[img:$uid]http://www.wired.com/images_blogs/gamelife/2011/08/super_mario_book.jpg[/img:$uid]

How did Mario become the star, when it was all about Kong?

Harlepolis said:

To say that Nintendo have heart is a big understatement.

Can you elaborate on that?

NDRU said:

Harlepolis said:

To say that Nintendo have heart is a big understatement.

Can you elaborate on that?

Their staying power is ridiculous. Appearantly, they started all way back since the late 19th century, but went into so many transformation until they settled into the video game business.

I love the story on how they went at it against Universal because of the Donkey Kong game. A Japanese company on its infant years in USA against one of the major production companies in the country, giving them a taste of their OWN capitalist medicine.

Mario is just a catchy symbol for the book title, but the whole story is more than that.

1889 they were formed.

I saw that on an episode of Pawn Stars

Harlepolis said:

NDRU said:

Can you elaborate on that?

Their staying power is ridiculous. Appearantly, they started all way back since the late 19th century, but went into so many transformation until they settled into the video game business.

I love the story on how they went at it against Universal because of the Donkey Kong game. A Japanese company on its infant years in USA against one of the major production companies in the country, giving them a taste of their OWN capitalist medicine.

Mario is just a catchy symbol for the book title, but the whole story is more than that.

OK thanks, when you said heart, I thought maybe you meant like philanthopy or something. But you meant tenacity!

So, I remember Krazy Kong, too. Was that part of the story?

Anyway, sounds like an interesting book. Had no idea they were around so long

NDRU said:

Harlepolis said:

Their staying power is ridiculous. Appearantly, they started all way back since the late 19th century, but went into so many transformation until they settled into the video game business.

I love the story on how they went at it against Universal because of the Donkey Kong game. A Japanese company on its infant years in USA against one of the major production companies in the country, giving them a taste of their OWN capitalist medicine.

Mario is just a catchy symbol for the book title, but the whole story is more than that.

OK thanks, when you said heart, I thought maybe you meant like philanthopy or something. But you meant tenacity!

So, I remember Krazy Kong, too. Was that part of the story?

Anyway, sounds like an interesting book. Had no idea they were around so long

It is a fascinating story.

I can't remember if Krazy Kong was part of it. But Universal slapped Nintendo with a lawsuit because of the similarity between Donkey Kong and King Kong, nevermind the fact that King Kong is actually a Japanese legend, much like Godzilla, and a public domain figure at that, which they don't have ANY ownership on. Not to mention, the irony that Universal funded a video game company that made a carbon copy of "Donkey Kong" titled :drum roll:,,,,,, King Kong.

To make a long story short, the aggressive bullying didn't work out, and Universal had to pay Nintendo 2 million dollars to cover for their legal fees at the end.

But the process was amusing. Esp the part where Nintendo asked for a meeting at the beggining of the fiasco, and in organizational lingo, a meeting should've meant that Nintendo would come in and pay Universal a precentage of the Donkey Kong sales, nope the meeting was just to simply tell them "its on, motherfuckers".

I haven't but I've been wanting to read it. I'm a Nintendo fan and I've been reading about their history from the Game and Watch to the Famicom to bringing it to the states as the NES and how the had such a grip on the industry in the mid and late 80s.

In some cases, they put other companies out of business because they couldn't compete or the contracts Nintendo had with third party companies

Hearing that Atari turned down releasing the Famicom in the states and then Nintendo releasing the NES and thus taking Atari's spot is hilarious. "This could've been yours"

bboy87 said:

I haven't but I've been wanting to read it. I'm a Nintendo fan and I've been reading about their history from the Game and Watch to the Famicom to bringing it to the states as the NES and how the had such a grip on the industry in the mid and late 80s.

In some cases, they put other companies out of business because they couldn't compete or the contracts Nintendo had with third party companies

Hearing that Atari turned down releasing the Famicom in the states and then Nintendo releasing the NES and thus taking Atari's spot is hilarious. "This could've been yours"

I'm in the chapter where SEGA's secret weapon, Sonic the Hedgehog makes its first entrance, and I already feel the tension brewing The author is REALLY into the narratation.

Nintendo had its share of fuck ups though, although they're not really major, like their turning down Doom, they could've totally cashed on that, I remember when that games was all the rage.

Harlepolis said:

bboy87 said:

I haven't but I've been wanting to read it. I'm a Nintendo fan and I've been reading about their history from the Game and Watch to the Famicom to bringing it to the states as the NES and how the had such a grip on the industry in the mid and late 80s.

In some cases, they put other companies out of business because they couldn't compete or the contracts Nintendo had with third party companies

Hearing that Atari turned down releasing the Famicom in the states and then Nintendo releasing the NES and thus taking Atari's spot is hilarious. "This could've been yours"

I'm in the chapter where SEGA's secret weapon, Sonic the Hedgehog makes its first entrance, and I already feel the tension brewing The author is REALLY into the narratation.

Nintendo had its share of fuck ups though, although they're not really major, like their turning down Doom, they could've totally cashed on that, I remember when that games was all the rage.

Sega had started the same year (1983) with their home consoles that Nintendo did, although the consoles from 1983-1986 were more like repackaging (something Sega became notorious for) but they didn't get a real hold on the market until 1986-87 when they released the Master System then the Genesis in '89. Then you NEC releasing the PC Engine in '87, a system while better looking and bad better graphics than the master system and Famicom/NES, sucked

Nintendo has definitely had their fuckups

-The Famicom 3D system

-the Power glove

-Virtual Boy

-Screwing Sony over with the planned CD expansion port for the Super Nintendo, resulting in Sony releasing it on their own as the Playstation

bboy87 said:

Harlepolis said:

I'm in the chapter where SEGA's secret weapon, Sonic the Hedgehog makes its first entrance, and I already feel the tension brewing The author is REALLY into the narratation.

Nintendo had its share of fuck ups though, although they're not really major, like their turning down Doom, they could've totally cashed on that, I remember when that games was all the rage.

Sega had started the same year (1983) with their home consoles that Nintendo did, although the consoles from 1983-1986 were more like repackaging (something Sega became notorious for) but they didn't get a real hold on the market until 1986-87 when they released the Master System then the Genesis in '89. Then you NEC releasing the PC Engine in '87, a system while better looking and bad better graphics than the master system and Famicom/NES, sucked

Nintendo has definitely had their fuckups

-The Famicom 3D system

-the Power glove

-Virtual Boy

-Screwing Sony over with the planned CD expansion port for the Super Nintendo, resulting in Sony releasing it on their own as the Playstation

I remember reading a post in one of the boards I frequent on how cool it would be if Nintendo embraced the Ipad movement and sold their games via app store. Pac Man and Sonic are already making a revival.

Can you imagine the frenzy if the Super Mario All-Stars package becomes available in Itunes? I think Nintendo are a lil' TOO strict when it comes to their own creative ownership, and this might cost them a heap load of consumer support.

Harlepolis said:

bboy87 said:

Sega had started the same year (1983) with their home consoles that Nintendo did, although the consoles from 1983-1986 were more like repackaging (something Sega became notorious for) but they didn't get a real hold on the market until 1986-87 when they released the Master System then the Genesis in '89. Then you NEC releasing the PC Engine in '87, a system while better looking and bad better graphics than the master system and Famicom/NES, sucked

Nintendo has definitely had their fuckups

-The Famicom 3D system

-the Power glove

-Virtual Boy

-Screwing Sony over with the planned CD expansion port for the Super Nintendo, resulting in Sony releasing it on their own as the Playstation

I remember reading a post in one of the boards I frequent on how cool it would be if Nintendo embraced the Ipad movement and sold their games via app store. Pac Man and Sonic are already making a revival.

Can you imagine the frenzy if the Super Mario All-Stars package becomes available in Itunes? I think Nintendo are a lil' TOO strict when it comes to their own creative ownership, and this might cost them a heap load of consumer support.

That's the thing: Nintendo saw what Apple was doing with the iPod and iPad and thought "We could do that" and the result was the Wii. The Wii is a lot like the iPod. They even have somewhat of an app store with the Nintendo channel/Virtual Console. You can buy a Wii points card, redeem it on the console and buy games from the NES/Famicom/ Super NES/Super Famicom, Sega Master System, Genesis, Dreamcast, Nintendo 64, Gameboy and freshly new games like Sonic 4.

The Wii is like the Ipod in another way: the accessibility. The Wii is probably the easiest home console to use out there. Nintendo made the games for the Wii with the idea of "Let's make games that are so good yet so accessible, people who aren't even video game fans will want it" All you need is the system which is incredibly easy to set up, get the Wii-mote and the really easy cheap "Wii Sports" or "Wii Fitness" and there you go

I've told this story before, but I remember working at Gamestop after I got out of high school and NEVER seeing Wii's in stock whereas the backroom had PS3s and Xbox 360s literally stacked to the ceiling. Grandparents were buying it FOR THEMSELVES It's the Thriller of videogame consoles

Now that I think of it, I think it's possible that Nintendo would team up with Apple on something, whether for a console or some kind of software service. They're so similar it could work