http://ds.ign.com/articles/569/569826p1.html
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http://ds.ign.com/articles/569/569826p1.html
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Mostly just play Nintendo 64. If you've got games PM me! Cart only.
Pretty impressive I have to say. I was a bit worried that the DS might suffer a similar fate to the DC - ie/ nobody buys until Sony release their hardware. It might only be the first week's figures but it's a mighty fine start!
God bless the Nintendo fanboys!Originally Posted by Pedro Lambrini
Ask me anything http://formspring.me/squirrelnut1416
That's good but it's interesting to note that the GBA and GBA SP sold 800,000 units in that same week.
Indeed. Who are all these people who keep buying Gameboys. Everybody and their dog must own one by now! Maybe parents are buying as surrogate DS's for the kids' Christmas?Originally Posted by petewhitley
Squirrelnut: I do really like Nintendo H/W and Games but I am not a fanboy. My concern is for competition in the free market and real choice for the gamer. Although, I have to admit, I am not a great fan of Sony I don't really want the PSP to dissappear into obscurity. I want the DS and the PSP to do well so that neither company can sit on their laurels - like Ninty has done with the Gameboy and Sony has done with the PS brand.
Sony has had serious competition in the home console market from the moment it launched the PlayStation in '95, whereas Nintendo hasn't had any serious competition in the handheld market since the Game Gear, more than a decade ago. You could accuse Nintendo of "resting on its laurels," but not Sony.Originally Posted by Pedro Lambrini
-- Z.
What are you talking about? Nintendo has had serious compitition in the console market ever since the Genesis. Atleast they are still around, unlike Sega.
Run, run, or you'll be well done! -Kefka
I'd agree with you for the most part, however in Japan at least Nintendo has seemed to have some decent competion:Originally Posted by zmweasel
According to IGN, the Wonderswan holds 8% of the handheld gaming market in Japan: http://gameboy.ign.com/articles/358/...html?fromint=1
Then there was the GP32, which is a pretty slick handheld. I can't find any market share reports, but I've heard it wasn't doing bad. It was very powerful and really could give Nintendo some good competition.
Lastly, the Neo Geo Pocket and Pocket Color I thought did some damage in the Japanese market. I had heard somewhere that they had claimed 15% of the market share when they collapsed, but I can't seem to find anything that supports that.
While none of these systems gained the same visibility as the Game Gear, I think that at least part of the fact that they haven't gained more ground is due to the fact that Nintendo has been so good marketing the GameBoy line up. There is no doubt that the NGPC (released '99) is more powerful than the Game Boy Color. There is also no doubt that the GP32 is more powerful than the GBA. But Nintendo has continued to control the market.
I also find it very ironic that the only real challenger is the Wonderswan, which made its name with great games at a cheap price. Something has to be said for price with portables...
Dan Loosen
http://www.goatstore.com/ - http://www.midwestgamingclassic.com/
** Trying to finish up an overly complete Dreamcast collection... want to help? (Updated 5/3/10!) http://www.digitpress.com/forum/showthread.php?t=61333
Yea, I couldn't care less about power. The original GB coulda been 100x more powerfull but I still woulda liked my Game Gear better, I could actually SEE it. Also you're right goatdan, I'm not willing to spend a lot on handheld games. I can fork over $50 for a hot PC game, but I'm not willing to do that with handhelds. Especially not at the rate they are milling out GBA games, like those NES classics. $30 is still too much for my tastes, however I gladly spent $40 on FFTA.
Run, run, or you'll be well done! -Kefka
I think we're in the minority on this, but I feel the same way. I can barely justify spending more than $20.00 on a console game, and I can never justify that much on most portable games. I have one Neo Geo Pocket game I paid more than $20.00 for.Originally Posted by Avatard
I haven't bought a GBA because I can't justify spending that much money on portable games. I'm seriously starting to consider getting a Game Boy Color for $10.00 now.
Ironically, I have a Wonderswan in my collection. No games, but I got it as an import perfectly boxed up for $10.00, so that made it worth it to me
Dan Loosen
http://www.goatstore.com/ - http://www.midwestgamingclassic.com/
** Trying to finish up an overly complete Dreamcast collection... want to help? (Updated 5/3/10!) http://www.digitpress.com/forum/showthread.php?t=61333
Looking at DS software and general marketing from N thus far, I'd say yes...but as you've said, Nintendo rushed the DS to market. The DS has suffered somewhat as a result, but Nintendo has definitely taken some of the wind from Sony's sails.Originally Posted by zmweasel
It's rather interesting to see Sony, outspoken champions of the "first to market" strategy relying on their fanbase to pick up the PSP (which should prove to be a more polished product than the DS). Probably a reaction to the general annoyance towards the PS2's reliability and the realization that being first doesn't count for everything...you can get your product out first, but then you'll have to live with the tradeoffs in quality. Definitely not the way to go with a disc-based machine.
Sega's still around, and you misread what Zach wrote. He said Nintendo has had serious competition in the handheld market...discounting the Nomad (which I hate to do since it's a great machine), the Genesis has nothing to do with that market.Originally Posted by Avatard
The thought of a puke green screen machine driven by a ~4.19GHz processor is INTENSELY amusing.Originally Posted by Avatard
As I stated in my earlier post, Nintendo hasn't had legitimate competition in the HANDHELD market--certainly not in North America--for more than a decade. Sony has always been up against two major competitors in the CONSOLE market.Originally Posted by Avatard
-- Z.
That's a link to an article from May 2002, Dan. That quoted 8% figure has dropped to an even more insignificant percentage over the past two and a half years.Originally Posted by goatdan
If you ever do find something to support that extraordinarily unlikely percentage, let me know.Lastly, the Neo Geo Pocket and Pocket Color I thought did some damage in the Japanese market. I had heard somewhere that they had claimed 15% of the market share when they collapsed, but I can't seem to find anything that supports that.
-- Z.
Regardless, it as well as my other points show that Nintendo has faced some competition... but has so far squashed it. Hearing that the market share for the WonderSwan has gone down since 2002 means that Nintendo is "winning" the sales wars, right? Doesn't that prove that they're doing something right in a market where there is more competition?Originally Posted by zmweasel
Dan Loosen
http://www.goatstore.com/ - http://www.midwestgamingclassic.com/
** Trying to finish up an overly complete Dreamcast collection... want to help? (Updated 5/3/10!) http://www.digitpress.com/forum/showthread.php?t=61333
I don't think Nintendo had any competition TO squash: by the time somebody figured out their formula for success (cheap, low specs, high battery life), that somebody was SNK and their handheld wasn't up to the task of going head-to-head with the GameBoy Color...and SNK's properties always have had a relatively small following, though very dedicated.
I never said Nintendo hasn't faced competition in the handheld market. I said it hasn't faced SERIOUS competition in more than a decade. The Wonderswan was a curiosity, not a challenger. The NGPC was from a company on the verge of death.Originally Posted by goatdan
The Game Gear was the last legit competition to the Game Boy, released when Sega was at its peak of success in the home-console field--an obvious parallel to Sony. But Sega was barely ahead of Nintendo at the time, and eventually lost the 16-bit wars, whereas Sony has been clobbering Nintendo for a decade.
-- Z.
The Dreamcast sold almost 400,000 units the first day of release in the states. Maybe 377,000. Something like that. I think it took 10 or 12 days to reach a million sold. Just cause the DS is doing well doesn't mean it will continue.Pretty impressive I have to say. I was a bit worried that the DS might suffer a similar fate to the DC - ie/ nobody buys until Sony release their hardware. It might only be the first week's figures but it's a mighty fine start!
THE ONE, THE ONLY- RCM
Erm, oh well...Originally Posted by RCM
Maybe it will last - if the GBA can still sell 800,000 units in the same week maybe the solid position of the GBA and DS (and the compatibility of the DS with GBA games) will hold them in good stead. By the time Sega released the 'Cast they had already lost a lot of ground in their market...
Exactly. The Dreamcast sold to the hardcore, but never reached the mass market. The DS is currently selling to the hardcore, but the question is whether or not it will reach the mass market, like the GBA.Originally Posted by RCM
-- Z.
Watch it there, that machine was my bread and butter for quite some time.Originally Posted by Ed Oscuro
The above comments really did hit the nail on the head in comparison of the DC initial sales to the DS. This will be very interesting, and as much of an N fanboy as I am, I'm not blind, N really needs to "play it loud"er in order to give Sony the competition.