pubjoe wrote:Well said.
Also, as you say, even with their bread and butter games, they try to do something different. Shigero Miyamoto's been getting pressured for a new F-Zero and he recently said in an interview that he's not interested as he can think of little new direction it can go in other than HD graphics. While I'd like to see a new F-Zero, his attitude is admirably stubborn.

He's an artist and he wants to be inspired by what he does.
The nsmb series is fan service. I know that's got repetitive now, but that's an exception that proves the rule imo. Mario games had changed so much with each release that fans craved more of some old gameplay.
Even in a basic platformer, the level of control is second to none. One button can be used in such a variety of ways by timing it with Mario's animated nuances. It's not like games where x is a context sensitive scripted action button, but rather, Mario's jump is physically and satisfyingly affected by many variables of his position. It's hard to explain, but the elements of pure gameplay are so rich and deep, yet also very subtle. You begin to master this without noticing and after a while, almost instinctively pull off ridiculous feats. Nintendo still, after all these years, focus immensely on this. It's not innovation that screams at you, but changes they make in control are very noticeable during gameplay.
Contrast to something like 'The Last of Us'. It looks fantastic, great art and story borrowed from a great film. The visuals are amazing and set pieces dramatic. But do you think they've focused much on how it actually feels to control your character? Climbing and dodging are animation scripts, there's a huge detachment in control. A lot of these games mostly have you in a dull jog-around mode, you soak in the omgraphics scenery until something exciting switches you into a sort of 'Dragon's Lair' style scene where you watch a little animation and press a button or two (which are highlighted on screen for your convenience). The action on screen looks exciting, but there's rarely any gameplay innovation in the true meaning of the word "gameplay".
Nintendo aren't storytellers. They unashamedly just say 'Monster kidnaps princess' and focus on the playability. You don't see glimpses of storyline being revealed, you see glimpses of interesting looking areas that you know you'll be able to dive in and explore and manipulate when you get there.
...
There's nothing wrong with wanting to immerse yourself in a great story with incredibly realistic graphics. Different ways of looking at games. Personally, I find myself rarely willing to put in the time for that sort of thing anymore.