Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES)
Developer: Nintendo
Year Released: 1990
Generation: 4th
Also known as the Super NES, SNES, Super Famicon or Super Nintendo, was a 16 bit video game console.
When Japan launched the SNES, it was an International Media Event.
Tens of thousands of people lined up in the front of department and electronic stores the night before, hoping to pick up the new console. Many parents called in sick to work so they could join the queues. Nintendo’s initial shipment of 300,000 units sold out within hours and the resulting social disturbance led the Japanese government to ask video game manufacturers to schedule future console releases on weekends. Nintendo’s strongest selling point was the game packed in with the console- Super Mario World. This was the game in which Yoshi was introduced, a friendly dinosaur that carried Mario on his back.
By the time Nintendo released SNES in North America, Nintendo was facing stiff competition. Sega’s console had a new hip mascot, Sonic the Hedgehog, and was catering to older and more mature audience with games that were more edgy, dark and violent. Sega already had several advantages over Nintendo, including a much lower price and a larger library of games. Sega’s internally produced titles were also getter better and better. As time went by, it became clear that the market was shifting. Nintendo was slowly losing market dominance in North America. Just over three months after the SNES reached North America, market analysts estimated that the SNES had taken 45% of the market compared to Sega’s 55%, totally ignoring the NEC’s TurboGrafx-16.
However, the SNES showed remarkable longevity on the market, whereas Sega struggled to keep its audiences interested with its infamous consoles add-ons. When Sega was already busy releasing its next console, Sega Saturn, in the mid 90’s, the sales of the SNES were peaking, thanks to Nintendo’s lucrative collaboration with Rare on titles like Donley Kong Country and Killer Instinct, as well as due to the release of its own hugely popular Yoshi’s Island
