Wii U price cut hasn't improved sales enough, says retailer

The price cut on Wii U hardware has failed to boost sales to the level expected, retailer ShopTo has suggested.

[ShugaCane]

The price is not the problem. Game's library is still poor. Maybe Monster Hunter and Lego Undercover will have some good effects but that's not enough. Nintendo, bring more games that are actually worth buying and playing.

[zerocrossing]

Exactly, I haven't bought the Wii U because there's nothing I want out for it yet, the price isn't the problem so slashing it fixes nothing.

[lilbroRx]

I've seen saying this and getting disagreeed and bubbled down for it to hell and back for months.

There are only 2 issues with the Wii U. The games haven't come out yet and most people don't distinguish it from the Wii thanks to Nintendo making it look as similar as possible. They think its just a $350 addon.

Now where is lol_wut who was so insistent that "it needs a price cut to save it".

[admiralvic]

@ lilbroRx

there is another issue, if and or when third party support will come out. While some might consider that part of the first half, Nintendo can endlessly support the Wii U with quality first party titles, which IS enough for some people. Truth be told, I will probably play all multiplatform titles on my PS4, so I would be looking to exclusives over multiplatform titles. Either or, a lot of people are worried that there just won't always be options for the system.

[kayoss]

The biggest problem with the Wii U is not the price. The problem lies with the Wii. If you look at the Wii, the majority of the people who bought the Wii are very very casual gamers and parents who bought the console for their kids. I wouldnt be suprise if only 30-40% of Wii owners were hardcore gamers. When you have such a casual fan base it will translate to poor sales for the next generation. Most casaul Wii owner and parents probably feel that they do not need another console.

Unlike the PS3 and xbox360, the majority of owners are made up of hardcore gamers who have the need to get the next gen regardless.

[Shnazzyone]

I snagged one but I agree, I wouldn't reccomend it yet because there is not great game selection yet.

[AWBrawler]

Sorry kayoss but i disagree. There casuals on Xbox360 and PS3 as well. Just look at kinect sells or madden. I know several people who own a 360 and only play sport games buying maybe 2 games a year. You can't seriously think that the majority of the 70 odd million people on 360 or PS3 are mostly hatdcore. Ha when have you evers seen 70 million online on XBL or PSN.

[LOL_WUT]

If i'm not mistaken this is for online only? And even if it's not this seems to be more of an Europe thing. So um, hello not everyone knows about these deals? Amazon only took like 3 dollars off, GameStop has it at its regular price and Shopto.net is a UK based online store. Stop grasping at straws lilbro!

Nintendo need to drop the Wii U's price themselves and not leave it up to retailers. A price cut should benefit them greatly and once the developers notice thats it's picking up then they'll jump on the Wii U.

I don't know why that upsets you ;) but even Ubisoft has said it. ;)

[rainslacker]

Even a price cut without any new games is a problem. Vita's recent boost in sales was a combination of big games and a price cut in Japan, so just a price cut alone won't spur enough sales since any software currently out wasn't enticing enough in the first place.

I really like my Wii U, but today was the first day I brought any new software for it since launch day(Lego City and MH3). 4 months with no big titles, and now 2 more months before the Wonderful 101 supposedly comes out isn't a lot to inspire confidence in the consumer...particularly those that may be middle of the road on gaming, and certainly not the casual crop.

On top of that the next gen is looming from the other two with what is going to probably blow the Wii U hardware out of the water. To add insult to injury, there are some really big titles still slated from Sony in the coming months(summer being dry as always), and MS probably is more appealing to the casuals right now with Kinect and heavy support/marketing for it.

[corrus]

Don't believe that games is not stupid Mario who sucking money oh sorry i mean Nintendo sucking money from Mario games

[Mr_Writer85]

The price is the problem. The casuals who flocked to the Wii don't want it, even less so at its price.

Nintendo games won't save the WiiU from bombing.

[Apex13]

Why such hate??? this was the same talk as the ds, 3ds and yet you prob was one of the people who are sitting there looking silly now. Tut Tut and play nice. Now run along lol

[s45gr32]

No is not the price is the issue of lacking games worthy of playing along with selling old ass games like Need for Speed most wanted (a launch 360 title) for $60.00 plus tax or the upcoming deux ex human revolution a 2011 title for $60.00 plus tax. I mean really it needs to sell these games at least $40.00 plus tax. Most wii owners look at the wii u as an add on not a next generation system. I do agree that Nintendo games (Zelda Mario Pokemon and Metroid) won't save this company due to being the same old ass franchises with very little innovation.

[yeahokchief]

I said this stuff back in november when they launched. I also said they'd price cut within Q1 and nobody believed me.

You can currently pick up the white version at costco for $249 but i still don't want one because it needs games scheduled for it.

Go onto wikipeida gaming 2013... Theres no games coming out for it this year listed that interest me as a snes/n64 era nintendo player. I would buy one now to play a few wii games i missed, but it seems like a bad investment because theres absolutely nothing in the pipeline for me.

I'm waiting for them to release a metroid, zelda, donkey kong. I'm guessing the price on this will go down to $250 with a game by the time I pick one up.

I also see the Vita going down to $200 before years end. It was already $170 on black friday, $100 on the atat store and $210 at target.The deals are due. They're probably holding them for e3, but they should just do them now. I believe they were standardizing the $250 price by getting rid of the 3g model when they cut it to $100. I missed that sale and chose not to jump on the other two because i didnt want the assassins creed/lego batman games that came with them in my library. Sony needs better bundles. $200 soul sacrifice bundle with just the system and the game + $50-$75 32gb memory and i will bite on either.

And fyi, you can pick up a 3dsxl for $160 or a 3ds for $130 at target next either this week or next week. i forget because i'm not interested in one of those either. i just like to watch the deals on stuff that isn't selling because they did a horrible job releasing games/competitive prices for it.

Nintendo on the otherhand just needs to start kicking it up a notch with the first party games...

Tell you what. If they fire Reggie Fils Aime. i would buy a Nintendo Wii U tomorrow in celebration. i'd feel good about that and it would make me think more positively of the nintendo brand. He has been a nuisance for core gamers and i want him gone.

[BX81]

I'm offended you doubt my loyalty to you. Day 1, I said you were right about everything. I'm going to lay down and cry now!

[lilbroRx]

Then you were indeed wrong, because Nintendo hasn't cut the price a single cent. This is purely the act of retailers at their own business.

This article just proves that price was never the problem to begin with.

[admiralvic]

A) No one "doubted" you per se, just that not everyone goes in with a doom / gloom mentality.
B) Retailer Clearance is not the same as a price cut. I can currently buy a Vita 4gb memory card for $2 dollars at Sears, yet the MSRP is still $20 I think. When the actual MSRP changes, then you actually have a price cut.
C) Just because you can list sales doesn't mean you have a point... there will always be deals, even if the game is highly successful. The only time you DON'T see deals is if the game is rare / low print or the company is against it. Even if the company says no, it's not uncommon to see a weird promotion. I believe the last Halo game offered a 12 pack of Mountain Dew with purchase at Target (or was that Gears? Idk, it was an Xbox exclusive though).

[yeahokchief]

I'm calling an official price cut on the Wii U coupled with deals ontop of that by the end of this year for the Wii U. Blackfriday will most likely be the time to buy.

When the retailers can't even sell the stock they have at $50 under sticker and nintendo is still paying to have the things produced then what do you think will happen?

The price isn't the problem. It's the lack of games for more mature gamers. That's a problem that won't be solved in 2013 if you look at the schedule. The PS4 is going to make a lot of people look past it too.

I think Sony is really sticking it to Nintendo by releasing the PS4 this year while they are weak. I think sony is targeting nintendos 18-30 yr old players with all the games like PSASBR, Sly series, little bigplanet etc. This past year they've been really trying to build their brands official software mascots more than in the past.

Pikmin 3 and Monster Hunter is all Nintendo have coming and those both are pretty much for teenagers and preteens. They still don't have a single killer game for a broad audience for their new console beyond the new Mario #9484747383.

Don't cry bx81 some really crazy deals are coming similar to how they reduced the 3ds from $249 to $170 six months after launch. $200 white wii u in 2013 after retailers discounts before tax is what im betting on.

Like i said, fire reggie fils aime and i'll jump on team nintendo tomorrow for the hell of it because $300 is nothing to me right now. But i fully expect them to repeat their price slashing by the end of this year because they have not fixed the root cause of their problem which is the lack of games for cores. Average age of gamer is 35 years old. What 35 year old is hyped for monster hunter and pikmin3? lol.

[hazardman]

Are you implying that the 3ds doesn't sell? Last time I checked its doing better than most!!

[Shnazzyone]

Why does it feel like i'm the only one that sees wii U and 3ds are nintendo reaching out to get back the hardcore? You mean that bayonetta 2, wonderful 101, pikmen 3, deus ex directors cut, xenogears HD and the increasing possibility of fzero and starfox isn't proof enough?

[rainslacker]

They won't likely do a price cut because the summer is coming up, and game sales are slow to begin with. Also with no big hitter games a price cut doesn't get the attention that you do with say a big name coming out at the same time.

A price cut will coincide with a big name release, or to counteract momentum of another system release.

It does have some games worth getting should someone pick up the system, but I understand where your coming from with nothing that may appeal to you. Time between appealing releases is few and far between, and Nintendo has done nothing to really wet people's palates. All they say is they have a great lineup for this year, but for the most part there is only one more biggish game with a release date for the remainder of the year. Maybe two if you include Rayman, but that's gone multi-plat.

Edit: @ your 2nd post
Not sure what good firing Reggie would do. The Wii U is having sales troubles all around the world. He's also not the one that is responsible for procuring new titles for the system, as Nintendo of America is not a development house. I doubt you could turn that around for them in any reasonable time frame, particularly since Reggie has been doing this for a long time, and despite him coming off as strange sometimes, he does know what he's doing more than any random internet "analyst" such as yourself.

[HarryMasonHerpderp]

I know I'm holding out on getting one until I see what they have at E3. I don't think the casuals are interested in the WiiU at all though, the tablet idea just isn't catching on the same as the motion controls did, although I haven't seen that much advertising from Nintendo this time around either.
I'm sure it will get into it's stride eventually, I doubt Nintendo would just leave their console out to die. As for the guys that already have a WiiU, I feel you're pain I was made out to be crazy when I bought a Vita day one, the amount of hate towards that handheld is unbelievable.

[rainslacker]

I'm not worried about Nintendo's support of the system. That's pretty much a given. What I don't really understand is that they had 2 years to get games ready for the system, and while it had a arguably decent launch line up, nothing else has really been released since, and there is very little on the horizon to look forward to.

3rd party support is very iffy right now, with some of the big name publishers already distancing themselves from the system, and that to me is worrisome.

I do believe the system itself will be OK over it's entire lifetime, but Nintendo had a very short time frame to establish a decent install base before MS and Sony came in and stole their thunder. They're wasting the opportunity of a year+ head start, and competition is going to get fierce come the end of this year.

As far as Vita...I think much of the hate was unwarranted. Memory card prices were the only valid gripe I saw, but if anything the Vita has a stellar line up of games both released and incoming. Anyone who says otherwise just seems to want to hate on the system.

Other than that, I did get a Wii U on day one, and I think it's a pretty good system. But I do understand most people's complaints about it. Since I have one the only thing I can really complain about now is software availability.

[Clarence]

The only thing that is going to help is Mario and Zelda. These two games will give a short surge, but after that it will go back to normal.

The gaming library won't help to much because
1 HD remakes

2 A lot of the hardcore games are already on the PS3 and 360

3 Why would anybody buy the inferior version of the game, when the better version will be on the PS4 and 720.

4. Both the PS4 and 720 will have their on version on being able to play games on tablets.
PS4 has the vita, iPads, and android tablets.
720 has surface, and android tablets.

Nintendo tried another gimmick with Wii U and its not working out.

[NYC_Gamer]

It's because many are saving money for PS4 and 720..I can't blame them though since most will only have enough funds to purchase one console with games its smart to wait and see what Sony and Microsoft will have to offer this holiday.

[Theyellowflash30]

I disagree, I think the game line-up is the problem. Do you really thing the Wii U sales would be this low if a new Mario, Metroid, and Smash Bros were out?

[boldstarr]

Yea, same 'ol game since 1980's

[Mr_Writer85]

Mario Galaxy 2 - 7 million

Zelda Skward - 3.6 million

Metroid other M - 1.1 million

All these games came out after the first intial casual hype of the Wii.

Now the WiiU doesnt have that expect to see Nintendo games do no better (or marginaly better) then those above.

[Brucis]

@boldstar
>same 'ol game since 1980's

Because Metroid Prime is the same as Super Metroid or Metroid Fusion, right? And Super Mario Sunshine and Galaxy 1 and 2 are the same as the Mario Kart or Paper Mario series? Ok.

[Tei777]

@Mr_Writer85

The new level of visuals presentation will probably make those games more successful on the wii U then they were on the wii. I fully expect a HD zelda title to generate more excitement then Skyward sword. Same applies to to the metroid franchise.

[Mr_Writer85]

@tei77

Those are sales of games on a console with 99 million sales.

The games released before 2009 did much better. By 2009 the Wii hyped had died down.

If these games are so great why did the GameCube and N64 bomb? Windwalker only sold a million more on the GC then skyward so your logic makes no sense.

People need to remember Nintendo fans didnt sell the Wii it was non gamers. Those same new gamers have now left Nintendo and have flocked to tablets.

Hence why now the WiiU is struggling. And no Nintendo game will save it, and you can quote me on that.

Nintendo lost the hardcore when Sony stepped in. And even more so now MS have thrown their hat in.

[truechainz]

@Mr_Writer85

"If these games are so great why did the GameCube and N64 bomb? Windwalker only sold a million more on the GC then skyward so your logic makes no sense."

Wait so wouldn't your point be invalid since they sold more for Wind Waker on a system that didn't sell 100 million? You were trying to say the casuals are the reason they sold so much, but those casuals definitely weren't there on the gamecube so why did they still sell so much software?

Super Smash Melee - over 7 million

Super Mario Sunshine - 5 million

Wind Waker - 4.4 million

The Gamecube sold much less than the Wii and Nintendo still managed to sell this much without that same consumer base.

[Theyellowflash30]

Smash Bros came out in the 80's? LOL news to me

[zerocrossing]

Well in my case I just haven't bought the Wii U yet because there's no games out I care to buy the console for, I've talked to a lot of other Nintendo fans on here and that's pretty much their excuse too.

Once Zelda U, Mario U, Metroid U and Monolith soft's X are released then the Wii U sales will have a pretty big increase, IMO of course.

[lilbroRx]

That is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard regarding the Wii U. People are saving up money for console that they don't even know the form or price of that have no release date?

[Neonridr]

Provided Nintendo has some quality software to release this holiday season, coupled with a potential price cut in the larger markets, they could stand to do quite well.

Sure all the attention will be on the PS4 and 720 (assuming that one releases this holiday as well). However I can almost guarantee you there will be a hardware shortage making actually finding one of those consoles quite difficult without a preorder. As a result, Nintendo could snag some extra buyers if they have an attractive price coupled with some AAA software.

But without the games, nobody is going to buy this thing. Things will pick up as the year progresses.

[grassyknoll]

There's no killer games & the price is still far to high for what it is. I'm sure Nintendo can turn it around like they did the 3DS. But competition in the console space is far stronger & offering far more, I feel it's gonna make money, but be like the Nintendo 64/Gamecube than a Wii like success.

[Darth Stewie]

I will probably buy a Wii U when its below $199 & Smash Bros has to have been released along with several other exclusives. I have never bought a system for just 1 game & never will.

[DEATHxTHExKIDx]

Looks like Nintendo is gonna depend on the holiday season. thats when its more major titles should be coming out.

[KrisButtar]

which ones have release dates for the holiday?

[DEATHxTHExKIDx]

lol Nintendo didnt say just a lot of announcements at E3. I would assume if they want wiiUs to move they better at least have either Mario kartU or Smash brosU out by then.

[KrisButtar]

Oh I didn't read about them having E3 announcements, fingers crossed it's Mario Kart, as I think Zelda is still going to be a while. Those are the titles I'm interested in ATM

[AWBrawler]

Mario kart is a system seller. Just look at the Wii. That gane did over 20 million

[Studio-YaMi]

A console with few games is going to expect few sales .. there is no rocket science in this !

Nintendo is being REALLY slow in giving the fans some quality exclusives,but when they do,expect the sales to be fairly big.

[MontyQ]

played mine the week I got it.....need games badly also more then games fix the damn menu loading like 20-45 seonds to load back to the menu before hand is worse then the normal wii's slow menu. yes I iknow a fix is coming it shoulda been fixed week one tho not week 20

[nightcrawler]

200 euros...and I will buy it.

[Nevers0ft]

From what I'm seeing on Twitter and several Reddit posts, it sounds like Monster Hunter is starting to move Wii U's AND Pro Controllers off the shelves.

Considering the recent dearth of Wii U games and how many are releasing this month, I think increased sales in March was a safe bet though :)

[MNGamer-N]

The market is still saturated with Wii's. When game and console production stops for wii, I think people would start upgrading. More games and a price cut by then could help it pick up steam.

[o-Sunny-o]

Not many new IPs from Nintendo just nostalgia. I play Wii U for first party support which is right now lacking. New Super Mario U shouldve been online for more value. Nintendoland is the same needs online. Nintendo has always been couch multiplayer but it's 2013 everyone grew up and went separate ways from friends/families.

[kenshiro100]

1. Needs more games.
2. It needs appealing games. Mario and Zelda are popular but they need more than that to compete.

[truechainz]

I think there are two things that really caught Nintendo off guard with this console launch.

One is that I think they overestimated the value of the titles in their launch window. They definitely had a good number of games, but there was not a good set of games that people wanted like they expected. Part of that comes from things that can't be helped like expecting more from games like Zombie U and the Rayman delay, but part of that is their fault for overloading people with 2D Mario instead of putting more focus on a different franchise to launch with.

Two is that they are finding HD to be trickier than they had originally anticipated for development. I think they have been caught off guard with how long development would take for some titles and expected their launch window games and third party that they had established to cover the gap.

I think doing better market research as well as better marketing would do wonders for them, but I'm betting that Nintendo will handle this is their own way as usual. If it works out for them then awesome, but if not hopefully they learn from their mistakes. Luckily they have enough money saved up to take a mulligan on this generation if it comes to that but I think it is too early to count them out.

[mydyingparadiselost]

Or maybe Europes economy isn't a sound place for a new piece of hardware from anyone right now.

[MultiConsoleGamer]

Interesting...

[DivineAssault]

They shouldnt have launched it until they had a steady line up of quality software to release.. They did this to themselves

[arbitor365]

the wii u is already pretty cheap. it isnt a matter of price.

the games coming at Q4 2013 and Q1 2014 will boost it's sales, but not enough save the console. first party games are not what sold the wii. it was the casuals. and most of the casuals have no interest in the wii u, no matter how cheap it is.

basically what we have here is an underpowered version of the gamecube, with less third party support.