The Revolution: Anaylsts Predict Success in Japan

The next-gen tortoise may be firing up its afterburners with the approach of its expected launch date. Just who is this masked marvel, you ask? None other than Nintendo’s Revolution. Analysts in Japan are heralding the Revolution as a solid contender for second place sales, (if not first place ) awards in Japan. Why all the sudden optimism? According to GameSpot, in an article from Famitsu, a Japanese game industry publication, an IT expert was quoted as saying that the Revolution could win top honors due to its novel game controller design and console hardware originality. There are also indications that the Revolution will be released as early as June for the Japanese market. The early launch strategy may go head-to-head with Sony’s Japan launch date of May or June of this year. Cost conscious shoppers may be swayed in favor of Nintendo’s less expensive machine compared to the rumored price of $400 or more, for the PS3. There are other factors to consider as well. According to reports, the PS3 hardware is difficult to program. While the PS3 has over 100 titles in development, only a handful of these titles will be ready for launch date. (The PS2, had similar complaints about its difficult programming, during game development cycles.) The Revolution is hoping to capitalize on its strengths to consumers and developers by emphasizing its relatively low price and the ease in which it can be programmed. There is a third part to the triad, not mentioned very often but is as important, if not more so than the other two– the games. Without superior game offerings for Nintendo’s machine, there is little hope for fending off its competitors, let alone, getting a decent market share. Information about what games the Revolution may have in its arsenal, could be used as the final shot to gain and win business away from Sony and Microsoft. All of this vying for consumer attention can only be seen as a positive for gamers. Competition drives overall prices down. If Nintendo scores big with their Revolution, we can be sure that Sony and Microsoft will adjust the prices of their machines to remain competitive.