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All Signs Point to a Clueless Nintendo

All Signs Point to a Clueless Nintendo

Anyone who works with me knows that I love me a good NX rumor. X86 or ARM? More or less powerful than a PS4? Third-party friendly or nah? One day it’s a console / gaming tablet hybrid, the next it’s a dedicated console with VR capabilities. You just never know what Nintendo is going to do, and we’re so starved for concrete information that even the most obscure rumors set us off. Okay, well, they set me off, and I just can’t get enough of them.

Not all rumors are positive, though. In fact, the latest rumors from DigiTimes are downright worrying. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, then here’s the story according to DigiTimes: Nintendo has postponed mass production of the NX until early 2017. The postponement will allow Nintendo to further improve handheld / console integration, and will also give Nintendo the time it needs to add virtual reality capabilities “to gain advantages in the upcoming video game and mobile game competitions.” Also, Nintendo has (allegedly) halved its order from 20 million units to 9.5-10 million units due to the disappointing year-one sales of the Wii U.

Go home, DigiTimes, you’re drunk. Seriously, we have to take all of this with a huge grain of salt, because DigiTimes’ track record isn’t flawless. On the other hand, its only confirmed sources are in manufacturing, so we have to stay open to the fact that these rumors could turn out to be more than inflated hearsay. If that turns out to be the case, I’ll be very worried. The manufacturing postponement doesn’t bother me so much; we’ll get the NX some time in 2017. It’s the reasons for pushing everything back that sound so worrisome.

First of all, deciding to include VR capabilities this late in the game makes it sound like Nintendo still has no idea what the NX is or what they’re doing. Nintendo executives have gone on record saying that virtual reality is still an isolating technology and that it’s not social enough. If Nintendo wanted to backtrack and decide it was pro-VR after all that’s fine, but to make that change at this point when mass production was already supposed to have begun? That seems amateur.

All Signs Point to a Clueless Nintendo

Deciding (again, this late in the game) that it wants to produce only half of its originally-planned inventory? That doesn’t exactly inspire confidence, either. The reasoning behind this decision from DigiTimes’ supposed “sources” is what seems the most bizarre. Did Nintendo suddenly remember that the Wii U didn’t sell well at all its first year? Was it oblivious to this fact when it was making headlines with the information given through investor calls and earnings reports?

These decisions, if they are to be believed, would be indicative of a Nintendo that doesn’t know where the industry is headed or how to fit in. It would indicate a Nintendo made insecure by the prospect of new consoles from Microsoft and Sony. I have some serious doubts as to the legitimacy of these rumors. They just seem so drastic, and too sudden. Then again, my doubts could stem from a stubborn optimism that Nintendo is actually going to hit it out of the park next year. I’m still holding tightly to that optimism, but I need to hear something from Nintendo soon. Its stoic silence may have its benefits, but now that Microsoft and Sony’s cards are on the table we can’t be sure what to make of the secrecy. It seems too long-held, and we’re not sure if Nintendo is maintaining a champion poker face, or anxiously procrastinating. Give us a word, Nintendo, and put an end to the rumor mongering.

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