The N Factor

[Bond]

Excerpt from an EGM editorial by Dan "Shoe" Hsu - shoe@ziffdavis.com:

Why are they stiffing us (Nintendo)? The Japanese parent company is so protective of its assets, they're willing to hide almost everything from the press in exchange for warm, fuzzy feeling that their unfinished products are not being judged by the public. Needless to say, this is frustrating for us because we can't cover these great GC titles that we're excited to play and you're keen to read about. We've even sent a join industry letter (along with our friends at half-dozen competing magazines and websites) to Nintendo, complaining about the situation. (The reaction to the letter? "We're working on it.") But while we're waiting for old man Nintendo of Japan to ease up on his stinginess, we'll make the best of things and continue to provide the best GameCube (and other console) coverage possible.

EGM: We need screenshots of your new and exciting games, please.
Nintendo:We're working on it.

EGM:We need playable versions of your new and exciting games to preview and review. Please.
Nintendo: We're working on it.

EGM: We need a debug system. You know, the special machine that lets us play early GC games, including those from third parties, so we can preview and review their games and yours? Please!?
Nintendo: We're working on it.

This is also just a little excerpt from the editorial. It goes on to say how also leading third party developers, such as Electronic Arts, are peeved at Nintendo.

Now if anyone would like to say that Microsoft is like this, you are dead wrong. From personal experience Microsoft has provided and are providing their entire first party line up, upon some other videogames, real Xboxes and debug units to all of the leading magazines and their leading websites.