The fight between companies and developers has been present in the industry since video games came to light. But why not take advantage of the successes of your rivals to learn from them and to improve based on this? We examine this idea from the perspective of what Nintendo can learn from PlayStation.
In the video game industry there has always been a great rivalry between companies. Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft, these three companies are the current heavyweights of the industry and compete day after day to overcome their rivals with more powerful, exclusive consoles and services.
However, they can also learn from each other. In this list we propose 10 things that Nintendo could learn from PlayStation with the objective of applying some of Sony's strategies to improve in aspects in which they are not so fine.
Incentives in the subscription service
Online subscription services have become a reality. The three big companies each have their own, but Nintendo Switch Online is the one that limps the most and the one that has received the most criticism. The last addition has been the Super Nintendo games, but the catalog is quite small and everything indicates that it will not be expanded on a regular basis.
The lack of incentives to make the service attractive is one of Nintendo's biggest mistakes. The Japanese company could learn from its compatriots, since PlayStation Plus offers at least two free games per month that you can continue playing while you subscribe. In addition, PS + has exclusive discounts that are very interesting.
Online servers
This comes hand in hand with the previous point. PS Plus users pay a total of 60 euros per year to be able to play online in better conditions than they could be found in the past. In the case of Nintendo Switch Online, users also pay, but it is not very clear why.
Nintendo charges for an online service when it uses point-to-point connections for its service that costs virtually no money. In this, the Japanese company should work to improve its online gaming performance.
Relations with third party studios
It is true that the relationship with third party studios has greatly improved with Nintendo in recent years. But despite that improvement, the creators of Super Mario should follow a strategy similar to that of PlayStation to further enhance their catalog. It is something that Sony has been working since the first generation of PlayStation and now, almost 25 years later, continues to bear fruit.
Sony has departments and people specialized in relations with third parties that work to bring many more titles to PS4 even if they are not only exclusive. In addition, the company encourages multiplatform games, but offering incentives to play on its console.
Updated versions of their consoles
PS4 Pro was a good strategy by the PlayStation team, since its launch again boosted the sales of the current console and gave many users the possibility of making a qualitative leap in terms of many technical aspects, such as better resolutions (up to 4K ) or frame rates per second.
While Nintendo recently revealed the launch of Nintendo Switch Lite and a better version with more battery for the standard console, many fans expect the other big announcement that seems not to arrive, with which the company would launch an improved and more powerful version of Nintendo Switch
Limited Edition Consoles
Although it may seem more anecdotal, PlayStation has always supported the special editions of its consoles. Many designs have accompanied the launch of the great games for PS4 and not just the exclusive ones. Without going any further, this same Christmas we will see the Death Stranding edition of PS4 Pro ...
Nintendo has barely done this practice, something that could be taken into account when it comes to boosting its sales and making its image more attractive in the eyes of Nintendo fans and video games in general. Yes, there are and there will be specific cases with Nintendo Switch and Pokémon Sword and Shield, for example, but it is something that could explode much more (and better, with the amount of attractive IPs they have in their portfolio).
Streaming games
Although PS Now is still far from the concept of Microsoft Game Pass, PlayStation has wanted to give a chance to the games in the cloud and its streaming service that is gradually improving. However, Nintendo has not yet moved token in this regard, although it could seek an agreement with Microsoft.
For now, Nintendo continues to investigate and test, but without taking a step in this direction ... And without a doubt, it is something that should be taken into account because streaming game and cloud game services are growing like foam. There are already several companies that offer their own solutions such as EA, Ubisoft or Nvidia, to name a few. You never know how these races end, but getting the last one is usually not a good idea ever ...
Console online features
PlayStation does not require any requirements to play online with friends, beyond having to pay PS Plus in games that are not free, such as Fortnite (also free on Nintendo Switch). On the other hand, an application is needed to play with acquaintances on the Nintendo console, perhaps to leave children out of this possibility, or at least without parental supervision.
A decision, which obviously has cost the company many criticisms of Switch users. In this sense, Nintendo needs to implement a system similar to that of PlayStation or Xbox to be able to open up in the online gaming market. We assume that after the pull of ears, the company will be looking for solutions to improve all this.
Machines for much more than play
Undoubtedly, Nintendo Switch has a large catalog of games, both exclusive and indies ... but it still lacks something that many users ask for: a greater selection of apps that turn Nintendo Switch into a complete multimedia center.
PlayStation in that sense already has dozens of independent applications that we can install without cost from the Store, and that give us access to the main streaming platform, from Netflix to HBO, through Prime Video (or even Clan TV), without forgetting Youtube, Twitch, TuneIn Radio, Spotify ... Are we still? And we don't even talk about apps to edit the video we capture with PS4 or to play content from a USB drive. Nintendo has in its hand turn Nintendo Switch into a much more capable machine, beyond playing.
Internal console storage
PlayStation 3 had a storage capacity of 120 GB in 2006, Nintendo Switch has an internal memory of 32 GB ... in 2017. A cold fact that highlights one of the main complaints that Nintendo has received with its latest consoles, Like Wii U or Switch: its reduced storage capacity, and more when there are more and more games that exceed or around 15 gigabytes (we are not talking about The Witcher 3, which will occupy 32 GB). The company needs to expand the capacity of its consoles.
Therefore, it is practically mandatory to buy an SD card for Switch, unless you are going to buy physical games (they do not require installation, except for updates). An example of this is the most laureate puppet of the console, Zelda Breath of the Wild occupies about 13.4 GB, so only one title occupies almost half of the console storage, which makes relatively soon something little practical. For its part, Sony has consoles with up to 2 TB of storage. Although the requirements of both are not the same (mandatory game installation, 4K patches ...) the storage is still an abyss that separates them, and that Nintendo should try to correct seeing how the thing is progressing.
Date update on 2019-10-14. Date published on 2019-10-14. Category: nintendo Author: Oscar olg Fuente: hobbyconsolas