When was MK:DD a pack-in game? And yes, pack-ins count.

Yeah, I love reading things like that.  Just proves that while these "analysts" may be good at predicting some things, the video game market isn't one of them.

Ah, only two posts.. Big surprise there, since this is one of the most ignorant posts I've ever read on the site. 

What on earth give you any indication that this console will sell anywhere near Gamecube? I mean, other than the fact that this is what you WANT to happen? Please, look at the games revealed already. The monster that is NSMB alone will ensure that Wii U doesn't touch Gamecube in futility. 2D Mario games sell consoles, it's a fact. Look at all the Nintendo consoles that have had 2D Mario games: NES, Super NES, and Wii. It is not coincidence that those also happen to be their most successful ones

Then you've got the mega hits Just Dance and Wii Fit hitting as well, and the inevitable Smash Brothers, Mario Kart, Zelda, etc. Also, Nintendo actually has a strong lineup of third party titles this time, with Mass Effect 3, Assassin's Creed 3, Darksiders, Ninja Gaiden, etc. I know I'm contradicting myself a bit here as I said in a pervious post that no one knows how the Wii U will sell, but there is absolutely no way Nintendo only manages 22 million with this console.

Your second paragraph just reeks of the same bs propaganda I've heard spouted constantly for years from the mainstream gaming media, developers, and forum dwelling nerds. The reason Wii stopped selling was a lack of games at the end. Wii had quality games - it sold. Wii stopped having quality games, it stopped selling. Period. Doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure that out. "Teh cazuals", these mythical gamers that all the self proclaimed hardcore love to talk about to make themselves feel superior, have nothing to do with it. That's because they do not exist. They, along with "casual games," are a MYTH, created by the industry to attempt to separate gamers into demographics and as a piss poor excuse to explain the Wii's success. You also contradict yourself by saying Nintendo lost the core gamers, but also that they only have the "diehard Nintendo gamers." Well which is it? Are Nintendo diehards not core?

Now, I'm not saying this console will surpass or even reach Wii levels of success. I actually think it'll be closer to NES level. But still, claiming Gamecube level success, with this lineup so far, is so presumptuous and unlikely that I can only conclude that this is merely your wet dream of what you WISH would happen, not what you think could happen based off any evidence or logic.. I also love how sure you are that Sony and MS will beat Nintendo, when their consoles and prices have yet to even be unveiled, let alone a single game for them..

I never said "Nintendo core". I said the "core" gamer which are gamers who aren't rooted into a brand but rather core gaming in general. Nintendo fans, people who bought the Gamecube, they are always going to be there for the big N. But that's not enough to win a generation. The Gamecube only sold 20 some odd million units and finished last. There simply aren't enough of them to have an impact needed to win out.

In order for Nintendo to do what it did this gen, it's going to have to get all the core gamers on their side and my argument is, they threw them away by basically ignoring them for the last 6 years. Take a look at their e3 shows. Remember that Wii Sports Resort debacle? Or how about Wii Music? They basically ignored the Halo,Killzone,GOW,COD,Ico and Uncharted demograph...IE "core". They did this because soccor mom's and the like were all buying into their products and they foolishly threw all their resources that way. When that whole trend died, and the casual went away, what happened? They tanked because there was nothing left.

If the core gamer left, and the soccor moms moved onto the next fad (ipad/iphone), what's left? Nintendo fans. And Nintendo fans aren't nearly enough.

Do you not remember the e3 when it was finally playable? When the doors opened, there were people acutally SPINTING in mass to play the thing. It was widly popular at the show and everyone was loving it. It was singlehandedly the most coveted thing at the show that year, period.

A 360 that plays Nintendo games?  Sounds like a seller to me.  I seem to recall everyone saying the Wii would fail.  While I don't really like the Wii very much, I can't deny the amount of consoles sold.

Definitely true.  However, the main reason that WiiU wasn't a huge hit at this year's E3 was due to the fact that Nintendo's press conference did a terrible job of representing it.  For example, they focused on Batman AC instead of 3rd party games that haven't released yet, such as Assassin's Creed 3, Darksiders 2 and Aliens; that Wii Fit U video was pretty pathetic; the amazing looking Project P-100 was completely absent;  and they finished the show with a freak'n fireworks display for Nintendoland instead of a great teaser from one of their popular franchises.  Many people who actually went hands-on with the games at the show were largely impressed with the offerings, however.

More to the point, thinking that WiiU will be the Gamecube all over again is highly erroneous.  The Gamecube came off of a modest selling console, it launched after the PS2 already had an enormous head start (in both sales and popularity), and it had nothing to differentiate it from the competition.  Not to mention that it never had a 2D Mario title, which really is quite important for a Nintendo system.  None of these will be issues for WiiU.  Seriously, it would really take some doing for any of the big three console makers to only achieve Gamecube-level sales ever again; everyone is just far too popular these days...

Consumers this holiday won't care about Nintendo's E3 press conference.  They're only going to care about a system with some great games and an affordable price.  So far, it seems WiiU will fit that bill. 

N64 was a bit more than Gamecube. Before you was talking about Gamecube. So do you stand to your claim, or do you admit, that you was exaggerating?

I think nobody will doubt this.

Sound good about the full year, but you're back on $299. I think 320 or 350 is a real option for Nintendo right now. I already proposed a price-span of 250-350 for setting limits on the bet.