Mario Bautista
As technology advances, AI integration in the gaming industry becomes more and more of a reality. Many companies have come forward stating that they will be embracing AI in the future of game development. Fans are skeptical of the use of AI in video games, but it seems like any criticism is falling on deaf ears. That is, however, for one major video game company.
Nintendo has recently come out stating that they will not be investing in AI in the same way that many other companies are. This comes after AI has been even more at the forefront of discussion, as Sony unveiled some of the new technology for the new PS5 Pro. One of the newest features of the PS5 Pro is the use of AI upscaling for certain games. In stark contrast, Nintendo is showing that they are pursuing different avenues than AI to keep players interested in their games and products.
Nintendo Has Never Followed Trends
For better or worse, Nintendo does its own thing
For years the three big gaming companies, Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo, have been compared for their hardware and exclusive game titles that they release on their consoles. While Sony and Microsoft have historically competed in almost an arms race of superiority, Nintendo has always forged its own path. While other companies focus on very specific trends in the gaming industry, Nintendo tends to try and create new ideas, sometimes even setting trends themselves.
During the era of the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, Sony and Microsoft were attempting to create the most powerful console to ever exist. Both consoles were created for hardcore fans, prioritizing the ability to deliver the best graphics and performance for games. While these factors are important for games, Nintendo decided to go a different way with the creation of the Wii. The Wii instead prioritized gameplay, a casual audience and motion controls.
The Wii’s marketing was geared towards showing off a console that would be a fun time for anyone, not just hardcore gaming fans. This created huge success for Nintendo, as it would bring in a whole new audience for the console. Motion controls were a novelty at the time, with Nintendo trailblazing the effort. Both Sony and Microsoft would see how popular this was and create their own versions of motion controls for their consoles. Gameplay has always been the priority for Nintendo when developing games. While other companies may place more emphasis on factors like graphics, it does not necessarily make a game great. During his time as President of Nintendo of America, Reggie Fils-Aime often used the quote, “If it’s not fun, why bother?” This perfectly encapsulates Nintendo’s mindset when creating consoles and games.
While Nintendo’s not following trends has not always worked in its favor, it has proven to be more successful than not. The Wii U can be looked at as a misstep, with Nintendo not innovating heavily from the console’s predecessor, with a lack of technical upgrades as well. However, the next console developed would be the Switch, which was the exact kind of upgrade that fans were looking for. The Switch’s innovation speaks for itself, with its success leading it to become one of Nintendo’s best-selling consoles of all time. The Switch is again less technically impressive than its Sony and Microsoft counterparts of the time, being the Xbox One and PS4, but its library of incredible Nintendo games and third-party titles, on top of unique features of the joycons and swapping from handheld to TV modes were designed to give players a great gaming experience.
Leave the AI for Everyone Else
Nintendo has expressed interest in doing something different from its peers
After the reveal of the PS5 Pro’s integration of AI upscaling with PSSR, AI has been a growing subject of discussion from all sides. Critics lament the use of AI out of fear of game developers potentially losing jobs, potential copyright infringements, and AI lazily being used to pick up development slack rather than as a supplement to already optimized games. Square Enix, a consistent partner with Sony, has made statements fully embracing that AI is the future of game development, planning to invest heavily in the growing technology.
- The PS5 Pro uses AI upscaling similar to Nvidia’s DLSS and AMD’s FSR.
Meanwhile, Nintendo seems fully uninterested in using AI anytime soon. In a recent interview with the New York Times, legendary game developer Shigeru Miyamoto addressed their stance on AI directly. “It might seem like we are just going the opposite direction for the sake of going in the opposite direction, but it really is trying to find what makes Nintendo special. There is a lot of talk about A.I., for example. When that happens, everyone starts to go in the same direction, but that is where Nintendo would rather go in a different direction.”
Nintendo has also cited potential intellectual property issues as a reason to be hesitant to embrace AI in game development. Generative AI is used by learning from many different sources, and can sometimes toe a fine line between being influenced by a source and copying the source material outright. With Nintendo’s history of copyright infringement, it is unsurprising that this would be a big concern for the company. While PSSR is only a small step towards AI integration, it can lead down a slippery slope that some critics are worried about. While this might be the case for some companies, Nintendo has made it clear that it wants to look in other directions to give fans a fresh gaming experience.
