Nintendo president takes 50-percent pay cut in wake of quarterly loss

By Rick Marshall July 29, 2011

In the wake of yesterday’s news that Nintendo suffered its first-ever quarterly loss and plans to slash prices on the Nintendo 3DS, the president of the Japanese company put the blame on his shoulders and told shareholders he plans to halve his salary.

Nintendo president Satoru Iwata addressed shareholders today, and explained the decision to cut prices on the handheld 3-D gaming device, which has experienced lackluster sales due to a variety of factors — not the least of which is the low number of games available for the system and frequent delays (and cancellations) for in-development games.

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Iwata won’t be the only person on the Nintendo payroll feeling the financial effects of the underperforming 3DS, as he indicated that a number of other high-level execs will take 30- and 20-percent pay cuts, too. While he admitted that the 3DS itself cannot be profitable at the reduced price point (the system was reduced from $250 to $170 in the U.S.), Iwata believes the cost of producing the units will drop as demand rises.

As we reported yesterday, Nintendo’s financial reports recorded an operating loss of 37.7 billion yen for the April-June quarter, giving the company its first quarterly loss since 2003, when it began reporting such data.

In today’s statement, Itawa repeatedly referenced the importance of building up the 3DS library of games as the key to turning things around, and indicated that the company has no plans to release Nintendo 3DS games on other platforms.

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Grab these Nintendo 3DS games before the eShop closes

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While the Nintendo 3DS had a rocky launch, the handheld system recovered gracefully and ended up having one of the best game lineups of any Nintendo system. Many of these 3DS games, like Super Mario 3D Land and Fire Emblem Awakening, were very popular and well-known. Still, the 3DS had a lot of fantastic games that not as many people know about and threaten to be lost to time when the eShop closes down.
The 3DS eShop will shut down soon, preventing people from purchasing new games. As such, we've been reflecting on the system's vast library and all of the fantastic games that 3DS owners will no longer be able to buy digitally. From games that we think will skyrocket even further in price after the store shuts down to some enjoyable hidden gems that didn't get the attention they deserve, you might want to snag these 3DS games before you can't anymore after March 27.
Ever Oasis

Grezzo is one of Nintendo's most underrated developers. It's delivered top-notch The Legend of Zelda remakes like Ocarina of Time, Majora's Mask, and Link's Awakening. So what if I told you that it used that experience to make an original IP for 3DS that's one of the best-looking and expansive games on the system? Ever Oasis, a 2017 3DS game, follows a young kid as they help a water spirit named Esna build an oasis and try to save their brother from Chaos.
The result is a mix of 3D The Legend of Zelda and city management games. Players can venture out into surprisingly large open worlds and dungeons to restock and grow the number of "bloom booths." This mix of open-world exploration, dungeon crawling, and oasis-building will keep players engaged for dozens of hours, and it also stands as one of the deepest and best-looking action-adventure games on the platform.
Ever Oasis didn't get much attention when it launched because the Nintendo Switch had been released a couple of months earlier. Still, it stands as one of the 3DS' best games, so it's a shame that more people don't know about it. It risks being forgotten forever now the 3DS eShop is closing down, so check it out before the closure; it will surpass your expectations.
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Best PlayStation Plus Deals: Save on Essential, Plus and Premium

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PlayStation Plus (PS Plus) is the best way to get the most from your PlayStation gaming time, thanks to adding online multiplayer, free games, and a whole heap more for one subscription fee. In recent times, it has been expanded to offer three different tiers -- each offering varying benefits to gamers. PlayStation Plus Essential, PlayStation Plus Extra, and PlayStation Plus Premium all have their roles to play depending on how you play and what level of value you want to get from the service. Some form of PS Plus subscription is vital if you want to be able to play certain PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 games online with your friends, but there are more benefits than just that.

With PlayStation Plus, you also get exclusive deals on the PlayStation Store, Even better, there are free games to download every month that you'll be able to keep playing as long as you keep your PlayStation Plus subscription active. Until May 9, you also retain access to the PlayStation Plus Collection which contains some of the best games for both systems. Depending on the tier, you might get even more than that. Read on while we take you through the differences between the different tiers of PlayStation Plus, and round up the best PlayStation Plus deals and prices available right now, so you can save money if you want to play online, while also enjoying free games on the cheap.
What is PlayStation Plus?
Along with online multiplayer and other in-game network features, a PlayStation Plus Essential membership grants you access to exclusive discounts and other promotions. Perhaps the most notable benefit of PlayStation Plus is that every month, Sony gives subscribers one PlayStation 5 and two PlayStation 4 games that are free to download. You have one month to add these free PlayStation Plus games to your library.

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Nintendo confirms that it won’t be part of E3 2023

Pikmin and Bulborb in Pikmin 4.

Nintendo has confirmed reports that it won't be participating in E3 2023, meaning the gaming trade show will be missing one of its key vendors when it returns in-person this June.
"We approach our involvement in any event on a case-by-case basis and are always considering various ways to engage with our fans," a Nintendo spokesperson said in a statement to The Verge. "Since this year’s E3 show didn’t fit into our plans, we have made the decision to not participate. However, we have been and continue to be a strong supporter of the ESA [Entertainment Software Association] and E3."
After taking 2020 and 2022 off and being digital-only in 2021, this year was supposed to mark the grand return of E3, which was once a dominant game industry trade show that attracted every big video game company. Although Sony hasn't participated since 2019, it still came as a shock in January when IGN reported that both Nintendo and Microsoft would not be attending E3 this year as well. It appears that the report is true, as Microsoft has not confirmed any E3-related events outside of its independently run Xbox & Bethesda Games Showcase.
Nintendo skipping E3 2023 not only takes away a vendor that dominated the show floor in previous years, but also raises questions about whether or not the company will hold an exciting Nintendo Direct around then. While Nintendo typically holds a big showcase with lots of first-party game announcements around June every year, in 2022 it only held a third-party driven Partner Showcase in June. Now that we know it won't be at E3 2023, we're left to wonder when exactly then next big Nintendo Direct will be.
E3 2023 will take place between June 13 and June 16, but don't expect Nintendo, Sony, or Microsoft to have a big presence there.