Because unlike Sony and Microsoft, you haven't yet seen Nintendo franchises in HD glory.

On the PS3 side you already saw some serious graphics realism from God of War, Uncharted 2 and the almost real Gran Turismo 5.

On the Xbox side you got Alan Wake with the "best graphics ever" on a console, which seems a reasonable setence, may not be the best but it is a jaw dropping game  for sure...

X360 and PS3 already are a couple of systems capable of pulling out very good graphics.

The next Xbox and Playstation, while being obviously more powerfull then its current models, you won't notice as much the difference on the games as you will do on the next Nintendo system,

Which by the way, may be fair to assume that it will easily pull out graphics like this:

http://img11.abload.de/img/2pblu.jpg

http://www.crymod.com/uploads/mediapool/00020hl3.jpg

http://www6.incrysis.com/screenshots/2axca.jpg

(images are too large to fit here, Crysis Real Lifesis mod)

Franchises like Metroid, Mario, Animal Crossing, Pokémon, Fire Emblem, F-Zero, Smash Bros and ultimately The Legend of Zelda are set to impress you in the next iterations with graphics you haven't seen yet on Nintendo games. That will generate the buzz that PS4 and Nextbox games can't, simply because the current games for HD system are already so good looking that the next sequels and new IP's won't have the same "almost realistic" impact as the Wii 2 console and ultimately some may pass unnoticed:

I don't know how the Gran Turismo PS4 game will look, but going more real than Gran Turismo 5 is a huge task. Huge. While doing a Metroid or Zelda more realistic graphics wise than its Wii counterparts will be child play.

"But graphics don't matter that much for the Wii audience"  would you argue.

Well, thing is. They do matter =)

 Not for the casual crowd which will have plenty of choices with user friendly clean-graphics games from Nintendo, but for the "hardcore" crowd they matter, which will be the ones first noticing  how good Nintendo IP's look on the new hardware.

Casual market is assured with some Nintendo blue ocean titles, which will be launched riding the momentum of the current Wii, just like PS1-PS2.

Hardcore Market shall be pleased with the graphics novelty and first time HD epicness of Nintendo stuff.

Owning casual market + hardcore market + riding existing Wii momentum (nintendo won't launch an expensive console like PS3) = 1st Place

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P.S - In the case next consoles introduce some hologram or some other tech that puts you in the game in a different way than looking into a TV, this thread fails.

It's hard to speak of dominance now only because of how the Wii has shown just how unpredictable things can get, especially with the future of videogame interactivity largely unwritten.

I would say the largest thing in Nintendo's favour now is brand name recognition. The exact same thing that Sony relied on to sell the PS3 inspite of it's incredibly high cost and slow game library. If anything, the continued success of the PS3 is proof of just how powerful brand recognition and loyalty are. And next Gen, it's in Nintendo's Camp.

However, where we tend to think of this sort of brand recognition in terms of console buyers, it's most important for third party developers. This gen they all bet on the HD consoles and locked their biggest and best games and franchises in to them. Next gen only a complete idiot would dare ignore the Nintendo console, and provided their power is remotely comperable, only a completer idiot would leave the Nintendo console out of multiplats.

So if the successor to last gen's most popular console maintains a unique or interesting variety of interactive gameplay, while combining some of the best and most recognizable first party software in the business with a proportionate helping of major third party efforts, it's hard to see how it could do anything less than sell a crap load of hardware.

"Because unlike Sony and Microsoft, you haven't yet seen Nintendo franchises in HD glory."

No, great games will make it the market leader. All this will do is PERHAPS please the critics. If graphics didn't make the market leader the last three generations, why would it do so next time?

This is a joke thread, right?

@ Lordwithstrangeavatar

Graphics didn't decided last three generations because never existed such a disparity in graphics before as in this gen. (Jaguar was a joke with almost no games)

And I am not assuming graphics itself will decide the leadership, that absolutely dumb, I agree with you there.

I am saying that graphics, allied with the Nintendo marketing machine, casual software and stronger third party support will do. I believe that next gen, all three consoles will be close enough to share the same engines, much like the last gen despite the considerable difference between PS2 and Xbox.

The technical advancements (resolution, polygons, shaders, frame rates, anti aliasing) generally matter a lot less to the current typical Nintendo Wii owner.

While it will be more or less impossible to overlook the difference in visuals between the Wii and Nintendo's next console, the question remains will a handful of new releases when the console debuts be enough to convince the tens of millions of Wii owners to line up to replace their beloved Wii.

Considering that the Wii will likely be selling for $99-149 by the time this new console is released, you will end up having a much, much larger market for the Wii, even as Nintendo tries to get its current customer base to upgrade.

In short, Nintendo's biggest competition may well end up being themselves for the first year or two of the "Wii 2" just as many PS2 owners did not see the value in upgrading their $149 PS2 for a $499-599 PS3.

The key difference however, will be that Nintendo will be able to sell their HD console for $299 or less and still post a profit on every unit sold as the hardware needed to produce HD visuals will cost significantly less to produce by the time the console is ready for production.

I don't think nintendo games in HD will be nearly enough to help them maintain the position of market leader.  In fact, I think the majority of the "expanded audience" will be extremely slow to upgrade, and they are what has landed nintendo in the position they are in this gen.  It was not classic nintendo franchises like mario and zelda - gamecube had those and we all know what happened to it.

@ Greenmedic88

I agree with everything =)

@De85

That mario image is exactly the opposite of what Nintendo may pull of for Wii2.
And in the gamecube gen the consoles wasn't much successful due to its lack of third party support because of the ridiculous 1.5gb discs.

The userbase was as big as the Xbox one, if Gamecube used regular disc size we would've seen GTA on it.

I believe next gen we will see a GTA on a Nintendo home console! BELIEVE

The major benefit to the next console being in HD is that that, along with other hardware power upgrades, will bring the new Nintendo console in to closer tech comparison with it's competition. While I completely understand Nintendo's reasons for not putting powerful hardware in to the Wii, it's quite clear that it has cost the system dozens upon dozens of multiplat games.

It has also detracted from the Wii's ability to come out with those kinds of "epic beautiful" games that do, despite what some might say, move hardware.

Going HD will be a significant boon to the next nintendo console, as it will be competing for all those "hardcore" gamers who are currently playing on the HD consoles far more successfully than it is now.