I am worried for this little machine because....
1) Its releasing in a time where its competitors Xbox360 and PS3 are doing WONDERFULLY in the sales department.
360: Microsoft’s Xbox 360 ended 2011 as the best-selling current-generation console in the U.S., outselling the second-place console by more than 2.7 million units, according to The NPD Group. The strong December capped an impressive year during which Xbox 360 was the fastest-growing console. It also captured 49 percent of consumer retail spending, with an industry-leading $6.7 billion in sales in the U.S. for the calendar year—more than $2.1 billion on consoles and $4.6 billion on games and accessories, NPD data shows. The company has now sold more than 66 million Xbox 360 consoles and more than 18 million Kinect sensors worldwide, and has nearly 40 million Xbox LIVE members
Also the PS3 numbers were really good.
I think that this consoles are gonna sell a ton again in the Holiday season of 2012 (we are expecting the Wii U to be released by November 18) and Wii U is gonna struggle to be the next hot thing to get.
2) Nintendo are going after the "Hardcore" gamers, but they belong to Microsoft and Sony now.
Are they really expecting that the Dudebros forget about their hundreds of friends on Xbox Live or Sony Entertainment Network and start over with a new console with an unproven online service, the Nintendo Network?
3) The price $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
Recent reports suggest that the raw materials to make a Wii U cost around $180, plus the controller price. Based on that and the Wii launch price (USD $249.99) I expect the Wii U to cost between $249.99 and $299.99 (Previously I was expecting $349.99 because Nintendo always wants to make a nice profit since day 1, but taking into account the 3DS emergency price drop situation, they CANT price this console for that much, especially if you can buy a 360 for $199, 360+Kinect for 299; PS3 for $249, PS3+Move for 349)
4) The POWER
Its gonna be comparable with what we have now (I am expecting better framerates, lighting and textures, but not a big improvement). The hardcore LOVE power so that is another reason to not get this console.
5) Future competitors
There has been a lot of talk about Project Durango (720) and Project Orbis (PS4) in the last few weeks,they are gonna be released probably by Fall 2013 or2014, so just 1 or 2 years after Wii U. In the meantime, games like Assasins Creed 3, Call of Duty BO2 and MW4, Halo 4, Resident Evil 6, Lost Planet 3, The Last of Us, Grand Theft Autum V, Ni No Kunni, Devils Third, Homefront 2, Final Fantasy Versus XIII, Bioshock Infinite, and more are gonna be released. Probably some of them are gonna be released for Wii U too, but again why even bother in getting another $299.99 console
and making another friend list when you have everything on the system of your choice? (anyway a lot of this games are NOT gonna be released for Wii U)
I think gamers can wait a year or a little longer playing their games in their consoles until 720 or PS4 are released, and if they have the desire to play in a more powerful system, they can play on a PC.
6) Smartphones (iPhones and Androids), Kinect, Tablets (iPads, Kindle Fire, the rest), Ipod Touch and Social Network games (Facebook).
The Wii was succesful mostly because a lot of casual player were created in this generation by Nintendo, they expanded the market in a way nobody thougt it was possible, but now the market has changed yet again. The soccer moms, the grandmommys, the kids, the teenager girls all this casuasl players are GONE.
In 2006 the only way normal people, or "casual players" could play games were complicated (for them)consoles, handhelds or random flashgames on the Internet, so when the Wii and DS came with their innovatives controls casuals went crazy for them. But now everyone can just play Angry birds, Cut the rope and hundreds of thousands of games in their iPads, plus other thousands of apps that can do EVERYTHING they want.
We have to remember that Facebook was just opened on September 26, 2006, to everyone with an email address, but it will take years for facebook gaming to explode with Farmville, Frotierville, Mafia Wars and the likes; andhe App Store opened on July 10, 2008 and the iPad was released in 2010. So nintendo have the casual market for himself for years. Even their rivals Sony and Microsoft released the Kinect and Move, to have a piece of the casual cake.
In conlcusion (TL;DR):
- Microsoft and Sony are selling tons of consoles, and by the launch date of Wii U they will continue to do that, having a great backlog, tons of games releasing, a comparable power, cheaper price and an online infrastructure well defined, functional and liked.
-Hardcores are more confortables waiting a year plus for their respectives succesors, instead of buying ports and an entirely new system.
-Casuals are either playing with Kinect, Move, the old Wii or the iPad.
thoughts?
