Nintendo Wii U

[Modus]

Let me finish! After pigs fly and.. we get an official gender-bender Zelda.

*self-satisfied smile*

[Brushfire]

Guess what system was lacking compelling software early in its life and is now enjoying a healthy outlook?

Wii U is suffering from the same problem. And as with the 3DS, the games are coming.

Worldwide, the Wii U has sold about a million units short of what the 3DS did in the same amount of time, and the software is selling about as well as the Vita's. The 3DS was given a major price cut in addition to all those games which helped sales. At the point, the Wii U won't be getting a price cut, which makes sense considering they're already selling at a pretty hefty loss. Plus there will be two next-gen consoles on the market, or at least very close to launch, by the time Mario, Mario Kart, and Wind Waker come to the Wii U. That will distract a lot of the core market, and it seems like the casual audience isn't interested.

[ocre]

The in-all-likelihood expensive 'true next gen miracle boxes' from Microsoft and Sony will need compelling software to move a lot of hardware too. Can I judge those to be dead after 3 months on the market?

And the casual audience really only matters if you expect a system to "sell like the Wii," which was much more a fluke than a benchmark for normal console sales. Do you really think Microsoft or Sony's systems will sell 30 million more than each of it's competitors? Casual market has always been icing on the cake.

Edited February 17, 2013 by ocre

[liquid wind]

The mythical and probaby expensive 'true next gen miracle boxes' from Microsoft and Sony will need compelling software to move a lot of hardware too. Can I judge those to be dead after 4 months on the market?

Same thing happened with the PS3(another nail in the coffin), that's just what's going to happen when you release expensive consoles with no software. The U will do better in the future but for now people are going to say those things

I think the Wii U is going to run into a big problem in terms of first party IP, and it's already happened I think with New Super Mario Bros. U: Cross-platform fatigue. Right now we're seeing Nintendo sending out all their heavy hitters all at once to the 3DS, your Kid Icarus, Mario, Luigi, Animal Crossing, Fire Emblems, Mario sports games, RPGs, Donkey Kong, etc., and I worry that putting entries in each of those franchises on the Wii U too soon will make consumers skeptical of grabbing them. Of course I could be completely wrong(and I hope I am), but I really think that Nintendo is going to really need to grab 3rd parties pretty heavily.

The answer to this is Metroid obviously, it's been six years!

(too bad Metroid is a cult franchise, not a system seller)

[Mirby]

i felt this was relevant

[Brushfire]

And the casual audience really only matters if you expect a system to "sell like the Wii," which was much more a fluke than a benchmark for normal console sales. Do you really think Microsoft or Sony's systems will sell 30 million more than each of it's competitors? Casual market has always been icing on the cake.

Nintendo Does/Hopes it will sell like the Wii. They made stupid amounts of money because of it. Casuals just aren't there anymore. They have moved on to the Android and IOS based platforms.

The WiiU's launch is a failure. There is hope in the future, but you need to face facts. The LAUNCH, and nothing further, is a failure. That was the point of that statement.

[ocre]

Oh, so you didn't bring up Wii U struggling against the launches of the next PlayStation and Xbox(which was the point of my reply)?

As for the casual market, since you extend the argument beyond the 'failed' launch again: they aren't required to survive. The PS3 never was the darling of the casual crowd (MS had their Kinect; Wii speaks for itself) and Sony was able to garner a very close race with Microsoft for second place in lifetime console sales, this past gen. Wii numbers aren't make or break but they did it once already so do you blame Nintendo for trying to make lightning strike twice?

We'll see how Wii Fit U does. lol

But yeah, my real point was that the Wii U basically needs more compelling games and it will be selling normally or better, 'casuals' or not.

Edited February 17, 2013 by ocre

[Brushfire]

Oh, so you didn't bring up Wii U struggling against the launches of the next PlayStation and Xbox(which was the point of my reply)?

As for the casual market, since you extend the argument beyond the 'failed' launch again: they aren't required to survive. The PS3 never was the darling of the casual crowd (MS had their Kinect; Wii speaks for itself) and Sony was able to garner a very close race with Microsoft for second place in lifetime console sales, this past gen. Wii numbers aren't make or break but they did it once already so do you blame Nintendo for trying to make lightning strike twice?

We'll see how Wii Fit U does. lol

But yeah, my real point was that the Wii U basically needs more compelling games and it will be selling normally or better, 'casuals' or not.

Chances are those systems are going to fail too at launch unless one they launch with a new Call of Duty game or something. The big three really want the huge numbers that the casuals brought, but aren't going to get them.

[Thalzon]

I personally wonder about the logic of Sony or Microsoft releasing a system in the next year. To me, it just doesn't make sense. Sony's stock is in shambles and the company seems poorly managed. The sheer COST of making console games these days is what is putting a lot more content on tablets and phones. It seems, with a new console, there will be a jump in visuals and rendering and all that, but somehow I doubt devs will want to risk that much more on yet another unproven system. It'll be even worse if the visuals aren't as significant a jump as people hope. I just don't see Sony having much to gain from releasing a new console at this point.

Microsoft, however, can probably just go on doing whatever they want. They have their audience.

[Brushfire]

I personally wonder about the logic of Sony or Microsoft releasing a system in the next year. To me, it just doesn't make sense. Sony's stock is in shambles and the company seems poorly managed. The sheer COST of making console games these days is what is putting a lot more content on tablets and phones. It seems, with a new console, there will be a jump in visuals and rendering and all that, but somehow I doubt devs will want to risk that much more on yet another unproven system. It'll be even worse if the visuals aren't as significant a jump as people hope. I just don't see Sony having much to gain from releasing a new console at this point.

Microsoft, however, can probably just go on doing whatever they want. They have their audience.

The bubble is over. The resounding success of the late Aughts is gone, and will never return. The Casuals are jumping ship to the Iphone. The Ouya might capture some of them back since it is cheap but I have no hope for it either.

[Devyn]

I don't normally agree with Brushfire, but he might have a point with the casuals moving on. It doesn't mean that Nintendo still can't capture some of them, but even if the Wii U doesn't sell as well as its predecessor, it can still be a successful console.

Regarding Sony and Microsoft's next consoles, I think the Wii U may actually increase in sales when those consoles come out, as attention will be drawn to all three. And if Nintendo wants success then they will need a kiosk on every corner.

I wasn't hyped for the Wii U at all until I tried it out - then I had to have one. On a sort of related note, I beat stage 9 of Zelda Battle Quest last night. Nintendoland looks kiddy on the outside but damn will it bring the pain.

[ocre]

Not sure why we're being preached to about the iOS/Android 'new gods' when the 3DS has held comparable sales to the DS (not such an easy feat). If the 3DS were selling like the Vita, I would say that there's a bleak future for traditional game systems(and the 'gaming media' would have you believe that they're doomed due to mobile/tablet boom), but as the reality of the 3DS vs Vita situation shows, it's all about, let me say it again, COMPELLING GAMES.

Edited February 17, 2013 by ocre

[Malaki-LEGEND.sys]

...let me say it again, COMPELLING GAMES.

Also buttons, or at the very least user-intuitive interfaces. It's funny, because games like TLoZ: Phantom Hourglass and Spirit Tracks, Final Fantasy(take your pick), Chrono Trigger, and even games like Starfox 643D show that traditional games could easily work on touch smartphones. All they'd really need to do is just say "screw you" to games requiring sticks because those devices aren't about that, and add buttons that would essentially just be shoulder buttons a la L/R.

But this ain't the iOS thread! I pretty much agree with Brushfire; casuals latching on to the Wii was more a fluke than anything else, and they really gave "false numbers" if you will as to how large the gaming community really is in my opinion. Trying to latch on to or count these types of gamers into your bottom line as a company doesn't really seem like a solid idea. Sure, Zinga was making that crazy money in the short term, but now look where they're at.

And I still really think that dev costs are going to pose a lot of problems going into the next generation with Sony and Microsoft's new hardware.

[Devyn]

I think there's a little grey area. Do I think that the Wii U will get as much casual attention as the Wii? No. Do I think that the Wii U will ultimately fail to get attention from the casual market? Nah. At least I hope not.

I do believe as well that a lot of those casuals are playing smartphones, tablets, and free web games now. Nintendo said before the Wii U was released that Apple and similar companies would be their biggest competitors.

Still, I don't think a smartphone will ever reproduce a proper console experience. I will always come back to consoles. I'm quite the pc gamer myself these days and I still love to sit my ass in front of a console and go to town - Then again I don't speak for everyone. The gaming environment has changed drastically, and like it or not, we will have to deal with that. People who like in depth, 40-hour-long type games, are going to have to share space with the Angry Birds crowd. It could be good or bad. I guess we'll have to wait and see.

Edit: Thanks for adding me unstablehamster.

Edited February 17, 2013 by megadave
superfluous wording

[Cerrax]

Consoles will always have one huge advantage over mobile games. A giant F'ing screen. I love mobile games, but I could never imagine enjoying a game like Halo on any kind of portable gaming device. I want my 40+ inch screen with my giant surround sound.

I think the game has to fit the tech. I much prefer puzzle games on a mobile device because they're slower paced and it feels more intimate curling up with my iPad and solving some puzzles then with an Xbox controller staring at a giant screen. But for a game like Mario Kart or Marvel vs Capcom, I want that big freakin screen, and the big pumping sound system, and a solid controller in my hands, because that's how that game is meant to feel. Skyrim, yeah it would be cool to be mobile, but I want to experience that world on my big screen, not on a tiny little tablet. I have a bunch of games on both consoles and mobile and I find that certain genres and types of games just feel better on one device or the other. They're not better by any real technological or even gameplay measure, but the experience is totally different.

Edited February 17, 2013 by Cerrax

[Thalzon]

I wasn't hyped for the Wii U at all until I tried it out - then I had to have one. On a sort of related note, I beat stage 9 of Zelda Battle Quest last night. Nintendoland looks kiddy on the outside but damn will it bring the pain.

Pikmin adventure stage 11.... x_x That is one tight as hell time limit.

[GTAHater836]

Nintendo has assured us the games are coming. Selling in the mid quintuple digits in one month is going to leave a mark on Nintendo no doubt, but it's nowhere near a mortal blow. It's the first winter since the new console launched. The first few months hasn't been good for any major game system since at least 2002, when the GCN had Melee, Pikmin 1, and Luigi's Mansion. Even then, one could argue Melee was rushed, and Pikmin 1 and Luigi's Mansion were stubby short on hours, thus very far from the best the GCN had to offer. It's up to interpretation whether the GCN's launch-window lineup was good either. Given how many new games Nintendo has mentioned are not too far off, I shouldn't take the doomsayers' forecasts to heart. Even the great XBOX360 launched between November 2005 and January 2006, and it took until circa January 2008 for it to have enough good games to be worth a buy. The PlayStation 3 launched in March 2007, and it took until November 2009 to be worth it. The Wii had some fad elements at its launch in about December 2006, and I regret buying one... any sooner than May 2008. In this New Millennium, consoles have to start from the bottom and work their way to the top. As a matter of fact, I don't consider the GCN, Wii, PS2, PS3, XBOX, or XBOX360 a flop by any stretch by the time their life cycles end(ed). But if there were ever days of flying-color system launches, they're long gone.

[Thalzon]

For me, the Wii was a chance to branch out and try games I otherwise would not have paid much heed. I found a lot of gems that were loads of fun well through the entire system's life. Not every game was perfect, of course, and I didn't finish them all (or, in a few cases, play more than 20 minutes), but they covered nearly every genre.

Sadly not everyone tried to do the same, so a lot of games I ended up liking a lot sold poorly. Overall I think I played about 80-100 games for the system. For me, it was a great success and nearly everything I expected.

[Brandon Strader]

People don't give a fifth of a thicket about games anymore. Everyone wants to judge the Wii U and claim that it failed without even playing the damn thing. It's a marvel of modern gaming that combines the cute with the third party, there's literally no way you can't find something to love with the new system. I spent a day just playing on Miiverse before I even had a game.

[The Derrit]

if you don't get it, watch this video and you will understand why the wii u is awesome.

[Anorax]

Ubisoft attempts some sort of compensation for Wii U players of Rayman Legends.

http://www.destructoid.com/ubisoft-has-a-Rayman-legends-bonus-for-wii-u-players-245899.phtml

[Brandon Strader]

Ubisoft attempts some sort of compensation for Wii U players of Rayman Legends.

http://www.destructoid.com/ubisoft-has-a-Rayman-legends-bonus-for-wii-u-players-245899.phtml

So their answer is on-disc + downloadable free DLC that everyone else doesn't get access to?

Now I'm definitely not checking this out. :-/

[KyleJCrb]

But if there were ever days of flying-color system launches, they're long gone.

Yeah, that sort of thing died with the Dreamcast.

[The Derrit]

So their answer is on-disc + downloadable free DLC that everyone else doesn't get access to?

Now I'm definitely not checking this out. :-/

the funny thing being there have already been screenshots of the xbox 360 version of challenge mode uncovered apparently.

soooo yeah.

[Anorax]

the funny thing being there have already been screenshots of the xbox 360 version of challenge mode uncovered apparently.

soooo yeah.

I read it as the challenge mode isn't free for anyone who isn't on Wii U