Nintendo Q2 Earnings October 30th - Results Inside

[Mr Khan]

UncleScrooge said:
Wii U shipments will be atrocious. I honestly don't see the system selling more than 20-25m units lifetime at this point. 3DS on the other hand should be doing well with Japan finally on track and the US and EU seeing solid sales now.

What interests me more than lifetime Wii U sales is this: Will Nintendo announce a "third pillar" system before the normal Wii U life cycle is over? Where is the point of no return for a Nintendo console - the point where software can't profit due to a low hardware base? Hardware sales are lower than during the GC era but dev costs are higher.

Difficult to say, really. Nintendo may be migrating towards convergence of the handheld and home console anyway. The relative lethargy with which they've pushed the Wii U even going into the critical holiday season (although their 2014 lineup seems more yearlong and robust) while continuing to hammer away at 3DS promotion suggests that they themselves may be looking to write the Wii U off.

At the same time, it could simply lead to them focusing on more profitable (read: less ambitious) software for the Wii U while they wait out the 3DS's lifespan and then move to combine the platforms in, perhaps, 2016?