By using this site, you agree to our Privacy Policy and our Terms of Use. Close
curl-6 on 25 December 2013
Edit Thread
Metallicube said:

All going to boil down to the games.. Not the marketing, not the distribution, bundles, price drops, not teh "cazuals", none of that bullshit. These factors may sway things a bit in one direction or the other, but at the end of the day, It's ALL going to boil down to the games. Why do you buy consoles in the first place? What is the SOLE purpose of gaming consoles? (Hint.. in aint to watch netflix, jerk it to epic graphics, or waggle a wiimote). Sure you might get off on horsepower, or gimmicky controllers. But at the end of the day, what does this horsepower, or these gimmicky controllers PLAY? GAMES.

Wii U could get Dreamcast-like sales, or it could get SNES to near-Wii sales. ALL of it boils down to the quality, and kinds of games it gets.

I say, if we get more games like Zelda WW, Pikmin 3, Wonderful 101, Bayonetta 2, etc (nothing against these types of games, but they are incredibly niche).. We end up with Dreamcast or Gamecube sales (15-25 million).

However, if Nintendo goes more in the direction of NES/Wii style games (the kinds of games that made them such a phenomenon) like NSMB, Smash Bros U, Mario Kart 8, Wii Fit, Wii Sports Club, Wii Party U, DKC.. We will see sales trend more towards SNES level (40-50 mill)

While I agree it all comes down to the games, I disagree on the kind of games it needs to succeed.

The GCN sold like it did because Wind Waker, Mario Sunshine, Double Dash, Starfox Adventures, etc, were not what the audience wanted; they all reduced the appeal of their franchise.

Wii U has to focus on taking its franchises to the next level instead of hamstringing them like GCN did. Mario Kart 8 and the 2011 Zelda tech demo are an example of doing this right. NSMBU or Zelda U being toon are examples of doing it wrong. 

Also, with 3D World, Donkey Kong, Smash, and Kart, Nintendo has their fanbase in the bag; what they need to do now is expand their base by bringing in new types of gamers, the ones who aren't swayed by Mario or Smash. A dark Zelda or an epic new IP would be great examples of how to do this.