Nintendo games are like Led Zepplin music: quality, unique, timeless. And also in limited supply. Zepplin music doesn't sound like other music from the 70's... no disco or other crap. So kids today will pick it up and like it. Nintendo games are their own identity. Running on rooftops in AC will get old, people start to get bored with pretending to play the guitar, but Nintendo's characters and games are unique and timeless. And contrary to popular belief, they don't milk them. You get one MarioKart or NSMB on your system. When you buy the system at a later date, you want that game, even if it's been out for a long time. You don't buy its sequel, because there is none. And the games are very very good and have loyal fans.

Also, as was said, 3rd party competition on Wii was weak, which helps the 1st party titles.

Come back when you aren't cherry picking the games. Try the Uncharted series, Killzone or God of War for PS3 and Halo & Gears of War for the 360. 

If Mario game followings were strong, then surely the Wii U wouldn't be where it currently is. 

I just found out that I'm a 25 year old ignorant kid. -.-

I need to buy moar gamez with gunz!

Il ask you a question, would you pay 350$ (plus taxes) for a new console only for a 2d platformer? Now, try going to ask this to other people and see what their answers are. 2D mario games sell well in the longterm, but they don't sell systems. The mario games that will sell a lot of systems are mario kart and mario 3D.

I wouldn't pay $50 for the Wii U but that's my view. 

The issue here is that quite clearly the issue is a lot more complex than "franchises = win" as the person I quoted was trying to state. 

Where do people get this notion? There is no evidence for this yet I see it all the time now after the Wii U launched. When NSMB arrived on the Wii, it was hailed as a massive system seller, now that the Wii U isn't doing so well the series has never been a system seller, queer logic. Software is not the main problem the Wii U faces, NSMB is still a system selling franchise but the Wii U lacks basic appeal.

PS: People paid 599$ for a PS3 many years ago to play Lair... the launch line-up was truly pitiful. The 360 had Perfect Dark Zero, not a very good game and neither of them are anything even remotely similar to NSMB in size and importance, yet the consoles sold because they had basic appeal and in spite of their launch line-up rather than because of it.

The games obviously have better legs because they have good quality, easyness to pick up and play and wide age range appeal.

Anyone else trying to spin that around to say the fanbase is dumb is delusional.

No offense, but you people REALLY need to quit talking in "casual" and "core" terminology. Those terms were fucking annoying when they first started being used, and they're still fucking annoying now.

How about this? Most big Nintendo franchises "have legs" because they happen to be GOOD games? Or is that not a good enough answer in today's "overanalyse everything" world? lol

Nostalgia, nostalgia, and nostalgia.

Mario sells so well that Forbes have said that the Wii U may result in Nintendo going software only.

Yeah because the Halo series didn't sell well at all.

I'll carry on this conversation if you want to look at the actual facts at hand rather then cherry pick data which is nothing more than a fallacial argument.