===Definition:=== Nintendo is a japanese company, which has been manufacturing console sytems all around the world since 1975.
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1889: The Nintendo company is first founded by Fusajiro Yaauchi, from Japan, as a playing card company.
1929: Had become the leading playing card manufacturer in Japan.
1963: The Company changed its production from cards to toys and games.
1969: Nintendo had opened its first game department.
1975: Nintendo involvement in video games first began, with the release of its first electronic game.
1983: The Nintendo entertainment system, [1] was then released in Japan, this was Nintendo’s first console system and the birth of Nintendo as we know it today.
Nintendo entertainment system (NES): The NES was first released in Japan (1983) and was then released worldwide in 1986. With the release of this system Nintendo had almost complete control over the gaming market. The console sold over 500,000 machines whilst in Japan for the first two months, showing Nintendo and other companies the potential of the gaming industry (Nintendo land, 1997).
Super NES: Released in 1991, this machine raised the quality of consoles, and encouraged game designers to experiment with the additional power. Many Super NES games have become classics, such as Super Mario Brothers, ‘the legend of Zelda’, ‘Donkey Kong country’ and ‘Super Metroid’. Within the lifespan of the Super NES, Nintendo owned 70 to 85 percent of the video game market worldwide, selling 49 million units giving Nintendo incentive to continue within the industry (Provenzo, 1991:43).
Nintendo 64: The Nintendo 64 was the first console on the market to allow 64 bit quality graphics. This system was released in 1996, but due to competition such as the Sony Playstation and Nintendo’s stubborn views on the cartridge medium, the console did not create as much revenue as the earlier systems, selling 32 million units worldwide (Forster, Winnie. 2005:67).
Nintendo Gamecube: The Gamecube is Nintendo’s current console machine and has been released since May 2002. The console is rivalled with the Playstation 2 (Sony) and the Xbox (Microsoft), since the addition of these companies entering the market the decline of Nintendo is apparent. Although a successful unit, the Gamecube has not received the same number of sales as its predecessors. While the popularity of Nintendo has declined since the Super NES, Nintendo does still enjoy success as one of the leading video game manufacturers. (Forster, Winnie. 2005:88)
Nintendo has been creating portable handheld gaming devices since 1989. The company has found great success creating such portable systems, as the Nintendo ‘Game Boy’. This handheld has become the most successful video game system ever developed, selling over 150 million units worldwide (Nintendo Australia, 9/10/05). Early 2005 Nintendo had brought out a new portable system called the Nintendo DS (dual screen). This handheld device has the addition of a second screen which is touch sensitive adding a new element to the handheld experience.
Late 2006 is the supposed release date of Nintendo’s fifth console system as mentioned by Nintendo at the Tokyo Game show 2005. This console will go by the codename of the ‘Revolution’, which seems to vividly describe the number of inventive features the console will be bringing to the industry. One of the many features includes the creative design of the controller. Looking more like a television remote than a game controller, it uses motion sensors to control the movement of the game character with the physical movement of the controller. (Nintendo, 09/10/05) Once the system is available to gamers a service will become functional which allows owners to download classic Nintendo games from the last four systems, to be played on the ‘Revolution’, a service which many retro gamers are excited about. (Nintendo Australia, 09/10/05)
Yarron Frauenfelder 11:23, 11 Oct 2005 (EST)
Forster, Winnie. (2005). the encyclopedia of game machines – Consoles, handhelds & home computers 1972 – 2005. New York: Game plan. ISBN 3-00-0153594
Nintendo Australia (2005). Classic systems. Retrieved 09 October, 2005 from http://www.nintendo.com.au/systems/classicsystems.php
Nintendo (2005) Hands on with the Revolution controller. Retrieved 09 October, 2005 from http://www.nintendo.com/newsarticle?articleid=Uuo6JoTDkBzpp3yLzpJSxvJrvmUZJ6El&page=currentNews
Nintendo Land (1997) The History of Nintendo, retrieved 06 October, 2005, from http:www.nintendoland.com/home2.htm?history/
Provenzo, E. (1991) Video Kids : Making sense of Nintendo, Cambridge: Harvard University Press. ISBN 0674937082
Wikipedia (2004) Nintendo, retrieved 06 October, 2005, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nintendo
