Pachter: Nintendo NX Will See “Very Low” Western Third-Party Support

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Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter has once again been posed with a question about Nintendo NX, asked as to whether Nintendo can survive another instance where, as with Wii U, the console is seen as a relative failure.

While indicating that the company’s cash reserves can afford to take another hit, he added that both their handheld and console businesses are at risk given an increasingly competitive market in the games industry.

He went as far as to say that their recent failing in hardware design has cost them third-party support, and that he anticipates “very low third-party support outside of Japan” on Nintendo NX. That is, unless Nintendo once again strike widespread success.

“When last I looked, which was in the last three months, Nintendo has something like $10 billion in cash. I think that the worst case if the NX is a bust, they will lose half a billion,” he shared in the latest Pachter Factor episode on Siftd.

“Every time I have ever criticised that company and its management, including its late president, it wasn’t because they were running the company into the ground and about to go bankrupt. It was because I didn’t think they were generating enough profit on the phenomenal assets that they have. I’m not critical of these guys in the way that you should be worried.”

He continued, “As long as they keep producing great content – and they have never wavered – they’ll be fine. I just don’t think they are going to maximise their profits without having a good hardware strategy and a good software strategy.

“And, I frankly think that handhelds are challenged because mobile has become the way that most people play games, and console is challenged because they have been underpowered the last couple of generations and they are trying to be cute with these different kind of hybrid devices. Like, a GamePad instead of a controller, and nobody really liked it so the Wii U didn’t work. Their failure in hardware has cost them third-party support, because third-parties can’t afford to make a game for a 10 million install base Wii U that could be discontinued at any time.

“[With] the NX, I think you are going to see very low third-party support outside of Japan unless the thing is a hit,” Pachter closed. “And so, I mean my criticism of them is just that they have squandered a big lead that they had in hardware and gone from first-to-worst, quickly, on the console side.”

He has been right with one prediction so far, in saying that Nintendo NX wouldn’t see release until 2017. We now know that the platform will see release globally in March 2017.

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  1. He is right in a sense, and i never agree with this dude. But with the nx none of us know shit about it. We dont know what deals Nintendo are cooking up with third partys with as we speak. Kimishima is a different guy comoared to iwata, and personally i dont know what the nx wil be like, if or not itll be a success. But until its out, or were given some hard details and we know what its all about how can this dude be saying it wont have no support from the west, he is right about how he is critical of Nintendo’s bosess deffo agree with him. But kimishima aint really flexed his leadership muscles yet and, i dont know i just think he will do things differently to iwata, he has already delayed Zelda and nx and to me. That’s proof already he is s true leader, and no mess about guy. He dont listen fan’s moaning qnd bitchinng, he thinks business and whether us fan’s hate it or love it, they are running a business and one must do what’s right for the business. To provide us with the perfect product. Nintendo is coming back in a big way and NX must be something very special hence The secrecy’s….. But hey its a waiting game be ause Nintendo aint letting snuthing slip with this console.

  2. Who keeps asking this guy questions when all he can do is guess at the answers. For all we know the NX won’t have third party support because it’s a toaster.

  3. Seems like Sony and Microsoft just threw Nintendo a curveball, Sony did not even want to show off their new Playstation Neo console at E3, I think they were afraid it would not measure up to the Xbox One Scorpio that Microsoft plans to bring to market next year. Maybe Sony wants to upgrade further so that it surpasses the Scorpio, I believe Sony wants to be king of console specs, providing the most powerful hardware for gaming. That being said Nintendo wants the NX to be a machine that will be able to attract more hardcore game fans away from Sony and Microsoft, but it seems that both companies just pulled the rug underneath Nintendo. Who knows I might be wrong about this, Nintendo may just unveil a machine that is as good or superior to the newer machines coming out next year.
    Its hard to assume this because the last two generations, Nintendo was lagging both console makers in terms of power and technology and that is why third party support was weak, even Forbes recently touched on this matter because they believe the NX will fail like the Wii U because Sony and Microsoft have already made the decision to release new consoles. Nintendo decided to bring out the NX under the assumption that their competition would continue to support their current consoles for several for years, that was a wrong assumption, the NX will go head to head with new machines, therefore the NX will not be a mid cycle release, it will be introduced the same year the Playstation Neo and the Xbox Scorpio are released to consumers.
    This means Nintendo will have an even harder to job to impress third party software developers. My guess is that Nintendo will have to settle to carve itself a niche in the console market like it has in the past. The NX will have a tough time getting third party support outside of Japan. That being said many people will buy it for its first party titles.

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