I Miss the Old Nintendo

I've got a confession to make. I don't really like the Nintendo Switch, and I've been deep in thought trying to figure out why that is. Nintendo is my favorite video game publisher, hardware manufacturer, and developer, so at first I believed I may be holding them to an unfair standard. However; after immersing myself within the Nintendo ecosystem between their games, features, and even marketing, I began to realize why I feel this way. The truth is, I believe the Wii U was a much more valuable system than what the Switch has become, and after re-experiencing the Wii U as it once was, I'm even more frustrated with the steps Nintendo has taken away from their core essence in regards to the Switch. With this video, I want to explain why that is.

Here's why I miss the old Nintendo.

Chapters:
0:00 Intro
4:43 The Wii U's Mission
9:00 Pikmin 3 - Best On Wii U
13:24 Heart of Wii U - eShop & Miiverse
19:27 A Diverse and Innovative Library
23:22 ...I Hate the New Nintendo Direct
27:25 ...I Miss the Old Nintendo Direct
41:05 Wii U: All for Fun and Fun for All
45:51 Nintendo Switch: Just Okay
55:00 A Struggling Nintendo is a Creative Nintendo

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Thanks to Razbuten and Heavy Eyed for script feedback

#nintendo #wiiu #nintendoswitch #wizawhat

[razbuten]

my uncle who works at nintendo says he is gonna sue you for being mean to the switch

[tcg]

Every time I see Satoru Iwata in any form of media, I get sad. What a man to have existed.

[arcaithsarchive]

I do think that both Iwata and Reggie gave Nintendo a humanity and humility that hadn't been seen before, or really since, in the executive branch of Nintendo. Iwata describing himself as a gamer foremost I think was very much lived out in his philosophies and approaches to everything he did; his actual gamer personality made it genuine. And one of the reasons why Reggie was such an effective marketer is because he connected with people on a genuine level, even when not being as avid a gamer. He was a person.

[topcatchillinbytrash]

Here I am believing I'm the only human that feels this way about current Nintendo

[Gmod]

Ever since Iwata passed and Reggie left, I haven't stopped thinking about those two. Nintendo feels completely different now. They've gone from creative to professional in mindset to appease investors, which is a path a majority of companies have taken nowadays. Although I keep thinking about the time when Iwata was still alive, and I have to say I haven't really thought much about Iwata until his passing, but he was really a true gamer more than a businessman. He balanced both his professional life and gaming life in a way that was attractive to everyone other than investors. He went out of his way to make sure what he was working on was the best possible product he could make, even if it shortened his life, which is why I think he died early as dark as that sounds. In a way, I think Nintendo's new direction is punishment for not considering the health of those who did everything they could to satisfy us, but that's just me.

[HeroineOfTwilight]

One of the things I've noticed that really backs up this video is the overall UI of the systems. You touched on this comparing the Wii U and Switch home screens, but in that same era was the 3DS, which still offers a MASSIVE library of themes as far as handheld systems go. It even had cool backgrounds for games not even on the system itself, like Breath of the Wild. Early on in the switch's lifespan I remember being excited to see what kind of cool themes would release for it, but to this day the options are still literally called "Basic" white and black.

[Mr_Mimestamp]

I remember when the Switch first came out and was missing Netflix, I thought to myself. “Oh, it’s just because it’s new. In a few months, I’m sure we’ll have it.” Nearly six years later, I’m realizing that I thought that about a lot of features. Themes, the virtual console, a web browser, but the Switch today still feels like it’s missing a lot of basic features, like we’re still in that first year and waiting for those features to come.

[indexical]

The old Nintendo directs were like seeing old friends and spending quality time with them - the new ones are like getting presents on Christmas morning. Both are worth getting excited for but only one fills your cup back up and strengthens bonds. I wouldn’t want Christmas every day but I’d kill to see my best friends every day.

[beeno]

I always loved the vibe the Wii U had. From the unique menu ui to the chill but heartwarming songs of the eshop. Even Miiverse was a fun social expirement that had a unique feeling that no other social media platforms could replicate. And the games were unmatched, fundamentally challenging many of their core series to make unique, innovative that we’re still fun and felt like they still understood the core identity of that series. It’s just to nice to know someone feels the same way I do.

[Vailskibum]

Phenomenal video, I still think the Switch as a system is significantly better, but the charm of Nintendo's Wii U era is unmatched

[jlshootingstar]

I miss Iwata and Reggie :(
It's like you can really feel their absence. At least Reggie is maybe still offering Nintendo advice sometimes.

[UltraManager]

I think Satoru Iwata was the main reason that Nintendo was great. Since his passing, I think they are going somewhere else.. Just a feeling I have right now

[lrich]

This video perfectly encapsulates the feeling of emptiness I get when booting up my switch. I never had a Wii U, but the old Nintendo experience was still strong in my time with the 3ds. When I look at my excitement from getting my first 3ds and utilizing its extra little AR Camera features, it makes me realize how much the switch just lacks life to it. Being able to take pictures and place my mii on my birthday cake, hearing the menu music that felt like home, the eventual addition of themes, the little mascots on certain menus, it all made the 3ds feel like more than just a device to play games on, it was pure joy in a way I think the switch can never replicate.

[ianeons]

As a 2010s kids, I grew up in the Wii U era. It’s still hard to believe it was Nintendo’s worst selling MAINLINE console when so many of my friends had it. I mean it made sense since we we’re basically the only people who bought it as anyone over the age of 10 would have been burned by the bad commercials and turned to the PS4 or maybe Xbox One instead.

[chosenone]

2001 to 2015 Nintendo had a "heart" but when Iwata died, Nintendo went back to its roots, becoming a soulless corporation. the iwata era was one filled with success, failure but in the end they still had heart.

[ClassicShocker]

The Wii U's sense of community is what I miss the most, the starting menu showed groups of Mii's gathered around discussing different things about the game that they were playing, and with the use of the Miiverse games like Splatoon and smash 4 felt alive and you never really felt alone while playing a game, even if it was a single player game. It had such a fun sense of community that I haven't really seen since the Wii U and it honestly made my time with the Wii U really enjoyable. When you can make someone like me who isn't a fan of multiplayer games have fun with one then you did something right.

[mrshmuga]

The unfortunate thing is, the legendary developers behind some of these big franchises are moving away from designing them and getting ever closer to retiring. The window to hear them speak about game development closes nearer, all the while their successors/understudies that _are_ designing these games don’t get to say anything.

[mounirzahran]

It's interesting to see how the perception of what constitutes 'old Nintendo' has evolved over time. For many long-time fans, 'old Nintendo' refers to the pre-Wii era, encompassing the GameCube and all prior systems. They often reminisce about the iconic Nintendo E3 shows, seeing the company's peak in the legendary 2004 E3 event. The Wii-U era is not worth mentioning for the older generation. The fact that this time is referred to as the 'old Nintendo era' by the video creator, shows how big a role nostalgia can play.

[WarioSaysSo]

Nintendo is like Disney.
Once both was companies that just seemed like they had endless of magic.
Now both companies are greedier then ever, have no connection with long time supporters and overall not producing much unique things.
Interestingly they both started to dwindle at the same point.

[LuprinaWolf]

I feel like this video perfectly summed up my thoughts about the wii u and switch.

The switch feels safe, almost sterile and lifeless. While every time I boot up my wii u or 3ds, I just feel happy and ready to play something.

Little things like the ui and themes go a long way for me. I'm really disappointed that nintendo didn't do anything creative or fun with the switch ui.