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I mean, I think that's what you saw at the launch of Wii U, but eventually it just isn't cost effective anymore. Nintendo might pay up for *exclusives*, but once you're paying just to have parity with everybody else that's just a bad place to be.

They just have these huge gaps in their release schedule. They can either ramp up internal production schedules so that they can release more 1st party games per year, or they can throw some marketing/production money to developers to get those gaps filled. To me it seems that the moneyhats are the better option for a 1st party with a limited number of studios.

If they simply waive royalty payments it's not like they are spending money to get games. A cancelled Watch_Dogs earns $0 for Nintendo. A royalty free Watch_Dogs on WiiU earns $0 for Nintendo, but at least the people that bought their system are satisfied and engaged rather than playing nothing and thinking about trading the console into Gamestop.

Of course I have little to no knowledge about the economics of game production. It's entirely possible that even a royalty-free release of a AAA game might not cover development costs for the publisher.

 

[jmizzal]

I'm guessing this might be a pay up if you want the port moment between ubi and ninty

could be they are in negotiations to keep the game coming, which is why Ubisoft are not able to say anything

 

[KoopaTheCasual]

There's a better chance of me marrying Beyoncé than that happening.

I'm pulling for you, dawg.

 

[B.O.O.M]

could be they are in negotiations to keep the game coming, which is why Ubisoft are not able to say anything

Yep exactly...such a situation would explain everything really.

 

[Haines]

Nintendo would never pay for watch dogs. Game will do nothing for the wiiu anyways

 

[Dash Kappei]

The difference is that the VB was a side project and the Wii U is a major console for them. In relative terms, I'd say the level of failure for both platforms is close.

Nintendo DS was a "side project" too. Ask Yokoi how much of a side project the VB was...
...oh wait
Wii U is a HUGE failure, but it's its own thing, we can't compare it with anything else at the moment, definitely not the VB, the 3DO or The Jaguar, especially since there's still much time to see how worse or maybe better things will pan out by the end and its LTD.

 

[border]

Nintendo would never pay for watch dogs. Game will do nothing for the wiiu anyways

Yeah, I suppose it's entirely possible that Ubisoft looks at the preorders for Watch_Dogs and says "Why should we make this?" And then Nintendo looks at the preorders for Watch_Dogs and says "Why should we pay to keep this on WiiU?"

 

[KoopaTheCasual]

Sadly, we are the minority...

I don't blame Nintendo for any problems but thier own, Ubi is making this game however...

Yea man. Ubisoft should totally flush money down the toilet with the projected 6,000 sales that Watch_Dogs might manage to scrounge up on the Wii U....

That makes absolutely no sense. This is entirely Nintendo's fault.

 

[Mory Dunz]

lol i didn't buy a wii u to play games lol c ya ubisoft don't let the door hit you on the way out nintendo should sue you for using u in the name ubisoft since u're not making games for the u that's false advertising, i took a class in law

I'm dying

 

[Herne]

Shame, I was intending to buy the Wii U version. Can the news get any worse for the console? :/

 

[Replicant]

There's a better chance of me marrying Beyoncé than that happening.

Beysus will come for your scalp.

Why? Huge install bases of gamers who still buy games. There's no way they turn down that revenue.

There's benefit to releasing a third party title on the WiiU, from a publisher's perspective, right now.

Likely coming from the same mental gymnastic train-of-thought as "Because Wii U is dead, console gaming is dead". Only this time "Because it's not on Wii U, it's also not on last-gen consoles".

 

[Mariolee]

I can't imagine what kind of panic mode level Nintendo is at right now.

 

[krypt0nian]

Shame, I was intending to buy the Wii U version. Can the news get any worse for the console? :/

My guess is to watch the trade in values for the console at Gamestops.

 

[Guevara]

I can't imagine what kind of panic mode level Nintendo is at right now.

None, that's the problem.

On the response of software makers, Mr. Iwata says there is still strong support from makers of content that is popular with Nintendo’s main customer base of children and families, but enthusiasm is lower among other software makers. For now, Nintendo will focus on increasing its user platform so that more software makers can come on board, Mr. Iwata says.​

 

[kuroshiki]

The Virtual Boy didn't even reach 800k. The Wii U is failing hard, but not that hard.

I think it is worse than VB. VB was just a side project, n64 was their main stuff. wiiU is their main flagship console... like SFC, gamecube, n64.

 

[B.O.O.M]

Nintendo would never pay for watch dogs. Game will do nothing for the wiiu anyways

Wouldn't be too sure about that. The system is in dire need of third party games because if not the droughts will be horrid. WD was one of the very few notable third party multiplats the system was going to get. Losing that would hurt an already barebones line up. I can see Ninty agreeing to something

 

[freenudemacusers]

iwata's latest round of 'please understand' seems to have not had the intended effect.

 

[Aquamarine]

The Virtual Boy didn't even reach 800k. The Wii U is failing hard, but not that hard.

Every time I see this bit of misinformation I feel compelled to correct it...this is false.

The 770K figure you see floating around the internet is a decades-old fairy tale. There's no real Nintendo evidence that demonstrates that the Virtual Boy only shipped 770K...somebody made that figure up somewhere down the line and people kept repeating it without sufficiently fact-checking.

Final Virtual Boy sell-through (NPD, USA): 496K

Final Virtual Boy sell-through (Famitsu, Japan): 630K


Total Sell-through: 1126K

Now how can there be only 770K shipments if the console sold-through 1126K units?

 

[Effer]

I can't imagine what kind of panic mode level Nintendo is at right now.

Miyamoto heart problems level, most likely. http://forums.sega.com/showthread.php?19647-Bad-News-Mr-Miyamoto-Has-Heart-Problems (from 2004)

But they are maintaining a "regal" appearance, so that's something...?

 

[BurnOutBrighter]

Does any Wii U footage exist for this game?

 

[Herne]

I think it is worse than VB. VB was just a side project, n64 was their main stuff. wiiU is their main flagship console... like SFC, gamecube, n64.

Actually, I would argue that their handhelds have become more important than their home consoles nowadays, loathe as I am to admit that since I love the Wii U and don't like handheld systems all that much.

 

[kuroshiki]

Every time I see this bit of misinformation I feel compelled to correct it...this is false.

The 770K figure you see floating around the internet is a decades-old fairy tale. There's no real Nintendo evidence that demonstrates that the Virtual Boy only shipped 770K...somebody made that figure up somewhere down the line and people kept repeating it without sufficiently fact-checking.

Final Virtual Boy sell-through (NPD): 497K

Final Virtual Boy sell-through (Famitsu): 630K


Total Sell-through: 1127K

Now how can there be only 770K shipments if the console sold-through 1127K units?

that POS actually sold over a million WW?

Damn nintendo was rolling back then.

Actually, I would argue that their handhelds have become more important than their home consoles nowadays, loathe as I am to admit that since I love the Wii U and don't like handheld systems all that much.

No. Their handheld is now selling somewhat better than their home console counterpart, and yes nintendo has long history of strong leadership in portable game market (which will continue to diminish thanks to apple and google), but their bread and butter was home console.

But then again that is beside the point. WiiU is bigger failure than VB because VB probably didn't even cost fraction of WiiU R and D and all extra investments.

 

[Nirolak]

She should ask Nintendo

I think the last time someone did, they said ask Ubisoft.

 

[StoopKid]

Does any Wii U footage exist for this game?

http://youtu.be/kkAVjutTGJ0

Spoiler

Sry I had to lol

 

[lifeexpectancy]

The Virtual Boy didn't even reach 800k. The Wii U is failing hard, but not that hard.

800k in 1990s numbers seems about equal to 3 million in todays numbers doesn't it?

 

[GamerJM]

800k in 1990s numbers seems about equal to 3 million in todays numbers doesn't it?

I've always been curious as to how we should adjust for things like inflation and population size difference when it comes to number of games/consoles sold.

 

[Deleted member 125677]

Yup, Wii U shaping up to be an exclusive only console for me

Now, I don't have much of a problem with that personally as I have other options for third parties. But how can Nintendo just let this happen?

In other words: time to hit that red panick mode button for real, Iwata

800k in 1990s numbers seems about equal to 3 million in todays numbers doesn't it?

Holy shit, so the NES and Gameboy sold gazzillions then

 

[Herb Alpert]

could be they are in negotiations to keep the game coming, which is why Ubisoft are not able to say anything

I imagine the quality of the port will be incredible.
sigh...
such a ridiculous situation...

 

[tehrik-e-insaaf]

At this point I'd be less worried about Watch Dogs making it to the console than Ubi choosing not to make a version of Tetris for it - tells you everything about Ubisoft's view on the future of the platform.

 

[jmizzal]

"There's no confirmation from Ubisoft that this is true. Unless an official statement is made by us, it is not to be taken as fact. "

http://forums.ubi.com/showthread.php/826377-Cancelled-on-the-Wii-U?

Kinda the same as no comment but its something, I went to the Watch Dogs Ubisoft forums to see if anything was said there, somebody made a thread after the first rumor and a forum manager from UBIsoft support posted that.

 

[Keyouta]

Makes the choice of me getting the PC version simple. Sucks for Nintendo, but no one on the platform supports these types of games.

 

[Skeff]

IIRC AssCreed4 sold 6,000 copies in it's first month on Wii U. SIX-THOUSAND. And that's an established IP. At this point it would probably be financially irresponsible for Ubi to continue development and release of the Wii U version. It would sell like dog shit.

According to Ubi a WiiU port of a PS360 game costs $1.3m which I make out to be around ~80k sold @ $60 for Ubi to break even.

so....yea....It's not surprising.

 

[Tagg9]

At this point I'd be less worried about Watch Dogs making it to the console than Ubi choosing not to make a version of Tetris for it - tells you everything about Ubisoft's view on the future of the platform.

Ubisoft put an enormous effort into the platform - a lot more than anyone other third party. I'm sure we'll still get titles like Tetris and Just Dance that are a more natural fit for what is now deemed Nintendo's demographic (the titles I just mentioned are relatively cheap to port as well).

 

[maquiladora]

I can't imagine what kind of panic mode level Nintendo is at right now.

Something something non-wearable health monitors

 

[Aquamarine]

"There's no confirmation from Ubisoft that this is true. Unless an official statement is made by us, it is not to be taken as fact. "

http://forums.ubi.com/showthread.php/826377-Cancelled-on-the-Wii-U?

Kinda the same as no comment but its something, I went to the Watch Dogs Ubisoft forums to see if anything was said there, somebody made a thread after the first rumor and a forum manager from UBIsoft support posted that.

The real question is why Ubisoft continues to dance around the subject.

Surely if the game were coming as scheduled Ubisoft would want to flaunt that with a simple "Yes, it's still coming out for the Wii U." Any "no comment" or varieties of "no comment" as shown here immediately raises red flags.

 

[Dysun]

So we're basically at N64 level now.

n64 had a bunch of (non-mario) sports games

These next few months are a new level of 3rd party abandonment. Rightfully so, Nintendo dug this bed for themselves over the last 15-25 years

 

[ArkkAngel007]

Frankly, they haven't been saying anything of any of the versions.

With that said, it wouldn't be surprising. ZombiU failed, nearly-if-not-all of their ports (missing content) have had the same fate as the former on that platform, and there's been nothing comforting with the holiday sales of the system.

There's also the huge factor of the game itself having been delayed due to not being ready. What that has entailed in regards to the development of the game is unknown, but it might be likely that the vision can't be afforded to be compromised by taking into account last-gen ports/teams.

Wonder what Nintendo will do if Ubisoft, their primary 3rd party supporter, completely abandons them...

I guess they'll still have a few more Lego games out of WBGames.

 

[Chindogg]

The real question is why Ubisoft continues to dance around the subject.

Surely if the game were coming as scheduled Ubisoft would want to flaunt that with a simple "Yes, it's still coming out for the Wii U." Any "no comment" or varieties of "no comment" as shown here immediately raises red flags.

My guess is that they're negotiating with Nintendo on development/marketing costs.

 

[Oddduck]

Nintendo would never pay for watch dogs. Game will do nothing for the wiiu anyways

Nintendo paid for Wii U port of Ninja Gaiden 3. You never know what Nintendo might do.

 

[dark10x]

You can't ask Nintendo either because they will just direct you to Ubisoft. Saying they have no say in what Ubisoft does. Which is BS. They could work with them, pay them, etc to make sure the game is still released and that their system has a certain level of variety and a quality library. They're not willing to do that. Not with western studios and now seemingly not with Japanese studios either given that they couldn't even secure a version of Kingdom Hearts 3 or the remake of 1 and 2. A series that is just as just as much history on Nintendo hardware that it does Sony hardware by having games that appeared on the GBA, DS, and 3DS!

In situations like this, however, the game would only be useful as padding.

If it is released it will not be a great version of the game. It will probably run at a slower framerate than all of the other versions and fail to offer anything worthwhile to pull people in its direction. It would exist solely for people who game exclusively on the Wii U which is not a large number of people.

Of course nobody wants to see support for Nintendo dry up like this, but in the case of Watch Dogs, I just can't see a good reason for the game to exist on Wii U.

Nintendo paid for Wii U port of Ninja Gaiden 3. You never know what Nintendo might do.

That was when the Wii U was still promising...

 

[NandN3DS]

Don't need them anyway. Nintendo's got me covered!

 

[John Harker]

I think the last time someone did, they said ask Ubisoft.

Hahaha, thats actually pretty funny.

Its like playing chicken

 

[cyberheater]

So we're basically at N64 level now.

Well the N64 managed to sell nearly 33 million. So no. WiiU is nowhere near that level of success.

Also. I firmly believe Watch Dogs is never coming out on WiiU.

 

[Pancakes R Us]

If they said anything concerning versions for 7th gen consoles and did a no comment on Wii U, that would seal it, wouldn't it?

At this point I don't think any sealing is needed. Pretty much a done deal and the right decision for Ubisoft.

 

[Albo]

As I walk through the valley of the shadow of death
I take a look at my life and realize there's nothin' left
Cause I've been blasting and been laughed at so long,
That even Iwata thinks that my mind is gone

~Wii U

 

[paperboywriter]

We don't comment on rumor or speculation.

 

[catmario]

Wow...

It will be interesting news for that. Whether WiiU watch dogs is canceled or not?

It this is true... Neogaf gonna explode!

 

[69wpm]

Nintendo France should know if this game is still in development. If it isn't, I hardly think they'd show it as an upcoming 2014 title.

 

[Albo]

The real question is why Ubisoft continues to dance around the subject.

Surely if the game were coming as scheduled Ubisoft would want to flaunt that with a simple "Yes, it's still coming out for the Wii U." Any "no comment" or varieties of "no comment" as shown here immediately raises red flags.

True. They're either on the fence about cancelling, still contemplating whether it's worth it or they're trying to figure out how to break the news as softly as possible (like that matters at this point) to nintendo and the public.

 

[liger05]

I would be surprised if it wasn't cancelled. There is no need for Ubisoft to dance around the question if it's getting released.

Pre orders are likely to be in the gutter and looking at how other titles have sold you can't really blame Ubisoft.

Nintendo created this problem themselves.