Supermallet

The moment you have optional controllers, then it's dead. Devs care very little about optional control schemes, for the most part.

mhg83

Well you could always have the option to disable the top screen.

Adam Tyner

I know the common response is that Nintendo was trying to cash in on the iPad / tablet wave, and I think there's an element of that...but mostly, I think Nintendo was trying to take the two-screen DS approach and apply it to the living room.

The screen on the gamepad is the right size for what it's trying to do. I don't have a 3DS XL, so maybe that'd play differently, but the regular 3DS is comically tiny for that sort of purpose. Imagine trying to flash your eyes between a 60" HDTV and the 3" touchscreen of the 3DS. Plus off-screen play would be challenging, trying to translate 16x9 footage onto either the 5x3 top screen or the 4x3 bottom screen.

If 3DS-as-the-only-second-screen were there purely as an option, then whatever, but I imagine the response would be even worse than it's been for the gamepad.

Adam Tyner

This is apparently a summary of what was covered in the investor's meeting:

fujishig

My new extended battery finally came today... still charging, and for whatever reason they didn't send a screwdriver like the instructions indicated (and the screws are tiny), but if it can improve the battery life to around 8 hours, that's all I need.

Adam Tyner

If I could roll back time, here's what I think I'd do:

* Keep a steady flow of software coming for the Wii in its later years (there was only a trickle of quality first-party titles from 2010-2012). That'd keep the momentum going for Nintendo to their next console.

* More software with a stronger pipeline. Nintendo shouldn't have been caught offguard by the challenges of high-def development. The huge software gap for so much of the Wii's lifespan gave them a very long runway, and they completely squandered it. Nintendo titles sell Nintendo hardware, so they need more games on a more regular basis. It's important to perfect games as Nintendo generally does, but the delays and software droughts that plagued the Wii U in its first year are unacceptable. If it's a problem with resources, tools, chain, communication, etc., then fix it. Spend the lifecycle of the Wii establishing more relationships, beefing up processes, and amassing a larger network of developers.

* Make sure there's at least one -- ideally two! -- killer, must-have game before launch. In fact, don't even launch unless you know you'll be able to keep supplying at least one essential first-party title every couple of months for that first year.

* Don't call the new console the Wii U. For the sake of this post, let's pretend they called it the Revolution, but basically anything would be better than "Wii U".

* Spend the lifecycle of the Wii developing a more compelling online infrastructure, eShop, and user experience that'd be ready to go for the launch of the Revolution.

* Figure out what makes the Revolution unique. Right now, Nintendo is mining the same franchises with nearly identical games on both the Wii U and the 3DS. Just about every standout Wii U game has or will have a 3DS equivalent. Come up with a philosophy for each platform so you're not cannibalizing your own userbase. If you like Nintendo games but already have a 3DS, there's not a whole lot of incentive to get a Wii U, and Nintendo has no one to blame for that but themselves.

* Be more aggressive with the virtual console. More titles on a far more frequent basis. Buy a game on one device and play it anywhere: 3DS, Wii, Wii U, whatever. Maybe even cross-save online so you can pick up where you left off, similar to the Kindle. Consider having a subscription where you can access any virtual console game you want, Netflix-style, without an additional charge per-game.

* Nintendo doesn't have a bulldog like Lincoln or Yamauchi to make things happen. It's okay if Iwata's not that guy, but that guy needs to be on the payroll somewhere. Ideally, at least one in the U.S. and one in Japan.

* Overhaul everything related to marketing/branding. (...and marketing does consist of more than advertising.) Essentially nothing that's been done for the Wii U is working. If they're unwilling or unable to sell their console, find someone who can. The Nintendo brand is pretty badly beaten and battered right now.

* Investigate other ways of selling software. Maybe beat Redbox at their own game; have digital rentals of new software for $5 for a weekend. The more you can keep people in your ecosystem, the better.

* Talk and listen to third-parties and customers, the way Microsoft did with the 360 and Sony did with the PS4. Trust your instincts but don't turn a deaf ear to what other people want (something I believe Nintendo, in their arrogance, absolutely did with the Wii U as it was being developed). If that means, say, losing backward compatibility, then maybe that's an acceptable loss. If that means they lose the tiny form factor they want, again, maybe that's okay. If third-parties are reluctant, partner with them. Share some of the risk and some of the reward. The Wii U getting some occasionally shoddy ports and being shafted on DLC isn't helping it any.

* Make sure any peripheral / controller is an essential part of the system. I think the gamepad is terrific, but if you can't market it, and if even your own developers don't know what to do with it, maybe it's not such a good idea after all. If there's going to be a unique controller, make sure there are the games to support it: gameplay that wouldn't be possible on any other platform.

* Honor your past but look to the future. Nintendo's response to the staggering successses of the Wii and DS was to basically do the same thing, only not as well, losing sight of what made them so profitable and desirable in the first place. I mean, the Wii wasn't marketed towards any one group but towards everyone. The ads were often oriented around late-teens/twentysomethings rather than families, and I think that went a long way. Other consoles kept you plopped on the couch; the Wii was all about movement. Wii Sports helped give the console a message...an identity. The Wii U has no message. It has no identity. So...don't release a console without one.

* Diversify! Try to fill niches that are being ignored, like arcade-style sports games. Lego City Undercover was a well-received take on open world, GTA-style games. Try doing the same for, say, RPGs (I know X is on the way) and first person shooters. Why isn't there anything like Tearaway or LittleBigPlanet, encouraging creation and creativity, on the Wii U? That's completely up Nintendo's alley.

* Reduce franchise fatigue. Leverage dormant IPs. Create new ones. Heck, Get good at minigames/microgames again. I'm just looking at Metacritic scores here, but titles like Nintendo Land, Wii Party U, Game and Wario, and Mario Party: Island Tour weren't nearly as well received as similar games in the past have been.

* Empower other offices instead of having all decision-making coming out of Japan. Give Nintendo of America the resources and flexibility to establish relationships with Western developers, come up with some of their own software, etc.

Supermallet

Should have called it the Wii 2.

Adam Tyner

Mario Kart 8 is coming in May, at least in Japan. Not as soon as we were hoping for, but...

I wonder if there'll be any first-party titles of note between Tropical Freeze and MK8.

pinata242

This is fucking retarded. These games belong on the 3DS which at least resembles the original system.

DS games aren't meant to have a huge, head-moving-between-screens experience. I sure can't wait to play Metroid Pinball on my WiiU!

Adam Tyner

I agree that a DS virtual console makes a million times more sense on the 3DS, but Nintendo isn't splitting the screen the way you think.

The two screens are both on the gamepad, and they're side-by-side rather than stacked vertically:



I don't get the appeal, but...

pinata242

Again rendering certain games unplayable.

pinata242

I daresay it's not "better than nothing". It doesn't fit and it doesn't matter since you'll be stuck with your DS purchase on your WiiU and won't be cross-buying with a future 3DS version down the road.

No wonder they're putting them out on WiiU first. They get to sell them at least two more times to us. Absurd.

Adam Tyner

....and there still aren't any GBA games in the 3DS virtual console outside of the ambassador program after all these years.

Supermallet

Don't worry guys, Nintendo's got it all figured out!

Drexl

I don't think the name was a problem at all. Nobody thought an iPod Nano or Shuffle was an accessory. Nobody thinks the iPhone 5S is an accessory. Samsung sells many products called "Galaxy" that could be a phone or a tablet depending on what name is added at the end. If any name was destined to cause confusion, it's "Xbox One." I think blaming the name is a lame excuse, unless people really are dumber than I thought.

I think the real problem was the form factor. I can see where a less informed consumer might see the Wii U box and think there's a Wii pictured on it, behind what appears to be a handheld system. (On the box or even in commercials, he can't tell it's larger than the Wii.) Then he sees the price tag and thinks the entire $350 goes to the handheld.

They should have given it a completely different design that would not have ever been mistaken for a Wii, and made it fully visible on the box instead of hiding half of it behind the controller.

Adam Tyner

In a vacuum, no, it's not a problem. In practice, it absolutely was.

First, companies like Apple, Microsoft, Sony, and Samsung advertise and promote their products. No one is confused about the original Xbox and the Xbox One being the same thing because Microsoft can be bothered to tell people what their new console is. Nintendo did the marketing equivalent of ding-dong ditch with the Wii U, basically dropping it off in front of the loading dock, ringing the doorbell, and running away.

Second, it came after years of Nintendo marketing the hell out of the term "Wii". Wii Sports, Wii Fit, Wii Balance Board, Wii Party, Wii Music, Wii Chess, Wii Zapper, Wii Sports Resort, Mario Kart Wii, Wiimote, New Super Mario Bros. Wii, Wii Motion Plus, Wii Speak, WiiWare, Wii Motion Plus, Wii Play, and probably a thousand other things I'm forgetting.

Okay, and now there's the Wii U. When you've seen 80,000 things with "Wii" in the name that all refer to the same console, the ads show a console that looks exactly like the Wii with Wii remotes in the foreground, and the logo doesn't even look like it says "Wii U" (more like the old Wii logo with a power button or something next to it), why would anyone think "Wii U" is anything but a peripheral?

Remember, retail circulars confused the two, store employees misinformed people about the difference, other stores had to put up signs expressly saying that the Wii U is a new console, Nintendo printed up those stupid fliers comparing/contrasting the two. To my mind, it's undeniably a point of confusion.

Most people honestly don't follow these things as closely as we do. Heck, all I do is sit around and read video game news sites and message boards, and I had no idea that the 3DS was a completely new handheld when I bought it. I thought it was just another iteration of the DS, like the DSi and the DS XL, only this one could play 3D-capable games. Similar deal here.

pinata242

Which is absolutely crazy given the sales of the 2/3DS.

Michael Corvin

You've clearly never witnessed a "is it an accessory" or "can I play WiiU games on my Wii" discussion in a store. I followed around a couple discussing just that before Christmas. It was comical. The average consumer Nintendo courted for the Wii is that stupid.

I don't think it's too late for that. Rebrand it as the Wii2. Let stock bleed dry and restock with Wii2 boxes. Only issue there would be games already on store shelves with the WiiU name.

mattysemo247

Yeah, re branding it as the Wii 2 now would do nothing but cause more confusion. The soccer moms would be pissed since they just bought a Wii U, and now there is a Wii 2 coming out!!!

Nintendo is ignorant about the pricing. Let them keep thinking they can sell that sucker for $300 when a PS4 can be had for $100 more. Hell, even if I was a new buyer coming into this whole thing, I would pick up a $200 360 or PS3 since you are going to get the same type of games that you are going to find on a Wii U, get a larger library, and spend $100 less.

slop101

And I'm sure they'll look great in 1080p, blown up on my 50" TV.

XavierMike

I'm really losing faith in Nintendo as a console platform holder. They just don't seem to be able to figure things out. I don't think that GBA games or a quick boot are going to fix the WiiU. There new health system is going to take resources to develop, and I'm sure those will come from the WiiU. That said, I still absolutely love their games, and I'm willing to put up with hardware without a direction to play them.

I just don't think the WiiU will ever appeal to more than the hardest core Nintendo fans.

Adam Tyner

From http://www.nintendo.com/eshop/offers :

Available titles:

Spin the bottle: Bumpie's Party
Bit.Trip Presents... Runner 2: Future Legend of Rythym Alien
Giana Sisters: Twisted Dreams
Toki Tori 2+
Mighty Switch Force! Hyper Drive Edition

Drexl

GBA = 240x160 resolution.

I hope they at least focus on games that were unique to the system, as opposed to ports.

slop101

To be fair, they'll probably look good on the tablet's screen, which they damn better implement for the SD games.

Music

For shilling?!?!?!