The core gamer? Do Nintendo know what that is? Do i know what that is?

Catering to the core gamer, they did decently for the first few months. Then all of their third party support fell flat, and their jewel partnership (Bayonetta 2 exclusivity), became their only accomplishment for the non-casual crowd. Also, Xenoblade X would have been a great help if it came out 1-1.5 years early. Now it's facing heavy competition with next gen titles on xbox one and ps4

If you compared the Hardware and Software (The quality not the quantity) it self from the Wii to the Wii U, they have improved a lot. Better Internet Browser, Social Community, HD/1080p + 60fps games to name a few. Its just that the audience/gamers didn't followed on to Nintendo.

"Besides the lack of games, how do you think they did or have done catering to the "Core gamer"?"

Given us a cheaper console, with a normal controller, is first on my list.
I think if Wii U had launched 100$ cheaper, and with a normal controller, the install base would have been much higher. That in turn would have ment more 3rd party support, maybe even nintendo willing to risk more on development of games ect.

They could only compensate the bad sales by putting more effort on making better games from established IPs, making new games and expanding their business, they did just that.

It is simply not a good time for a nintendo home console as we know it(since N64). Third parties are too big and companies who can afford losing money on hardware and contracts were bound to win. Hopefully they realize this before next gen.

No. I'm pretty sure the machine did not attract the "core-casual" gamers that only like Fifa and CoD, and I'm sure it hasn't pleased most core Nintendo fans as well. So many missed opportunities...

"Core gamer:
A core or mid-core gamer is a player with a wider range of interests than a casual gamer and is more likely to enthusiastically play different types of games, but without the amount of time spent and sense of competition of a hardcore gamer. The mid-core gamer enjoys games but may not finish every game they buy, doesn't have time for long MMO quests, and is a target consumer." —An excerpt from Wikipedia

As far as the definition goes, a definite yes. But pretty much every console caters to this demographic.

Wii had Twilight Princess, Metroid Prime 3 and Mario Galaxy on it within 12 months of its launch. I think most core Nintendo gamers, prefered the Wii's line up over the Wii U. There were just a ton more games.

I think that Wii U have much higher percent of core Nintendo games than Wii had, Wii had so much casual games, and thats reason I am not fun of Nintendo Wii lineup.

The Wii had way more core games, just by the fact there were wayyyyy more games for the Wii than the WiiU. They were just buried under a ton of casual titles and shovelware.