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Nintendo closing European HQ, laying off 130 employees
Nintendo will close its European headquarters located in Großostheim, Germany, resulting in several redundancies in its workforce. The Wii U and 3DS manufacturer will cut 130 jobs in the process at various European locations and will consolidate its German HQ to Frankfurt. "Nintendo of Europe has entered into a consultation process on a number of changes it is intending to make to its European business which, in the long term, will better enable the European business to adapt to the rapidly changing business environment," Nintendo said in a statement to Games Industry International. The company posted a $229 million net loss last month in its financial results for the year (ending March 31, 2014). It shipped 6.17 million Wii U systems total as of then, well off its original projection of 9 million. "These intended measures have not been made lightly and have only been arrived at after thorough analysis and careful consideration," the company continued. "The intended measures will sadly have a direct effect on some of the employees based in the Großostheim and Frankfurt offices in Germany and would lead to the release of approximately 130 permanent employees." [Image: Nintendo]
Nintendo promoting Wii and DSi downloads in UK
Nintendo of Europe is planning an unprecedented move to promote its downloadable games: It's going to tell people they exist. The company kicked off a three-week ad campaign in the UK this week, intended to increase awareness of the kinds of things that can be done with an internet-connected Wii or DSi. The initiative will be supplemented by leaflets in retail shops, and signage advertising the availability of Nintendo Points, and it'll all link back to Nintendo's UK site, which features more videos of the Wii and DSi's downloadables. According to MCV, a Wii-focused ad will highlight the BBC iPlayer, Band Hero DLC, and ... Bonsai Barber. Three different ads will focus on Facebook, the DSiWare Brain Ages, and Dictionary 6 in 1 with Camera Function, the latter two of which coincidentally will come preloaded on the DSi XL.
NoE: 'There is no casual gaming'
Over in Europe, the senior marketing director, Laurent Fischer, says that the casual gamer is none other than a myth? Really, Laurent? For him, apparently, it's all black and white, with a very clear distinction between gamer and non-gamer and no gray area between."For me, you are a gamer or non-gamer," he says. "I think most of you know that you can spend ten or twenty hours on an internet flash game and have not realised. The guy who plays these games regularly - he's a core gamer." Laurent went on further to explain his point, stating "I don't like this word casual so much. Because people consider that casual needs to be something easy. If you're good at any game you can play at a high difficulty level. Take Tetris. There is incredible gameplay, it's very simple, very easy to understand, but it's also very different. I think a game can be a light enough to enjoy and for all gamers to become a core gamer on it."When looking over his comments, it's kind of an "in the eye of the beholder" thing. For us, yes, we think there is casual gaming and it's fairly defined what is and isn't a casual title. He doesn't agree with us, though, because, to him, there "is no casual gaming. There is just a different way to play."
Nintendo Europe promises Wii production boost, how nice
Shortly before pointing out that the sky is blue and that oxygen is a somewhat necessary element for the continuation of human life, Nintendo Europe's Laurent Fischer has confessed to Gamesindustry.biz that the console maker is "still struggling to deliver the right numbers of hardware to cope with demand." The senior marketing director cites the "recruiting power of the Wii" which is "more powerful than anyone had guessed." Apparently, looking for a Wii means going up against some sort of surprise Nintendo militia. When will these silly shortages end? Fischer offers no clue, but explains that it'll take more than a couple of days (more than ninety, at least). "We're planning to increase the production capacity but it's not something that can be done in a couple of days. We have to be patient." One can only hope patience production amongst consumers remains steady while Nintendo replenishes their critical duct tape supply.
