THQ blames failure on Nintendo first-party titles

by Chris Greenhough { May 7th 2008 at 2:15PM }

Not a new complaint, this one. Previously, both analysts and developers have suggested that Nintendo's first-party software is too strong to compete with, and now THQ has joined in on the despairing.

At a Q4 earnings call with investors, President and CEO Brian Farrell has admitted that THQ's kids' games had underperformed, and that Nintendo's own output was the reason why. Says Farrell: "With [...] new competition from Nintendo's first-party titles -- as well as new music games -- our traditionally strong kids' business did not meet expectations."

Tags: brian-farrell, business, first-party, firstparty, third-party, thirdparty, thq

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Darksyntax @ May 7th 2008 2:32PM

I really think this is a lame excuse, "The bar is too high, we can't compete please lower the bar and so we can compete too." This really means Wii owners in general have hire expectations that users of other consoles. I hope Nintendo continues to deliver quality titles. Why because anything else would be unthinkable.

xXGOLDXx @ May 7th 2008 2:35PM

i totally agree!

TheCoats @ May 7th 2008 6:01PM

third'd
seriously how about this THQ and everyone else-
stop making BAD titles....and not all titles have been bad but i hate to go into gamestop and look at Wii and DS games and see sooooo many dang horsez and petz and junk games...........there only so many ninjabreadman games i can take that number is one , but no they had to release the same game and give it a new skin and call it some pharoh game.....>AHHHHHH.....step-up to the bar and release goodies for us.......i really want to see that happen

James @ May 7th 2008 2:42PM

So is this basically ''Yeah, we know our kids games suck, but we can't be bothered trying harder.'' ?

HellsHammer @ May 7th 2008 2:36PM

At what point in time did Mario, Zelda or anything exclusively Nintendo NOT completely outsell everything else?

"Our traditionally strong kids' business did not meet expectations"

Then do something different!
Stop going after the easiest fucking dollar imaginable/availible and get creative. I'm so tired of devs crying over how good other games are. Isn't that what inspires you to make a better game? Why are you a video game designer if you're discouraged by other games?! What we should hear is "Oh Mario? Zelda? NMH? those games are good, but we can make a better one."

But instead all we hear is "oh, Mario Galaxy is going to sell a million copies, I can't muster up that much money, effort, or attention to detail...so I'll just make a mini-game collection and cry about how it won't sell."

xXGOLDXx @ May 7th 2008 2:34PM

So here is an idea quit giving us shovelware and step up to the plate. If it wasn't for horrible third party games maybe the wii wouldn't have such a bad rep. Yes it is underpowered when compared to the other two next gens, but Nintendo's first party games have brought something to the core of what gaming is. They made it fun and new.
I say maybe you should step up and quit giving us horrible games with no thought and just hopes to put a buck in your pocket.

Sonic_13 @ May 7th 2008 2:55PM

I think the real problem is that as a hard-core gamer who follows Nintendo very closely I can't seem to name any of THQ's games.

Why is that? It's because all they make are licensed games (I had to look them up) and licensed games simply aren't going to have sales numbers anywhere close to games like Super Mario Galaxy and Super Smash Bros. Brawl.

I think Darksyntax said it well (in comment #1) that THQ is just complaining that the bar is too high and that their crappy games aren't selling well as a result. They need to get their act together and make an original, decent game for once.

Third parties, if they are quality, can sell very well. Just look at Guitar Hero III which sold more than the PS3 and around the same as the Xbox360 version (not sure which is higher because numbers are outdated).

Companies argue that they can't compete with Nintendo's first party titles. Sure it is partly because Nintendo has established franchises, but it is also because basically all of Nintendo's games are of extremely high quality. Nintendo isn't afraid to delay a game for a while (years even) if quality isn't up to par, yet third parties are so quick to just release games based on insignificant deadlines.

Third parties release too much crap on Nintendo systems and not enough quality games. If third parties released games like Call of Duty 4, Resident Evil 5, or Assassin's Creed on Wii, they would sell millions easily and provide direct competition towards Nintendo's first party titles. Unfortunately because of all the crap released by third parties, actual quality games like No More Heroes or Zack and Wiki go by unnoticed.

Bottom line is that if third parties actually start producing a solid stream of quality games for Wii, then they will be significantly rewarded.

Rocketboy @ May 7th 2008 2:58PM

In other news, Hillary Clinton said that it's just not fair that Obama seems like a nicer person. She was last seen at THQ HQ trying to drum up support for a pity party.

Jeff @ May 7th 2008 3:00PM

hahahah boo hoo.

adolson @ May 7th 2008 3:05PM

Wow. I knew they were thinking it, but I can't believe they said it.

Jumbo @ May 7th 2008 3:05PM

what games do they make?

what are their big sellers?

vidGuy @ May 7th 2008 3:07PM

THQ? Publisher and developer of these fine games:

Avatar
Big Beach Sports
Bratz
Cars
Destroy All Humans: Big Willy Unleashed
Nicktoons: Attack of the Toybots
Ratatouille
SpongeBob SquarePants

Yeah, they aren't making great money because most of what they purvey is licensed crap. Here's a lesson: learn from the game companies that succeed and make decent games.

Covarr @ May 7th 2008 3:09PM

damn u nitendo !! how is 3rd pattys sposed to complete against u wen u keep making good gams.! it`s all ur fault that shity games dont sell as well as good 1s. make crap plz, so our crap dozen't seem so bad in comparisen !!!!! OMFG

steve @ May 7th 2008 3:22PM

try harder. do a little advertising. make better games.

Giggity @ May 7th 2008 3:12PM

What THQ is really be complaining about: "Kids are getting smarter and have stopped buying our shitty movie games."

Peter S @ May 7th 2008 3:16PM

Have to agree with the above. Make a good game and people will buy it and play it. Throw something at us that's poorly done and has no real value to playing and we won't.

Just looked at the list above and realized that I wouldn't want any of those games.

This complaint seems oddly familiar. Didn't we also hear this from the companies that threw games at the Wii just to have something for launch or threw in some really lame Wiimote control usage into a bad game? If you put out poor quality games, they're not going to sell, regardless of the platform. I'm still playing through Skies of Arcadia for GameCube - excellent story/RPG. Before that it was Lego Star Wars (Wii) and Zack & Wiki (really want more like this). All of these have great stories and gameplay.

Ridgecity @ May 7th 2008 3:20PM

Am I the only one that bought The Bratz game???? simply amazing people... lol

hvnlysoldr @ May 7th 2008 3:40PM

"With [...] new competition from Nintendo's first-party titles -- as well as new music games -- our traditionally strong kids' business did not meet expectations."

Better get ready for Elite Beat Agents to massacre you.

Orion @ May 7th 2008 3:43PM

Waaaa... my games dont sell because they are liscensed pieces of crap / quick ports... WAAAA.

So basically because a company is outshining your sales, showing customers they dont need to buy shovelware, it's their fault? How about you just... i donno.... TRY harder.

This is one thing coming from the guy who made No More Heroes, it's another coming from THQ.. whose last game I think I bought was Super Return of the Jedi. I mean, seriously, the only games that I can think of that didn't sell decently well that deserved to are Zack and Wiki and No More Heroes. But that can also be blamed on a severe lack of advertising.

raptorspike @ May 7th 2008 4:07PM

I have three games from THQ, and they weren't that bad. Company of Heroes was great (even better because it was free); Sonic Advance rocked my socks, and Tetris Worlds was good (I Just like tetris).

I wish devs would stop complaining about the bar, step up to the plate, and knock one out of the park. Three companies that come to mind right now that should follow path: EA Sports, Harmonix, and RedOctane

macserv @ May 7th 2008 3:56PM

Reminds me of the scene in "Liar Liar" where one of Jim Carey's clients asks him for advice after being arrested, and he replies, "STOP BREAKING THE LAW, ASSHOLE!!!"

I'd say the same to THQ, only I'd advise them to STOP MAKING LOUSY GAMES, and come up with something original. Yeah, it's hard to beat Nintendo, but someone's gotta start setting the precedent for amazing titles coming from big development houses and publishers.

Or you can keep whining about it. How's that workin' out, anyway?

Roto13 @ May 7th 2008 3:57PM

*headdesk*

Aside from the weird MySpace angles needed to look at good Nintendo games from for them to seem like bad things, it's not exactly new, and it's not unique to Nintendo. Shovelware and licensed crap don't sell well on other consoles either, and they never have.

blank964 @ May 7th 2008 4:15PM

This is the same crap we've heard over and over again, make better games and maybe people will buy them. When you screw over owners with lousy ports, you're going to get screwed.

Mr Khan @ May 7th 2008 4:15PM

Wow, Nintendo, shame on you, putting in effort like that

Nobody gave Nintendo the memo, only shovelware goes on Wii

Patrick R @ May 7th 2008 5:55PM

THQ game (Metacritic score):

Avatar: The Last Airbender (56)
Barnyard (65)
Cars (65)
Destroy All Humans: Big Willy (53)
Ratatouille (62)
Spongebob: Creature from... (57)
WWE: Smackdown... 2008 (59)

To be fair, I didn't think Destroy All Humans was all that terrible, but overall, I think the proof is in the numbers. Afterall, you don't hear X360 developers complaining that they can't make any money because GTA and Halo are selling too many copies.

Good_Bytes @ May 7th 2008 4:22PM

To THQ:
1- Start making quality titles
2- Stop making crappy cash-in titles

When you will make a good software and it will fail, than your argumentation is valid. Up to know, I see no effort whats so ever for Wii games.

You know,when you play Brawl, in an event match when you don't succeed, it says "FAILED!", well that is what your current titles are! "FAILED" :)

Avoli @ May 7th 2008 4:23PM

What I'd like to know, since when was Nintendo a 'new' competitor?

Funny thing- Companies QQ that the Wii is a toy, junk. I'm starting to think they say that because most companies can't make anything decent. Uh oh....was Nintendo too creative making the Wii? I don't think the lacking hardware has anything to do with it much anymore. Look how many bitch the PS3 is too difficult.

PiemanPieman @ May 7th 2008 4:50PM

It's easy to come down on THQ because they like to do the licensed game garbage, but as a publisher I think it's quite unfair for all y'all to mock them so mercilessly. Big Huge Games, Relic Entertainment, and Gas Powered Games are not crap companies, and I've heard often from said developers that THQ is a good and helpful publisher, rather unlike the stories one often hears about publishers in this industry.

Maybe all this licensed shovelware can fund them doing some risky awesome stuff, and I can get behind that 100%.

nintendo1889 @ May 7th 2008 5:07PM

Lemme get this straight; you mean to tell me THQ is complaining because they can't make as good as games as Nintendo? And that they're "competing" with them? Gimme a freakin' break; Sony, MS and Nintendo are competitors; not Nintendo and THQ; THQ is a Third Party company. And second of all, is it Nintendo's fault that they able to make better games? No! THQ is the one that's making nothing but shovelware. Here's a tip, they should research a little new company called High Voltage who actually takes ADVANTAGE of the wii's hardware. Why don't they admit the wii's success thus far? Funny and ironic how people complain about something when it's obviously doing very well (like the Wii) and at the same time, give the utmost praise to the console(s) which aren't doing so well (PS3).

milan @ May 7th 2008 5:13PM

And Game Party moves up in the sales charts

Jumbo @ May 7th 2008 5:17PM

Seriously, its not complaining, its explaining. If you dont meet budget, you damn well better explain yourself to the investors. Truth is, music games (GH and Rocking Bands) took a lot of money from other games. Licensed games have always been around. Some better than others, but they do appeal to kids. Nintendo's first party titles have been performing increasingly well. For every extra copy of smash sold, its a copy of SpongeBob not sold to a kid.

Shogan @ May 7th 2008 5:36PM

Despite the hype, Nintendo hasn't really been pushing the envelope this generation. Super Mario Galaxy was good, but it was not so god as to deserve the ridiculous amount of praise it got. If anything, they are competing against brand-loyalty.

It doesn't help that developers want to shovel out crap PS2 ports with waggle and claim it's innovative. It's not, it's lazy you stupid fucks. If you're willing to dig through the crap that is the Wii Library, you can find some really awesome 3rd party games. It's a lot of digging though.

Dio @ May 7th 2008 6:54PM

I'd rather just have companies like THQ and Buena Vista not exist. Poor excuses for gaming all around.

Joseph Lundstrom, Jr. @ May 7th 2008 7:48PM

I would seriously like to see someone interview these developers and companies and have them respond to this idea of "the bar is too high" crap. I want to know what they say whenever gamers, like us, tell them that Nintendo isn't the problem and the problem is your games lack quality. Gamers don't usually just pick one game and only buy one game that whole year. If the games are good enough I'll personally buy 4 or 5 in a single year. Once again, I say that developers need to increase their standards and stop making low quality games. When when they take responsibility for their own failures?

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