Interview with Nintendo Europes new Marketing Director
May 5th, 2006
Nintendo Europe has an interview up with Nintendo Europes Marketing Director Laurent Fischer. Mr. Fischers answers will be in bold.
Mr Fischer, how will E3 2006 be remembered in the history of Nintendo?
I think its not only related to Nintendos history, its related to the whole video game industry. For the first time we have a real crossroads in terms of development perspectives. The question of what is going to be next generation console improvement is no longer linked with having more power and better graphics. Competitors have been following this route of more graphics, more 3D but this - from my point of view - is thinking about our industrys future in an old-fashioned way.
Nintendo decided to take a step ahead exactly the same way we did for the handheld market with the DS. Wii is definitely a new generation console, looking forward to change dramatically the way the player interacts with the games. I really think this is a second birth for our industry; where a tremendous area of changes and improvements will occur. This allows developers to enjoy freedom and creativity again!
About DS, do you see its success as a way to introduce players to Wii?
Yes, developers now realise, like with DS, if you want the big successes, you have to use all the new features in our console properly. Because what consumers love about DS is to use its unique features. Whether its wireless LAN or the Wi-Fi connection, touch screen or voice control, all these things make a difference. And not only Nintendo, but also a lot of third parties have a very heavy line-up of DS software this year, so gamers have a lot to look forward to.
And this is what youre hoping for with Wii as well; this encouragement to come up with new ideas?
As soon as the developers got their hands on the Wii development kits, they understood that they cannot just port a game, they have to be radical in their thinking. So very soon we will see, from the games theyre releasing, that whatever we talk about - a racing game, a first-person shooter, an RPG or some other genre we dont know about yet - everybody has to work in a new way.
What will E3 visitors be able to do in terms of getting hands-on with the Wii?
Like we did with DS, playable demos will show what Wii can do. Nothing is more exciting than just playing it. We really want people to hold the controller, to see how easy it is to use, and how different it is. It proves new ideas can work. Thats the experience people will have at the E3 booth, Im sure.
What will Nintendo do differently with the launch of Wii in comparison with the launch of GameCube?
I think there is nothing comparable with the current generation of consoles and what we can expect from Wii; the game play experience will dramatically change. And Wii will have a very varied software line-up. Whenever we talk about Nintendo games or third-party games, the way Wii software is going to be developed means that there will be a lot of proposals of different genres; different kinds of games, and even a lot of new game concepts we just cant imagine now.
Will there be more secrets revealed about Wii at E3? And we dont just mean price and release date?
At E3 people will understand the complete thinking behind the Wii, on top of the controller.
And what about Zelda: Twilight Princess? Will we find out when its coming out?
Only 10 people know that. [Laughs] Theres more to learn at E3
Will we get more info on Zelda: Phantom Hourglass?
Youll have to wait and see. DS is going to be very important for us at this E3. You know, E3 can sometimes be a bit of a magnifying glass, and put all the focus for example only on Wii, but youre going to see a lot of good titles for DS.
Nintendo DS Lite will be one of the big stars of E3. What was the reason for bringing out this new version of the system?
Were always looking for ways to improve the console at hand. With DS it was a huge task to show people what new ways to play are about. We worked hard at showing this not just to gamers - which was only one aim - we also really wanted to reach non-gamers. The second aim was to make the DS as portable and as universally appealing as possible. That was the aim of DS Lite. And the sales figures from Japan show that its working.
So can you give us a hint when we can expect DS Lite in Europe?
Certainly this summer.
On the subject of release dates: can you explain the delay of Wario Ware: Twisted in Europe?
Its really linked to a technical issue, not in the software development. Its due to European regulations which made us modify the rumble and tilt mechanism. So things need to be redeveloped and resubmitted. We hope to have some more info on this game soon after E3.
It looks like being an exciting year ahead for Nintendo of Europe. What are your personal ambitions for your new role?
My real aim is to make as many people as possible enjoy what Nintendos developers are creating, helping to implement all the elements that have proven to be successful in Japan as far as developing the market is concerned, and to reach new consumers in Europe. If we can do that, I think well enjoy a bright future.
And what do you play yourself? Do you know your Brain Age, for instance?
At the moment its 43.
And whats your real age, if you dont mind us asking?
Its 37 [laughs] so theres still a lot to train, but I started playing on the first European versions, and now Im playing the US version, but I will start my real training soon with the final European version - and Ill use the French one!
Nintendo of Americas spokesman Reggie Fils-Aime has become a kind of cult figure with gamers in the US. Can European Nintendo fans expect you to become a Reggie for Europe?
Reggie is really unique and he is as well very famous with European gamers. Im used to having ongoing contact with journalists and websites (mainly French until now, but Im looking forward to meeting the other ones!)
And they know how I work: the real stars are the games, so if you want to talk then just take the controller and well play together. It doesnt matter if I win or lose, at least we enjoy some time together playing. And thats going to continue to be my position.
So if people wanted to play against you at Mario Kart DS, whats your online name?
Its low-fi. I was playing a lot during the beta test period but when I went online for the first time, I was playing against these guys that were just incredible; they could beat you by three or four seconds every time.
I dont have enough time to play, to become that good, but I try to play all the games. I played Phoenix Wright to check the translation, which was very good, and Im playing Trauma Center but at the end its very tough. I love Zelda and I love all the Mario Karts - especially on DS. At the moment Im enjoying Big Brain Academy multiplayer, which is pure fun!
So you played Nintendo games before you joined Nintendo?
I joined because I played! I couldnt join any other video game company.
Thanks, Laurent, for taking the time to talk to us.
You can find out much more about Nintendos plans for the future from May 10, when E3 2006 begins, at our dedicated E3 microsite - coming soon!
Link
möglich. Im Übrigen: Wozu auch? Nintendo hat den NDS mit seinem ganz eigenen "Zauberstab".
