loved the colors, the song is not that bad a people say, it's the fun factor and family get-together selling points that make this ad, a sure-seller, not for us, because we will buy it no matter what, but for the mainstream

^.^

The commercial was brilliant! Those that don't like the commercial I could only assume are ones that laughed when they heard the name Wii and overreacted when they heard the name Wii U - you'll get over it.

I think most people agreed the "Wii Would Like to Play" TV commercials were well done. 

Better than this, this is kinda ... amateurish. It doesn't give the impression that this is the launch of a major new product categorey, I'm not sure if this even gets the point across that its a new system. 

Not a huge surprise though, I haven't really thought any of their 3DS ads have been that great either. 

I think their better adverts over the last few years have been the celebrity ones, so maybe they should've hired a few "hip" celebs and built a campaign around that. 

I disagree. What they needed to show, which they did, is how the Wii U separates itself and how different it is from every other gaming console out there, including the Wii. Games are somewhat irrelivant at this point, as gamers like me and you would already know what the Wii U is about, so there is no convincing us one way or another - for example there is nothing Ninty can show in a commercial now that would change my mind about the Wii U. But people who don't know what Wii U is, could care less or know the difference between the games being shown in a short commercial - whether, they showed Zombie U, Pikmin or Nintendo Land, etc, probably wouldn't make a difference to such would-be gamers. 

That's because most of the hardcores know it's new and know what it can do. Nintendo wants to win over the casual markets first and make it clear to them that it's a new system with new capabilities.

What they need to do is send a few hundred to Oprah and get her to give them away to her audience one day. That honestly is probably the #1 best thing that they can do to get the nationwide casual audience informed and interested.

Oprah isn't on the air anymore, lol. Maybe Ellen. 

The Wii spots from 2006 were much more impressive and gave the impression of something very different and important was happening, and  that's *exciting*! Lets get people excited not just run down a checklist of what a product is, that's not good marketing. At least this isn't as egregiously bad at that as the Wii U UK advert was which bordered on a high budget informercial. 

Wii ads from 2006:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UP-THj03Zk4

This Wii U spot just feels like something someone slapped together before their lunch break. It doesn't feel sophisticated or hip like the Wii spots from 2006 had at least a tinge of. 

The "Wii would like to Play" TV commercials were borderline creepy and weird, and showed almost no games. So i don't know what people are complaining about with the Wii U ad which looks modern and fresh, and ultimately shows "How U Will Play Next" Brilliant!

What do you mean it doesn't get the point across, for Wii ads all they did was swing the Wiimote in different ways, for the Wii U ad they did the exact same thing but showed it has a touch screen - so what's to complain about?

The 3DS has used celebrties including Penélope & Mónica Cruz and Gabrielle Douglas.

I liked the Wii Would Like to Play ads, they are far better than the Wii U spots. They are a little weird, but that also makes them memorable and it fits with the product itself, as the Wii *was* different and a little strange at first glance. Instead of fighting that, the marketing execs wisely embraced it. Nintendo's never going to be Apple when it comes to marketing, but that was a pretty nice step into that direction of "lifestyle marketing".

The other problem I think with this Wii U spot is like 2/3rds of it is like little kids playing. Immediately contrast that with the Wii ads which showed mostly adults/older teenagers using the device. It's fine to use kids, but you also run the risk of giving the impression that you've created a toy, and not an electronics entertainment device or even more than that ... an experience (Wii ads did a good job of capturing that). 

I like the Penelope/Monica Cruz 3DS adverts, but those are Europe only I think. 

In a way though, and I hate to say it, but I think Nintendo themselves isn't as enthusiastic as the 3DS and Wii U as they were with the DS and Wii. 3DS and Wii U are basically "there just because new systems were overdue, so here's out new thing that we whipped together, enjoy". With Wii and DS I sensed they really felt comfortable with the bold directions and decisions they were making. Here ... not so much. 

I think if we have this discussion a year from now you and others will be loving the Wii U ads - let's hope I'm right.

Nintendo has always maintained that they build toys, which is one big reason why they almost refuse to make a console that parents woud think is not appropriate or too expensive for their children. It is also reflected in their games, which can be seen as toys. It's only recently that its fans that were once little kids and are now adults, are demanding that Nintendo be more adult and hardcore - but that is not Nintendo. Plus, I think targeting children has always been a good marketing  strategy on a wide rang of products, including consoles.  

I think they are excited about 3DS and Wii U, as they have now regained their 'dominance' in the hanheld and more so the console markets. They might by less excited about the 3DS, but I think they are keen to keep ahead of PS and MS expecially considering that those other console maufacturers are suppose to have the 'better' consoles.