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Is there enough in the pipeline to save the Wii U?

ChipotIe

Banned
For me, not only are there enough games I want to play to finally get me to buy one but once the announced games of this year finally hit the shelves there would have been more games I considered enjoyable on the Wii U than there was on the Wii.

Will that save it? Probably... probably not. The casual gaming honeymoon is over so if they are still hopeful for the Wiis numbers then I don't think that would ever happen. There is enough on the way to justify the system though.... which for now should be enough.
 

Sickbean

Member
I really hope so.

I love my Wii U, it deserves so much more love. In my opinion it has the best quality of games available right now (not so much in terms of variety, but focused quality), and Nintendo just had a stellar E3, so fingers crossed.
 

Zimmy64

Member
Did they even say when Zelda for Wii U is coming out? I fear we may not see a gameplay demo of it until next year's E3.

2015. It's unlikely that a Gameplay trailer might show up in a future direct, but not impossible. We'll probably have to wait until next E3 for more information
 

The_Poet

Banned
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B-Dubs

No Scrubs
No, I don't think there's really anything that can be done to save the WiiU at this point, since a first party can only do so much. But what they have announced in the pipeline for the system should be more than enough to satisfy those who do end up buying the system, especially when most people who do will probably have more than one system. By the end, there'll be a decent range of games, but it'll still be a pretty unsuccessful platform. Kinda like the Dreamcast I guess.

Pretty much, it also seems like these days the games that get the biggest hype are the AAA muliplats. Exclusives seem to be only looked at to decide which of the consoles to get, so without the big titles I doubt it'll turn around too much. Unless ZeldaU becomes the game of the forever, it'll probably do Gamecube numbers in the very end.
 
Save the Wii U? Nah.

Help get them to their sales expectations for this financial year? Sure, since they were pretty realistic to begin with.
 

Pikma

Banned
What do you mean by "saving"? You mean the GAF hyperbole definition that says "For a system to be saved it needs to sell 50 million systems in one particular year and beat the competition" or Nintendo's "as long as it's profitable" definition.
The latter is reachable, yes. The former? nope, impossible.
 

lherre

Accurate
No, I don't think there's really anything that can be done to save the WiiU at this point, since a first party can only do so much. But what they have announced in the pipeline for the system should be more than enough to satisfy those who do end up buying the system, especially when most people who do will probably have more than one system. By the end, there'll be a decent range of games, but it'll still be a pretty unsuccessful platform. Kinda like the Dreamcast I guess.

Basically this.

I don't think that they can change the perception of the machine only with this.
 
If Nintendo has no chance of success after that, the whole industry is already dead.

This is a skewed view, I am sorry. Most of the games shown are there for hardcore Nintendo fans; they do not have that broad of an appeal. Nintendo destroyed their relationship with third party developers since right after the Super Nes, to never recover. This model practically makes them the sole supplier of software. It is a double edged sword. On the one hand, they lock the market for themselves and make substantial revenues from selling their titles; on the other, they miss on the opportunity of attracting the mass of consumers who like their annual franchises (COD, Assassins Creed, FIFA...), and would not be content with the Nintendo Universe.
The WiiU is a lost case. It will receive temporary bumps, probably, but it will end up a very, very distant third (possibly 20 something million sales when everything is said and done). It will, just as the N64 and the GC, receive enough quality games to please its adopters and convince some gamers to buy it as a secondary plateform to either the Xbox One or the PS4.
 
IMO Nintendo did what they needed to to combat the - frankly ridiculous - levels of toxicity and negativity targetting them prior to MK8s release.

- showed that this year they are still a viable purchase choice for a new console if you already have a device capable of playing 'crossgen' games (MS and Sony shitting the bed on having much out this year ofc helped)
- showed that the wiiu isnt some experiment that is about to get cancelled, and has at least another 2 year lifespan to it
- showed that they do in fact listen to their fans
- showed that they do in fact make new ips
- showed that they do in fact do online gaming and online selling (huge amount of eshop only titles showed up this year)
- showed that the wiiu gamepad isnt going anywhere

Sales are obviously still a problem, but the absolutely toxic perception of them amongst 'core gamers' was satisfactorily shut down with their E3 showings I feel.
 

marc^o^

Nintendo's Pro Bono PR Firm
Save the Wii U, as in:
- Getting AAA 3rd parties games on the system? No chance. This is a Nintendo/indie box.
- Retailers support the system? Certainly. Amiibo, MK8 and Smash will deliver constant sales.
- Nintendo fans satisfaction? You bet!
 

moolamb

Member
Let's ask a different question. If you weren't going to buy the Wii U before, did the upcoming pipeline of (exclusive) games change your mind?
 

Castef

Banned
No.

Wii U is going the way of the Gamecube.

Hardcore Nintendo gamers will be quite happy, sales won't be that good.
 
I don't understand why they don't put a good sized hard drive in the WiiU. The lack of hard drive is the only thing that's keeping from buying a WiiU at this point. I like buying digital, so I need the hard drive. (I know you can hook up a separate hard drive, but that makes the WiiU a more expensive purchase.)
 

Jagsrock

Banned
Things are definitely looking up. That's not saying a lot but mK8 is really helping and I think they did a really good job at e3 of showcasing the fact that yes we have games and yes they are fun. I don't think there was a single thing shown at the treehouse that i don't want beside maybe project guard and that's most likely getting turned into something else anyways. Smash bros and amiibo will surely boost the system in a mk8 like fashion sending the wiiu into a stacked 2015 with a lot of momentum. It still may never fully recover but I think it's safe to say the console won't just die before e3 2015 like many have predicted and that the perception of the console as a whole has started to change a bit. It's gone from nobody wants it to an awesome secondary console.
 

Linkyn

Member
Who can say at this point? More likely than not, the Wii U is going to continue doing poorly. However, regardless of what happens, I know I'm going to be set throughout 2015 at the very least, and I am extremely excited to be a Wii U owner and Nintendo fan.
 

Zee-Row

Banned
I don't understand why they don't put a good sized hard drive in the WiiU. The lack of hard drive is the only thing that's keeping from buying a WiiU at this point. I like buying digital, so I need the hard drive. (I know you can hook up a separate hard drive, but that makes the WiiU a more expensive purchase.)

Bah I would just get a 250GB HDD they can't be too expensive. I'm nowhere near filling my 32GB flash memory and all I download is Virtual Console games and Digital Stuff like NES Remix.
 

balgajo

Member
No, I don't think there's really anything that can be done to save the WiiU at this point, since a first party can only do so much. But what they have announced in the pipeline for the system should be more than enough to satisfy those who do end up buying the system, especially when most people who do will probably have more than one system. By the end, there'll be a decent range of games, but it'll still be a pretty unsuccessful platform. Kinda like the Dreamcast I guess.

At least enough to leave me without money...XD
 
Wii U > GameCube > Virtual Boy

Define save ...

From the gamer perspective:
It think many gamer are already fine with the available and upcoming Wii U games. It seems Wii U has the best game library of all current gen consoles at least until end of next year. But this a matter of personal taste of course.

From Nintendos perspective:
Will the Wii U will bring Nintendo some cash in the end? Definitely yes. The Wii U sales will rise. Nintendo earned more money with the gamecube than Sony with the PS2, because Nintendo made/make the games everybody wants and buys.
 
No.

The pipeline will undoubtedly be great and filled with an embarrassment of richness that only Nintendo can provide.

But Nintendo's content alone isn't enough.
 

Neff

Member
'Save' as in completely turnaround and lead to wild success on par with Wii/PS3/360? Probably not.

'Save' as in make a healthy upturn in sales and consumer exposure/acceptance, leading to a gainfully profitable and popular system? It is possible.
 

Ansatz

Member
I do wonder if the hardcore Nintendo fans would end up happier with Wii U than with Wii.

I would say that depends on whether we will see Retro Studios & EAD Tokyo round 2 on Wii U, and what those games end up being. So ask again in exactly 1 year.
 
They've shown that they're willing to put out enough games (quality looking ones at that too) to make it the system worthwhile for those who own it. They've also shown a plan to get the company back into profitability, by making games that appeal to a broad spectrum of gamers.

If Wii U owners are happy, and Nintendo returns to profitability, then that's all the saving the system needs. Anything else is just console war dick measuring.
 
they miss on the opportunity of attracting the mass of consumers who like their annual franchises (COD, Assassins Creed, FIFA...), and would not be content with the Nintendo Universe.

You don't need to make games for young western men/Xbox gamers to be successful in the video game business.
:/
Half focusing on that market is one of the things that got them into this lackluster WiiU situation they're stuck in right now.
 

leroidys

Member
No.

But as a Wii U owner, it has significantly turned around my opinion of the console.

Before:

"That shit I had to buy for Zelda and Smash." (Wii 2)

Now:

"Low selling console some of Nintendo's best output in history, including many new IPs." (GC 2)
 

Neff

Member
IMO Nintendo did what they needed to to combat the - frankly ridiculous - levels of toxicity and negativity targetting them prior to MK8s release.

- showed that this year they are still a viable purchase choice for a new console if you already have a device capable of playing 'crossgen' games (MS and Sony shitting the bed on having much out this year ofc helped)
- showed that the wiiu isnt some experiment that is about to get cancelled, and has at least another 2 year lifespan to it
- showed that they do in fact listen to their fans
- showed that they do in fact make new ips
- showed that they do in fact do online gaming and online selling (huge amount of eshop only titles showed up this year)
- showed that the wiiu gamepad isnt going anywhere

Sales are obviously still a problem, but the absolutely toxic perception of them amongst 'core gamers' was satisfactorily shut down with their E3 showings I feel.

It's true, a massive amount of perceived damage was undone, or at least left naysayers and iconoclasts without much of a leg to stand on.
 

danmaku

Member
The thing about comparing the Gamecube and Wii U is that the market/industry is completely different now. I don't think they can be compared 1:1. In the Gamecube era there were 3 different systems all offering, for the most part, significantly different games/experiences. In this current gen you have two systems that are near identical (and with most of their games also releasing on PC, in a market where more people game on PCs) and then the Wii U doing its own thing.

Since that Gamecube gen you have also had a shift from a market dominated by Japanese games to a market dominated by Western games. Now Nintendo is somewhat like a holdout to that change, with most other Japanese companies trying to imitate the Western style and/or releasing many fewer games. Additionally, games are more accepted in the mainstream than they were back then. It is no longer inherently "uncool" to like video games, and they target both genders and all ages more than they did back then.

The situation is completely different.

You're right, it's different: it's much worse for Nintendo and for Japanese devs in general. I don't see how the current market status favors in the WiiU. Yes, X1 and PS4 are more or less the same console, but most people buy just one console. Two or more is for enthusiasts. I don't think the core gamers (and I mean "core" in the NPD sense of the word) will buy the WiiU as a secondary console, if they can they'll buy an X1 or PS4 for their exclusives when the cheap slim models will be launched.
 

Zimmy64

Member
I do wonder if the hardcore Nintendo fans would end up happier with Wii U than with Wii.

That's an interesting question. I think they're probably at least equal. One of the main advantages for the Wii is both Mario Galaxies which are once in a decade life-altering experiences.

With a New Star Fox, New Metroid, another 3D Mario, and a New RPG IP the Wii U would definitely keep itself in the competition.

Wii U also needs a great Sonic game. Wii has Sonic Colors which is the best 3D sonic game tied with Generations while Sonic Boom looks terrible.
 

Cygnus X-1

Member
I think that the negativity around the console is the main issue Nintendo successfully tackled during this E3. But how all of this is going to translate sales-wise is impossible to tell.
 

luca_aros

Neo Member
I think we will have a good idea after SSB how much a single game can increase the Wii U's sales. If they increase te intall base by quite a bit, that same audience is going to be buying quite a few of the new titles, as well as newcommers, so hopefully it'll be 'saved'.

Having said this, it really is two/1 and a half years too late I think. The big problem really is that if people to end up buying a Wii U now, they won't be buying older games, especially not third party games, which means third party support is not going to increase that much, which in turn means that sales won't massively increase. Core gamers have made their decision by now (PS4/X1) so they won't switch to Wii U for third party games, only Nintendo fans will buy the system...
 
I think the pipeline is as good, if not better in some cases, than its ever been. The speed at which products travel through that pipeline though...
 
I think so.

Mario Kart has already been phenomenal. Too early to say how it's affecting long term sales, but it's kicked off an amazing recovery in Nintendo's image. Their E3 was the same way. Reading forums and what not, people are excited! The talk isn't all about doom and gloom anymore. "Winning" E3 makes the platform feel hip and cool.

As far as games go, they got Smash and Bayo as heavy hitters coming up plus Yoshi, other smaller titles like Captain Toad, and third party.

Not expecting PS4 levels of success, but healthy sales none the less. At least it should start outselling the Vita weekly.
 
You're right, it's different: it's much worse for Nintendo and for Japanese devs in general. I don't see how the current market status favors in the WiiU. Yes, X1 and PS4 are more or less the same console, but most people buy just one console. Two or more is for enthusiasts. I don't think the core gamers (and I mean "core" in the NPD sense of the word) will buy the WiiU as a secondary console, if they can they'll buy an X1 or PS4 for their exclusives when the cheap slim model will be launched.

Secondary console owners that fall into NPD's definition of the core demographic(Xbox/PlayStation gamers)shouldn't be an important part of Nintendo's strategy.
Ever since SM3DW came out they've mostly been advertising the WiiU to kids and families. This is the right course for them, and they should stay on track.
It's their most important audience, and they really scared them away with the WiiU's less than stellar branding.
 

HGStormy

Banned
Saleswise? No, probably not.

But the Wii U has earned a place in my heart right next to the Dreamcast as one of my favorite consoles ever. It has plenty of top tier games and amazing exclusives both out now, and coming in the future. It's an awesome little box that deserves a spot on any gamers shelf.
 

El-Suave

Member
I'm not sure how much of a system seller Smash Bros. is in Europe. It never struck me as as popular here as it is in the US. I could be wrong though. Without it, the future doesn't look as bright as if it were a guaranteed sales monster. Anyway, I'm getting one as soon as there is the next price cut or good deal. Mario Kart is so tempting, and it works, too. My niece played it at her friend and she was glowing how much fun it (and the gamepad) was.
 
It's been a good E3 for Wii U owners but the announced titles will only appeal to the Nintendo hardcore, not those outside it, which is the sort of game Nintendo needs if it's to change Wii U's fortunes.

In any case, it really depends on what 'save' means.
 

TDLink

Member
You're right, it's different: it's much worse for Nintendo and for Japanese devs in general. I don't see how the current market status favors in the WiiU. Yes, X1 and PS4 are more or less the same console, but most people buy just one console. Two or more is for enthusiasts. I don't think the core gamers (and I mean "core" in the NPD sense of the word) will buy the WiiU as a secondary console, if they can they'll buy an X1 or PS4 for their exclusives when the cheap slim models will be launched.

It's good for Nintendo because they are offering something the others are either completely ignoring or barely touching on. Games that appeal to all ages. Games that still support local multiplayer. Games that have a larger visual variety. Games that have a larger genre variety. Games that still have a Japanese flavour in a market with increasingly less of it.

The market has a whole may have shifted away from all of that, but there are plenty of people who still enjoy that sort of thing. Nintendo is the only company left truly providing a large amount of it now.
 

Porcile

Member
At this point they need a Mario Kart 8 caliber release every month to drag Wii U into the 'success' category. I think the point of this show was to demonstrate to their existing audience (the one that unconditionally buys their consoles and software) that Nintendo is still worth sticking by in years to come. They've come dangerously close to alienating their main audience in the past but this show was very much the opposite. It's a long time away yet, but if you'd asked if I was going to Day 1 their next home console, i'd of said 'maybe'. If they can keep this the presence and confidence going, then that answer changes to an 'absolutely'.
 
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