This is where I think Nintendo fundamentally doesn't understand the market. 

They need something NOT Mario. And it has to be huge. 

What propelled the DS? Brain Training and Nintendogs in 2005. 

What propelled the Wii? Wii Sports. 

Where's Mario in these games? Even the 3DS really started to gain traction after Monster Hunter changed the equation.  

The Wii U needs an equivalent to this. And it needs it in the next 8-9 months. 

Otherwise they are in massive, massive trouble. They can pile on all the old franchises they want, all they're going to get is a glorified GameCube. 

Everyone and their grandma knows a Nintendo system will have Mario, Smash Bros., Zelda, etc. The real question is "what else?". That "what else?" has to be a game changer. 

Like I said, as of right now anything could help the Wii U out. In the long run, however, I agree with you. Nintendo needs to find a game that is going to define the Wii U, one that will really make people want it.

I think the price is an issue in the sense that right now it is competing against cheaper alternatives like the 360 and PS3, both with great games coming this year and a great library of cheaper games. If I did not own a PS3 or an Xbox I would prefer to buy one of those with the 300 - 350 dollars that cost a Wii U because right now I don't see anything "must have" about the Wii U, and this is coming from someone who always supports Nintendo Systems. Also, almost nothing in the Wii U screams ''next generation hardware'' when you put it against the PS3 or the Xbox 360.  When we learn the price of the next Xbox and the PS4 I think we will get a more clear picture about the Wii U future.  

what makes me skeptic personally is it's already at a great price.

Well, my new rule I've established for myself is I am going to wait it out until this time next year for the Wii U, before I officially pronounce the Wii U as doomed like most others on the site have seemingly done already.

Reasons being, I see a desperation price cut coming soon, as 3DS had. Well see what that does. Also, most of Nintendo's big games have yet to be released or even announced, aside from NSMB and Monster Hunter (in Japan). It is always games that sell consoles, and Wii U has few interesting ones thus far.
Finally, we have the examples of 3DS and PS3, both of which stumbled out the gate to start but are now putting up pretty solid numbers. Wii U could very well follow in their footsteps.

If worst comes to worst and we have another Gamecube on our hands, oh well, it's no skin off my back. I've pretty much outgrown the days where I need my preferred company to be "number 1!" to gain some sort of artificial feeling of superiority. Gamecube afterall is still one of my favorite consoles (it's even part of my username).

A part of me actually hopes this thing crashes and burns, for a couple reasons. For one, it only means I'll be able to get Nintendo's console at a much cheaper price than anticipated. Second, it will most likely wake Nintendo up again like the poor performance of Gamecube did and they will hopefully abandon their stubborn ways and again make games for a mass market audience like the NES and early days of the Wii. If that's what it takes for Nintendo to get their head out of their ass, so be it.

It's a shame that it's having a hard time, but it's so soon to call it for the long-term. So many things have changed about the industry and will continue to change rapidly. This is the first few months, and I remember when I was working that January onward was always so dead in retail (in the U.S. anyway...)... someone mentioned portables being more of Japan's thing and I can see that.... a vast majority of my friends there are averse to sitting still...

We will see a different situation coming up here soon than the Vita because it's not like Wii games will just keep coming out. If people don't switch over, then we will really know I think...

Just noticed (thanks to Siliconera):

Famitsu have Fantasy Life at #13, 8,315 copies sold.

Media.Create do not even have Fantasy Life in the top 20.

Uhm...

Level 5 must've sent out pretty much nothing then. Everywhere I've been to the game has been sold out since not too long after launch. I'd assumed it was because they were having an AC type performance where it's pretty much always sold out. That is because whatever Nintendo ships of AC sells out right away. I guess L5 wasn't expecting that first 170k copies or so to sell out that quickly.

L5 needs to get on the ball and get more copies out there. The game is available on the e-shop, but I'm pretty sure there aren't any retail download cards available for sale.

What you guys think, Wii U to pass vita in Japan this year? Vita has a decent (for vita) Q1 coming. Wii U will have a good Q4 after TGS at least. Q2 Wii U has pikmin, might end up being a system seller who knows. Q3 neither have anything it seems.