Why Nintendo is Falling Behind on New IPs

Nintendo has always been known for its beloved titles, but when it comes to new IPs, things have moved a little more slowly. Ken Watanabe, a former Nintendo developer, says this isn't because the company isn't creative; it's because of their goals.

He says, "There's no real need to make new franchises, so they haven't come out." Nintendo's main goal when they want to make something new is to change the way you play with new features. They don't really care about the skin or the attitude. They just pick the thing that works best with the new game.

Many Nintendo fans already knew what Watanabe was talking about: the company puts an emphasis on making new games first. Once they have a good idea, they either come up with their own figures or IP or use one that already exists. Let's look at Splatoon. It wasn't a fully formed new IP with squid-based features when it was first thought of.

Nintendo tried using Mario figures and even some bunnies at first, but nothing seemed to fit. The puzzle pieces fit together perfectly when the ink-based physics and squid and octoling ideas were added. A new series was born. For Donkey Kong Bananza, the same method worked. The idea for the game came from Super Mario Odyssey's destructible settings and the Gloomba character, who had big hands and just punched things.

Eventually, Nintendo saw that Donkey Kong, a strong gorilla known for breaking things, was a great fit for the game, and another hit was born. Watanabe says this is different from how other producers work, who usually start with a story or idea and then change the gameplay to fit it. Nintendo does the opposite: they start by making fun gameplay features and then add characters, or if none of them work, they start from scratch and make a new IP.

Nintendo doesn't really focus on making new IPs, but Watanabe thinks there will be a few more this generation. One recent example is Drag and Drive, which, although not a new brand, is still a relatively new concept. The last generation had games like ARMS and Astral Chain, which were made by someone outside of Valve. Also, Splatoon came out in 2015, so it's almost ten years old.

Nintendo's goal is simple: Nintendo uses its well-known brands to provide fans of the original games new game ideas. This keeps fans interested and gives them something new to do. Watanabe remarks, Watanabe says, "When you build around Donkey Kong, it becomes something people are used to." "They can start playing right away, and if they want new ways to play, you've got that too." It's like killing two birds with one stone.

Nintendo will likely continue to work with outside makers to bring a few new games and maybe even one or two new IPs to this generation. Fans can still expect creative new ways to play with their favorite characters, even if the company doesn't come out with a lot of new titles.