For Nintendo to have successful consoles each generation, the solution is quite simple. Having more 3rd parties is certainly helpful, but it isn't a determining factor to Nintendo's success (Look at the 3DS for example). Having a powerful console also isn't needed. Nintendo doesn't need to fire Iwata or even mimic the competition. Nintendo only needs one thing and one thing only...
A consistent stream of compelling software... That's it....
The Wii never sold itself. It had a compelling piece of software that made it attractive, and that was Wii Sports. The Wii has thus proved that a powerful piece of hardware isn't needed to sell units. The 3DS proved that overwhelming 3rd party support isn't needed to sell systems.
In regards to Iwata. He has 3 successful systems under his belt. The Gamecube was certainly under Yamauchi's belt, but lets include it anyway. Out of a total of 5 systems, he has overseen the success of 3 of them. Two of which sold over 100 million units. That's very impressive. Kaz Hirai hasn't had this success. Ken Kutaragi, the grandfather of Playstation, was kicked off his throne the moment the PS3 floundered on release, despite him seeing the overwhelming success of both the PS1 and the PS2. If anyone holds a candle to Iwata, it would be Ken Kutaragi. Now before you go off saying that 'Ken Kutaragi made one mistake and paid dearly for it (by stepping down) and why not Iwata?' let's look at the fact that Sony had a lot of excellent talent under their belt. Instead of them fostering and mentoring that talent when they made their mistakes, Sony simply got rid of them. Over time, Sony soon became a shell of its former self. Nowadays, Sony is losing billions of dollars quarterly and unable to innovate like they used to back during the 90s and early 2000s - but of course, I digress...
What Nintendo can do to create a successful system each generation? Provide a steady stream of compelling software.
