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The Future of Nintendo


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Following the expectation of absolutely everyone who has ever lived who doesn't work for Nintendo, the Wii U is a colossal failure. They're now forecasting over 6.5 million fewer consoles sold than previously forecast.

 

I think part of it is advertising -- they did a horrible job with the Wii U, and I still have family members asking me if it's a new peripheral they can buy for their Wii as opposed to knowing it's a new console. It's also even more gimmicky than the Wii, but less user friendly. The Wii worked because it was good for the casual gamer, but the casual gamer isn't going to upgrade that quickly. It's like expecting a casual movie viewer to go upgrade their entire movie collection to Blu-ray: not going to happen. But they doubled down with the Wii U and continued to ignore the hardcore audience that wants things like normal controllers.

 

So what does Nintendo do? Keep on the course, start work on an improved next console, or start putting out mobile games? Can Nintendo bounce back, or is the Wii U Nintendo's version of the Sega Saturn -- the beginning of the end?

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I'm a semi-serious gamer (less so than I used to be), I read Kotaku every day, and I seriously could not tell you one thing about the Wii-U. But if I looked to my right I'd see a Playstation 4.

 

The Wii was the beginning of the end, for me. I hated that console. Hated it. The whole motion control thing was something I was never interested in.

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The Wii definitely hindered sales to the hardcore gamer, but it easily could have been fixed had they desired to do so. There are enough Nintendo fans who are addicted to Mario and Zelda to make a console successful, if it's not gimmicky. The motion controls were bad enough, but the tablet is ridiculous. It adds expense where they easily could have gone for a cheaper alternative to the other two consoles, and given us real controllers. Instead Nintendo continued the "we don't care what consumers say" method, and it backfired majorly. Things have changed so much in the past few years that the casual gamer doesn't want a console because they have a smartphone.

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I think licensing and merchandising alone will keep Nintendo from dying. I think you also have to consider they consciously opted out of the hardcore gamer market awhile ago to target kids and families. I would have never gotten a Wii if I didn't have a kid. He is also the only person I know of talking about the WiiU. Totally agree in that I had no concept of what it was until I saw if.

 

It's like they wanted to combine the DS experience with a console? I don't know! My kid wants it cause he likes Mario games. That's the extent of his thoughts on it, and I suspect Nintendos as well.

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I usually make it an important practice to not wish failure on anyone, even in sports I want both teams to play awesome and it just be a last standing type thing (but blowouts in your favor are fun to experience too).

 

What I'm saying is... I dream of a day where Nintendo becomes an EA software mega-giant instead of a console+game publisher. I think Nintendo games are fricking great, but I am routinely disappointed in their hardware.

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I really hope that doesn't happen. Nintendo has been the most innovative and interesting company in the field. I just wish they'd back up a little and slowly add innovation as optional instead of making it mandatory. I still haven't played Skyward Sword all the way through because of the mandatory motion controls. But if I could play with a real controller I'd do it in a heartbeat.

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I'm a semi-serious gamer (less so than I used to be), I read Kotaku every day, and I seriously could not tell you one thing about the Wii-U. But if I looked to my right I'd see a Playstation 4.

 

The Wii was the beginning of the end, for me. I hated that console. Hated it. The whole motion control thing was something I was never interested in.

The N64 was the beginning of the end for me as a Nintendo console owner. I gave Nintendo another chance with the Gamecube, since I liked Rogue Squadron, Pilot Wings, Zelda and Waverace on the N64, but like the previous console, I found myself playing the other consoles more often. I skipped the gimmicky Wii and bought the PS3 and 360 instead. I do plan on picking up a Wii on the cheap, but that is only for about a dozen games or so. I don't see myself purchasing the under-powered Wii U anytime soon.

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That's a name I've not heard in a long time.

 

I've wondered if Nintendo is marching itself into obscurity. I personally LOVED the Wii, but I'm a casual gamer. I sort of left behind my hardcore, shoot-em-up games back in the N64 era of gaming. I like games for the very reason that Nintendo is still half-relevant-- their franchises (Mario, Zelda, Donkey Kong, Metroid, etc.). The motion controls didn't bother me. But almost all of the third party content was garbage.

 

The WiiU-- thought about getting one. Decided against it just because I had better things to put my money towards. Very glad I opted out. I have seen very little original content on this system. And even the classic franchises have gotten stale and uninspired. What are we up to-- "New" Super Mario 3? Nothing innovative there.

 

I still have faith that Nintendo can revitalize their franchise games, and who knows, they might be able to wow us with another console. While a lot of hardcore gamers may not have been fans of the Wii, the stockholders in Nintendo certainly were. It sold like mad. Do they have another in them? I sort of agree though that less focus should be made on revolutionary, break-through gaming experiences and more on just solid, good gaming experiences. When you shoot for the moon, it's a fiery fall back to earth if you don't make it out of orbit. If you are content to just fly in a high altitude jet, you're usually guaranteed a soft landing. I think these revolutionary systems just can't attract the interest of third party support-- they don't know what to do with it.

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i just hope nintendo doesn't do what a lot of 'experts' want them to do. and that's going mobile. i'm sorry, but generally speaking, i HATE mobile gaming. sure, it's fun to play tiny death star while taking a shit or when you need to pass 5 or 10 minutes. but when i want to sink in 30 minutes or 2 hours into a game, i wanna do it on a damn console with a tv. if nintendo decides to offer their games via ps4/xbox one, fantastic. but please. please do not do mobile.

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  • 3 months later...

Still haven't tried the Wii U in person to this day... and to think how much of a hardcore Nintendo fanboy I used to be back in the day. *sigh*

 

This generation (and really the last), I am going (and have went) with Sony. Just patiently waiting for the PS4 to drop in price.

 

P.S. Does anyone here by chance still post on here and remember me? I claimed this username like a boss. If I recall correctly, I registered back sometime in the late 90's. :wave:

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of course i remember you, anakin. i use to hate you. lol. again, i was 16 and posted under the name 'slipknotica'. those were the psx/n64 days when we all argued which system was better than the other.

 

 

nice to see you pop in.

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This will be the first generation that I've not owned a major Nintendo console, and I'm in no hurry to get a Wii U anytime soon.

I do recognize that the first-party titles that they're releasing are probably the best of their franchises, but that doesn't do much for me anymore. Another iteration of a Mario side scroller, Pikmin, or Mario Kart isn't enough to get me to invest in an ecosystem that otherwise doesn't exist. I do love those games, but I bought a cheap 3DS a while back and I feel that the mobile versions of games like Smash Bros or Zelda are more than enough when it comes to playing Nintendo software.

I also think Nintendo has lost their minds. They turned down the opportunity to make Skylanders a Nintendo exclusive, have been non-cooperative with gamers streaming their games for free publicity, and generally continue to pursue an imaginary demographic that isn't providing any real business anymore. I think it may take another failed console generation, but if trends continue, I imagine we'll see Mario and Zelda on other platforms by the end of this decade.

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This will be the first generation that I've not owned a major Nintendo console, and I'm in no hurry to get a Wii U anytime soon.

 

I do recognize that the first-party titles that they're releasing are probably the best of their franchises, but that doesn't do much for me anymore. Another iteration of a Mario side scroller, Pikmin, or Mario Kart isn't enough to get me to invest in an ecosystem that otherwise doesn't exist. I do love those games, but I bought a cheap 3DS a while back and I feel that the mobile versions of games like Smash Bros or Zelda are more than enough when it comes to playing Nintendo software.

 

I also think Nintendo has lost their minds. They turned down the opportunity to make Skylanders a Nintendo exclusive, have been non-cooperative with gamers streaming their games for free publicity, and generally continue to pursue an imaginary demographic that isn't providing any real business anymore. I think it may take another failed console generation, but if trends continue, I imagine we'll see Mario and Zelda on other platforms by the end of this decade.

 

 

This. i have an almost 4 year old son, and i had to invest in something nintendo, but i couldn't invest in the wii u. got the 3ds back in february and haven't looked back. have the new zelda, donkey kong and a couple of batman lego games and it's just magic for him. and it takes me back. i really enjoy playing these games with him and reliving my childhood memories.

 

it's a shame, nintendo has an incredible 1st party line-up. but it's just not enough anymore. i'm holding on to a bit of hope that somehow they'll rebound. it is nintendo. they've done it before. for some reason, with square-enix just being dreadful anymore and essentially a crap company that clearly doesn't care or have the best interests of their loyal fans in mind, there could be a nintendo/square marriage and a turn around for the ages. it's wishful thinking.

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Guest El Chalupacabra

I think licensing and merchandising alone will keep Nintendo from dying. I think you also have to consider they consciously opted out of the hardcore gamer market awhile ago to target kids and families. I would have never gotten a Wii if I didn't have a kid. He is also the only person I know of talking about the WiiU. Totally agree in that I had no concept of what it was until I saw if.

 

It's like they wanted to combine the DS experience with a console? I don't know! My kid wants it cause he likes Mario games. That's the extent of his thoughts on it, and I suspect Nintendos as well.

 

I really hope that doesn't happen. Nintendo has been the most innovative and interesting company in the field. I just wish they'd back up a little and slowly add innovation as optional instead of making it mandatory. I still haven't played Skyward Sword all the way through because of the mandatory motion controls. But if I could play with a real controller I'd do it in a heartbeat.

See the thing is, they do make a regular controller, called the Wii U Pro Controller. In fact, THAT should have been the standard controller, and it should have been fully compatible with every Wii u game.

 

If they wanted a controller with a screen for enhanced game play, it should have been an optional enhancement. Talk about a missed opportunity to integrate the DS experience with the console. Instead of having a Wii U game pad, I think they could have EASILY created a snap on for the DS, so that it could operate the way the Wii U game pad does. It has all the hardware there for it. It could have increased DS and Wii U sales.

 

Another example of why Nintendo is failing the casual gamer ( or maybe aging casual gamer): backwards compatibility. The last Nintendo system I bought was the Gamecube (which mine still runs perfectly BTW. That speaks volumes about the awesome engineering of Nintendo products), and what actually sold me on it was the fact that it had an adapter for old gameboy games, and they had re-released older Zelda games on a disc. I actually considered getting a Wii U, until I heard that GC game discs are not compatible.

 

I don't game very often at all. In fact, I rarely do anymore, but when I do I like to play old games, as well as newer ones. I'd like to upgrade to a newer console but I also like to keep my old games around, and I don't want to have two Nintendo consoles to do that. The GC games were compatible on the Wii, so what happened with the Wii U? In this day and age where everything is on game disc, why is this? Why make a new generation console that can't play previous generation games discs? Sure, you can download games, but why pay to download a game you might already have a physical copy of? I know the stated reason is cost of designing consoles to run emulators, but if PCs can do it, or you can hack consoles to play ROMS, I am sure console manufacturers find an affordable way to incorporate backwards compatibility, without requiring the customer to repurchase games they already have.

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Tech that isn't integrated into the default system never has seen substantial success or support by anyone other than the 1st Party.

 

The Wii motion stuff was originally going to be an add-on for the Cube, but Nintendo smartly recalled history and knew they could easily just make a Cube 1.9 as a whole new system. They did the same again with the Wii to Wii U.

 

Designing the Wii U to use the Pro Controller by default would have put to market the GameCube "2.5". Telling devs that the DS can plug in or snap on with [insert thing] would get groans in return.

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I have to agree. I have owned every Nintendo home console ever. I cant help it I am loyal. I liked the Wii. The Wii U on the other hand is not all that great. I think Its time for Nintendo to go 3rd party for consoles at least. Gameboy should always have a market. I would love to see Metroid on Sony's Morpheus. Zelda One anyone?

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