260°

These signs say Nintendo is giving up on the Wii U

The Wii U might be having its last real year of support.

Read Full Story >>
venturebeat.com
JeffGrubb3304d ago

At least we're still getting ... 200cc Mario Kart 8?

AngelicIceDiamond3304d ago (Edited 3304d ago )

One has to ask when will Nintendo bunker down and create a long lasting console? Or console that everybody can get behind not just for for certain people?

You bought a Wii U in 2012 only to learn they have yet another console in the works? There goes 300 bucks. Hell what about gamers who bought it last holiday because they showed off Zelda at E3 2014 and hoping it would released this year?

No Zelda this year and in fact we're not even gonna mention zelda again until next year or maybe even further.

Listen I've been waiting my moment to jump into Nintendo products, but they're...(sigh) They're slowly becoming anti consumer.

Making you buy a new machine that'll have limited support. Misleading consumers, Taking your earnings from YT. Well there goes dedicated Nintendo channels made by hardcore Nintendo fans who buy their freakin products to try to convince people like me to go out and get the console...

Disagree away but Nintendo seems to be doing anti consumer practices under our noses and controlling and misleading its loyal fans.

caseh3304d ago (Edited 3304d ago )

"Well there goes dedicated Nintendo channels made by hardcore Nintendo fans who buy their freakin products to try to convince people like me to go out and get the console..."

Lets be honest, it has nothing to do with convincing others to get the console. It's all about the stream gaining revenue from views and the owner of said stream getting paid.

I don't really agree with what Nintendo have done in regards to YT but that's an entire subject on its own.

FullmetalRoyale3304d ago (Edited 3304d ago )

Yeah I *bought my Wii U with my tax refund this year. Pretty bummed in general, but I do enjoy the system. Looking forward to replaying Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask when they release them on Virtual Console. Also Xenoblade.

It is what it is. I'll make sure I get my money's worth.

_-EDMIX-_3304d ago (Edited 3304d ago )

Agreed. Made the most last gen, spent the least on teams last gen.

Sony made the least out of the 3, yet bought more teams then Nintendo did last gen....

I question what Nintendo really thinks of their fan base because clearly they have money issues going on internally.

No reason why some should buy a system in 2012 only to wait til 2016 to get some certain titles.

If you own the system...I would question their support, if you don't own their system...hell i would question their future support.

Who the hell here wants to buy the next Nintendo system at launch? THEY are creating this "wait til" etc releases mindset amongst consumers.

At this point, they've taken soooo long to release content based on not having enough teams and trying to juggle 3DS and Wii U as suppose to just BUYING MORE TEAMS, they've let the lead run out...

At this point, what ever releases for the Wii U, its to many consumers a $350 to $300 buy...for 1 game.

Consider they can spend that money if they already own a PS4 or XONE on many, many games.

SOOOOOO its either Witcher 3, MGSV, Batman Arkham Knight, The Division, Halo 5...I mean the eternal lolz.

Soooooo thats about $300 and some change...for all those games or I could just get a Wii U and 1 game.

I'm sorry but they make it pretty hard to legit justify ignroing the WHOLE industry JUST for them. That is just a bit too ignorant, naive and arrogant to really think your brand can carry you THAT far.

It doesn't help Nintendo gamers either because this is off of their BACKS that they are doing this.

Sooooo we are not buying up teams because you'll buy Wii U anyway? Does that sound like they care? MS and Sony bought teams to have great launches and great first years and those teams are helping them dearly right now.

I'll get a Wii U next year, likely used and I would have to use my tax return at that to get it.

@FullmetalRoyale - lol beat me too it! I see I'm not the only one who is using my tax money on Wii U. Not going out of pocket for it, not buying it this fall...thats PS4 and PC game money lol

mikeslemonade3304d ago

Nintendo has done the least amount in gaming in the past two generations. Just scrap it and try again.

KilKarazy3304d ago

You buy a new $800 phone only to have one guaranteed better come out next year.

Metallox3303d ago

"You bought a Wii U in 2012 only to learn they have yet another console in the works?"

Not entirely true. Back when I bought my Wii U I didn't receive a notification from Nintendo saying they were already producing a new machine.

But hey, we still knew that, anyway. Nintendo started production of a new platform in 2012, surely, just like Sony and Microsoft did; it's something natural at this point.

Nintendo finally announced the NX thing just recently, and their objective of the announcement was pretty clear, I think, but still you assume that Nintendo plans to abandon the Wii U, which I think it's not so entirely true.

Nintendo has already stated that they won't say anything about NX until 2016. Have you considered that the thing could be a handheld, easily?

And even if the thing resulted to be a home console launching in late 2016 (which, again, it's highly doubtful), the Wii U will be four years, and remember this:

-Worst selling Nintendo console ever.
-Nintendo console with less games ever, aside from Virtual Boy.

It can be natural to think that Nintendo would like to replace the console next year, but once again, I doubt it.

And remember again, Nintendo generations have lasted 5 years.

-NES, 7 years.
-SNES, 6 years.
-N64, 5 years.
-NGC, 5 years.
-Wii, 6 years.

Yet I hear that N64 and NGC are the best Nintendo consoles?

About the rest, I think you're being a bit hyperbolic.

N4g_null3303d ago

They already have created a long lasting console it's call backwards compatible.

They don't have paid online and they are not online only consoles.

Plus how many broken games have they released. Also some one tried to say nintendo doesn't invest in games... they support Two platforms by themselves.

Yet they are anti consumer lol.

+ Show (4) more repliesLast reply 3303d ago
3-4-53304d ago (Edited 3304d ago )

2015 is the last real year of support ?

2016 has Legend of Zelda and some kind of Mario game. They stated no Mario game in 2015....which means almost for sure in 2016.

The new NX or whatever it is, has nothing to do with 3DS or Wii U.

It is it's own thing.

* Also, Venture beat is NOT a video games site.

Be careful about sites like this.....

Persistantthug3304d ago

The writer, Dean Takahashi, is a respected journalist.
If I'm not mistaken, he's the guy that broke the RROD issue with the XBOX 360 that implied Microsoft launched the system broken on purpose.

JuleyJules3304d ago

Who knows if now there will be a Mario game in 2015? After all Nintendo previously said there would be a Legend of Zelda game in 2015 and that's been pushed. Time will tell and we'll see what they do at E3 in a couple of months.

DougLord3304d ago

That's ridiculous to say the NX is its own thing. When it launches sales of WiiU will collapse. NX is a 4.6 Tflop console launching in early 2017 in Japan and Xmas 2017 for other major markets. 2016 support will be light. The information about NX/Fusion has been out for a year and AMD confirmed it on a conference call almost 6 months ago.

Nintendo has already said the next Mario will be on almost new console, and most people think the Zenda delay is to bring it to the NX.

But I Also Disagree With The Guy Saying If You Bought One In 2013 You Wasted $300. A lot of good first party games have come out to give you your $$ worth. In fact WiiU has more 90s meta AAA then Sony and MSFT. I don't own one because I have no friends to play with and my daughter is only 4 months old, but for anyone under 15, 18 or 21 (depending on what you like) or for anyone with kids - it has been a great console.

Kyizen3303d ago

That's my issue with the Wii U and why I didn't buy one. I'd love to play Mario, Zelda and Xenoblade but that's it. As 25+ I don't have friends come over to play Mario Kart, Mario Party and those Sofa games. With no kids yet I don't need the fun cute games with minimal story line. They need new IPs and more games for mature gamers imo.

freshslicepizza3303d ago

e3 will show the future of the wii u. if we don't see much in new announcements then that tells me whatever is in the pipeline is all nintendo is committing to.

late 2016 will the end of the wii u and any major software support for it is my guess.

+ Show (2) more repliesLast reply 3303d ago
pcz3304d ago

i was going to buy a wiiu this year for Xenoblade x. knowing zelda was not far behind would have made it justifiable. but they pushed back zelda and announced their new console. so now im wondering if its even worthwhile to buy a wiiu for one game, knowing a new console is just around the corner.

nintendo have shot themselves in the feet.

what i may actually do, is buy xenoblade x and simply put it into storage and hope the new nintendo console is backwards compatible.

i already own mario kart 8, so then i will have 2 games for a console i dont even own.

i just cant bring myself to buy a wiiu, it really is a worthless console.

Reeze3303d ago

I honestly advise you to give the games another look. I own 20 games for my Wii U, more than any other console I own. I do understand that a lot of the games on the Wii U do not appeal to everyone, but I'm certain that you'll find something that will make the Wii U worth a shot!

MNGamer-N3303d ago

No console is worthless. WiiU included. They all are worth owning if your are serious about gaming. How anyone could wait years to play one of the highest rated RPG series is beyond my comprehension.

I seriously wonder what is wrong with you sometimes.

GordonKnight3303d ago

If Nintendo plays it's cards right with the NX it could be the next Wii, but for the every day gamer. Imagine the NX co-existing with the Wii U & 3DS. The NX could be a Wii U & 3DS hybrid with backwards compatibility for Wii U, Wii, GC, DS, 3DS, & New 3DS games. The system will out power the PS4 and will come with a standard controller.

Imagine I Nintendo console that can every Nintendo made and has the power for 3rd party companies.

Unaffordable!!!

Magicite3303d ago

I think 2014 was WiiU's peak year. Nothing is coming this year, that could beat Smash and Kart combo.

N4g_null3303d ago

The nx confirmation was only to stop news stories like this.

Two things it is not designed to replace 3ds or wiiu and they are still dedicated to consoles development.

If you want to entertain that the nx is a wiiu replacement then it will scale back to the wiiu. Iwata also talked about making one game that runs on all systems instead of what they do now.

So you can say the wiiu will get support since it will scale possible nx games in a similar way that 360 and ps3 games are the budget version of hyped games.

So this could very well be nintendo way of supporting the wiiu the way Sony supported the ps2 and 3.

Plus indies have the dev kits and I don't think a system without multi console ports scares them much. Indies become triple A over time.

It is still possible for Nintendo or a 3rd party to make a game you want. The detriment found here is due to lack of announced hype and a general lack of content across all consoles.

There are also no internal signs that this is happening. Api still has planned updates and improvements are still on the way. I guess some one had to write an article for the jaded gamers and wishful nx powerhouse dreamers that believe it is supposed to be a ps5 clone.

It's just more convenient to ignore the wiiu and just hope you didn't miss out on anything. I'm sure when some games come out you can swap out a console for a wiiu and get your fix.

+ Show (2) more repliesLast reply 3303d ago
ColManischewitz3304d ago

I think this could be good for Nintendo.

caseh3304d ago (Edited 3304d ago )

What would be really interesting is if they actually launched a console that was a technical powerhouse rather than something that is below par with current consoles.

Last time that really happened was with the SNES and that was epic.

AngelicIceDiamond3304d ago

Actually the Sega Genesis was considered to be more powerful than SNES of the early 1990's.

caseh3304d ago

You have it wrong way around, only thing the Genesis had over the SNES was the CPU clock speed. Literally everything else was in favour of the SNES.

DC7773303d ago

They did, it was called Gamecube and although it was a fine piece of equipment it sold poorly. It was beaten hands down by the weakest console of that generation and the best selling console of all time, Playstation 2.

The last console generation was also won by the weakest console, Wii. It's about mass appeal, hot games and public awareness. PS4 is in...it's hot. People don't even know Wii U exists, even though it has some of Nintendo's finest games.

There is barely anything for 2016 announced. 2 hold over games and only 1 on home console. Wii U is on year 3 already. You can bet they will move on after 2016, but that is still more than a year and a half away. As long as they can say 2012-2017 (even if it's early in the year) I'm sure they will deem that good enough.

young7yang3303d ago

It did not have blast processing!

And Nintendont does not do what Sega could..

But sadly it seems that Nintendo will soon go the way of Sega when it comes to console hardware unless they can release something other the Mario, Zelda, Star Fox, Metroide and all the other obscure Nintendo games that have been rehashed since the days of NES & SNES.

Something new for a change.

Sega may not be in the console business anymore but they have very strong software line-ups and are not afraid to try new things even if they are not very popular state side.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 3303d ago
LOL_WUT3304d ago

I totally agree with this I mean Iwata himself publicly stated that the Wii U is at best seen as a secondary console not to mention the early NX reveal which we'll get more info on next year.

I think that in order for the NX to succeed there needs to be a new management in place one that isn't driven by old tradition and backward thinking just my opinion ;)

gangsta_red3304d ago

"It’s common for a company to announce a console a year or two before it comes out, but it is strange to see one unveiled when its predecessor is still relatively young."

I brought this point up in another article. It's common knowledge that every company starts to R&D or work on the next new thing. But no company announces this fact so soon and while their current console is still on the market only two years in.

This is pretty much why I have been hesitant in getting a WiiU. I don't want to pick one up and then at E3 Nintendo announces a new console for 2016. Yes, Nintendo would not want to repeat a Sega Saturn error but with the WiiU not selling well at all, wouldn't Nintendo want to cut their loses and start over with a new machine to try and re-vamp consumer interest in their brand?

KwietStorm_BLM3303d ago

They probably do want to cut their losses, but how many times now has Nintendo showed that they aren't in touch with the market as a whole? For so long, they have lived off the rabid support of their fan base, but it seems that even Nintendo diehards have been speaking out lately. People used to say Sony was arrogant, and that resulted in different issues for them. Well no console has ever been better off by not getting heavy third party support. At what point is Nintendo being arrogant? If they release a new console too soon, and they make the same mistakes yet again, I fear what kind of repercussions could be in order for their standing in the industry. There's just too much happening, and there's a weird feeling swirling around their world.

themonado3303d ago

Well, considering they said they won't be revealing any information on the NX until next year, seeing it at E3 this year won't be something to worry about.

SteamPowered3304d ago

A new console wont magically fix Nintendo's problems right now. If Nintendo doesnt evolve their marketing, console design, and image, then they will be right back where they were with the Wii U.

The Wii U got off on the wrong foot and never really recovered. Nintendo cant afford another false start.

Show all comments (69)
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?"

purple10111d 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 ☝️

Zeref11d 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.

DarXyde11d 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.

PhillyDonJawn11d ago (Edited 11d 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.

Einhander197211d 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.

MrBaskerville11d 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.

shinoff218310d 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.

Profchaos10d 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 10d ago
isarai11d ago

Is that why Hellblade 2 is digital only?

Zeref11d 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.

MrNinosan11d ago

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

mkis00710d ago (Edited 10d ago )

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

Einhander197211d 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.

11d ago Replies(3)
Einhander197211d ago

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

11d ago
11d ago
Zeref11d 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.

DarXyde11d 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.

Einhander197211d 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.

Einhander197211d 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.

BehindTheRows11d ago (Edited 11d 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.

Zeref11d ago (Edited 11d 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.

Chevalier10d 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.

Tacoboto11d 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.

shinoff218310d ago

Yay steam

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

Tacoboto10d 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 10d ago
Hofstaderman11d 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?

crazyCoconuts11d 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.

Xeofate10d ago (Edited 10d 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.

crazyCoconuts10d 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

FinalFantasyFanatic10d 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."

XiNatsuDragnel18d ago

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

banger8817d 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.

Jingsing17d ago

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

PRIMORDUS16d 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.

mastershredder16d 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.

shinoff218316d 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.