It really has been a minute hasn't it? Nintendo is finally getting back to their roots and doing what Nintendo does best, rather than constantly trying to reinvent the wheel. I feel most people from my generation would agree in saying that nothing beats the good old days of playing GameCube until unholy hours of the night with your friends. Something about playing the newest games from Nintendo's iconic collection of characters never seemed to get old despite the many generations Nintendo has been around for.
Therefore, it has been quite difficult recently to watch Nintendo struggling to gain new fans, or even to hang on to their old ones. There is nothing more disappointing than watching a beloved company release a console that was supposed to "revolutionize" gaming, just to have it absolutely flop. In Nintendo's case that sweet sucker punch to their stocks came in weighing at just 1.082 lbs. with a decent but not great 6.2-inch display.
There's really no need to go into detail on why the Wii U was such a letdown for Nintendo for it is a tale as old as time. For further explanation go ahead and look at how well the Kinect did for Xbox. It's basically the same situation just more catastrophic.
Luckily for Nintendo, there was still a heartbeat in the money-making machine thanks to their newest console the Nintendo Switch.
Nintendo finally made a console which really brought the focus back on the games that made the company great in the first place. The console released with two absolute bangers of games, Mario Odyssey and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. They haven't looked back since.
I say the future is bright for Nintendo because they keep producing content and games that have fans drooling. Mario Aces just recently came out, which is essentially what Mario Tennis: Ultimate Smash was supposed to be, and people are loving it. Soon us fans are going to be getting a taste at even more new games like Super Smash Bros. Ultimate and Super Mario Party.
It finally feels like there's balance in the world again, Nintendo is dropping instant classic games, and doing so on a console that people love to play. The whole concept of single-console games is making a comeback, inviting fans to play these iconic games with their friends in person rather than online. If you have no friends and would in fact rather play online, don't even worry. Nintendo is releasing the full online platform for the Switch which will allow players to link online with each other with ease and provide access to even more popular games. Nintendo finally has every aspect of a great console covered, which is why they are finding so much success.
Not only is Nintendo finding success with their gaming, they are literally opening a Super Nintendo World in Universal Studios Orlando. When it opens, fans can go check out a Mario Kart themed ride, and a Donkey Kong rollercoaster, with more rides and attractions being announced on a regular basis. They even partnered with Universal's Illustrations department to work on some potential movies such as a new Pokémon story, or a full-length Mario Bros film.
Look regardless if the park or the movies are good, you must give Nintendo props for opening an entire world for fans to embrace that Nintendo culture. I don't see any Microsoft or Sony parks opening anywhere anytime soon, so yeah go Nintendo for thriving.
I feel that seeing a company that was struggling take a step back and actually listen to their fans to make proper changes is refreshing and isn't done as often as it should be, so again kudos to Nintendo for taking charge. It's clear to see Nintendo is headed back for their glory days and doesn't plan to stop anytime soon.