Yes, says Malstrom, the obscure, long-winded, and one time Infendo commentator.

“The Ultimate Big Problem is that the decision makers inside Nintendo (e.g. Iwata and Miyamoto) wish to define the company in a way different than how Nintendo customers wish to define it,” Malstrom writes on his blog. “When will Nintendo be Nintendo again? Not in the eyes of Iwata or Miyamoto but in the eyes of the customers who are paying for everything. Until Nintendo matches the definition of the business to how the market perceives and desires Nintendo to be, we can predict with 100% accuracy that there is only stagnation or decline in Nintendo’s future.”

As Malstrom sees it, Nintendo wants to be perceived as an innovative technology company, which they sometimes are. But most people buy Nintendo games because of their enduring appeal. For their ability to transport older gamers to simpler but still enjoyable times. For being accessibile to gamers of all ages.

Cases in point, The Virtual Boy, N64, GameCube, and most recently 3DS and the upcoming Wii U, which left a lot of people more confused than inspired when it was shown this summer. “They do not feel like Nintendo products,” Malstrom concludes. “The 3DS seemed to be more about pushing 3d technology and 3d content which has nothing to do with arcade type games. The Wii U seems to be more about gobbling up the Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3 markets which greatly annoys people. How can the Wii U have a Nintendo identity if it has Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 games on it?”

What do you think: Agree… disagree?

I loved Robin Williams in his many theatrical performances such as Hook and Dead Poets society, but  when I found out he named his daughter after my favorite video game franchise of all time, my love for him went up by the power of ten. Now Robin and Zelda are in a new commercial promoting the newest game in the franchise, Skyward Sword, and it is pretty great.

I hope Nintendo and the Williams family continue to bring it with the great television adds. I think the celebrity can really help to get the word out about the game, and make Skyward Sword a huge hit!

What do you think? Do you enjoy seeing Robin and Zelda in these adds?

Mario hits the shelves in fourteen days! To celebrate this happy little countdown milestone, here are fourteen reasons to do the Mario! And, yes, there’s something about the box art I don’t like. See if you agree with me; I’ll mention it at the end.

But first: Fourteen reasons to charge up your 3DS on November 13th!

1. 3DS really needs this game (understatement of the year)

2. It’s a new Mario adventure on a new platform

3. Luigi’s unlockable (more…)

First footage of the Japanese Phoenix Wright movie have hit the interwebs, and movie looks surprisingly accurate to the video game counterpart. If only I could speak Japanese because, yeah, this DEFINITELY not coming stateside. You can take that to the bank.

Regardless, it’s pretty cool to see one of my favorite DS franchises given the live action treatment.

What do you think? What games would you like to see on the big screen?

With this year’s financials out for Nintendo, it has been plain to see that the company is in a bit of a lull. Iwata has said so himself stating “As we learned a bitter lesson with the launch of the Nintendo 3DS, we are trying to take every possible measure so that the Wii U will have a successful launch.” Popular conjecture would say that this is because of a lack of quality titles on either platform, or more specifically, a huge gap in-between quality releases. Iwata addressed this as well saying, “In the current fiscal year, there have been some big intervals between the launches of expected titles. We are now making preparations to ensure that we will be able to provide a variety of consumers with a broad range of software options to choose from so that we can maintain the momentum for the platform.” (more…)

In just two weeks, you’ll be able to play the newest Mario game on 3DS, Super Mario 3D Land. A week later, Zelda: Skyward Sword arrives on Wii. Of everything you’ve seen so far, which are you most excited to play? Since the games are separated by only a week, something is going to take a back seat. Which will it be in your home?

PROLOGUE: If you think everyone should share your view of reality, or if you become enraged when encountering a difference of opinion, I advise you to skip this post. In other words, hang on, Nintendo fans. This is gonna hurt:

Nintendo is expected to pull a Netflix and and pile on even more crap numbers this Thursday, adding to the already crappy quarterlies they’ve posted over the last year.

In the comment thread of the above article, one observer reacted as follows: “3DS will $99 soon and likely discontinued.”

I wouldn’t go quite that far. But I could see 3DS being discontinued prematurely. Whether that’s “soon” or not remains to be seen. But there’s no other way to put it: This thing is a sinking ship. Not Titanic fast or Virtual Boy fast. But fast enough to search the deck for life boats.

(more…)