So what exactly are the people at Nintendo thinking?

[Brian Tams]

I can not understand why Nintendo hasn't done a World Of Pokemon MMORPG yet. It'd sell Wii Us like hotcakes. Oh the millions that could be made...

As much as I would love that, I can think of a few reason as to why they wouldn't do it:

1) They probably can't do it cheap and quick.
2) They probably can't do it where on Launch day it would work all nice and dandy.
3) They probably don't have the expertise to do it currently.
4) MMO's are dieing sadly.
5) How would an MMO work for Pokemon? Pokemon is very turn-based oriented, and MMO's usually don't translate Turn base very well. On top of that, Pokemon catching would be confusing, there would be no raids (1 Pokemon against 5? That's no fun. And an MMO with no Raids? That's no fun either), and Grinding would get annoying when all the Pokemon are constantly dead.

Guild Wars 2 doesn't have raids, and its fun. As for a Pokémon MMO, clearly it could not be an action MMO, but why not just have battles be instanced and turn based, just as any Pokémon battle on Gameboy? A Pokémon MMO should probably just play like any regular Pokémon game, but instead of being one story and one region, have all the regions and have other players instead of NPCs. I don't think it would be as hard as people make it seem, but it also shouldn't try to be some huge budget cinematic affair.

But most of that stuff already happens. You can have online battles. You can trade.

But why the fuck would you want to see millions upon millions of players clogging up a single city is beyond me. Thousands of players strolling through a single patch of grass looking for the same pokemon is unsightly. It would be ugly, over populated, and worst of all, it wouldn't be a private adventure.

And even if they didn't make it a cinematic affair; the server space they'd need to host that many players at once would be expensive. Especially for what you say would just be another pokemon game, but you can see real people's avatars. It wouldn't be worth the effort in that case.

 

[Battenberg]

Should Nintendo stick with the Wii U and try to make the best of it or pull the plug and start a new hardware cycle early? In either case, what would you want to see?

I hugely doubt they ever would after so little time and it's a bit hypocritical given my views on PS4 and XBone but I think they should just give up on the Wii U and make a new console. Still within the Wii range (or at least borrowing heavily from it) but with advances that are actually going to make the console better. The whole second screen thing has always just come across as the hardware equivalent ot using buzzwords on your CV, eye catching but ultimately without substance or purpose. Oculus Rift on the other hand is incorporating motion and a more physical sense of immersion. If Nintendo could combine the original Wii console with something like Oculus Rift that would be pretty awesome and certainly something I'd feel was worth buying (and hopefully something developers would feel is worth making games for, most likely including loads of exclusives). Of course this is more me wanting virtual reality gaming to be a thing than it is me specifically wanting Nintendo to make this console but I still think it would have been a more logical next step than the Wii U was.

that would be a horrible idea. lets assume for a moment that the wiiU is in fact a horrible console and will never catch on staying at its current sales rate. they would be better off staying in that scenario than trying to press a "reset button" and telling everyone who DID buy a wiiU "well oops we goofed but this one is going to be good, we promise" and then asking them to buy ANOTHER console. from a business standpoint it makes more sense to suffer though this gen and let the 3DS pull them though and then learn from all their mistakes for next next gen.

And that's exactly why they would never do that. From my point of view as a non Wii U owner (like most people apparently) a better console would be far more likely to pry the cash out of my wallet than Nintendo's current console. Like I said though my suggestion is more about wanting a VR gaming system and, based on how well the Wii was designed, I think Nintendo have a good shot at getting right if they ever do have a go. That is of course if the Wii U doesn't cost them more than they can afford to lose before then.

 

[doomed89]

I don't think Nintendo portables are an exception I just think they've had less competition and a stronger brand name leading to more sales and automatic third party support. The 3DS in particular is a big what was Nintendo thinking moment but their brand name strength in portables got their momentum up along with a well timed but costly price cut. The vita is obviously a better system yet Nintendo has more sales soley on brand name, I feel like most of Nintendo sales are like that it's just their brand took a hit in consoles and now they can't rely on it anymore (which could doom them over enough time if they don't chance.)

 

[VG_Addict]

SM3DW only sold 5,000. Is it time to call the Wii U dead?

 

[Roxas1359]

SM3DW only sold 5,000. Is it time to call the Wii U dead?

According to the news stories I'm seeing it managed to move about 6000 units in Japan. It's the second on the charts for sales in Japan, behind Final Fantasy XIII-3: :Lightning Returns. It also seems though that in Japan in it's first week it's sold less than 100k copies. While that's not that good, hopefully it picks up some more once the install base gets higher. I have the game and it's fun, but it seems that Japan seems to love Lightning more than Mario at the moment.

Also, the new One Piece game is at number 3 for the 3DS...and that pisses me off because I know it's never gonna be localized here and I can't import it because of Nintendo's stupid region locking system for physical media! >.<

Edit: Just found out there's gonna be a new Jump Super Stars game for the 3DS as well...and that one will never be localized here either! >.<

 

[Mr.Mattress]

It also seems though that in Japan in it's first week it's sold less than 100k copies.

Sold a little over 100K from what I've read. A little dissapointing, but this is just Japan Only, where Console gaming is dying (No one likes to talk about the fact that the launch of FFXIII-3 only sold 277K its First week where FFXIII-2 Did 588K in it's first week). Now if these sales where the same in America and Europe for SM3DW, I would be highly upset and I would definitely think the WiiU is doomed. As of right now, this is only Japanese sales.

SM3DW only sold 5,000. Is it time to call the Wii U dead?

If your referring to WiiU's, well there's something you should know: Those are only Japanese Sales, and Home Consoles aren't doing well anymore in Japan.

 

[Aiddon_v1legacy]

It also seems though that in Japan in it's first week it's sold less than 100k copies.

Sold a little over 100K from what I've read. A little dissapointing, but this is just Japan Only, where Console gaming is dying (No one likes to talk about the fact that the launch of FFXIII-3 only sold 277K its First week where FFXIII-2 Did 588K in it's first week). Now if these sales where the same in America and Europe for SM3DW, I would be highly upset and I would definitely think the WiiU is doomed. As of right now, this is only Japanese sales.

SM3DW only sold 5,000. Is it time to call the Wii U dead?

If your referring to WiiU's, well there's something you should know: Those are only Japanese Sales, and Home Consoles aren't doing well anymore in Japan.

and 3D Mario games don't do as well as 2D ones. I always find it funny how people try to act like they're looking atthe big picture, only to realize the picture is even BIGGER than they first thought

 

[Roxas1359]

Sold a little over 100K from what I've read. A little dissapointing, but this is just Japan Only, where Console gaming is dying (No one likes to talk about the fact that the launch of FFXIII-3 only sold 277K its First week where FFXIII-2 Did 588K in it's first week). Now if these sales where the same in America and Europe for SM3DW, I would be highly upset and I would definitely think the WiiU is doomed. As of right now, this is only Japanese sales.

From what I've read it was about 98,522 units or so and that's what I've seen from multiple sources. If that were the worldwide sales then I would be very very sad. Also, even if console gaming is dying I still think of it as kind of sad that the Vita of all things is beating the Wii U in sales, because that really should be the case...

and 3D Mario games don't do as well as 2D ones. I always find it funny how people try to act like they're looking atthe big picture, only to realize the picture is even BIGGER than they first thought

When it comes to New Super Mario Bros Wii then it did better than both Galaxies separate, but with both Galaxy games combine, seeing as 2 is sorta an expansion of 1 essentially, then the Galaxy games have sold more than New Super Mario Bros Wii. Plus the lifetime sales for Super Mario 3D Land beat the lifetime sales for New Super Mario Bros 2 by about 3 million, which isn't that hard though because 3D Land is a way better game than NSMB2...

 

[Mr.Mattress]

Sold a little over 100K from what I've read. A little dissapointing, but this is just Japan Only, where Console gaming is dying (No one likes to talk about the fact that the launch of FFXIII-3 only sold 277K its First week where FFXIII-2 Did 588K in it's first week). Now if these sales where the same in America and Europe for SM3DW, I would be highly upset and I would definitely think the WiiU is doomed. As of right now, this is only Japanese sales.

From what I've read it was about 98,522 units or so and that's what I've seen from multiple sources. If that were the worldwide sales then I would be very very sad. Also, even if console gaming is dying I still think of it as kind of sad that the Vita of all things is beating the Wii U in sales, because that really should be the case...

Famitsu is the one giving me the Over 100K (106, 967 Exactly. It also says that FFXIII-3 did 300K). I'm 100% Certain though 3DWorld did extraordinary in USA (300K. Yes that's a lunatic's prediction, but from what I've been hearing, people either bought XBones or 3DWorld that Friday, so I am imagining 300K Is possible) and Normally in Europe (All Countries combined I'm expecting 110K-150K). Certainly both will do better then the Japanese Launch. If both predictions fail, then I will accept the WiiU being a failure.

Also, on Consoles, take into Consideration: As of Right Now, WiiU is indeed the best selling Home Console in Japan. That's right, as of right now, it's outselling PS3 and XBox 360 every week since it's release. In total, WiiU is not beating the PS3 (Probably beating the XBox 360), but every week it's been available, people have picked up more WiiU's and Less PS3's and XBox 360's.

 

[Roxas1359]

Famitsu is the one giving me the Over 100K (106, 967 Exactly. It also says that FFXIII-3 did 300K). I'm 100% Certain though 3DWorld did extraordinary in USA (300K. Yes that's a lunatic's prediction, but from what I've been hearing, people either bought XBones or 3DWorld that Friday, so I am imagining 300K Is possible) and Normally in Europe (All Countries combined I'm expecting 110K-150K). Certainly both will do better then the Japanese Launch. If both predictions fail, then I will accept the WiiU being a failure.

I don't think 3D World would have sold that many in the US, given that I went on a trip to like 5 different electronics and game stores and they didn't even have a place on the shelves for 3D World. Out of them all the only one that actually had 3D World on the shelf was Walmart. It wasn't even that there was a spot and they were sold out, it just wasn't stocked. 3D World is getting more publicity in the US though which is good.
Plus when I went to Best Buy yesterday, one of the stores I went to, I literally managed to sell a Wii U Deluxe to 6 families because I told them all the features and everything. Out of the 6, 4 picked up the Wii U's right there and purchased them, with the other 2 going to get money and then they were gonna come back to buy it.

 

[VG_Addict]

I don't know why people think Nintendo should release new IPs for the Wii U when

1) Nintendo has made new IPs in the past, and they didn't sell

2) The Wii U is not doing well, and has a low install base.

 

[Roxas1359]

I don't know why people think Nintendo should release new IPs for the Wii U when

1) Nintendo has made new IPs in the past, and they didn't sell

2) The Wii U is not doing well, and has a low install base.

To counter your first point, the last in-house Nintendo IP that has been made was Wii Fit, Wii Sports, and Wii Music. Before that, if we're to go by an actual game and not an excuse to exercise then the last IP Nintendo made was Pikmin back in 2001.

Two, new IPs can sell well and increase a user base if they are marketed correctly and are generally well-balanced. Wonderful 101, an excellent second-party title, had probably some of the worst marketing from Nintendo I've ever seen and sadly it suffered because of it. Since the new IPs are being made entirely in house by Nintendo they'll definitely be getting more publicity since Nintendo will always advertise their first-party titles more. Plus, new IPs can lead to fun franchises in the long run. Look at Insomniac, they started with Spyro, then went on to make Ratchet and Clank, and then went on to make the Resistance series. Or you could look at Naughty Dog who started with Crash Bandicoot, then went on to make Jak and Daxter, and then went on to make Uncharted and The Last of Us. A new IP to attract a user base is always a good idea, but again, it comes down to whether or not Nintendo will actually advertise the game.

 

[Mr.Mattress]

I don't know why people think Nintendo should release new IPs for the Wii U when

1) Nintendo has made new IPs in the past, and they didn't sell

2) The Wii U is not doing well, and has a low install base.

To counter your first point, the last in-house Nintendo IP that has been made was Wii Fit, Wii Sports, and Wii Music. Before that, if we're to go by an actual game and not an excuse to exercise then the last IP Nintendo made was Pikmin back in 2001.

Right, because Dillons Rolling Western, Pushmo/Crashmo, and Harmoknights don't count for some reason... (All released in the 2010s)

 

[Roxas1359]

Right, because Dillons Rolling Western, Pushmo/Crashmo, and Harmoknights don't count for some reason... (All released in the 2010s)

You mean the 3 games I've honestly never heard of before until you replied to me? I will admit I was wrong, but my pint still stands that an IP also needs advertising for it to sell. I have never heard of those games before and have never seen a single advertisement for when they were released. So my point still stands when it comes to advertising and Nintendo's recent lack there of it. >.>

 

[VG_Addict]

But if not even SM3DW did anything, what's the point in keeping the Wii U alive? And it will probably be Nintendo's last home console.

 

[Roxas1359]

But if not even SM3DW did anything, what's the point in keeping the Wii U alive? And it will probably be Nintendo's last home console.

No, the Wii U will do fine but Nintendo needs to get their act together when it comes to advertising and they have to be pretty aggressive about it I'd say.
Now if Smash Bros U or Mario Kart 8 don't move slews of consoles then nothing will. Especially in the case of Smash Bros because those games are pretty much the definitive killer app for Nintendo at this point.

 

[Dragonbums]

But if not even SM3DW did anything, what's the point in keeping the Wii U alive? And it will probably be Nintendo's last home console.

No, the Wii U will do fine but Nintendo needs to get their act together when it comes to advertising and they have to be pretty aggressive about it I'd say.
Now if Smash Bros U or Mario Kart 8 don't move slews of consoles then nothing will. Especially in the case of Smash Bros because those games are pretty much the definitive killer app for Nintendo at this point.

Might not happen for Europe though. Nintendo had a good chunk of commercials over there banned because they were misleading.

What was misleading you ask?

Well, not all games can be played on the Wii U gamepad alone. It was pretty fucking petty of them to ban the commercial for that if you ask me.

But now you have Europenas seeing the ads for two weeks, and then all of a sudden, they don't see them anymore.

 

[Roxas1359]

But if not even SM3DW did anything, what's the point in keeping the Wii U alive? And it will probably be Nintendo's last home console.

No, the Wii U will do fine but Nintendo needs to get their act together when it comes to advertising and they have to be pretty aggressive about it I'd say.
Now if Smash Bros U or Mario Kart 8 don't move slews of consoles then nothing will. Especially in the case of Smash Bros because those games are pretty much the definitive killer app for Nintendo at this point.

Might not happen for Europe though. Nintendo had a good chunk of commercials over there banned because they were misleading.

What was misleading you ask?

Well, not all games can be played on the Wii U gamepad alone. It was pretty fucking petty of them to ban the commercial for that if you ask me.

But now you have Europenas seeing the ads for two weeks, and then all of a sudden, they don't see them anymore.

That's more on Nintendo because they should know that they have to tred carefully in Europe. European laws have been like that for a while and they could easily modify their commercials so that they can be played. Any reluctance to change their ads is on them and they get no sympathy because EU laws, will at times are outrageous, aren't going anywhere and have been in place long enough for Nintendo to advertise. Not to mention that if both MS and Sony are able to advertise just fine in Europe then Nintendo is at fault here.

But it could be Nintendo's last home console.

Highly doubt that, but I do suspect the Wii U will go the route of the GameCube and production of them will cease. That's the only thing that allowed Nintendo to make a profit in the 6th gen, because they no longer had to manufacture the consoles, just the games (the discs), controllers, memory cards, and any peripherals mainly.