For a generation of kids, Nintendo was THE name in gaming. Sure, there were other companies with other consoles, but they were decidedly also-rans, soundly whipped in the market by the NES and then the Super Nintendo. But the hardest thing about being at the top of the hill is staying on top.

Slowly but surely, other contenders broke from the pack. As Sega’s brand dimmed, Sony slammed into the market with the Playstation, then Microsoft announced the Xbox. Suddenly the top tier of gaming was a three-brand race. Nintendo chose to go after a younger – and simultaneously older – audience with the Wii. The consoles sold well, but all the best games were being shipped for Playstation and Xbox, leaving Nintendo to create a line of its own games.

Fast forward a decade and things are not looking up for Nintendo. Sure, the Wii was an overall success, and the company has plenty of money in the bank, but the trend in gaming is still pulling away from Nintendo’s primary offerings. But the company is not going down without a fight, continuing to innovate in the hope of gaining ground.

They tried Wii U, and that didn’t fly … now they are going in a new direction, introducing something that has the tech and the gaming world buzzing. The Nintendo Switch is a shift toward individual gaming, rather than the console-based gaming that made the company famous. Rumors are flying hard and fast.

According to various reports, the Switch will allow users to control the device using an attached or detached controller. And Nintendo has upped the ante on its movement sensing tech, released with the original Wii. Rumors say the graphics will fall somewhere between the PS3 and PS4.

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The biggest risk Nintendo seems to be taking, though, is in combining both at-home and mobile gaming into a single experience delivery system. This will be a tough place to play in for Nintendo because mobile gamers are already accustomed to playing on their phone or their tablet, and at-home gamers won’t want to give up quality or functionality in order to take their games on the road.

Then again, this is the company that pretty much invented mobile gaming with the granddaddy of them all – the Nintendo Game Boy … so maybe they know something everyone else hasn’t thought of yet.

 

Read more from Ronn Torossian:

Ronn Torossian on Forbes
Ronn Torossian on SoundCloud
Ronn Torossian on LinkedIn
Ronn Torossian’s Professional Profile on Muck Rack
Ronn Torossian on Business Insider

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Ronn Torossian
https://www.5wpr.com
Ronn Torossian is the Founder & Chairman of 5W Public Relations, one of the largest independently owned PR firms in the United States. Since founding 5WPR in 2003, he has led the company's growth and vision, with the agency earning accolades including being named a Top 50 Global PR Agency by PRovoke Media, a top three NYC PR agency by O'Dwyers, one of Inc. Magazine's Best Workplaces and being awarded multiple American Business Awards, including a Stevie Award for PR Agency of the Year. With over 25 years of experience crafting and executing powerful narratives, Torossian is one of America's most prolific and well-respected public relations executives. Throughout his career he has advised leading and high-growth businesses, organizations, leaders and boards across corporate, technology and consumer industries. Torossian is known as one of the country's foremost experts on crisis communications. He has lectured on crisis PR at Harvard Business School, appears regularly in the media and has authored two editions of his book, "For Immediate Release: Shape Minds, Build Brands, and Deliver Results With Game-Changing Public Relations," which is an industry best-seller. Torossian's strategic, resourceful approach has been recognized with numerous awards including being named the Stevie American Business Awards Entrepreneur of the Year, the American Business Awards PR Executive of the Year, twice over, an Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year semi-finalist, a Top Crisis Communications Professional by Business Insider, Metropolitan Magazine's Most Influential New Yorker, and a recipient of Crain's New York Most Notable in Marketing & PR. Outside of 5W, Torossian serves as a business advisor to and investor in multiple early stage businesses across the media, B2B and B2C landscape. Torossian is the proud father of two daughters. He is an active member of the Young Presidents Organization (YPO) and a board member of multiple not for profit organizations.

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