Nintendo is to blame for poor Wii U sales, says Iwata

[JoostinOnline]

All they need is 5 new Nintendo IPs and it is problem solved, if I were Nintendo I would put my money in making new IPs and new games to milk.

Because E3 showed they aren't doing that. Oh wait....

 

[The Catboy]

About fucking time Nintendo!
Now start fixing this shit already!

 

[Chaossaturn]

Because E3 showed they aren't doing that. Oh wait....

When I say new IP, I mean 100% new games not another donkey kong, zelda, wii sports, etc. New IP's with new characters.

 

[Deleted_171835]

When I say new IP, I mean 100% new games not another donkey kong, zelda, wii sports, etc. New IP's with new characters.

Well they've done a couple new IPs. The Wonderful 101 (funded and published by Ninty), X and a bunch of lower-scale digital games.

 

[tronic307]

The Wii sold so well that Nintendo decided to disguise their next console as a Wii. Not only did Nintendo pattern the form factor after the Wii, but they made the console take a backseat to the GamePad in every presentation from E3 2011 onwards. With no close-up shots, and the console shown out of focus most of the time, even some experienced gamers could not readily distinguish the Wii U as a new system. Iwata's honesty is refreshing, and hindsight is 20/20, but the Wii U's vague branding has been a known issue for over two years.

 

[Chaossaturn]

Well they've done a couple new IPs. The Wonderful 101 (funded and published by Ninty), X and a bunch of lower-scale digital games.

Yeah they're good games but there needs to be new strong IPs, where (casual) gamers look at it and go that's nintendo. So new IP that will be as strong as mario, donkey kong, starfox, zelda, etc. All them IPs you listed are great but there will go unnoticed by the casual gamers where as if there made more new strong IPs, there will help the console to do very well or help there future at the very least as it may take time for them to seen as strong IPs.

 

[Rock Raiyu]

Well no shit, whose fault would it be?

 

[ForteGospel]

almost the same thing happened to the 3ds... nintendo started with poor first party support so that third party could get a chance, third parties started to delay and cancel gaems so the 3ds wii u didn't have many games... then nintendo released a bunch of firsts parties and then third parties delayed their gaems even more because "we cant compete against nintendo gaems"... until the storm calmed and the glory of third party support came to life

 

[war2thegrave]

Only in the business world would blaming consumers for not getting excited about half-assed gimmicks be considered "taking responsibility".

 

[the_randomizer]

Only in the business world would blaming consumers for not getting excited about half-assed gimmicks be considered "taking responsibility".

It worked for the Kinect, the PS move or Vita, right?

 

[Gahars]

Nintendo taking responsibility for their errors? Great, now I have to rework the chart.

EA = Cassius
Ubisoft = Brutus
Nintendo = Julius Caesar

Edit: On a serious note, it's good to see Nintendo acknowledging the many, many mistakes they've made. At the same time, though, talk is cheap. It's one thing to state the flaws and quite another to actually do something about them.

Nintendo's squandered their lead so far. Sony looks like it's going to be providing some incredibly tough competition, and I wouldn't be surprised if even the Xbox One can scrounge together some decent sales off brand name alone. If Nintendo wants a chance to win this uphill battle, they're going to have to get their act together fast.

 

[ggyo]

Better to admit one's own faults and learn from them than to live in a dreamland of denial as though nothing was amiss. Now for the tricky part, improving the marketing behind the console and attract potential buyers. It won't be easy, but the only direction to go now is forward.

... But wait... really?

So you won't deny that the WiiU has no games and isn't selling anymore? And that I stack more paper and get more b****es than you too?

Wow... We certainly won't be hearing something like this from Sony or Microsoft (especially Microsoft, but Sony still is at fault with Vita). As for what he said, good points, and I really hope they will make up for it. And fast, before the PS4 will be launched. (or else, I'll probably start thinking of joining the Nintendoomed club here on GBATemp).

Yeah, but what has Microsoft messed with up yet without amendment? RROD? They gave 3-year extended warranties for it. Everything else has been golden. Sony HAS been doing this. They've apologized to investors for the $180+billion losses since 2000, they've addressed poor Vita sales, they compensated consumers when PSN was down... Nintendo is THE most proud of the big three. They never addressed bad third-party support for the Wii until near the end of it's lifecycle, they never apologized for releasing an unfinished product in the Wii controller only to release the Wii Motion+ add-on, pretending everything was okay, or the mistake to not build a second circle pad onto the 3DS... instead releasing another bullky add-on. There are dozens of examples, and their apologies are poor. Saying this doesn't fix anything, and f*** the ambassador games they gave me. Minish Cap and Fire Emblem are the only notable ones, and they're not worth $100.

It worked for the Kinect, the PS move or Vita, right?

Kinect sold/is selling well, and though the software support isn't all AAA, it's stilling getting software support. Core gamers may have disdain for Kinect, but it would be worse if Microsoft flat-out stopped supporting the device. That's called commitment, Nintendo.

 

[Mantis41]

Surprising quotes, but then again, they're from the a Japanese company. As for the reasoning behind the quotes, I pretty much agree. Quite a few people still seem to regard the WiiU as an accessory for the original Wii ("HDMI output and a touch screen controller for the Wii? Cool, but I'm fine with the basic Wii").

Christ I wish people would stop saying this!

Iwata has put it right. He wants people to stop, look at the WiiU, and say, "this is brilliant and I want one." At the moment this just isn't happening. Yes! Most casual gaming households where the Wii made most of it's sales do not see a reason to spend £250 but it has nothing to do with confusion over it being a fucking accessory.

 

[weavile001]

Yeah they're good games but there needs to be new strong IPs, where (casual) gamers look at it and go that's nintendo. So new IP that will be as strong as mario, donkey kong, starfox, zelda, etc. All them IPs you listed are great but there will go unnoticed by the casual gamers where as if there made more new strong IPs, there will help the console to do very well or help there future at the very least as it may take time for them to seen as strong IPs.

Rhythm Heaven and Golden Sun are Way Better than Mario..........

 

[ggyo]

Rhythm Heaven and Golden Sun are Way Better than Mario..........

I'm waiting for an HD, console Golden Sun with a huge, explorable 3D world. That would be incredible. Even a 3DS addition would be great, but the Dark Dawn was half as good as the GBA titles. Still good, but not great.

 

[Bobbybangin]

Nintendo is facing the classic 'the chicken or the egg' scenario. They need to sell more consoles to get third party support, but would sell consoles better if they already had third party support.

 

[chavosaur]

At least he openly admits to it, which I respect. Lord knows I'm not Wii U's biggest fan at the moment (even though I own one)
But it's the little things like this that make me hold onto hope that the console will turn around.

 

[the_randomizer]

... But wait... really?

So you won't deny that the WiiU has no games and isn't selling anymore? And that I stack more paper and get more b****es than you too?

Yeah, but what has Microsoft messed with up yet without amendment? RROD? They gave 3-year extended warranties for it. Everything else has been golden. Sony HAS been doing this. They've apologized to investors for the $180+billion losses since 2000, they've addressed poor Vita sales, they compensated consumers when PSN was down... Nintendo is THE most proud of the big three. They never addressed bad third-party support for the Wii until near the end of it's lifecycle, they never apologized for releasing an unfinished product in the Wii controller only to release the Wii Motion+ add-on, pretending everything was okay, or the mistake to not build a second circle pad onto the 3DS... instead releasing another bullky add-on. There are dozens of examples, and their apologies are poor. Saying this doesn't fix anything, and f*** the ambassador games they gave me. Minish Cap and Fire Emblem are the only notable ones, and they're not worth $100.

Kinect sold/is selling well, and though the software support isn't all AAA, it's stilling getting software support. Core gamers may have disdain for Kinect, but it would be worse if Microsoft flat-out stopped supporting the device. That's called commitment, Nintendo.

Well, you know the old saying "bros before hoes" right? If anything, I should be the one who gets more. All I'm saying is that Nintendo needs to improve their marketing strategies, but the Wii U is salvageable still. It will require tremendous effort on their part though. Nothing more The games will come, that people cannot deny. I still believe that the Wii U will be saved and that more support will come, but I won't or can't deny that it's in a pretty sticky situation, on that we can agree. I still enjoy the games (or ports like NFSMW) nonetheless.

 

[FAST6191]

Nintendo is facing the classic 'the chicken or the egg' scenario. They need to sell more consoles to get third party support but would sell consoles better if they already had third party support.

Not necessarily -- all companies entering an established market (and Wii U power consoles is a well established market) face a similar issue. It is usually solved by pouring in a lot of money to advertising, targeted partnerships and other such things.

 

[the_randomizer]

Not necessarily -- all companies entering an established market (and Wii U power consoles is a well established market) face a similar issue. It is usually solved by pouring in a lot of money to advertising, targeted partnerships and other such things.

It's paradoxical nonetheless; companies don't port games due to assumptions of not being profitable, consoles don't sell due to lack of games. Wii U needs more efficacious, assertive advertising.