Icons (2022 TV series)/Episode 4 transcript

Prologue
Narrator: "It started with a man."

Johnny Yong Bosch: "He turns out to be the Steve Jobs of video games, and was the right person to revive Nintendo."

Narrator: "Who wanted to make gaming more immersive."

Johnny Yong Bosch: "Instead of sitting down with two hands on a controller, you could actually stand up and hold a TV remote-like controller and feel like you were a golfer, a bowler, a race-car driver..."

Narrator: "He met with his share of disappointment."

Sarah Natochenny: "It was a cool idea, great thought, not a good console at the end of the day."

Johnny Yong Bosch: "Iwata was at the doghouse at this point, the successor to the Wii had bombed..."

Narrator: "And created something that revolutionized the gaming industry."

Toby Fox: "The Wii is perhaps the best-selling console in Nintendo's history."

Narrator: "This is the story of the top-selling home video game console in the world, and the man behind it. It's the story of Nintendo Wii."

Part I
Narrator: "The year is 2001. Game giant Nintendo releases its latest video game system, the GameCube. It's the company's lowest-selling product, and is also the lowest-selling console of its generation."

Abdallah "AbdallahSmash026" Elayan - YouTube Personality: "Nintendo had a lot of success with the NES, SNES, Game Boy, and N64, but they were beginning to lose ground to Sony's PlayStation and Microsoft's Xbox, which were getting a much bigger teenage and college audience."

Sarah Natochenny - Voice Actor: "They were losing ground for sure. Of course, their franchises were well known, but that wasn't enough. And although Pokémon still saw success with the Ruby and Sapphire games for the Game Boy Advance, that wasn't enough to catch up with such consoles as PlayStation and Xbox."

Narrator: "But all that changes two years later, when a man by the name of Satoru Iwata is appointed as company president in the hopes that he'll be able to turn things around."

Johnny Yong Bosch - Voice Actor: "Satoru Iwata was a programmer at HAL Laboratory, which is the game studio behind the Kirby games as well as the first two Super Smash Bros. titles."

AbdallahSmash026: "The Kirby games were pretty successful for Nintendo, making their debut on Game Boy and later getting games for Nintendo's home consoles. The Kirby series also got an anime adaptation in Japan."

Narrator: "The success of the Kirby franchise makes it a key property in the Nintendo portfolio, joining the pantheon of franchises such as Super Mario, Pokémon, and The Legend of Zelda."

Johnny Yong Bosch: "HAL Laboratory plays an important part in Nintendo history thanks to Iwata, and it definitely wasn't a surprise that they found someone special in him. He was a true visionary. Another thing that was really remarkable about Iwata, he was a shrewd businessman as well. He turns out to be the Steve Jobs of video games, and was the right person to revive Nintendo."

Narrator: "In March 2004, Satoru Iwata unveils a 'Blue Ocean' strategy for Nintendo, designed to help them successfully compete against the other console manufacturers. Instead of competing on technical specifications, Iwata drew on his previous experience as a game developer at HAL to produce novel and entertaining hardware and games; the first of piece of hardware made under his watch being the Nintendo DS."

Judner "UrAvgConsumer" Aura - YouTube Personality: "The DS was a great console. It had a touchscreen on the bottom controller, something that had never been done before on a handheld console. And what especially made it great were really the games. There was Brain Age, Nintendogs, and you obviously can't forget the New Super Mario Bros. series."

Johnny Yong Bosch: "The DS definitely made its mark on the gaming world, for sure."

Narrator: "On November 21, 2004, Nintendo releases the DS in the United States. It arrives in Japan just a month later. The new handheld is a smash hit in both countries, and would go on to sell more than 154 million units worldwide. Satoru Iwata later turns his attention to make gaming at home more immersive."

Johnny Yong Bosch: "Satoru Iwata came up with the idea for the Wii. As far as development goes, this was part of his 'Blue Ocean' strategy."

Narrator: Codenamed the Revolution when it's first revealed, Nintendo soon gets to work on getting the new console in stores."

UrAvgConsumer: "The Wii was definitely unlike any other home gaming console. It made you get off the couch and feel as if you were actually in the game."

Narrator: "What Iwata doesn't realize, is how the Wii will have a massive impact on gaming history."

Part II
Narrator: "By 2005, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata unveils its next generation game console. Codenamed 'Revolution', this new system would later be known as the Wii."

Johnny Yong Bosch: "The Wii is an incredible system. Unlike the usual game controllers which require you to use both hands, the Wii was different. Instead of sitting down with two hands on a controller, you could actually stand up and hold a TV remote-like controller and feel like you were a golfer, a bowler, a race-car driver, there was literally nothing else like it."

Narrator: "The Wii launches in North America on November 19, 2006 for $250, with a Japanese release just one month later."

Johnny Yong Bosch: "Wii had a worldwide launch as most other Nintendo systems had in the past. And the launch was tremendous. The world was in love with Nintendo again thanks to the popularity of the Wii. It came out, people bought it, and it immediately expanded."

Narrator: "And the Wii has an unstoppable ally, a game called Wii Sports."

AbdallahSmash026: "The main reason the Wii was so successful was because of Wii Sports. It was a brilliant decision for Nintendo to bundle the game with the system."

UrAvgConsumer: "Wii Sports was definitely instrumental to the success of the Wii. Simply because it was on the Wii at the right time. I wouldn't say the Wii would've been a flop had it not been for Wii Sports."

Alfred R. Kahn - CEO, CraneKahn Entertainment: "The main reason why Wii Sports was so successful was it actually had kids get off the couch and not be couch potatoes."

Narrator: "Nintendo also develops a virtual console, where gamers can buy classic games from Nintendo's past."

Johnny Yong Bosch: "Motion controls set the Wii apart... for sure. Not only did it make Wii Sports more immersive, but they also made some interesting elements for other games as well. For example, the New Super Mario Bros. series was brought to the system, and had motion controls added to it. You played your Wii remote like a regular controller, but you could also shake it - for example - in order to make it more immersive."

Narrator: "But it doesn't take long for the competition to take notice."

Johnny Yong Bosch: "Microsoft, for Xbox, came up with Kinect a few years after the Wii came out. They had to be thanking their lucky stars over at Microsoft. Because, you know, here comes Nintendo, with their very small Wii which some older teens looked too much like a toy and the remote was too childish... And they laughed really hard because they thought the Wii was so pathetic. What they didn't realize was if you want immersive gaming, you want it built into the console, and you want it built into your controller."

UrAvgConsumer: "One of the advantages of the Wii was it was the controller itself that made it more immersive. Sure, Kinect made some Xbox 360 games immersive, but it was very much a gimmick. And for a brand aimed at teens and young adults like Xbox, it just wasn't feasible."

Narrator: Although Kinect as well as Sony's PlayStation Move saw moderate success, the Wii still came out on top. Throughout the timespan of 2008 and 2010 spinoffs of Wii Sports focused on resort sports and fitness are released, and continue that success."

UrAvgConsumer: "Wii Fit was a spinoff of Wii Sports targeted to adults that want to be fit and healthy. It was almost like your own virtual gym, almost. You could learn yoga with the game, and it really challenged you in terms of workouts."

Johnny Yong Bosch: "There were a lot of games that took advantage of the Wii's technology. Not only that, but you could also connect your Wii to the internet - and by the 2010s - watch TV on it too. For example, Netflix - which is now the largest streaming service in the world - launched an app on the console.

Narrator: "Thanks to a great library of games, and many other capabilities, the Wii comes out on top, selling 80 million units by 2011. Meanwhile, Kinect for Xbox and PlayStation Move become things of the past. But how long will the revolutionary Wii stay on top?"

Part II
Narrator: "By 2011, the Nintendo Wii is the top-selling home video game console in history, selling 80 million units. Among its top-selling games include Wii Sports, New Super Mario Bros. Wii, Super Mario Galaxy, and The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, the first game in the Zelda series to get a T for Teen rating."

Johnny Yong Bosch - Voice Actor: "Twilight Princess was the game that let the Zelda series return to its roots in terms of character design. Its use of motion controls on the Wii remote are fairly light. The sword is merely waggle, and light slashes are all you need to perform any sword move. This felt much more natural and precise than aiming with the analog stick. But one of my favorite Wii games happens to be Super Mario Galaxy. Because, where's Nintendo without Mario? Galaxy was just a beautiful game. The environments were lush, the level design was incredible, and the music definitely felt like something out of a movie."

Narrator: "The next steps for Wii were to be more family friendly and smaller respectively."

Judner "UrAvgConsumer" Aura - YouTube Personality: "Nintendo released the Wii Family edition in 2011, this variant is nearly identical to the original Wii, but is designed to sit horizontally. The vertical feet are still present; however, the front labels are rotated and a stand is no longer included. The Wii Mini is a smaller (hence the title) redesign of the Wii released in 2013. which lacks YPBPR (component video/d-terminal) and s-video output, GameCube compatibility, online gaming, the SD Card slot and Wi-Fi support, and has only one USB port unlike the previous two models. But at the end of the day, Nintendo wanted people to have a gaming experience. And it worked. The Wii Mini is styled in matte black with a red border, and includes a red Wii Remote Plus and Nunchuk but doesn't include a pack-in game. A composite video/audio cable, wired Sensor Bar and power adapter are also included."

Narrator: "It looks like Nintendo can't lose. But that soon changes in 2012, when president Satoru Iwata releases what would soon be Nintendo's biggest flop - the Wii U."

Johnny Yong Bosch: "He was interested in the experiment about, 'Could dual-screen gaming on the DS work on console gaming?' Could you have an extra screen to build on the original Wii's innovative idea of immersive gaming? That was the original idea."

Abdallah "AbdallahSmash026" Elayan - YouTube Personality: "The whole Wii U debacle was an interesting one. The Wii U had very few redeeming features, the games didn't take advantage of the technology they used - with there being a screen on the controller. The extra screen was a gimmick... I can't say much else, except there was just nothing redeeming about it. And the ultimate frustration for me was the fact that the 'Wii' name was slapped on it. It certainly had no chance od success, especially due to the unusual choices they decided to make."

Sarah Natochenny - Voice Actor: "Sales of the Wii U were... just abysmal. People didn't understand it, the marketing for the console made people confused. It wasn't really clear what Nintendo was aiming for."

Johnny Yong Bosch: "Another thing with the controller was, some kids thought the controller was kind of like a Game Boy. It clearly wasn't, if the Wii U GamePad was away from the living room, you weren't able to play the game you wanted to get into."

Sarah Natochenny: "It was a cool idea, great thought, not a good console at the end of the day."

Narrator: "Because of the Wii U's abysmal performance, Satoru Iwata cuts his own pay by 50% in an effort to avoid laying off employees."

Johnny Yong Bosch: "Iwata was at the doghouse at this point, the successor to the Wii had bombed..."

UrAvgConsumer: "Iwata was someone who did not like to see layoffs. When 3DS sales were slow, he cut his own pay in order to save the jobs of his employees. The same thing would happen when the Wii U flopped."

Johnny Yong Bosch: "So, it was a pretty tough time. To make matters worse, Iwata was diagnosed with bile duct cancer in 2014. That double whammy would cause a lot of stress to you."

Narrator: "Iwata's first big failure has him down, but neither that nor his cancer diagnosis stop him from beginning work on a new console, and wanting to learn from his past mistakes."

Part III
Narrator: "By 2015, Nintendo immediately begins work on a new console that works as both a home system and a handheld, codenamed the NX. This new system has the potential to overshadow the failed Wii U. Undeterred by his cancer diagnosis, company president Satoru Iwata gets involved in the project, having both the handheld and home hardware divisions work together on this ambitious system."

Judner "UrAvgConsumer" Aura - YouTube Personality: "One thing you have to hand Iwata, he didn't even want his cancer to stand in the way of his work."

Johnny Yong Bosch - Voice Actor: "It wasn't too much longer that Nintendo came up with a codename for this new hybrid console. It didn't have an official name as of yet, so they gave it a codename, Nintendo NX."

Narrator: "Tragically, on July 11, 2015, Satoru Iwata dies of complications from bile duct cancer in Japan. His death is felt throughout the industry."

Johnny Yong Bosch: "He was also a husband, very much in love with his wife."

UrAvgConsumer: "The name Satoru Iwata was synonymous with Nintendo, and for this person to lose a battle with cancer... die such a meaningless death... the industry was just shaken up completely."

Narrator: "Iwata's legacy lives on in the new console, now called the Nintendo Switch."

Abdallah "AbdallahSmash026" Elayan - YouTube Personality: "With the Switch, you have a home console you can take with you on the go. It's perfect for your daily commute if you work for a big city, it's perfect for home gaming... it's just a great console. It was basically what the Wii U should have been."

Narrator: "This powerful new system launches worldwide on March 3, 2017 and overshadows the Wii U's abysmal performance, selling 17 million units by the end of the year."

Shigeru Miyamoto - Producer, Nintendo (Japanese): "One factor contributing to the success of Nintendo Switch, was the combination of gameplay styles it's capable of. It uses traditional gameplay, but also the handheld convenience of the Game Boy whenever you're on the go, as well as the motion controls of the Wii. So, basically, it's a combination of many of the gameplay innovations throughout our history."