Nintendo Will Soon Exit Hardware, Says Former EA Boss

Former EA chief creative officer and industry powerhouse Bing Gordon has predicted a pale future for Nintendo on the hardware front, concluding that the firm’s already on its way to becoming primarily a software company as the games industry extends its wings into the clouds, leaving traditional methods behind.

That’s what Gordon said while speaking to GamesIndustry, likening the legendary company’s situation to that of Sega when it shifted from making platforms to only producing games.

“I think Nintendo’s already on track to become primarily a software company,” he said.

“We saw that with Sega back in the day; Sega made some missteps and became primarily a software company.”

He added: “Apple’s most directly competitive with Nintendo. So far, when [Nintendo designer Shigeru] Miyamoto makes a perfect game, in his career he makes games worth $200 – it’s worth buying a system for.

I think the handheld is going to be under a lot of pressure. I can imagine a day when Nintendo wonders – and maybe it’s generational change – when Nintendo wonders if they ought to take some of their best games and make them apps.”

Gordon said if Nintendo partnered with Apple to start releasing content for iOS platforms, the results would be “stunning”.

“Neither Apple or Nintendo – both those companies like control – is likely to want a partnership, but a partnership would be stunningly cool.

I think if you’re Nintendo, as long as Miyamoto’s coming to work, you can sustain a proprietary platform. He’s that good.”

For those not in the know, Shigeru Miyamoto is Nintendo’s most important asset. He’s created almost every single recognizable Nintendo game, including Mario, Donkey Kong, Zelda and Nintendodogs, just to name a few.