Activision has revealed that the company initially wanted to team up with a company for the immensely popular Skylanders series, and they wanted that specific partner to be Nintendo. The company was surprised that Nintendo didn’t want to partner with them as they thought Nintendo would have been the perfect fit for the franchise.
“We had been directed towards thinking about something that would play well with Nintendo,” says Ford. “I think there was some co-marketing money and the Wii was doing well. They had some success with peripherals.”
“They spent a long time looking and looking,” says Reiche. “They were just like ‘we have never seen anything like this before.’ I’ve always wondered about the full meaning of that comment [laughs].” Although there was a limited co-marketing deal, Nintendo did not want to make a full commitment to Skylanders. “We have no idea why,” says Reiche. “Clearly, they have got properties well suited to this world. Why it is that they didn’t rush in here will probably haunt them for the rest of their days.”
“Reiche is still surprised that the entertainment giant which reacted most quickly was Disney, which launched Disney Infinity in 2013 and is looking to expand the franchise. “Nintendo could have kicked Disney’s ass,” says Reiche. “If I was running Nintendo I would have jumped on this.”
That’s classic Nintendo
Activision never gave us CoD DLC for BO2 OR Ghosts. Heck, they didn’t give us Destiny either. I haven’t bought a single Skylanders game and I won’t be anytime soon. If they expect Transformers to sell millions on Wii U, then they are clearly retarted. Give us Destiny, then we’ll talk, Activision…
People that complain about lack of DLC probably wouldn’t even buy it. Most DLC isn’t free. Wii U Ghosts did get DLC though. Free Fall is a free downloadable map.
the way it should be: free. but most ppl didnt bother buying wii u ghost for other reasons. graphic whores cus the grapics werent as good :/ macho men cus wii u has a kiddy image, fanboys cus they hate fps yet praise goldeneye, and the rest just dont find the wii u interesting enough to buy.
I don’t praise Goldeneye for being a good FPS game, I praise it for being the best movie tie in game.
And I am not a console fanboy.
Pshhhhhhh GoldenEye rewrote the entire FPS mechanic.
Actually, the people complaining about lack of DLC are literally the only ones actually willing to buy it. I didn’t buy either CoD BO2 or Ghosts because I wanted the DLC. When the Michael Myers costume and map was announced, I was PISSED. So I just said screw it all together… That money went towards Super Mario 3D World anyway. Lol.
i did a quick google search on what the heck was a michael myers costume……and holy wow! You mean to tell me people are actually willing to spend money on that????????!!!!!
Yes I know. Lol. But I think it would be funny to kill all the other players and stalk them down as Michael Myers on a haunted ghost map. Free fall is probably the worst out of all of Ghosts’ DLC, but better than nothing I guess.
Black Ops 2 I remember fankly was suppose to get Nuketown 2025 for free from the start but didnt and that right there also held people back from buying Ghosts aside of the kind of noob players, COD itself getting repetitive and annoying as hell with there annual releases.
So many factors of why COD on Wii U doesn’t work as well and maybe why DLC isn’t there because of the series itself has turned into nothing more than a cash grubbing franchise that’ll bleed consumer’s wallets to no end with nothing original or worthy.
I would of actually bought a skylanders type game if it had Nintendo characters in it. I would buy every single figure they had and every version they released. It would of been a game that both children and adults would of spent money on.
*would have
For once I actually agree…
With your ass.
Anyone want toilet paper? Anonymous?
That you love licking to feel “special”
I’m glad they didn’t get involved. Skylanders is a rip off. And they release a new one every year.
Still could have helped sales…
By how much? I hardly see or hear anyone from Nintendo side having any Skylanders at all. Why you think its a multiplatform? Because if it sides with one console and people seeing it as an overpriced NFC gig, its not gonna entice as much and Nintendo probably saw that and didn’t want to be heavily involved because Skylanders, by chance, could turn people away and hurt the Wii U even more. So they’re playing it safe and wait for a proper franchise they feel its profitable and beneficial to their platform.
Skylanders, to me, is not one of those franchises. Its overpriced figurines alone turns me away. Its like COD DLC as action figures and I for one know action figures appeal doesn’t last long nowadays.
Could have helped to stop some Xbot and Sonyan machines from selling…
But now looking at all the evidence, I think they made the right decision…
By the way, do you have a 3DS?…
We could add each other there and later on the Wii U…
at least you can use the old toys in the new ones, most likely at least.
yea im not gonna buy to find out :-(
I hate Skylanders from bottom of my heart. And even Activision to some extend from ruinin CrashBandicoot and rapin Spyro with this Skylander bullshit. Destiny and Cods are the only titles that i care from ´em, other than that they can smell my shit.
Destiny yes because its Bungie. COD after MW3 and Ghosts, hell no and I think only Treyarch should have all and every right to produce the game every 3-5 years. Infinity Ward is dead thanks to Activision’s greed and their 2009 MW2 bonus lie dick move.
Maybe that’s why they turned it down. Its like COD DLC with figurines. I mean $15-20 for one small fucking figure which can be lost, stolen and damaged easily by any child that can get a hold of.
Plus I really believe Iwata should step down because hearing these stories make me question Nintendo as a whole and wonder for the answers which I also fear it can sound pretty stupid.
The whole Origin ordeal I don’t blame Nintendo at all. Origin/EA is a fucking cancer in gaming. Skylanders, although its popular, its also a bit too pricy when you look at the price tags of NFC toys. IDK. Maybe Skylanders in Nintendo’s mind is also a bit too expensive for their fanbase to accept and buy and feel the partnership won’t live or soar for long.
If I was gonna buy any NFC figures game, it’d be Disney Infinity. Skylanders just looks incredibly boring and in terms of actual gameplay, if you want to get anywhere, you’re going to NEED to buy other figurines. Complete BS. Why don’t they just make a normal game like this including all (or most) characters instead of paying $15 BUCKS FOR ONE FIGURE. Even CoD DLC cheaper than that for gods sake.
Exactly and maybe its why Nintendo said no. Its overpriced and the game itself probably sucks after 30 minutes playing it.
Can’t we just ask Activision instead of offering this ripoff kiddy crap that makes Nintendo’s franchises more legit, how about you have Bungie completely port a full Destiny game to Wii U and then we’ll discuss business because that right there will attract hardcore gamers in and guess much potential Destiny will have utilizing Wii Remote for FPS and Gamepad for interactions and navigations?
I’m with Nintandrew on that one. People seem desperate to aimlessly fling their money at greedy devs like Crapcon, EA, Microsoft, or Activision. Skylanders is a ripoff. You’re paying full price for an incomplete game, and to buy separate figurines you dish out anywhere between 15-49$. Altogether you end up paying the equivalent of a home console (or in some cases even more).
For once I agree with the Ninfags on this one. Most gamers are fucking stupid, while the rest are getting dumber each by the gen. Now I see why Microsoft attempted to take advantage of the stupidity demonstrated by releasing X1 with its original policy, and why even after the attempt, desperate, no-life gamers still bought a Spybox, anyway.
This is worse than common DLC, but whatever, gaming is going down the gutter anyhow. “Think from a business perspective”, and bend over for that big corporate cock to be inserted.
actually some can cost more depending on rarity :-P
Not sure how anyone will feel about this, but that could of been neat if Nintendo partnered up for Skylanders. The franchise is huge, it sells alot, it would probably push hardware sales way up if it became exclusive. Heck maybe we could of also seen Nintendo figures as well.
typical nintendo…. always give middle finger towards third party devs but later they will start cryingand beg them to come to the wii u.
i hope wii u will get call of duty black ops 3 or mw4.
half the time they turn them down.
also they wanted to be co-developed, and we know how the co developed/published/funded wonderful 101 turned but this was always going to be better than the underated 101 anyway.
And so you agree on the same term when Nintendo turned down Origin which is a fucking disease..an illegal disease too?
I’m surprised they turn this down or maybe its because they wanted to compete with their version “Pokemon Rumble”. Who knows and I would love to know why turn Skylanders down, not that I care about Skylanders anyway since its figures are over priced as fuck and its only about playing scanned characters in an adventure game. Disney/Pixar’s version actually does and offers more plus the figures are cheaper.
I hope they come out with a good explaination soon…
I’m sure there is some good argument for denying it…
Maybe it could be the pricing of the NFC toys alone. Those figurines are so overpriced and why I ain’t taking a bite of that bait.
Could be…
But we have to also remember that our empire themselves sells figurines a little too overpriced aswell…
Compare to Infinity and Skylanders as I’ve literally seen all, Nintendo’s is actually the cheapest of them three and yes its a bit pricy for tiny ass figures too.
I don’t go for that. Its only appealing to kids with dumbass middle/working class parents who can’t balance a proper budget to save their own ass or research products right before buying them.
It might’ve been cool if they did accept, then we might have gotten Spyro a slot in SSB, just maybe…
You know, that would have been nice but I’d prefer the older spyro better than his new look.
Spyro is just a mediocre character and franchise and does not have enough Power to be in our sacred game…
The idea of game was cool, but maybe the way they made game turn off nintendo. I never seen nintendo really get involve with games that u buy character to complete like skylanders. the game is too expensive to complete. Assuming nintendo thought people wouldn’t want to pay over 300 dollars to complete a game, they mostly likely think it wouldn’t kicked off. I bet they do regret it.
Really I don’t blame nintendo for turning it down, I mean when people first heard of game did many think it think it would catch on? Not to mention the money it would take to spend on the sets, toys, and other things. I’m sure nintendo is regretting the their their choice, but hey if some asked u to puts some funds into this. It sound like nintendo was interested in what they offer but they were just didn’t know what the consumers would think original.
The little person talks about his little mind. Don’t make me write a 5 page thesis on how it was a good choice to turn them down. You think like a kid, they think like a company.
It’s official Iwata is an idiot.
I can agree to an extent. If he fucks up one more time, he better be replaced faster than Don Mattrick did.
High Commander Sakurai would get my vote as the 5th Lord of Nintendo in the future…
Next I would like to see Lord Shibata…
not shibata……..please.
He is the only of our Lords actually being active these days…
iwata is a double edged sword……makes mistakes but achievs a lot too.
he is actually bringing SOME 3rd parties and many many indies and colaborations like bayonetta 2. plus wii and ds very successful but its the development teams fault of not making wii at least 720p HD.
That’s why CEO of the company and you are some guy on the internet. Try again.
SAD.
but this will ONLY BE GOOD IFFFFFFFFFFFF the Nintendo NFC game is more successful than skylanders and Disney……….otherwise missed ooportunity.
Good thing they didnt. Instead they used their resources on good titles like XBC,Zelda and others. If they would had done this im fuckin sure that people would be callin them even more kiddy than today.
Not likely since in any platform, Skylanders to those fans are successful and could love Nintendo for the exclusive or maybe hate them but that’s a mystery Nintendo couldn’t afford to find out.
Nintendo could’ve invest many corporate opportunities to a point where investors and fans alike would be pleased.
In the future, I wish they could own (or at least legal rights to some properties such as Mega Man and etc.) Capcom, Atlus, Platinum games, SEGA and so forth. So much games from past companies in Nintendo’s hands would please so much fans and future fans.
But opportunities like not wanting Skylanders is a fool move. Not sure why they declined it but who knows…
I would love to see Nintendo buy out franchises like Megaman and even Sonic to join their family since they fit right in perfectly.
Skylanders however,..kinda questionable in both ways.
Lol look at the damage controlling nintendrones.
Look at the damage controlling damage controller busting a nut in a circle to look pretty.
Seriously, is that all you got?
yes…..
That’s whack
this is exactly why i love nintendo. no rush. no quick, short sighted cash ins and easy money grabs…they have the long term in mind and so far – it worked out perfectly for them
While i mostly agree. The wii was short term…
That depends on what part of the Wii you’re talking about. Is it the Motion Control gig or the games or both? The games were great and Motion Control on Nintendo’s part were original and fun for a while.
So maybe its the general motion control idea that made you think its short term when the fact is its Nintendo’s most successful console yet since SNES.
It was short term in that the games couldn’t progress because the system was weak.
You seriously didn’t notice Mario Galaxy?
That game was even confused by some to be a 360 game because its so beautifully crafted and pushed the Wii to its maximum limit.
Weak or not, Wii had its moments and fantastic games too. Don’t single it out because it didn’t aopeal to you and that you ignored some titles that showed off its potential.
Oh no, I don’t disregard it, I played many gameS worth playing on there, but I would have liked to see where they could have gone with HD then and how much further they could have pushed their games..
what about making all these rehash mario cash ins games. lol exposed bang bang
Your repeated track record of providing no evidence/made-up bullshit exposes nothing. Exposed.
http://www.generadormemes.com/media/created/5uc461.jpg
*sigh* You will never learn.
Talk shit about one thing in one minute but liking the same thing you hate in another.
HYPOCRITE EXPOSED!
typical stranga. always mad at my facts. please understand
And that’s why you’re not giving Wii U DLC for CoD…
Fair enough.
Activision overpricing its shit could be one of those reasons.
Blarg
Say it with me now, “Iwata is full of himself! If the idea doesn’t come from within his company, he is going to turn it down!” I can’t believe they were so ignorant as to think that this wouldn’t prosper? Come on Nintendo, enough with doing things like a self righteous Samurai! Swallow your pride, it’s bitter, but sometimes it helps in the long run.
they shouldve already known by now what the typical gamers expects from a business:
must not have anything to do with pride. nintendo are just very very careful about handling their ip´s and making new ones. many criticize them for it. imo, this is the best long term strategy they can have and the last 30+ years pretty much prove it to them. i really hope this wont change. iwata is a great ceo. they could grab easy cash ins all the time, they don´t – it´s the better way.
Blarg
might have been for the best that nintendo didnt do it as the spyro characters were just scapegoats for this so called franchise and never used again as far as other characters go
Very smart move Nintendo! It’s good that they turned Activison down. We all know what horror they did to Crash Bandicoot.
Don’t forget Spyro..or what they now call it “Skylanders: The Death of Spyro”
Activision was basically throwing their support and potentially a hefty sum of money with Skylanders and Nintendo shrugged them off. A very stupid move. I don’t care much for the series or Activision, but Skylanders is a money-making machine, and getting exclusive rights to a successful, third party franchise would have done wonders for Wii U sales. It would have also helped recapture the casual market that Nintendo wants to hold so dearly. So much for Nintendo opening its doors to third parties.
Bottom line is that Nintendo can’t afford to be stingy. The Wii U needs to build some momentum, and discouraging Activision, the Michael Bay blockbuster of the video game industry, is not helping matters.
could not disagree more with that. the wiiu might need to build up momentum but not at the cost of a shady sell out. nintendo is not in such a bad shape overall. the wiiu is lacking some financial horsepower but it´s a great system nonetheless and nothing to be ashamed of. if nintendo pushes it for a few more years and supports it with great software, improves (the fantastic) miiverse and then brings a hybrid homeconsole/handheld to the market with their next machine, the wiiu could have been a great device to bridge that process for them – nintendo thinks long term – that´s a rarity in corporate capitalsim these days and it´s a good thing.
Technically Nintendo had already been “selling out” with COD and triple A title ports, so I don’t see your point. Sometimes a business has to make concessions to attract new support and customers, whether you personally dislike the support or not. This would have been a deal that would allow them to capture part of the casual market while they focus most of their resources on their own first part titles. Once Activision gets on board, usually other big third parties follow suit. I personally hate Activision, but their support has helped both Sony and Microsoft sales-wise. At the end of the day Nintendo is a corporation, and as a business it lives to make money. Yes, Nintendo can survive on its own laurels for 20+ years with its bank account, but it can’t continue by rejecting mainstream third parties. The Wii U should end its life with respectable support so that consumers will be on board for the next generation of consoles.
sure, i hear you and what you are saying does make sense, don´t get me wrong but i still think it wouldn´t have been a smart move for a business like nintendo, that has some of the strongest ip´s in gaming, that worked so hard to establish those franchises, to build up on them and guarantee and improve their quality throughout decades to quickly jump into a promising new possibility to print some money. it could absolutely be a good thing for them in the short term…but in the long run it could hurt their business ideology and authenticity more than it helped. just my 2 cents though.
Again you people claim Nintendo committing suicide instead of sorting their “problems” out themselves is gonna benefit the gaming market in the long run? The market will likely collapse with Nintendo’s leave and Nintendo is in no position to make huge mistakes like Skylanders since its an overpriced FisherPrice-like NFC with Call of Duty ripoff price tags attached to it which may explain why Nintendo turned that down like when they turned down that cancer Origin..I mean “Spyware” from EA because of what it is.
Who said anything about Nintendo committing suicide? All I’m pointing out is that it is a mistake to reject a major third party’s offer. Yes, Skylanders is a cash cow with not a whole lot of depth, but it is one that will open doors to more support in the future. Nintendo can still continue to do their own thing, but they will be smart to welcome this kind of support, especially those which have been proven to bring in more customers. I agree that move of activisions’s software is shovelware, but franchises like CODs are proven formulas to acquire big install bases.. Nintendo would do well to recognize that fact. That’s why Microsoft and Sony’s home consoles are thriving. The 3DS is successful in that it has a robust library and good 3rd party support and games are easy to develop for on the system. The Wii U is suffering in that its games, while good, are limited, it has weak 3rd party support, and 3rd parties are reluctant to support a system that is comparably weaker than the PS4/Xbone. The difference between the home consoles is not as large as last gen, but it’s significant enough that 3rd parties don’t want to expend additional resources to figure out the Wii U’s architecture when they can just go multiplatform elsewhere. .
HAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH! Brilliant!!
Ah yes, Nintendo’s new focus is Iwata’s QOL and “non wearable devices”, no surprise they would shrug off a chance to develop actual games LOLOLOLOL! What a joke Nintendo has become with their mediocre leadership.
Why is it so hard to take you seriously?
I am conflicted by games like Disney Infinity and Skylanders. I don’t feel like they are very consumer friendly. I have only played Infinity a little bit and don’t even find it that compelling.
Iwata has said we will see some NFC something from Nintendo in the near future. hopefully it is in a way that puts the experience and customer first and bleeding their wallets dry second.
Cause Nintendo wants Destiny from you Activision not Skylanders.
Exactly. We don’t need another COD-Like cash cow crap kids will blindly like and buy.
Typical Iwata. They need third party support and games, but when it’s offered, they don’t want it. Skylanders aren’t for me, but they do sell insanely well.
Nintendo, I love you so. ^.^
Much respect!
Well Activision, if you changed it to Destiny, it would’ve been a much different story.
It’s like this site is making Nintendo look bad. Nintendo don’t have to team up with anyone, it’s their choice.
At least they’re not annoyed like EA is with Origin.
We cannot ignore the “negative” aspects of our empire either…
Blargh.
I bet nintendo is kicking themselves.
Big time. So much open wallets for the taking. Nintendo why you so $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$tuuuupid??
It’s nothing to regret, imo. The games and figures are all on Nintendo platforms anyways. They aren’t even close to the quality on Nintendo’s ipsi
They probably don’t even remember so no…
Pingback: Skylanders could have been a Nintendo series? | Nintendo 3DS Daily
I do understand why Nintendo was reluctant. But in business sometime you have to take some risk and this time Nintendo took the wrong decision. If I was Nintendo I would not regret that decision cause you never know what will be successful and what will not
Pokemon.
Another reason to fire Iwata. The guy just doesn’t get it
I agree Iwata should think more like Micro$oft. Now that’s a company I wanna get behind!!!!!!!!!!!!
You make me sick…
(see: how to tell when a person is being so obviously SARCASTIC)
Vlarg
Hindsight’s so easy, man.
Pingback: Activision & Toys for Bob Reveal Nintendo Almost Had An Exclusive On Skylanders | Nintendo Empire - All the latest news, screenshots, trailers, reviews, and more from the empire of Nintendo!
Wow bad move on Nintendo’s part.
Nintendo is on a roll …
Nice job Nintendo, skylanders is overpriced crap.
Nintendo isn’t exactly known for making the wisest decisions. They tend to be very conservative and straight forward. Anything that is slightly different from their ideas is just too risky for them to get on board with.
again, i don´t think that they fear risks. not at all the wii was a huge risk, the 3ds was, the wiiu too. they just take care about their ip´s and their own history more than any other company in the gaming industry. imo thats their strength and not their weakness. eventhough their descisions might look weird at first sometimes – if you put them into perspective and judge them years later -they mostly made a lot of sense (cough – virtual boy -cough).
Nintendo turned down EA and Activision, props to them for not wasting time with shitty companies.
Thank God. I did not want another skylanders. That game needed to stop.
Skylanders was a unique game, when I first saw it, it reminded me of another similar game called Funkeyz, but Skylanders was more advanced
I’m not gonna lie, the original Skylanders was a good idea but you had to have money in order to be an avid player of the series
and now after 2 sequels the game has become a bit of a cash-grab gimmick
Wow, I wish I didn’t hear about this. This should’ve been a no-brainer for Nintendo. The idea of Skylanders was an obvious money-spinner and with the possibility of Nintendo characters twice as much. Nintendo are indeed very conservative when it comes to this type of thing and so it shows here.
Someone at Nintendo is making dumb decisions – Iwata needs to do some serious work.
Nintendo doesn’t want to rip-off their fans???
I wonder why…
I can’t believe Nintendo turned a partnership to make Skylanders down, it could have been exclusive and with Nintendo characters! Combine this with the fact that Nintendo turned down Media Molecule with Little Big Planet and Nintendo is awfully stupid. Nintendo was stupid for letting go of Rare, letting Microsoft buy Rare was stupid.
Pingback: The Skylanders Franchise Could've Been a Nintendo Exclusive; Nintendo Turned the Deal Down... • Always Nintendo