{"id":12591,"date":"2022-02-12T17:13:06","date_gmt":"2022-02-12T17:13:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mailinvest.blog\/index.php\/2022\/02\/12\/more-companies-should-take-a-cue-from-nintendo-directs\/"},"modified":"2022-02-12T17:13:06","modified_gmt":"2022-02-12T17:13:06","slug":"more-companies-should-take-a-cue-from-nintendo-directs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mailinvest.blog\/index.php\/2022\/02\/12\/more-companies-should-take-a-cue-from-nintendo-directs\/","title":{"rendered":"More companies should take a cue from Nintendo Directs"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Nintendo can be a perplexing company. It routinely puts out high-quality games while making a lot of out-of-touch decisions, like failing to preserve many of its older games<\/a> or opting to not embrace music streaming<\/a>.<\/p>\n

But the one area in which Nintendo has always been ahead of the curve, even to this day, is through its \u2018Direct\u2019 presentations. The most recent Direct was held on February 9th, and it was the perfect example of how effective these shows can be.<\/p>\n

In the span of 40 minutes, the company featured dozens of games<\/a>, including\u00a0Mario Strikers: Battle League<\/em>,\u00a0Switch Sports<\/em>,\u00a0Xenoblade Chronicles 3<\/em> and Splatoon 3<\/em>. Really, there was something there for pretty much everyone, and the many positive comments on both the below YouTube stream and social media<\/a> reflect that. Ultimately, Directs are something that more companies \u2014 gaming and otherwise \u2014 should take inspiration from in their own marketing.<\/p>\n

Now, to be sure, companies like PlayStation and Xbox have taken to pre-recorded streams, especially during the pandemic, but none of them really hit the same. Last year\u2019s Xbox & Bethesda Games Showcase, while overall quite solid, felt too long at 1.5 hours<\/a>. This was even more of an issue with The Game Awards 2021, which ran for nearly\u00a0four\u00a0<\/em>hours, pre-show included<\/a>, due to its awkward blend of industry awards with celebrity guests and game announcements. Even PlayStation\u2019s shorter streams, like the 22-minute most recent general State of Play<\/a>, felt lacklustre in its pacing and arguably more niche reveals.<\/p>\n

Directs, by contrast, generally have really strong, well-rounded game lineups to appeal to so many different demographics. It\u2019s impossible to please everyone, but Directs get pretty close to that. Take the most recent show: it mixed big new announcements (Mario Strikers<\/em> and Xenoblade 3<\/em>), fun updates on previously confirmed games (Splatoon 3\u00a0<\/em>co-op,\u00a0the meme-worthy \u201cKarby\u201d in Kirby and the Forgotten Land<\/em>), ports for popular titles (Portal<\/em>,\u00a0Earthbound <\/em>via Switch Online), remasters and remakes of classics (Live A Live<\/em>,\u00a0Chrono Cross<\/em>) and more niche offerings (Advance Wars 1+2 Re-Boot Camp<\/em>).<\/p>\n

\"Mario<\/a><\/p>\n

Mario Strikers: Battle League took the internet by storm during the recent Direct. (Image credit: Nintendo)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Best of all, Directs somehow manage land in a sweet spot of balancing quality and\u00a0<\/em>quantity. That\u2019s because they\u2019re so briskly paced and tightly edited that there\u2019s no filler. No overlong focus on a single game l<\/a>ikeGuardians of the Galaxy <\/em>in Square Enix\u2019s E3 2021 showcase<\/a>, and no extended period of talking heads taking away from actually seeing a game. Don\u2019t care about this one game? No problem \u2014 there\u2019ll be a dozen more in the next few minutes. To further cut down the fluff, Nintendo even makes its official Direct announcements right before the actual events \u2014 in the most recent case, a mere day in advance.<\/a> Your mileage may vary, but I certainly prefer this \u2014 you don\u2019t have to deal with weeks or even months of build-up and excessive hype on the company\u2019s part, while still getting enough notice to anticipate it.<\/p>\n

At the same time, Nintendo regularly puts out more focused showcases so you know exactly what you\u2019re getting going in. When they were still receiving ongoing support last year, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate<\/a>\u00a0<\/em>and\u00a0Animal Crossing: New Horizons<\/a>\u00a0<\/em>got their own presentations so fans of those games knew to tune in for deeper dives.<\/p>\n

Pok\u00e9mon Presents<\/a> fulfills a similar purpose for the monster-catching series. Indie fans, meanwhile, can look out for dedicated \u201cNintendo Indie World\u201d<\/a> shows, which are regularly just as well-paced \u2014 but even shorter \u2014 than a standard Direct. Thankfully, PlayStation has also seemingly started to follow Nintendo\u2019s suit by having presentations dedicated to Horizon Forbidden West<\/em><\/a>, Gran Turismo 7<\/a>\u00a0<\/em>and\u00a0Ghostwire: Tokyo<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

But it\u2019s not just gaming companies who can learn from the efficiency of the Nintendo Direct. I think back to November\u2019s inaugural \u201cDisney+ Day,\u201d which was intended to feature show and movie reveals from all of the company\u2019s brands but suffered from a ridiculous, tedious structure<\/a>. Basically, Disney didn\u2019t reveal in advance when to expect announcements beyond dedicated Marvel and Pixar streams.<\/p>\n