Media Create Sales: Week 9, 2018 (Feb 26 - Mar 04)

Marukoban · Mar 13, 2018

I don't think ageing fanbase is a problem exclusive to Pokemon.
In fact, I'm thinking Pokemon is one of the better performing series in terms of attracting younger audience still.
Gaming industry itself is facing the same problem. Bigger part of audience is now in 20s and 30s vs teenagers 20 years ago.
Depending on the severity, it might not even be a problem because in a lot of countries, the demographic has been shifting older on average, so businesses have to sell to older audience.

Principate · Mar 13, 2018

Dardan Sandiego said:
Very true but the Gamasutra article from 2017 shows that they haven't been able to revert a trend. I don't think the franchise is in dire straits or anything, not with the 16m it pulls on every mainline release, but GameFreak, TPC and Nintendo are thinking very long term here. Let's not forget that Pokémon is nearing its 20th anniversary in the West.

Pokemon isn't in any trouble especially with young demographics. This is a franchise that generate the same amount of revenue as Star Wars did the year TFA launched and that was before the Pokemon Go occured which resulted in further franchise growth. The franchise hasn't been this profitable in many many years

Deleted member 8593 · Mar 13, 2018

Principate said:
Pokemon isn't in any trouble especially with young demographics. This is a franchise that generate the same amount of revenue as Star Wars did the year TFA launched and that was before the Pokemon Go occured which resulted in further franchise growth. The franchise hasn't been this profitable in many many years

As I said, I don't think they're gonna run into problems any time soon. It's just that they've noticed a trend and that is going to influence decisions in the future.

Nirolak · Mar 13, 2018

February's Japanese mobile charts are largely the same as January's, but we see Final Fantasy: Brave Exvius appear in the #10 spot, which also reveals it was at #13 last month, suggesting that it's normally just outside of the Top 10.

March should see Princess Connect slot into the Top 10.

Principate · Mar 13, 2018

Dardan Sandiego said:
As I said, I don't think they're gonna run into problems any time soon. It's just that they've noticed a trend and that is going to influence decisions in the future.

And I disagree we're in quite he opposite stage to that, Pokemon has been more relevant in the past few years than it's been in decades. Pokemon is not just handheld games and judging their popularity with that demographic based on that really doesn't make much sense.

darkside · Mar 13, 2018

What is Nintendo's next mobile game going to be? Is there even going to be one? I hope its Zelda although dunno how that translates to a phone... given Nintendo's mobile stuff so far I don't have much hope I guess.

Lelouch0612 · Mar 13, 2018

darkside said:
What is Nintendo's next mobile game going to be? Is there even going to be one? I hope its Zelda although dunno how that translates to a phone... given Nintendo's mobile stuff so far I don't have much hope I guess.

Mario Kart. It is releasing this fiscal year (ending March 2019).

Deleted member 8593 · Mar 13, 2018

Principate said:
And I disagree we're in quite he opposite stage to that, Pokemon has been more relevant in the past few years than it's been in decades. Pokemon is not just handheld games and judging their popularity with that demographic based on that really doesn't make much sense.

I am not sure what there's to disagree with. I didn't say Pokémon was less popular or anything.

darkside said:
What is Nintendo's next mobile game going to be? Is there even going to be one? I hope its Zelda although dunno how that translates to a phone... given Nintendo's mobile stuff so far I don't have much hope I guess.

Mario Kart Tour

Nirolak · Mar 13, 2018

darkside said:
What is Nintendo's next mobile game going to be? Is there even going to be one? I hope its Zelda although dunno how that translates to a phone... given Nintendo's mobile stuff so far I don't have much hope I guess.

Publicly they've announced Mario Kart Tour.

The Wall Street Journal has leaked that they're also working on mobile games with at least two "RPG IPs", with one of them being Zelda.

Popular speculation is that the other one is Xenoblade.

They're also looking to sign new partners to speed up mobile development and get more titles out per year.

duckroll · Mar 13, 2018

What if it's BATEN KAITOS tho?!

casiopao · Mar 13, 2018

Dardan Sandiego said:
Very true but the Gamasutra article from 2017 shows that they haven't been able to revert a trend. I don't think the franchise is in dire straits or anything, not with the 16m it pulls on every mainline release, but GameFreak, TPC and Nintendo are thinking very long term here. Let's not forget that Pokémon is nearing its 20th anniversary in the West.

I agree that there is more older player now for Pokemon sure. But the way Vala phrased it totally different lol.O_O While the new young comers is not coming as huge as Nintendo wanted, it is not like there is no newcomers there. There is a reason why TPC is investing in tons of spinoff to attract newcomers into Pokemon there.

casiopao · Mar 13, 2018

Nirolak said:
Publicly they've announced Mario Kart Tour.

The Wall Street Journal has leaked that they're also working on mobile games with at least two "RPG IPs", with one of them being Zelda.

Popular speculation is that the other one is Xenoblade.

They're also looking to sign new partners to speed up mobile development and get more titles out per year.

Xenoblade X2 exclusive to mobile confirmed.

CeroMiedo · Mar 13, 2018

what about a Mario themed gacha game then?Like a paper mario mobile game collab with InSyS

Chris1964 · Mar 13, 2018

Next week will be big for Switch, Nintendo is promoting Splatoon 2 bundle a lot at retailers and there is interest for it.

Zedark · Mar 13, 2018

Chris1964 said:
Next week will be big for Switch, Nintendo is promoting Splatoon 2 bundle a lot at retailers and there is interest for it.

It coincides nicely with the launch of Kirby, too, so that should indeed be a very big week in my estimation.

Question is, how high can the numbers go? And, additionally, will this week see a bump in HW sales as a result of the direct. Two very interesting weeks (or, rather, reports) ahead!

Deleted member 8593 · Mar 13, 2018

casiopao said:
I agree that there is more older player now for Pokemon sure. But the way Vala phrased it totally different lol.O_O While the new young comers is not coming as huge as Nintendo wanted, it is not like there is no newcomers there. There is a reason why TPC is investing in tons of spinoff to attract newcomers into Pokemon there.

Very true. As Principate rightly pointed out, "Pokémon" is way bigger than just the games. Between the TCG, merchandise, TV show, movies, spinoffs... they got it covered.

ShinobiBk · Mar 13, 2018

The thing with Labo is we haven't got the big blowout Direct on it yet. They had the small presentation, and there are some smaller videos buy I'm sure there will be an in depth Direct focused solely on Labo coming within the next month. Something that goes in depth with what the software is all about and what you can really do with your creations

Pooroomoo · Mar 13, 2018

ShinobiBk said:
The thing with Labo is we haven't got the big blowout Direct on it yet. They had the small presentation, and there are some smaller videos buy I'm sure there will be an in depth Direct focused solely on Labo coming within the next month. Something that goes in depth with what the software is all about and what you can really do with your creations

I agree, the Labo video was the same as the October 2016 Switch video, a video selling the general concept. There will be something else, more detailed, before the launch.

Skittzo · Mar 13, 2018

ShinobiBk said:
The thing with Labo is we haven't got the big blowout Direct on it yet. They had the small presentation, and there are some smaller videos buy I'm sure there will be an in depth Direct focused solely on Labo coming within the next month. Something that goes in depth with what the software is all about and what you can really do with your creations

Pooroomoo said:
I agree, the Labo video was the same as the October 2016 Switch video, a video selling the general concept. There will be something else, more detailed, before the launch.

Completely disagree. First off, they've gone out of their way to distance Labo from the "Direct" brand. Secondly, they already released in depth videos for each game, so I'm not sure what more needs to be detailed.

I seriously doubt we're getting a Labo Direct.

Zedark · Mar 13, 2018

ShinobiBk said:
The thing with Labo is we haven't got the big blowout Direct on it yet. They had the small presentation, and there are some smaller videos buy I'm sure there will be an in depth Direct focused solely on Labo coming within the next month. Something that goes in depth with what the software is all about and what you can really do with your creations

Pooroomoo said:
I agree, the Labo video was the same as the October 2016 Switch video, a video selling the general concept. There will be something else, more detailed, before the launch.

Hmm, I wonder. Several Labo workshops have happened, and we had the hands-on and expanded features video already. Sure, we will get more as the launch approaches, but I think a lot of the concept (which is a lot in my estimation) has been laid out and presented.

Of course, as general marketing ramps up they might be able to reach a much wider audience, as the audience for this is generally rather young children, and therefore Nintendo needs to reach them and their parents via more general means of advertising than for a typical game. As such, the suggestion that Labo would do well without big preorders is definitely a valid thing to consider. As I said before, interesting weeks to come for sure.

skittzo0413 said:
Completely disagree. First off, they've gone out of their way to distance Labo from the "Direct" brand. Secondly, they already released in depth videos for each game, so I'm not sure what more needs to be detailed.

I seriously doubt we're getting a Labo Direct.

Yeah, it won't be a direct, but I expect them to showcase what they have shown to a wider audience from this point on.

Also, what's with the Dragon Quest eyes?

schuelma · Mar 13, 2018

skittzo0413 said:
Completely disagree. First off, they've gone out of their way to distance Labo from the "Direct" brand. Secondly, they already released in depth videos for each game, so I'm not sure what more needs to be detailed.

I seriously doubt we're getting a Labo Direct.

If anything I would expect Nintendo to go for some mainstream media coverage (at least in U.S where it seems like a pretty common tactic for them). Demo's on talk shows, morning shows, etc.

Skittzo · Mar 13, 2018

schuelma said:
If anything I would expect Nintendo to go for some mainstream media coverage (at least in U.S where it seems like a pretty common tactic for them). Demo's on talk shows, morning shows, etc.

Yeah that makes a whole lot more sense, and I'd expect them to not even start that until well after Labo releases. Maybe ramp up that type of thing into the holiday season.

Zedark said:
Yeah, it won't be a direct, but I expect them to showcase what they have shown to a wider audience from this point on.

Also, what's with the Dragon Quest eyes?

It's part of my campaign to get #SlimeInSmash.

Well, it's my whole campaign actually. Probably isn't gonna work well.

Zedark · Mar 13, 2018

schuelma said:
If anything I would expect Nintendo to go for some mainstream media coverage (at least in U.S where it seems like a pretty common tactic for them). Demo's on talk shows, morning shows, etc.

The Jimmy Fallon Switch reveal netted them some worldwide coverage, and a good Labo demo could very well do something similar (if on a smaller scale). The issue is that you need to have a decent amount of time of course, but a video with the general building process (but then sped up a notch) on the morning show and Reggie talking to the men and women of the morning show could provide some good coverage, too, I think.

ShinobiBk · Mar 13, 2018

skittzo0413 said:
Completely disagree. First off, they've gone out of their way to distance Labo from the "Direct" brand. Secondly, they already released in depth videos for each game, so I'm not sure what more needs to be detailed.

I seriously doubt we're getting a Labo Direct.

Doesn't have to be called a Direct but there will be a larger video presentation on Labo this month. I would bank on that

skullwaker · Mar 13, 2018

skittzo0413 said:
It's part of my campaign to get #SlimeInSmash.

Well, it's my whole campaign actually. Probably isn't gonna work well.

I'd be interested in seeing how they could get Slimes to work in Smash honestly. Unless you just mean as an assist trophy or something.

A Dragon Quest rep would be nice though, especially since it would likely coincide with the release of DQXI in the west.

Jpop · Mar 13, 2018

Dardan Sandiego said:
As I said, I don't think they're gonna run into problems any time soon. It's just that they've noticed a trend and that is going to influence decisions in the future.

Is this the new Pokémon is a fad?

SinCityAssassin · Mar 13, 2018

Wonder how JPN eShop Best sellers list will look like now that it has a Splatoon 2 + Octo Expansion bundle.

Skittzo · Mar 13, 2018

skullwaker said:
I'd be interested in seeing how they could get Slimes to work in Smash honestly. Unless you just mean as an assist trophy or something.

A Dragon Quest rep would be nice though, especially since it would likely coincide with the release of DQXI in the west.

I came up with a list of moves the other day:

skittzo0413 said:
There are a lot of varieties of Slime, so I would guess the moveset would revolve around brief transformations, sorta similar to Megaman's. For side special you can do a slash with Slime Knight, for up special you can do a boost with Drake Slime, for down special you can do a dodge/counter with Metal Slime, and for the standard special you can exude poison with Bubble Slime. Then the final smash can be a transformation to a King Slime or Metal King Slime.

Then the normal attacks can just be standard Slime tackles. It's crazy to me that Slime hasn't yet been in Smash, it's 100% the most iconic video game character that hasn't yet been featured. Especially in Japan. And it's not like the series doesn't have a long history with Nintendo consoles.

MoonFrog · Mar 13, 2018

skullwaker said:
I'd be interested in seeing how they could get Slimes to work in Smash honestly. Unless you just mean as an assist trophy or something.

A Dragon Quest rep would be nice though, especially since it would likely coincide with the release of DQXI in the west.

Imagine the different colors, though.

King Slime could be a final smash too. Or metal slime.

duckroll · Mar 13, 2018

skittzo0413 said:
Then the normal attacks can just be standard Slime tackles. It's crazy to me that Slime hasn't yet been in Smash, it's 100% the most iconic video game character that hasn't yet been featured. Especially in Japan. And it's not like the series doesn't have a long history with Nintendo consoles.

Toriyama retaining some rights to his creations probably makes licensing anything DQ harder.

Skittzo · Mar 13, 2018

duckroll said:
Toriyama retaining some rights to his creations probably makes licensing anything DQ harder.

That's disappointing if true. I would've thought SE would love to license out a DQ character but yeah if Toriyama doesn't want to then that causes problems.

Though he doesn't mind doing it for all the various Slime merchandise...

Deleted member 8593 · Mar 13, 2018

Jpop said:
Is this the new Pokémon is a fad?

I don't know how you read that post and came to this conclusion.

duckroll · Mar 13, 2018

skittzo0413 said:
That's disappointing if true. I would've thought SE would love to license out a DQ character but yeah if Toriyama doesn't want to then that causes problems.

Though he doesn't mind doing it for all the various Slime merchandise...

That's not what I said. It's likely not a matter of anyone not wanting to, but the more complicated shared rights are, the less incentive there is to try for it when there are many other options. So that could be one aspect. I'm not suggesting Toriyama is playing hardball or anything, don't misunderstand. Just that if it means having to talk to multiple people instead of one party, it's extra effort that could be put towards getting other characters.

Skittzo · Mar 13, 2018

duckroll said:
That's not what I said. It's likely not a matter of anyone not wanting to, but the more complicated shared rights are, the less incentive there is to try for it when there are many other options. So that could be one aspect. I'm not suggesting Toriyama is playing hardball or anything, don't misunderstand. Just that if it means having to talk to multiple people instead of one party, it's extra effort that could be put towards getting other characters.

Oh I see what you mean, yeah. I would guess it's similar to Pokemon in that respect, where the rights are shared between more parties than usual.

So definitely not something insurmountable. I hope there's enough interest from the developer side to get it done, it's really a shame there has been no DQ rep.

duckroll · Mar 13, 2018

skittzo0413 said:
Oh I see what you mean, yeah. I would guess it's similar to Pokemon in that respect, where the rights are shared between more parties than usual.

So definitely not something insurmountable. I hope there's enough interest from the developer side to get it done, it's really a shame there has been no DQ rep.

Yeah it's not something I feel is impossible at all, I was just replying to why I think it never happened so far. Just too many other easier options to pick from when DQ might be trickier.

MoonFrog · Mar 13, 2018

DQ should happen though. Hopefully the weight of rectitude eventually cuts through whatever barriers there may be :P.

Gotdatmoney · Mar 13, 2018

Nirolak said:
February's Japanese mobile charts are largely the same as January's, but we see Final Fantasy: Brave Exvius appear in the #10 spot, which also reveals it was at #13 last month, suggesting that it's normally just outside of the Top 10.

March should see Princess Connect slot into the Top 10.

What revenue range does 10th generally fall in?

Renna Hazel · Mar 13, 2018

Who is the most likely character to be a DQ rep in Smash? I'm not too familiar with the main series but I've played the Heroes games and absolutely love Alena. She should be the one to make it.

MoonFrog · Mar 13, 2018

I think Slime would be great. If it weren't Slime, it should show up in some fashion. (as should Metal King Slime. Maybe as a hazard? Shows up on the stage and drops something if you kill it before it flees? Maybe alternates with other metal slimes too!)

I also think they could do DQIII, IV, or V hero. (III and IV could do the whole half male, half female colors thing too!)

Torneko should be an assist trophy at least.

There should be trophies for a lot of characters, imo.

Nirolak · Mar 13, 2018

Gotdatmoney said:
What revenue range does 10th generally fall in?

Our benchmarks are a bit outdated, but given the growth of both the Japanese market and the revenue numbers Square Enix has been putting up in mobile, it's hard to imagine #10 as anything less than $25 million.

I'm hesitant to put an upper bound there since Japanese mobile gaming is still a very heavy growth industry despite looking like it was going to slow down not too long ago.

ItWasMeantToBe19 · Mar 13, 2018

My guess is that Zelda mobile is cancelled and will never happen. It's a terrible fit with mobile.

duckroll · Mar 13, 2018

ItWasMeantToBe19 said:
My guess is that Zelda mobile is cancelled and will never happen. It's a terrible fit with mobile.

Why would you say that?

ItWasMeantToBe19 · Mar 13, 2018

duckroll said:
Why would you say that?

Because Zelda is as terrible a fit with mobile as Mario platformers are and the game has been heavily rumored for so long that it either is having a ton of time in development or it's gotten rebooted a few times.

MoonFrog · Mar 13, 2018

Zelda worked fine on DS if the worry is controls.

duckroll · Mar 13, 2018

ItWasMeantToBe19 said:
Because Zelda is as terrible a fit with mobile as Mario platformers are and the game has been heavily rumored for so long that it either is having a ton of time in development or it's gotten rebooted a few times.

I don't think any Zelda mobile has been heavily rumored at all. If it exists, they started it after BotW shipped, which would only be a year ago. Also, Super Mario Run was really fun. Needed more content after release though.

ItWasMeantToBe19 · Mar 13, 2018

Not heavily rumored at all?

https://www.wsj.com/articles/nintendo-developing-the-legend-of-zelda-smartphone-game-1494820189

A report from the WSJ is about as good of a rumor as you can get. And yet this game doesn't seem like it's coming out this fiscal year if it still exists (which I think it doesn't)

MoonFrog said:
Zelda worked fine on DS if the worry is controls.

How would they monetize the game?

Nirolak · Mar 13, 2018

One year actually isn't a long time for a mobile game. Some of them take as long as AAA console games now.

duckroll · Mar 13, 2018

ItWasMeantToBe19 said:
Not heavily rumored at all?

https://www.wsj.com/articles/nintendo-developing-the-legend-of-zelda-smartphone-game-1494820189

A report from the WSJ is about as good of a rumor as you can get. And yet this game doesn't seem like it's coming out this fiscal year if it still exists (which I think it doesn't)

That was in May last year. Months after BotW shipped. You said it was heavily rumored for so long. That's not a rumor so much as a report. We know one is in development. It just hasn't been very long. Super Mario Run came out well over a year after the DeNA deal was first announced. Just because they are mobile games doesn't mean they have super short development cycles.

cw_sasuke · Mar 13, 2018

Lite_Agent said:
After seeing how good The Snack World looks on Switch, I wouldn't be surprised if it ended up on 3DS + Switch, with 3DS as the 'base' platform.

Anything but 3DS/Switch would surprise to be honest.

schuelma · Mar 13, 2018

cw_sasuke said:
Anything but 3DS/Switch would surprise to be honest.

Given Inazuma Eleven Ares and the new-ish demographic its going for, Switch/PS4 wouldn't shock me.

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