Nintendo Switch Topic; #byebyenx

[BullockDS]

You know something that I couldn't help but notice with the Switch reveal? It's not something that bothers me per se, but ... something about it struck me as kind of odd.

You remember when the Wii was just coming on the market? Nintendo's mantra for the device, according the the late Iwata, was to "create a device even mothers would want to play". Their advertisements would show everyone from young children to parents to even the elderly playing the console. It was clearly being marketed as a device for everybody ... which was a marketing plan that really worked out for them.

So I find it a bit interesting that this new device seems to be specifically being marketed to young adults. Everyone shown playing the device in the video appears to be between the age of 18-25. There's no kids, no teens, no parents.

I find this particularly odd because ... this device seems perfect for today's children specifically. I don't know how much you guys pay attention to the little kids around you, but portable tablet style gaming is all the rage amongst that demographic. I always see kids constantly distracted by them while out and about shopping with their parents or going to fast food restaurants or whatever. Even at home kids these days tend to choose using tablets over playing games on TVs or PCs. So why aren't they targeting them at all with the portable aspect of this device?

I'm not trying to complain or anything ... it just struck me as weird strategically.

One way to think about this is that, often, children don't seem to want something made FOR children. They'll want something that teenagers/young adults enjoy (hence why so many flock to Xbox and Playstation more and more). So not only is Nintendo kinda implying a bigger reach-out to their older "core" audience by showing young adults in the reveal, they'll be potentially appealing to the children more easily.