What Nintendo could learn from everybody else about digital distribution

Feb 04, 2014
nintendo network1

Update: On February 13th, 2014, Nintendo announced that GBA games will be coming to the Wii U Virtual Console in April. There's still no word on if they'll ever make it to the 3DS, but it's still good news!

Nintendo hasn't been doing too hot as of late. The Wii U hasn't been selling as well as Nintendo may have hoped, and now Iwata and company are taking a temporary pay cut. Overall, this previously solid company is starting to show some cracks. The things that worked for them last generation aren't cutting it this generation, and it's time for them to start trying something new. Many would probably agree that the problem here isn't with Nintendo's games and consoles, but how they distribute them. If Nintendo wants to start making more money again, they're going to have to start looking at services like Steam, Humble, and Google Play for inspiration.Nintendo is slowly realizing the importance of digital distribution. Last summer they started releasing retail games like Animal Crossing: New Leaf and Pokemon X and Y on the eShop for download day of release. Late last year, they added the MiiVerse to the 3DS so owners could use it just as much as WiiU owners could. They even removed the arbitrary system transfer limit between 3DS consoles, a choice that was pretty silly from the get-go. Still, there are some glaring omissions from Nintendo's online services that should really be addressed. This is where other services are setting a better example.

CI WiiU transfers image600w

The first mess that needs sorting out is file ownership. Currently, when someone buys a game on the Nintendo eShop, it is locked to the console they bought it on. This causes a few problems: if you were to lose your 3DS or damage your WiiU, there would be no way of getting the games you purchased onto another console. This Reddit thread on the subject is seven months old, but accurately describes the frustrations many 3DS users have had with this system. This article describes the DRM system on the Wii U a little more clearly, but as you can see, it's something more complicated than it has to be. It's already known that Nintendo logs your digital purchases through both Club Nintendo and your Nintendo Network ID, yet transferring your games between Wii U's requires contacting Nintendo directly. It's nice that 3DS owners can transfer their games between consoles manually and without limits now, and I hope to see the Wii U follow suit.

A little more complicated than it should be.

Coming from Steam and PSN, this is baffling. On the PC end, I have a gaming PC and a Macbook I switch between regularly. Thanks to Steam cloud saves, I can start a game while I'm at work using my laptop, and come back to my room at the end of the day to pick them up on my PC (matter of fact, this is exactly what I did with Octodad). Likewise, with PSN's cross-buy program, I can start playing a game at home on my PS3, then use the same save file to play the game on the Vita if I go on vacation for a week. I'm really hoping that at the least cross-buy will actually make its way to Nintendo's consoles, but I'm not holding my breath. Why it doesn't already exist for Virtual Console games is baffling, though currently Virtual Console is also a bit of an unorganized mess.

tumblr mzhzdnoeqF1sx1kauo1 500

The fact that the list of Wii Virtual Console games is different than the list of Wii U Virtual Console games is confusing in itself, let alone the fact that the list for the Wii is greater than the Wii U's. Yes, you can play the Wii's VC games on the Wii U, but doing so means losing off-TV play and MiiVerse functionality. If these are missing, what's the point of doing it on the Wii U? In a world where anyone can emulate these games easily and freely on almost everything but a Nintendo console, it doesn't make business sense to not offer all of these games on both consoles where they can be paid for. Not to mention that after so many years of the Virtual Console service existing, the list of available games is still pathetically small. The GBA has a huge library to pick from, yet it is limited to 10 Virtual Console titles only available to the very small number of 3DS Ambassadors. Likewise, some consoles are missing from the Wii U that are present on the 3DS, and vice versa. Why can't I play SNES games on my 3DS? What's keeping Nintendo from putting Metroid: Zero Mission on the Wii U? Currently, I think Nintendo just doesn't understand just how much fans want this kind of stuff. Just a look at their inability to keep up with the overwhelming demand for Pokemon Bank shows that maybe Nintendo isn't as in tune with its customers as it could be.

And they probably aren't in tune because they're still stuck in the past in some ways. The Wii originally succeeded because of its wide appeal: Your grandma could pick up a WiiMote and know exactly what they needed to do to play Wii Sports with it. Now a generation later, free to play and easily accessible games are available everywhere. Why would mom pick up a Wii U when Candy Crush is available on her phone for free? During the lifespan of the Wii, Nintendo lost a huge chunk of dedicated and hardcore gamers due to the increasing volume of casual games and the dwindling number of quality third party titles. Now that the Wii U is out, the unknowing consumer doesn't see the difference between it and the original Wii, while the hardcore crowd is long gone in favor of the PS4, Xbox, Steam, or even Android.

That's not saying Nintendo hasn't been trying to get third party support back, but they can do a lot better. Last year saw a lot of policy changes to make publishing easier on indies, though they lacked the aggressiveness that got many indie games onto Sony's platform (like Octodad!). Weird policies like refusing The Binding of Isaac due to blasphemous content are nothing but a lost business opportunity, frustrating fans and making developers less willing to try developing for it. When it's rumored that a game as huge as Watch Dogs might get cancelled for the console, what makes it sound like a good idea to indies, let alone other third parties? When a barely supported console like the Ouya can still put out exclusive games as good as Towerfall, what makes the Wii U a better option?

All of this being said, Nintendo is still doing rather well for itself. The 3DS is selling pretty well and churning out excellent hits like Animal Crossing, Luigi's Mansion, and Pokemon. Super Mario 3D Land made many game of the year lists for 2013, and most of the first party offerings for the Wii U have actually been pretty solid. If Nintendo can be more attentive to its fans and start taking opportunity of the money making opportunities the eShop could offer, then maybe we can see them rise back to the top again. Whether it's a matter of refining the eShop, scrapping the Wii U and starting anew, or something else we haven't thought of yet, Nintendo needs to act soon.

We love you, Nintendo. We don't want to see you guys end up like Sega did.


Zoë Wolfe

Co-Founder, Webmaster