170°

Wii U sales data – not as impressive as Nintendo's press release would have you believe

Analysing Nintendo's recent Press Release from a certain perspective makes it seem that there is something funny up with the reported sales figures.

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konnerbllb4114d ago

Feels like something is off about this, information is held back.

Slapshot824114d ago

Hi konnerbllb,

If you're speaking to my article, the information I used is from Nintendo's own Press Release. There's even a link to an unedited version of the Press Release in full to ensure that it's completely clear that I've haven't changed/altered a single thing.

I can understand why you would think this (I see all the "quick hit" articles as well), but this isn't one of them. This is nothing more than a breakdown and analysis of Nintendo's recent Press Release. I have no interest in changing or playing with words to make things appear that they are something they aren't.

Thanks for your comment,

Chris

Athonline4114d ago

Not a comment to the actual article but to you Chris:
Respect for replying to N4G and identifying yourself as the author of the article.
Most authors would just "defend" their articles and POVs acting as third parties...

As for the article:
Well I know in the UK just three weeks after WiiU lunch, there was a 60 pounds off deal at ebay for Christmas and unlike most ebay deals that time, this wasn't sold out for the two weeks it was up! Demands is little bit lower than Nintendo wants us to believe.
Personally I believe it is due to casual gamers who want a console, would prefer a cheaper Wii or PS360 and more mainstream gamers like me, want to wait until all next gen consoles are out -even then I doubt I will pick WiiU.

shutUpAndTakeMyMoney4114d ago (Edited 4114d ago )

I think it's bad news when 360 & ps3 can outsell a new console. But maybe they didn't have enough units? idk..

But the wiiU sometimes doesn't come up in articles in regards to "next gen". When people say next gen they tend to think ps4/720. I think nintendo really did great things last gen but that makes the perception around wiiU to be more like wii and most hardcore gamers don't think wii when it's time to play Cod or BF games.

Nintendo really have to change the perception of wiiU as a mostly casual console if they are going for the hardcore. Only those who are big time zelda/mario fans will want one.

The casual market was the back bone of wiis success and now they seem to be playing $0.99 mobile games. I think that is the real reason wiiU has a tablet to attract that market not because of innovation. They released a tablet controller in the middle of a tablet boom.

Depending on what type of gamer you are if you see wiiU in the store playing Mario next to ps3 playing The Last Of Us that is a big difference in what kind of console people will think it is.

And most nintendo games are like rayman and zelda and kirby nothing like Halo.

But then again sometimes I don't know sh!t..

MattS4114d ago

Atholine - I think you're pretty much right there. There's also the simple reality that a lot of the audience for the Wii (the people that wanted a simple entertainment device and only bought one or two games - a big part of the Wii's market) has since bought iPads and don't see the need to get another dedicated console.

The Wii U has simply launched at a different point in time to the Wii. I still think it will do well in the long term, but there is no way it will hit the numbers of the Wii.

mshope104114d ago

all i want from you guys is just admit you hate nintendo and thats why your so hard on them.

cause it's seem yinz hate on them every chance you get.but if you dont like them it makes sense.

all i know is i love my wii u.i hope it gets great sales but i knew it would not do wii's numbers.if not doing wii's numbers but beating 360 and ps3 launch numbers is some how bad then this must be the twilight zone right?

Slapshot824114d ago

@Athonline Thanks. I don't consider myself to just be another writer and I don't write things solely for the amount of "hits" they will bring in for the website that I write for. Instead, I wrote this as an informative piece that shows that there is always more than what at first meets the eye.

In this case, this release easily pleases 'core' Nintendo fans with its excitement and praise. That's great and I have no qualms with Nintendo - they are running a business for a profit - but this isn't a time for patting Nintendo on the back and overlooking the simple fact that Wii U isn't catching on with mainstream/casual gamers.I want to see Nintendo get their marketing right, let people know what Wii U actually is (it does have a broken identity, because so many people don't understand it and it's boatload of controls and controller options) and get this unique console with a ton of potential selling to everyone - not just the core Nintendo fans.

This is my last comment that I'm allowed on this topic here at N4G, but I'll gladly respond to more on the site - hope to see you all there. :)

Athonline4114d ago

@Matts , @Slapshot82

Thanks! :-) I try to be neutral and nonsubjective to my comments. I always try to speak as a software developer and someone who used to want to work in the game industry. Unfortunately some people disagree/ bubble me and other people down without any reasons...

I agree with both you. Wii U could be a sold out by now if it was lunch at a different period. I believe in the long run, it will be a win for Nintendo. People who bough just a Wii and may want to upgrade in the future may go after WiiU. Until then, these core people will just wait. Plus all these "doom articles" and developers saying that WiiU doesn't have enough power, the lack of memory, may scared people.

@mshope10
PS3 was more expensive and two same-gen consoles were already out. For 360 the world was hesitate original -in my opinion- as they were waiting for more PS3 related announcements.
I do not want Wii to fail. In fact I hope Nintendo will succeed and sell. The more major players, the better for the end-consumer things will be. Look at the industry as a whole at the moment. Many big publishers are no longer out there, studios are closing, game prices are going up... only an idiot would want another publisher/ console maker to fail. The article from a quick read, from what I understood, mine and Matts comments are all related to the launch of WiiU not its long run survival.

t0mmyb0y4114d ago

Well Said Chris. I would point fingers at whoever was in charge of advertising. Even a month after the WiiU was out, gamers didn't even know what it was. Comments were "This looks pretty good for the Wii." I showed it to family for Christmas and they had a blast. Nintendo needs to show what it does.

+ Show (4) more repliesLast reply 4114d ago
Godchild10204114d ago (Edited 4114d ago )

I think the reason is, most people don't expect Nintendo consoles to be expensive or to exceed a certain amount. I can only assume that the next time Nintendo releases a new generation handheld and home console, consumers will expect a high(er) price because they expect Nintendo to be pushing HD or whatever the new tech is.

It only looks Gloom(Not Doomed) because it didn't sell as well as the Wii, but I think the price came as a shock for for consumers. That could also be the case with the Vita, because of the lower price of the 3DS. Sorry to being the Vita into this, but I think it's true. It would have sold better if the price was lower or Nintendo didn't drop the price of the 3DS so soon.

The Wii U will sell better once Nintendo drops the Wii and more games launch on the Wii U.

Slapshot824114d ago

Hi Godchild1020,

Thanks for your comment. I actually think just as you do on this topic. I do think it's the price point that's holding the Vita back (even if it's completely worthy of its asking price). I almost dropped a comparison with Vita into this piece, but I wanted to solely focus on Nintendo's Press Release here - there's always another day for more articles to expand on. :)

Cheers!

Thepcz4114d ago

yeah yeah, its all doom and gloom, the wiiu is failing,3ds is failing, nintendo stocks down, mario not selling, its the end of days for nintendo, they are becoming software only, this will be there last gen in the console market etc etc

meanwhile, sony and microsoft are stuck in the last gen while nintendo grab a massive market share for the current (next gen) with wiiu.

wiiu is flying off the shelves, dont listen to this trash

MattS4114d ago

Don't listen to the sales numbers because a random N4G user knows better.

Beastforlifenoob4113d ago

It's absolutely true! The share market price of Nintendo has gone done 81.53% (A RIDICULOUSLY HUGE DROP) and has lost 22% of it in the last three months (release of WiiU)

Neko_Mega4114d ago

The only draw back I think the Wii U has, is alot of the games for it are ports or remakes. Plus the lack of space for those who brought the 8GB (Yeah you can use a USB flash drive and all, but the problem is. Not everyone understands how to do that).

I got the 32GB model, but I'm sitting at 16GBs left and I can easy add more memory. But what I'm kind of worry about is, if the system gets knock over or mess with. It can damage the usb slot or whatever device plug into it.

So it would be nice if the WIi U had more memory build in.

BattleAxe4114d ago (Edited 4114d ago )

This is going to go down as I have predicted since Nintendo announced the WiiU. This console will not last more than 2 years from its release, and the obvious reasons are the timing of the release of the PS4 and the Xbox 720, the low hardware specs of the WiiU and proliferation of PC gaming into the console market thanks to Steam and their partners such as nVidia. There are alot of exciting things coming to the gaming industry in the next year or so, and the WiiU (Dreamcast 2)isn't one of them.

Show all comments (45)
80°

Nintendo's Massacre Of The 3DS And Wii U Is Finally Complete, Regrettably

Hanzala from eXputer: "The cruel hammer of Nintendo has fallen. Farewell, 3DS and Wii U, you surely brightened my life and many others; you won't be forgotten."

280°

Xbox's Preservation Step Sets A Much-Needed Example, Especially For Nintendo

Hanzla from eXputer inquires: "If Xbox can care about preserving its games and legacy, what exactly is wrong with Nintendo, trying to kill game preservation single-handedly?"

purple1015d ago

Ahh yes the good old game preservation of saving all your games to a removable hhd on the Xbox 360, taking it round your mates house, setting up multiple tvs to
Be met with “save data corrupted, please re download”

Or how about removing 360 games
From the store
, download them now or else, and, better hope to god that save data doesn’t corrupt, or it’s lost for ever

Nice one ☝️

Zeref4d ago

It's better than what Nintendo and Playstation is doing. It might not be perfect but at least they are TRYING. Unlike the others.

DarXyde4d ago

Trying? Take off the blinders for a moment, mate.

1. A failure to preserve games is just that: a failure to preserve games. Don't try to sugarcoat it: NO ONE is doing it properly. Better than awful is nothing to write home about.

2. At the time of this comment, isn't it the case that you need an internet connection to play Xbox games even if you buy physical discs that are hardly in circulation anymore? I don't have a Series X and I can't verify, but I think that is correct. I'm fairly certain you can at least play PS5 games at version 1.0 (not much of a win really when many games require day one patches). I think Microsoft's all digital, licensing approach is by far more aggressive than anyone else's. They really try to push you to game pass where you lose your entire library by umm.... Skipping a month of payments.

I don't think anyone is doing it right whatsoever. Don't get me started on Nintendo, who goes after anyone looking to preserve their games better than they ever would with extreme litigation.

Don't be a simp for any of these companies. Get it together.

PhillyDonJawn4d ago (Edited 4d ago )

@DarX never speak on Xbox again. You lost all credibility with your internet connection comment. Smh you have 0 clue and misinformed yet speaking on something you don't no squat about.

Einhander19724d ago

What has Sony done exactly? You guys keep deflecting to Sony but I am not actually seeing any results, and ai am certain nothing that you can come up with even comes close to what Microsoft has done and what they have tried and failed to do, like tie all your disks to your account on xbone.

Microsoft removed their whole indie section when they moved to the xbone because they were going to only allow games on the service that came from a publisher, id@xbox started after xbone launched and it only exists because Sony embraced indie and Microsoft was forced to cancel their plans and reverse course.

And every single game that was part of games for windows live including disk games (I have gta 4 on disk that won't work) so hundreds of games that use that DRM no longer work unless the company themselves patched it out which of course very few did.

MrBaskerville4d ago

Not trying. Tried. they killed of the backcomp program years ago. They set something up again, but sounds like it's more of an attempt to save the current library on whatever they are planning next. With luck they save everything and more, but let's see. I could see them killing off parts of the OG xbox and 360 libraries. Can't imagine that they would allow us to play Forza 5-7 in the future.

With that said, I do like what they've done and really wish they could have done more.

shinoff21834d ago

Zeref

So killing off physical media is trying what exactly. Ms don't really give a fk if you think they do your kidding yourself.

Profchaos4d ago

They are not trying this team is established for forward compatability the team is. It interested in preserving Xbox or 360 games.

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 4d ago
isarai5d ago

Is that why Hellblade 2 is digital only?

Zeref4d ago

Just because it's digital only doesn't mean you can't preserve it. Just put it on an external and you have the exact same functionality of what a disc does.

MrNinosan4d ago

Guess you're trolling, but if you actually think that's how it works, I'd recommend buying some braincells.

mkis0074d ago (Edited 4d ago )

Volitile vs nonvolitile data. A disc will not corrupt either. A drive can be corrupted.

Einhander19725d ago

This is just a scammy PR move to distract from the fact they are going digital only and trying to push streaming and subscriptions only.

No gaming company has pushed harder to remove ownership than Microsoft.

Without discs there is no preservation, preservation can't be done by the rights holders it can only be done by the consumers, anything else is a lie.

5d ago Replies(3)
Einhander19725d ago

Anyone remember xblig which Microsoft removed their whole 360 indie section removing hundreds of games from people?

5d ago
5d ago
Zeref4d ago

Do you know you can put your games on an external and preserve them that way? There are no benefits to discs. ZERO. Idk why some of you are still obsessed with them.

DarXyde4d ago

Because games like Persona 5 exist. It's STILL V1.00. On Playstation, that's a win because 1.00 is installed on the disc—no need to download anything.

If a game does not require any updates, it's all on the disc.

Extremely low bar in the modern era, of course. It's not much of a win by any stretch.

But for now, physical media does have a purpose, at least on Playstation.

Einhander19724d ago

That is factually not how game licensing works, try plugging your hard drive into someone else xbox, It's not going to work, and it won't work if the licensing servers ever go down.

Einhander19724d ago

Anyone remember games for windows live.

I have around a dozen games, some on Steam itself that will not work because Microsoft shut off the licensing servers.

BehindTheRows4d ago (Edited 4d ago )

I do. I STILL have games (Gears of War being the big one) I cannot access because Games for Windows LIVE is total garbage and no one has held Microsoft accountable.

Zeref4d ago (Edited 4d ago )

You don't have an Xbox apparently. Because you can 100 percent plug in your external and play games from it on any Xbox console lol. You just have to be logged in to prove ownership.

Chevalier4d ago

"You don't have an Xbox apparently. Because you can 100 percent plug in your external and play games from it on any Xbox console lol. You just have to be logged in to prove ownership."

Damn how many times do people got to explain your idiocy to you? You can take a copy of Persona 5 like someone used as an example and play that game on ANY console WITHOUT logging in which means I can lend the game to a friend without internet and they can play my game. Can you lend your hard drive to anyone without logging in for them to play? NOPE. That is a huge difference and if you think otherwise then sorry you're an idiot.

Tacoboto4d ago

"No gaming company has pushed harder to remove ownership than Microsoft."

Ubisoft is literally erasing games people bought from their libraries... My PS1-3 discs are useless on modern hardware. Nintendo's re-published and resold almost their entire Wii U library, and the eShop is completely dead with no BC mechanism in the Switch software. Microsoft publishes everything they make today day one on Steam and Xbox/Windows. Sony only brings to PC the titles they think you might want some years later and Nintendo won't even design a functional long-lasting joystick.

You're absolutely trolling and not serious if you think Microsoft today is the worst offender.

shinoff21834d ago

Yay steam

Not everyone fks with computers though. The disc is still the best way as a console player. Period.

Tacoboto4d ago

How do Sony and Nintendo feel about these discs from 2001-2013?

Don't be stupid, you know Xbox is the best at this today.

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 4d ago
Hofstaderman5d ago

Nobody wants this. Sales or the lack of it in the case of XBOX is very telling. I wonder how the adorably all digital series X will fare. Adorably dismal perhaps?

crazyCoconuts4d ago

Only time will tell, but for from someone like me suspecting that Xbox is trying to gracefully exit the console market, that "forward compatibility" team is trying to get Xbox games playing on Windows PCs. I mean, it's nice that they're not planning on exiting with a "enjoy your games while the hardware still works" message, so that's nice. They still have a brand to protect via Microsoft so probably feel obligated to have a better exit strategy.

Xeofate4d ago (Edited 4d ago )

That is not their plan, their plan is to transfer users accounts to the cloud.

Phil Spencer himself said as much a few months back, plans could have changed but I think people are reading way too much into one statement where Phil said he would allow Epic on xbox because he wants to be able to sell xbox games directly on other platforms. Aka, instead of selling Sea of Thives through PSN he wants to have an xbox store to sell his games on PlayStation without giving PlayStation any money.

Again, it's extremely unlikely that Phil plans to put PC on xbox and licensing would prevent them from just giving out other publishers games purchased on xbox copies of thier games on PC, Microsoft does not own their games.

crazyCoconuts3d ago

The thing that doesn't align with the cloud strategy is the giving up on exclusives. You'd still need strong exclusives for cloud streaming - it's still a "platform" , just with a lower upfront hardware investment. I feel like they've learned what PS learned with PSNow long ago. We're not ready to stream games and it's only gonna lose them money to try at this point

FinalFantasyFanatic4d ago

I would love that, I'd buy up some of the Xbox games if they could run on PC, like the Rare Replay, Lost Odyssey and Dead or Alive Ultimate, probably a pipe dream though.

Show all comments (43)
90°

Nintendo's War Against Player-Made Content Will Hurt The Company In The End

Danish from eXputer: "Nintendo has historically gone against player-made content and emulation of its games. This has done much to harm the company's image."

XiNatsuDragnel11d ago

I agree nintendo hire some these folks to help in your games it'll help imo.

banger8811d ago

They need to stop announcing these mods and fan remakes until they're finished. Finish it, upload it, and then if Nintendo dmca's it tough shit. Once it's online, people can share it around, even if the original download gets taken down.

Jingsing10d ago

True, but most modders need constant admiration during the process to motivate them.

PRIMORDUS10d ago

Yup, once it's a torrent nothing can be done Nintendo is helpless at that point. But it would be wise if they just had a site on the dark web, it's also easy to use with Tor and no one will bother you.

mastershredder10d ago

This is all coming from the mouth of short-sighted fandom and grifting madness.
No.... it wont. There is a clear defined reason why they don't. This is nothing new. Make your own shi7 from your own original ideas especially if you are trying to capitalize of it it. Duh.

Yeah, hire people that have zero respect or understanding for an established process. Wow. Yep. Totally makes sense.

shinoff218310d ago

Those guys that made that sonic game got a gig from sega or something along those lines and that game was dope as hell. One of the best sonics as of late.