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Forums - Nintendo Discussion - Should Nintendo offer an optional WiiU SKU without the Gamepad?

 

Should Nintendo offer a WiiU SKU without the Gamepad?

Yes, their best option at this point. 164 47.13%
 
No, the negatives outweigh the cheaper price. 183 52.59%
 
Total:347
oniyide on 22 February 2014
the2real4mafol said:
archbrix said:

1.  No, you don't.  You can turn on the system and play Mario just fine with a Wiimote without touching the Gamepad.  Yes, the GP does turn on as well, but there's nothing that Ninty couldn't patch to fix any inconsistencies.  And unless you're talking about off-TV play, DKCTF says Hi with its black screen while you play.

2.  Why not?  The two main issues - splitting the userbase and the UI - are addressed in the OP, so what else is there?

3.  Fair enough for you personally, but it's sure not selling the console at the moment.  At least not at its current price, and Nintendo can't lower the price without dropping the GP.  And the console still has one big unique feature - Nintendo exclusives - just like the Gamecube did.  Difference is, GC was priced right... and so far, is tracking much higher in sales aligned.

4.  Lol, I'm still waiting for links to this massive abundance of "Should Ninty add a GP-less SKU" threads here on the Chartz.  Particularly from a Nintendo fan like myself who was a big advocate for not separating the GP until recently.  This "lot" would like to see evidence of this.

How much cheaper do you people want this console to be? It's already the cheapest of the 3 (£250 (Wii U) compared to £350 (PS4) and £430 (X1) even if the controller is expensive to make. Gamecube was cheapest in it's generation as well and yet still got destroyed by PS2. 

I don't think we can blame the gamepad on Wii U's failure, i think it's more Nintendo created this controller and don't know what to do with it themselves. They seem to lack direction with it. A good idea but not used very much. I'm not sure if just suddenly ditching it for a pro controller or wiimote would solve anything. I may be wrong but i find it hard to see.

And if Nintendo did drop it altogether, how would that affect the games that use it properly? like ZombiU for example.

I know Donkey Kong don't use it at all.

Anyway, i'm not going to link a thing but it's seems the removal of the gamepad is a common thread at the moment, much like the resolution wars and kinect. It's kinda annoying. People should enjoy these things for what they are. 

 

Obviously it needs to be cheaper because people dont seem to be buying it. Maybe price isnt the issue and just not a desirable product

He didnt say drop the gamepad but offer a SKU that doesnt have it.



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Lyrikalstylez on 22 February 2014

The only way I see wii u selling some consoles is if it's
cheaper, name changed, and better 3rd party games



archbrix on 22 February 2014
the2real4mafol said:

1.  How much cheaper do you people want this console to be? It's already the cheapest of the 3 (£250 (Wii U) compared to £350 (PS4) and £430 (X1) even if the controller is expensive to make. Gamecube was cheapest in it's generation as well and yet still got destroyed by PS2. 

2.  I don't think we can blame the gamepad on Wii U's failure, i think it's more Nintendo created this controller and don't know what to do with it themselves. They seem to lack direction with it. A good idea but not used very much. I'm not sure if just suddenly ditching it for a pro controller or wiimote would solve anything. I may be wrong but i find it hard to see.

3.  And if Nintendo did drop it altogether, how would that affect the games that use it properly? like ZombiU for example.

I know Donkey Kong don't use it at all.

Anyway, i'm not going to link a thing but it's seems the removal of the gamepad is a common thread at the moment, much like the resolution wars and kinect. It's kinda annoying. People should enjoy these things for what they are. 

 

1.  It's still pricey for a Nintendo console.  After an official price drop it still retails for more than any Nintendo console before it launched at.  It's also pricey for a console that is going to miss most of the industry's multiplats for this generation.  And the console hardware itself doesn't warrant the price and could be offered much cheaper with a more traditional controller.  Furthermore, the Gamecube was doing much better at this point in its life.

2.  "I don't think we can blame the gamepad on Wii U's failure, i think it's more Nintendo created this controller and don't know what to do with it themselves. They seem to lack direction with it. A good idea but not used very much."

^ You contradict yourself here, because bringing a pricey device that is made a mandatory inclusion to market without the ideas to warrant it in the first place is a recipe for failure.  Yes, the device itself is great but if you're making sure that everyone has one - and is paying that much for one - then you'd better have the software to back it up.

3.  *sigh*  Read the OP next time.  Nowhere do I suggest dropping it altogether.



archbrix on 22 February 2014
Cleary397 said:
Absolutely not.

The only thing it will do is increase the confusion of what the console is,
some consumers already believe it is just an add on for the original Wii, so removing the one defining feature (the gamepad) would only worsen that.

Plus, so much software would be completely unplayable without the gamepad. Including the eShop and the console settings.

Well, the confusion factor is already present, but I agree, that could be a concern if people are finally getting used to the WiiU "being" the unit with the Gamepad and then they see WiiU retailing without it.  Something to think about.

@bolded:  There's really not that much software that is completely unplayable without it from a design standpoint.  That's the problem.  And navigating the eShop and console settings is nothing that a patch couldn't fix.



archbrix on 22 February 2014
TarHeeLsALLday said:
No, what they need to do is actually utilize the gamepad.

I agree 100% that should have been of paramount importance.   Nintendoland should have just been a fun little demo game that was pre-loaded onto every system.  WiiU needed to launch with a killer app in the box that sold the consumer on it.  Something that would have clicked with everyone and made them say, "Ahh, that's what this is all about."

Unfortunately, it's been over a year now and we're still waiting for such a game from Nintendo, the company who brought the device to the market and made it mandatory with every WiiU.



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the2real4mafol on 22 February 2014

archbrix said:

2.  "I don't think we can blame the gamepad on Wii U's failure, i think it's more Nintendo created this controller and don't know what to do with it themselves. They seem to lack direction with it. A good idea but not used very much." 

^ You contradict yourself here, because bringing a pricey device that is made a mandatory inclusion to market without the ideas to warrant it in the first place is a recipe for failure.  Yes, the device itself is great but if you're making sure that everyone has one - and is paying that much for one - then you'd better have the software to back it up.

I though I contradicted myself LOL. Nevermind

3.  *sigh*  Read the OP next time.  Nowhere do I suggest dropping it altogether.

I must of red your point wrong then. I didn't realise you meant for Wii U + gamepad (as it is now) to a premium version. Maybe if they did that it would be feasible as only a patch would be needed to make the Wii U work easily with a wiimote or pro controller. Either that or they make some games that makes the gamepad looks essential to the expierience. So far it's mostly used for off-TV play





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Prediction: Switch will sell better than Wii U Lifetime Sales by Jan 1st 2018

Podings on 23 February 2014
t3mporary_126 said:
Podings said:

Seems you understood me correctly.

I know you want to lower the price, but removing the GamePad isn't an option. It simply can't NOT be mandatory.

It's an inregrated part of the system, and the best they could do to make the system more appealing, in my eyes, is put a controller that is easier to understand on the box in a more prominent position.

Most casuals would respond better to the WiiMote than th eGamePad, and most hardcores respond better to the ProController than the GamePad.

I know this is a little outside the topic, but I really do feel it isn't an option at all in any way to remove the GamePad from the system. It would cease to be a Wii U at that point.

You got yourself another quoter!

TL;DnR at bottom

I think this is a good point for keeping the Wii U. I believe the average consumer that Nintendo wanted to target in the Wii/DS time most likely know the PS4 and One have better power/graphics/performance than the Wii U like last gen. And some gamers dont even know if the Wii U is stronger than last gen just like they thought for the Wii. The GamePad can help the consumer justify buying the Wii U even though it's weaker.

But what has history constantly shown us in the console wars? That the most powerful console RARELY WINS. Power is not the only cause for sales. There is something else. What that is what avid gamers constantly try to figure out. Some say software is the most influential cause, and some say the price and value of the system. If both are those are true, then the Wii U is lacking both of them.

The consumers have shown they do not want another 2D Mario game that initially looks similar to the one in the Wii. The consumers have shown they do not want a Nintendo Land as launch title for Wii U as much as Wii Sports for Wii. The consumer has shown that they do not want a Wii U for 300$ with a free 2D Mario Game and its expansion pack included. The consumer have also shown they do not want a 3D Mario game that you can play with three other friends because the PS4 and One outsold the Wii U in 2013's holiday season.

The consumer wants something different from Nintendo, and the GamePad is either not innovative enough or unattractive. And the current games this year are the same games that appeared for the Wii last generation. 2D Mario and 3D Mario sold above 10 million for Wii but they couldn't get the Wii U to have a modest 70k sale per week since January. So how will Mario Kart and Smash Bros. do any better? Does library sell hardware. Maybe for the PS3. But the PS3 has a huge library of million sellers. So far the Wii U only has 2D and 3D Mario, Mario Kart, Smash Bros, Nintendo Land, Monster Hunter, Donkey Kong and Lego City (i think) being the only or possible million seller so far.

How does this tie to the GamePad? The GamePad, as I have already mentioned, is either undesirable or not innovative enough for the consumers to be attractive. It's been over one year since the Wii U has launched and that image it has is a weaker system with a controller that is undersirable or non-innovative. Why not remove that image by removing the GamePad which will allow the price and the development cost of the Wii U to be lower?

TL;DnR: GamePad has a negative image based on media and sale reception of it and the Wii U in the past year which allowed the PS4 and One to quickly gain ground on it and destroy it in sales during November to December of 2013. Removing that image may actually be a good thing.


It's true that the GamePad hasn't proven very attractive

But making it optional will mean ALL previous games that required will be unplayeable to new owners without a GamePad. The market segmentation would be catastrophic in that it would drive away core fans who believed in the GamePad and the early developers who backed Nintendo in making it mandatory.

Making it optional would make the Wii U itself seems like an underpowered console that did NOTHING different from the others. It would just be a weak console with a stupid name to most.

The only point in making it optional, as in taking it out of the core SKU, would be to lower cost, which in itself would absolutely NOT help sell Wii Us when there aren't any games people are attracted to. Or at least when the oly game around are games that require the GamePad to immediately after be bought on the side.



Soundwave on 23 February 2014

At this stage, I think Wii U is not appealing to hardcore players or casuals (they're gone to iOS/Android for 99 cents a pop and were getting bored of Wii Sports/Fit anyway).

I think Nintendo's best buy is to try and sell to cheapo Nintendo fans and kids. How? Drop the gamepad, but replace it with a new cheap Pro Controller that has a NFC chip built-in. Reposition the system and try to sell as many NFC toys as you can (high profit margin).

Create a toy line of Nintendo NFC figures (100s of them over time). $199.99 Wii U with Nintendo Universe game (NFC game) + 3 starter figures included.

It has to be cheap otherwise kids can't afford it and parents will say no. Sell a good number of systems and try to make money off two revenue streams -- your 1st party games and the NFC toys. Get the userbase up as much as possible.

Add new levels/characters to this Nintendo Universe game as the months go on, so kids keep playing it and are encouraged to keep buying more toys. You'll get the Nintendo "lifers" (old Nintendo fans) too who will probably bite at that price.