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"E3 is Nintendo's casual show" ... They won't show Hardcore games ...

July 16, 2008 in News comments 41

Wii owners have been eagerly awaiting Nintendo's surprise announcements on "hardcore" games, but were disappointed to find that the majority of Nintendo's press conference revolved around casual games instead.

It looks like that won't change in the next few days either ...

Bozon of IGN got an interview with Shigeru Miyamoto today, who confirmed that "E3 is Nintendo's casual show" and that they "would leave Fatal Frame and other hardcore games to focus 'away from E3' from now on."

You will need an IGN Insider subscription to access the full page, but, if you don't have one, here is a snippet at what Bozon said ...

Bozon: 'I posted this in another thread, but thought I'd share in case people missed it.

Since so many "hardcore" Ninty fans are worried about the state of Wii right now, I asked Miyamoto why we were seeing so many casual games at this year's E3.

Miyamoto said I was dead on with Nintendo's philosophy of Nintendo and E3. I asked if the company backed away from hardcore games specifically and on purpose, showing only casual titles since they had the world's ear, and would leave Fatal Frame and other hardcore games to focus "away from E3" from now on.

He confirmed that's the case.

So yeah, this was a pretty depressing E3 for hardcore Nintendo fans, but Nintendo is doing exactly what it wants to right now, which is spend 100% of its time on casual games. E3 is Nintendo's casual show now more than ever. The hardcore games - as long as they are truly out there - will come away from E3 from now on. At least that's Miyamoto's take on the event.'
Miss Razz via au.insider.ign.com »
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  • 1
    Play ISDF Jul 16, 08
    Nintendo is alienating their old fan base acting like this. Granted they may be getting more casual gamers and that can be a lot of people, but casual gamers aren't the kind of people who stick by a company through thick and thin. Their just digging themselves a bigger hole.
  • 0
    Marshal Loss Jul 16, 08
    Yeah it seems pretty shit, but I guess..umm..it's for the best?
  • 1
    MusiKon Jul 16, 08
    So now we have written confirmation that Nintendo doesn't care about their core audience. Great.
    • 0
      TwilightPrince Jul 17, 08
      No, they're just not showing core games at E3. There will still be core games at other events, such as Leipzig in August, and Nintendo's annual conference in October.
    • 0
      The Dave Jul 18, 08
      Or rather that the core audience isn't you? I thought Nintendo had made it quite clear through their marketing that their core audience IS the casual gamer. You can't therefore fault them for having an E3 that was geared towards their core audience.
  • 0
    kazad Jul 16, 08
    casual=money casual=lame games
  • 0
    Sakuraba Neku Jul 16, 08
    Oh *bleep* you Miyamoto you were my hero until today .
  • 2
    Demonfurby Jul 16, 08
    He just let it slip that new Mario games are coming out.
    • 1
      Slumpy monkey Jul 16, 08
      Who the hell wants another rehashed mario game ffs.

      Nintendo need to get some FPS and RPGs. They make it out as if all they can make is mario.

      Mario mario mario mario mario zelda mario mario.

      Thats all Nintendo harp on about, get something new.
      • 0
        RKRigney Jul 16, 08
        An FPS would be new? Give me a break. They need new IPs that don't really fit into any genre (See Pikmin, Animal Crossing).
        • 0
          Slumpy monkey Jul 16, 08
          were talking about things for hardcore mature gamers here.

          Animal crossing and Pikmin can be classed as causal games.

          Why do you think the conduit is getting so much praise??? Because its not a crappy casual game but a Mature FPS for the hardcore.

          you dont see anyone going "*bleep* YEAH ANIMAL CROSSING IS WIKED!!!"

          But you see that alot for the conduit.
        • 1
          Capn Droid Jul 17, 08
          *bleep* YEAH ANIMAL CROSSING IS WIKED!!!
        • 1
          Subtle Demise Jul 18, 08
          @slumpy monkey (because they won't let you reply to every comment on here for some reason) So what defines a hardcore game exactly? Generic first- or third- person shooter? I don't see how Pikmin is a casual game at all...Have you even played it? JRPGS should be considered casual too, because all you do is walk around and navigate menus.
  • 0
    Big Willie Jul 16, 08
    Doesn't seem to be too much of a deal breaker for me. So called "hardcore gamers" usually find their own information about a game so they don't need people to stand up on a podium and tell them about a game they've already read about on the internet.
    • 3
      Seproth Jul 16, 08
      What kind of casual gamer watches E3? It's for hardcore gamers. Nintendo effectively had a show for people who wouldn't be watching. Maybe they hope they'll hear about it on the news?
  • 0
    bbb7002004 Jul 16, 08
    The ESA made E3 casual when they shut the doors and brought in mainstream press. Now the mainstream outnumbers the video game press at the show, and they are only interested in casual stuff. Why do you think Microsoft and Sony also spent so much time on their casual offerings? Because E3 is no longer a gamer's convention, but a mainstream press show.

    E3 is dead.
  • 0
    Theory of Chaos Jul 16, 08
    Don't hate on the man. He just loves money. As long as they keep making OK casual games, the Wii will keep printing money. It's not like the hardcore games are gone. They'll just be trickled in instead of a cluster*bleep* at once.
  • 3
    Phoenix Jul 16, 08
    Eh. Can't wait till I get my 360. This thing is going into my closet if I don't see a good hardcore game by the end of E3.
    • 1
      Zeon I Jul 17, 08
      You'll find a Snowball in Hell before you find a hardcore game around a Nintendo Display. :/
  • 1
    gamefreak101 Jul 16, 08
    I get the whole purpose of doing this, but I'm not really sure that the casual audience are the ones watching the conferences.
  • 2
    Fishlock Jul 16, 08
    How many causual gamers are even know what E3 is? How many are really going to boot up G4TV and gather around and watch E3?

    Shiggy, in the past your were the hero to true gamers. But thats all it is: The past.
  • 2
    bbb7002004 Jul 16, 08
    *Beats head on table*

    E3 isn't for us watching on the internet, it is for developers and media guys sitting in the auditorium writing reports for newspapers, magazines, etc, most of which are mainstream. That's why its closed to the public.
  • 2
    Zeon I Jul 16, 08
    So, Nintendo won't even give us Hardcore Games at one of the biggest gaming events of the summer? I will say this once again, Microsoft has won E3 '08.
  • 0
    Zeta Jul 16, 08
    I miss my hardcore games. Things that I am only looking forward to from E3 are Animal Crossing City Folk, Wii Music, and Wii Sports Resort
  • 0
    Shadow net583x s Jul 16, 08
    So yeah, now that I have almost no faith in Nintendo anymore, I'm going to start saving my money for a PS3 rather than a Wii.

    Your loss, jackass.
  • -2
    Demonfurby Jul 17, 08
    Wow, you people are being whiny bitches. Seriously you're giving up on the Wii when most of the best games that are being announced, not the shit Ninty showed at E3. It's the stuff like The Coduit, Madworld, Fatal Frame, Dead Rising, all that is coming out, and you've lost faith. It's not like the first party games are being completley ignored. They said at the conference that their developers are working on new Zeldas, new Pikmins, new Marios, hell even Kid Icarus was sorta announced.
    • -1
      Seeker X Jul 17, 08
      Keiji Inafune working on a Wii game =/= Dead Rising Wii.

      Edit: Nevermind, apparently it was confirmed and I totally missed it.
    • 1
      Shadow net583x s Jul 17, 08
      What would you rather play, a serious game that you can get sucked into the story and gameplay....or a game where you push over blocks and it doesn't even keep score?
  • 1
    Revenger of Wastelan Jul 17, 08
    Nintendo won't give "hardcore games" because they are just not that hardcore. It's all about Mario, Zelda and Sonic.
  • 0
    Demonfurby Jul 17, 08
    Well Zelda and Mario are hardcore games to Nintendo, and they are the frnachises that keep the company running.
    • 1
      Revenger of Wastelan Jul 17, 08
      Yeah I know, and they can keep producing them because it gives them great money, but if you ask me, an Italian plumber will never be hardcore in my world of video-gaming.
      • 5
        BlackLabel Jul 17, 08
        Super Mario 64 was hardcore to the max! Seriously it was probably as close as Mario is ever going to get to being a hardcore gaming badass, unless you can connect Mario Kart 64 to some dangerous speeding badassery.

        Nintendo in my opinion are going to kill the industry i mean fair enough casual is the in thing, just like emo haircuts and short skirts are in fashion today but things change fast. One day Brenda is in Wal-Mart buying The Legend of Zelda: Broken Dishwasher for the Wii the next she is on eBay selling her Wii as her son Brandon has grown out of it and she is bored of Wii-Fit.

        Casual gaming might be a money maker but it is also very loveless relationship, i mean while fanboys maybe annoying they are the hardcore demographic they are the ones that bought the Sega Saturn even though it was shit, they were the ones that bought the Sega Dreamcast for $500 even when they knew the Playstation 2 was a few months away. Hardcore gamers stick by what they love regardless of what happens.

        You just have to see what casual has done just by seeing Microsoft's E3 Conference after the Final Fantasy XIII multiplatform announcement, there were quite a few people ready to sell their consoles, there you have the biggest problem with casual gamers they have no brand loyalty. Fanboy's may be annoying but atleast they care enough to defend their consoles and show their love of gaming.

        Nintendo are absolutely *bleep*ed if they decide to focus more on hardcore games with the Wii 2 or Wii 3 or hell a new brand that sounds less gay but comes in a queer purple colour. They have built a house but their foundations are poor, they are perfect for a short term money making scheme but come a few years down the line those foundations begin to crumble and the house is gone, thats essentially how Nintendo have crafted the Wii the casual gamers are their foundations, they may make more money but when they get bored or when the Wii 2 is $400 not $200 they won't have many gamers to fall back on.
  • -5
    Final Blade Jul 17, 08
    See this is why Nintendo will never be big, they keep on milking Mario, Zelda and MP far too much. If they stop making them and make new franchises it would do the company some good. This is just sad.
  • 1
    Armed Rebel Jul 17, 08
    They should make a mario FPS. Make it M rated. That'd be badass.
    • 0
      BlackLabel Jul 17, 08
      With Luigi as an online co-op character?
  • 1
    Demonfurby Jul 17, 08
    quote
    See this is why Nintendo will never be big, they keep on milking Mario, Zelda and MP far too much.
    Must have never seen the Japanese sales charts, eh?
  • -1
    Solid Snake 4Life Jul 17, 08
    Right Nintendo's not big. Next Sega is dominating charts with the dreamcast.
    E3 is no longer hardcore. Most people I know even the casual gamers know what E3 is. The hardcore gamers are the people who know all the other game shows like TGS and stuff like that so I think this is good business. It's the smart thing to do.
    • 0
      BlackLabel Jul 17, 08
      E3 is not a casual event, yes it does have more mainstream support but so does the Cannes Film Festival does that mean its a casual event? No it just means its big enough to generate mainstream attention there is nothing watered down or casual about it. As gaming gets bigger it becomes public domain, it becomes something the news will feature every once in a while, just because E3 is known by more people doesn't mean that it is more casual it just means that gaming is expanding and there are more gamers. With more gamers it raises the percentage of those that are going to know everything to do with gaming.
  • 0
    Big Willie Jul 17, 08
    There's really no pleasing you guys is there? Super Mario Galaxy came out in November. Mario Kart Wii came out in April. Super Smash Brothers Brawl came out in June. The majority of the core games in Nintendo's library have all been out for less than a year's time. Why would they cover their next titles when they probably don't even have a decent mock-up of them? All they would have is a list of stuff they were working on and some images of guys working on code for the game.

    The simple fact is that E3 covers things that are likely to come out within the year before the next E3 event, which most of the games you want to see aren't going to be.
  • 0
    Solid Snake 4Life Jul 18, 08
    E3 is casual. All the companies know it you can't tell me that 2 years ago Microsoft would have been flaunting it's avatar system. They wouldn't even be having one.
  • 0
    Marshal Loss Jul 18, 08
    Solid Snake is currect, though the whole subject is still amusing.

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