Satoru Iwata
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Can you spot Iwata in this Fruit video?
One of the mini games within Game and Wario is Fruit, a game of stealth and lying to your loved ones. Classic Nintendo. Satoru Iwata, president of Nintendo, gives the game a go in the above video, which asks, "Can you guess which character Mr. Iwata is using to steal the fruit?"
Google Maps and Panorama View coming to Wii U in Japan next year [Update: US Maps date]
Google Maps and Panorama View are coming to the Japanese Wii U eShop next year, the former in January and the latter in Spring. Nintendo president Satoru Iwata showcased the apps during this morning's Nintendo Direct for Japan, including giving us a helmet-cam angle of Panorama View with the above very stylish setup.Nintendo first unveiled Panorama View at this year's E3. As shown by the post-break vid by our Engadget pals, the app plays pre-recorded videos set in various environments, such as a London bus tour or a scuba dive. The added twist is you can view the environments in all 360 of their degrees, this done by pointing the GamePad around like a camera. Panorama View is scheduled for Spring 2013 in Japan, and is expected to head West too.Iwata also unveiled Google Maps for Wii U, showing how its Street View functionality works with the GamePad in much the same way as Panorama View. The app is coming to Japan's eShop in late January, and will be free until the end of March.Update: Google Maps will hit the US eShop in Q1 of 2013.
Iwata apologizes for Wii U's massive update
The day-one Wii U update, a lengthy download that enabled all of the system's online functionality, is a bit irritating for new Wii U owners, and was kind of terrifying for pre-release reviewers. Speaking to IGN, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata admitted it wasn't the best situation, apologizing for the inconvenience."Personally I think that users should be able to use all the functions of a console video game machine as soon as they open the box," Iwata said. "So I feel very sorry for the fact that purchasers of Wii U have to experience a network update which takes such a long time, and that there are the services which were not available at the hardware's launch."We hope all new Wii U owners can patiently make it through the update process, because we require a never-ending stream of hilarious Miiverse doodles.
Nintendo president 'very sorry' for the Wii U's frustrating set-up process
Nintendo's Satoru Iwata has apologized for the Wii U's time-consuming day one update -- a compulsory patch that takes as long as an hour to download and which prevents users from accessing the Miiverse, play Wii Games or use Hulu Plus. In an interview with IGN, the company president said that he was "very sorry," and that he feels users should be able to "use all of the functions [of a console] as soon as they open the box." He added that people can expect further, incremental software bumps that'll add functionality to the system over time, and that new Mario and Zelda games would be announced just as soon as the company had worked out how to produce games that utilize the console's unique hardware. Update: Looks like Nintendo put out a video for getting your Wii U online; we've embedded it after the break.
Iwata dons white gloves to unbox a Wii U for U
Nintendo President Satoru Iwata may be the best person to watch unboxing a Wii U, since he knows precisely what he's doing with each of the parts. Besides, he wears fancy white gloves that he says make him feel like Mario, and that's pretty baller (and helps avoid fingerprints on the glossy system). Be sure to heck out Joystiq's own sexy unboxing as well.
Iwata on Wii U launch strategy, new IP, tablet and smartphone impact
During the Q&A following Nintendo's latest earnings presentation, president Satoru Iwata addressed several topics, including Wii U marketing strategy, the difficulty of selling games based on new IP and the impact of smartphones and tablets on the video game industry. Concerning the Wii U, Iwata noted that one of Nintendo's mistakes in previous launches was releasing too many games alongside new hardware."Nintendo tends to release too many titles at the launch of a hardware system and as a result suffers a drop in new games for quite some time after launch, and for the Wii U launch, we are being very careful not to let it happen," said Iwata. Furthermore, a hefty third-party lineup has enabled Nintendo to delay the release of certain games until next year, though they were originally planned to launch with the Wii U.One questioner pointed out that Nintendo's sales seem to be dominated by well-known franchises such as Mario and Pokemon, while new IPs "seem to have little presence." Iwata acknowledged that consumers tend to stick to established brands, but noted that digital sales have the potential to help move new IPs. He cited Art Academy as an example, noting that it began life as a digital product on DSiWare. Art Academy was well-received and "we therefore recreated it as packaged software and it eventually became a million-unit selling title worldwide." Iwata said he'd like to see more "positive outcomes" arise from similar strategies.
Nintendo planning Direct presentation for Miiverse details, Friend Codes not required
A month from launch, we're all still terrifyingly in the dark as to the Wii U's online functionality. Nintendo will help correct that soon, by hosting a Nintendo Direct streaming presentation about the Miiverse service.In an investor Q&A, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata described the primary purpose of Miiverse as a way to amass friends for gameplay opportunities, and for players to spread the word about under-the-radar games. " "As there are many excellent but buried games in the world, and you must be impressed by some of them," he said, "the important mission of Miiverse is to create opportunities to let you know about such games without spending our finite advertising budget on it." Please continue advertising games, Nintendo.The friend gathering will take place through "empathizing." Players can choose to become friends with people they interact with on Miiverse, rather than through a Friend Code process. "As Miiverse is not confined to dedicated gaming platforms and will be available on smart devices in the near future," Iwata said, "we hope that, even on a train where many people are using smart devices, you will know how your gaming friends are enjoying their games."
eShop versions 3-10 percent of sales for dual-release games
The digitally distributed versions of retail 3DS software accounted for somewhere between three and ten percent of total sales worldwide, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata said in an investor briefing. He noted that this was done "without any advertisements in the mass media," which is sort of like admitting Nintendo didn't try very hard.Iwata also mentioned US customers were "particularly active" in buying New Super Mario Bros. 2 digitally, more so than European, Australian, or Japanese customers. In Japan, download rates are highest for Brain Age: Concentration Training and Art Academy: Lessons for Everyone, games which lend themselves to repeated short sessions, and thus are nice to have loaded on the 3DS at all times.Iwata believes that Animal Crossing is particularly well-suited to this kind of play, and accordingly, Nintendo will promote the download version in advertisements in Japan, including the narrated phrase "Download version available, always with you, never lost." The 3DS XL bundle, as well, will include the game pre-loaded on the system.
Wii U will sell at a loss from launch
The Wii U will sell at a loss when it launches, Nintendo revealed today. In an investor briefing, Nintendo President and CEO Satoru Iwata disclosed the console's price is "below cost," citing it as one of the reasons for the company's reduced annual net profit outlook announced yesterday. The 3DS, however, is now no longer selling at a loss, a turnaround Nintendo predicted earlier this year.Iwata's statement reads: "In addition to the yen's continuous appreciation, the Wii U hardware will have a negative impact on Nintendo's profits early after the launch because rather than determining a price based on its manufacturing cost, we selected one that consumers would consider to be reasonable. In this first half of the term before the launch of the Wii U, we were not able to make a profit on software for the system while we had to book a loss on the hardware, which is currently in production and will be sold below cost. Our loss has therefore widened during the second quarter in spite of bringing the Nintendo 3DS hardware back to profitability. Although we expect our financial performance to be revitalized, under these circumstances, unfortunately we cannot say that we will achieve "Nintendo-like" profits within this fiscal year."Nintendo revealed yesterday a loss of approximately $351 million for the first half of its fiscal year, along with predicted annual net profits of $75.2 million, down from $251 million. However, Nintendo expects to sell 24 million units of Wii U software worldwide by the end of March 2013, on the back of the 5.5 million consoles the company predicts it'll shift in that time. Iwata also noted GameStop has taken 250,000 Wii U pre-orders in North America, as of last week.
Iwata Asks about the WiiPad's ability to work through walls
The Wii U hardware development team is aware that the first thing most people will do with their WiiPads is see how far they will work away from the console, inside their homes. The WiiPad's radio waves need a clear line of travel to the Wii U to work properly, meaning even things such as walls and holding it vertically posed a problem for the team. Nintendo president Satoru Iwata describes the vertical issue himself during the latest Iwata Asks:"To address why holding it vertically may have been an issue, is because radio waves don't spread well underwater, but the human body is 60 to 70 percent water, so it can interfere with radio wave paths. Since you hold it both vertically and horizontally, it gets more difficult to place the antenna where the radio waves can easily reach it."The Product Development department at Nintendo had to deal with this problem, as well as the wall issue. Of course, the team says, working through walls depends entirely on what materials those partitions are made out of. Other factors, such as placing the Wii U on a metal surface, can reduce the WiiPad's range.One question the team got was if people will be able to use the WiiPad in the bathroom, and for the answer we have anecdotal evidence from Product Development member Toru Yamashita. "By the way, my living room and bathroom are separated by a single wall and I was able to use it."
Satoru Iwata talks Wii U design, guts a console for context
Nintendo's top dog Satoru Iwata recently sat down with some of his R&D crew to talk about designing the Wii U, and unfortunately, a console was sacrificed in the process. The discussion focuses on what changes they've made this time 'round, including the new multi-core CPU and GPU module, and how they fitted more cooling gear in a body smaller than the Wii as a result. In addition to some nice teardown pics for illustrative purposes, they muse on moving to HD, part testing, case design and how the GamePad is more of a companion than a controller. We don't want to spoil the whole bit, so head to the source link for the full transcript, or check out the gallery below if you just want the visuals.
Nintendo Wii U gets December 8th release date for Japan: 26,260 yen for basic set, 31,500 yen for premium
The Nintendo Wii U arrives on Japanese shores on December 8th starting at 26,260 yen (around $340), Nintendo president Satoru Iwata announced this morning via Nintendo Direct's video stream. A presentation later today in New York City starring Nintendo of America prez Reggie Fils-Aime will reveal pricing and release dates for the rest of the world, but you'd be right in guessing it won't be too far from the Japanese launch. A basic set (only in white) and premium set (only in black) were revealed, with the darker option adding more storage; 32GB, up from 8GB on the cheaper bundle. The Premium set (priced at 31,500 yen, or about $405) consists of the console, GamePad, a charging stand, play stand, and yet another stand for the Wii U itself. Those GamePads will also be available standalone for 13,440 yen, which could see American gamers paying around $173 for the luxury of a spare. The Wii U pro controllers are priced at 5,040 yen ($65) each, while the Wiimote will continue to be priced at 3,800 yen (around $50), now in a range of colors. Likewise, the nunchucks will come in three color palettes. The GamePad charging stand will also be available to buy separately -- setting you back around 1,870 yen -- around $25. Naturally, there's going to be some international variance in these prices so we'll be updating once we get those global prices cemented. We've been given a little more detail on the technical specifics too, with the Wii U packing 1GB of its own ("main") memory alongside 1GB for running games. Two titles, New Super Mario Bros. U and Nintendo Land will both debut alongside the console -- we're expecting to hear even more software details later today. Ben Gilbert contributed to this post.
The game where you take Satoru Iwata on vacation arrives next spring on 3DS
Nintendo's Mii-based game "Friend Collection" arrives in Japan next spring, according to Nintendo head Satoru Iwata. Iwata showed a brief video of the game featuring his own Mii – vacationing and learning how to Hula dance, playing in a rock band called "Game Boys," and emitting a terrifying robot sound on a roller coaster – and gave the game a "spring 2013" launch window for Japan.Additionally, the once Nintendo DS game is now headed to 3DS. Thankfully, it's just as bizarre-sounding as when we first heard about it way back when (like, in 2008.) Just look at Mr. Iwata in that image above! Madness, we say!
Iwata: Gamers need dedicated handhelds, have a desire for 'rich and deep' experiences
The argument for the 3DS has been precarious at the outset, price not withstanding. With the rise of the iPhone and Android devices, people are playing more games on their phones and tablets than ever before, cutting into a handheld gaming market dominated by Nintendo for more than a decade."I don't think there's not a bright future for handheld devices but I understand that the competition, again with the rise of smart devices is different, and I do recognize that," Nintendo president Satoru Iwata told Kotaku during a frank discussion on the 3DS and current portable gaming ecosystem. Iwata offered insight, not only on his own company's stance, but on the needs of consumers in general – and how Nintendo isn't trying to compete so much as offer value."Previously we had to think, ok, 'How are we competing with Sony?, How are we competing with Microsoft?, How do we compete with all the other software titles and all the other publishers out there?' That environment has changed. And the games available for smartphones, I'm not saying that none of these are interesting, rich or fun experiences, because I know that there are some. And one way we can ensure that there's a market for handheld gaming devices is by continuing to bring out entertaining and engaging software that will provide users experiences that they cannot get on these other devices."Iwata expects the need for "rich and deep" experiences will remain consistent, even while consumers change the context in which they play games. "I believe that as environments change and as the world progresses we're going to have different ways in which people want to spend their time," he said. "That being said, I don't think we're going to see the desire to have, again, rich and deep sort of gaming experiences... we're not going to see that vanish. That's not going to go away."
Downloads account for 5 percent of New Super Mario Bros. 2 sales in Japan so far
Nintendo's digital distribution scheme for retail games has had a relatively slow start in Japan. Nintendo president Satoru Iwata told the Wall Street Journal that digital sales of New Super Mario Bros. 2, which was released in the region on July 28, have made up 5% of the total. Iwata seemed all right with this result: "This initial offering going forward, we've gotten a good reaction going," he said.The other new retail/digital game, the Brain Age sequel Demon Training, has sold approximately 20% of its total audience digitally. Iwata believes the reason more people opted for the downloadable version of that game is the convenience of playing the daily challenges without swapping cartridges.
3DS XL's screen reduces glare
Nintendo's 3DS XL system may have a size advantage over the original 3DS console, but it will also feature a new LCD screen that is less reflective, according to a recent Iwata Asks interview. Takashi Murakami, who works in the mechanical design group for the console, said the reflectivity of the new LCD screen will be 3%, down from 12% on the 3DS."On a LCD screen there are basically three reflective layers, which all of them reflects and cause glare. So this time, we specially treated all the layers," Murakami said. Cutting down on glare for handheld systems has been a goal since the Game Boy Advance, which Nintendo President Satoru Iwata said had been abandoned most of the time due to cost.It especially seems to be in Nintendo's interests to reduce the glare on a stereoscopic 3D system like the 3DS XL though, which was also said to offer a broader depth of 3D than its predecessor, as the system includes a larger depth slider.
Nintendo's Iwata says being first in next-gen race is 'not important at all,' pricing is
Nintendo president Satoru Iwata recently talked about how the Wii U's second screen was nearly scrapped due to cost concerns, so it shouldn't come as too much of a surprise to once again hear him talk about the importance of pricing. While unfortunately not divulging a specific number, Iwata tells Gamasutra that the "pricing of Wii U is going to be one of the most important elements when it is going to be launched," adding that "the environment is different. Wii U is going to be launching in a different environment than when the Wii was launched." He also talked about the timing of the console's release (coming well before Microsoft's and Sony's next-gen consoles), saying that "being first in the next generation race is not important at all." So why now? Iwata says somewhat immodestly that "one of the reasons we believe this is the time for Nintendo to launch the Wii U is it's going to be important for the world," adding that its "focus is on how we can make our new console different" than its competitors.
Iwata: Wii U's timing relative to competition isn't important, but pricing is
"Being first in the next generation race is not important at all," Nintendo president Satoru Iwata told Gamasutra in a recent interview. "One of the reasons we believe this is the time for Nintendo to launch the Wii U is it's going to be important for the world."The world, it turns out, is full of people who have just bought an HDTV and don't plan to replace it anytime soon, and people who might want an alternative to an expensive tablet – albeit one that can't leave the house. Both of these aspects provide an opportunity for a device like the Wii U with a novel second screen. By providing an interesting new angle, Iwata hopes to return Nintendo to profitability. "I just cannot say that it's a good thing for Nintendo at all to record an annual loss for two or more years in a row," the world's most deadpan video game executive said.Though Iwata isn't concerned with being first to market (even though the Wii U will be), he is very concerned about its price, having learned a painful lesson from the 3DS launch. "The pricing of Wii U is going to be one of the most important elements when it is going to be launched," he said. "The environment is different. Wii U is going to be launching in a different environment than when the Wii was launched. Also, the involvement surrounding [mobile and social] businesses is different than several years ago."What isn't different from several years ago is Nintendo's confidence in doing its own thing. "We have not changed our strategy. In other words, we just do not care what kind of 'more beef' console Microsoft and Sony might produce in 2013. Our focus is on how we can make our new console different than [others]," Iwata said, reproduced here because we really wanted to put Iwata saying "more beef" into our post.
Iwata: 3DS XL to be sold at a profit, 3D likely a 'minor element' in future Nintendo devices
Nintendo CEO Satoru Iwata revealed one way Nintendo is working to stop selling the 3DS at a loss, which it has since last year's price drop. "First of all to the 3DS XL, we will not be selling this at a loss," Iwata told the Independent. "We don't have a huge profit margin on it, we intend to sell it at a profit." He wasn't as forthcoming about the Wii U's pricing, of course. "As for Wii U we haven't even announced price so it's too early to comment."He also had some thoughts on the future prospects of 3D. Though "3D is the normal state for human beings, it's how we see our environment," Iwata doesn't believe 3D television will really take off until it can work glasses-free. The 3DS was able to include 3D, he said, "because there are various circumstances on a handheld machine which make it possible. You have the screen and the console being one, normally you have almost constant distance between [the user] and the screen, so with the currently available technology it is possible to provide a high quality 3D experience without glasses. "That said, 3D in video games had a "surprise effect" that Iwata admits is wearing off. "But I think it's an important element, it makes graphics more impactful, it proves a sense of immersion that 2D doesn't have, so I would say generally that 3D is better than 2D." Iwata added, "It's nice to have good graphics but not necessarily on their own, so I don't think we'll present [3D graphics] as one of the key features of our consoles but will probably stick with 3D as one of the minor elements of our consoles in the future. "
Nintendo: Wii U online functionality will be free
Nintendo President Satoru Iwata doesn't believe there should be a fee for connecting Wii U consoles to the Nintendo Network.According to a translation of Nintendo's annual shareholder meeting via Andriasang, Iwata said that having all users able to freely access the network will help spread the service's offerings through word of mouth. This tactic, his translated commentary suggests, is thought to lead to greater hardware and software sales.Iwata also revealed that external developers were brought onboard with Wii U at about the same time as internal studios, which he hopes will counter lagging third-party performance. To prove Nintendo's renewed focus, Iwata reportedly pointed to the upcoming Namco Bandai collaboration behind the new Smash Bros. coming to Wii U and 3DS.
