Nintendo hikes annual profit forecast despite gaming boom slowdown

Nintendo upgraded its full-year net profit forecast on Thursday despite a weaker performance in the first half as the coronavirus lockdown-fueled global gaming boom slowed.

The Japanese gaming giant now projects net profit at 350 billion yen ($3.1 billion) for the year to March 2022, up from an earlier estimate of 340 billion yen.

It also hiked its software sales forecast for this fiscal year ahead of releases including three titles in the popular Pokemon franchise.

The Kyoto-based firm's more optimistic outlook follows the October release of an upgraded model of its Switch console.

However, Nintendo lowered its annual target for Switch sales as Japanese media reported that production would be hit by the global chip shortage.

For the six months to September, Nintendo's net profit dropped 19.4 percent to 171.8 billion yen -- still well up from 62 billion yen in April-September 2019.

The extraordinary demand experienced by gaming hardware makers during pandemic lockdowns is slowing as life returns to normal in many countries.

Nintendo had posted its highest ever annual profit in 2020-21, boosted by the runaway popularity of the Switch console and the family-friendly game "Animal Crossing".

It lowered its annual Switch sales target to 24 million units for the current fiscal year from the 25.5 million forecast earlier.

The Nikkei business daily this week reported that annual Switch production was expected to fall by some 20 percent from its target for the current fiscal year due to the chip crunch.

Agence France-Presse

'Animal Crossing' and cooped-up gamers fire up Nintendo profits

Nintendo's popular Switch console and blockbuster games including "Animal Crossing" fuelled a strong rise in profits and sales, which were also helped by players being stuck at home because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The Japanese gaming giant said Thursday it had notched up annual net profits of 258.6 billion yen ($2.4 billion) in the fiscal year to March, a gain of 33 percent from the year before.

Sales climbed nine percent to 1.3 trillion yen and the firm was quick to point out the success of "Animal Crossing: New Horizons", which it said had enjoyed the strongest-ever debut for a Nintendo Switch title.

"Nintendo Switch performed very well without losing momentum," the Kyoto-based firm said in a statement.

The conglomerate is one of a "handful" of major companies seeing significant business opportunities from the coronavirus outbreak, said Hideki Yasuda, an analyst at Ace Research Institute in Tokyo.

"Demand for video games has shot up among people staying home following the outbreak," Yasuda told AFP.

Nintendo shares, which closed up 3.24 percent on Thursday before its earnings announcement, have surged some 27 percent since early March.

However, the firm also pointed to risks arising from the pandemic, including production and procurement of parts, and delays in Research and Development.

For the current fiscal year, the firm predicted reduced sales and profits, as the Switch enters a "crucial" fourth year -- past consoles began declining in popularity after three years.

Nintendo sees net profit at 200 billion yen for the fiscal year to March 2021, down 23 percent from the previous year, with annual sales forecast at 1.2 trillion yen, down 8.3 percent.

STAYING HOME WORLDWIDE

Yasuda said the popularity of the latest "Animal Crossing" title should continue to drive profits for the current fiscal year.

The leisurely game has struck a chord with players around the world, many of them enjoying a virtual release from the restrictions on movement and social activity imposed to contain coronavirus.

"'Animal Crossing' does not involve lots of violent actions," noted Yasuo Imanaka, chief analyst at Rakuten Securities.

The ability to invite online friends to play and shop together in this virtual world has appealed to those cooped up due to coronavirus, Imanaka told AFP.

"This perfectly fits the feeling of people staying home worldwide," said Imanaka, adding that the game's calm vibe was especially appealing to women and children.

Among other Nintendo titles, "Pokemon Sword" and "Pokemon Shield" have also become multi-million-unit sellers, following big hits "Super Mario Maker 2", "The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening", and "Fire Emblem: Three Houses".

Launched in March 2017, the Switch has become a huge global seller, helped by innovative, family-friendly titles that have wowed critics and gamers alike.

Sales of both its regular Switch platform and the Switch Lite -- a smaller, cheaper version -- reached 21 million units for the fiscal year, well above its annual target upgraded three months ago.

Rival Sony is scheduled to report its annual results next week as it prepares to launch its next-generation PlayStation 5 console later this year.

Analyst Imanaka said games such as "Animal Crossing" would not fizzle out immediately as coronavirus restriction are gradually lifted.

"I am expecting those people who have started playing video games or online games will continue playing them in this quarter at least," Imanaka told AFP.

Agence France-Presse

Tencent, Nintendo to launch Switch console in China

SHANGHAI - Chinese internet giant Tencent and gaming titan Nintendo on Wednesday announced plans to launch the Japanese company's popular Switch console in China from next week.

Expectations for the console's launch in the world's largest games market has helped to push up Nintendo's share price this year.

The console will be sold in China from December 10 for 2,099 yuan ($297), the companies said at a launch event in Shanghai.

"Nintendo has long hoped to provide Chinese consumers with Nintendo's games and entertainment, and now this dream has come true," said Shigeru Miyamoto, the renowned game creator of "Super Mario Bros" and "Donkey Kong", said in a video message.

Nintendo had said earlier this year that it was working with Tencent -- China's leading online video game company as well as a giant in messaging and myriad other apps -- to roll out the Switch in China.

The Switch has become a huge global seller, aided by the release of innovative, family-friendly titles that have been well-received by critics and gamers.

The console will come with "New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe Edition" pre-installed, with "Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Edition" and "Super Mario Odyssey" also available soon, company officials said.

Tencent added that it would work to "enrich" the console's game line-up, including with titles created by Chinese developers, and that up to 20 games could be available to play on Switch in 2020.

China in 2014 began easing a more than decade-long ban on consoles imposed out of concern over the negative impact gaming may have on children.

Tencent itself was hammered by a Chinese government games crackdown launched last year that led to a months-long license approval freeze. The government again cited youth gaming addiction and other concerns as the reason.

The crackdown shaved around $250 billion off Tencent's stock market value by the end of last year.

China also last month imposed a curfew on gamers under 18.

Gaming analysts have said console-makers like Nintendo face an uphill climb in China, where smartphones have become the dominant gaming platform, due in large part to Tencent's success in online games.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Sony's PlayStation recognized as world's best-selling game console

TOKYO - Sony Corp.'s PlayStation has been recognized by Guinness World Records as the world's best-selling home video game console, having sold 450.19 million units over 25 years, its game business unit said Tuesday.

The first PlayStation device was launched in December 1994, when Nintendo Co.'s Super Nintendo console was dominant in the home video game market, and quickly gained popularity due to its 3-D graphics and lineup of software titles.

Its producer Sony Interactive Entertainment LLC introduced the PlayStation 2 in March 2000 and sold more than 150 million units of the second-generation console worldwide, followed by the PlayStation 3 released in November 2006 which adopted the Blu-ray disc format.

With the latest PlayStation 4 console, the Japanese entertainment conglomerate established a subscription business model for video games, providing online games at a fixed charge for 36.9 million registered users.

The company plans to introduce the next-generation PlayStation 5 console in the year-end shopping season of 2020.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Nintendo launches new Switch game console

TOKYO - Nintendo's Switch console goes on sale Friday in a global launch seen as key for the Japanese videogame giant to reverse flagging sales and compete with Sony's top-selling PlayStation 4.

The $299 unit, which works both at home and on-the-go, blends the Super Mario maker's history in the console business with its fledgling mobile gaming strategy, which got a big brand win after Pokemon Go's success last summer.

Kyoto-based Nintendo is aiming to sell more than two million Switch consoles in its first month.

Strong demand for the new unit would help Nintendo close the book on poor sales of its last console, Wii U -- the disappointing follow-up to the smash hit Wii, which sold over 100 million units worldwide after its launch a decade ago.

Switch has a removable screen that lets players dock it at home and also use it on the go like a tablet with detachable controllers -- called Joy-Con -- on both sides.

The idea is to give gamers a more immersive experience with realistic physical sensations matched to what is happening on-screen.

A remote control feature means players can take their eyes off the screen to face off, punching the air in a boxing game or getting into a gun duel.

In past years, Nintendo has scored hits with traditional home consoles, such as the Nintendo 64 or GameCube, and portable devices likes GameBoy and the DS handheld.

"Switch is probably one of the most important consoles for Nintendo in the past decades," said Serkan Toto, a Tokyo-based games industry consultant.

"(It's) the first time where Nintendo basically combines portable games and home console games into one device, into one platform."

But trying to score a win in two different markets is risky, Toto added.

"Some people could say that Nintendo is trying to kill two birds with one stone and that it could actually land in the middle and not really catch any of the target groups," he said.

Investors have been underwhelmed so far. Nintendo shares are down about 15 percent from October, when the firm gave gamers a sneak peak of its newest console.

While it has dipped a toe into the mobile gaming market, the Nintendo also needs to keep up with console maker rivals Microsoft and Sony, which has racked up huge sales of the latest PlayStation -- it has sold more than 53 million units globally since its debut in late 2013.

mis/pb/fa

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Nintendo reboots with new portable Switch game console

TOKYO - Nintendo will unveil its new portable Switch games console Friday as it looks to offset disappointing Wii U sales and go head to head with rival Sony's hugely popular PlayStation 4.

The hybrid console -- it can be played at home and on the go -- comes as Nintendo dips its toe into the mobile gaming market after scoring a big win for its brand this summer with the success of Pokemon Go.

But Switch got off to an inauspicious start in October when a sneak peak at the console left gamers and analysts underwhelmed and with many unanswered questions.

Nintendo's Tokyo-listed stock dived after it released a three-minute video about the product on its YouTube channel.

But the firm is expected to release more details on Friday, including the price, when it shows off the console to media at an event scheduled to start around 1 p.m. (0400 GMT) in Tokyo.

A briefing in New York will follow later in the day with the unit set to go on sale in March.

The device has a removable screen that lets players dock it at home and also use it on the go like a tablet computer with detachable controllers on both sides. It uses cartridges rather than discs.

Switch will be crucial for Nintendo which needs a hit product to offset the flagging fortunes of the Wii U and its handheld 3DS device, as rival Sony racks up huge sales of the PS4 -- it has sold over 50 million units globally since its debut in late 2013.

In November, Sony started selling the $400 PS4 Pro, which promises even sharper graphics than earlier versions.

After struggling to fix its weak finances, Nintendo abandoned a long-held consoles-only policy and entered the smartphone game market last year.

In March, the Super Mario maker released "Miitomo" -- a free-to-play and interactive game -- as it tries to compete in an industry that has increasingly gone online.

This summer it scored another hit with the Pokemon Go app released in July, but the impact on Nintendo's profits will be limited.

The company is the creator of the Pokemon franchise but does not own the licence for the game, which was developed and distributed by US-based Niantic, a spinoff of Google.

Last month, Nintendo released the Super Mario Run game for iPhones, which topped download charts and drew more than 40 million downloads globally in the first four days after its release, according to the company.

But analysts warned its popularity could be hampered by a relatively high $10 price tag for access to the full game, since many online offerings are free.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Nintendo to release Super Mario Run in mobile game test

TOKYO - Nintendo will on Thursday release Super Mario Run, its first iPhone game and a key test of its foray into mobile gaming, hot on the heels of the Pokemon Go craze.

The game will start selling in 151 countries and regions later Thursday and will become available on Android-based devices at a later date.

The highly anticipated release comes after the Kyoto-based Wii console maker refused for years to move into smartphone gaming or license its characters for online play.

But, as it struggled to repair its finances, the firm changed course and announced last year it was teaming up with Japanese mobile specialist DeNA to develop games for smartphones and tablets based on its host of popular characters.

In March, Nintendo released its first mobile game "Miitomo" -- a free-to-play and interactive game that allows users to create avatars.

Then the Pokemon Go game -- based on Nintendo characters -- exploded into the public consciousness, being downloaded more than half a billion times.

But it was only partly Nintendo's creation -- the game is owned by San Francisco-based Niantic -- and it's had little impact on the firm's bottom line.

Super Mario Run, based on Nintendo's iconic Italian plumber, is the firm's most important move so far into mobile gaming.

Randy Nelson, head of mobile insights at US-based industry analyst group Sensor Tower, said it was likely to be a hit in the first month or so.

"We have no doubt that first month downloads of Super Mario Run will be historic -- likely much greater than Pokemon Go -- thanks to months of prominent featuring by Apple, extensive media coverage, and more," he wrote in a blog.

But a nearly $10 price tag to buy the full version could scare away some potential customers, Pokemon Go is free, and Android users won't be able to buy it until a later date.

"It's not like it will be Pokemon Go of 500 million downloads in two months," Macquarie Securities analyst David Gibson told Bloomberg News, instead estimating about 200 million downloads by the end of March.

"Nostalgic Nintendo players will almost certainly spend. But what matters is if the marginal customer says this is good, yeah, I’ll spend the money."

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Nintendo shares jump on Super Mario app for iPhones

TOKYO - Nintendo shares surged more than five percent on Wednesday after the game giant said it would release a Super Mario app for iPhones next month.

The stock price rose as much as 5.5 percent to 26,215 yen before closing the morning session on the Tokyo Stock Exchange up 4.38 percent at 25,950 yen.

Shares in Nintendo, creator of the Pokemon franchise, have been on a tear since the July release of Pokemon Go -- making the company more valuable than Sony at one stage.

The stock has gained more than 50 percent this year on the phenomenal success of the mobile app for iOS and Android developed by San Francisco-based Niantic.

Kyoto-based Nintendo said it would release Super Mario Run worldwide for Apple's iPhone and iPad on December 15.

Customers can download it from the App Store for free to try some limited elements of the game.

An optional one-time payment, which will be $9.99 in the United States, grants unlimited access, the company said.

Neil Campling, an analyst at Northern Trust Capital Markets, hailed the company's approach of enticing gamers in the same way as other mobile game successes as "a great strategy".

"To set a low incentive and then a low total cost when engaged could set Nintendo on a differentiated path, which ultimately could be a game changer," Campling said.

Super Mario Run will also be introduced for Android-based devices at a later date.

Nintendo is also to release a new game console early next year.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Nintendo to release next-generation console teaser

TOKYO - Japan's Nintendo Co. Ltd. said it would release a short video later on Thursday of the next-generation game console it plans to launch globally in March - an announcement that sent its shares up more than 4 percent.

The Kyoto-based games company has disclosed few details of the console beyond its codename, NX. The three-minute video will be available to watch on the company's website at 11 p.m. (1400 GMT).

The console's success will be crucial to Nintendo as the firm still places console gaming at the center of its business, even as casual gaming shifts from living rooms to smartphones.

Sales of Nintendo's current Wii U console have reached 13 million units since its 2012 launch. Its predecessor, the Wii, launched in 2006, sold 101 million units.

The disappointing sales added impetus to shareholders and observers urging Nintendo to embrace smartphone gaming. Earlier this year, Nintendo finally decided to bring some of its popular characters to mobile, leading to the runaway success of its game Pokemon GO.

Shares of Nintendo rose as much as 4.4 percent during Thursday trade in Tokyo, outpacing the broader Nikkei average share price index.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

New York bars sex offenders from Pokemon Go

New York, United States - It's the smartphone game electrifying the world but New York took steps Monday to ban sex offenders from using the app to potentially prey on child victims.

The game, developed by US-based software company Niantic, a spinoff of Google, has been downloaded more than 75 million times across the United States and has gone viral across the world.

But Governor Andrew Cuomo ordered New York's department of corrections to ban nearly 3,000 registered offenders on parole from downloading, accessing or taking part in Pokemon Go as well as other Internet-enabled games.

"Protecting New York's children is priority number one and, as technology evolves, we must ensure these advances don't become new avenues for dangerous predators to prey on new victims," Cuomo said in a statement.

The governor wrote Monday to software developer Niantic, Inc. asking them to bar sexual predators from playing Pokemon.

"The state has taken action to prohibit sex offenders from using this game, but we need your assistance to make certain that sex offenders will not continue to use Pokemon GO by technologically barring their use," he said in the letter.

A report from two New York state senators showed that children playing Pokemon have been unwittingly lured into proximity of sex offenders.

Their investigation caught 57 Pokemon characters directly outside 100 homes of registered sex offenders on probation or parole whose crimes involved child abuse or possession of child pornography in the city of New York.

There are nearly 3,000 sex offenders currently on parole in New York, the fourth most populous state in the United States.

Since 2008, New York sex offenders have been required to register all email accounts and Internet identities with the state criminal justice services.

The list is given to more than two dozen social networking companies on a weekly basis in order to purge offenders from their membership.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Hooray! Nintendo shows sneak peek of new Family Computer

After 33 years, Nintendo is giving the older generation of gamers something to be excited about while their kids go wild with Pokémon Go: the all new Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) Classic.

NES, also popularly known as the Family Computer, is the quintessential parent of every home console gaming device that we know today.

If you’re a millennial, you’ve probably heard about what the NES is, during hushed conversations between your parents who are no longer as familiar with the games you play on your PlayStations, Xboxes, and Wiis that they bought for you. They spoke about a legendary console that game them hours of fun playing pixelated sprites of monkeys, ghosts, plumbers, Eskimos, vampire hunters, elvish warriors, and female cyborg fighters.

Powerful machine – 30 years ago

It was called the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) or Family Computer (Famicom) in its native Japan. Back in the day, it was an 8-bit gadget powered by a 1.79 MHz processor. If that number seems small, it’s because it is. Your smartwatch would have more processing power than 1000 of these things running at the same time.

But the NES had a reason for being. It was the starting platform of many video game characters that are remain popular to this day. The Super Mario Bros started on the NES, Donkey Kong’s first home version was on a NES, Mega Man first shot to fame on it, and people saw the fantastic world of Hyrule of the Legend of Zelda series on this machine.

The NES operated games on cartridges – storage devices that are older than tape, itself a device that many young people of cloud services would most likely call “Jurassic.” But the hard plastic game cartridges featured cover images that were as good as artwork, which is why owners would keep the original packaging pristine.

Its controller only had a total of five items to press: 4-way direction button, A and B buttons, and Press and Start buttons. Plus, it needed to be physically attached via a 2-meter long cable. Compare that to the gazillion buttons, knobs, and switches on a wireless PlayStation 4 controller. It was as simple as it could get but more than enough to provide hours and hours of 2D fun.

Retro is back, baby!

The new NES Classic is a miniaturized version of the NES console that had once been a staple appliance underneath a CRT TV (that’s cathode ray tube for you, millennials). It’s so small that it can be carried with one hand. In fact, it is the size, weight, and thickness of two NES cartridges put atop each other.

While it still looks and feels like the real NES, the NES Classic no longer uses the near-extinct yellow RCA port (who still uses these ports, anyway?!) but now sports the extant HDMI cable so you can play it on your ginormous ultra high-definition TV.

The NES Classic also no longer needs a cartridge; it comes pre-installed with 30 of the most renowned NES titles during its time (Pac-Man and Punch-Out! are already worth the price tag, which we’ll come to in a few).

The classic black-white-gray-red design of the controller is also back and is still the same size as the original. Most youngsters now would have a hard time even fathoming the solid square design of this controller, especially the perceived threat of the sharp corners, but older generation of gamers know that you’d never stop playing on this controller even if you already are suffering from carpal tunnel syndrome.

And now for the price. According to Nintendo this retro gaming device would sell for US$59.99 (about Php2,700) or about the price of a current generation game. Surprised? You should be because this thing cost US$300 when it was launched in 1983 -- nearly US$800 in today’s money. It had the price tag of three Xbox Ones.

The NES Classic would be officially sold in stores on November 11.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Nintendo sees transformation, but won't forget 'Mario'

LOS ANGELES -- Nintendo played to "Super Mario" fans on Tuesday while talking transformation as the Japanese video game giant strived to regain momentum.

"If there is a secret to the longevity of Nintendo franchises, it is transformation," Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime said during a presentation streamed online before the show floor opened at an Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) video game extravaganza here.

"We never let them stand still."

 While console rivals Xbox One and PlayStation 4 were stars of theatrical E3 media events in Los Angeles a day earlier, Nintendo opted to go digital for the second year.

Xbox and PlayStation consoles from Microsoft and Sony, respectively, are known for immersive, action-packed games nearing film quality while Nintendo has built a devoted following for closely-protected franchises such as Mario and Legend of Zelda.

But the one-time industry titan has long been criticized for its refusal to license some of its iconic brands for use on mobile applications.

In a sign that Nintendo may be loosening its grip a bit, Fils-Aime announced a partnership with Activision to add "Donkey Kong" and "Bowser" characters to the video game publisher's successful Skylanders line-up.

Skylanders has been a hit with real-world figurines embedded with chips that synchronize them to arena-style platforms plugged into consoles, essentially letting youngsters carry about customized champions they can drop into on-screen games.

Donkey Kong and Bowser will have vehicles and be part of a Skylanders SuperChargers offering from Activision in September. The play pieces will also work as "amiibos" in compatible Nintendo games.

Super Mario turns 30

Nintendo also said it will mark the 30th anniversary of its iconic "Super Mario" franchise this year with the release in September of a game that will let people create their own levels for play.

The Japanese video game stalwart on Tuesday launched a LetsSuperMario.com website where lovers of the franchise can upload video tributes.

Fils-Amie said that Nintendo's transformation includes broadening out into theme parks, mobile devices, and even a new dedicated game platform about which it will reveal more next year.

At E3 this week, Nintendo will provide early looks at new installments to beloved franchises including Star Fox, Yoshi, Metroid, and Mario & Luigi.

Nintendo's offerings were tailored for Wii U and its 3DS handheld gaming devices that have lost luster as lifestyles turn to play on smartphones or tablets.

The Kyoto-based company hopes to offset weakening demand for its 3DS portable game system with plans to jump into the booming smartphone games market -- a long awaited departure from its consoles-only policy.

"A new source of revenue is expected from a gaming application for smart devices which will be released this year," Nintendo said after releasing earnings figures in May.

In March, Nintendo unveiled plans to buy a stake in Tokyo-based mobile gaming company DeNA as part of a deal to develop smartphone games based on Nintendo's host of popular characters.

Fils-Amie described Nintendo's E3 line-up as "familiar characters and franchises transformed in unexpected ways that can only be found on Nintendo systems.”

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Nintendo to develop device to track sleep, fatigue

TOKYO -- Japanese video game maker Nintendo Co. Ltd. will develop a device to measure a user's fatigue and map their sleep, CEO Satoru Iwata said on Thursday, the first offering from the company's newly created healthcare division.

The device will be developed with U.S. firm ResMed Inc., which currently makes products to treat sleep disorders, and will be available in the financial year ending March 2016.

"By using our know-how in gaming... to analyse sleep and fatigue, we can create something fun," Iwata said.

Nintendo, better known for its Mario video game franchise and Wii and Wii U consoles, has said it expects its healthcare division to turn a profit in 2015/2016. The company already offers fitness games on its Wii console, played with a motion sensor controller.

According to an image Iwata shared at a media conference, the device will be about the size of a hand and can be placed on a user's bedside table. It will use microwave transmission sensors to track sleep, with the data collected used to help users cultivate healthy sleeping habits.

Iwata refused to discuss the company's sales expectations for the new device beyond saying that it may be offered via a subscription service rather than a one-off purchase.

"We only start something new if we think we will be able to create a big market, but as I'm not able to discuss pricing plans and other details today I don't think there's much point in giving a figure for our projected scale," he said.

The device was launched a day after Nintendo reported an unexpected quarterly profit, after hit games gave a boost to sales of its Wii U console.

Shares in Nintendo rose as high as 7.7 percent when they opened on the Tokyo stock exchange. They then pared gains to close the morning session up 0.7 percent, slightly outpacing the benchmark Nikkei index, which rose 0.5 percent.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Nintendo jumps on toy figure trend to boost Wii U

SAN FRANCISCO - Nintendo on Tuesday said it is adding real-world game figures to Wii U play to boost the popularity of its console, which has lagged rivals in the market.

Nintendo is blending Will U virtual play with tangible toys as it faces off against powerhouse offerings from Xbox One and PlayStation 4 at an E3 gathering here.

The Japanese video game stalwart is jumping on a trend that has paid off for publisher Activision with "Skylanders" and for Disney Interactive with "Infinity" play launched last year with characters from Pixar film "The Incredibles."

"It's been very successful," Disney Infinity senior producer Sean Patton said as he showed off new 'Marvel Super Heroes' interactive game pieces due for release later this year.

Game pieces give players toys then can hold, collect, and taken with them in ways that extend on-screen fun into the real-world, Patton noted while discussing their appeal.

Those being play at the Disney booth on the E3 show floor included Hulk, Iron Man, and Spider Man. Versions of Disney Infinity are tailored for all major consoles.

Toys To Life
Activision pioneered the "Toys-To-Life" category in 2011 with the introduction of "Spyro's Adventure" in a shrewd move bridging virtual worlds and real life when it comes to video games.

Skylanders has become a $2 billion franchise, according to Activision.

"We shook up the kids game industry, and it was a phenomenal success," said Paul Reiche, co-founder of Toys for Bob studio that created 'Skylanders.'

"People grow up thinking their toys are alive; we just want to make that true."

Actually handling toys and sharing in-game experiences with them has resonated with players young and old, according to Reiche.

While the prime demographic for "Skylanders" is pre-teen boys, there was a lengthy queue waiting to demo a coming "Trap Team" version of the game at E3 where children are not allowed.

"Connecting imagination through physical objects into the game world is the magic recipe," Reiche told AFP.

"Why shouldn't our toys follow us into the virtual world where we spend most of our time?"

Skylanders figures work with all of the competing console systems, with the help of an accessory platform that relays digital information to and from toys to game software.

Nintendo is turning to beloved franchises "Mario" for its dive into interactive toys, and to further distinguish itself from more muscular Xbox and PlayStation consoles known for immersive, realistic blockbuster action games.

"Nintendo is more light-hearted," said 19-year-old Marco Garcia, who sat in the shade outside the E3 venue dressed like the Mario Brothers character "Luigi," complete with green cap and stick-on black moustache.

Nearby, a queue stretched along the street outside the Nokia Theater where a Nintendo-sponsored "Mario Smash Brothers" game tournament was hours from starting.

"Nintendo has a lot of games coming," the California teenager said. "I think it will be enough to give the Wii U a good kick."

Super Smash Brothers

Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime said "amiibo" game pieces embedded with computer chips to swap data with Wii U GamePad controllers will debut in a "Mario Smash Brothers" game later this year.

Amiibo characters are heading to a variety of games, including "Mario Kart," according to Nintendo.

Nintendo will also be letting players put themselves into games as animated "mii" characters, virtually doing battle with some classic characters from the Japan-based video game company.

"We are not simply throwing miis into the fray," Fils-Aime said. "We've done some serious work getting them ready for the fight."

Nintendo played to fans of beloved franchises such as "Mario" and "Legend of Zelda" during a media briefing streamed online prior to the opening of the show floor at the E3 video game extravaganza here.

It is the second year in a row that Nintendo decided to forgo a grand, live presentation to vie for the spotlight at what is considered the industry's premier event.

Nintendo's Wii U, launched in late 2012, has lost some of its luster to the new-generation PlayStation 4 from Sony and Xbox one from Microsoft, both released last year.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Nintendo's Game Boy marks 25th anniversary

TOKYO -- Nintendo's trailblazing Game Boy marks its 25th anniversary Monday with the portable device's legacy living on in cutting-edge smartphone games and among legions of nostalgic fans.

The Japanese firm released its 8-bit Game Boy on April 21, 1989 -- the same year Soviet troops pulled out of Afghanistan, the Chinese army violently cracked down on protesters in Tiananmen Square and the Berlin Wall fell.

Billed as a "handy game machine," few knew it would turn the console-based industry on its head, starting a revolution that did for portable gaming what Sony's Walkman had done for mobile music.

It also helped turn Super Mario and Donkey Kong into global franchises, allowing users to change their favorite games on the go just by inserting small cartridges into the device.

Kyoto-based Nintendo, which started life as a games card maker that morphed into a global videogame giant, did not invent portable gaming.

But Game Boy's discount price and popular software blew away the competition at the time and pushed mobile gaming into the mainstream.

"At one point, portable gaming was synonymous with the Game Boy," said Serkan Toto, a Tokyo-based games industry consultant

"It laid the foundation for what we call portable gaming today, regardless of whether it is console or smartphone games, because the basic concept is the same... That's the legacy of Game Boy."

Mobility was crucial, remembers one 21-year-old Japanese, if he wanted to escape his parents' wrath.

"With a standing console I needed to play in the living room where my parents were watching television -- they got angry at me for playing it all the time," the man, who did not wish to give his name, told AFP as he browsed inside Super Potato, a Tokyo store dedicated to retro gaming gadgets.

The device also allowed users to connect with another gamer through a link cable, setting off the beginnings of online gaming networks that now number in the millions of users.

"It made gaming portable, but what's great was it was built on the concept of networking, enabling users to connect and battle each other," said Hirokazu Hamamura, managing director at games research firm and magazine publisher Kadokawa Corp. in Tokyo.

'It was a revolution'

A quarter century later, the company's financial fortunes have suffered.

Nintendo has no commemorative events planned for the Game Boy, which ironically foreshadowed the creation of portable smartphone and tablet computer games that have offered up stiff competition to stationary consoles such as Nintendo's Wii, the Sony PlayStation and Microsoft's Xbox.

The Game Boy was discontinued years ago. But in its heyday, Nintendo sold almost 119 million original Game Boy consoles and shifted another 81.5 million units of the next-generation Game Boy Advance series, which was launched in 2001.

The original device's red buttons and cross-shaped directional pads may look clunky these days, but they evoke a sense of nostalgia for many fans, including Spaniard Jesus Mera, who was 12 years old when he began playing with his Game Boy Color.

"It was a revolution -- you could play video games anywhere," said the 26-year-old Madrid native during a visit to Tokyo.

Mera was delighted to spot the same type of Game Boy he used to play for hours on end in the gaming store in Tokyo's bustling Akihabara electronics district.

He acknowledged the small screen and games seem outdated, but "in the past what we had was enough".

"Nowadays we have so many possibilities," Mera said.

That isn't necessarily a good thing for people like 21-year-old student Lin Yuki who sometimes struggles with today's hyper-fast world of 3D offerings where movement is limitless -- and tricky to master.

"Recent games have become so complicated that you can be totally lost on what you're supposed to be doing," he said, admitting he sometimes feels "nostalgic" for simple games with black dots and horizontal scrolls.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Mobile games leave Super Mario lagging

TOKYO -- There was a time when wherever Super Mario Brothers went, the gaming world followed, but an industry that has moved on in leaps and bounds since then just shrugged at the latest re-set by Nintendo on Thursday.

A vague plan to reboot a business hammered by disastrous Wii U console sales, including possibly cutting the chains that bind their popular characters to Nintendo's own devices by loosening its licensing policy, left analysts and gamers leery about the Japanese giant's prospects.

The maker of the Donkey Kong and Super Mario franchises has fallen on hard times in recent years, piling up losses as rivals Sony and Microsoft outpaced it in console sales, while all three companies fight off a trend toward cheap -- or sometimes free -- downloadable games for smartphones and other mobile devices.

"Smartphone games are really getting popular and whatever Nintendo does, people are using fewer consoles," said Hidekazu Kurihara, a 31-year-old Nintendo devotee browsing in a retro shop in Tokyo's electronics wonderland of Akihabara.

The shop sells all things Nintendo from years past, from the consoles that flung the company onto the global stage to the games whose characters became household names in the 1980s and 1990s.

"I really don't know what they should do," he said as another customer played Mario Kart on the 1990 Super Nintendo (SNES), under the watchful gaze of an oversized Super Mario, the mustachioed plumber who starred in the franchise.

Nintendo's stock price on Thursday swung wildly as investors reacted to comments by the company's president.

After soaring by about seven percent as the Tokyo Stock Exchange opened, players jumped on the stock after a buyback was announced and it finished the day a bedraggled 4.3 percent below where it started, at 12,325 yen ($120).

Hyper-competitive digital games

Investors were less than impressed with Nintendo's insistence on sticking with its console-centric business despite slumping sales -- and calls to ride the mobile wave.

President Satoru Iwata told a Tokyo analyst conference that the "business integrating hardware and software is our strength", adding that the Kyoto-based firm was too small to make a splash in the hyper-competitive digital games sector.

Nintendo would, however, look at loosening its licensing policy to promote some of its beloved characters on smartphones and other mobile devices, he said.

"In the past we were negative about (the) licensing business. But we'll change this policy and be proactive including looking for a possible business partner," Iwata said.

For gamer Nobuo Kaneko, who was browsing in Akihabara, the problem with Nintendo is a lack of choice.

While a less sophisticated audience of a few decades ago might have put up with narrow choice and stuck with one console, gamers are more eclectic now, and the explosion in opportunities, including online, has made them much less monogamous.

"They don't really have games from other makers, only Nintendo games," said Kaneko, a 35-year-old Tokyo resident.

The firm's vague new strategy comes a day after it announced a share buyback plan and Iwata agreed to cut his salary in half for five months to atone for a dive in earnings.

That came on the heels of a shock announcement this month that Nintendo would slip back into the red.

Poor holiday demand for the Wii U and its high-margin software meant console sales for the current fiscal year to March would come in at 2.8 million units, Nintendo said -- less than one-third of the firm's forecast.

By contrast Sony, which also has an online gaming subscription service, sold more than 4.2 million PlayStation 4 consoles by the start of this year, less than two months after its release. The Wii U has been on sale for over a year.

"The market had expected something new related to the smartphone business, but the results just disappointed," said Kenzaburo Suwa, strategist at Okasan Securities.

No 'magic bullet'

Serkan Toto, a Tokyo-based games consultant, questioned the frequent calls for Nintendo to move away from its console-based business -- as bitter rival Sega did about a decade ago -- and dive into the mobile gaming realm.

"By putting their games on smartphones ... I think that would ultimately kill Nintendo," he told AFP.

After a slow start, the firm has seen better sales of its 3DS -- the world's first 3D videogame system that works without special glasses -- and the original Wii with its motion-sensor controls was an unqualified winner.

"The point about Nintendo, why this company is so strong, apart from their existing intellectual property and brand appeal ... is their ability to innovate," Toto said.

"Nintendo needs something like (the original Wii)..But I don't think there is one magic bullet, one way that Nintendo can miraculously cure itself ... It will be a very difficult path going forward."

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Can Nintendo recover from Wii U flop?

TOKYO - Nintendo Co Ltd, facing a third year of losses, is getting lots of unsolicited advice on how to squeeze more out of its Mario franchise and revive its fortunes after admitting that its Wii U game console has been a flop.

The company has given few clues on its new management strategy, due to be announced on Thursday. One thing, however, is certain - it will have to burn through a lot of its cash pile in the years it takes to try again with the Wii U's successor.

The Nintendo that emerges could well be a more efficient company - better at marketing its beloved characters, but still wedded to its basic strategy of making hardware as the vehicle for software developed in-house.

Most analysts do not expect a bolder change of direction, such as making its back catalogue available via an online subscription service or allowing its games to be played on smartphones - despite some saying they are the future of gaming.

The Kyoto-based company has been slow to move online, falling behind Microsoft Corp and Sony Corp, which will launch a cloud-based streaming service this summer enabling users to play the same game across numerous platforms.

Taking Mario to the cloud would be a big step for conservative Nintendo.

"Online is big and Nintendo is notorious for not having a great online system," said Jean Snow, a Tokyo-based gaming expert.

The company faces no imminent existential danger. With 850 billion yen ($8.3 billion) in cash and its own shares at the end of last September it can survive a few years of losses.

That cash pile was amassed from past hits such as the first Wii - evidence, say some, that a company with its history of booms and busts has the ability to turn things around once more.

"Nintendo is a special thing, because of its history, so many gamers have a soft spot for Nintendo... they just shot themselves in the foot with this piece of hardware, the Wii U," said Snow. "But I totally think they can get out."

WII U FAILURE

The failure of the Wii U - whose annual sales forecast was slashed by 70 percent earlier this month - leaves Nintendo as the loser of the pack now led by Sony and Microsoft.

Analysts say the Wii U foundered because too few games were released for the console, with development issues leading to a delay of more than six months between the games released at the launch in November 2012 and the next batch of titles.

"There's no software that is made especially for the Wii U. If there were fun games that you couldn't play on anything else then that would be something to talk about," said Eiji Maeda, an analyst at SMBC Nikko.

It was the sports and fitness games introduced with Nintendo's previous console, the Wii, that made it a runaway hit as their use of the console's unique motion sensor controllers drew in families and video games newbies.

But those casual gamers have been unconvinced of the need to upgrade to a console whose name and concept seems so close to its predecessor, while core gamers hanker for the more adult games, higher processing power and connectivity offered by Sony's Playstation 4 and Microsoft's Xbox One.

Although Nintendo CEO Satoru Iwata said that sales of the Wii U would pick up as more titles are released, there are few cases of a console becoming a hit after a slow start. Third party developers are also less likely to want to make games for a failing console.

Nintendo has survived misses amid its hits before. It weathered the blow to the games industry from the collapse of rival Atari, scoring a hit with its Nintendo Entertainment System, and later won a battle for dominance against Sega.

Nintendo's Gamecube console, released in 2001, stumbled against Sony's PlayStation 2 and Microsoft's Xbox. The Wii was initially derided for lacking the high-definition graphics of its rivals' next-generation consoles. It went on to outsell the Xbox 360, with more than 100 million sold by September 2013.

NEXT LEVEL

Nintendo budgeted a record 70 billion yen ($684 million) for research and development this year, as increasingly sophisticated graphics and functions has pushed the average cost of making a game to around 2-3 billion yen.

But with the company falling short of a 100 billion yen operating profit target set last year, Thursday's announcement is likely to focus on cost cuts. Nintendo will report its third-quarter results on Wednesday.

"The increase in the cost of game development is one of the reasons why Nintendo hasn't put out (enough new) software," said Hideki Yasuda, an analyst at Ace Securities.

Nintendo has already moved to reduce costs by merging its portable and home game console departments last year.

Some investors doubt the move will be drastic enough, with some clamouring for Nintendo to license its games out to other companies and to make a mobile version for Apple's iOS and Google Inc's Android smartphone platforms.

But the robust sales of the Playstation 4 and Xbox One suggests the threat of smartphones to home game consoles has been overplayed, while Nintendo has long resisted going mobile, saying it would hurt the inherent value of its characters.

Instead, Nintendo could better exploit that value by expanding its franchises for characters such as Mario and Zelda as it did with Pokemon, which was spun into a successful cartoon series, movie and toys and is now owned by an affiliate.

"They could diversify their revenue streams... rather than licensing Mario to another game company it would be better to make a movie or a TV series," said Yasuda of Ace Securities. "Bandai Namco has found great success doing that with Gundam and Kamen Rider."

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com