Interesting that you mention the 3DS, yet omit the fact that the system had a pretty big price drop about four months after its launch. Bad example. This is the kind of thing Nintendo was trying to avoid with the Wii U, and with NSMBU, 2 SKUs, and a number of high profile third party games (albeit most of them ports of older PS3/Xbox 360 games), it's no doubt Nintendo wanted the system to get off to a very strong start, as opposed to having to wait on things picking up.
My point is that if your new system is the 6th best selling platform in its first full month out, including two of your own systems that haven't been supported much in years (Wii and DS), that's not exactly a promising sign. And while I can appreciate your optimistic outlook, I just don't see things being as peachy for Nintendo. From the looks of things, it appears that the Wii U could go at least half a year without a legitimate system seller, and unlike the 3DS and the portable market, Nintendo just doesn't have the console market wrapped around its finger to wait for that key game to show up, especially with at least two new systems hanging in its shadow.
My feelings on the matter is that Nintendo has set the Wii U up to struggle out of the gate, which was the LAST THING they system could afford to do. And between Iwata's wishy-washy comment earlier in the week and a PR sales release that shifted the matter to a "revenue generated" topic, I think Nintendo KNOWS they've dropped the one ball they had to hang on to for the time being. Now, it's just a matter of seeing how the system sells in the next 2-3 to see just how rough things will become, IMO.
Not that I disagree with what you're saying for the most part, but try saying that to shareholders, publishers, and even consumers who may be on the fence about Nintendo's "new" approach and direction with the Wii U. If you're making a new system already believing that it's not going to match the success of its predecessor, you're not sending good messages.
The fact is that the system was given the "Wii" branding for a reason, and with that branding comes expectations. Even if the Wii U aims to cater more to the *ahem* 'dedicated' gamer demographic, it's still expected to carry the mass-market appeal and success that its predecessor did to some significant extent. If it doesn't, there will be many frowning faces Nintendo will have to answer.
That's part of what's so telling by the fact that the Wii outsold the Wii U last month and with so many systems supposed being unsold as we speak, regardless of model. It means that somewhere, Nintendo's approach with the Wii U isn't working as planned and leaves question marks as to just how successful the system will be moving forward. Between NSMBU and the holiday season, Nintendo has already used some of its best cards to attract the mainstream. If it proves to not be working already, Nintendo's going to be feeling really uncomfortable really quickly.
Actually, that's what the 475,000 sold Wiis are referring to. Whether it was intentional or not, somehow, there ended up being more Wiis than Wii Us under Christmas trees this year (but not millions more, lol).
...I think there is some confusion going on. According to Nintendo's PR release, those 475,000 Wiis sold were actually from LAST MONTH, not its launch. The way the article is written in relation to the Wii's "same month" makes it sound like it was referring to Dec. 06. I think it's safe to say that the Wii is in no way facing shortages these days, though, so the numbers are more telling.
The Wii was a totally new brand that was also held back by short supply that lasted for well over a year. The fact that the Wii U's early numbers are close doesn't tell the full story. It looks good on paper, but it's pretty obvious that the demand for the system simply isn't the same or appears to have the kind of upside that the Wii had.
Way more telling than how it stacks up to the Wii's launch numbers is how it somehow fell behind the Wii just last month. When exactly was the last time Nintendo actually made a legitimate push for the Wii in terms of marketing and software? Yet, not only did it OUTSELL the Wii U this month, it wasn't that far behind the system last month, either. And those should have been the two months the Wii U had everyone's attention. I shudder to think what will happen in the coming months, where sales of gaming consoles are sure to go back down.
The numbers are almost the same, but all it takes is a quick look at the amount of units at retail to realize that the Wii U's situation is night-and-day in contrast to the Wii's, and that's something Nintendo must address.
Except it's not "hate news," but a pretty telling fact of how the Wii U did. The Wii hasn't seen decent software support in 2 whole years, and both it AND the original DS outsold the Wii U in its first full month on the market. That means SOMETHING, even if only to investors or other publishers that have invested into the system somehow.
If this is how the Wii U is faring as the new kid on the block at the busiest time of the year commercially in North America, it's safe to bet on the fact that it's going to struggle in the next few months. The Wii U simply CAN'T afford to have lackluster sales so early, and with no legitimate system sellers in the system's future, I can't really say I see things getting better.
We'll see if I'm wrong in the coming months, but you can be sure this is certainly not something Nintendo wanted to see, evident by the fact that the PR simply spun the sales numbers into a "revenue" matter, which doesn't reflect the state of the console in quite the same way.
Funny... while I don't play a lot of shooters nowadays, I have played my share of Mortal Kombat, and I've NEVER had the urge to do ANYTHING as disgusting as what happened last week in Connecticut. Bad logic. Why not blame Burnout and Mario Kart for hit-and-runs, Pokemon for animal fighting, and heck, even Kirby for cannibalism, while you're at it?
I'm not trying to make light of what was a VERY tragic situation, but there was absolutely no need to bring video games or any other form of media into something like this, especially when they haven't been linked to the incident. The issue at hand has to do totally with a harsh realism that someone had access to multiple firearms that shouldn't have been anywhere near them. If it had reason, this whole finger-pointing thing wouldn't bother me too much, but to shed the blame on ANYONE else doesn't make you come off as a hero. Instead, it just makes it look like you're trying to run away from the problem.
I'm in a similar boat. While there are 3DS games I'd like to play, there's nothing available on the system that actually demands my attention. I was hoping that maybe New Super Mario Bros. 2 would create that interest, but it actually managed to make things worse. Looking at how much star power Nintendo and other developers have already used on the system, I can't say I see the situation getting much better as time goes on.
I honestly haven't felt this way towards a Nintendo system of any sort since probably the SNES (and I know this could be a controversial thing to say, especially around Nintendo fans, but I speak the truth). In time, I'll probably get one when I have nothing to play and the Nintendo fan in me starts to feel lonely. Honestly, though, that still might not be anytime soon.
And since this is about Nintendo in general, the Wii U doesn't make me feel any better...
The part you mentioned about the hardware helps my point. That's the sort of thing that's supposed to be addressed BEFORE a system's launch, not afterwards. Just looking at the system as a whole, there's very little to suggest that the 3DS came out at the right time, in my opinion. It just comes off as uninspired, and that's with the 3D functionality that was SUPPOSED to be a game-changer, but is more like a preference that many would actually prefer to do without. Take that out of the mix, and there is nothing the system does that the DS or any other system couldn't handle.
I don't believe in the notion that a system should stay around 5-6 years and simply get replaced, especially if that system still has momentum, whereas the new one has much less going for it. To me, this is the mistake Nintendo made. Another year of brainstorming could have helped with hardware issues, inspired ideas to compliment the system's strengths, and more than likely, had a greater appeal to a wider group of consumers. I think Nintendo's struggles with the system is a direct result of them having less to show for the 3DS' reason for being than they originally led the industry to believe.
To me, the 3DS still appears to be a system struggling to find its place and/or reason to exist. It's not because it has lacked the big-name titles or developer support in its first year and a half, but it doesn't seem to have that same 'spark'. I've always felt like Nintendo and the rest of the industry got lost in the 3D and the other bells and whistles of the hardware to the point where the creativity and uniqueness required to create those attention-grabbing games got lost in the process.
We're STILL talking about weak 3DS sales AFTER Nintendo made that huge price drop that was supposed to fix everything last year, according to most people. And if wasn't for the Japanese market taking a liking to the system as well as they have, the situation would be a LOT uglier than it is now. Another thing worth drawing attention to would be the fact that what little software support that the DS and Wii have received recently is still enough to make a better impression than the 3DS's software sales over the same period.
Call me crazy, but I think the 3DS came out too soon. Another year or so in the proverbial oven probably would have inspired better ideas to go with that tech that Nintendo was so sure would sell the system. A little extra time would have went a long way to fix the fundamental problems the 3DS still face today.
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