As much as i would like the Wii U to be placed at 250 i don`t think it will happen.
Not only has Nintendo to recoup all the money lost on R&D, it also gives them an higher profit margin per console every time production costs go down.
There`s also a chance that a higher priced console will make people think it`s of higher value - which could be maintained even when the price comes down.

There are other small things that Nintendo could that could be effective, for example, why not push developers to reveal their games while showing the Wii U version first, even starting the trailers with "brought to you by Wii U". That little sponsorship on the reveal and launch trailer would be effective, i think.

That'd be a pretty good idea to get the brand recognised, especially if (which seems likely) the WiiU version is the best looking.

Whilst I think that Nintendo could go to $250 I don't think they actually need to. It is a nice option for them to have though.

Wii U will reign next generation too!

all next 3 consoles will do less than this generation though!

Yeah they don`t really need to. 300 is still a very good price. Not too high, not too low. And business wise it makes sense in the long run.
There several things Nintendo could do to push the Wii U brand as a viable alternative to core gamers before needing to spend money on promoting the console.

Why not give a demo of 3rd party games on Nintendo releases or some interactive dvds with images, videos, info and even interviews (with subs) instead of those booklets that advertise Nintendo and 3rd parties' games? Videos playing on the big screen and not on the PC would make a bigger impact.

@Khan. It's more like Bleed to destroy. Success is a given, market domination is alot less imho.

@Rafux. It's happened briefly with the GC, and it's happening with the 3DS. just an fyi

The problem with the Wii and third parties is the GPU. It uses fixed functions for shader effects instead of traditional programmable shaders that the PS3 and 360 use. The U isn't going to have that problem because the GPU in the U uses traditional programmable shaders which makes it easy to port to and from the PS4 and 720. When the PS4 and 720 are released it'll get a SKU of all multiplatform titles (with a slight downgrade in eye candy), particularly when you consider that the U will probably have a user installed base of around 10-15m users if not more.

$300 isn't only good for recouping R&D but having it at that price proves the console is actually new & next-gen. It leaves room open for price cuts down the line and effectively regulates demand.

Nintendo needs to start dealing with the underground. Maybe if developers of rival platforms start having unfortunate accidents, or becoming depressed, and committing suicide, making people believe there is some sort of Microsoft or Sony Curse, then they'll get strong dev support and their rivals will get weak support.

gameindustry.biz likes to bash nintendo since years, don't know why, perhaps the owner of this site only has Microsoft and Sony shares.

This is another ridiculous gameindustry.biz article. It implicit that most people think the Wii U will be a flop because it has only PS360 graphics (by the way gameindstry.biz seems to have only "sources" that have that bad mouth for the Wii U).

The gap between Wii U and PS4/Xbox3 will never be so big that we have a similar situation like now, where the Wii is completely underpowered and ports from PCPS360 games would take a big amount of money and time. The Wii U has all the graphics features that Sony&MS next consoles will have, perhaps it will be overall a little slower. But every XBox3 or PS4 game could easily ported to Wii U.

Because all next gen consoles will have HD graphics the visible difference between 300$-Wii U and a 600$ console will be minimal to most people. Look at modern PC-Games that utilize latest graphics card and processors. Most people would only see a differences to a PS360 game if the two game-versions would be shown to seem side by side. And PS4/Xbox3 of course will not have the power of a modern 1000$-PC.

At the moment it seems that the Wii U will get big third party support AND all the nintendo games. I think if Wii U really flops, than the age of consoles is over.

I think if, after all that Nintendo has in store, all the studios, all the games, the minimal graphics, the market leadership, the casual and non-gamer audience, the readiness to capture the HD market and graphics core market...

If after all this Nintendo still doesn't regain the graphics core market, they really have no hope.