Though Nintendo President Reggie Fils-Aime has slammed both Sony and Microsoft in the past, the Mario exec stayed classy in a recent interview with Next-Gen saying he respects Sony as a formidable games company and he doesn't "take them lightly" as a competitor. But one of the more interesting items from the interview, however, is Next-Gen's claim that Nintendo may be the spin doctor of video games, using their cult brand status to influence consumers in the company's favor. From the article: "But the way Nintendo spins things, this was a business that absolutely needed a new idea, or else face doom and destruction. In fact, while the games industry could always use new ideas, the entity which really needed to come up with something fantastic was and is Nintendo. It had been absolutely sidelined as a console manufacturer in the past decade, by competitors with more money and a superior ability to deliver technically advanced machines. If anyone NEEDED something new, it was Nintendo."
How one defines "next-gen" is completely subjective; buy the console(s) you are most excited about. But it is interesting to ponder whether Nintendo is just a great marketer, or if they unfairly leverage hype to their advantage.
