Picture this: you’re sitting on the couch with nothing to do, so you decide to pull out a video game to alleviate your boredom. You grab the controller and excitedly insert a game. On goes the power, but the game does not turn on. A little confused you take the game out and blow into it until you get dizzy, hoping this age old technique works. It doesn’t, so you smack the console a few times. Finally you’re up and running.
If this sounds familiar, then you were part of the “old school” gaming generation.
Regardless of whether or not you took part, the dominance of Nintendo in the 90’s was immense in the video game market. All the top selling titles: Tetris, Pokemon, the Mario franchise, Donkey Kong, Zelda and more were all part of the Nintendo behemoth. We all know, or perhaps were, the child who spent his or her adolescence addicted to Pokemon in all forms, through a multitude of Gameboy titles, movies, and trading cards. Or the Mario games: Super Mario Brothers, Super Smash Brothers, Super Mario Kart, and Mario Party.
These titles brought video games to the masses, which were previously confined to teenage basement dwellers. The ease of game play, addictive nature, and immersion into virtual worlds helped bring about Nintendo’s lasting supremacy. Thus, Nintendo helped popularize video games and acclimate them into our culture so much so that nine of the ten best selling games of the 90’s were Nintendo titles. “Although it seems like the 90’s video games were more difficult than the ones today, they were definitely more fun,” said Blake Lawrence, UCF senior.
This strategy to popularize gaming among the masses reemerged in 2006 with the release of the Nintendo Wii. This console quickly became the most popular gaming machine of the decade, beating out the PS3 and Xbox 360. Though it did not have the processing power and strong online presence of its competitors, the simple nature and innovative motion controls gave the Wii a broad customer base. The system added a whole new realm of engagement, now video games were not controlled by buttons and joysticks but by the players themselves. The consumer could now feel like they were literally in the game.
While the PS3 and Xbox 360 fiercely competed for the same population of gamers, the Wii targeted consumers on the outside of the gaming spectrum. Their simple-to-understand controlling system allowed people who had never played video games discover the wonder and enjoyment of them. In doing this the Wii brought in consumers that the PS3 and Xbox 360 never could until the recent release of similar add on motion controlling systems.
Nick Derrico, Full Sail junior said, “While games today may have the most updated graphics and online capabilities, video games from my childhood during the 90’s will always remain the true classics.”
Nintendo was also able to play on the nostalgia of the 90’s through reinventing the Mario franchise and incorporating it into the Wii. Nintendo is also re-releasing their most successful individual title on the Wii: 007 Golden Eye. Nintendo is allowing children of the 90’s to relive their past in a new, more immersive medium. Additionally, there is no monthly fee for online play or expensive necessary attachments. This increased customer loyalty to the Nintendo brand which proved vital as Nintendo continues to push through the recession.
“Older Nintendo, and Nintendo today, were more of an art form, as opposed to most games now which focus on the business aspect of it,” said Christian Lint, Valencia sophomore. “I’m not sure if it’s because of the nostalgia of it, but I definitely love 90’s video games.”
In all, the addictive, simple, and happy focus of Nintendo games helped spread video games throughout society opening up new markets and addicting a whole new generation of gamers.
