Do you think that would actually work?...

Hey Pie. According to Kowen's graph the 3DS is doing on par with the DS, albeit in the DS' weaker stage.

One thing we know is that Europe is not traditionally Nintendo's region, it's more Sony's (and MS' in the UK). However, when it comes to handhelds Nintendo always dominates. Regarding the U, bro, I think the main problem is branding and marketing. If the Wii succeeded in the West, a lot of it was due to very accurate branding and brand image engineering. Imho this was failed for the U. There is very little buzz around the console and a lot of product confusion (what is it, why do I want it).

I'm not sure how Nintendo could fix this, but they need to inject a lot of money into marketting this console. However, to do that, they need the games to support it.

One game that was very big in Europe was Art Academy, others were Brain training and Nintendogs. Nintendo needs these games for the U AND needs to market them effectively to get the Wii success back. As for the core crowd, imho they're never going to get it until they lead the market themselves with 1st party IPs.

HTH

Like people previously stated, The price is higher than current competition and mostly software. But I do wonder because ZombiU look like the European Market more than US? I understand Japan, but Europe really?

Hopefully they release more games soon, im not sure how Pikmin will do but it and Wonderful 101 could be a start. Its hard to tell ATM

At least they should try more agressive strategies.

Wii U's issue is price plain and simple. I knew a few Wii owners at work looking forward to continuing to play Just Dance on "the new Wii"... til they find out the price and decide they'll wait for a price drop.

Wii launched at what? £179.99 with a game which had very universal appeal? A proper full fat Wii U is £299.99 (the £249.99 includes no software and so you need to pay £40+ on top to get a game with it). It's a price a big chunk of the Wii's big demographic will not be prepared to pay.

Nintendo's best chance lies with Japan's new government and if they return to devaluing the Yen. Both Nintendo and Sony's profitability have taken a severe hammering from the rapid appreciation in value of the Yen against other currencies such as the Dollar/Euro and Pound. A devalued yen would allow them a price drop much more quickly in the West.

There are a few factors:

1) Most major European economies are either in recession, or at risk of recession. Living costs have escalated wildly in Europe, and most peoples wages haven't accelerated anywhere near in line with this. Basically, disposable income across Europe is very low, so there's less to spend on non-essential goods.

2) Nintendo don't have the kind of historical strength they have in the US and Japan, where Nintendo established themselves as THE gaming company in the 1980's. The first majorly successful home console in Europe was the PS1. This accounts for some of the apathy towards Wii U, as Wii, largely through the 'expanded audience', was Nintendo's first home console success story in Europe. There's less of an entrenched fanbase for Nintendo's products, particularly their home consoles. Nintendo have historically treated Europe as a second class market, and although this has changed in recent years, it's an impression that is still rooted in hobbyist gamers minds: the consumers Nintendo need to drive Wii U's install base, are less likely to buy Nintendo hardware in Europe than they are in Japan or America.

3) Pricing. Software and hardware prices are comparatively higher than their US counterparts, particularly when it comes to Wii U. Nintendo's levels of success with digital sales are dragged down by Europe, because digital European prices are almost always higher than the retail equivalent: a recipe for disaster when it comes to boosting your digital sales. Prices need to be equivalent, or lower, than retail, as is the case in the US and Japan. There are further problems with pricing, but I'll address this in the next point. The price of Wii U hardware needs to come down. Basic Wii U hardware bundles are reportedly selling very poorly in Europe. Nintendo, ideally, should drop the basic and lower the price of the premium to the current basic price as soon as it is financially viable.

4) Tablets and smartphones: Like it or not, these devices and the business models and app stores that come with them, have radically altered the videogame market. There is still room for dedicated games devices, but consoles will have to change at a faster pace if they hope to avoid becoming a very niche sector of the industry. More flexible software pricing is needed. In an age where people can subscribe, go free to play, and download thousands of titles for pennies or nothing at all, expectations of what to pay for videogames will naturally alter. Thus far, Nintendo have done too little to recognise this. Having every new 3DS release in the £30 to £40 range does not acknowledge the changing market. Nintendo need to have tiered pricing in order to boost software sales and make 3DS a more attractive proposition. There is still a market that will pay £30 to £40 for games, but that market will not grow without a more flexible approach to pricing.

Furthermore, Europe is a less developed home and portable console market than either the US or Japan, which, as I have said, experienced the boom in consoles from the 1980's onwards. Europe was essentially a decade late in this trend. And although Nintendo's portables have historically done well in Europe, they are less entrenched than they are in portable mad Japan, or the US, with its historical association with Nintendo and Nintendo's brands going back nearly 30 years. In this less developed market, a market less entrenched into buying certain devices and brands, particularly Nintendo devices and brands, the rise in tablet and smartphone gaming has been more disruptive to Nintendo's business than it has been in other markets.

Nintendo need to address their European problem as quickly as possible. Prices need to come down digitally and at retail, and need to be more flexible. Start at £15, go up by intervals of £5, and reserve the £30 to £35 for the best games. Embrace digital, free-to-play, subscriptions and episodic gaming in the coming years. Lower the price of Wii U hardware and make sure the advertising campaign is crystal clear. Lower the price of Wii U games: £45 or more is not a good strategy when hobbyist gamers are used to paying £35, £40 tops for the latest big releases.

A lot of factors mean Nintendo is out of step with what European gamers want, but it can be remedied, and it should be remedied. Europe as a gaming market has plenty of room for expansion, but without Nintendo adjusting their pricing, marketing, and their approach to Europe, the gaming population will only expand onto smart devices and not onto Nintendo branded devices. They need to change course in Europe before it's too late.

Regarding the 3DS, I think Nintendo has just announced the game that will fix the problem in Europe.

Very good post. Long, but very informative!

My thoughts are:

1A) The economic situation in EU is somewhat bad (certain countries has it worse than others)

1B) Wii U is priced pretty high, which ties in with point 1A; a high price point with a bad economy=bad sales.

2) No compelling games that interests Europeans as of yet.

3A) Bad marketing.

3B) Nintendo doesn't know WHAT to market with Wii U; right now the system doesn't know WHAT it is... It needs to figure out the selling point of the GamePad.

4) Nintendo has never been that big in these parts of the world...

6) The awesomeness of the GamePad is "hard to get" until you've tried it - it's not an easy sell like motion controls.

7) At least here in Sweden the PC market is pretty big...

Very well thought out! I agree 100%! This is what they need to focus on in their marketing.

it will raise again!