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

[GamerzHell9137]

and that despite a $50 price cut last September, to $299

You mean canning the non deluxe edition is called a price cut? Lol no.
And the non Deluxe version was probably canned cause the Wii U needed more space for the Updates which doesn't really mean they cutted it for better sales.

 

[Arras]

OS can be updated so you dont have to use it, most of the games don't require it (some do though). but I agree they won't get rid of it. Maybe make it less bulky I'd be happy with that.

Changing everything would basically require reworking the entire UI of the whole thing though. Would probably be a ton of work.

 

[Thomas83Lin]

Changing everything would basically require reworking the entire UI of the whole thing though. Would probably be a ton of work.

Actually not so much, I've owned a Wiiu since launch and I've managed to avoid it mostly.

 

[Arras]

Actually not so much, I've owned a Wiiu since launch and I've managed to avoid it mostly.

Hm, really? I'll take your word for it, but I was under the impression that most of the navigating was done on the touch screen.

 

[Thomas83Lin]

Hm, really? I'll take your word for it, but I was under the impression that most of the navigating was done on the touch screen.

I rarely use much of the features so. I mostly navigate using wiimote\nunchuck. I'm done not really wanting to start ranting about the gamepad.

 

[DiscostewSM]

Nintendo never said it was a flop (that is what the author believes), but they know they need to do something if they want to keep the Wii U around. And if 3DS sales are considered bad, then consider all consoles/handhelds today are doing worse.

 

[Foxi4]

Nintendo didn't "confirm wii u has flopped" they confirmed it hasn't sold as well as they projected. Flop is a conclusion of whoever wrote the article. Shoddy "journalism".

Nintendo never said it was a flop (that is what the author believes), but they know they need to do something if they want to keep the Wii U around. And if 3DS sales are considered bad, then consider all consoles/handhelds today are doing worse.

They initially projected a 100 billion Yen profit, slashed it to 55 billion Yen profit and now they're projecting a 35 billion Yen loss. The Wii U's performance was so poor that it completely nullified the 3DS's great performance and then drilled a hole through the bottom, is this not flopping territory yet?

That being said, true, they didn't use "those exact words".

 

[bowlofspiders]

Hm, really? I'll take your word for it, but I was under the impression that most of the navigating was done on the touch screen.

You are forced to use the WiiU touchscreen in the systems settings. It also forces you to use it to type in text on Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate, which I find extremely annoying. You are able to navigate to games and certain features using mostly a pro controller/wiimote. It's a love/hate relationship for me.

 

[Foxi4]

You are forced to use the WiiU touchscreen in the systems settings. It also forces you to use it to type in text on Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate, which I find extremely annoying. You are able to navigate to games and certain features using mostly a pro controller/wiimote. It's a love/hate relationship for me.

I don't those features couldn't be changed with a system update, it's really not rocket science.

 

[osirisjem]

“We are thinking about a new business structure,” Iwata said at a press conference today in Osaka, Japan. “Given the expansion of smart devices, we are naturally studying how smart devices can be used to grow the game-player business. It’s not as simple as enabling Mario to move on a smartphone.”

Maybe Mario will appear on the Android store ?

Well you might get fired then.
2014 might be so bad, he'll need a miracle to save his job from shareholders.

Whoever either designed or OK'd the gamepad should be fired.
Terrible idea, terrible execution.
The gamepad is the major differentiating factor from the Wii to the Wii U - and it's unpopular. That's a major screw up.

 

[Arras]

I don't those features couldn't be changed with a system update, it's really not rocket science.

It could of course, but I was under the impression that a very large part of the UI was touchscreen-based, in which case the whole thing would have to be redesigned. If it's not though, then it should be much more doable.

 

[razielleonhart]

I believe in the Wii U. With that said i may not play my Wii U as much as other systems but its still a great system Nintendo needs to make a Pokemon game for the Wii U like X & Y or other great titles that we would love to see on a home system

 

[osirisjem]

..Nintendo needs to make a Pokemon game for the Wii U like X & Y or other great titles that we would love to see on a home system

I think that is a good idea.
Nintendo has no such plans.

 

[Gahars]

We already have a thread for this sort of thing, you know.

View attachment 5950

Spoiler

 

[Mariko]

Wii U's shortcomings

Wii U's main shortcoming is its similarity to the Wii. My mom, a person who otherwise never plays games, bought a Wii, for crying out loud. Now that she has one, she would never buy a Wii U. This is what made the Wii so insanely successful. Anyone could be a potential customer, because anyone could play it. And the games that came with it were enough for many. I bought a Wii U just before Christmas, and I'm really happy with it. Nintendo's own games are enough to keep me entertained (well, after trying the Wonderful 101 demo, I want that, too!). It's a fun console, and a relatively cheap one.

Somehow, I can't imagine anything else from Nintendo doing any better. I mean, had Nintendo released a proper next gen, it wouldn't have made any difference. It would have bombed just the same. Wii is a tough act to follow.

 

[Foxi4]

Somehow, I can't imagine anything else from Nintendo doing any better. I mean, had Nintendo released a proper next gen, it wouldn't have made any difference. It would have bombed just the same. Wii is a tough act to follow.

The Wii was a device for the casual audience and this audience now has smartphones - that's all there is to it. Had Nintendo released a proper Next Gen, capable of competing with the PS4 and the XBox One and didn't market it to an audience which doesn't exist no more, the system would have more games by now and it would be just as desirable as the forementioned two. That being said, sticking to the Wii legacy probably wasn't the best of ideas since the Wii was the last thing you'd associate with "Next Gen".

 

[Luigi2012SM64DS]

I still want my Nintendo Playstation.

 

[blaisedinsd]

I made the point in a previous "NINTENDO IS DOOMED!" thread that Nintendo is not in imminent trouble even if the Wii U is a distant third this console generation. These sales numbers are probably even worse than I was thinking but even if the company loses money overall on this console all the points I made then are still applicable. It doesn't mean that Wii U owners are not going to get to play great games on their Wii U and it doesn't mean that Nintendo is going to get out of the console business like Sega or others.

Keza MacDonald of IGN makes these points here http://www.ign.com/articles/2014/01/17/does-it-really-matter-if-the-wii-u-fails

I enjoy my Wii U and have lots of great games to play on it to the point where getting a PS4 or Xbone seems like a very far away proposition for me. I think others have made the point too that a desperate Nintendo is actually a pretty awesome thing for Nintendo fans. Basically they try harder and we enjoy the fruits of that.

So unless you are worried about console fanboy flame wars or are a stock owner betting on another smashing success you don't have much to worry about. You still get to play several games virtually guaranteed to be awesome in MK8 and Smash and Zelda among others so don't sweat it.

 

[DaggerV]

Why would one claim there are no longer a casual audience, that they moved on to smartphones, are you daft? The 3DS is doing decent as far as I'm concerned.

 

[Guild McCommunist]

Why would one claim there are no longer a casual audience, that they moved on to smartphones, are you daft? The 3DS is doing decent as far as I'm concerned.

...And not because of being a "casual device". Nintendo handhelds have always done well and will continue to do so. Even them I'm not sure the 3DS will reach DS levels of success. It'll still do great but not as great.