Nintendo Thinks Virtual Reality Is Not Fun Enough

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Nintendo executive Reggie Fils-Aime was not very upbeat about virtual reality in the past, and he feels the same even now. He says the “problem with VR is that there aren’t a lot of experiences that are truly fun.”

What’s the problem with VR?

At Variety’s Entertainment & Technology Summit, Fils-Aime stated that right now Nintendo does not have any plans to return to virtual reality. However, he also feels that the company is open to all possibilities in the future. Rumors of Nintendo foraying into VR were sparked last year when a Nintendo patent was discovered.

Nintendo’s history with VR dates back to 1990 when the company launched virtual reality machine Virtual Boy. However, the console did not work well, and since then, Nintendo has shut the door on virtual reality, notes GameSpot.

In 2015, Fils-Aime told Polygon, “What we believe is that, in order for this technology to move forward, you need to make it fun and you need to make it social.”

Dell, however, has a different opinion on VR and believes it to be the future, notes Newsline. At the same conference, a speaker on Dell’s “Tipping Point: Innovating VR for All” panel stated that all the free content available currently had dampened the value judgment of VR. Gary Radburn, head of VR/AR at Dell, talked about the significance of location-based experiences for the development and popularity of VR. Radburn related it to the early video game arcade and how good consoles raised the popularity of gaming at home.

Nintendo is an entertainment company: Reggie Fils-Aime

Other than VR, Reggie Fils-Aime also spoke at length about home consoles, which he believes are the future. Unlike on the PC, the executive said there is no way that home consoles as a platform for playing games are dead. The unparalleled successes of both the Nintendo Switch and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild only prove that fans are using the company’s products and IP. He also stated that even though investors were not upbeat about the Switch at the time of its release, the console has been a superstar.

Fils-Aime stated that Nintendo perceives itself as the “entertainment company” rather than a “pure gaming company.” This is evident from the company’s expansion into mobile apps such as Super Mario Run and partnerships with companies such as Universal Studios.

On supply issues for the Switch, Reggie said they are looking to achieve a sales target of 10 million Switch units by the end of the year. However, he was a little reluctant to commit to any kind of number.

“Are we going to have enough for the holiday?” Variety reports he said. “That’s what we are focused on.”

In related news, the Nintendo Switch is all set to receive detective adventure game LA Noire. Rockstar stated that the game will use both the motion and touch controls of the Joy-Cons. The fact that LA Noire is coming to the Switch could mean that Rockstar will offer its more popular games like Grand Theft Auto on the Switch. The detective adventure game will be available on November 14.

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