By using this site, you agree to our Privacy Policy and our Terms of Use. Close
Soundwave on 11 January 2013
Edit Thread
OceanJ said:
Soundwave said:

I actually don't think 3DS will sell that much more in 2013, it'll be about the same despite Pokemon X/Y.

But I think y'know, there's still room in the marketplace for 90-100 million 3DS' in the smartphone/tablet world ... and that's not chump change. There's a lot of profit to be made, especially if Nintendo can squeeze Sony completely out of the Japanese handheld market.

Particularily in the West, the 3DS is never going to perform like the DS did, but they can still sell a decent amount of hardware/software. 

The 3DS should be the best selling game platform worldwide for next couple of years fairly easily IMO. Playstation 4 would be the main threat to that, but we're likely talking about a system that will start fairly slow with a $400 or more price point and probably not have a ton of inventory until spring 2014. 

I would be much more worried about the Wii U. I don't think Nintendo actually really known what they're doing in the console side for several years now, Wii U is not something that just happened with some overnight mistakes. I think in actuality Nintendo is out badly out of touch with where the console market is today. 

What console would you rather they'd launched instead of the Wii U?  I'm just curious, were you imagining something specific?

So far I like the Wii U's design philosophy, I like the potential that the GamePad brings to gaming.  I just don't think Nintendo has executed very well with the release.  I think they launched it before it was ready, for sales reasons.  And I think they may have bitten off more than they can chew.

From an investment perspective, I'm gonna need to see some very big games released for Wii U soon, otherwise I'll have to sell my shares and just be happy playing Nintendo games and not worrying about the business.


That's a fair question. 

My feeling is they should've split their console audience into two pillars. The "Wii" brand should've stayed focused on the casual gamer who wants motion gaming and plays once in a while. A "Wii" system where the Wiimote is not even the standard controller was probably always a bad idea. So two systems:

Wii Plus: $149.99 price point, Fall 2010 Release alongside DKCR

Basically like a Wii version of what the DSi was to the DS. More RAM, new OS, a better eShop to get more digital downloads. WM+ controller. HDMI output. Ability to upscale older Wii games for HDTVs and beef up that frame buffer to perhaps even allow newer Wii titles like DKCR and Skyward Sword to run in 720p. 

New Nintendo Entertainment System: $399.99 price point, Fall 2012 release

Tablet controller aimed more at the core player who likes to sit on their couch and play. "Entertainment system" actually means something with Nintendo TVii functionlity, Netflix, Hulu, Youtube, etc.. 1.2 TFLOP-ish GPU (blow that 360 outta the water), 4GB cheap DDR3 RAM, nice fat 64MB pool of eDRAM, quad-core CPU. Easy PC-like architecture for third parties to be able to get PC engines (not crap PS3/360 engines) up and running fast. 

Maybe they wouldn't beat Microsoft in the long term, but I think Sony would be in tough trying to beat MS and catch Nintendo too. I think a "New NES" could've effectively been like a PS2 with a year head start.  

I think the truth is, you can't make one system that pleases everyone. Video games are not a "one size fits all sweater" business anymore, people have distinct tastes nowadays.