Nintendo Isn’t Pursuing the 4K Market Right Now, “It’s Too Limited"
Asked about 4K, Reggie had this to say:
"The Nintendo mission is to reach as many consumers as possible and to have them engage and have fun with our [intellectual property]. That’s what we try and do. So inherently, we go for a more mainstream audience. Inherently, we want our products to be affordable. We want our products to be easy to pick up and experience, low learning curve. We want our IP to shine as we deliver these experiences.
"That’s the way we approach it. And so, what that means is, a sweet spot of $300 for the Nintendo Switch, a platform that has Mario and Zelda and Splatoon. Going against a more limited consumer pool, a higher price point, requiring investments in other ways — 4K TVs, what have you — that is a strategy that for us, candidly, is a bit too limited."
https://www.theverge.com/2017/6/13/...4k-esports-reggie-fils-aime-interview-e3-2017
He's got a point. Despite all the marketing attention 4K is getting, and all the talk around 4K content for the new consoles, it really is a very limited market. Only a minority (15 to 20%) of people own 4K TVs. It won't be the industry standard for quite a while. The outlay required to get 4K gaming is pretty steep -- thousands of dollars for the TV, plus $400 to $500 for the console. In return, you get somewhat better game visuals (arguable how big a difference), and it's not going to be consistent 4K for many years. We only recently attained 1080p games with any real consistency, after many years of hype around the "HD revolution."
So it makes sense to me that Nintendo is forgoing the push for 4K for now and instead focusing on 900/1080p. It makes sense in general, and it also makes sense in particular for Nintendo, who appeal to a more casual crowd that is more interested in fun gameplay, less likely to want to spend thousands to have better visuals.
His comments actually make me more inclined to pick up a Switch. The more I read about 4K, the less convinced I am that I need to spend the money on that. I also like what Reggie is saying about their philosophy. "Affordable, mainstream, pick up and play, low learning curve." Sounds good.
Asked about 4K, Reggie had this to say:
"The Nintendo mission is to reach as many consumers as possible and to have them engage and have fun with our [intellectual property]. That’s what we try and do. So inherently, we go for a more mainstream audience. Inherently, we want our products to be affordable. We want our products to be easy to pick up and experience, low learning curve. We want our IP to shine as we deliver these experiences.
"That’s the way we approach it. And so, what that means is, a sweet spot of $300 for the Nintendo Switch, a platform that has Mario and Zelda and Splatoon. Going against a more limited consumer pool, a higher price point, requiring investments in other ways — 4K TVs, what have you — that is a strategy that for us, candidly, is a bit too limited."
https://www.theverge.com/2017/6/13/...4k-esports-reggie-fils-aime-interview-e3-2017
He's got a point. Despite all the marketing attention 4K is getting, and all the talk around 4K content for the new consoles, it really is a very limited market. Only a minority (15 to 20%) of people own 4K TVs. It won't be the industry standard for quite a while. The outlay required to get 4K gaming is pretty steep -- thousands of dollars for the TV, plus $400 to $500 for the console. In return, you get somewhat better game visuals (arguable how big a difference), and it's not going to be consistent 4K for many years. We only recently attained 1080p games with any real consistency, after many years of hype around the "HD revolution."
So it makes sense to me that Nintendo is forgoing the push for 4K for now and instead focusing on 900/1080p. It makes sense in general, and it also makes sense in particular for Nintendo, who appeal to a more casual crowd that is more interested in fun gameplay, less likely to want to spend thousands to have better visuals.
His comments actually make me more inclined to pick up a Switch. The more I read about 4K, the less convinced I am that I need to spend the money on that. I also like what Reggie is saying about their philosophy. "Affordable, mainstream, pick up and play, low learning curve." Sounds good.
