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Meanwhile on Switch eShop: 10 to 20 new games released every single week of the year (many of them mediocre, but still). When you’re a massive global video gam

Meanwhile on Switch eShop: 10 to 20 new games released every single week of the year (many of them mediocre, but still). When you’re a massive global video game streaming service, you’re supposed to plan ahead a bit, don’t you think. This is not a mom and pop store.

6gvONxR4sf7o 7y ago
It's tough to compare a company's first few steps into gaming to the established machine that is Nintendo.
- Wowfunhappy 7y ago
  Especially since the Switch eShop was pretty slow at launch. Not to mention a certain other Nintendo product that ends with U.
- daemin 7y ago
  Not necessarily, because: They can already see what the other major platforms in this space are doing, and learn from it. They are already a large company that has other income with which to support this service through its initial growth. They can hire/poach people from these existing companies to help give them a kick start. I know just saying it makes it sound easy, but responsible executives and teams should be capable of doing better.
- rchaud 7y ago
  I think a company with Google's resources would have hired people with the necessary experience to run the project.
  - 72deluxe 7y ago
    They're a "me too!" company that pretends they are the leader in all the projects that others are doing, and merely offer a service/product to tick a box next to their competitors. The only case where this isn't true is Search (but getting worse), AdWords, and YouTube. But everything else is not uniquely Google (eg. Drive, GMail, phones, Android, Chromebooks). Then they may or may not abandon the project based on the uptake, leaving the adopters high and dry. I personally would not risk buying anything from them based on their proven approach to product launches.
SmirkingRevenge 7y ago
All the consoles go through the same thing every time there's a new generation. The consoles have never been backwards compatible, each generation invalidates your previous library. And they always begin with tiny libraries. Here we are in 2020 and only now have Sony and Microsoft begun talking about backwards compatibility in future console generations.
- ethbro 7y ago
  Never is a strong word. The initial version of the PS2 had dedicated hardware to be fully compatible with PS1 games.
  - Macha 7y ago
    See also * GameCube to Wii * Game Boy to Game Boy Color to Game Boy Advance * Also features a case of backwards compatibility on behalf of games too. A lot of GBC games would run in a Gameboy in black and white * Nintendo DS to 3DS * PS2 to launch PS3 * (Announced) Xbox one to Xbox Series X
    - mrguyorama 7y ago
      * Wii to Wii U * Limited original Xbox to Xbox 360 * Less limited Xbox 360 to Xbox one * Early sega consoles
  - rchaud 7y ago
    The first PS2 model came out ~20 years ago, and likely offered backwards compatibility only because very few developers then were building games to maximize the capabilities of DVD storage.
  - pandaman 7y ago
    All versions of PS2 have the PS1 hardware since it does I/O on the PS2. You are probably confusing with PS3, which had the PS2 hardware in the first versions specifically for backwards compatibility.
rasz 7y ago
They did plan ahead! The plan was to push some newfangled "world changing" product, get a promotion .. and move on in the company.
- nickflood 7y ago
  Yep. When I read somewhere here another article about thebpromotion processes at Google, the early Stadia launch started immediately making so much sense. It was a launch for internal reasons. > https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=21882791 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=21882791
  - sitkack 7y ago
    They should stagger the perf cycle on a division/product basis so there isn't an incentive to ship to align with the promo cutoffs.
dwild 7y ago
Have they done that during the first 70 days of the Switch release? Sure plan ahead but release are hard and 70 days isn't much.

6gvONxR4sf7o 7y ago

It's tough to compare a company's first few steps into gaming to the established machine that is Nintendo.

Wowfunhappy 7y ago
Especially since the Switch eShop was pretty slow at launch. Not to mention a certain other Nintendo product that ends with U.
daemin 7y ago
Not necessarily, because: They can already see what the other major platforms in this space are doing, and learn from it. They are already a large company that has other income with which to support this service through its initial growth. They can hire/poach people from these existing companies to help give them a kick start. I know just saying it makes it sound easy, but responsible executives and teams should be capable of doing better.
rchaud 7y ago
I think a company with Google's resources would have hired people with the necessary experience to run the project.
- 72deluxe 7y ago
  They're a "me too!" company that pretends they are the leader in all the projects that others are doing, and merely offer a service/product to tick a box next to their competitors. The only case where this isn't true is Search (but getting worse), AdWords, and YouTube. But everything else is not uniquely Google (eg. Drive, GMail, phones, Android, Chromebooks). Then they may or may not abandon the project based on the uptake, leaving the adopters high and dry. I personally would not risk buying anything from them based on their proven approach to product launches.

SmirkingRevenge 7y ago

All the consoles go through the same thing every time there's a new generation. The consoles have never been backwards compatible, each generation invalidates your previous library. And they always begin with tiny libraries. Here we are in 2020 and only now have Sony and Microsoft begun talking about backwards compatibility in future console generations.

ethbro 7y ago
Never is a strong word. The initial version of the PS2 had dedicated hardware to be fully compatible with PS1 games.
- Macha 7y ago
  See also * GameCube to Wii * Game Boy to Game Boy Color to Game Boy Advance * Also features a case of backwards compatibility on behalf of games too. A lot of GBC games would run in a Gameboy in black and white * Nintendo DS to 3DS * PS2 to launch PS3 * (Announced) Xbox one to Xbox Series X
  - mrguyorama 7y ago
    * Wii to Wii U * Limited original Xbox to Xbox 360 * Less limited Xbox 360 to Xbox one * Early sega consoles
- rchaud 7y ago
  The first PS2 model came out ~20 years ago, and likely offered backwards compatibility only because very few developers then were building games to maximize the capabilities of DVD storage.
- pandaman 7y ago
  All versions of PS2 have the PS1 hardware since it does I/O on the PS2. You are probably confusing with PS3, which had the PS2 hardware in the first versions specifically for backwards compatibility.

rasz 7y ago

They did plan ahead! The plan was to push some newfangled "world changing" product, get a promotion .. and move on in the company.

nickflood 7y ago
Yep. When I read somewhere here another article about thebpromotion processes at Google, the early Stadia launch started immediately making so much sense. It was a launch for internal reasons. > https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=21882791 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=21882791
- sitkack 7y ago
  They should stagger the perf cycle on a division/product basis so there isn't an incentive to ship to align with the promo cutoffs.

dwild 7y ago

Have they done that during the first 70 days of the Switch release? Sure plan ahead but release are hard and 70 days isn't much.