I actually enjoyed the game.  Sure it was ultra cheesy but it was turn based combat which is a genre I really enjoy.  I saw past the few flaws I noticed and enjoyed the campaign for the most part.  I didn't have too much trouble with the flying enemies.  I believe the sniper was able to hit them without too much trouble.  I've played far worse games than STEAM.

I wouldn't say they're taking chances with the games in question, I mean come on, it was really obvious they were all doomed to fail and/or be bad and I'm not sure how Nintendo didn't see that during their development. Removing content mechanics features etc. rarely ever makes a game better rather than worse, the gamepad was well known to be unpopular before SF0 was even announced, and the timing of MP:FF was clearly a bad idea.

colour splash is a solid game!

The sales beg to differ!

4 games in a row this series has consistently sold millions even on similarly poorly performing hardware (GCN). Such a drastic change means the Paper Mario fanbase came to a realization between the 4th and 5th games. As a Paper Mario diehard since day 1, this is the first game in the series I and many others are skipping out on, and well the reason for that can only be because it's not a solid game. I'm saying this because it seems some people are trying make it out like we're making a mistake by not buying the game, that we're missing out. We already made a mistake buying Sticker Star, that's not happening again!

Im pretty sure EAD Group 2 is responsible for Animal Crossing, Wii Sports/Play, Nintendo Land & Splatoon.

What makes you think they will just become a Splatoon developer?

It just seems to become a teams thing everytime they make a successful game. Retro made Metroid Prime, then it was Metroid only. Then they made DKC and it was DKC only.

The Splatoon team might make a new game in like 2020 or something. Its just if you make a successful new IP, then it seems like you have to make a sequel to it and nothing else until that IP becomes less popular.

Is Color Splash really that bad?...

Is a burger without the onions, mayo, cheese, tomatoes, ketchup, and meat really that bad? There's your answer!

DK was Retro's own choice though and considering how people cry all the time for a new Prime game I don't really think many people object to them only making Metroid it's in fact Nintendo allowing them to do what they wanted that actually angered people.

Nintendo employs an internal rotation system in their teams where people move on to other IPs and Projects, having a dedicated team for something doesn't mean the same people are working on it, this was mentioned in one interview as one way they bring new ideas into franchises.

From someone who's finished the game and was working to completion, no, it's not that bad. It's quite good actually. Really enjoyed it myself. It's got great presentation, music, writing, and is just fun to play, though of course not everyone will agree.