Has Wii U Reached Full Market Saturation?

[zorg1000]

RolStoppable said:

zorg1000 said:

Well im guessing it will release holiday 2016 so that works out perfectly with the game releases I mentioned.

Ok but look at 3DS & Wii U, very similar input methods (New 3DS actually makes them the exact same). 4 face buttons, 2 analogs, 4 shoulder buttons, dual screen approach, touch screen, gyroscopic motion controls, start, select, home. Basically the only difference is one is HD and the other is 3D. Even the big hitters are becoming more similar, 3D Land/3D World, NSMB2/NSMBU, MK7/MK8, DKC:R/DKC:TF, OoT3D/WWHD. Wii U is basically a console to play bigger, better sequels of 3DS games but the hardware/software is about 50% more expensive (3DS XL-$199.99, software $39.99, Wii U-$299.99, software $59.99) and 3DS has a vastly larger library.

With PS/XB/PC having a lock down on the mainstream AAA crowd, the casual crowd finding a new home on iOS/Android, and Nintendo spreading themselves thin by having to support two distinct pieces of hardware simultaneously, fans of Nintendo franchises are likely to pick the much cheaper option with much better support. Having Nintendo release devices that can share a library helps Nintendo give more sufficient software support along with saving time/money on R&D.

Many of Nintendo's games on Wii U are under performing simply because the install base is not there to support them. Mario Kart 8/3D World for example would likely have sold 2-3 as much if they had an install the size of 3DS to sell to.

The Wii U and 3DS are both products that repeatedly underperformed, so systems like that shouldn't be what Nintendo makes going forward.

But let's say they go down that path again, only that time around they share the libraries between the systems, wouldn't the problem that the handheld is the cheaper option with better support (due to Japan's preference for handhelds there are going to be better third party offerings for sure) still persist? Actually, it would make the home console even more redundant, because the games wouldn't only be similar, but rather have exactly the same content. And for people who have a home console preference, they could skip the handheld altogether without having any regrets.

Looking at the whole issue by asking "How can Nintendo make a duo like the Wii U and 3DS work?" is the wrong approach. The better question to ask is "Why should the home console and handheld experience be 100% interchangeable to begin with, if there are no indicators that that is what consumers want or could want?" Each device will still need its own signature games to justify its existence, because otherwise one or the other will die off regardless of the games it gets. And once that is settled, it becomes clear that the systems should have exclusive features that allow the creation of games that aren't possible on the other device. This approach obviously doesn't rule out that games that can be played with a couple of buttons (like 2D platformers) will release on both platforms without problems.

In this scenario, I don't see why both devices couldn't cost the exact same. The console would essentially be a home version of their handheld, similar to Vita/Vita TV except Nintendo has big multimillion selling franchises to support it with unlike Vita. Right now Vita is $199, Vita TV $99 standalone or $139 with a game, controller and memory card. So let's say Nintendo's next handheld is moderately more powerful than Vita in the same way 3DS is moderately more powerful than PSP. They could easily sell it for $199 in 2016 at a profit. The console version could be slightly more powerful in order to display games at a higher resolution/framerate, it terms of power it would basically be a Wii U but wouldn't have a Gamepad controller so it could easily be sold for $199 at a profit in 2016.

The console would get all the third party support that the handheld receives because they are essentially the same hardware just in a different form factor. They would get rid of disks entirely and use DS/3DS style game carts that are playable on either device.

The handheld and console would be the same price and offer the same library, it just comes down to whether u prefer playing on a TV or a handheld. They could also allow some type of extra features in games for those who own both giving consumers at least a little incentive to own both devices.