Part III, Chapter XVII: "But First, We Need To Talk About Alternate Timelines"
“Go Further Beyond”
- 1997 advertising slogan for the Nintendo Ultra.
By the 1990s, the video game industry had recovered from the crash in 1983. But though the market had recovered, and by all measures was performing better than ever, nobody could deny that the crash had changed the video game industry forever. The industry was now dominated by Japanese companies, not American ones, and this would remain the case for the 1990s.
By the time of the fourth generation of video game consoles, there were only two main competitors: Sega and Nintendo. The battle between the Sega Mega Drive (known as the Genesis in North America) and the SNES was a close one, but was eventually won out by Nintendo.
Though many of the later consoles of this generation used 32-bit computing, the SNES was stuck with a 16-bit processor. While on paper this should have led to other consoles dominating, Nintendo continued to innovate in other regards, not least of all through their deal with Sony.
Sony had produced the audio chip for the SNES, and the two companies were working well together. By 1988, Nintendo and Sony began work on a new peripheral for the SNES that would allow for it to read CDs. Issues would soon arise over control of licensing, however. Sony wanted a great deal of control over the format, something Nintendo were not in the least bit comfortable with.
Tensions ultimately came to a head when Nintendo threatened to pull out of the deal, which would effectively prevent Sony from gaining a foothold in the market. While Sony had an interest in making their own console, it was the general opinion of the higher-ups that it would be a pointless endeavour if they did not get a place in the industry through Nintendo. Sony would give Nintendo partial control over the Super Disc format, though they would remain the sole developer. Sony would also retain control over much of the licensing with regards to the software that they developed for it.
The relationship was certainly not as strong as it had been at first, but it had seen the project through. In early 1993, the add-on was released, along with a new hybrid console, the Nintendo PlayStation. The PlayStation was functionally identical to the SNES, but had the SNES-CD pre-installed, and as a result, was somewhat lighter and smaller. [1]
Most of the initial games released for the SNES-CD (henceforth referred to as the PlayStation) were from third-party developers, as Nintendo began work on a new console. The highly successful
Secrets of Mana would prove to be the “killer app” for the PlayStation, and soon the new console had gained a clear advantage over Sega.
The first main Nintendo game to be released for the peripheral was
Super Mario World 2, which kept much of the same concepts, but was far more expansive. The move to optical disc had increased the amount of potential hardware space almost five-fold, and many of the developers were keen to make use of it. [2]
But by the mid-1990s, a new generation of consoles was being prepared. Nintendo and Sony tentatively worked together on a new console, while Sega continued to work on their own. The race was on to not only produce the better console, but to release it first.
This race would be won by Sega, as disputes between Nintendo and Sony caused significant delays in the development of the Nintendo Ultra. The November 1994 release of the Sega Saturn would see it dominate the market, with no real competition. While some commentators marked this as the “beginning of the end” for Nintendo, it only served to spur them on. Suddenly, at the prospect of losing the market entirely, the disputes with Sony were less pressing.
The Nintendo Ultra would follow in early 1996, and marked the final shift away from cartridges for home video game consoles for Nintendo. The accompanying game that was released with the console,
Super Mario Ultra proved to be one of the most successful video games of all time. Though the Nintendo-Sony deal broke down soon after the Ultra’s release, Nintendo had proven their dominance in the market. By the end of 1997, Nintendo controlled approximately 75% of the North American market.
This dominance would lead some in Congress to consider breaking Nintendo of America up to prevent a monopoly, but such a process was difficult with a foreign-owned company. Equally, how the company would break up would be more difficult to decide than Microsoft (which was being broken up at the time), as Nintendo’s scope was limited. Ultimately, after an initial review, Nintendo's percieved monopoly was not deemed to have been gained through illegal means. [3]
The game
Super Mario Ultra would mark a distinct turning point for the video game industry and the Mario franchise as a whole. Firstly, it was the first game in the main franchise to be fully 3D, and rather than reaching a goal, Mario would now collect “Power Stars”, 200 of which were hidden throughout the game. Rather than power-ups, Mario would use one of four “caps”, which granted him abilities for a limited time. But above all, it was proof of the Ultra's abilities. The game was innovative in many technical regards, using a player-controlled camera, precise dual analog controllers, and split-screen capabilities for the 2 player mode. [4]
The success of the game would lead to many rumours. Perhaps the most famous would be the rumour of a rideable Yoshi. Supposed ways to unlock it were passed around on many playgrounds of the time, often involving having either Mario or Luigi (sometimes both) run around the courtyard statue a particular number of times. Though none worked, a rideable Yoshi would be included for the 1999 sequel
Super Mario Ultra 2.
Super Mario Ultra would go on to be the most successful video game of the generation, selling over 30 million copies. The Nintendo Ultra sold nearly 80 million consoles in all, far more than its competitors. Many attributed this to the change to the use of CDs, rather than cartridges. The Nintendo Ultra was also able to play audio CDs, which helped sales to families. By the end of 1997, in the US, most households reported that they did have a games console in their house. Video games had clearly broken out of the old stereotype that they were just for a select group.
As a result,
Super Mario Ultra and many of the other video games of the time (especially the burgeoning MMORPG market) started to be referenced more in popular culture. Talks were soon abound of Nintendo looking for a film deal. The future was bright, but Nintendo’s complete dominance of the market would be short-lived. [5]
[1] I can't guarantee how plausible this is, but I wanted the deal to continue, so I tried the best I could.
[2] To clarify, Super Mario World 2 isn't Yoshi's Island. It's a more direct sequel.
[3] This will come up in another update soon. But yeah, Microsoft is being broken up for violating anti-trust laws.
[4] The increased storage space and power of the console means that there are five more main courses, 25 more hidden stars, and Luigi.
[5] I'm not actually tackling this in particular, I'm delegating it, but it's the beginning of something interesting for the timeline. Oh, and the 1993 film didn't happen.
