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Acclaim dropping support for Gamecube (1 Viewer)

paul h

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Mar 14, 1999
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from computerandvideogames.com ... no surprise really

"15:47 Nope, it's not another mistranslation - according to a report in the German press, Acclaim's CEO Rod Cousens has revealed the company is to drop support for Nintendo's GameCube console.
Cousens said: "Why are we to develop games for platforms that do not supply appropriate yields? We still support PS2 and Xbox, but Nintendo? No, not in the foreseeable future."

A spokeman at Acclaim's UK division confirmed the story. "We've tried to focus on doing specific PS2 titles and specific Xbox and GameCube titles, but the state the market's been in at the moment it hasn't really been viable.

"We're getting increasing negativity at retail just in pushing GameCube products. The reports we get from retailers are that the machine's not selling, they're not going to stock it, and they're only going to stock the top three to five games, and they're all going to be licensed or first party.

"This makes it increasingly difficult for us to make it viable to do any GameCube games. The main problem is, just looking across Europe, all the main territories that we deal with, the hardware sales and software sales just don't make it viable for us to keep going with the 'Cube.

"There are some titles that will be published between now and Christmas on the 'Cube - XGRA and Urban Freestyle Soccer will still be released. But as I say, it's almost that the decision's been made for us by the market."
 

Jeffrey D Smith

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Not quite according to Planetgamecube...

We contacted Acclaim about the rumor. They say that quotes in the rumor have been taken out of context, and that the publisher is not actually dropping GameCube or GBA support. Rather, in contrast to their former policy of releasing every title on every system, Acclaim will now evaluate each title and decide which system(s) it best fits. This new publishing strategy goes for GameCube, GBA, PS2, and Xbox. Acclaim is NOT dropping support for Nintendo systems, although it's entirely possible that GameCube will see fewer of the company's games than it previously has.
There are quite a few GC's sold out there, there is money to be made, they just need to make some games that people would want to play.
 

GlenHaag

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I for one would like to see Acclaim spend some time and stop making games for all three platforms. Spend some time and make some exclusives, and maybe increase the quality of the game.

Just a thought.

Glen
 

Damien

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Mar 29, 2002
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Losing Acclaim with their current reputation probably won't really hurt any GC owners(well maybe Burnout freaks)...but it's sad to see how Nintendo failed to correct such a huge problem from the N64 era with the next system. Although losing sega aports was more harmful than this, if this continues nintendo will have to keep the system alfoat with high quality 1st party and exclusive third party support, which so far they have done.
 

Jeff Kleist

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Another nail in the coffin regardless. Nintendo's going to be 6 feet under before they figure out how toasted they really are. Time to partner with a major movie/music studio (Warner?) to try to put out a competing GBA to PSP before it's too late to save the rest of the company
 

Ray Warner

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Burn baby burn.

To be honest, I'd much rather see Acclaim go under, since that logo has become synonymous with "shit in a box", but Nintendo has had it coming for a while now.
 

Ray Warner

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Exactly. I love Nintendo games to death, and they hold arguably the most revered franchises in the entirety of gaming.

They also have a tendancy to sound like the Iraqi info minister most of the time. "Nobody cares about online play! They want GBA connectivity! Microsoft has a failing console! The GameCube controller is the new standard! We cannot loose, we are NINTENDO."

You wind up wanting to see them kick the bucket just to get them to shut up.
 

Tony-B

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All that Nintendo has going for them right now are their first party games, loyal supporters, and the GBA. Other than that, they are doomed.
 

Jeff Kleist

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Yes, but it's quite obvious that their loyal supporters aren't in enough numbers to support 3rd parties, the lifeblood of a console.

All you have to do is kick one of the legs even slightly out from under them and they'll topple like a ton of bricks. And the hammer to move that leg will probably be called PlayStation Portable

If Sony can get it in at $129 or under, you can start playing taps. The sheer functionality it's schedualed to have is amazing.

1- MP3 player
2- Movie player
3- Game System
4- (rumored)PDA and file transport

The worst part of all this has been that Nintendo goes "We acknowlege there's a problem with our consumer base, and that we aren't appealing to the masses who want more mature titles. Here's out solution: We're going to offer the same titles as we always were and a few token games in the genres you people seem to like and hope it sells. Communicating with third parties is very important, which is why we're working with (begging) them to develop games."

How to fix Nintendo:

Dump Cube NOW. All support CEASE

Hire someone to design a controller that doesn't go out of its way to make the DPad unuseable.

Bright Colors ain't going to fly. Make it black, make it shiny, make it slick. Somethink like PS2 or XB but SLEEK!

3- Core franchise games. As well made as they are, stop trying to create animation and start going for more realism. Link would have sold a million more copies I bet if it had a mature look. I personally love the anime look, but obviously the number of people needed to support a console don't

4- Third parties- Charge what everyone else is charging for royalites, and when designing the system ask them what they want. Go out of your way to incorporate features they ask for

5- Online- Gotta have it, and have it in spades. 2-3 online titles for launch.

6- Your console is the only one that doesn't play DVDs. Make it so, and better yet give it a hard drive and out of the box Ethernet/USB software to stream files from the PC for TV viewing.

7- Don't launch with mysterious cube ads, it was the worst campaign since Dreamcast's CG characters. Everything has to scream "I'm bad". And have some feature that isn't a gimmick right out of the box that's REALLY exclusive. And no, GBA connectivity does NOT count
 

Mark Evans

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Yawn, thank you GameCube Hate Squadron for your typical and expected response to this.

I'm glad there is a rational place to discuss these sorts of issues on the 'net without doomsayers and system superiority pushers coming out of the woodwork to decry all they see :rolleyes.

Lord knows Nintendo could be doing things a lot differently and in some instances better, but some of you could stand to drop the obvious and downright nasty glee you exude while watching any small smidgen of bad news show up about the system. Not that this is shocking, of course.
 

Michael St. Clair

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Dumping the Gamecube now would be a large mistake, it would alienate too many of their faithful. Plus, it's too early to release a new console.

The portable PSX thing is a wildcard, not a sure thing. It sounds bulky, expensive, and fond of eating batteries. We'll have to see what happens, but the odds of anything swooping in and destroying the Gameboy platform in the near future are damned slim, IMO.

More power, better screens and/or color had many people predicting that the Game Gear, the Nomad, the Lynx, the Neo Pocket Color at least making inroads to the GB if not making a serios dent, but it has never happened. The GB platform has a ton of momentum and very good design.

On the other hand, I own a Gamecube, and I'm not real thrilled at this moment with the third-party support and the lack of online gameplay (note that Sony has seen the light and is making internet capability standard). If Nintendo can't get it together in the next two years, they would be better off dumping the non-portable side of the business; they could sell a ton of Metroid/Mario/Zelda games for the XBox and PS2.
 

Jeff Kleist

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I'm glad there is a rational place to discuss these sorts of issues on the 'net without doomsayers and system superiority pushers coming out of the woodwork to decry all they see .
I am not a system superiority pusher. I'd rather see Nintendo vs Sony or Nintendo vs Microsoft. than Sony vs Microsoft. Nintendo is a game company at heart, and they make great games

They are still shooting themselves in the foot repeatedly, and they're going to kill their company if they don't turn around soon
 

Jeffrey D Smith

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Wow, I must be the only person who enjoys playing their cube...

About "going down", isn't Nintendo the only one of the three that is actually making money from games? Be it from GBA or not it's not like their 9 billion dollars in raw cash in the bank is going to disappear.

If Nintendo wants to throw money away like MS has to gain market share in the future they will, but for now I think they are fairly content. They recognize the market is changing, they didn't make all that money by ignoring the marketplace.

I'm not calling out anyone in particular, it just seems on the net that there are so many fanboys "rooting" for their system that they have to spend time bashing the competition. Perhaps since I have access to all 3 systems and can play whatever I want I don't feel this need of belonging. This goes for all systems. Anywho, the Gamecube is far from dead.

Peace.
 

Damien

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Mar 29, 2002
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It's hard for me to understand this connection between Nintendo and imminent disaster. Some of you need to really take a look and see for yourselves how far the GBA has penetrated the market. The Gamecube will be fine. Nintendo has more than enough capital and dedicated employees to come through.(the only reason DC was canned was lack of $$$) Even though third party is dropping, like Capcom's statement about moving the RE series after 4, they still are releasing Viewtful Joe and RE4. Sega Sports may be gone, but EA sports is comitted to them, and they sell more games anyways. Even though Sony may get fans with the network adapter, who says they are making money from it, which is all that matter in the end. The only way Gamecube would ever die prematurly is if Nintendo went out of the industry completely.
 

Allen_Appel

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Dec 13, 2002
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Thank you, Mark. Good response. I would put some of the retail failure onus squarely on the fanboys who work in the gaming stores. I've seen EB clerks in Xbox ensembles complain about the lack of free swag they get from Nintendo. They even answer the phone, "Your home for the Xbox" and push it like crack. As a three-system owner, I prefer each console to have its own exclusives. Ports just confuse me.
 

Jeff Kleist

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It's not a question of gaining Market share. If people won't stock your product your product is going to fail. It's that simple
 

Peter Manojlovich

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Jun 30, 1997
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One of the biggest problems for Nintendo is the fanatically loyal following of gc and previously n64 owners. Nintendo began the"only on" campaign, and initiated the quality over quantity mantra and nintendo gamers have consistently bought into it.

Nintendo's own titles achieve an exalted status and when the big-ass titles release, it's like a 350 pound diver jumping down from the high-diving board and doing a belly flop. Any other titles in its vicinity tend to get wiped out in the ensuing wake.

A big title like Zelda:WW sucks the gaming dollars dry and third parties are left to scratch around for leftovers. Very few companies can give away "The greatest video game of all time, as proclaimed by next-gen at the time, and gamespot's first perfect 10" as a freebie the way nintendo can.

Last month's trst sales were illuminating. Even though the xbox enjoys an installed user base of perhpaps 20% greater than that of the gamecube, Enter the Matrix sold more than three times as many copies on the xbox as on the cube, and NBA Street Vol. 2 sold nearly three times as many copies on the xbox as on the cube. Splinter Cell was a big hit on the xbox, and has sold well on the ps2, but has been a sales dud on the cube.

The net result is that the sales potential for even big third party titles is muted. It shouldn't come as a surprise then, when third parties begin to reconsider releasing titles for the cube.

There's no easy solution in sight. Nintendo gc owners tend to favor highly first party efforts and in a number of cases with justifiable reason. But, if the third parties can't make a decent dollar off the cube with their efforts, then why bother. Nintendo did highlight the third parties with their preview disc, but, why the hell have they made this disc so difficult to get hold of unless you buy a system.
 

David Lee

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Jun 14, 2001
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Sega left the console business because they lost money year after year. Correct me if I'm wrong but didn't Nintendo make something like 500 million in profit last year. Why would Nintendo panic. I agree they are making big mistakes but they won't care if they are stilling making money and not losing money. On another note, when was the last time Acclaim made a AAA game anyways. I maybe wrong but that's my take on things.
 

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