110°

Nintendo needs to relaunch the Wii U

mii-gamer.com writes:

The Wii U is in a predicament right now. In a previous article I went into detail about the woes of the Wii U during the launch window. Although games such as Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate and Lego City: Undercover have helped the Wii U in the past week, it is still not out of the dark waters. Nintendo should not be complacent, the Wii U is still young, and there is much work to do.

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snipermk04031d ago

re-launch the wii u? Isnt that like buying a cake in the weekend and re-celebrating ur birthday just cos you've got no friends?

DivineAssault 4031d ago

not happening but it does need 2

3-4-54030d ago

You don't / can't re-launch something.

You just up the advertising...

it's the same thing.

darthv724030d ago

Sega relaunched the master system after a couple of years. they did it to coincide with the revised design and new games that were being made for it.

They took the opportunity to do this while the genesis was picking up in popularity. Now that is one example of how a system can be relaunched.

Another is when Atari tried to relaunch the 2600 after nintendo/Sega had already been on the market. That launch wasnt as successful because the gamers had moved on from the 2600 days and atari was hoping to cash in on nostalgia.

As for nintendo, they just need to market it better. Take the wii out of production as it conflicts with the wii-u. the wii-u can play all the same wii games and if nintendo wants to push wii-u....that would be a start.

We know there are games coming for it. But coming for it and being out and available are two different things. Obviously they wanted to release the system when it was ready and from the hardware side it was ready. The software unfortunately, was not.

RAFFwaff4031d ago

It doesn't need a relaunch, it needs games and preferably AAA first-party. I mean, even if alot of (casual) gamers still are ignorant of the wii U as a new console, the best way to remedy that is an amazing advert of say a new 3d mario or zelda which makes ordinary people, families, parents sit up and take notice with the realization that you can only play it on nintendo's NEW console. In essence, in order to play this amazing game, they have to purchase the console.

jimbobwahey4031d ago

I think people realized with the Wii that it's just not worth owning a Nintendo console for one worthwhile game per year, and that's if you're lucky.

Nintendo just isn't willing to spend the cash on expanding their studios and ensuring that they have a regular output of decent software for their customers, so screw 'em.

Sony and Microsoft make sure that their customers have games to play, Nintendo doesn't. They make their money off the hardware sale and just don't care about their customers at all. They'll put out a decent game once a year (or every couple of years...) and that's it.

Take the Wii U for example, what's their big game for 2013? Wind Waker. A quick remake of a freakin' GameCube game. If I had spent money on a Wii U I would be furious, and I'd sell it as fast as possible to recoup lost money and spend it on a real console instead.

Until Nintendo spends some of that money they've made to expand and open new studios to make games for their customers, I say screw 'em. Anybody that defends this company is a mug.

insomnium24030d ago

I kinda agree but I would put MS right there with Nintendo. How much have they expanded and put decent software out to people? It's been nothing but Kinect after 2009. smh.

jimbobwahey4030d ago

@insomnium

Well in the past six months Microsoft have given their customers Forza Horizon, Halo 4 and Gears of War Judgement. Those are just major AAA retail exclusives, and on XBLA there's more big exclusives such as Battleblock Theater, Monaco and the upcoming Super Time Force.

I'd say that's one incredibly impressive exclusive lineup. Sony also has a great software lineup too. What's Nintendo giving their customers? Ports of old PS3/360 games. It's pathetic.

Ck1x4030d ago

Lol your trying way to hard man... Oh wow!
So Nintendo never brings out any games for their systems right and I guess that's why the 3ds line-up of games desroys the Vita's. So I'm assuming that you said the very same thing about the PS3 when it launched as well, because it didn't have that must have exclusive title until Uncharted 1 came out... Just like the PS4 has a lackluster line-up from what we know so far(at least to me that is). Many are going nuts over Killzone, but it just wasn't doing anything new really besides prettier graphics. Nintendo has probably just as many active game studios as both Sony and Microsoft does so I don't know what your angle is there.

The 10th Rider4030d ago (Edited 4030d ago )

@jimbobwahey

Lol,I agree with your point to a certain extent...but the overall tone of your comment is ridiculous. The Wii U's big game this year is Wind Waker HD? That's ridiculous.

Have you looked at what's the Wii U has coming? It's not just Wind Waker HD. They've got Pikmin 3, the Wonderful 101, Bayonetta 2, whatever the heck Retro Studios is working on, a 3D Mario game, Mario Kart, Smash Bros, Monolith Soft's new game, Shin Megami Tensei X Fire Emblem, and an original Zelda game all coming in the next three years. That's definitely more than one worthwhile game per year.

I hope that Nintendo realized their mistakes with their lack of Wii support. But I realize that a lack of games can't be fixed instantaneously, game development takes time. I'm hoping that they fix their mistakes, but I also know that it'd be a year or more until any of their efforts start to pay off.

truechainz4030d ago

Funny how many idiots with a keyboard think they can run a multi-million dollar corp better than people who do now, and say stuff like, "Anybody that defends this company is a mug."

+ Show (2) more repliesLast reply 4030d ago
TimeSkipLuffy4031d ago

Actually I think that those games won't help to sell the WiiU to the broad audience.
Simple games like Wii Sports and easy mini games were the reasons why I've seen elder people buy the Wii to start with.
Now why should they buy a new console when they can still play Wii Sports on the old Wii?

CouldHaveYelledUiiW4031d ago

Wii's advertisement was great.

I think Nintendo needs to go back to that simpler style and dump all of the unnecessary blue lights.

They just need to have a guy say in a plain voice, "This is our new product WiiU and if you like the Wii..."

Then go back to showing families/people enjoying all of the WiiU's Abilities in real-looking houses.

MasterCornholio4031d ago (Edited 4030d ago )

How did Nintendo go from ads like this?

http://www.gamasutra.com/db...

Which show a group of friends/family etc playing the Wii U together and having a great time.

To this.

http://cdn.wegotthiscovered...

While it still has the group of friends/family vibe the issue with the ads is that there is only one Wii U controller. Seriously how cool is it that you can only use one tablet controller with the device while the rest are stuck with gaming with Wii Motes. In my opinion it doesnt make any sense at all since it ruins the experience that all players share with each other due to only one of them able to use the tablet controller.

In my opinion Wii U isnt about playing a cool game and sharing the experience with your friends. Its about gaming by yourself with the controller while you show it off to your friends. And if they behave well you let them experience the fruits of Nintendos innovative controller design.

"Then go back to showing families/people enjoying all of the WiiU's Abilities in real-looking houses."

Yep and show all of them gaming on Wii U tablet controllers and at the end of the video announce an update that will bring multiple Wii U controller support to the system. That would be fantastic even though the controller is expensive at least it gives consumers the option to enjoy games together with the same type of controller.

@majiebeast

I dont know about Reggie (even though i feel like pouring acid all over his face) but didnt Iwata say that if Nintendo posts a loss at the end of their fiscal quarter he would leave the company?

rainslacker4030d ago

At least it's truth in advertising. On launch day I had people over and that's exactly how it went. We passed around the tablet controller, and honestly I became increasingly frustrated in just getting a game started with all the different controllers(1 tablet, 2 wii-motes, 1 pro controller). People weren't really excited over the wii-motes, and the pro controller didn't work in 2 of the 4 games I purchased. Nothing about the implementation of the tablet sold the idea of it to me, except maybe that hide and seek game in NintendoLand. Lego City has some cool stuff on it, but that came 4 months later.

Anyhow, they really should work on that a bit more. I still feel like advertisements make it seem like an add-on just because most have all the other controllers in the mix. Show the games, and spend less time on it's controller, because people aren't really that keen on the idea it seems.

majiebeast4031d ago (Edited 4031d ago )

So anyone wanna take this bet?
Iwata and Reggie are both gonna resign April 24th. Things cant continue the way they are now for wiiU, no developer support consumer confusion and a massive lack of games in general are killing it.

Y_51504031d ago

If you lose this bet, you buy me a Wii U, deal?

r214031d ago (Edited 4031d ago )

What, why April 24th?

Edit: Ok, majie pm'd me this, 'Ending of the fiscal year with the Nintendo meeting.'

In case anyone else wondering the same question i asked.

FunAndGun4030d ago

I was wondering....thanks for sharing the answer.

LOL_WUT4030d ago (Edited 4030d ago )

Surely Iwata has to give... I mean come on, he's been doing nothing bad business decisions.

Not securing exclusive games, lack of 3rd party software, leaving their fans to play rehashes of old ports and failing to sell more Wii U's the list just goes on. ;)

1upgamer994030d ago (Edited 4030d ago )

I doubt that is going to happen. Nintendo signed on all new graphics designers and Retro has developed a new game engine for Wii U. Wii U is lacking 1st party games right now and proper marketing. I think this E3 we will see what Nintendo has been up to, but I think Nintendo should have had a better 1st party line up at launch. I mean yeah NSMB is a great game and Nintendoland is underrated, but a SSB, Metroid, Donkey Kong, Zelda (even if it would have been Wind Waker HD), Starfox, Eternal Darkness (They renewed the IP), Kirby, Mario Kart, FZero, Hell anything would have added to the appeal of the system.
I think Wii U is great,and I cant wait to see how the new game engine runs that Retro developed. I know PS4 is coming and cant wait, but power is not everything, common Nintendo its all about the games. As far as losing their jobs is concerned it should be the MARKETING team.

rainslacker4030d ago

I doubt that's going to happen. One weak console launch isn't going to have shareholders calling for their resignation. They still have the 3DS, which admittedly had a weak launch, but they are coming off a high from the Wii's success. If this whole thing continues on through next year, then maybe we could see something like that. One would expect them to turn it around by then.

Donnieboi4030d ago

Iwata won't be missed. Whoever is managing the portables division should replace him.

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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?"

purple1012d 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 ☝️

Zeref1d 22h 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.

DarXyde1d 21h 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.

PhillyDonJawn1d 21h ago (Edited 1d 21h 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.

Einhander19721d 20h 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.

MrBaskerville1d 19h 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.

shinoff21831d 11h 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.

Profchaos1d 10h 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 1d 10h ago
isarai2d ago

Is that why Hellblade 2 is digital only?

Zeref1d 22h 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.

MrNinosan1d 22h ago

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

mkis0071d 2h ago (Edited 1d 2h ago )

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

Einhander19722d 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.

2d ago Replies(3)
Einhander19722d ago

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

2d ago
2d ago
Zeref1d 22h 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.

DarXyde1d 21h 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.

Einhander19721d 20h 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.

Einhander19721d 20h 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.

BehindTheRows1d 20h ago (Edited 1d 20h 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.

Zeref1d 18h ago (Edited 1d 18h 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.

Chevalier1d 17h 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.

Tacoboto1d 19h 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.

shinoff21831d 11h ago

Yay steam

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

Tacoboto1d 8h 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 1d 8h ago
Hofstaderman1d 23h 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?

crazyCoconuts1d 19h 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.

Xeofate1d 16h ago (Edited 1d 15h 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.

crazyCoconuts21h 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

FinalFantasyFanatic1d 5h 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."

XiNatsuDragnel8d ago

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

banger888d 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.

Jingsing7d ago

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

PRIMORDUS7d 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.

mastershredder7d 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.

shinoff21837d 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.

80°

The Nintendo Partner Spotlight Sale Is The Perfect Excuse To Get These 6 Gems

Huzaifa from eXputer: "The Nintendo Partner Spotlight sale event has discounted a number of worthy titles on the Switch. Here are 6 of them you should check out."