I wouldn't call myself the most faithful Nintendo fan since i I don't have the retro consoles and handhelds but I'll participate in this thread anyway.
1. Wii U launched at 350$ when the GC and Wii launched for $200 and $250.
2. I wasn't sold on the GamePad controller and still am not (but off-screen seems cool.) I rather a 300$ Wii 2 with better 1:1 Wii controllers.
3. $350 for a console barely stronger than a PS3 without SSB4 or 3D Mario at launch window is not attractive for me.

lol ouch?

But I have a 3ds. Even bought Pokemon for nostalgia purposes. Still favour Nintendo in my own way, but no longer in the living room.

1. The population of fans seems larger than it is because they're the ones who are more vocal on the internet.

2. Even a big Nintendo fan is only going to buy games that interest them, and if they're not buying a lot, it's Nintendo's fault for not having a great library. (Nintendo is my jam, and even I can't say with confidence that it was worth buying at launch.)

yeah just to reiterate, people aren't as mindless as they're sometimes made out to be, even if they're a fan of a certain company that doesn't necessarily mean they're going to jump on every new console/game that company makes, lol. They still only have so much money to spend, so many games they want to play, etc.

that being said I'm a Nintendo fan and I waited until games came out to get my Wii U, same for 3DS (which I now own 3 of), same for the PSP PS3 and Vita (I'm also a Sony fan), I usually wait for the price to decrease at least once and for games to come out, I won't be getting a PS4 probably anytime soon thanks to its prices, for instance.

that being said I think "nintendo faithfuls" have plenty of reason to buy the Wii U now, it's got a lot going for it both in terms of what's already out and what's going to be out and in general with its features etc. (even though it's not a "total entertainment system" like the Xbox One and PS4 make themselves out to be, it's definitely more of a focused gaming console with some useful/fun extra features).

"Nintendo faithful" are kinda dying off I think.

That would be I think people who grew up with one of the following systems -- NES, SNES, N64, and maybe GameCube as the last one. The GameCube was 12 years ago now, so even that is a long ways away.

Every gen cycle you'll lose some of these people as some of them are now getting into their late 20s/30s and there are more important things in life at that age than video games. 

The kids who grew up with a Wii aren't as loyal. The Wii had broader appeal as a console, but I think it didn't do as good of a job of creating "Nintendo lifers". Nintendo pushed Mario and casual games hard, but I don't think they did as great of a job on the Wii in getting kids to fall in love with other IP, like the N64 or GCN even did. 

That and a lot of Nintendo fans simply make a big fuss on internet forums but then don't put their wallet where their mouth is. Like that Phenom08 guy who was probably the most rabid Wii U fanatic on this board, but didn't actually have the system himself.

I think $300-$350 is too expensive, some Nintendo fans are probably used to paying $250 max for a console.

Probably deceivers who are also those kinds of people who swear up and down that they are a Nintendo fan and spend an ENTIRE paragraph on a Nintendo collection I am fairly certain doesn't exist in their household as a means to make their thesis-long opposition of Nintendo validated, as this method has been used to death countless times it's pathetic.

Now one could say "Well, with all these complaints, Nintendo MUST be doing something wrong that will doom them."

The door can swing both ways, though.

With all these scorn-fueled proclamations of their demise, constant reports by "journalists" whenever Nintendo utters the smallest of sentences within the minute, and the fact that you even bother to divide your attention out of your life, regardless of wanting attention or making a profit or any other reason, clearly Nintendo is doing something RIGHT to keep it after several decades.

Clearly they are still relevant.

Clearly just because they aren't making money the way YOU want doesn't mean they aren't making money in general (even if most of the profits are by the 3DS, the Wii U has been selling better than earlier this year, which was due to that asinine drought that harmed them along the way)

Face it, despite what users on this site or many Nintendo-heavy sites like MyNintendoNews or NintendoLife state in regards to how any form of media or people do not care for what Nintendo does, like the Directs they do monthly (the last time I mentioned them, I was met with users claiming that barely anyone watches them or only does so to mock them..... like themselves), Nintendo manages to garner attention (somewhat like "that one celebrity" or "that one YouTube video with an excessive amount of downvotes," albeit actually provides something genuinely entertaining) and keeps on humming along.

So while the "faithfuls" continue proving they are doom-and-gloom false prophets in sheep's clothing, Nintendo carries on and will carry on for years, hell, DECADES to come.

Nintendo is the OG of gaming. Been doing it longer than any other in the game. They've got the most variety of any fanbase imo. Because There are folks who grew up with the NES/SNES, folks who grew up with the N64/Gamecube, or folks in between SNES/N64 etc.

Each gens idea of who Nintendo is doesn't mesh together necessarily. The N64's and the Gamecube was a departure from the Nintendo of old. And their sales suffered. The Wii was a return to their NES roots and they flourished. With Wii U they went backwards towards Gamecube's quirky direction, and now sales suffer again.

"Nintendo faithfuls" are a varied bunch. Some NF's sign off on whatever Nintendo does. Other NF's don't. You can please some of the people some of the time, can't please all the people all of the time.

Actually, dem Sony dudea are worse. Vita's been out much longer than Wii U, yet Wii U's only a million or so behind in sales...

I bought one 2 months after launch.
My friends are waiting for Smash and Kart, so it's just a matter of having the right software. Same goes for the Vita I guess.
People don't buy a gaming console because they love the company that makes it, they buy it because they see the potential of fun behind the available games.

Bought mine at launch and have since supported it with over 30 games. Great console that keeps getting better and better.