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What if Nintendo was a failure?

DaikunDaikun
edited December 2012 in Video Games
This is a fascinating video series with a question about an alternate timeline I've always wondered about. If the NES had failed, what would the state of our consoles be like today? The author of these videos draws conclusions based on our real-world timeline to see how video game culture would be similar and different based on this one change.







Comments

  • SailSail
    The presentation on these videos is painful.
  • ErynEryn
    Interesting to think about, but these videos ultimately just seem like elaborate AU fanfic to me. There are too many variables to consider to speak authoritatively about what all might have happened, and as such, this scenario is probably just a fun one the video creator happened to like. I think he says as much in the comments on one of them, so probably best not to take his conclusion super seriously.
  • AxelAxel
    Points I want to address as I see them:

    All:
    This guy repeats himself way too much.

    Video 2:
    1. Master Chief/Halo didn't make shooters popular. It made console shooters a possibility instead of something that never happened.

    2. Okay, the stuff about the Turbografx is stupid. While it's not really 16-bit graphics, it DOES look better than the Master System, and it also can boast 6-player games over the Master System. To say it wouldn't compete and push Sega is idiotic.

    Video 3:
    1. Glad he didn't try to come up with some way to make the PS1 work, but the rest of this is ludicrous speculation bullshit. Shit stopped making sense when he started having Microsoft make the 3DO.

    Video 4:
    1. He doesn't really explain why Apple and Sega WOULD team up, just why they COULD team up.
    2. Nintendo DOES hype-up third-party games.

    All in all, the guy makes a lot of stuff up, and assumes people's reactions would be the same in different events, mainly everything with iD.

    It's fun to think about, but not at all legitimate.
  • AprecheApreche
    If NES failed PC gaming would be only gaming.
  • Hitman HartHitman Hart
    If NES failed PC gaming would be only gaming.
    Arcades kept their popularity through the console death in 1983, from what I am told, so someone would have stepped in with the bright idea of taking their arcade games into the home, I think.
  • AxelAxel
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neo_Geo
  • JasonJason
    OH GOD, THE LACK OF SUBJUNCTIVE FORM! OH JESUS, MOSES, AND GANESHA, IT HURTS.
  • YoshoKatanaYoshoKatana
    1. Master Chief/Halo didn't make shooters popular. It made console shooters a possibility instead of something that never happened
    Goldeneye? Goldeneye.
  • AxelAxel
    1. Master Chief/Halo didn't make shooters popular. It made console shooters a possibility instead of something that never happened
    Goldeneye? Goldeneye.
    Sure, that too. I guess I should say Halo made Online Multiplayer Shooters on Consoles popular.
  • DiagorasDiagoras
    If Nintendo had failed? Well, the crash of the 80's probably wouldn't have ended, and very likely what Apreche suggests would have happened. It was only with Nintendo's success that Sega and NEC even attempted to enter the console market.
  • MattMatt
    edited January 2013
    Talking out of my ass here, but if Nintendo had failed, someone would still eventually have tried to bring video games into the home. It would have come a bit later and been someone with lots of cash and through a much more low-risk strategy, though, such as putting game-playing capability into TVs, your cable box, etc.
    Post edited by Matt on
  • Hitman HartHitman Hart
    Talking out of my ass here, but if Nintendo had failed, someone would still eventually have tried to bring video games into the home. It would have come a bit later and been someone with lots of cash and through a much more low-risk strategy, though, such as putting game-playing capability into TVs, your cable box, etc.
    I think there's a decent chance that NEC might have paired with someone. Maybe not Hudson, but they were big enough to take a risk on such a venture and they were computer hardware specialists. I've been watching the Chrontendo/Chronsega/Chronturbo series and it's been a real educational experience. Checking out the first episode of each may be useful in thinking about this topic further as Dr. Sparkle goes into the gaming scene at the time with each one.
    Chrontendo Episode 1
    Chronsega Episode 1
    Chronturbo Episode 1
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