In its July 2006 edition, Nintendo Power magazine had the opportunity to speak with Nintendo of America's Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing Reggie Fils-Aime about Wii, including the console's launch, new franchises, what Nintendo learned from GameCube, Virtual Console and more.
Nintendo Power: You're gearing up for your first home console launch since joining Nintendo. What's the experience been like, and what have been some of the biggest challenges and some of the most rewarding moments of the last few months?
Reggie Fils-Aime: You know, the run-up to E3, with all of the work that's been done with Wii, has been a tremendous learning experience for me, as well as a great opportunity to make a mark in how we launch this system successfully throughout the NOA territories. What have been the greatest challenges? Making sure that the titles that we prepare to launch are all on track, making sure that our licensees have all of the latest information in order to create great games on the system, and making sure that we show off the best way that we can at E3. Those have really been some of the biggest challenges, and what have taken up all of my time over the last few months.
Nintendo Power: Lately Nintendo's been talking a lot about how the company wants to appeal to a wider audience that includes casual gamers and even nongamers. Should the Nintendo enthusiast be worried?
Fils-Aime: Absolutely not. We've been very clear in saying that Nintendo needs to be "and" company, meaning core gamers as well as a new, expanded audience--casual gamers. For the core gamer, we have Metroid Prime Hunters, we have New Super Mario Bros., we have a new DS Zelda title, Phantom Hourglass. Those are all fantastic products that will certainly keep the hardest of the hard-core happy with Nintendo.
We've been very clear that innovation needs to be brought back to the gaming industry. That's what's driven our success. And that's why you're seeing titles like Brain Age and Big Brain Academy. Quite frankly, as a gamer, I myself am just as intrigued by those titles. So, should the core fan be worried? Absolutely not. We have all of the great product that will certainly make them happy.
Nintendo Power: Why do you think the GameCube finished third in the North American home-console race, and what is Nintendo doing to avoid that same fate with Wii?
Fils-Aime: I have looked at the GameCube launch much like a business case study because I wasn't here. I can look at it disappointingly and without a lot of ownership. In my view, we had two key weaknesses in how we launched GameCube. First, the software during the launch window was not diverse and strong enough from a first- and third-party perspective.
And second, after the launch window, there was much too long a gap in launching the next round of great software. That's what I look at and say, "How can we do Wii differently?" So during E3 we showed a very broad range of software--both first-and third-party--that will meet gamers' needs. From Metroid Prime 3, Mario Galaxy, and Ubisoft's Red steel, the core gamers will be thrilled. With Tennis and WarioWare, we have titles that will reach the masses. And, based on the sheer range of titles we've shown, we're confident that the entire first year of Wii's launch will be strong. So, I believe we are well on our way to addressing the key lessons coming out of the GameCube launch.
Nintendo Power: Speaking to that, we've heard from a lot of developers that they're very excited about the creative possibilities with Wii, but what has Nintendo done to entice publisers to commit to the platform?
Fils-Aime: It's tough for me to answer how much have we done, because I didn't see the baseline of GameCube activity. But what I know is that we have been sharing information and development tools with publishers since very early on in the process. We have communicated to them why it makes sense to develop for the platform, and why it makes business sense to bring their best current franchises and brand-new concepts to the platform. And, to me, the best example of follow-through so far has been Ubisoft and their announced Red Steel title. But quite frankly, there are many more titles and broad-based support from the publishers that were highlighted at E3. Plus, there are many more titles to come. so those have been our key tools and tactics to make sure that publishers are on board with our strategy.
Nintendo Power: Speaking of new franchises, over the last five years, there have been more than 20 games starring Mario, and more Zelda and Metroid games than we're used to seeing. Are you worried about overexposing those franchises, and will Nintendo rely less on them moving forward and introduce more new franchises?
Fils-Aime: In terms of our core franchises--Mario, Zelda, Metroid--I believe we have done an outstanding job shepherding those franchises and doing new and unique things with each. You focus in on Metroid, and how we've been able to balance the traditional Metroid type of experience with the brand-new first-person look of the Metroid Prime series. I think that's been fantastic. You look at the broad range of Zelda--everything from the cel-shaded look to the more mature look of Twilight Princess--we've shepherded that franchise in a fantastic way.
So first, I would give us an A+ for what we've done with our current franchises. We have also done a fantastic job with new franchises. What do I mean? Nintendogs, a brand-new franchise that on a worldwide basis has now sold over six million copies. The Brain Age series, before we even launched it in North America, had already sold over five million units. Brand-new IP [intellectual property], brand-new franchises that have a long future for us, a very profitable future for us, which we're quite excited about. We will be launching other new properties with Wii, such as Disaster: Day of Crisis, which we announced at E3. So, are we, Nintendo, focused on growing new forms of IP? Absolutely. But make no mistake; we will also bring our best franchises to bear for the launch of Wii and do that quite successfully.
Nintendo Power: Will any of those new properties target the older enthusiast gamer? What kind of things can Nintendo to appeal more to that group?
Fils-Aime: Let me separate out your question beyond pure age. Because I think what you mean is, "What are we doing to appeal to the mature, core gamer, as well as any other type of user expansion strategy?" For the mature, core gamer, are we creating new properties to try to appeal to that consumer group? Yes. Absolutely. But also, we are looking to key licensees to develop games to focus on that audience as well. Because there are certainly licensees out there that do a great job with mature content, an area where likely Nintendo will never push the envelope the way these other developers and publishers do.
Again, Red Steel is a great example of that. In terms of other content, we will continue to create new properties that will bring an older consumer to the Nintendo platforms, but maybe not in an M-rated way. Again, Brain Age and products of that sort are one example. But there are other things we believe we could do, whether it's with the racing genre or the action-adventure genre, that can bring the best of Nintendo's strengths to bear against those types of games.
Nintendo Power: Some would argue that Nintendo has been a generation behind in adopting certain technologies. With the N64, it was an adherence to cartridges instead of moving to a disc format. With the GameCube, it was online play. Could the lack of HD for Wii turn out to be the same kind of Achilles' heel?
Fils-Aime: We don't believe so. HD today as a number of issues. There's no standardized format. There are a number of different ways to bring HD to the marketplace. The penetration of HD televisions is still quite low. We've made the decision for Wii not to have HD as a critical part of our proposition. We believe it's a little too early. We intend to reflect the value of that decision back to the consumer. Other types of technology, frankly, are deeply imbedded into Wii in terms of what we're doing with the controller, how that works for the consumer, and other types of technologies that we believe are critically important. We are quite aggressive in those areas. Do we believe that the decision around HD is correct. Absolutely. And we intend to show that in the marketplace.
Nintendo Power: If you could have one third-party franchise on Wii that doesn't currently reside on a Nintendo platform, which would it be?
Fils-Aime: You know, that's a tough question because publishers and developers are currently working on a full range of different franchises, and I'm not even clear on all of the work that's being done bringing the best of the existing franchises onto out platform. So my hopeful answer is that there's no franchise that currently exists that won't find its way to the Nintendo platform from a third-party perspective. That all of the great franchises will not only come to Wii, but will play in uniquely better ways on our platform.
Nintendo Power: Wii promises to deliver new kinds of gameplay experiences, but some people might not be ready to abandon traditional game styles like Mario 64 and The Wind Waker. What would you say to them? Will we see both types of games on Wii like we have with the DS?
Fils-Aime: I'll answer that in two parts. First, certainly all of the legacy content from the NES, SNES, N64--that content will be available via the Virtual Console. The consumer will play those games the way that they're used to playing from a controller capability standpoint. Plus, obviously, all of the GameCube content is directly playable on Wii using your WaveBird or current GameCube controller. So for consumers who want that type of gameplay, that's a huge library right there to participate in.
Additionally, we've said that developers and publishers want to have a more standard gameplay format, that that capability exists with a classic controller "shell" that the core controller for Wii could be paired with. Having said that, we believe the best way to bring a new Wii game to bear is utilizing all of the technology that we've built into the controller. We have challenged our own developers, as well as third-party [developers], to really take that to heart. I think once, as a consumer, you've given the Wii controller a chance, you'll find that it really is a much more immersive way to play and be won over with that experience.
Nintendo Power: Which Wii game are you personally most excited for and why?
Fils-Aime: I have really enjoyed all my time with Tennis [part of the Wii Sports package]. Using the controller to hit with spin or power is fantastic. I've also enjoyed Excite Truck, especially how I can use the controller to execute a perfect landing. Lastly, Metroid Prime 3 really has reenergized my passion for that franchise. Which is my favorite? That's like asking which of my three children I love most!
Nintendo Power: Can you talk about Nintendo's Wi-Fi plans for Wii?
Fils-Aime: At this point, I can't really share new information. We've talked about the Virtual Console, and how that will bring both legacy content, as well as potentially brand-new content to bear for the consumer. There's a lot more information that we will share. What I will say is that we see the online capability of Wii as a huge, huge asset to our launch. And we will leverage that to the hilt.
Nintendo Power: Does the lack of a hard drive limit the types of things you can do online, such as MMORPGs?
Fils-Aime: I don't think so. We've communicated that a wide range of storable media can be used with Wii. We've announced that SD cards are compatible, we've talked about Ethernet connections. So our plans for Wii really can scale to include all types of gameplay, and that's our focus.
Nintendo Power: Will we see downloadable demos, trailers and those types of things?
Fils-Aime: We plan to create an online environment that is dedicated to game content. This may include the ability to own content as well as the opportunity to have it for only for short periods of time. All of that is part of our strategy.
Nintendo Power: Will we see third-party NES, SNES, and N64 titles on the Virtual Console?
Fils-Aime: Third party? We've already announced that you'll see Sega content on Virtual Console. We want that legacy content to be the best, broadest representation of our products from an NES, SNES and N64 generation, as well as all of that great Sega content. Our focus is on breadth, and certainly that would include third-party content.
Nintendo Power: Speaking of sega Genesis content, how did that come about?
Fils-Aime: I don't know all of the details, but I do know that last year, when we announced the Virtual Console concept at E3, conversations started happening right away between interested parties on how the best of Nintendo's franchises could coexist with the best of the Sega franchises. So I suspect that was the genesis of many of the conversations--pun intended!
Nintendo Power: Why doesn't Nintendo actively seek to acquire studios like some of your competitors?
Fils-Aime: That's [a] question that's best answered by Mr. Iwata. I will say this: Our industry is heavily people-intensive. In the end, it's the creative horsepower of the individual that will drive game development versus a company name or a brand name. So for me, I don't know if I would be so focused on acquiring a studio versus encouraging the best and the brightest developers out there to be part of the Nintendo family. Whether that's from a second-party-development standpoint or coming and joining me here at NOA. I think that's a bigger priority versus buying a company where the individuals can turn around and leave after a short period of time.
The full interview, in which Fils-Aime also discussed the Nintendo DS and future of Game Boy, can be read in the July 2006 issue of Nintendo Power.
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