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Target doesn't know what a Wii U looks like
- Thread starter Wario64
- Start date
Hero_of_the_Day
Member
I still didn't get it even with the WiiU picture added to the OP. It wasn't until I read the first response that it clicked what must be off.
EatinOlives
Member
So an Original Xbox looks the same as a PS4 to even gaming enthusiasts at a glance? Don't be ridiculous.
But yeah you're right, it's totally Target's fault that Nintendo, to their own admission, is having a general problem communicating that the WiiU is not an addon to the system. This is the first time ever there has been confusion between the two consoles.
Wow.. it was widely predicted the mass market wouldn't understand "Wii U" as a new console rather than a gamepad add-on, and the console design was widely criticized for being too similar to the Wii to be recognized as a brand new console, further confusing the customer. But the retailer? A giant retailer? Making both mistakes? A year after launch? That can only be the magic of Nintendo, content with being the industry's slap-stick comedy. From the N64 design, gamecube, and now Wii U, the big, dopey elephant trips over its own feet right out of the gate over and over, then skips around in circles with a pooh-eating-grin on its face.
Aquamarine
Member
That's the issue with obstinate leadership.
I bet there were red flags in low-level consumer research by GolinHarris et al. that were reported to NOA.
Unfortunately, when executives are so wrapped up in their rhetoric and vision that they can't see the warning signs, that's when you get half-baked ideas like the "Wii U" branding.
This is why CEOs get paid so much...they have to have the foresight to recognize market trends and what can stimulate mass adoption. That's also why all the responsibility gets shouldered onto executive leadership.
ThatStupidLion
Member
whats a wii?
Elfforkusu
Member
This is why I don't get the "Wii U failed, lol Nintendo" train of thought
. Nintendo's PR for the U has been incredible. I don't know how a company markets this poorly in the 21st century. They could've achieved better results with $0 spent on marketing.
Part of me is curious how much headway they could make against the PS4/One by:
1) re-branding. Buy the new Super Nintendo!
2) $250
The other part of me understands that Nintendo doesn't do much right except make awesome games.
trolling
Part of me is curious how much headway they could make against the PS4/One by:
1) re-branding. Buy the new Super Nintendo!
2) $250
The other part of me understands that Nintendo doesn't do much right except make awesome games.
It seems logical in the sense that the Wii U's name and system design gives the impression of a compatible evolution of the wii, allowing people to use all the games and controllers already in so many households. It is, in a sense, an add-on, or an upgrade. If this was their goal, they drove this message home so hard that they now have to deal with the opposite problem. Maybe they were thinking along the lines of how each new generation of iphone is just as a hard to distinguish, gaining instant familiarity from the customer but yet not really hindered in sales by any consumer confusion. But Nintendo, despite their desire to be apple, is now painfully aware they are not. I hope. Good god, I hope.
Vermillion
Banned
Or Wii 2. I mean geez, they had the exact same problem with 3DS! I've learned that when they say "we learned from X launch," they really haven't learned anything at all. There's no way the Wii U should have been launched as it was if they learned anything from the launch of the 3DS.
I think the Wii name would have still worked if they just made it clear by calling it the Wii 2.
The U is pretty terrible naming and they even made it superscript on their logo for who knows what reason. Why would they do that?!
Of course people would think it's just an add-on.
The U is pretty terrible naming and they even made it superscript on their logo for who knows what reason. Why would they do that?!
Of course people would think it's just an add-on.
TheFLYINGManga_Ka
Member
The Wii U is also much longer. I was surprised how long it was.
But yeah, that's a major problem still. People don't know what the Wii U is! I saw a lot of people at retail stores saying how the add-on is expensive and stupid, only to be corrected by other people who knew what the Wii U was.
But yeah, that's a major problem still. People don't know what the Wii U is! I saw a lot of people at retail stores saying how the add-on is expensive and stupid, only to be corrected by other people who knew what the Wii U was.
Nintendo believed the Wii name was strong enough to carry the console. Alas, it shows they were wrong. With a Gamepad that people think it's just an add-on and the fact NoA hasn't even marketed it, it's no surprise even Target would make a mistake like this. However, I can also blame Target for doing for such a mistake as they're retailers and have to sell the damn product. If they made a mistake like that, that will guarantee even more confusion from consumers.
Aquamarine
Member
Hell, even "The New Wii" would work better.
It's the combination of:
1) The superscript "U" getting associated with an accessory rather than a delineated successor
2) The de-emphasis on the console and focus on the Wii U GamePad (sometimes even paired with other Wiimotes)
3) The striking similarities between the Wii U console and the re-designed Wii console
4) The failure to mention "Wii U is a new console" in the good majority of marketing
5) The focus on marketing games (like New Super Mario Bros. U) that don't clearly define a break in experiences that you had on the Wii
6) The de-emphasis of Nintendo to prioritize the Gamepad's use outside of Nintendo Land and other minigame collections (cf. Mario Kart's horn)
...that makes the Wii U so downright confusing to the casual consumer.
Just the other day I was in Best Buy and I heard the following conversation:
"Mommy, look, it's the Wii U!"
"But sweetie, you already have Wii. The $300 tablet for it is too expensive. Come on, just get another game instead."
^ This speaks volumes about ever-persistent consumer confusion about the product.
CaptainGyro
Banned
Some people really think this is a trolling attempt? If it is, it's like the most vague and mild-mannered troll attempt of all time.
Trolling lost its meaning.
What hurts even more is that it appears at a glance to be designed and named after the uDraw, which was a popular tablet accessory for the original Wii from THQ. The Wii U console looking like the original Wii just feeds into it. The timeframe is even about right; the uDraw was hot around the time the Wii U would've been in planning stages.
Nintendo can save the Wii U, but they'll have to do a relaunch by putting it in a different box and calling it something other than the Wii. They can even keep the tablet as long as they don't emphasize it in marketing.
Oh, and the PS3/360 version of the uDraw tablet was a flaming disaster that is credited for helping THQ slide into bankruptcy.