Nintendo Has Cold Feet?
April 19, 2005
There's a rumor circulating on the Internet that Nintendo is considering withholding the Nintendo Revolution's debut and not revealing the device at next month's E3. While there is no confirmation from Nintendo one way or the other, the supposed reason is that the company does not want competitors to steal its ideas (this is the same excuse given for not showing more of Super Mario Sunshine when it was in development and the same excuse for why we have yet to see the mythical Super Mario 128).
Personally, I think Nintendo might want to stay out of the Sony vs Microsoft firefight for publicity. Both Sony and Microsoft are gearing up to attempt to outdo the other with publicity and hype and overall wow factor (both companies will be revealing their new consoles prior to E3, in fact) and Nintendo could just want to stay out of the way and make their own announcements on their own terms.
Like it or not, Nintendo has become the underdog of gaming. They don't produce the "cool console" or "cool games" anymore and the press loves to bury the company whenever the chances comes up. Rather than risk appearing as a blurb in a Microsoft article, Nintendo could just want to wait until they have their own chance to steal the spotlight. This is a shame, as Nintendo has more to say than Microsoft or Sony. Too bad that the competition can shout louder than Nintendo.
So without the Revolution what is there left to show at E3? A lot. There's the new Legend of Zelda title for one thing plus the arrival of the Nintendo DS's online capabilities. There will be plenty of things to see, but the Revolution might not be one of them. We won't know for sure until this time next month. Don't you just love rumors?