For the record, I think the Wii U and 3DS will do fine.
But for a short term boost they should include download codes for Virtual Console games as pre-order bonuses. For example 3D World could have had a Super Mario World code, DK Country for Tropical Freeze, etc.

Long term: Go full nostalgia with their 9th gen consoles. Stop trying to re-brand themselves every generation or 2. Go back to the glory days. Call them NES and Game Boy. The standard models will be Nintendo grey. I think people will eat that up.

Legend of Dragoon and the Wii U is a great combination for a lot of reasons.

1. As it's own IP it still has a few fans who would buy a sequel or a remake just because.
2. It's an oldschool RPG which fits Nintendo's portfolio of nostalgia games decently. 
3. As an RPG could use the second screen as a status or inventory screen without much effort.
4. It used innovative controls for the time and would almost certainly translate to motion controls quite well.
5. It would probably also adjust well to using the Playstation Eye.
6. Sony gets a third party title out if it.
7. Nintendo gets a title for a struggling system AND just in case the Wii U continues to sink, anyway, they have a foot in the PS4's library.

Relabel some older games "Gamepad Required", keep the premium model with a Gamepad, salvage some of them (and rewire the OS) with free patches.

It wouldn't be pretty, but it's not meant to be.

Metroid Prime 3 and Xenoblade were some of the best "platformers" I played last gen!

I would focus on games and stop selling consoles. Start making games for all platforms, convert the entire library to all platforms and make some new and exciting IPs for existing and future platforms. People buy Nintendo hardware for the games, not the equipment. More people would buy the games if it wasn't tied to hardware they didn't want.

This pretty much nails it for me. Almost every game I own, including most of Nintendo's recent big names, are full Wii remote compatible. Get a SKU out there without the pad, sell the pad separately with the games that really take advantage of it bundled. Get the padless SKU significantly cheaper and market it as a fami(com)ly system.

The pad, as nice an idea as it is, is really holding the system back at the moment.

Hell they could even look at an Android compatible tablet that doubles up as a Wii U controller if they think the idea is that blinding,and that tablet could then have exclusive access to a Nintendo store for Virtual Console offerings as if it was a separate device, it would have the horsepower inside the unit too. This could potentally also form part of their next handheld's strategy.

1) What would you do to try and turn things around the near term (1-6 months?)

Thats hard to say, because its so little time. There can not be done much so soon.


2) Which device would you discontinue first (3DS/Wii U) and what would your timetable be for the transition of both devices?

Both at the same time, but of course after a successor already has been released.
Maybe the next console should be handheld only and the next home console should only arrive at about the same time (maximum 6 months before) like PS5 and XBOneTwo.
As I think Sony and MS will NOT launch their new consoles before 2019/2020 it would make no sense to launch WiiU2 in 2016 or 2017. 3rds will not jump to the Nintendo console, when they have an 80Mio+ hardwarebase - the HDTwins V2.

3) What would be the your strategy for bolstering 3rd party support on the next home console?

Simply BUY a lot of 3rd parties! Do NOT buy games, buy the studios.
They need exclusives, exclusives, exclusives and more exclusives. People NEVER will preferably buy Versions for Nintendo-consoles.

Effective inmediately the price for the Wii U would be dropped to at least $259.99 and it would come bundled with one of the top seller games (SM3DW, WWHD, DKTF or MK8) plus something else (like SNES Remix or something).

After that I would release an alternate SKU without the Pad for $200.00. And the bundles for this one would come in combinations of three games from the past generation:  

1) Mario Galaxy,Smash Bross Brawl, MKWii  

2) Zelda, Metroid, Smash Bross Brawl

3) Wii sports Resort, Mario Party 8, MKWii  

Or something like that..

The real questions are what to do for generation 9. I'm going to need some time think about that..

The first point would lose them so much revenue it's silly. You're not going to get Nintendo IPs to sell THAT much more across PS4/One to justify all the platform-holder moneys that Nintendo would otherwise get, disappearing.

For the Rest of 2014 and into 2015?

On the Wii U front: Bundle the heck out of MK8 and SSB4, let people know that there are more than 2 more Wii U games coming out this year, cut the price by another $50 and/or do a new model with more storage or whatever, tell people that Zelda U is coming in 2015 regardless of where you are in development, get Genius Sonority to work with Game Freak to port Pokemon Z to the Wii U for release on the same day as the 3DS version, and release Animal Crossing 5 this Holiday. If everything goes right, that's five killer apps in about a year's time. Make sure Hyrule Warriors and Bayonetta 2 get shown off, as they might be able to push hardware even if they don't sell as much. Also, change the marketing focus. Show the real cost of the PS4 and One compared to the Wii U. Highlight the fact that most 8th gen games at this point are 7th gen ports. Prove that the future is the Wii U, not Call of Duty in 900p for an extra $300 or whatever.

On the 3DS Front: The 3DS's main problem so far in 2014 is the lack of anything special. That is ending soon with Kirrby, Mario Golf, Tomodachi Life, and Super Smash Bros 4, but the system needs even more games for the second half of the year. Super Mario 3D Land 2, Majora's Mask 3D, Metroid Dread, Rhythm Heaven for Japan, and even Japanese ports would do wonders in various parts of the world. Also consider making a new 3DS model with extra RAM for Miiverse and web browsing or something, so you can have the 2DS for $100, the original at $150, the XL at $170, and the new one at $200.

Other:

• E3, whether it be a conference or livestream, should be extra long this year. Nobody's doubting Nintendo has good games coming. They're doubting it has numerous games coming. Highlight as many individual titles as possible in addition to showing off Smash Bros for 15 minutes.
• Combine Virtual Consoles in some way. Crossplay, crossbuying, cross-saving, etc. All would help.
• Sonic Lost World may have flopped, but the Nintendo DLC was a good idea. Let other devs use Nintendo series in their otherwise 3rd party games. For example, imagine Mario being a secret unlockable character in Sonic Boom, Bowser being an exclusive character for Skylanders 4, etc. It would keep some series in Nintendo camps.
• Re-release 7th gen games on the Wii U and 3DS. Xenoblade in particular would benefit and make loads of cash, especially if sold for $30 or less and in HD.

Long (Into Next Gen) Term

• Nintendo should not completely combine home and handheld hardware, but they should be more closely related. At very least, I expect the Wii 3 to be able to play 4DS games via SD Card slot.
• This would require the two next Nintendo platforms to be released around the same time, say late 2017. This would grant both the 3DS and Wii U full, but not overly long, lifespans.
• Make it so that there are 1,001 ways to release games for Nintendo systems. Digital Download via and between platforms, via game cards, Blue-Ray discs or the future equivalent thereof, scanning game codes, using NFC to download minigames via happy meal toys, it doesn't matter. Nintendo needs as many developers on board as possible, and that means expanding their methods of getting games onto their hardware.
• Meanwhile though, don't be like the Xbox and PlayStation. Keep the GamePad; it failed this gen, but would work well combined with cross-handheld gaming. Keep specs reasonably low; no more than 32 GB of RAM, even though the PS5 will likely have at least 64 GB and likely 128 GB.

So, assuming a Holiday 2017 release date, what games should Nintendo have from launch day (sometime in November) through the end of 2018?

• Mario Kart 9 (Cross Platform, with extra features on the console). EAD 1 can spend the next three and a half years making this magnus opus of a racer.
• Animal Crossing 6 (Cross-Platform, with improved social features on console). After Animal Crossing U is done, EAD 2 would have years to make this and possibly the ocassional minigame collection in the meantime.
• New Super Mario Bros 3 (Cross Platform, taking elements of both handheld and console series). This would give EAD 4 enough time to both make this game and do some project in the meantime (Pikmin 4?)
• Super Mario 3D (Console Exclusive) - Much as I'd appreciate another 3D platformer for the Wii U, making an amazing game to showcase the next console is a higher priority. Especially if it means having to make a new engine/gameplay style.
• Metroid Reboot from Retro (Console Exclusive) - Reinventing the space horror genre by going back to its origins.
• Pokemon Generation 7 (Cross-Platform) - Even if it mostly recycles the X/Y engine, a lot can be done with it, especially in HD.
• Luigi's Mansion 3 (Cross-Platform) - Gives Next Level the time they need

You may notice the console-based bias. Well, consoles make more money per hardware sale and sell more software, so that's why. You may also notice that this vaguely resembles the early DS lineup from 2004 to mid-2006. That was a coincidence, but one that I think helps my case.

Nintendo in 2025 would Be

• Developing for multiple platforms they own, but those platforms would be closely united by OS and game libraries
• 3rd party support won't be particularly strong in any area, but the sheer number of options makes Nintendo a relevant force
• Nintendo has steadily acquired more studios, meaning that with their combined platform development, they can release enough games per year to satisfy most customers
• The 2010's will be remembered as an embarassing hiccup on Nintendo's road of greatness