Gaming Nintendo Confirms Wii U Has Flopped, Slashes Sales Forecast By ~70%

[chavosaur]

A perfect example of marketing your products is taking a look at Sony and Xbox.
See, Nintendo continues to pitch it's product to children on children's networks during the daytime. That's all well and good for getting little Tim and Suzy excited for a Wii U and want one, but what about the core demographic Nintendo promised they'd try to re-attract? What about adult gamers looking for a casual experience? The Wii U isn't marketed towards them. It's continually marketed as another child's toy, and is instantly superseded by other commercials directed at kids that focus on Tablets and electronics.

Sony and Xbox on the thee hand, have perfect marketing strategies.
Sony's commercials pop up on all forms of networking, and are by far my favorite commercials. The whole "sharing is caring" song is one of the catchiest commercials ever and it perfectly shows off the fun that anyone can have on a PS4, whether it be the core demographic or Children.
Not to mention they do a perfect job of showing games that are released, and games that will be released in the future in their commercials, something that assures the consumer that the console is readily supported and they can know what to expect in the future.

Xbox is marketed perfectly for those interested in utilizing it as their all in one media platform. They have NFL players to endorse it, show off the media functionality and gaming functionality, and they show it AGAIN on all forms of networking.

If Nintendo were to take the time to try and show off the Wii U as a system that isn't just a kids toy, but as a system that can appeal to core gamers, while simultaneously showing off family gameplay, on a variety of networks, it'd start to garner more interest. The only commercial I've seen Nintendo use to show off Wii U abilities and show that it's a new console, is that one with the Kids that are showing you how to beg your mom for the new Wii U because it's "A total Upgrade mother." And it's a better deal then Hot buttered popcorn or whatever bullshit line they fed that kid. That's all well and good, but that doesn't help the Wii U prove itself as something other then just another toy to give your small child, and that your older kids wouldn't take a second glance at.

 

[calmwaters]

I don't see how releasing branded HDD enclosures is wishful thinking, nor do I think that pumping more money into marketing is beyond the realm of possibility. It's 2014 and some people still think that the Wii U is a tablet add-on to the Wii - that's an inexcusable marketing failure. The fans were where they are now, except Nintendo is following the Blue Ocean business strategy which may have been viable in the days of the NES and SNES but it falls flat now. Nintendo has real-life competition, they're no longer the absolute and unquestionable leaders of an industry, they're merely its part and have to adjust appropriately.

All you can do is hope they release branded hard drive enclosures; you can't do anything about it beyond this. It's just like you can only hope about a new Sega console: you don't work for Sega. And how much money needs to be pumped into marketing before that department becomes successful? Some people think the Wii U is a tablet add-on. But not you. So this "inexcusable marketing failure" really doesn't apply to you. And you, after all, are of great importance to their marketing department because you play console based titles on a regular basis. And I don't follow marketing campaigns at all and I knew that the Wii U wasn't just a add-on. So they can pump as much money into marketing as they want, but it won't affect me one bit. The same can be said of other people. Just like there are people who don't care about the Oculus Rift for its uses in gaming, those same people won't care much about Nintendo's marketing campaigns because those're centered around gaming. And Nintendo had real life competition in the days of the NES and SNES (you can attribute to this since you have most of those consoles); but their domination changed. And I don't think I heard you protesting when Sony switched their Final Fantasy development team to the Playstation because Nintendo kept their cartridge system. It wasn't important to you then; it's not important to you now. And you can't make it important now by complaining about it. Complaining gets you nowhere in this world. Children complain: I was one once so I know. But I don't do it much anymore; don't need to. I can do more things than I could when I was twelve; I choose not to complain because of this.

 

[Foxi4]

You've reverted to the same point of view as yesterday - that constructive criticism leads nowhere and that we should just accept whatever we're served up with a grin on our faces, hoping that it'll eventually get better. No, that's not how the industry works. Gamers speak up their minds, both vocally and with their wallets and if I disagree with something Nintendo or any other company does then I absolutely should complain about it and refrain from buying the product. If Nintendo wants their customer's money then they need to meet their customer's demands, that's essentially what it all runs down to. They're not doing anyone any favours by releasing systems and games - they're in this for the money, and if they want the money, they should adjust and meet the par.

 

[Apache Thunder]

Nintendo marketed the WiiU to an customer base that really doesn't exist for them anymore or the resulting lack of third party support as a result of the failure of the Wii to generate profits for third party game makers caused the WiiU to fail.

The "Casual" gamers they pulled in with the Wii, aren't really dedicated gamers so to speak and thus don't participate in the console/game upgrade cycle like with the main Xbox/Playstation market base. That evaporated with the rise of smartphones and smartphone games and with Facebook games.

So it's not really surprising the WiiU flopped. What's surprising is that Nintendo didn't see this coming and instead released yet another hardware gimmick (the tablet controller in this case) on what's essentially a higher end upgraded Wii in a vain attempt to bring them back and it failed miserably.

Not only that, their terrible marketing campaign for the WiiU didn't exactly help. If they are trying to market this to the normal gamer market again, I'm not aware of it, and that in lies the problem with their marketing campaign.

3rd party support was horrid for the WiiU and the Wii in it's later years, because the casual gamers that Nintendo marketed their console too weren't interested in those games and the AAA titles that dedicated gamers liked to play.

It's a big mistake for them and they better fix it soon or they will end up in the situation Sega was. Unlike Sega though, they still have lots of cash on hand and an handheld console that is still dominate in it's market and still generating profits for them. So they still have room to fix things before it's too late. They aren't even close to Sega in terms of where Sega was when the Dreamcast flopped.

But what they shouldn't do is drop the WiiU and try and release another console too soon. They are stuck with this thing for the next few years and they just need to keep it from becoming too big of a money burner.

If they drop it too soon, they will lose credibility with their customers like with Sega's constant attempts to revive the Genesis with the 32x and Sega CD add-on then dropping their Saturn flop with the Dreamcast.

By that point, people stopped buying Sega's consoles because the hardware kept getting replaced too quickly and thus it was a perceived waste of money if Sega wasn't going to support the console they bought. Not to mention third party game makers lost faith in what ever console they would make because they new Sega would just drop it and make another one or at that point they perceived Sega as no longer relevant or able to support the console enough for them to profit to making games for the consoles they make.

 

[Foxi4]

Let's get one thing straight - the Dreamcast didn't exactly flop, it was pulled from the market after Sega's higher management was restructured in order to avoid inevitable losses connected to the release of the PS2. The system was met with praise and had a very successful launch, so successful in fact that Sega was unable to keep up with demand and the console was quickly sold out. The sales slowed down after Sony's PS2 announcement due to the fact that the Dreamcast used GD-ROM's instead of DVD, plus the PlayStation brand was a mark of quality after the grand slam that was the PlayStation 1. The Dreamcast never suffered from a software draught like the Wii U does and its marketing campaign was very successful, it was a supported platform, it was pulled from the market because Sega had no resources to compete anymore. I don't find comparing the Wii U to the Dreamcast appropriate, I would sooner say that the Wii U is akin to the Atari 7800 - a system that was simply too little too late and as a result got pummeled by the superior competition.

 

[JoostinOnline]

The Dreamcast never suffered from a software draught like the Wii U does

I don't know why you keep saying that, I've told you there are tons of games for the Wii U now.

 

[Foxi4]

I don't know why you keep saying that, I've told you there are tons of games for the Wii U now.

When developers like Electronic Arts don't pay it any attention or when critical releases like Batman: Arkham Origins get DLC on every single platform except the Wii U then the problem is pretty obvious. It may have games, sure - Ubisoft supports it for example, but it's not exactly met with global praise like its competitors.

 

[calmwaters]

You're right, we should accept whatever we're served up with a grin on our faces: life can be pretty shitty sometimes and it's our job to make the best of it. But I have never heard of people's lives becoming better through complaining. There is indeed a difference between complaining and constructive criticism: teachers don't complain about you; they try to help you. Likewise, you should try to help Nintendo instead of complaining about them. I have yet to see something where you say you actually got Nintendo to do something. Don't keep dredging up Mass Effect 3 as an example that businesses hear when people complain. I think you said a while back that the game industry is falling out of connection with the gaming population. This, like the Xbone DRM, was just luck. My wallet goes towards Nintendo and so does my voice. Your voice goes for Nintendo too, but not your wallet. I don't see how since you can afford way more electronic stuff than me but don't buy anything. I would love to be in your shoes so that I could actually put my wallet where my voice is. I don't need much: just a few games, a console, maybe some friends. I don't set my hopes too high so I don't get disappointed by things like this.

 

[Mira]

sony should stick with home console while nintendo with portable ones....and that's one thing i fear of the future next gen.....i don't think sony would make a new handheld after ps vita and i don't think nintendo would make a new home one after wii u.....just think about it....microsoft and sony reigns on home consoles and sony have the monopoly of handheld!!

 

[JoostinOnline]

When developers like Electronic Arts don't pay it any attention or when critical releases like Batman: Arkham Origins get DLC on every single platform except the Wii U then the problem is pretty obvious. It may have games, sure - Ubisoft supports it for example, but it's not exactly met with global praise like its competitors.

Once again, you're wrong. Arkham Origins has all the current DLC. It even got the free pre-order Deathstroke DLC. There's one upcoming that probably won't be on the Wii U, but you should get your facts straight.

You don't even own a Wii U and clearly have almost no idea about the games that are on it, yet you continue to make a fool of yourself by spreading nonsense. You also talked about how they're overly expensive awhile back, but that isn't true either. Most of them are around $20-30, where as you're hard pressed to find a game under $50 on the PS4/X1.

 

[Foxi4]

You're right, we should accept whatever we're served up with a grin on our faces: life can be pretty shitty sometimes and it's our job to make the best of it. But I have never heard of people's lives becoming better through complaining. There is indeed a difference between complaining and constructive criticism: teachers don't complain about you; they try to help you. Likewise, you should try to help Nintendo instead of complaining about them. I have yet to see something where you say you actually got Nintendo to do something. Don't keep dredging up Mass Effect 3 as an example that businesses hear when people complain. I think you said a while back that the game industry is falling out of connection with the gaming population. This, like the Xbone DRM, was just luck. My wallet goes towards Nintendo and so does my voice. Your voice goes for Nintendo too, but not your wallet. I don't see how since you can afford way more electronic stuff than me but don't buy anything. I would love to be in your shoes so that I could actually put my wallet where my voice is. I don't need much: just a few games, a console, maybe some friends. I don't set my hopes too high so I don't get disappointed by things like this.

I am helping Nintendo by speaking up about my dissatisfaction with the product and services they offer to me, laying down the standard that I expect them to meet and refrain from opening my wallet before I see some substantial improvements or at least attempts to mend the situation that make sense. So far all I'm hearing about is their new Wellness programme, and I know exactly why it exists - because 20 million people bought the WiiFit. I'm sorry, I remember the Wii U being announced as Nintendo's return to the core gamer, was I mislead?

Yes, certain companies in the industry are losing touch with their customers, and Nintendo is a prime example here. Just like it was said a zillion times before, the Wii U was a system designed with the casual crowd in mind, the crowd that gets excited with motion controls, touch screens and tablets, but this crowd dispersed and bought smartphones ages ago. The Wii was a brilliantly timed system that tapped right into that casual demand, but that's a one-trick pony, I'm afraid. Nintendo needs to realize that in order to properly serve their actual customers, gamers, they need to cater to gamer needs. On top of that, they need to regain touch with the industry as well, as they still seem to be in the mindset that releasing games on their system is some sort of a privilege - it's not. It used to be when they controlled +90% of the industry back in the NES glory days and practically monopolized it to the point that injunctions had to be made against them, but it isn't now when they have two serious competitors.

Once again, you're wrong. Arkham Origins has all the current DLC. It even got the free pre-order Deathstroke DLC. There's one upcoming that probably won't be on the Wii U, but you should get your facts straight.

You don't even own a Wii U and clearly have almost no idea about the games that are on it, yet you continue to make a fool of yourself by spreading nonsense. You also talked about how they're overly expensive awhile back, but that isn't true either. Most of them are around $20-30, where as you're hard pressed to find a game under $50 on the PS4/X1.

*Cough Cough* Cold, Cold Heart DLC. Looks like I'm not the one who's misinformed here. Again, I don't have to own a system to judge its library and upcoming games - I can simply read.

 

[calmwaters]

When developers like Electronic Arts don't pay it any attention or when critical releases like Batman: Arkham Origins get DLC on every single platform except the Wii U then the problem is pretty obvious. It may have games, sure - Ubisoft supports it for example, but it's not exactly met with global praise like its competitors.

Electronic Arts has made some pretty stupid business decisions, wouldn't you say? I don't know how you think it would've been smart for them to ignore the Wii U. And how many owners of Nintendo actually care about DLC? I don't, and I'm as blind a fanboy as they come. I don't praise the Xbone or the PS4 for its features and I live on this earth. The point is is that 500 million people don't have to praise the Wii U for it to be a success: the Wii U will be a success if it sells consoles and games. Sure, the sales might be dismal, but it still sold. I'd rather have a few units sell than none at all.

 

[Foxi4]

Electronic Arts has made some pretty stupid business decisions, wouldn't you say? I don't know how you think it would've been smart for them to ignore the Wii U. And how many owners of Nintendo actually care about DLC? I don't, and I'm as blind a fanboy as they come. I don't praise the Xbone or the PS4 for its features and I live on this earth. The point is is that 500 million people don't have to praise the Wii U for it to be a success: the Wii U will be a success if it sells consoles and games. Sure, the sales might be dismal, but it still sold. I'd rather have a few units sell than none at all.

Of course it's smart of them to completely ignore the system if they can't get the sales numbers they expect and can't utilize the infrastructures they own. Explain to me why is it EA's responsibility to keep Nintendo afloat in any shape or form? Frankly, it's Nintendo who should be going door to door begging because it's their system that's in the sh*tter at the moment - EA can do perfectly fine releasing just on PC, PS and Xbox.

 

[chavosaur]

Once again, you're wrong. Arkham Origins has all the current DLC. It even got the free pre-order Deathstroke DLC. There's one upcoming that probably won't be on the Wii U, but you should get your facts straight.

You don't even own a Wii U and clearly have almost no idea about the games that are on it, yet you continue to make a fool of yourself by spreading nonsense. You also talked about how they're overly expensive awhile back, but that isn't true either. Most of them are around $20-30, where as you're hard pressed to find a game under $50 on the PS4/X1.

Most of the games selling for $20-$30 are the multiplats that released way too late on the Wii U such as Ass creed 3 and Arkham origins armored edition, or games that flopped tremendously and needed a price cut to bring in more sales, like W101.
I believe the point Foxi was making is that they're overcharging still for games like New super mario bros U or Pikmin 3, games that are hardly worth the $60 price point they try to hold for them. In fact, most f Nintendo's first party's tend to not drop from high price tags until years after their launch.
And you'd be hard pressed to argue what games are on it that I either can't play on an existin gen console for a cheaper price, or is a first party exclusive that at this time, isn't worth the coin.

 

[Dork]

You're right, we should accept whatever we're served up with a grin on our faces: life can be pretty shitty sometimes and it's our job to make the best of it. But I have never heard of people's lives becoming better through complaining. There is indeed a difference between complaining and constructive criticism: teachers don't complain about you; they try to help you. Likewise, you should try to help Nintendo instead of complaining about them.

What in the fuck are you talking about? We're just offering criticism on the Wii U, what are you going on about life as a whole for? Nobody is complaining about how stupid Nintendo is, we are offering genuine criticism, like stating how they can improve in the areas they falter in. If anyone needs to learn the difference between complaining and criticism, it's you.

I have yet to see something where you say you actually got Nintendo to do something. Don't keep dredging up Mass Effect 3 as an example that businesses hear when people complain. I think you said a while back that the game industry is falling out of connection with the gaming population. This, like the Xbone DRM, was just luck. My wallet goes towards Nintendo and so does my voice. Your voice goes for Nintendo too, but not your wallet. I don't see how since you can afford way more electronic stuff than me but don't buy anything. I would love to be in your shoes so that I could actually put my wallet where my voice is. I don't need much: just a few games, a console, maybe some friends. I don't set my hopes too high so I don't get disappointed by things like this.

Mass Effect 3 doesn't count? The whole Xbox One pulling a 180 on its original practices was just a huge coincidence? Yeah, okay.

I'm not even going to bother with the rest of that post because it's just one big ad hominem. If you're just going to dismiss someone's opinion simply because they don't own the product in question, fine. Listen to me then because I own both a Wii and a Wii U, so by your twisted logic my word now means something.

 

[slingblade1170]

Nintendo has been in a similar spot in the past. In ways I'm glad they are different than Sony/MS but then when it comes to online and multiplatforms it does suck that I must own two different systems to enjoy both worlds. Then again, I would probably own two systems anyways due to the gamer and collector part of me. Even though MS and Nintendo both have some issues going on I see them as a very nice combo to own because what I can't get from one I can get from the other.

As for dreamcast, it truly is a shame that it did fail but Sony got the best of them from third party and they had a dvd player which at the time was one of cheapest dvd players. Nintendo may not be able to get some of the hit titles that MS and Sony pull in but they do have the strongest first party which alone won't keep Nintendo afloat but it definitely helps.

I don't know how much DLC matters to the majority of gamers but it doesn't to me which is another thing that attracts me to Nintendo's products. DLC in most games feel over priced, dull and in RPGs it feels as if they are just added to make the game longer but less enjoyable.

 

[Foxi4]

A little game I call "List Wars" which I personally hate, but it illustrates the problem.

Battlefield 4 - it's on PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, PC... and it's not on the Wii U.
GTA V - released prior to the release of the PS4 or the Xbox One, but still available on Xbox 360 and PS3. Is it on the Wii U? No, it is not.
Kingdom Hearts 3 - PS4, Xbox One... not on the Wii U.
Elder Scrolls Online - PS4, Xbox One, PC... not on the Wii U either.
Destiny - PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, PC... not on the Wii U.
Final Fantasy XV - Xbox One, PS4... again, not on the Wii U.
Metal Gear Solid V, both Ground Zeroes and The Phantom Pain - PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One... no Wii U release at all.
Thief - PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One... and not the Wii U, of course.

Can we agree that this is a trend now? Because the Wii U appears to be missing critical multiplatform releases here.

 

[calmwaters]

I am helping Nintendo by speaking up about my dissatisfaction with the product and services they offer to me, laying down the standard that I expect them to meet and refrain from opening my wallet before I see some substantial improvements or at least attempts to mend the situation that make sense.

I wonder how many Nintendo executives visit this website to read what you have to say about Nintendo's business practices.

So far all I'm hearing about is their new Wellness programme, and I know exactly why it exists - because 20 million people bought the WiiFit. I'm sorry, I remember the Wii U being announced as Nintendo's return to the core gamer, was I mislead?

Isn't fitness big in Europe? We in America don't give two shits, but we don't represent the entire gaming population. It would only make sense to market an exercising game to people who like to exercise. Right? Why waste millions of dollars advertising something when people don't care about it?

Yes, certain companies in the industry are losing touch with their customers, and Nintendo is a prime example here. Just like it was said a zillion times before, the Wii U was a system designed with the casual crowd in mind, the crowd that gets excited with motion controls, touch screens and tablets, but this crowd dispersed and bought smartphones ages ago.

I like motion controls: I just wish there were more games that had a good grasp of what they could do. Here's a reason why I liked Wii Music. *dodges bullets* That jerking provided me hours of fun.

The Wii was a brilliantly timed system that tapped right into that casual demand, but that's a one-trick pony, I'm afraid. Nintendo needs to realize that in order to properly serve their actual customers, gamers, they need to cater to gamer needs.

Oh yes, gamer needs reach far beyond the traditional values of quality games and consoles.

On top of that, they need to regain touch with the industry as well...

Why don't you tell this to the rest of the developers? Nintendo's not the only one with this problem[quote...as they still seem to be in the mindset that releasing games on their system is some sort of a privilege - it's not.[/quote]Well then.

It used to be when they controlled +90% of the industry back in the NES glory days and practically monopolized it to the point that injunctions had to be made against them, but it isn't now when they have two serious competitors.

Those injunctions wouldn't have anything to do with Nintendo incorporating strict licensing fees, would it?

*Cough Cough* Cold, Cold Heart DLC. Looks like I'm not the one who's misinformed here. Again, I don't have to own a system to judge its library and upcoming games - I can simply read.

So can I.

 

[JoostinOnline]

Most of the games selling for $20-$30 are the multiplats that released way too late on the Wii U such as Ass creed 3 and Arkham origins armored edition, or games that flopped tremendously and needed a price cut to bring in more sales, like W101.

I don't know where you've been shopping, but that's not true. Also, Arkham Origins (sells for $30) arrived at the same time as it did on other consoles. You're probably thinking of Arkham City, which included all the DLC for free and was in 1080p (as opposed to the 720p from PS3/360). It sells for $18, cheaper than the PS3/360 version. Assassin's Creed 3 sells for $15.57, and it's also the cheapest.

I believe the point Foxi was making is that they're overcharging still for games like New super mario bros U or Pikmin 3, games that are hardly worth the $60 price point they try to hold for them. In fact, most f Nintendo's first party's tend to not drop from high price tags until years after their launch.

Actually $50, but those games suck IMO. It's not like Nintendo is the only company to ever overcharge for a game.

And you'd be hard pressed to argue what games are on it that I either can't play on an existin gen console for a cheaper price, or is a first party exclusive that at this time, isn't worth the coin.

By "existing gen" I assume you mean "last gen". The difference is usually like 3 or 4 dollars at most though, and 7th gen versions are often more expensive.

 

[Foxi4]

I wonder how many Nintendo executives visit this website to read what you have to say about Nintendo's business practices.

Welcome to the 21st century where there are whole departments specifically devoted to crawling the web and checking opinions on various websites. Perhaps Youtube would be a better outlet, but that doesn't mean that the issues can't be discussed here.

Isn't fitness big in Europe? We in America don't give two shits, but we don't represent the entire gaming population. It would only make sense to market an exercising game to people who like to exercise. Right? Why waste millions of dollars advertising something when people don't care about it?

Not sure if sarcasm or genuine question. Regardless of how big fitness and wellness is, unless you want Nintendo to become a gym equipment manufacturer, you should probably prefer that they invest money in their gaming departments, not Balance Board U's.

I like motion controls: I just wish there were more games that had a good grasp of what they could do. Here's a reason why I liked Wii Music. *dodges bullets* That jerking provided me hours of fun.

I too am one of the rare breed of people who actually enjoyed the WiiMote - I found it very enjoyable to use in a variety of games, it's the only controller that despite its original intention allowed me to settle into a couch comfortably and stretch my arms as I played instead of cramping my fingers around a small controller and I actually liked it. It continues to have potential and can be used effectively as a controller - my point was that it doesn't have the charm that it used to have.

Oh yes, gamer needs reach far beyond the traditional values of quality games and consoles.

You have to strike a balance between casual gaming and quality, traditional gaming.

Why don't you tell this to the rest of the developers? Nintendo's not the only one with this problem...

They're the only ones with an underperforming home console.

Well then. Those injunctions wouldn't have anything to do with Nintendo incorporating strict licensing fees, would it?

You can read more about the matter here - Atari lost the injunction. Also, errata on my end - it was 80%, not +90%.

So can I.

Yep.