johnlucas said:
Hello everybody out here in VGChartz Land! Many of you may not remember me. It's been so long since I posted here.
My name is John Lucas & I'm here to tell you what Wii U REALLY means & REALLY represents.
Before I get into the topic title, let me take you all the way back to March 14th, 2007 with my very first post at this site (back when it was spelled VGCharts.org with an 'S').
A poster named PS4 had just made a post called "Worldwide Wii sales are now only 4 million behind Xbox 360 - closing the gap".
I had been lurking around the place for awhile looking for a good place to talk about videogame sales (this was much better than NextGenWars.com!).
After listening to so many folks doubting Wii's ability to surpass the XBox 360, I finally decide to say my piece:
"I'm laughing at all the posts that say Wii can't beat XBox 360 this year.  LAUGHING! Have you people been paying attention to these charts? If VGCharts.org's figures are correct, Wii is gonna pass XBox 360 within the SUMMER! YES! They will surpass XBox 360 by the summer. XBox 360 has been at that 9 million mark for a while now while Wii seems to move a million a month!...
...In fact Wii has been underestimated on every level & THAT will be the mistake that will haunt the competition & the naysayers. It was played that way on purpose and we are seeing the results on the sales charts. I mean once Super Mario Galaxy comes out this holiday season & Nintendo unveils their full online playable titles we will be seeing NEW shortages & sellouts that will make Wii's representation on the charts baffling dumbfounding to disbelief! I predict by end of year we'll be seeing Wii be on its way to that 20 million mark probably even passed that. That is not hyperbole. Half a year they sell 10 million so why do you think the other half they can't sell 10 million? You know holiday sales give a little more oomph than rest of year, right?"
INSTANTLY this bold proclamation was challenged by a poster named The Source & I UNDERLINE my statement even further:
"Well that's what I'm proposing. I see Wii besting the 360 within the month of July. By August We will see Wii pulling ahead...
...But I guarantee you that we won't have to wait 'til fall to see Wii catching the 360. It will be the worldwide leader this summer I guarantee you. By holiday season will be start of its domination period which will carry it all the way through this generation as top system. By then it's not just gonna outsell the competition it's gonna overshadow the competition. You'll be seeing me on these boards, trust me. Just wait and see what the numbers say to see if I'm full of hot air or some other type of 'substance'. I call it for July. That's when we'll see Wii catch the 360. I call it for 20 million at Dec 31, 2007. That's the worldwide tally of sales for Wii. We'll just have to see if I'm right. I don't play the caution game when I see a sure thing. I don't like hedging bets. I'm very confident in my predictions."
In time I went on to make my 60 million worldwide Wii sales call for the end of 2008 & everybody's favorite—my 240 million minimum/500 million maximum call for lifetime worldwide Wii sales, among other mind-shattering proclamations.
As we all know now, the Wii did NOT make that 240 million in lifetime sales. DESPITE the fact that it was tracking above every record Sony's mega-selling PlayStation 2 put on the books.
Wii was the fastest selling home console in videogame history & was breaking records like Michael Jackson's Thriller, the best-selling album of all time. So what happened?
I admit I was thrown all the way off by Nintendo's sudden abandonment of the Wii platform, of the Wii Mission if you will.
Two straight years being virtually unseen on the shelves shattering sales records while revolutionizing the videogaming pastime all the way.
2009 saw Nintendo take a small break in the middle of the year & the sales reflected their breather. Still great sales but the numbers were coming a little bit more down to earth than the stratospheric numbers they had been putting up (they defied the traditional summer slump in years past).
But at the end of 2009 here comes the landmark New Super Mario Bros. Wii & Nintendo returns to outer space!
December 2009 saw the greatest monthly console sales in videogame history as Nintendo sold over 3.8 million Wiis!
Wii OBLITERATES the previous 2.7 million record the PS2 made in December 2002 while its handheld companion DS bests its own record of all-time best monthly handheld sales with over 3.3 million sold!
No one could stop Nintendo with all the HD in the world.
It didn't matter that most of the 3rd party developers revolted & protested the Wii.
And trust me it really wasn't about Wii's horsepower why the 3rd party refused to put their best efforts on Wii.
Then the inevitable effects of the Nintendo Revolution took place as Microsoft unveiled Kinect & Sony unveiled Move in 2010.
Suddenly the 360's Blades became Avatars (dashed from that board, eh?) & Kevin Butler did all he could to hardsell the marvel of motion control.
Now that the others finally caught up with the Future of Gaming, everyone was sure that Wii was cooked (especially with Nintendo taking another break that summer).
Following Sony's PS3 Slim example, Microsoft put a woman's waist on their console, fixed up the Red Rings, called it the XBox 360 S & soon premature headlines saying the 360 beat the Wii for the holidays AND ALL of 2010 were plastered EVERYWHERE in the press.
What did Nintendo do in response?
They simply painted the console red, packed in New Super Mario Bros. Wii extra, & had the SECOND greatest monthly home console sales in the 7th Generation with nearly 2.4 million Wiis sold!
Needless to say Wii beat the 360 that month...and that year ('but but the 360 beat 'em in revenue! revenue!' cried the sad backtrackers).
With a simple paint job Wii defeated the HD Twins yet again & continued to epitomize The Little Engine That Could.
For God's sakes! Nintendo put out a then-18 year old SNES remake/compilation of the Super Mario Bros. trilogy called Super Mario All-Stars, slapped a 1985-era pixel of Mario on the box, & sold this mutha OUT!!
A reissue/port of a remake/reissue & it sold every last box!
This system was STILL HOT!
2011 should have been the year Nintendo pushed the Wii harder than ever before to break the 3rd party's obstinance.
Instead...they quit. They just quit. They stop striking. They stop fighting The Revolution.
Apple & the rest of the smartphone/tablet gang absorb & replicate what Nintendo did on DS & Wii throwing Nintendo off their game in the process.
Nintendo abruptly puts out the 3DS to answer Apple, Samsung, & the gang & the whole affair seems to take their eye off Wii (and really what's with that lame "Family Edition" Wii crap anyhow?).
They also seem to abandon some of their tried & true tenets in the rush (example: software determines fate of hardware AKA games sell systems).
Launching a console at THAT price? With no pack-in? No must have games at launch? Slow to build library?
And those boring colors on top of that?
It led to the first yearly loss for the resource-smart company since 1981—when Donkey Kong arcade came out (the game that locked them on the map).
Then Nintendo announces Project Café, the console soon to be known as Wii U.
It looks to be a reversal of everything Nintendo acheived with Wii. A total contradiction in every way.
Wii was intended to be Everybody's Console. Wii U is aimed to be for the so-called "Hardcore".
Wii gave us the freedom & versalitiy of the Wiimote freeing us from the NES plank standard we've been under since the mid-1980s.
Wii U wants to put us right back on that plank except that the plank has a touchscreen in the middle this time.
The name Wii signified simplicity, brevity, & universal appeal. The name Wii U adds complexity, confusion, & consternation.
Wii = We = Plural First-Person. Inclusivity. U = You = Singular Second-Person. Exclusivity.
Even phonetically they contradict! Wii = oo-EE. { u-I }. U = ee-OO. { i-U }.
They follow Microsoft & Sony's bad habits making 2 functionally different models of the same console instead of following Reggie Fils-Aime's announcement of one console, one color, one configuration like they did for the Wii.
It was one thing to have a Deluxe Set of a Nintendo console in the past because the deluxe part covered the games & accessories.
But the console was exactly the same in both packages so you could build your way up to having what the deluxe set had without having an substandard version of a console to deal with. I can deal with a color difference but not a function difference.
Hold on. What's this? They're launching first?! They always launch last! Basic is $300, Deluxe is $350?! They never go past $200-$250! They're selling Wii U at a loss?! They ALWAYS sell their console at a profit from day one! Games cost a maximum of $60 now?! Don't go higher Nintendo! Cheaper pricing is KEY to your success! Shouldn't have gone up on 3DS game prices either! You're fighting the smartphones! Use your head! I thought Nintendo was losing their identity with these moves. Were they trying to be too much like Microsoft's & Sony's consoles? 32GB internal storage won't impress those 360-heads. OK, good touch with adding an external hard drive to make up the difference. And I am intrigued with the tablet controller's ability to take the game off the TV & keep going (along with its videochat features).
But seriously Nintendo, the graphic whores want you to break the bank to get what they think are cutting edge visuals.
Iwata you said yourself that "the time when horsepower alone made an important difference is over." How do you think you're gonna wow these PS3 kids launching first knowing that Microsoft & Sony will copy anything that could give Wii U an advantage? All they understand is more horsepower & they're gonna put it in their new XBox & new PlayStation. OK, EXCELLENT move with having absolute full backward compatibility with Wii. No need to buy new Wiimotes or anything else. I like that.
And absorbing the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection into the new seamless Nintendo Network is an excellent move as well (why did you kill WiiConnect24 though? Absolutely makes no sense!).
Still it doesn't make sense to have 2 functionally different Wii U models, to launch first, to launch at that high price, to sell it at a loss, to sell games at $60 max.
I was a little disgusted at Nintendo quite frankly. They threw away the phenomenon of the Wii to do this??? They prevented Wii from becoming the best-selling home console of all time to do this??? I wasn't getting either the 3DS or the Wii U until Nintendo got their act together. Nintendo soon made the biggest price cut in recent memory when they slashed $80 off of that ridiculous $250 price for the 3DS & started getting some choice games on the shelf along with some better colors. THAT'S more like it, Nintendo.
Still hate the game prices but this is better than what you had been doing.
Wii U makes its debut. They start strong with New Super Mario Bros. U at launch. I'm hearing the buzz about Zombi U as well as the missed opportunity with that Walking Dead game. Then Wii U stagnates. See? You're getting away from your tenets Nintendo & you're paying the price for it. Soon the "Nintendo Is Doomed" chants start appearing everywhere. 3rd party developers STILL refuse on developing for Wii U despite all the things Nintendo did to placate them. Even as 3DS made the turn around, I was absolutely confused on what Nintendo was trying to accomplish in this new generation. Cannibalizing & sacrificing Wii in its prime for the Wii U & getting these returns???
It wasn't until E3 2013 & the unveiling of Microsoft's XBox One that it all came together for me.
That XBox One presentation sent a bolt of lightning through my mind & now I knew why Nintendo did what they have been doing the past couple of years.
The irresponsibility of Microsoft with those disastrous DRM policies signaled their inability of ever becoming the leader of this business while underlining why Nintendo remains the leader.
It showed the ultimate end if the 3rd party developers ever got full command of this business.
Sony was getting nowhere with the PlayStation Vita (even though I liked their approach this time around) & it proved that they really don't have what it takes to challenge Nintendo in the handheld realm much less challenge the onslaught of the smartphones. People hacked their PSPs to play Nintendo games on them for God's sake!
Sony's & Microsoft's platforms were always 3rd party-centric since Sony & Microsoft are not necessarily gamemakers at heart.
Nintendo's platforms are always 1st party-centric since Nintendo IS a gamemaker at heart.
We have been at this crossroads between the 1st/2nd party & the 3rd party ever since the Exodus to the PlayStation in the mid-1990s.
Nintendo proved that they could virtually go it alone & not just survive but succeed beyond imagination.
And this TERRIFIES the 3rd party developers.
THAT'S the REAL reason why they didn't get behind Wii. Politics not horsepower.
So why did the 3rd party sabotage the Nintendo Revolution?
Because of one of my favorite sayings: 1st party + 2nd party + 3rd party = Nintendo's party.
If the 3rd parties ever got square behind Nintendo with support, they lose their political leverage in the business.
Microsoft's & Sony's platforms are the vehicles for their political leverage & with the XBox One you got a taste of things to come should they run this industry outright.
VGChartz's Game Database tells the Absolute Truth: Nintendo RULES the best-selling games of all-time.
You have to be the biggest of the biggest 3rd party titles like Grand Theft Auto or Call of Duty to even be seen near the top of that list. And that doesn't even start until #16 with PS2's Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. That means the Top 10 of all time are all Nintendo (And the Top 50/Top 100 are MOSTLY Nintendo).
Jak & Daxter, Killzone are nice. Forza Motorsport & Fable are decent. But NOTHING Sony's & Microsoft's 1st party teams put out can compare to the power of Nintendo's 1st party. The closest they ever got was with Gran Turismo & Halo.
One series a piece from them vs. many from Nintendo.
Nintendo sold you homework, called it Brain Age, & sold 20 million a piece EASY. Hardly no big graphics on that game.
They came up an exercising routine, packed in a bathroom scale that also measures balance, called it Wii Fit & sold 40 million altogether. Limited graphics there too.
Don't even get me started on Pokémon. It's so big it's got its own company within Nintendo.
Look for 'The Pokémon Company' on the label.
In order for the 3rd parties to even see Nintendo's milestones reliably they have to sell on multiple platforms.
Nintendo sells on just one: their own.
And how much marketing money goes into hyping up these games to make these sales compared to Nintendo's marketing?
Don't think the 3rd parties aren't aware of this. Don't think it doesn't horrify them. They're scared of Nintendo. Absolutely in fear. The gaming press promotes Sony's & Microsoft's platforms out the wazoo while usually throwing shade on anything Nintendo produces. They write the hierachies of platforms on the front page often writing Nintendo's last in the lineup. Gamestop puts Nintendo merchandise to the back of the store in a smaller space. And it doesn't matter. Nintendo still sells. You always hear calls for Nintendo to "get out of the hardware business", to "start making software for the other consoles like Sega", to "go handheld only". When they have absolutely no need to with the resources they have. The 3rd party needs this kind of noise to stand a chance.
I said it before, I'll say it again. Nintendo is Dad. The 3rd Party are The Kids. In the NES days The Kids had to abide by Dad's Rules in Dad's House. And The Kids always chafed at Dad's Rules. They spent some time at next door neighbor Sega's house but even though Sega was a little more lenient than Pops, Sega had his rules too. But when they had a chance to hang out with Uncle Sony, The Kids fled Dad's House & only visited Dad on THEIR terms. Uncle Sony let them run the household anyway they wanted & they got used to calling the shots. Staying up late hours partying through the night. Binge drinking & other wild reckless behavior. FREEDOM!
Then the flashy big spender Mr. Microsoft moved into town. They left Uncle Sony's house in shambles as they started gallivanting around with this pimp dressed in green. They became unhealthy & destructive the more they hung out with Mr. Microsoft as opposed to the relatively mild mayhem they made at Uncle Sony's House. Dad worried about his Kids' future offered them a place to come home. He would be a kindler gentler Dad than the sterner one he was before. Wii are Family, Dad said. But The Kids have been out on their own too long & are committed to their self-destructive cycle.
The Family can't die & now Dad is going to stage an intervention.
UNITY. That is what the 'U' in 'Wii U' stands for. This is what the Wii U is all about.
Nintendo is aiming to make this THE LAST CONSOLE WAR.
They aborted the Wii to continue The Revolution in the Wii U.
A very brutal version of their Third Pillar strategy that we saw with the DS overshadowing the GBA in its prime.
Iwata told you in 2004 at E3, "The time when horsepower alone made an important difference is over."
It is. And Wii proved it over & over & over & over & over & over & over & over again. DS proved it against the PSP. 3DS is proving it against the Vita.
That's why Wii U gets just a little above the PS3 & 360 on graphics.
This is not the era of the NES-to-SNES when the jump from 8-bit to 16-bit made you go "WOW!".
This is not the era of the SNES-to-N64 when the jump from 2D sprites to 3D polygons made you go "WOW!".
This is not the era of the N64-to-Gamecube when the 'smoothening' of the polygons made you go "YEAH!".
Once the 7th gen refined graphical displays to where you can draw a cartoonish depiction or a realistic depiction direct from imagination & it was accurate, that was the basic end of graphics. Sure they could always be refined more in the future but the payoff is much less. Law of Diminishing Returns.
Nintendo finally gave you HD visuals when creating HD visuals was more affordable. The Unity Engine allows easier portability of 3rd party franchises to Wii U platform with the common developer tools. This will result in less expensive, company-destroying game budgets as well as the reliance on overly-expensive budgets to sell games.
It used to be called Squaresoft & Enix. Now it's Square-Enix. It used to be called Namco. Now it's Namco-Bandai. It used to be called Sega. Now it's Sega-Sammy. Midway is dead. THQ is dead. Hudson Soft is dead/absorbed. Konami has shrunk in output. Capcom has become greedy. Activision & Electronic Arts have bought/is buying/will be buying out almost every smaller studio they can get their hands on & locking up nearly all of American game development (and not for the better).
Relying on the big budget blockbuster just to make sales is unsustainable & making games just to fit the fiscal calendar is irresponsible.
Nintendo delayed the Zelda for the Nintendo 64 launch simply because it wasn't ready. We got Ocarina of Time as a result.
Imagine if Sega did the same thing with Aliens: Colonial Marines. Imagine if more game companies took this approach.
Wii saved the industry from the crash in the 7th generation (remember when it was known for 99% of the industry's entire growth) but the 3rd parties are hell bent on creating the same crash in the 8th generation. The only responsible one around here is Nintendo.
They created Wii U the way they did to cover all of the bases. Look at that Pro Controller for a second. It's the XBox 360 version of the NES Standard designed to reel in all of those 360 players who refuse to touch a Wii controller. Look at that Wii U tablet controller AKA the GamePad. It's there to tap into the iPad fans drawing them into Nintendo's world. Wii U is fully backward compatible with Wii so they will retain their old audience while giving them new features to play along with.
They have the seamless Nintendo Network now so no more complaining about friend codes.
Even at $350 it's still cheaper than what the PlayStation 4 & XBox One are offering & even at $60 their games will be cheaper than the others.
And the early start gives them more room to drop the price against the PS4 & the One when they launch.
It's true that they bungled up the transition from DS to 3DS & Wii to Wii U. That's the reason for the setback. Nobody's perfect.
But mark my words Wii U will be on the SAME TRAJECTORY as the 3DS when this is all said & done.
I said it here. I say it now.
Wii U WILL BE THE LEADER of the 8th Generation Consoles BY FAR. It will outsell the XBox One & PlayStation 4 HANDILY throughout the generation.
And should The Revolution go as planned, this will be the LAST CONSOLE WAR between Nintendo, Sony, & Microsoft.
Wii U obtains what was denied to Wii. Wii U at last becomes EVERYBODY'S CONSOLE.
Oh & you want a number? Here's one for you: 12 million Wii U's sold by December 31, 2013.
Here's another: 35 million Wii U's sold by December 31, 2014.
Here's one more: 60 million Wii U's sold by December 31, 2015.
And one more for the road: 240 million LIFETIME Wii U sales.
Wii U is 'Wii Part 2'. This standoff must end. The Kids are coming home off the streets.
Nintendo will finish The Revolution through Wii U & bring Unity to the gaming industry at last.
No more Hardcore vs. Casual. It's just Gamers.
While Nintendo is proven to succeed WITHOUT the 3rd party, this long standing division in the game industry must finally be healed.
Remember now, what object is shaped like a 'U'?.......A Magnet. Think about that.
It's all about Dad's House. The 1st Party STILL rules.
John Lucas
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