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Nintendo says N64 Classic is 'not in their planning,' talks Smash DLC, the Waluigi situation, cloud gaming on Switch, and more

by rawmeatcowboy
15 November 2018
GN Version 5.0

Kotaku had a sit-down interview with Reggie Fils-Aime earlier this week, and we've already gone over the first part of their interview. Now they're back with another wave of questions and answers with the big guy, which you can read through below.

On the potential for an N64 Classic

“We were clear when we did the first two Classic series that, for us, these were limited time opportunities that were a way for us as a business to bridge from the conclusion of Wii U as a hardware system to the launch of Nintendo Switch. That was the very strategic reason we launched the NES Classic system. So while consumers may have been anticipating something, we view these as limited time opportunities. We’ve also now been very clear that as the consumer looks forward to engaging with our classic content that is going to happen more and more with the subscription service. I would not ever rule something out, but what I can tell you is certainly that’s not in our planning horizon.”

On more classic games for the Switch Online service

“As we look to the future, our subscription service, NSO, Nintendo Switch Online is going to be the place where you can play our classic content… We’ll see what comes next. As you have already pointed out, we haven’t even made the full library of NES games available yet. So this content has to be optimized for the Switch environment. That’s something we’re working very hard to do. Like you, I look forward to playing Metroid through the Nintendo Switch Online service and we’ll be continuing to release content that way.”

On the DLC characters for Smash Bros. Ultimate

“I haven’t talked to (Masahiro Sakurai), but I believe he was working hard to communicate two things: One, that the characters have been decided on. Second, that he is well in development on this, so please be patient. My interpretation is that there will be no fan polls, [and that] no independent poll trying to push Waluigi, as an example, will not influence the decisions that have already been made.”

On Waluigi being playable in Smash Bros. Ultimate

“We’re not here to discuss that at this point in time.”

On doing more with competitive gaming and eSports

- Nintendo will “work with the existing events that are in place, make the product available, encourage the community.”
- the Activision-Blizzard model of creating their own leagues for any game is "not an approach that we believe makes sense for our content.”

On cloud-based games like Assassin's Creed Odyssey and Resident Evil 7

“It’s specific to Japan because of the internet infrastructure that exists in that country. Very high-speed wireless capability. The ability to have a great experience in Japan is profound. The technical infrastructure doesn’t exist for that to happen currently here in the United States and so from that standpoint we’re looking at that activity as a very interesting test case and certainly is going to drive our thinking and our potential investments here in the Americas.”

On games like WarioWare Gold coming to 3DS instead of Switch

"...our development focus is on Nintendo Switch. You look at the plethora of content we’ve launched; the plethora of content we’ve announced. That is clearly where our development focus is. However, there are a lot of five, six, seven-year olds who have an opportunity to have their first gaming device and to have a fantastic gaming experience. And that’s what our dedicated handheld business is for, both the 2DS and the 3DS. ...we want the newest experience to be on Switch. That’s why the upcoming Luigi’s Mansion game is going to be a fantastic experience.”

As one last blurb, Reggie made mention that the Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild paid expansion “has done exceptionally well in our marketplace.”

Thanks to Dondom95 for the heads up!

[Link]