200°

Nintendo: Since Wii U Sales Will be Low, We Can Focus on 3DS

During the recent investor Q & A that took place in Japan, Tatsumi Kimishima, the President of Nintendo, revealed that although the Wii U is projected to drop in sales this year due to the NX’ impending launch, the executive does not believe that 3DS sales will be affected. In fact, he said that the upside of the situation is that Nintendo can focus on the 3DS for the year.

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nintendoenthusiast.com
LOL_WUT2939d ago

Like they haven't done so throughout the WiiU's whole lifespan? Seriously, this makes it seem like, even to them, the WiiU was an afterthought. ;)

HammockGames2939d ago

Amazing isn't it?

As a Wii U owner, it's been infuriating to watch Nintendo crank out new 3DS titles on regular basis while there are next to no new games for the Wii U.

Nintendo could have made compensated for that somewhat by taking a page out of Sony's book and releasing at least some of their new titles on both their home console and portable. Instead, their failure to do anything of the kind magnified the lack of games for the Wii U - as if the lack of 3rd party support wasn't bad enough...

_-EDMIX-_2939d ago

As much as that sucks what are they to actually do? There are in between a rock and a hard place the platform that has the higher install base and is giving them more money warrants more development for them to spend more money on titles on a lower installed base doesn't necessarily make sense.

It sucks but they're not honor bound to just crank out titles for a failing system. It happens, just don't take it so personal and emotional this is simply business. They just can't afford to keep spending money on something that's not growing.

MyDietEqualsGames2938d ago

They don't have the same setup as Sony. They did things their own way for so long.

It leaves me thinking they will hybridize and somewhat conform to how the market swings, rather than completely and utterly go against it, as they usually have in the past.

ABizzel12939d ago

As much as it sucks to hear this, at least they're being truthful and transparent unlike the spin city some of the diehards on here have held on to for dear life over the lifecycle of the Wii U.

The Wii U has had some great games, but 3DS has always been the primary platform for Nintendo all, but 1 year in an effort to focus on Wii U (and when Wii U sales still tanked, they ended it).

I'm truly hoping for the best when it comes to NX. Usually Spring / March / February is the time they release their handhelds, so that almost instantly has me believing NX is a hybrid tablet-console which would be fine IMO, with a potential base console releasing later that has better specs and functions nearly 1:1 with the tablet-hybrid.

Pretty much the concept of the Wii U, with the execution of the NVIDIA Shield Tablet + Console (aka TV). It's a risky move considering the Wii U failed, and Shield hasn't really taken off.

But the streaming from Wii U to gamepad and TV was by far the best tech from the Wii U, and even better than PS4 to Vita, so Nintendo would be silly to let that go to waste, and could even expand upon it from the tablet-hybrid directly to the TV. And while the NVIDIA shield line isn't blowing up the charts, they are AMAZING pieces of hardware (350 GFLOP tablet, & 512 GFLOP stream box) that are being sold at AMAZING price ($199 each). Nintendo isn't launching hardware until 2017, so they should easily be able to reproduce and improve this concept with much better hardware for a similar price especially considering new fabrications are out for graphics processors.

Dunban672939d ago

i honestly think it was to some extent- they never really believed in the Wii u unfortunately and it was pretty clear not too long after launch if not earlier

Sirk7x2939d ago (Edited 2939d ago )

I believe that Nintendo truly underestimated the time and resources necessary for HD game development. That's why we received a low powered console and saw many game delays. Nintendo handed out their IP to third parties quite a bit this generation, to help offset the work load required. You are most likely correct: They knew it was going to be bad soon after launch.

pcz2938d ago

nintendo have spat right in the face of wiiu owners.

pcz2938d ago (Edited 2938d ago )

actions speak louder than words. nintendo have always known the wiiu was a failure, but unlike sega and their dreamcast, nintendo are too proud and stubborn to pull the plug on it. instead they drip fed it pitiful games for the rest of its miserable shelf life, and got 3rd parties to make shoddy instalments of our beloved franchises.

i always thought smash bros on the ds was a clear indication that nintendo didnt believe in the wiiu version of the game, i think they made the 3ds version for security, so at least they could get a good profit from the game. i actually said this at the time of release, but as always, nintendo fans were wearing their mushroom tinted glasses.

the fact they released it on the 3ds first, even though the wiiu version was apparently the flagship version, says it all. to me, that was nintendo acknowledging the wiiu was a failure.

jcnba282933d ago

3DS is the best handheld in a long time. Nintendo has never had competition in the handheld market. They've owned it since day one.

;)

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 2933d ago
-Foxtrot2939d ago

All they've been doing is focusing on the 3DS...

DragonDDark2939d ago

Right? They didn't have to say it lol

Hold_It2939d ago

It's only fair that they focus on the market that makes them the most money. Sony gave up on the Vita forever ago for the PS4, because the PS4 makes them a lot of money. The Vita on the other hand does not.

Ruggadagod2939d ago

That's all you've been doing LMAO. Imagine if the PS4 was doing bad and the Vita was selling like the PS4 is right now.

_-EDMIX-_2939d ago

If it was you would see a majority of their support go to the PS Vita and less support go to PlayStation 4. Consider the reverse is happening and there no longer supporting the vita because of the low install base.

akaFullMetal2939d ago

Wow, just a slap to the face to wii u owners like myself.

_-EDMIX-_2939d ago

It's simply business. They can't just go out of business to make you feel good. If the sales don't warrant the development they probably shouldn't continue support.

Dunban672939d ago

Its bad business- The whole reason the Wii u performed so badly and cost them money is due to their lack of support day 1- bad business (AKA the Nintendo way) is selling a console to 12 million of your most lyal customers and not makng it right or at least making a reasonable effort- Nintendo was in no danger of going BK over the term of the Wi U- had they spent more time, energy resources etc on the wii u, they could have both made money and grown their market share- instead they did the opposite-
As a consumer video game company in which hand held and console divisions make up 90%+ of your business- you don t do a "thow away" like the wii u- even if they had to take more losses on the wii u to grow the market share and make their most loyal customers feel better about their purchase t would have been both worth it and a fairly easy investment for Nintendo to make as they have 8+.- billion cash on their balance sheet-

Who wold have thought that Nintendo's core customer base going into the Wi U launch was about 12 million? probably no one but that is were Nintendo s "business decisions" have got them today
It is in no way unreasonable for Wii U owners and Nintendo fans in general to expect more because Nintendo not only had more to give, the ability/resources to do so but chose not to- that is bad business - Nintenod has taken their customers for granted and it has been costing them for years now

_-EDMIX-_2938d ago

@Dunban- "Its bad business- The whole reason the Wii u performed so badly and cost them money is due to their lack of support day 1"

By whom? Nintendo?

I don't think if they came out of the gates day 1 swinging, they would get more sales. Sales of the platform, justify development, not development of games to justify future sales.

They released a Mario Kart, Smash Bros, Mario Game, it failed.....

If those failed, they where not moving units to begin with. You could state MORE Nintendo games would mean more sales....

Oh so MORE Smash Bros and MORE Mario Kart would get MORE sales? You sure? Consider Wii got 1 Mario Kart, Wii got 1 Smash Bros.

If those IPs can't move the platform, they where never going to that much in the first place. Thus, releasing their other lessor IPs like Zelda, Mario Party, Mario RPGs etc was not going ot be this HUGE 50 MILLION seller or anything of the sort.

That platform failed due to lack of 3rd party support, not first. As the missing IPs, have no history of moving enough units to actually answer why Wii U is failing.

:"As a consumer video game company in which hand held and console divisions make up 90%+ of your business- you don t do a "thow away" like the wii u"

You do when its not selling bud. Could you not say the same thing about Sony and the PS Vita? They can't just go balls deep and throw a bunch of money at it as if that will solve the problem. The reality is, it may never actually sell, why waste millions more? If the install base is 12 million, its just not enough to really justify putting more money into it. They where right to start focusing on 3DS more as that is where the majority install base is. Because of theses statements and what their history has looked like, I'm calling that NX is likely a handheld that outs to the TV to appease console fans, as its sounding like they are no longer seeking to make a dedicated console and only focusing on handheld. To allow the device to play on the TV screen, is likely a warm exit to their console fanbase as its starting to sound like they have no plans to return to making ONLY a console anymore.

With those numbers, they are correct to go that route though. Businesses don't just make choices based off of emotional or personal feelings, 12 million was not enough, thus they didn't produce more games.

Thats it. They make the platform to move the software, they don't make the software to move the platform. When you find out that software makes more money then hardware, you'll get why Nintendo and even Sony with Vita made this choice.

Dunban672936d ago

re your response below:
Yes due to Nintendo s lack of support the wii u struggled from the day they announced it-

Ubisoft supported the wii u about as well (in someways better) than Nintendo did the 1st 9-12+ months-
3rd parties are not to blame for NINTENDO S failed console- for third parties it is a simple business decision- and for the most part 3rd parties made the correct business decision to back away- look at Ubisoft again- they did support the Wii U at 1st and it cost them so they stopped- Why should they keep supporting the Wii U when 1) they are losing money doing so and 2) Nintendo is barley supporting it themselves

you have it backwards re platform sales and software development- no platform maker can COUNT ON people buying it just because it is there- you have to give most people (outside of the early adapters, hard core fans etc) a reason to buy your platform FIRST - the market has to BELIEVE in that platform to buy it- and the number 1 sales ammo Nintendo has is its 1st party games plus the hope in the public they will do what it takes to get at least a healthy amount of 3rd party games- they did neither- nor did they generate much hope in the marketplace via marketing - they barely released games on the VC the 1st year or more

I bought the Wii u at launch because it coincided w my sons b day and we had enjoyed many games on the wii (for the most part- but had purchased it later in its cycle)
But after the experience of how Nintendo treated the Wii u and the people who bought it, there is no way i will buy the NX at or close to launch if at all- I am sure i am not alone in this thinking- Nintendo will have to provide value FIRST before many people will line up to buy it outside its shrinking group of hardcore fans - and even among that group there will be many that will wait for their favorite games to be released before they purchase it. Nintendo is going to have to invest alot more across the board 1st to get the NX off to a good start and keep it that way- If they think they can make the NX successful with tepid support they will be wrong again
to quote Iwata, among others, software sells hardware not the other way around

TheColbertinator2939d ago

Keep those awesome 3DS titles coming. 7th Dragon and SMT please

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80°

Behind The Dangerous Stunts Of Nintendo’s Iconic Mario Commercials

Two married costume designers share stories from a decade of traveling the globe with Nintendo.

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gameinformer.com
282d ago
110°

Bowser Is Canonically 34 Years Old

In a YouTube video showing Nintendo Switch owners how to create a Nintendo Account, Nintendo of America revealed that Bowser is canonically 34 years old.

jznrpg344d ago

I saw Bowser when I was a kid and now I’m older than him , sigh.

Brazz343d ago

Wow, i'm as old as Bowser!!

Stanjara343d ago (Edited 343d ago )

He looks 55 to me.

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100°

Nintendo Is A Bad Company, But We Can't Help Loving Them Anyway

TG: “Most of us also grew up with Nintendo, likely forming a nostalgic connection with games that have long been crowned as our personal favourites. The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker was an experience that shaped my view on open world fantasy, and Super Mario 64 changed my life like it did for millions of others. These titles have earned their place in history, and remain loved to this day for so many worthwhile reasons. We replay them and beg for remasters all while delving into their worlds time and time again because they mean that much to us. It’s a shame then that the company behind them often kicks its own sweet darlings to the curb.”

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thegamer.com
Magog353d ago

I never got the love for Nintendo games personally. The annoying vocalizations and ugly character designs do nothing for me.

Kosic351d ago

Don't forget the constant hand holding with tutorials. Learn this new ability by pressing Y, now prove that you can press Y 8 times before you can move on....

Tapani352d ago (Edited 352d ago )

Another very weird article.

Nintendo is a great company by almost all possible normal measures. The biggest one being: their own staff is happy, and they seem to be very happy, well compensated and retain rate is solid. They are also financially very stable, profitable, and cash rich, so shareholders love them.

Overall it is an extremely creative group of people, and their mission statement is fantastic as well "to put smiles on the faces of everyone we touch. We do so by creating new surprises for people across the world to enjoy together." The social impact is also massive, not to speak culturally. Additionally, they have a really strong core business, high customer retention rate and loyalty. Nintendo's reputation is extremely good, I think in the US alone they are 9th most reputable company, their customer service is better than the average company. Plus, the press gives them a pass, because they are Nintendo. But there's a reason why they do that, it's not "because they are Nintendo", there are more layers to the argument.

Then, then there's the random negative gamers online...and their "reputation" which is inside their heads. And their western ideas of how a Japanese company should behave or what they should do. But they have no right to ask a company to do anything for them, because they can vote with their wallets.

There's a small vocal community online who dislikes Nintendo for what they are, but then again, there's always a small vocal community that dislikes something.

Nintendo also disagrees with the Western world about IP, but most people call Westerners "hidoi!" when they emulate Tears of the Kingdom and do not experience it the way Nintendo wanted them (even if it is not the best visual way), because it is a matter of principle to them (Japanese are very much against anything close to plagiarism, and there are laws that are tight about creative works copying etc.)

The Western Braveheart "freedoom!" shouters need to understand that it is not an American company, nor they need to behave like one. They can have their own fights based on their principles (against emulation). And they very well may lose the battle with that and change, or find a new audience.

In the end, it is so very simple. Don't buy the products if you don't like a company, but there's no need to paint a picture that is unrealistic about Nintendo either.

MadLad352d ago

I hate virtually everything about their business practices, actually. Suing everybody for virtually anything, shooting down fan projects, games they never let devalue, their online infrastructure and how they handle BC.

They're lucky they make great games, because that's the only thing I feel they do right.

gold_drake352d ago

my issue with them, is the complete refusal to have decent tech for us.

and their odd censorship and lawsuits for modders.