With a total lifetime sales of over 9 million figures, it’s no doubt Amiibo has been a huge hit for Nintendo.
However it seems Nintendo has a different idea of how consumers should be using their Amiibo figures. The President of Nintendo Tatsumi Kimishima had this to say.
“A challenge that we’re facing right now is, our earliest goal for the Amiibo was to have these connected to software and have them enhance the play experience for the consumer, and for other consumers to say ‘I see my friend using this Amiibo with that software and it looks great,’ and again increase that attractiveness of that combination.
What we’re seeing instead is that the Amiibo are being picked up more as a collection item at this point, rather than, say, as an interactive item with software. And so we haven’t really established them as an enhancement for all of our software at this point.”
If Amiibo functionality was a prime factor in the development of all of Nintendo’s main titles, perhaps more users would use their Amiibo as intended. It also doesn’t help that some Amiibo had a limited print run creating a market for collectors.
Perhaps it’s time for Nintendo to make a game directly based soley upon Amiibo. For instance, An RPG with party members based on which Amiibo’s you own could be an interesting idea. Another example would be a game in which you use your Amiibo’s to work together to solve puzzles, which each amiibo type having a specific ability.
In our opinion, if Nintendo wants more players to use Amiibo as intended they’re going to have to make unique experiences involving them. After all, It’s entirely possible that Amiibo could pave the way to the next crossover title from Nintendo.
Are Amiibo a gaming accessory or a collectors item? Let us know what you think in the comments below!
