The iPad Does Not Have an Impact on Nintendo

The launch of the iPad seems to have been another of Apple's signature launch successes, with more than 300,000 devices moved in the first day alone, long queues forming and most reviewers praising the device despite the features it lacks. The iPad can play videogames and with more than 700 of them being offered on launch day, other mobile gaming creators, like Sony and Nintendo, must be a little worried.

But Reggie Fils-Aime, the voice and president of Nintendo of America, told Kotaku that the new Apple product launch “is not having an impact on Nintendo.” He also talked about the reasons for this, saying that “I've seen data that suggestions that while consumers are constantly downloading Apps, they play with them for a few times and then they are moving on to the next thing. Clearly it doesn't look like their platform is a viable profit platform for game development because so many of the games are free versus paid downloads.”

Fils-Aime also talked about the fact that Apple's devices are not offering long and complex gaming experiences but shorter and simpler interactions. The titles from Nintendo deliver a range of content, between “snacks of entertainment and full meals,” while the developers creating for the iPhone and the iPad are only outing games that “aren't even a mouthful.”

Apple can still win through convenience and sheer power of numbers. For the gamer who needs a device to play a little while they commute, the choice among the Nintendo DS, the PlayStation Portable and the iPad could prove a tough one, the first two offering more traditional gaming, while the new Apple gadget being able to deliver innovative titles based solely around touch control. It will be interesting to see whether sales of the Nintendo DS and the PSP slow down significantly in the coming months or whether they stay at about the same levels.