Did Nintendo drop the ball this gen?! *Video*

[DanneSandin]

RolStoppable said:

DanneSandin said:

Why would a "hard core" Nintendo system sell less? Is it because people expect a certain price point on Nintendo systems? And why wouldn't a Nintendo console that was on par with its competition get less 3rd party support? Because 3rd party games sell less on Nintendo systems? I know that a great deal of Wii owners also has a PS360 just for the 3rd parties, so it wouldn't make any sense to NOT put games on a Nintendo console if it was capable. (And let's not drag in the 6th gen into this; back then exclusivity were much more common)

Fundamentally I agrre that Kinect2 probably won't drive much sale - unless they greatly improve it, and not simply make it more sensitive.

What do you think MS needs to do to drive sales in EU then? I think we can forget them ever being big in Japan. And what does Nintendo have to do to sell well in EU and US?

Yes, one big reason is that people expect certain price points for Nintendo systems. High price means consumers won't buy the console which has a direct impact on software sales for the platform. Which then negatively impacts the decision for third parties whether or not a game is worth bringing over and by now it's well established that Nintendo doesn't get the benefit of the doubt. I'll bring up the sixth generation anyway: There were around 200 PS2/Xbox multiplatform games that weren't released on the GC.

It would be an advantage for Microsoft, if they dropped the Xbox brand. It has a negative image. It would probably also help, if Microsoft actually cared about mainland Europe, because most of the services they offer in the USA and UK aren't available. But it's highly unlikely that Microsoft will drop the Xbox brand, so consumers will keep buying viable alternatives (that would be the PlayStation) over the Xbox by default, because it also doesn't look like they'll be able to offer any important exclusive games that could change something. It's not something I've given much thought over the years though, because I am not interested in seeing Microsoft sell more.

Nintendo has to bring their price and software library in line with the expectations of consumers to be successful. That's all they have to do, because there's no significant negative stigma that plagues the company and its products. Disinterest is the obstacle that Nintendo has to overcome. The price of the hardware needs to come down and the number of local multiplayer games (no harm in having online on top of it) needs to increase.

But couldn't Wii U be an attempt for Nintendo to get away with higher prices for their consoles? Next gen they might release a $400 and maybe we'd be more ok with that? I must admit, I was quite surprised to see so many multiplats shared between PS2 and xbox that never came over to GC... But could that be because xbox payed for them, while Nintendo didn't?

In what way does the xbox brand have a negative image? because of the RROD? Or because not all their services sees the light of day in EU?

I actually  have to disagree with you on your last parapraph... there IS a negative stigma surropunding Nintendo; they're viewed as kiddy and not for the mature gamer. And it sounds to me like you would favor a N64-like system, or am I wrong? I guess you could also refer to Wii, but coming up with something that is as genius as that will be hard every new gen...