Originally Posted by IGN
What’s most concerning about this situation is that it isn’t surprising. Nintendo has had trouble communicating the appeal of its home console. The publisher knows this. It admits the intricacies of asymmetric play, the allure of portable play at home, or the appeal of having a built-in social network, don’t make themselves immediately apparent to those considering a purchase. Sales, though admittedly in a similar spot as Wii in early 2007, have still been disappointing. And an almost empty Q1 2013 has left Wii U as an afterthought in the minds of many consumers. Nintendo has lowered its sales estimates for its fiscal year that ends in March, predicting that it will sell 4 million Wii U systems, a full 1 million units less than anticipated. And, importantly, that means that Nintendo believes it will only sell 940,000 consoles globally in the next three months. As of the end of 2012, Wii U had been averaging sales of 612,000 units globally per week.
The drastic decrease in software isn’t unusual for recently-launched consoles. Wii U isn’t the first to experience rough patches in its earliest months – or complete software lulls. It happened to the Xbox 360. The same awkward opening plagued the PlayStation 3. And in that sense, it’s hard to blame Ubisoft for making the right business choice – Wii U has sold about 3 million systems around the world. The 360 and PS3 have a combined install base of at least 146 million units (according to recent sales estimates). The choice is clear, and if anything it’s a wonder Ubisoft was willing to even contemplate so many Wii U exclusives in the first place.
Of course the question now is – can Wii U appeal to consumers if it can’t keep a hold of third party games? Nintendo can’t do everything on its own. Its biggest projects, Pikmin aside, are still several months away. Mario, Mario Kart, Wind Waker and Smash Bros. certainly seem nice in a theoretical sense, but they are destined for release at least a half a year from now. That lack of key blockbusters in turn won’t push system sales, and without system sales, third party content that might make its way to the system will be less likely.
Let the naysayers run and sound the bells of doom! The apocalypse is clearly upon Nintendo!
… Right?
