Nintendo Cuts Wii U's Sale Forecast.

[daimashin]

Nintendo has slashed the number of Wii U and 3DS consoles it expects to sell by the end of the financial year, which has had a knock-on effect on its financial projections.

In an earnings release, president Satoru Iwata explained that the company now expects to sell 2.8 million Wii U consoles by the end of March, down from original estimates of 9 million, while 3DS projections have also been revised downwards from 18 million console sales to 13.5 million.

Source: IGN

Nintendo did rather poorly on the last quarter and the prospect isn't looking too good right now. It wouldn't have matter if Microsoft did badly but I grew up with Nintendo. Even though I don't game on it anymore I don't want to see it go down. I hope Nintendo won't end up like Sega.

 

[Mikey Paine]

Wow, that's bad news. As a gamer, I have absolutely no interest in the Wii U. I'm not interested in Mario, Metroid or Zelda (I'm in the minority on the last one) so I really don't see any games on the Wii U that scream "you have to play me!"

If I had more money, I would totally buy a 3DS, not because the system is awesome and the "3D" but I've seen a couple of games that I'd love to play on the 3DS.

 

[The Unlosing Ranger]

The Wii U don't look bad, but Nintendo has to be realistic. They're competing with next-gen systems with last-gen hardware. What else did they expect?

 

[SpaceTiger]

Even though I don't game on it anymore I don't want to see it go down. I hope Nintendo won't end up like Sega.

Nintendo's not ending up like Sega. Unlike Sega, Nintendo isn't burning itself and its funds out on multiple consoles in a short period and killing the trust of fans--which is a stupid idea some analysts have brought up (Nintendo should scrap Wii U and do a new console, it's like they never heard of Sega).

Also Nintendo is a gaming company. It can take risks and loses and keep going. It has the bank roll to do that for several more generations of consoles. It's a luxury that Sony and Microsoft don't have because they have their hands in several pots. While that would bring in money, they have areas that just aren't profitable. If a console begins to falter, they can always offset the costs, but that's not something they're going to want to do. It's why the PS4 can't fail or have a long period of slow sales.

A year of slow sales for Nintendo would be different compared to year of slow sales for Sony at this point. Sony and Microsoft have more in the bank and could do what Nintendo do in failing--if they were gaming companies only. Instead they wish to do entertainment, music, computers, smartphones, OS's, tablets, lawsuits against Google, other technology and so on.

They're competing with next-gen systems with last-gen hardware. What else did they expect?

A success because Sony did it twice in a row with the PSX and PS2 with outclassed hardware and Nintendo did it last generation with outclassed hardware. Honestly, Nintendo looked at Sony the prior two generations and did what they did, Sony decided "We have to out do Microsoft's next console" and ends up doing what Nintendo did in those two generations with stronger hardware minus the pricing.

Which Nintendo did right with the Gamecube in even though they came in 3rd of 4, they were still profitable on hardware with better hardware but was trumped by PS2 in sales and they were profitable with the N64 and trumped by PSX in sales (that was down to having games that were equal to crack offered at high prices and high licensing fees).

 

[Titan]

Nintendo's not ending up like Sega. Unlike Sega, Nintendo isn't burning itself and its funds out on multiple consoles in a short period and killing the trust of fans--which is a stupid idea some analysts have brought up (Nintendo should scrap Wii U and do a new console, it's like they never heard of Sega).

Also Nintendo is a gaming company. It can take risks and loses and keep going. It has the bank roll to do that for several more generations of consoles. It's a luxury that Sony and Microsoft don't have because they have their hands in several pots. While that would bring in money, they have areas that just aren't profitable. If a console begins to falter, they can always offset the costs, but that's not something they're going to want to do. It's why the PS4 can't fail or have a long period of slow sales.

A year of slow sales for Nintendo would be different compared to year of slow sales for Sony at this point. Sony and Microsoft have more in the bank and could do what Nintendo do in failing--if they were gaming companies only. Instead they wish to do entertainment, music, computers, smartphones, OS's, tablets, lawsuits against Google, other technology and so on.



A success because Sony did it twice in a row with the PSX and PS2 with outclassed hardware and Nintendo did it last generation with outclassed hardware. Honestly, Nintendo looked at Sony the prior two generations and did what they did, Sony decided "We have to out do Microsoft's next console" and ends up doing what Nintendo did in those two generations with stronger hardware minus the pricing.

Which Nintendo did right with the Gamecube in even though they came in 3rd of 4, they were still profitable on hardware with better hardware but was trumped by PS2 in sales and they were profitable with the N64 and trumped by PSX in sales (that was down to having games that were equal to crack offered at high prices and high licensing fees).

Damn good post SpaceTiger but there's one thing I want to add. Nintendo did so well with last gen hardware on the Wii because the Wii had a groundbreaking controller system, great first party support and also appealed to a market segment that didn't really exist before; family gaming and it also found a big home with casual gamers. I feel they knew they wouldn't be able to rely on this market segment a second time so they wanted to branch out to the core gamer.

The reason they aren't doing so well now is because they wanted to appeal to the core gamer. Gamers like us here on PS4Forum. One problem I see is they lost a generation of core gamer support. Another (and I feel main) problem is they are trying to do that with last gen hardware. What are core gamers more likely to pick up? Call of Duty on their XBOne or PS4 or the Wii U with the graphics dated? Because of this, they lost a lot of support from the third party because core gamers aren't taking it seriously and developers and publishers aren't going to sink money into developing for it if they aren't going to profit. They're fanbase right now is Nintendo Fanboys that would buy any console they come out with. I've always liked Nintendo. I like the Wii U despite last gen graphics. And I wholeheartedly was planning on getting one....up until they completely lost third party support (mostly because I'm not a huge Zelda or Mario fan. Appreciate the games but don't go out of my way to play them except for classics). Now I have no plans, and its sad.

 

[CpmPanda]

I think the wii-u is great for family stuff, I borrowed one from a family member and it was a blast, a bit odd to handle but my kids, my wife and I all had fun.

 

[daimashin]

Nintendo confirmed that they are abandoning console making so that's good news. Nintendo's stocks took a dip few days back and I thought it is going to be over for them. What Nintendo really needs is to change their target audience, diversify their market to get more mature gamers interested.

 

[deathbyprayer]

I've been a fan of Nintendo since day one but the Wii U, I didn't get into. I'm kind of getting tired of Mario and Zelda, I think Nintendo should really up their game push their market on a whole new level. I think one of the reasons why the Wii U is in constant down fall is because of it's lack of muscle when it comes to the hardware and the games, I've yet to see a game that would really entice me into buying a Wii U.

 

[Dmadman72]

Nintendo confirmed that they are abandoning console making so that's good news. Nintendo's stocks took a dip few days back and I thought it is going to be over for them. What Nintendo really needs is to change their target audience, diversify their market to get more mature gamers interested.

I would like to see the source of your claim. I don't see Nintendo getting out of the console business anytime soon.

 

[mosul210]

I think its a bit too early to pull the plug on the Wii U, but I do agree Nintendo needs to do something soon. They have to have a good showing at E3 this year; Some things I would like to see include a release date for Zelda, and the re-introduction of past successful titles like Metroid. As mentioned a new IP sounds like a good idea for those looking for something outside the shadow of Mario and Zelda.

 

[Ridge]

Nintendo needs to make more goddamn games for the Wii U. Nintendo has the characters. All the existing groupwork and IP is there.

The Vita is a much better handheld than the 3DS, yet the 3DS is the one that is always in my pocket. Because the games are so much better. Give your home console half the love your handheld is getting.

The Wii U is currently in a state where this Nintendo fanboy doesn't have interest in it. That is pretty goddamn sad.