Nintendo says that sales of its GameCube console are coming in we (1 Viewer)

[Matt DeVillier]

the DC died mostly because of poor marketing on Sega's part and the HUGE hype for the upcoming PS2, which led many gamers to hold out. The software was definitely there, especially early in it's life cycle (probably moreso than any recent console in its first year). If Sega had thrown a lot more money into marketing the DC and combating Sony's hype, the DC would have had a much longer life

 

[Joe Szott]

Here's a killer idea for ya, someone email big N:

When (or if?) the GC2 arrives, release a handheld that plays the GC discs but not GC2 titles. It could be like a minidisc player with "wings" that have the D pad and other buttons on it, you pop the disc in the back and there's an LCD on the front. If it has that link cable deal, then it is exactly like another GC2 controller and you can then play GC games on your GC2 without it neccessarily needing to be backwards compatible. That would be pretty sweet (although maybe too expensive?)

 

[Jason Borchers]

.

 

[Morgan Jolley]

the DC died mostly because of poor marketing on Sega's part

I'm guessing you forgot the spots on news/entertainment shows (I specifically remember seeing it on The X Show, among others), the 9/9/99 ad campaign, the deal with MTV (the most popular "we're teens with spare cash" channel), and the extremely positive word of mouth through reviews and users?

Could it have been done better, yeah, it can always be done better. But they still put their all into it, and it paid off for the first few months. I think the initial batch of crap software was what killed it.

 

[Allen_Appel]

I remember the DC being heavily advertised on TV. What really killed it was PS2 hype. It's why I didn't buy one (I wanted that DVD playability). I think the DC's launch titles far outshone the PS2's, and those games hold up today a lot better as well.

 

[Morgan Jolley]

I think the DC's launch titles far outshone the PS2's

I'd agree that the DC's good launch games outweighed the PS2's, but I'd say that not all of them were good. Remember games like Blue Stinger?

 

[BrianB]

He never said they were all good, Morgan.

Anyway, I'd take Blue Stinger over Wild Wild Racing any day...

 

[Shawn C]

Atari
Nintendo kills Atari
Sony kills Sega
Microsoft kills Nintendo
Who will win the Sony - Microsoft battle (Long term)

 

[Jeffrey Forner]

Atari
Nintendo kills Atari

I thought Atari killed itself.

 

[Damien]

I've read somewhere that as a whole nintendo makes more money than Sony does. They have a monopoly in the handheld market and are not selling there console for a loss(well maybe the bundle), so nothing suggests they are going anywhere. Also, they have solid numberrs in all territories, while there closest comp. already lost the 2nd biggest territory in the world.

 

[Jason Seaver]

I thought Atari killed itself.

Yep. As did Coleco, and as Mattel nearly did.

(Although a good argument could be made for Commodore - not only did its founder buy Atari and run it into the ground, but their purchase of Amiga seriously hurt Atari's long-term plans, and Atari's eventual win over them in court was a phyrric victory at best)

 

[JayV]

Matt made some good points. While I certainly don't agree with Morgan's "initial batch of crap software" characterization, let's not forget the absence of the Madden franchise and I guess EA in general.

Most of my friends who played my NFL2k were impressed. These guys and gals were in the minority -- most people probably didn't get to give it a go and assumed that they needed Madden.

Heck, I thought about getting a DC on launch, but for weeks (months?) whenever there was a demo running, it had a platformer or some other kind of game I don't care for. Not NFL2k or another game that would capture my attention.

As for the advertising, you might have seen a lot, Morgan, but I certainly didn't. I saw the stupid "It's Thinking" ad a couple of times. A non-console gamer friend of mine saw one and asked whatever happened to the commercials where the guy shouted SEGA! at the end. He thought they missed an opportunity to push brand identity and I agree. Glad they brought it back.

Finally, the PS2 hype was incredible. Coupled with the DVD capability, this was a steep hill to climb for the DC. And at the time, many people saw the forthcoming PS2 as an inexpensive way to get a DVD player. This was a huge selling point. I'm not sure all the hype could have been overcome by Sega.

That hype machine is still at work. I still come across gamers with knee-jerk reactions to the Cube and the Xbox. It's funny how "it's all about the games" goes on hiatus while fanboys snicker and moan about the Cube's lack of DVD or the Xbox's separate DVD playback kit. Oddly, they rarely have comments about the PS2's lack of four controller ports.

Just to be clear, I'm not bashing the PS2, or any system. I don't own a PS2, but there are a couple of games on the PS2 that I like and enjoy playing.

-j

 

[Mark Evans]

I thought Atari killed itself.

They definitely did. I'll guarantee you right now with every item owned by me in this apartment that Miyamoto never had a hand in creating E.T. .