![\"hardware\"](\"http:\/\/nintendotoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/04\/hardware.jpg\")
<\/a>As many trolls and over-emotional armchair analysts have been quick to point out, the fact that Nintendo has seen sales of only .39 million units in the months January to March indicates that the Wii U is an abhorrent failure and a useless piece of plastic junk. However, while it’s clear that the numbers indicate a troubling lack of momentum, I think it’s probably a tad early to call for a time of death just yet (the console has been out less than half a year). With that in mind and taking into account the recent end-of-year report from Nintendo, I propose having a look at the Wii U’s prospects going forward using facts and figures and a little bit of informed\u00a0speculation rather than hate and dismissal and guff.<\/p>\nSoftware<\/h3>\n
Nintendo has sold\u00a013.42 million games for Wii U thus far. It’s unclear if this includes digital purchases (it usually doesn’t). With the console’s sales at 3.45 million this means an average attach rate of around four games per console. Given there are only two games in stores that have the word ‘Mario’ anywhere on the box, I’m going to assume that a lot of Wii U owners only have two games, and the rest (constituting most of the people\u00a0reading\u00a0this article I’m sure) have many more than four.<\/p>\n
Software moves hardware, and so the issue with moving Wii U hardware can reasonably be put down to a problem with software (and message, but we’ll get to that later). A number of skittish third party developers moving away from Wii U certainly hasn’t helped, but Nintendo is certainly going to rely on it’s stable of first party franchises to get the box into people’s homes. In fact the\u00a0company\u00a0has flat-out said<\/a> that, like with the 3DS, it intends to follow up this unexpected lull with a higher pace of releases. We already know of a few games coming for Wii U this year, but people seem to forget Nintendo’s\u00a0tendency\u00a0to keep some projects completely secret until fairly close to launch. Just look at the last few Nintendo Direct broadcasts.<\/p>\n So the question is, how effective will future releases be at\u00a0revitalizing\u00a0Wii U hardware sales?<\/p>\n The recent earnings release was accompanied by updated sales numbers for all platforms, including the original Wii. It’s interesting to see just how many of Wii’s highest-performing first-party games were released well after the console launched, helping the system maintain its unprecedented upward sales trajectory.<\/p>\n Wii and Wii U are different situations of course. Wii didn’t have an older, similar console on the shelf next to it confusing customers and cannabalising sales. Wii sold\u00a0phenomenally out of the gate because of how obvious its hook was. The appeal of Wii U is a little more subtle but will hit with the general populace as Nintendo gets its message down and the original Wii fades away. In the meantime, judging Wii U on its first six months of software is like judging Wii on\u00a0Wii Play<\/em> and Elebits<\/em>. Games with mainstream appeal simply aren’t there yet, but they will be.<\/p>\n Nintendo have given every indication that they’ve been forced\u00a0somewhat\u00a0out of their element this hardware generation, but they’ve also shown a coherent strategy going forward.\u00a0They stressed<\/a> early this year their need to co-operate with development partners to meet the growing demands of game development for their first HD system. They announced also<\/a> that their handheld and console divisions would be merged to allow more\u00a0efficiency.<\/p>\n Now, alongside their earnings report, comes the news<\/a> that company president Satoru Iwata will also become\u00a0acting Nintendo of America CEO in order to “support the company\u2019s unified global strategy, allow streamlined decision making and enhance Nintendo’s organizational agility in the current competitive environment”.<\/p>\n Keep in mind that these changes have been happening concurrently to the first half-year’s worth of Wii U support and development. Given the company’s focus on positioning thus far, it isn’t unreasonable to imagine Nintendo plans to get all its ducks in a line before making a big push later this year with a relaunch of sorts for the Wii U.<\/p>\n It’s worth remembering that the daily news and announcements that\u00a0maintain a constant tug-of-war between Wii U fans and detractors in the video games community – whether eight games is good enough for a virtual console launch,\u00a0\u00a0how long is an acceptable transition time between menus – are completely invisible to the non-engaged consumer that Nintendo will be seeking to target throughout the\u00a0remainder\u00a0of this year.<\/p>\n The three new television spots Nintendo recently revealed<\/a> (distasteful though their content may be to us) mark the beginning of a campaign to drive awareness of the system to a general audience that has barely any idea the Wii U exists, let alone that we still have to wait a few months for Super Metroid<\/em>. A brand relaunch in other words, supported by a newly streamlined global strategy, is exactly what the system needs to give full impact to the announcement of key first-party software titles at E3 and beyond.<\/p>\n<\/a>Next to the pack-in Wii Sports<\/em>, the second-highest selling Wii game is actually Mario Kart Wii<\/em> at\u00a034.26 million units. The game wasn’t released until a year and a half after the console’s launch. Nintendo plans to unveil a Wii U version of Mario Kart at E3 in June.\u00a0Also in the top ten are Wii Fit<\/em> and Super Smash Bros. Brawl<\/em>, also games that weren’t released until a year and a half after launch, and also games Nintendo currently has in the works for Wii U.<\/p>\nInternal strategy<\/h3>\n