We'll see.

Don't fail Nintendo.

Dear GOD....when has Nintendo EVER released a console with an enormous price tag.

NES $199.99
SNES $199.99
N64 $199.99
Game Cube $199.99
Wii $249.99

So people honestly think Nintendo is going to jump to $600. Use common sense people, Nintendo doesn't roll like that. They have always made things affordable. Just more Nintendo hatred.

It's good that Nintendo acknowledges the importance of a strong 1st party lineup, but the fact is, even if Nintendo busts their ass and goes all out, releasing tons of great 1st party games,  there are still going to be lull periods where the development teams are stretched too thin, busy on 3DS software, tied up with bigger projects, etc. This is when third parties NEED to step in. If they don't, we're simply going to be looking at another N64, Gamecube, and (to an extent), Wii library where there are brief periods of plentiful quality games dispersed amongst long periods of droughts. Nintendo doesn't have the sheer numbers or manpower that Sony's studio has, and unless they intend to seriously upgrade, third parties are key to fill in the gaps.

This is on Nintendo to push for their support. I don't care how much third parties hate you, or how much they hated Wii, or their fear of their titles getting crushed by Nintendo games. You do EVERYTHING in your power to get more plentiful, and more importantly, more QUALITY third party games. Buy studios, offer money, push advertising, work closely with studios, make development as easy as possible on your platform. Hell, buy them a steak and lobster dinner if that's what it takes. Wii U NEEDS stronger third party support, or I fear the Wii sales numbers will be the absolute ceiling for Wii U success, and more likely than not, an unreachable goal.

While Wii at least got the quantity of third party games unlike the N64 and Gamecube, it was lacking in the quality. Wii U will need both in order to have the surge of success Wii had, along with the greater longevity of the HD consoles.

Not quite though. When adjusted for inflation, for comparison with today's market, Nintendo's hardware launch prices look like this:

NES (1985) - $242 *($99)
SNES (1991) - $396 *($199)
N64 (1996) - $333 *($199)
NGC (2001) - $281 *($199)
Wii (2006) - $296 *($249)

As I've pointed out on numerous threads, the SNES and N64 launch prices establish that, historically, Nintendo has certainly been willing to launch consoles around the $350 - $400 window.

*Original USA launch prices.
** Long term USA inflation figure of 3.5% used for calculations.

I just wanted to expand upon the possible price of the Wii U ...

From the tiny amount we know about the Wii U and the rumors/speculation about its hardware I get the impression that Nintendo took a similar approach to developing the Wii U's hardware that they took with the Gamecube over a decade ago. Essentially, rather than using expensive state of the art hardware to maximize theoritical performance, use custom versions of "outdated" hardware and focus on maximizing real-world performance per dollar.

With this in mind, had the Wii U been using a conventional controller (like the XBox 360 or PS3 controller) I would expect Nintendo to sell the system for $300 while breaking even or turning a modest profit.

If I am correct the price increase of the Wii U will be primarily driven by how much more it costs to manufacture a Wii U tablet controller than a conventional controller. Being that I think it is far closer to a conventional controller with a (relatively) inexpensive touch screen added than a tablet, I think people are over-estimating the cost to manufacture the controller. My expectation is that it (probably) adds $10 to $15 to the manufacturing cost of a controller, and Nintendo is worried about the cost at retail because it would (probably) increase controller prices by $30 to $45 if Nintendo and the retailers are going to maintain their margins on accessories.

With everything considered, I expect Nintendo is targeting $349 for the Wii U at launch. While I think that they may be more willing to accept small losses on hardware now due to the launch of the 3DS, I wouldn't be surprised if they are worried that factors outside of their control will force them to release it at a higher price.

What... the HELL... is WRONG with you people?

$500 for the Wii U?... $600 Wii U??... have you all gone INSANE?!?

So a console using modified off-the-shelf parts for the main hardware, no Blu-Ray or expensive proprietary media format, and a controller that is essentially a giant Wiimote with a touch screen that merely streams the video off the console rather than having its own built-in CPU/GPU combo is going to cost as much as the PS3 did at launch with it's bleeding edge technology?

If Nintendo release the Wii U for anything higher than $350 it'll be D.O.A. Even $399 is looking more and more like a stretch with the inevitable PS360 price drops later this year ahead of the Wii U's launch. No way Nintendo puts out a new console that is closer in specs to the current gen than the upcoming next gen consoles at double the price of the current gen systems.

I used to be certain that Nintendo would never release their next console for a cent over $250, but considering their latest HANDHELD console began at that price, and the fact that the Wii U controller comes equipped with a tablet, I can definitely see a $350 or even a $400 pricetag at launch. Don't think they'll exceed that though.

That wasn't a quote from Reggie. That was whoever wrote the article speculating. This is how misinformation becomes 'truth'.

http://ds.ign.com/articles/115/1157818p3.html

Here is an article on IGN that had the launch dates/prices adjusted for inflation. It seems the sweet spot for most Nintendo home systems is between $250 and $300. So if it is going to be "expensive" is will more than likely be between $300 and $400 which isn't that bad considering the 6 year old PS3/7 year old 360 have sku's currently in that price range.