DSIWARE & WIIWARE: SPECIAL FOCUS Sponsored by: YOU WARE IT WELL “
ADAM GREEN Managing Director, Assyria Studios
How can Nintendo improve in order to compete with XBLA and PSN? I certainly think it needs to improve on both WiiWare and DSiWare. However, I’m also confident that Nintendo does seem to be quickly getting back on track in terms of third-party products, so I’m confident the stores on the respective platforms will be iterated upon and improved.
Are there any issues with the service that you have? One of the major issues as a developer, especially an indie, is the need to sell 6,000 units – or 4,000 for titles under 16 MB – before Nintendo will actually pay you any royalties. This can create a major challenge for indies who can’t necessarily afford to wait several months to meet the threshold before they get their first bit of income after a release. I’m sure this is enough to put most indies off developing for the platform at the moment.
76 October 22nd 2010
MARTYN BROWN Co-Founder and Joint CEO, Team 17
Why has WiiWare and DSiWare not taken off in the way that Xbox Live Arcade and the PlayStation Network have? What is Nintendo doing differently when compared to its competitors?
I think the basic issue is that unlike the Xbox 360 and PS3, online is not at the heart of the system on Nintendo’s hardware. It’s a sideline, not a focus. Xbox has Live, which is part and parcel of the DNA of the system, and pretty much every game with it. Sony’s PS3 now also has a very strong online component, but Nintendo’s is very shallow in comparison. It’s almost like it’s an afterthought
I think that’s just down to a combination of a lack of emphasis on Nintendo’s part, and arguably, a user demographic that’s largely not that interested. They’re happy with the boxed offerings and that’s that. It’s more mass market than core, perhaps.
Online is
currently not at the heart of Nintendo’s hardware –it’s a sideline.
Martyn Brown, Team 17
DAVID BRABEN Founder and Chairman, Frontier Developments
Frontier was the first developer to really push a WiiWare title in a big way. Do you think developers need to take more responsibility to get their titles more publicity? Absolutely. Developers are terrible for criticising publishers all the time, but then they’re worse when it comes to getting off your backside and getting people to see it – that’s the first step. However good something is, if people don’t see it then there’s no chance of it succeeding.
“
However good something is, if people don’t see it then there’s no chance of it succeeding.
David Braben, Frontier
Do you think the general userbase of Wii and DSi is even aware of the Nintendo Store? What needs to be done to raise awareness? I think that’s a big part of the problem, to be honest. A lot of people don’t even realise the Wii goes online. I would ask if the 30 per cent that use it online do so regularly, because that’s an important distinction. I think the problem is that a lot of Wii games don’t support the kind of community online elements that some other platforms do, so I think that all of these things mean WiiWare and the general online side of the Wii isn’t as major an element of the machine. It could be if it was positioned front and central, as can be seen on other platforms.
How do you view Nintendo’s digital pricing system, compared to its rivals. Is it cheap enough? I think the level of the pricing is okay, but that the fact that the pricing doesn’t change with time is a big disadvantage.
www.mcvuk.com
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