Well pretty much you are the average Nintendo fan. Which is precisely why they don't need to have a big show. They can show you Mario Kart, 3D Mario, Smash, Zelda ... which is really what you want to see in a Nintendo Direct just as well.

Even if Nintendo actually did want to try something 'different' for E3, I don't think it was ever going to be accepted as so. As someone who just purchased a Wii U it doesn't exactly fill me with confidence. The whole 'E3 isn't that important' or 'E3 isn't as good as it used to be' is nonsense. This years E3 was guaranteed to be massive because of the presence of both the PS4 and Next Xbox. So I'm disappointed that Nintendo aren't having a big press conference. It speaks volumes.

Dang that was quick. Nintendo Directs are great n' all but they aren't an E3 presentation. E3 is massively shown to a wide audience, Nintendo directs can get up to a million views from what I've heard. It just won't be the same this year. Is Nintendo really having that much trouble with Wii U? I can't help but wonder.

I get where you're coming from, but really what's Nintendo possibly going to show that's going to get someone who's dead set on buying a PS4/720 to get a Wii U instead?

They'd have to have some megaton like they've bought Bungie and they're working on an exclusive new Wii U title called Raro.

LOL. At this point I think Nintendo will be content if just Nintendo fans start buying the Wii U, that's the lineup they probably have (lots of Mario + Wind Waker nostalgia + Yoshi = you're betting the farm on your core fanbase to help you out). Nintendo Direct gets the job done at a fraction of the cost.

Nintendo will never win with the Sony/MS fanbases, especially not with the third party support they have, I think they've just accepted that and are chosing to refocus on the audiences they have a chance with and doing so in a more cost effective fashion.

I doubt this has anything to do with third parties. I do think this is Nintendo realising that in pure hype they can't compete this year, due to Sony and MS both having new hardware to show, and deciding instead to focus on games. They figure playing games is better than just showing them at the conference, so in a way trying to show that they are a step further along than Sony or MS.

It's a gamble though, no doubt, because if there is one thing the Wii U could do with now it's a little bit of hype.

I honestly can't think of any good reason why they are doing this. You would think that this would be an incredibly important E3 for them as they have to prove themselves with everyone else now moving on to the next generation. But this is sending the message that they don't believe they can compete. I had the feeling that the Wii U was going to be first party only for me anyway, but I did think they would bring out their big guns this year. An E3 with SSB, Kart, 3D Mario and Zelda would have been enough to match the other consoles for me, so I'm worried we aren't getting these this year. It's very frustrating.

It's much cheaper is the good reason why they're doing it.

If the whole show is basically just Mario 3D/Mario Kart U/Zelda/Yoshi/Pikmin and a few more niche games like Bayonetta 2 and X ... that's a show basically for Nintendo fans only, and Nintendo Direct speaks to this audience for a helluva lot cheaper than renting the Nokia Theater.

I think that's mostly what it boils down to. Why spend so much money when you're really just speaking to the same audience?

If you had some mind blowing megaton third party announcement or some kind of new Wii accessory you're trying to push to soccer moms, then a big stage makes sense, but I think Nintendo just looked at everything and realized they don't have either of those, so a small show basically nets them the same result. Why bother with the big stage.

Don't get me wrong, I understand the dissapointment from the fans, it's kind of like finding out Christmas dinner is just going to be Chinese take-out and a movie afterwards, but from Nintendo's POV I also see why they did it.

while i do agree with you that the notion that the WiiU has no third party support is wrong, EA isnt the only big player to not show support and there are some big games that arent coming to the WiiU (atleast no official announcments what so ever)

1- Rockstar, love them or hate them you cant deny that their games are huge and they got extremely strong brand name. GTA and RDR are both huge, and from what it seems rockstar isnt interested in the WiiU

2- the Witcher 3, the game has grown in popularity and the Witcher 3 seems to only expand on that. now its coming to both playstation and xbox right from launch.

3- Destiny, i dont need to introduce bungie, their history speaks for its self. they changed the indusrty before and they seem hell bent on changing it again. destiny as a project is huge, probably the biggest (non MMO) gaming project ever. the game seems like it will be something very special and up until now the WiiU is mising out

4- thief. while not the biggest game its still a game that will catch some attention, and no WiiU version is announced

5- both new metal gear solid games. currently they are just announced for the ps3 and 360. metal gear is huge and WiiU is missing out

though i do agree we need to wait until E3 to see the full picture

I understand that there isn't a whole lot they could do to convince the PS/XBOX crowd, it's the fact that they aren't even going to try. It just seems like they don't have shit to show. The 3rd parties will want to be at the other two's conferences, so maybe that was the biggest reason not to do one.

I think Nintendo will look back at last gen with a bitter taste in their mouth. It's left them behind Sony and Microsoft on many levels  

The Wii is I think by about a country mile the most profitable game console ever made. So if they were crying about it, they were crying all the way to the bank, lol.

I think if they are frustrated by anything it's that they've been unable to catch lightning in a bottle twice and that audience seems to be abandoning them in droves and getting their game fix on cheap/disposable smartphone/tablet games.