WI: Nintendo and Sega didn't exist?

At least in a major video game producing format.

In 1983, the American video game market was over saturated with games that no one really tested or reviewed, this culminated with the infamous Atari 2600 ET game. This resulted in a video game market crash, which eventually opened up the American and European markets to Nintendo with the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) and the Sega Master System, both released in 1985.

What if, for whatever reason, Nintendo and Sega either don't release console systems, or never exist. Before producing video games, Nintendo was making things like card games.

What effect would this have on the current video game market? In OTL Atari was pretty slow to adapt, even after the introduction of the Japanese systems. Would the market be pretty stagnant compared to OTL? Maybe the introduction of more popular European systems? At the very least, I think adventure/rpg games would be seriously hindered.
 
I think in this case the Namco Supersystem project would be seriously pursued if Atari doesn't get it's act together fast. The US is way to big a market to be left in the hands of a stagnent Atari for long.
 
I think in this case the Namco Supersystem project would be seriously pursued if Atari doesn't get it's act together fast. The US is way to big a market to be left in the hands of a stagnent Atari for long.
That was the PC engine...so NEC is videogame saviour here?
 
At least in a major video game producing format.

In 1983, the American video game market was over saturated with games that no one really tested or reviewed, this culminated with the infamous Atari 2600 ET game. This resulted in a video game market crash, which eventually opened up the American and European markets to Nintendo with the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) and the Sega Master System, both released in 1985.

What if, for whatever reason, Nintendo and Sega either don't release console systems, or never exist. Before producing video games, Nintendo was making things like card games.

What effect would this have on the current video game market? In OTL Atari was pretty slow to adapt, even after the introduction of the Japanese systems. Would the market be pretty stagnant compared to OTL? Maybe the introduction of more popular European systems? At the very least, I think adventure/rpg games would be seriously hindered.

The video game market was alive and well - it had simply transitioned heavily to Commodore, Apple, and Atari's computer lines. While the glut of terrible games was the chief factor in the 1983 video game crash, a secondary factor that was lurking in the background was that home computers (thanks primarily to Jack Trammiel and Commodore) had come down in price and were now acceptable alternatives to consoles. Graphical and music capabilities on the C64 were far superior to what Atari, Coleco, Mattell, and Vetrex were offering at the time. Here's an example of Pitfall II:

Colevision:
pitfall-II-scr-2.png


Commodore 64
300px-Pitfall_II1.jpg


Without consoles, the home computer market would have propelled the video game industry forward. We'd still have games until someone tried a console again in the 1990s.
 
That was the PC engine...so NEC is videogame saviour here?

Probably, yes. Given the fact you're still experiencing the Crash, the American reputation for consoles is in the toliet (Which is part of the reason Nintendo went with the Virtual Boy when they did; trying to market it as "more than just a console") It's quite possible somebody runs the numbers and decides it's better for image to try to break into the gaming market with the cover of a hybrid with the more "respectable" PC, which the Supersystem is ideal for.

@Seafort just posted a good point while I'm writing this
 
The video game market was alive and well - it had simply transitioned heavily to Commodore, Apple, and Atari's computer lines. While the glut of terrible games was the chief factor in the 1983 video game crash, a secondary factor that was lurking in the background was that home computers (thanks primarily to Jack Trammiel and Commodore) had come down in price and were now acceptable alternatives to consoles. Graphical and music capabilities on the C64 were far superior to what Atari, Coleco, Mattell, and Vetrex were offering at the time. Here's an example of Pitfall II:

Colevision:
pitfall-II-scr-2.png


Commodore 64
300px-Pitfall_II1.jpg


Without consoles, the home computer market would have propelled the video game industry forward. We'd still have games until someone tried a console again in the 1990s.

If no one tried another hand at a console well until the 90's, I can't imagine that the market would be nearly as big as it is now. Yes, the Commodore 64 was quite successful with around 15 million units sold, but the NES alone sold a ridiculous 62 million.

I'm not saying that video games would be dead, but I think they'd be more of a niche product than they are today.
 
NES not Virtual boy, the nes was market as a novelty item like a VCR over the more traditional famicom.


And that is otl, but yeah i can see NEC and other trying with NEC having Hudson in advantage

I used the Virtual Boy as a more blatent and extreme example of the marketing attempt to distance themselves from the console model as possible, but you're right the NES was a better example of this tactic being done right. As for the PC thing, I was emphasizing that point of otl to demonstrate why a Supersystem marketed as such would have a solid chance of successfully capturing a big market share. We'd likely see more more corperate partnerships between "hardware" and "software" creators I this timeline if the NEC-Hudson console alliance works out, instead of gaming companies making their own systems. Maybe Atari would adapt in this case by moving out of producing games and just focusing on their consoles instead in that case, finding a good partner (Konami maybe ?) to pick up the area where they were certainly weaker
 
I used the Virtual Boy as a more blatent and extreme example of the marketing attempt to distance themselves from the console model as possible, but you're right the NES was a better example of this tactic being done right. As for the PC thing, I was emphasizing that point of otl to demonstrate why a Supersystem marketed as such would have a solid chance of successfully capturing a big market share. We'd likely see more more corperate partnerships between "hardware" and "software" creators I this timeline if the NEC-Hudson console alliance works out, instead of gaming companies making their own systems. Maybe Atari would adapt in this case by moving out of producing games and just focusing on their consoles instead in that case, finding a good partner (Konami maybe ?) to pick up the area where they were certainly weaker


Maybe Atari could adapt, giving up developing games and focusing solely on hardware. However, I don't really see them coming back, just as they didn't recover OTL. They had all the reasons and incentives to adapt in OTL, but were still stuck in the past.
 
As Seafort commented earlier, I also think that it would trend more towards computer gaming, but the market would be significantly smaller when compared to OTL.
Depends on cost.

Cdtv or cd32 were both fairly capable machines and both pretty much cutting edge at the time.

But I can agree with smaller market to some degree, maybe arcades live longer!
 
Depends on cost.

Cdtv or cd32 were both fairly capable machines and both pretty much cutting edge at the time.

But I can agree with smaller market to some degree, maybe arcades live longer!

I'm not arguing that that either gaming system wasn't cutting edge, but both of those are pretty late developments. 1991 with the CDTV and 1993 with the CD32.

Another thing that would probably take a big hit would be mobile gaming. Imagine what that would be like without the Game Boy:closedtongue:.
 
I'm not arguing that that either gaming system wasn't cutting edge, but both of those are pretty late developments. 1991 with the CDTV and 1993 with the CD32.

Another thing that would probably take a big hit would be mobile gaming. Imagine what that would be like without the Game Boy:closedtongue:.

The Lynx would have probably filled up that gap, or another alternate system. Indeed, without the market pressure for the Game Boy and greater exclusivity to attract 3rd Party software development its possible this would serve as a bounce back or at least temporary boost for the company, as mobile gaming is one niche computers can't easily take from consoles.
 
The Lynx would have probably filled up that gap, or another alternate system. Indeed, without the market pressure for the Game Boy and greater exclusivity to attract 3rd Party software development its possible this would serve as a bounce back or at least temporary boost for the company, as mobile gaming is one niche computers can't easily take from consoles.
I was to mention the lynx but that was originally Made as a sales pitch to nintendo, maybe NEC or Namco here? And there the turboexpress too
 
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