The n64 puts a wrench in your argument because it satisfied almost no one. I think they have the capability to make better decisions this time round so we'll see. GC is making a good amount of profit showing that they do know what they are doing in the business running focused side of things at the very least.
I think MS are the ones who to worry the most. Their management hasnt been up to snuff. Their losses are huge to boot.
N64 had problems satisfying consumers true but IMO it was better than GC. The N64 at least had those blockbuster exclusives like Mario 64. It had a significant hardware edge that the GC does not. There were reasons to drag the N64 out of the closet because every once in a while a game would come out that would be both fantastic and beyond the abilities of the PSX. Goldeneye, Mario, Waverace, Pilotwings, OoT, Majora, Banjo, Conker; heck even some third party stuff like SF Rush. Gamecube has none of this. Pretty much everything on GC can be found elsewhere, usually in superior form.
Nintendo's problem is that its games suck nowadays. It's a hard fact to swallow since Nintendo was the freaking leader of videogame quality until GameCube, but it's the truth. 80% of Nintendo's GameCube games just aren't fun, and it has few third-party games to back them up. It's like the PS One without the good third-party games.
There is no doubt that the GC is a disappointment, but I don't think people see the big picture that well. Especially when they resort to comparisons to Sega. When you have to prematurely kill a succesful system because you fucked up the business so much, you did something horribly wrong. Nintendo runs such a tight ship that something like the GC can survive even though it has failed on numerous projections. Combine that with a solid userbase and the strongest first party development of the three competitiors, they still have something that can translated into greater success.
IMO, the only problem Nintendo really needs to concentrate on is reversing the trend of declining marketshare. There's nothing wrong with carving out a niche for oneself, which is why I think it's foolish to think that Nintendo should just bow out of hardware because they aren't stomping out the competition or are not interested in pursuing the same goals. That makes the industry look even more narrow minded and self-absorbed in trying to "up the ante" as opposed to putting out solid products.
I said "pretty much everything" and "usually in superior form" which means that yes IMO GC does have four or five games that are better than their PS2/Xbox counterparts. It's not quite the same gap that Mario 64 and the rest had over their PSX imitators, though. That's like comparing the grand canyon to a crack in the sidewalk.
Nintendo's problem is that its games suck nowadays. It's a hard fact to swallow since Nintendo was the freaking leader of videogame quality until GameCube, but it's the truth. 80% of Nintendo's GameCube games just aren't fun, and it has few third-party games to back them up. It's like the PS One without the good third-party games.
So the N64 had games? Thats news to me i guess all those constant no games out, we have to wait etc. were just afew minor complaints from afew people...
I said "pretty much everything" and "usually in superior form" which means that yes IMO GC does have four or five games that are better than their PS2/Xbox counterparts. It's not quite the same gap that Mario 64 and the rest had over their PSX imitators, though. That's like comparing the grand canyon to a crack in the sidewalk.