The famous Nintendo Entertainment System, released on October 18, 1985, turned thirty and Nintendo celebrated it by watching its first commercial, and remembering how this console had the biggest impact in pushing and transforming the video game industry.
The console known as the Famicom enjoyed a massive success in Japan following its 1983 launch. After evaluating the success of the Japanese console, Nintendo began negotiations to market the NES in the United States. Nonetheless, distributors and retailers were not convinced about the project.
On October 18, 1985, the NES was released in the US along with a new video game business. The design and ideas that went into the console has shaped the industry since then. According to the numbers listed in Nintendo’s official website, almost 62 million NES consoles have been sold worldwide.
The trajectory
The Nintendo’s America president Minoru Arakawa spent a couple of years looking for buyers or partners for distributing the new console but came up empty, and no one showed interest in supporting his initiative. However, the company was not ready to give up on Arakawa’s project, so they sent an initial shipment of 100,000 Nintendo Entertainment Systems to the U.S. and had Arakawa and his team hold in a limited launch event in the country’s toughest market. Since that day until the end of the summer, the console sold about 50,000 and 90,000 units.
The new console launched within several games such as Bubble Bobble, Excite bike, Doctor Mario, Super Mario Bros. 3, Zelda II: The Adventure of Link, Contra Punch Out, Ghosts’ n Goblins, Battletoads and Mega Man (Series). All these video games are part of Nintendo’s trajectory and they are some of the most popular games worldwide.
Moreover, the NES may also be credited with ushering in a renaissance of gaming hardware from companies like Sega and Sonic. The success of the NES reinvigorated the US gaming market and, 30 years on, gaming is one of the most profitable entertainment industries today.
Source: Pacmag