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Microsoft and Sony are Closer to Going Third-Party than Nintendo - Lets get the Facts Straight

A lot of my fellow journalists, gamers, and industry insiders like Cliff Bleszinski and Michael Pachter, have claimed that Nintendo could go software only next generation, due to how the Wii U is performing. However, this is practically impossible, on account of how much capital Nintendo has in their bank account. Many people forget how successful Nintendo’s portable business is in Japan as well.

Pachter is flat-out Lying About the 3DS

I have asked Michael Pachter many times to comment on Nintendo’s sales in Japan. The success of Fire Emblem digitally and at retail, Animal Crossing New Leaf breaking 2.5 million units at retail and another 1 million units digitally.The domination of 3rd party games like Monster Hunter and Dragon Quest for the 3DS. No answers, to ANY of my questions.

Yet the minute Pachter sees negative Wii U questions……Pach Attack, bash Nintendo edition! I asked Pachter about the impact of exclusives like Pokemon can have on the 3DS sales, no answer. He refuses to acknowledge the 3DS is a success. When it clearly is, and it’s best years are still ahead of it.

He still thinks Nintendo’s portable business will lose out to smart phones and tablets. Even though the 3DS is around 30 million units and counting. It’s selling at a faster pace than the original DS. All before Pokemon X and Y, Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate, Zelda 3DS, Luigi’s Mansion Dark Moon, and Animal Crossing New Leaf hit the market worldwide. Pachter claimed the 3DS isn’t making money off its hardware, but that’s just a flat out lie. Nintendo has been making money off the 3DS hardware since last July. Jim Sterling has confirmed that.

The 3DS has an XL version that runs for $199.99 and normal version for $169.99. There is no way Nintendo loses money on the 3DS at those prices. I have no problem going to Los Angeles and proving Pachter wrong in person, the facts are on the table. The 3DS is not going to “lose out” to tablets and smartphones. Mario Kart 7, Super Mario 3D Land, and Animal Crossing New Leaf sales prove that. You can’t play those games on a tablet or smart phone. Does Nintendo need to do a better job selling the 3DS in the US and UK? Yes, but games like Pokemon X & Y, Fire Emblem, Luigi’s Mansion, Animal Crossing, Project X Zone, a new Zelda, and Castlevania Lords of Shadow Mirror of Fate, will do just that.

In Pachter’s comparison of DS sales to 3DS sales, Pachter conveniently forgot to mention the millions of dollars Nintendo makes off the eShop. Which was not around for most of the DS days. Full priced titles like Fire Emblem Awakening, is raking in millions for Nintendo.

Now the Wii U

Are sales bad? Yes, will they get better? Of course they will. Nintendo has proven generation after generation they know how to profit. Nintendo has more money than Sony and Microsoft’s gaming divisions.

Buried in reams of financial data is the revelation that Nintendo have 812.8 billion Yen (£6.7/$10.5 billion) in the bank - enough for it to take a 20 billion Yen loss (£163/$257 million) every year until 2052. Then there’s almost 469 billion Yen (£3.8/$6.0 billion) held in premises, equipment and investments. When that runs out - we’re in the year 2075 by this point - they’ve got some of the most valuable intellectual property in gaming to sell off before the company goes out of business.”

Nintendo isn’t going anywhere, anytime soon, according to the almighty dollar.

Sorry to break it to you Cliffy B, The data says you’re wrong. 

Even Cliffy B jumped into the whole Nintendo Doomed conversation, saying Nintendo could go software only next generation….. with NO DATA to back up his claims.

Meanwhile, Sony had to sell their US headquarters to pay off debts, and rarely posts profits in their gaming division. Wouldn’t the company selling off their own assets to cover debts be more at risk of going software only? Things aren’t looking great for Microsoft either. The RROD fiasco was costly, and they don’t have enough first party IP that sells.

Instead, leaning on charging for online play and monetizing the 360’s dashboard with ads for users who already pay for their service. If the PS4 has free online play next generation and Microsoft charges, I think Microsoft is dead, NOT Nintendo. Only die-hard Gears and Halo fans will buy the Xbox 720, if Microsoft doesn’t come out with some more Killer IPs. I personally can’t trust Microsoft after going through three Xbox 360’s. Faulty hardware and charging for online play? I’ll pass.

Comparing Sega to Nintendo ends now

Did Sega have a killer IP like Pokemon, which has sold over 125 million units Lifetime-to-date? Did Sega have a console that sold over 100 million units worldwide before the Dreamcast launched? Did Sega have 812.8 BILLION Yen in the bank during the Dreamcast days? Did Sega have Mario, Metroid, or Donkey Kong? Did Sega have a market leading portable that dominates the sales charts? The answer to all these questions is no. Nintendo is not Sega, the Wii U is not the next Dreamcast. Nintendo has stronger IPs that sell. The Wii U doesn’t have to sell as much as the Wii to be successful. They can sell 40 to 50 million units in 5-6 years and be ok. Nintendo might have had a weak January, but that doesn’t turn them into Sega. Lets list all the failed hardware Sega had before the downfall of the Dreamcast:

1. Sega GameGear
2. Sega CD
3. Sega 32X
4 Sega Saturn
5. Sega Nomad 
 
(Yeah, Nintendo is totally like Sega) 

The economy is pretty bad right now. We are in a recession. The US income tax went up in January. March should be better, as people will be getting their tax returns back. Plus, Nintendo actually has exclusive software coming out for the Wii U in March. Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate and Lego City Undercover for example.

You can even look at the Wii U’s sales of New Super Mario Bros U. The Wii U has sold over 3 million units worldwide and NSMBU’s sales are over 2.5 million including the eShop. That’s a damn good attach rate for a new console. Sega’s highest selling game on the Dreamcast was Sonic Adventure, which sold around 2.5 million units. I can guarantee you, New Super Mario Bros U and a host of other games will crush Sonic Adventure’s game sales. Check out this chart of best-selling games on Dreamcast from Sega. The chart shows how pitiful Sega was during the Dreamcast days. Even the Gamecube, which is considered a failure by many, CRUSHED the Dreamcast  in software sales.

So why is Pachter Saying so much Negative Things About Nintendo? 

This is actually simple.

1. Pachter has told investors Nintendo is dead, even saying Nintendo will become “irrelevant…… Mario Kart 7, Super  Mario 3D Land, and Animal Crossing New Leaf say hi Pachter. Over 20 million units sold between those three games. That’s anything but irrelevant. Wishful thinking perhaps?

2. Pachter has advised investors to buy Sony and Microsoft stock. Yet Pachter FAILED to comment on all of Sony’s lost profit. Pachter failed to comment on Sony selling their US headquarters for $1.1 billion. Isn’t that information he should discuss on a Pach-Attack episode? Nope, not a word from Pachter. Ever wonder why Pachter doesn’t talk about Sony or Microsoft’s failures much? The writing is on the wall, this is all about money.

Every Analyst Ignores Nintendo’s Japanese Sales

Is it me, or is Michael Pachter ducking the Japanese sales questions? Nintendo has been on a financial rampage in Japan, clobbering Sony and Microsoft. I have not heard one bit of positive news come out of Michael Pachter’s mouth about the 3DS in Japan. Nintendo is making money hand over fist in Japan. Shouldn’t that be a topic for Pach-Attack? Why is he acting America is the epicenter of gaming? As if Japanese sales don’t matter? Tell that to Square Enix, who sold nearly a million copies of Dragon Quest VII on the 3DS a couple of weeks ago. Capcom is pulling in some good numbers with Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate on the Wii U as well.

An open Challenge….

The numbers and facts speak for itself. Nintendo isn’t going software only next generation, Sony and Microsoft are closer to that reality. If Nintendo didn’t go third-party after the N64 or Gamecube, it’s not happening after the Wii U. If somebody has any facts or hard evidence that Nintendo will go third-party next generation, do tell. Use the comment section below.

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Author: Francis@PE (19851 Posts)


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  • Randall

    that idiot making good comments in favour of mr patchter works for him

  • Bob

    So then, if you disagree so much with Pachter, I asume you have been buying Nintendo stock and made a ton of money out of that, right? Well, let me tell you something about investing, which you oviously have no fricking idea, when you invest in a company is not out of love (or hate if you are selling) there are no emotions involved in that, and Pachter does not hate Nintendo, neither he loves Sony or Microsoft, he bases his decisions on the financial data and proyections made, in most cases, by the companies themselves. The point is to put your money to work for you, and Pacther (and most investors anyway) know that at least for now there is no money to be made by investing in Nintendo stock. And by recomending agaist Nintendo he is actually doing a very good job. Put your self in the shoes of and investor and you will be very happy with Pacther recomendations, so please leave the guy out of this. He is not the reason the Wii U is selling like crap (99.99% of peaople don't even know Pacther exists), Nintendo is the culprit behind the terrible sales of the Wii U, not someone else.

    • Furious Francis

      Read the article again…..cause you and I are not talking about the same thing.

  • Furious Francis

    I'm a fanboy by stating facts……? Get a grip dude

    • UncannyOmninaut

      Being a fanboy or not is irrelevant. You can still be a fanboy aka liking something and still talk sense! The one does not invalidate the other.

      Never commented on this article before but when I'm already here I might as well congratulate you on this article! This was the first thing that I've read on this site and it seems like it also put the ball rolling for the site and the playeressence community in general. One of the best articles I've read on the state of the industry and one of the few that points out the lies and problems this industry is facing. The big sites and journalists either are to afraid to acknowledge this as a problem or are to busy obscuring this problem for their own gain.

  • PlywoodStick

    Any thoughts on this interview Nintendo Life recently conducted with Pachter?

    http://www.nintendolife.com/news/2013/04/intervie

    He seems (slightly) more reasonable in his arguments, even taking a “let’s wait and see” approach in his answers, but he also proves that he underestimates the Ouya, does not care about the backhanded business approach EA takes, and just plain does not like Satoru Iwata.

    • PlywoodStick

      He even acknowledges the eShop doing well in the interview, but in the same breath does not believe the 3DS will match the DS in sales, even once more of the heavy hitters come out. So he claims to somehow have accurate metrics of Nintendo’s digital distribution channel’s performance, forecasting it having good health, while still believing that history will not repeat itself with Pokemon in the Autumn.

      He believes smartphone sales, and even Amazon Kindle(???) sales, cut into the 3DS profits, but makes no mention of how much smartphone sales are affecting the Vita…

    • PlywoodStick

      Finally, he flip-flopped, mentioning: “Different gaming experiences are healthy for the industry, particularly at different price points that begin with free. More people are exposed to gaming, making it more likely that a greater amount can be charged for high quality experiences.”

      So he said smartphone/tablet/e-reader sales are going to prevent 3DS sales from matching those of the DS, while claiming that exposing a greater number of people to what the gaming industry has to offer will increase the likelihood that they will move on to higher priced products…(???????)

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  • DBPanterA

    People need to understand that Pachter is an investment analyst first. He just happens to have an interest in the video game market. The reason why he always is doom and gloom with Nintendo is that their stock prices rise and fall very rapidly and for the most part without reason (simply track their stock over the last 10 years on the NYSE). Due to Nintendo's stock fluidity, he can't tell people to bet for or against them.

    But the one thing people forget, and I can't wait for E3 this year, is the last 4 months of this year is shaping up to be the biggest for software ever. Then there are 2 consoles hitting the market in a time where finances tend to be a little tight. We will see consumers either buy less games, further hurting game developers revenues, or we will see consumers not buy the next gen consoles because all the software is coming to their current systems, therefore hurting the hardware producing companies. We will see support for current gen systems for at least 24 months, most likely 36 months because all the game publishers want to reach as many customers as possible.

    • Furious Francis

      While I respect your opinion, he should just stop with the predictions because he\’s wrong. If he want to give people stock advice fine, but you pop off and just say whatever the hell you want because you make a lot of money and have a MBA is BS.

      Im convinced he isn\’t a gamer, he knows damn near nothing about most video games. Yet he acts, and claims like he does. He also lies about Nintendo\’s situations, the 3DS to be specific.

      Wrong prediction after wrong prediction…… F Pachter, hes more of a poison to the gaming industry than a benefit. PS4 to run games at 240 FPS?! GTFO Pachter you idiot.

  • Steve

    Finally an article with some sense! Pachter is a total idiot.

  • MPH3D

    I got a Wii U Deluxe set for Christmas, and I am SO looking forward to new games coming out in the coming months. Thanks for pointing out facts, and even linking us to the articles you reference in your article, so we can see what the others are saying, and whether or not they're messing up. What is Pachter's deal? Is he just kissing up to Sony and Microsoft in the hopes of getting mention, money, or goodies from them?

  • GMason

    Micheal Pachter is an idiot. It's amazing anyone actually takes anything he says seriously anymore.

  • eddy

    Way to completely ignore the stock price. Were you crying when you wrote this?

    • Furious Francis

      No I wasn\’t, but stock price doesn\’t come in the way of the FACTS. Microsoft and Sony have higher stock prices because of their overhead. TV\’s, computers, ect. If stock prices was based completely on Sony and MS gaming divisions, they would have both been out de-listed 3 years ago. And, Nintendo\’s stock prices are just fine.

      • RicardJulianti

        Not only is Nintendo fine on the stock market, the recent weakening of the yen/strengthening of the $ has led to an 8% leap in their stock price, while Sony only went up .9%

        Interesting to note that Sony also sold 66k PSV's and had a price drop. Sony may have a higher stock total, but Nintendo did relatively nothing compared to Sony and still had a large leap in stock price.

        Source: http://www.examiner.com/article/nintendo-stock-ri

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  • toshineon

    Everytime I hear Pach Attack I shiver. It just sounds so stupid, how full of yourself can you be? It's like he thinks that eveyone will care and value what he says, when that's clearly not the case, in fact, many people don't give two shits about him. What if I made something where I bashed a company and called it "Tosh Attack"? Exactly, fucking stupid.

  • SonyTrouble

    You missed a ton of stuff Sony has sold off over the past 2 years, LCD production to Samsung, selling its interest in Cell chip production, closing 2 of it's studio's, planning to sell its chemical division, the list goes on and on… anyone who believes that Sony is doing fine is deluding themselves.
    http://www.linkedin.com/groups/Sony-will-sell-its

  • jesgrad07

    Thank you for writing this article.

  • D1RG3

    We all know Nintendo hates their money that's why they'll go third party next gen. They literally hate counting all that loot who could blame them?

  • AlphawolfGamer

    GREAT POST!
    Some people say "Nintendo´s doomed", "Wii U will be the end console for Nintendo", etc.
    Now you bring us NUMBERS about Nintendo, Sony and M$.

    NUMBERS ARE NUMBERS, and Pachter can´t read it (because M$ and Sony will not pay him).

  • Pingback: Wii U Discussion Thread - Page 438 - Nintendo 3DS Forums()

  • Nintenwarrior

    Can't wait to play uncharted 4 on my WiiU

    • Zaxson

      That's an exclusive, sorry. Hopefully Nintendo will create a new IP that is akin to Uncharted, or maybe release a new LoZ or Metroid that you may like.
      If you want Uncharted 4, it may possibly be coming for PS4.

      • darkgamer001

        you missed the joke's meaning 😉 Hint - look at the title of the article 😉

  • Dopplegamer

    Ahhh yeaahhhhhh!! I loved this! This so pumped me up for Nintendo’s future, share your passion with the world man! I am going to post this article EVERYWHERE!

  • mee

    Good read though.

  • mee

    Sorry to break it to you Cliffy B, The data says your wrong. Should be you're or you are.

    • Furious Francis

      Fixed, Im not the best writer. I can admit that. But as you can see. I know how to get my point across.

  • Jat

    Did anyone notice that there have been no troll comments in this article?You’ve killed them, sir. We love you.

    • Furious Francis

      Yeah, you can\’t troll these numbers. There full proof. Some people tried to on N4G. But they looked stupid in doing so.

  • Tobi

    SPREAD THE WORD !!!

  • ei8bitXgamer

    Great Article! When people point out Nintendo is doomed, I just Smiled. Thanks

  • http://www.gamemistress.eu Gamemistress

    A very well written article! Finally someone who is honest about the gaming industry! Thank you, my hat goes off to you sir!

  • Nin-Dragon

    A dude who does his research. Well high five to you sir.

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  • jman0625

    Thank god for someone who doesn’t buy Patchers BS! Great Article!

  • smashbrolink

    The article is so good that I reposted it on MyNintendoNews.com.
    You've made some very crucial points here that trolls will be hard-pressed to disprove, and I applaud you for the effort.

  • Gustaf

    everybody thinks that go 3dparrty means “we are so broke that we only can make sw now” when it can easy be something like “we are tired of this console wars shit we would focus on what matters, amazing games” so yeah, people think that going 3dparty is equal to been doomed

  • Gustaf

    my only complain would be on the cliffyb part, he didnt said Nintendo is doomed, he didnt said that nintendo will go third party next generation, he just said he can see a future where nintendo is a SW company only, and man that can be taken in so many ways, considering that you only mentioned him one paragraph i feel is more of a rant than making a point, nevertheless great article

    • Furious Francis

      I didn\’t have to reiterate what Cliffy B said. I just proved him wrong with facts.

  • CaptainRob

    Long live Nintendo! They have been around the past 124 years, Nintendo will be around the next 100 years. These rumor filled articles about Nintendo being a failed company are led by ignorant Sony lovers. Besides, once Nintendo is brave enough to test the waters, im sure gaming wont be their only field. They almost came out with a computer line.

    • Danny

      Lol i would love to have a Nintendo computer! 😛

  • sergio111293

    I think I love U. ;P FINALLY, someone puts Pachter in his place! I don't have anything against Sony or Microsoft but Nintendo would most definetly be the LAST 1 of the big 3 to fall out of the Gaming industry. I'm gonna Spam the hell out of the Internet with this article lol. MORE People NEED to see this! 😛

    • Furious Francis

      Thanks, I appreciate the support Sergio!

  • Pigumon

    THANK YOU for handing it to Patcher the way it should've been done since he first opened his mouth. Nintendo should sue him. Nintendo could pull out of the international market and still continue to be successful for centuries in Japan.

    I have to comment though, please be very careful of your grammar and spelling, it detracts from your articles when you talk about facts, but then you don't spell "its" or "you're" correctly at the appropriate times. (there are four words- its, it's, you're, your - they each have different meanings).

    "If he doesn't know simple spelling, can I trust his reporting?". That kind of thing…

  • Talespin123

    Darnit! I wanted to play Zelda on my XBOX! LOL. Sorry. I'm not a Nintendo fan, personally, but have nothing but for respect for them. They have an incredible history, and a library of IP second to none.

    • anonymoose

      As much as I like my Xbox, I imagine Zelda on Xbox would be rather dull. It would be nice to have Zelda in a full HD environment, but the Wii U is perfectly capable of realising that. Nintendo typically makes Zelda games around the hardware they're given, so with Skyward Sword, the game was made around the Wii Motion Plus, Ocarina Of Time was made around 3D graphics and the Wii U Zelda will no doubt be made around the Wii U gamepad. While I do agree that the Xbox controller is the most comfortable controller thus far and I'm glad that Nintendo chose for the Wii U pro controller to resemble the Xbox 360 controller as much as possible.

  • Clem

    Holy crap, an industry insider who actually understands what's going inside the industry! I seriously wanted to give you a standing ovation when I finished reading this. I urge you (and everyone else) to be as vocal about these points as possible! I'll share this article everywhere I can, for sure.

    • Furious Francis

      Thanks, these numbers are full-proof, Pachter is straight scared to face me in a debate.

  • Heidi

    Thank you for your blunt, non over exaggerated honesty over Nintendo and its sales. As the grandfather of the gaming world and innovator, Sony and Microsoft have much to thank Nintendo.

  • Alex

    Thanks for shedding light on all this. Set the truth free

  • SirLink

    I followed the link you posted on Nintendo Life here and after reading this article and some others you've earned yourself a new regular reader. Finally a website that doesn't jump on all the BS and actually says things like they are instead of reporting ridiculous news stories for hits and wars in the comment sections.

    • Furious Francis

      Thanks SirLink. I\’m a Nintendo fan no doubt about it, but I like to tell it how it is. I\’ll talk negatively about Nintendo when I have to. But if there is BS out there, I\’ll expose it.

  • Sheppmo

    Awesome article man, love your passion as well. I'll share this article around the webz as much as I can!

    • Furious Francis

      Thanks, I just like the truth. The BS in the gaming industry runs high lately.

      • Guest

        Great great article

      • CaptainIcy

        I'm a huge Nintendo fan and loved this article, but I want to ask if you could do a bit of research on Sony and Microsoft too? How their sales are doing, their bank, etc. It would be interesting to compare numbers.

        • Furious Francis

          Follow this link. You can see the Sony and Microsoft took huge losses on the PS3 and Xbox 360. Its hard to tell exactly how much they have, because both Sony and MS have huge overhead businesses there under. Where as Nintendo is just a games and console company. However, as far as gaming divisions go, Nintendo smokes them. Follow this link: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AmSm

  • Suave

    Good article. Nintendo may have all that money in the bank but it doesn't necessary mean they will use it.
    Why don't they give the Wii U a price cut soon like they did for 3DS to spurn sales and it wouldn't hurt them one bit. Yes, they can afford to keep bring out consoles but without proper 3rd party support and average sales(except for the Wii) for the consoles. Nintendo brand name will take another hit.

    • Furious Francis

      The 3DS needed games more than a price cut, but both helped. $300 is not bad for the system. Nintendo needs games badly right now.

      • Nin-Dragon

        Lego City Undercover, Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate and Need For Speed Most Wanted U, all come out within 2 days this month lol.

  • madsware

    Finally an article that actually knows whats going on in the gaming industry. I hate seeing all the "Nintendo is dead" or "Nintendo is about to go third party" articles.
    Good article which actually has numbers and facts correct. Great job!

    • MidianGTX

      Nintendo aren't dead, they're just not very good anymore. They make average products for average people. It's like bottled water… just there. Not especially important to most people, but popular nevertheless.

      • Furious Francis

        If Nintendo is not so important to most people, why do their first party games sell the most?

        • venomjamaica

          He will not response……….. cause he can't answer that great question…..lol

  • Aiddon

    It does always amaze me how Nintendo's critics always pick and choose which info to present and come off as missing the forest for the trees. Plus, haven't January and February always historically been extremely slow months for ALL entertainment? It's why no good movies come out during that time of the year. So far the Wii U's been doing better in its debut months than the 360 and PS3 EVER did and if the 3DS is any indicator, it'll pick up once stuff like the Wind Waker remake hits

  • Bay2OnWiiU4Life

    Can't stop Nintendo's domination. Take THAT, Pachter!!!!!

  • BC20FLY

    numbers don't lie. I wonder if pachter actually hates nintendo?

    • Furious Francis

      He has something its money related. These numbers are full-proof.

      • FakeEmail

        Let’s not forget that he’s making nintendos revenue look higher its actually 63billion usd Sony is 73billion usd

    • Anonymous

      He does. He has said it once.