Social networking, eh. What's that all about? Clearly, it's as much a curse as a blessing, and surely we're all in desperate need of a new approach.
I mean, I barely do anything on Facebook these days, and my feed typically seems to be the same half a dozen people talking, or showing off, about the same four or five things: babies, politics, music, holidays, running. Which is fine and everything, but it has started to feel restrictive and reductive, because nobody else is saying anything. It's a bit boring.
Unlike some, I enjoy it when people post the minutiae of their lives on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram - like we all did in the early days, before people started blocking us for it. So long as it isn't all showing off or whingeing, it's nice to read about and see what people are doing, what they're thinking, or feeling, or what they've bought.
Isn't that what social networking was for? Yet often we criticise those who do that, to the point where they become too paralysed, for fear of being accused of digital narcissism. These days, too many of us are too afraid to share, for what it might bring about in return.
Step forward Nintendo.
I mean, I barely do anything on Facebook these days, and my feed typically seems to be the same half a dozen people talking, or showing off, about the same four or five things: babies, politics, music, holidays, running. Which is fine and everything, but it has started to feel restrictive and reductive, because nobody else is saying anything. It's a bit boring.
Unlike some, I enjoy it when people post the minutiae of their lives on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram - like we all did in the early days, before people started blocking us for it. So long as it isn't all showing off or whingeing, it's nice to read about and see what people are doing, what they're thinking, or feeling, or what they've bought.
Isn't that what social networking was for? Yet often we criticise those who do that, to the point where they become too paralysed, for fear of being accused of digital narcissism. These days, too many of us are too afraid to share, for what it might bring about in return.
Step forward Nintendo.
THE NEW NORMAL
I wouldn't normally review a social media app on here, but obviously Miitomo is different; it's the first Nintendo product in many, many years to appear beyond the confines of Nintendo's own hardware.
It's potentially a signpost to the future of the company, an indication - even as it heads towards the release of its next standalone console - that Nintendo might not have total faith in its ability to continue as a hardware manufacturer.
Consequently, it's a pigeon step. Rather than release the obvious Mario game, it utilises the company's Mii characters to find a new way to get people to interact with one another. As a result, it's welcoming to Nintendo fans, and doesn't alienate newcomers. It's establishes a Nintendo way of doing things, a sort of primer in the Nintendo philosophy.
There are shades of Animal Crossing and Tomodachi Life here, a demonstration of how Nintendo can take established formats - as it did with Splatoon, for instance - and feed it through its own filter. In this case, it's Nintendo doing Facebook or Twitter. Indeed, finding friends is a simple case of linking Miitomo to your Facebook and Twitter accounts.
I wouldn't normally review a social media app on here, but obviously Miitomo is different; it's the first Nintendo product in many, many years to appear beyond the confines of Nintendo's own hardware.
It's potentially a signpost to the future of the company, an indication - even as it heads towards the release of its next standalone console - that Nintendo might not have total faith in its ability to continue as a hardware manufacturer.
Consequently, it's a pigeon step. Rather than release the obvious Mario game, it utilises the company's Mii characters to find a new way to get people to interact with one another. As a result, it's welcoming to Nintendo fans, and doesn't alienate newcomers. It's establishes a Nintendo way of doing things, a sort of primer in the Nintendo philosophy.
There are shades of Animal Crossing and Tomodachi Life here, a demonstration of how Nintendo can take established formats - as it did with Splatoon, for instance - and feed it through its own filter. In this case, it's Nintendo doing Facebook or Twitter. Indeed, finding friends is a simple case of linking Miitomo to your Facebook and Twitter accounts.
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
In Miitomo you create a character, then you answer questions about yourself - what did you last eat, or buy, or what you might think about dolphins - while dressing up your customised Mii in various outfits.
Your Mii then autonomously interacts with the Miis of other people - they might just wander into your house to tell you something random about them. These interactions earn you coins, which can be spent on new outfits, or wacky mini games. And yes, that mention of coins might set alarm bells ringing: we're in freemium territory, and there's a limit to how fast you can generate coins without spending real money.
The most significant success of Miitomo is how Nintendo-y it feels. That's going to be important for the company going forward. It proves that Nintendo games work on hardware that isn't Nintendo's own.
Whether Miitomo becomes a success is something that can only really be judged long-term. Already, I'm getting slightly bored by answering questions, and dressing up my Miis. The app might also prove too idiosyncratic and bizarre to have real wide-ranging appeal. When Facebook and Twitter work, it's because of how unobtrusive and open they are. Miitomo by comparison funnels you down certain paths, chooses the topics for you.
Once the novelty of creating weird-looking characters, getting them to speak aloud whatever filth your mind can conjure, or pose them for strange pictures - arguably the most fun it offers, in how it seems tailored to creating meme-like images - it feels slight.
SUMMARY: Very, very Nintendo-y, but long term appeal remains to be seen.
SCORE: 6 likes out of 10.
In Miitomo you create a character, then you answer questions about yourself - what did you last eat, or buy, or what you might think about dolphins - while dressing up your customised Mii in various outfits.
Your Mii then autonomously interacts with the Miis of other people - they might just wander into your house to tell you something random about them. These interactions earn you coins, which can be spent on new outfits, or wacky mini games. And yes, that mention of coins might set alarm bells ringing: we're in freemium territory, and there's a limit to how fast you can generate coins without spending real money.
The most significant success of Miitomo is how Nintendo-y it feels. That's going to be important for the company going forward. It proves that Nintendo games work on hardware that isn't Nintendo's own.
Whether Miitomo becomes a success is something that can only really be judged long-term. Already, I'm getting slightly bored by answering questions, and dressing up my Miis. The app might also prove too idiosyncratic and bizarre to have real wide-ranging appeal. When Facebook and Twitter work, it's because of how unobtrusive and open they are. Miitomo by comparison funnels you down certain paths, chooses the topics for you.
Once the novelty of creating weird-looking characters, getting them to speak aloud whatever filth your mind can conjure, or pose them for strange pictures - arguably the most fun it offers, in how it seems tailored to creating meme-like images - it feels slight.
SUMMARY: Very, very Nintendo-y, but long term appeal remains to be seen.
SCORE: 6 likes out of 10.
RSS Feed
