Nintendo Backing GameCube For The Long Haul?
By David Smith
6/11/2004
In an interesting coda to the news of Nintendo's next game console from the company's management policy meeting earlier this week, the Yomiuri Shimbun today passes on another comment on the new hardware from Nintendo president Satoru Iwata. Iwata evidently mentioned that Nintendo's next console, presently code-named "Revolution," might be sold alongside its current GameCube hardware for some time after its release.
The "Revolution" whatever-it-is will debut at next year's E3 exhibition, suggesting that it could hit the market some time in 2006, five years after the release of the GameCube in 2001. That's about the same amount of time as earlier consoles have received as the primary focus of their manufacturer's attention, but the continued success of the PlayStation -- which kept moving hardware and software well after the PlayStation 2's debut -- likely has Nintendo looking to follow in its footsteps with the GameCube, which has sold quite well at its $99 price point.
Sony has already stated that it hopes to keep moving PlayStation 2s until the system is at least 10 years old.
A more interesting question than whether Nintendo will keep selling the GameCube would be whether Nintendo will continue supporting it with software after it debuts its next-generation console. An answer, of course, won't be forthcoming for a few years.
