Diablo Rosso
Member
Yamauchi isn't dead.
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ASDA no longer stocking/selling the Wii U in stores, won't restock this year
- Thread starter Nibel
- Start date
I don't have any metric, I'm just doing a gutural and hunch prediction, like most of this board does when they predict that Nintendo is doomed.
the market has changed, 2D mario isn't THE system seller anymore, Nintendo will have to make a creative effort and come up with more diverse games. It will happen, just give them time, the library looks already promising for the end of 2013 and 2014.
as long as the console gives them profits, it will be "fine".
as I said, it won't be a fucking phenomena like the Wii or the DS, but ti will be "fine".
there were no evidences that the PS3 and the 3DS were going to overcame their rough starts either.
the evidences were when the good software started to pile up and the systems started to sell.
I bought a CD32 on launch day. I cannot honestly look at my WiiU or Vita with disappointment after that
3DO, Jaguar and PAL Saturn taught me a thing or two.
(I also bought the 32X, Mega CD and a Phillips CDI. I can't even talk about those)
Aquamarine
Member
You sure about that? I mean you still bought a WiiU and a Vita
It taught him the joys of masochism.
Steve Youngblood
Member
I think the issue with carrying on with this type of discussion is that there's really nothing to discuss. Your assertion is that the system will do "fine," -- which is an and of itself a pretty wishy-washy metric -- and to back that up there's the citation of historic turnarounds that you think set a precedent for this kind of recovery and a gut feeling that Nintendo's software will attract consumers. Now, I'm not telling you that this is all off base, but it's not really predicated on any sort of strong analysis that digs deep into the crux of the issue and provides good insight for what the system's recovery will look like.
Ultimately, it's just an opinion. And don't read this as a condemnation of you having an opinion, as I think it's fine to voice it. However, I don't necessarily think it's worth exhaustively defending the view, as it's really just a "time will tell" type of hunch you're working with. If and when the Wii U is performing well, you get to pat yourself on the back for calling it. But for the time being, the rhetoric you're putting forth doesn't really give me much pause in terms of reconsidering my skeptical stance about the platform's prospects.
cyberheater
PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 Xbone PS4 PS4
I'm not saying this because you are a mod. But whenever I read your post. I realise the amount of thought and effort that you put into your posts. I really do need to work on my own posts in this regard.
coinoperatedboy
Banned
HOLY SHIT BALLS BATMAN! You have played the new Mario and Donkeykong?
Can I have them when you are done or borrow your time machine?
With PS3 is was always and obviously about the price, nothing more. Heck even with a shaky launch line up and a $600 price tag it's still doing better than WiiU.
The 3DS has received a huge price cut and a slew of games, and it's still not doing that great in the west.
It's not good enough to just think 'When the games come it'll be fine' Didn't work for Xbox and Gamecube did it?
ThoughtsOfSpeaking
Banned
Horse Armour
Member
I love how this supposed "large" retailer has already written off Nintendo who are in a much better position than MS to survive the next generation. I mean unlike last gen we have a Nintendo machine that is essentially equal in power features to the other two whilst lacking slightly in raw power, a robust online network that supports all the features modern gamers expect, their biggest 20 million+ selling franchises out within the first two years of the console, a revolutionary controller that unlike the Wiimote supports the same inputs as the other two whilst adding in that special Nintendo sauce to take it much further than the other two. At this point, you'd be mad to write off Nintendo as placing anything but second place with an excellent chance at landing in first position again. I fear for the crow population in England cum Holidays time.
Wii U needs a 10-fold sales increase over its current performance in Europe to reach "OK sales" status.
Opus Angelorum
Member
notsureifserious.jpg
VicDaMoan03
Member
Got to make room on shelvs for dem Xbox One and PS4.
Not totally true, as the Mario Kart brand awareness for example obviously increased since the Wii version. I think that game will be a good one to understand if this kind of speculation is true or not.
peanutbutterlatte
Member
Eh, try getting a non-COD level game on launch day in my local ASDA, is all I'm saying. The Wii U is definitely in trouble, but that doesn't stop ASDA being a lax and pretty awful retailer for video games.
To be fair, 27.8 million on Wii and 30.38 million on DS means that the majority of Nintendo/Mario fans, or the people who'd be likely to buy it, have played it, and aren't very likely to buy it on Wii U, let alone buy a new console for it. I don't think that can be considered a system seller, or anything of the sort, since most people probably felt that they've already played it on Wii or the DS.
lol.
It was only the bolded line that tipped me off to this being a joke.
Ravensmash
Member
Essentially equal with devices that are about to be replaced, without the third party support needed to bring in new consumers and a ridiculous price point.
peanutbutterlatte
Member
You wait. You'll come back for the deli and decently priced mango juice.
LOL good one.
I don't know if Mario Kart brand awareness increased all that much. The game has always been in the top 2-3 best sellers on every Nintendo Platform. The series has always been huge. Mario Kart 64 was the fifth best selling game in its generation, despite the N64 having 1/3 the install base of the PS1. Double Dash closely followed Smash Bros Melee as the second best selling title on the Gamecube. The attach rate for the last 3 home Mario Kart games has been pretty consistent (30-35%). People who buy a Nintendo console are likely to buy Mario Kart, but I'm not sure if Mario Kart is going to lead to a ton of people buying Nintendo systems who wouldn't have bothered otherwise.
Katana_Strikes
Member
Dr. Buni
Member
If Nintendo manage to sell the Wii U as much as they sold the Gamecube, it will be fine, yes.
Ninja Scooter
Member
It won't be fine. Iwata himself has said as much. The Gamecube was a failure for them. So much so that they completely changed their console strategy and the Wii was born. If Wii U does Gamecube numbers it will represent the biggest marketshare drop in industry history. Do you think Nintendo shareholders are "Fine" with that?
Discomurf
Member
Considering the Gamecube was more profitable for Nintendo than the PS2 was for Sony, I'd say they would be "fine" if they could repeat that level of success. Fanboys may care more about marketshare wars, but the company itself only cares about operating profit.
Ninja Scooter
Member
so is Iwata just a fanboy?
his words:
http://www.1up.com/news/iwata-wii-doesn-outsell-gamecube
Nintendo as a company will be "fine", but the Wii U, and their console business, will not be.
Wasnt it the GBA which made Nintendo more profitbale?
Wind's Howling
Member
It serves them right imo. Their stubborn behaviour on releasing a "new" console while it essentially being the same as the PS3 and 360, with a higher price and releasing it a year before the E3, knowing for a fact that the true next gen consoles were going to be released this year.
People were happy enough with the Wii and did not see the point in upgrading.
People were happy enough with the Wii and did not see the point in upgrading.
It's not doing fine at all though, sales are far below that of the GameCube and retailers are getting extremely impatient with Nintendo so they will likely be forced to cut the price and incur huge losses on the hardware, unlike the GameCube where they initially making a small loss before getting back into the green. At this rate, the Wii U will not get close to matching the GameCube's lifetime sales unless Nintendo are willing to be subject to drastic losses, something they have been historically unwilling to do. Nintendo have found themselves in a situation they have never been in before.
What? Of course they were signs. Everyone knew Monster Hunter and Pokemon would release for the 3DS like everyone knew Metal Gear Solid 4 and Final Fantasy XIII would release for the PS3.
Metallix87
Member
Gamecube did make Nintendo a profit, but you are correct in that it was when combined with the GBA's profits that Nintendo easily outperformed Sony's gaming profits that generation. That's likely part of the reason Sony tried getting into the handheld market in the first place.
Gamecube was also a cheap console to manufacture, the tablet makes Wii-U expensive and makes it harder for them to turn a profit on the hardware.
Metallix87
Member
I'm sorry, but what does that have to do with what I was saying, exactly?
It's going to be harder for Nintendo to use WiiU to make a profit as compared to Gamecube.
In which alternate universe? (please don't tell me you're basing this on FY reports).
Metallix87
Member
I never implied anything about the Wii U with my post, though, I was just answering a question. The Wii U and the Gamecube scenarios aren't comparable at all. Gamecube's problem was that Yamauchi was still in charge, and the PS2 had become an unstoppable juggernaut by the time it launched.
AHA-Lambda
Member
Not the same situation at all. 3DS can get by on the scraps of the dedicated handheld market but ps3? That was a disaster the only reason it didn't fail is cos 3rd party didn't leave it cos they couldn't afford to, they had a vetted interest in ps3 succeeding, not the case with WiiU.
EatinOlives
Member
The PS3 wasn't saved only by virtue of good software. It was saved by aggressive price cuts and marketing, repeated hardware revisions, somewhat respectable sales (remember the PS3 at this time was doing far better than the WiiU is right now), competitive hardware that was relevant through the entirety of the generation, and general industry confidence that it would eventually get better.
Retailers didn't outright drop the PS3 from its shelves and refused to stock it further. They weren't shoved to tiny shelf space and left for dead, because Sony made frequent and obvious effort to improve their position. Nintendo at this point is bafflingly changing nothing and instead digging in their heels, refusing to budge in price, SKUs and marketing, somehow hoping that the holiday software will be enough to kickstart sales without them putting in any effort in rebranding, redesigning, or re-pricing their console.
Not to mention the PS3 was not released in a position where the other two competitors were poised to release far more compelling hardware. It's simply not safe to assume that the WiiU will recover simply by looking at other consoles and observing that they too recovered at some point. You have to look into why they recovered and in what market environment they operated.
Would like to think this is a joke but you clearly have no clue.
Perhaps you're completely ignoring the WiiU's performance since launch to come up with the idea it's going to be on par with Wii, laughable.
family_guy
Member
I suppose it's possible for Wii U to do GameCube numbers, but then again wasn't the GameCube in the price range of $149-199 at launch? Wii U isn't in the price range of an impulse buy.
Metallix87
Member
There's a lot of room for price drops with the Wii U, hence why I really think people are jumping the gun by saying Gamecube numbers are it's destiny.
This is significant. A product can recover from poor sales, but not if it isn't available. If other retailers pull the product it's a real problem.
I sort of expected the WiiU to take more of a backseat when the PS4 and XB1 started competing for shelf space, but abandoning Nintendo before that surprises me. It's going to require some really significant measures to get retailers to put the WiiU back onto the shelves.
metalslimer
Member
Price drops dont mean a thing if there is no demand. If people dont want a wiiu, they dont want a wiiu. All this talk of price drops and marketing assumes people actually want a wiiu. Maybe people should consider the possibility they don't at all. As much as Sony will drop the price of Vita, it won't help because the market doesnt want it.
peanutbutterlatte
Member
Yes, because price doesn't factor into a product's desirability whatsoever.