Jan 13, 2017
Nintendo consoles
Ahead of the release of its next games machine, the Nintendo Switch, these are the main devices that have brought players the likes of Super Mario, Tetris, Zelda and Pokemon. Its inspiration came when developer Gunpei Yokoi saw a bored businessman punch buttons on a calculator to amuse himself on a train, says Katharine Byrne, news editor at video games publication MCV. Up to that point, Nintendo had largely been a toy company. With the Game & Watch, it came up with a handheld console that introduced millions of players to now-longstanding Nintendo characters, such as Donkey Kong, Zelda and the Mario Brothers. The small white consoles and its games - which followed players' movements - had broad appeal, from retirement homes to office staff rooms, and helped Nintendo overtake Sony again. There weren't enough non-Nintendo games available on it, Mr Ward says, and Nintendo failed to explain the benefits of the Wii U GamePad, which tried to popularise the idea of dual-screen gaming.
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