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Hell hasn’t frozen over just yet, but it’s definitely getting a little colder down there. According to Nintendo software engineer Nando Monterazo, Nintendo is has been hard at work on a new tablet, and it’s based on the best mobile OS on the planet: Android.
Monterazo spilled the beans on Twitter where he says he’s currently testing the “communication environment” of educational games kids will be playing on the new Nintendo tablet. Yes, you heard right. Looks like this will be an educational tablet aimed solely for children (think Leap Frog or Nabi Tablet).
It’s been one year since the Nintendo Wii U was released and there’s no question that the console has gotten off to a very slow start. But it seems Nintendo could be looking for new hardware avenues to help generate some additional revenue. We’re not sure how big of a market there is for educational kids tablets, but it’s nice to see Nintendo thinking outside their normally rigid box.
While it appears that this mystery Nintendo tablet is indeed in the works, whether or not it will ever see the light of day on these shores is another matter entirely. Would anyone be interested in picking up an Android-based Nintendo tablet for the kiddies? Do you think this would launch with KitKat or Gingerbread?
via WiiUDaily
Mario has chosen Android? Yes please!
Thanks,…but no thanks
I was excited at first, then I got to the kids part…
If this is a success, maybe they’ll be inclined to invest more into Android.
Like… an official emulator for their consoles!? I mean it’s not hard…
1. Buy up existing emulators or create your own
2. Sell games through in-app purchases.
3. Profit..
All this wishful thinking. I’m thinking the same too. I’m hoping it happens.
well… nintendo and kids are almost of synonymous at this point
To me Nintendo is synonymous to Mario, also known as my childhood. I still play super mario world on my Wii :)
Because I don’t still have my Super Nintendo to play that Super Mario World. That was my game right there.
I need to get that map music on my phone. All the areas. LoL!!
I sold my SNES but got that game for my Wii :) (homebrew and emulator)
This makes a lot of sense. Nintendo used to develop quite a few educational games back in the day, but seem to have lost focus on that segment over the last decade or so. With their success and know-how in handhelds, this seems like a no-brainier.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Mario_educational_games
I’d get this for my daughter in a heartbeat (and I’m fairly certain i’d find myself using it as well)
I pray to Wario this is true.
I think they would be better off selling games on the play store then trying to get people to buy a new tablet. they are competing with themselves a little bit(3ds). I know it’s not a tablet but still kids looking for a gaming system. they could make a ton of money from selling expensive games on the play store since a lot of people have access to it
No because that’s basically going third-party and that’s not Nintendo.
And Nintendo only release software for their hardware.
I never said they would. I said they should
And I say that’s still wrong.
yes, because Wii U sales are doing great. They’re slowly becoming more phased out of the gaming industry(not saying they’re going anywhere soon)
So just because the Wii U is struggling right now Nintendo should just start putting games on play store despite the fact that the original Wii dominated the PS3 and 360 and the 3DS is doing great Nintendo should just lower themselves to mobile games?
Knowing Nintendo…it will launch with Froyo.
Don’t get me wrong, they make great items but the technology they use has typically always been rather outdated (2GB of RAM in a next generation system…with only 1GB to be used for games…seriously?).
cupcake, heavy UI, 400 mhz single core processor, 128 mb ram, 40 mb user space, pretty much like the original htc dream/g1, but in tablet form.
If they release their games on the Play Store such as Mario Kart, I’ll gladly pay 3/4 their original retail price.
Heck, if they put it on the Play Store, I’d gladly pay 4/3!
I know I’d be so excited! Does anyone knew if Atari is still bringing Rollercoaster to mobile?
The only good thing would be Pokemon apks: D
I would love an Android version of the older Pokemon instead of the emulators. That way we’d be able to trade.
Some wishful thinking, but those apps would be compatible with the 3DS versions and stuff. =.D
I will be happy to get android versions though and sell my DS/ delete the emulation roms :P
Like many have stated just release your old classics for Android via play store or an emulator and we’re all happy.
I would buy this over the Wii U
I would buy this, only if like others have stated we can their classics on it nes,snes,n64,gamecube games.
And thus, the tip of the iceberg breaks
They should just release the educational stuff for their wiiU gamepad/controller/tablet thingy. While the kids learn on that, might aswell get a wiiU and some games too :P
Why a tablet instead of utilizing their just released 2DS. I’m sure the 2DS is cheaper than a tablet would be and they would have a much more controlled and “child safe” environment than a tablet I would think.
Can we get a tablet for big kids please.
Your article title was beyond perfect. LoL!! I laughed so hard. You have no idea.
Do you know what this means? Maybe Nintendo will let that developer make his app again. There was this Pokedex app which pretty much was an offline version of Pkmndex. It went up to Black 2 and White 2 before Nintendo told him to stop.
Oh my gosh!! I hope they lighten up. I would love to see more apps like that.
Which os? Why Nintengerbread of course.
clever!
R.I.P. Nintendo Power
Now I know what to get my nieces next year (already ordered all these Lego sets)
Please don’t make it something gawdy and oversimplified like a Vtech that children actually recognize is the kid’s version of the thing their parent uses.
This is actually a very smart idea by Nintendo. Exploring different avenues and hopefully releasing Nintendo-related games in the play store.
I would hope that the tablet could also connect to the Wii U to be used as a controller (since the consoles controller is a tablet as well).
Now I had a bad feeling about this. Best of the Nintendo games like Mario, Zelda, etc would have no longer have their own exclusive characteristics when they developed these games for Android platform.
I dont think Nintendo would let people download them through the play store. They would probibly make a Nintendo E-Shop App seperate from it. That would not allow regular Android users to access them completly.
If they push out Nintendo games for this thing like how Sony put PS games on their device, I’d buy one in a heart beat. I’m not really a Nintendo fanboy.. just like a couple games, like Zelda, but I do love Android..
Also, I will say that I believe that with Nintendo pushing Android, it will likely give Android a big boost in popularity… not that Android needs the help. But I think the peeps that buy iPhone just because they “don’t know what the heck a Samsung is” will start paying more attention to Android. I know some might roll their eyes at that, but I’d like to see Google rule the world and crush their competitors! :P
Now just imagine a full fledged next gen Nintendo console with Google Play services as the centerpiece. That instantly gives them media leverage against Microsoft and Sony and would be the ‘Google’ console. Nintendo NEEDS to do this or they will be the Blackberry of the video game industry.
Rationally speaking, Nintendo launching it’s software and IPs on Android and iOS would give them such a stupid amount of money it would negate any potential loss of people not buying their console and hardware.
Targeting kids might be profitable if the device is built right.
Hmmm this is incredible. Its an initiation to graduate to other Nintendo devices.
Nintendo has always restricted its software sales to its own hardware. They feel this gives them a greater degree of creative freedom then if they made their games for different platforms. I don’t see this changing anytime soon. If Nintendo made an android tablet I imagine that they would restrict Nintendo apps to the Nintendo tablets. Still if the Wii U had access to google playstore imagine what more it could do. I do see the Wii U as an attempt to merge handheld and console markets maybe this is the first step of phase 2 of that process.
All they need to do is not allow there 1rst party content to be accessible with other Android devices and there set. Maybe make the game a different format.