Satoru Iwata has recently spoke about the games industry. While some of his views are repeated it is interesting to see what he says about the PSX and Bandai

Satoru Iwata recently spoke to Japan Economic Foundation about the games industry. While the full interview is not available some highlights are below.

Iwata continued his stand on the gaming industry by stating that if the industry carries on like it is then a lot of gamers will "leave" the industry. "We are facing a critical situation, in which the number of game players will decrease unless we change tack," he stated. "We will release software targeted at customers in different age groups. I think the charm of Donkey Konga partly lies in the fact that even a three-year-old child can play it." He carried on to talk about the increasingly adult-orientated industry "Game software should neither be exclusively targeted at children nor adults. Instead, we will develop software which anyone can instantly understand. At the same time, production of software readily acceptable to adults is worth studying."

He talked about several aspects of Sony. He stated that the PSX is "not a game machine but a home electronic appliance." While on the issue of Sony he stated that their online golf simulation game did not sell as well as the offline version, "proof that customers do not want online games." Continuing to talk about online gaming he stated, "At the moment, most customers do not wish to pay the extra money for connection to the Internet, and for some customers, connection procedures to the Internet are still not easy."

Iwata implied that the increasing cost of game development is leading to it becoming almost unprofitable. This may come from experience as Iwata stated that in the first half of the fiscal year 2003 Nintendo had a "hard time" but has since improved.

Nintendo has recently been increasing ties with other game developers, such as Capcom and Sega, and Iwata stated spoke about this. "We intend to expand tie-ups not only with Japanese companies but also with foreign companies. We are now holding negotiations with major Western game developers and will be able to conclude a deal by the end of the year if things go smoothly."

He also spoke about Bandai, stating "A closer relationship would be beneficial for both sides and it will be nice if the two companies can work together in doing something interesting."