be there for its inception

It seems they don’t feel a threat because Wii is a non-gamer console and thus attracts a different crowd… yet they’re both mimicking some of the motion sensing in their own controllers and playing nice towards “casual games” and non-gamers of late. Maybe their not threatened, but impressed?

Fils-Aime isn’t impressed with their sales figures, perhaps because he expected a higher degree of Wii sales by now, but the fact that people cannot purchase them two years into production has hurt sales figures. Although 10 million units sold is an impressive figure, knowing you had such higher potential if the product was actually on the shelves has to hurt a bit of your pride.

The DS sales were impressive considering the product has been in the market for awhile and is easier to find (minus the holiday rush). We’re not sure why he’s not satisfied with the figures, but inspiring a higher degree of DS sales will require some work. Perhaps this is why they’ve gone with the GTA Chinatown approach; using the GTA name to grow their DS sales figures?

It will be interesting to see how Wii does through the next few quarters and if sales slow down now that we’re a few years into the product. What was the last home console Nintendo owned to get this high of a demand?

Perhaps none.