Obviously Nintendo is facing a difficult time right now, with the Wii U flailing and the 3DS, though doing fairly well, not as well as Nintendo had hoped. You can see this in the cuts to the sales forecast for both devices (though obviously Wii U far more).
So, how would you go about righting the ship if you were in charge? Questions I'd be curious to hear you answer:
1) What would you do to try and turn things around the near term (1-6 months?)
2) Which device would you discontinue first (3DS/Wii U) and what would your timetable be for the transition of both devices?
3) What would be the your strategy for bolstering 3rd party support on the next home console?
Obviously 'near term' fixes will be relatively unsuccessful, especially if you're looking strictly in a software sense. These days most software takes anywhere from 12-36 months to complete, so there's little that can be done short term. However, my strategy would be to emphasize advertising, but not just of first party software for their devices. Nintendo is so proud of, and so many indie developers seem to be vocal about, the eShop, that Nintendo needs to be promoting that. They need to have commercials highlighting indie software on the eShop, to help boost sales of those games. Throw the indie's a little bone, here. Simply putting the game up on the storefront isn't necessarily going to move units. Also, more Nintendo Directs! Use indie games in the Direct's as well! They don't all have to be hosted by Reggie or Mr. Iwata - get a new personality, someone fresh, to do 15-20 minute Directs that drop every two to three weeks, each focusing on a few games that are currently available or will be available soon! Interview the developers....show the indie's some love!!
As for which device I'd discontinue first, at this point it seems the obvious choice would be the Wii U, but I'm not sure that really makes the most sense. The 3DS hit the market first, and although it's doing well overall, I'm not sure it'll have the long-term sales tail that the DS did, so to me I'd say that a new device would be need to be introduced holiday 2017, perhaps? But then the question is to when to transition from the Wii U. Obviously Nintendo doesn't have the resources to prep launch line-ups for both devices at the same time, so either the Wii U successor would have to come a year or so before the 3DS successor, or a year or so after. So, how long do you support the failing Wii U?
It may be premature to be thinking about this, but let's be real here...Wii U has been on the market for a year and a half now, and it's already gotten some amazing games, and people just aren't biting. In the near term, I'd launch Mario Kart (obviously), but I'd also follow it in July/August with another $50-$75 reduction. Mario Kart should provide a good boost for at least a month or so, and the price cut would help keep momentum going until the typical holiday season ramp up begins. (However, the price cut is dependent on what games are released this summer, something we likely won't know until E3). With Smash Bros. this holiday season (if it's early enough - BLACK FRIDAY, NINTENDO!!), I could see the Wii U having a good second half of the year.
Regardless, the question again goes back to when to transition from the Wii U? I'd say given it's current sales climate, they'd have to launch prior to the 3DS successor, like 2016 or 2017 (if the portable gets pushed back to 2018). It's already confirmed that a new 3D Mario game is already underway, but no platform is given. The most sensible choice would be 3DS to get this game, but what if they're already working on new hardware? It's no secret that Nintendo starts prepping new hardware almost immediately after they launch a product, so is it possible a successor to one or both devices has been fasttracked? Discontinuing Wii U support in a year or two would leave a lot of fans angry, but with the 3DS it's possible to argue that it's got a solid, memorable library already, and a couple more years of support could fill in the missing gaps.
In terms of re-attracting 3rd party support, Nintendo is in a tough, tough position. If they refuse to play the raw power game with Sony/Microsoft, Nintendo will likely continued to get gimped versions of most high profile 3rd party games, or not get them at all. The next console has to impress, spec-wise. The casual gamer audience is just too...well, casual to be counted on to return to the gaming fold every generation. If Nintendo is serious about the hardcore gamer, they need to pony up. Nintendo needs to reach out and help develop some exclusive 3rd party games, and not just Sonic ones. Try getting a special, exclusive Assassin's Creed game, or an exclusive Castlevania game for the new console...games that would be partly/co-developed by a Nintendo studio, thus putting some of Nintendo's money on the line, which would also give Nintendo more reason to promote it.
Finally, the launch line-up of the next console in particular is going to be important. They need something killer, day one (the next 3D Mario adventure, perhaps?) ONE big Nintendo game, along with a couple of co-developed exclusive 3rd party titles and some filler stuff, and the console could launch very, very successfully.
Well, at this point I'm just rambling. Share your ideas and speculations below!
Bah!
