Nintendo had mainly dominated handheld gaming for years. Over the years, there have been a slew of great devices that brought portable gaming to all ages. We saw Sony even start to compete in this area with their PlayStation Portable and PlayStation Vita. However, folks like the top brass at Nintendo were absolutely terrified when they saw the rise and positive reception of games for phones and tablets.
This information comes from a podcast episode of Kit & Krystal. The podcast features Kit Ellis, a former social media marketing specialist and original content creator at Nintendo, and Krystal Yang, a PR manager who worked alongside Kit. Thanks to Gamesradar, we’re finding out that during a recent episode release, the duo managed to bring in a special guest, former PlayStation head Shuhei Yoshida. It was during the podcast that the topic of handhelds came up.
Specifically, it was Krystal Yang who noted that during a period when phone games and tablets were booming, she saw genuine fear among Nintendo executives. She remembers vividly a moment when executives were watching a young child playing games on a tablet, and immediate fear was on the faces of the executives. Rather than a child’s first memories of a video game being on a console or handheld, they were being replaced with a tablet and phone.
Even Shuhei Yoshida noticed the change and how devices like phones started to replace the need for extra hardware, such as dedicated cameras. Of course, things turned around for Nintendo when they released the hybrid console. The Switch was a device that had enough power to allow players the ability to enjoy games on the go or at home. Essentially, it became a far more enticing means to enjoy portable gaming than what we could get from a mobile phone.
Meanwhile, we’re seeing a resurgence in portable gaming. With the rise of portable gaming devices that run OS like Windows 11, you can enjoy some of the latest games on the go from your favorite digital storefronts. One of those devices that hopes to make a big splash in the marketplace is the upcoming Xbox Ally handhelds, which are expected to arrive in the marketplace this holiday season.
Still, I imagine this was an absolutely wild time for the folks like Nintendo. Watching as kids start their gaming journeys on a smartphone rather than a dedicated gaming device must have been quite a scare.
