Nintendo Wii U

[Urzu 7]

Hopefully posting some rumors isn't a problem. I will add that a lot of people think these rumors are likely to be true (but of course are still rumors nonetheless).

First, rumor about Wii going down to $150 in May. Two links about this rumor below:

http://www.examiner.com/console-gami...-price-cut-may

http://www.pcworld.com/article/22501..._may_15th.html



Now, bigger than that news (for sure) is a Wii successor launching in 2012, and being more powerful than XBox 360 and PS3, which would be no surprise since they launched in the middle of last decade. It is just a question of how much more powerful will it be? The rumor states that the Wii successor will debut at E3 in early June.

http://kotaku.com/#!5792165/new-nint...ox-360-and-ps3

[Urzu 7]

IGN is now reporting on this, and hasn't labeled it as a rumor, for what that is worth. Although there is still speculation and unknowns.

http://wii.ign.com/articles/116/1161875p1.html

One of the sources says that the Wii successor will be "significantly" more powerful than the PS3 and XBox 360. Also, sources say that Nintendo wants to "recapture the hardcore market". Also, there will be a new controller unveiled. Rumor is that it'll have a touch screen. Hmm, we'll see about that last one.

Also, the console is said to support 1080p and backwards compatibility with Wii games. IGN says Nintendo will announce something this month, and will unveil it at E3.

Lots of rumored information. We'll see if Nintendo will indeed make an announcement about this console later this month. I would bet on an unveiling at E3, though. Different sources have said that will happen.

[SilverSyko]

Wow, I wasn't expecting a Wii successor for another couple of years or so.

I dunno how I feel about a touch screen controller, I know Nintendo likes to make games feel like "experiences" more than "entertainment" though so I trust they know what they're doing.

I'm glad they're going to try and get hardcore gamers back into their camp, they can start by rejecting all these horrid promotional shovelware games.~

I guess we'll see if it's true or not eventually, but I'm still intrigued.~

[Urzu 7]

I hope they offer more traditional controls out of the box, too. Whether that would be traditional controls on this new controller, or the new controller and a traditional controller bundled with the system, I hope they offer this. It is the only way they will get better 3rd party support, as it'll make it so much easier for companies to port PS3 and XBox 360 games to this new Nintendo machine.

[Sides]

Originally Posted by Urzu 7

I hope they offer more traditional controls out of the box, too. Whether that would be traditional controls on this new controller, or the new controller and a traditional controller bundled with the system, I hope they offer this. It is the only way they will get better 3rd party support, as it'll make it so much easier for companies to port PS3 and XBox 360 games to this new Nintendo machine.

I reckon it will be bluetooth based anyway, so you can use your wii controllers. But a classic controller pro, with rumble support, i would welcome with open arms.
The only way Nintendo get more 3rd party support from western devs is to use technology familiar to them. Most developer are still struggling with the TEV, so ditching that and going with more common shading architecture will already see devs queuing up, to off load their port onto nintendo's next console.

[Westlo]

Originally Posted by SilverSyko

Wow, I wasn't expecting a Wii successor for another couple of years or so.

The Wii is dying in Japan and currently in 5th place for the year....

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------            
|System | This Week | Last Week | Last Year |        YTD |   Last YTD |         LTD |            
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------            
|  PSP  |    35.834 |    58.075 |    31.592 |    678.494 |    749.397 |  17.328.706 |      
|  3DS  |    32.910 |    42.979 |         0 |    868.843 |          0 |     868.843 |      
|  PS3  |    22.431 |    27.453 |    28.973 |    405.055 |    492.065 |   6.492.545 |      
|  NDS  |    16.935 |    19.901 |    36.459 |    347.878 |    723.839 |  32.498.577 |      
|  WII  |     8.825 |    10.249 |    25.345 |    227.992 |    552.713 |  11.507.627 |

software sales from a poster on neogaf...

Total software in 2011 (Famitsu from my database):

1. PSP - 3.6m
2. WII - 1.8m
3. PS3 - 1.6m
4. NDS - 1.5m
5. 3DS - 0.8m
6. 360 - 0.2m
7. PS2 - 0.0m (40K)

The 360 has outsold in in America for 2011...

I think Nintendo are going to have a lot of troubles backing up the success of the Wii... A couple in their 30s who picked up a Wii because Wii Sports was fun could care less about a new Nintendo console. Also this certainly won't be a PSX > PS2 situation due to the nature of the fanbase they picked up in addition to the core Nintendo market. And yes the Wii is winning this gen comfortably but it's nothing compared to the previous two winners... as you can see below....

Wii = 86 million
360 = 53 million
PS3 = 50 million

PS2 = 142 million
XBOX = 24 million
Gamecube = 21 million
Dreamcast = 8 million

PSX = 102 million
N64 = 33 million
Saturn = 8 million (Saturn outsold the N64 in Japan lol)

It makes sense to choose the PS360 over the Wii for a lot of companies since their combined powers are stronger and their userbase is more hardcore.... the Wii winning this gen is nothing like when the ps2 and psx totally dominated everything.

[Sides]

Originally Posted by Westlo

I think Nintendo are going to have a lot of troubles backing up the success of the Wii... A couple in their 30s who picked up a Wii because Wii Sports was fun could care less about a new Nintendo console. Also this certainly won't be a PSX > PS2 situation due to the nature of the fanbase they picked up in addition to the core Nintendo market. And yes the Wii is winning this gen comfortably but it's nothing compared to the previous two winners... as you can see below....

Don't know dude, they sold 86milion units, in approx 5 years, and all of them made them profit, that is a success believe it or not.
This gen was a mix bag, mainly because of the introduction of HDtv and the confusion of HD standards, i.e. HDready, FullHD, transmission standard aso.
People keep saying that keeping the Wii as at a SD resolution was a gamble, but if you think about it, PS360 games still looks crap compared PC version at 1080p. The coming gen won't see a big step, 1080p@60fps will be standard, both can be achieve by modifying both 360 and PS3 easily, it would saves R&D and manufacturing costs and help developers save money. However i reckon Sony will ditch home console and go for a portable hybrid market, just slap on a hdmi onto the NGP and problem solved, for at least a whole generation.

[RRW]

interesting. we probably see prototype this e3 and sell it 2012

[Westlo]

Originally Posted by Sides

Don't know dude, they sold 86milion units, in approx 5 years, and all of them made them profit, that is a success believe it or not.

Really man wtf is this crap? When did I say it wasn't? FFS you quoted part of my post saying Nintendo will have trouble backing up on the success of the Wii and you pull this?

I give up.

[Sides]

Originally Posted by Westlo

Really man wtf is this crap? When did I say it wasn't? FFS you quoted part of my post saying Nintendo will have trouble backing up on the success of the Wii and you pull this?

I give up.

Sorry dude, got you completely wrong. I thought you were talking about them having to justify the wii performance to their shareholders, numbers against ps2, psx and snes generation. Don't ask why...

[serenade_beta]

Originally Posted by Westlo

The Wii is dying in Japan and currently in 5th place for the year....

Well, think about it this way:
Everyone who wanted to buy the Wii already did, so there is little room for growth.
For instance, let's say everyone in a city bought the DS in one year. This means no one (generally) in that city will buy the DS the next year, so the sales for the year would go down. However, would you say that the DS is dying?
Maybe you could, but just saying that the situation as a whole is not bad.

[Benoit]

Nintendo wanting to recapture the hardcore gamers? Yeah, right. Not after the success they've gotten going casual.

These rumors sound more like some fanboy's wishes.

A more powerful console is the last thing that this ill industry needs.

[RRW]

Originally Posted by serenade_beta

Well, think about it this way:
Everyone who wanted to buy the Wii already did, so there is little room for growth.
For instance, let's say everyone in a city bought the DS in one year. This means no one (generally) in that city will buy the DS the next year, so the sales for the year would go down. However, would you say that the DS is dying?
Maybe you could, but just saying that the situation as a whole is not bad.

there is many interpretation of dying however wii have decrease number of sales both from hardware AND software

however the main possible reason why nintendo need new wii is because the stock is keeping down for couple of year

[Urzu 7]

Originally Posted by Benoit

Nintendo wanting to recapture the hardcore gamers? Yeah, right. Not after the success they've gotten going casual.

These rumors sound more like some fanboy's wishes.

A more powerful console is the last thing that this ill industry needs.

They shouldn't sound like fanboy wishes. They want to recapture hardcore gamers? Another way to phrase it is they will cater more to hardcore gamers than they did with the Wii. The console will be more powerful than the PS3? That isn't far fetched. The PS3 released in 2006, after all.

And why would you say "A more powerful console is the last thing that this ill industry needs". Would you expect Nintendo to not make a more powerful successor to the Wii, which is basically as powerful as a GameCube? And since they are making a more powerful successor, it only makes sense to make it more powerful than the competition, being that it is not too expensive to make a console more powerful than the X360 and PS3 in 2011. Plus, Nintendo will probably bring something new to the table, like how they did with the DS, Wii, and 3DS. Wouldn't that be something that "this ill industry needs"?

Also, I'd like to add, it would seem that Nintendo is being more aggressive with this system, in terms of marketing products (the console and controllers) with pretty good tech and smaller profit margins than the Wii (which has always had a large profit margin). If Nintendo is going to be more aggressive in this regard, it wouldn't be too surprising. They have made A LOT of money with the DS systems and the Wii.

[serenade_beta]

Originally Posted by RRW

there is many interpretation of dying however wii have decrease number of sales both from hardware AND software

however the main possible reason why nintendo need new wii is because the stock is keeping down for couple of year

Though software-wise, it is rather erratic. If good games come out one year, then the sales soar. On the other hand, if there is a lack of good games, then the sales will go down.
If Nintendo released something like Pokemon or another Mario for the Wii for instance, no doubt there will be a good boost in sales. Speaking of Pokemon, there have been rumors that Genius Sen. is making another game...

Definitely going down, but when you get to the top, you can only go down. Rather, if Nintendo's stock went up any more, the pie chart of the stock of game companies would turn into a pac-man again.

Originally Posted by Urzu 7

They shouldn't sound like fanboy wishes. They want to recapture hardcore gamers? Another way to phrase it is they will cater more to hardcore gamers than they did with the Wii. The console will be more powerful than the PS3? That isn't far fetched. The PS3 released in 2006, after all.

And why would you say "A more powerful console is the last thing that this ill industry needs". Would you expect Nintendo to not make a more powerful successor to the Wii, which is basically as powerful as a GameCube? And since they are making a more powerful successor, it only makes sense to make it more powerful than the competition, being that it is not too expensive to make a console more powerful than the X360 and PS3 in 2011. Plus, Nintendo will probably bring something new to the table, like how they did with the DS, Wii, and 3DS. Wouldn't that be something that "this ill industry needs"?

Also, I'd like to add, it would seem that Nintendo is being more aggressive with this system, in terms of marketing products (the console and controllers) with pretty good tech and smaller profit margins than the Wii (which has always had a large profit margin). If Nintendo is going to be more aggressive in this regard, it wouldn't be too surprising. They have made A LOT of money with the DS systems and the Wii.

Well, I trust Nintendo will make the right decision, whatever it will be.
My puny mind cannot fathom their greatness.
No problem with more powerful systems, but I just hope it doesn't come with a cost (like the PS3 or FF14).

[Reckoner]

Until this latest generation I was always a fanboy of the nintendo consoles, but when I bought the Wii, I didn't know that the type of video game player I was was being left behind in their marketing and had to make a full transition to the PS3.

I'm too skeptical to go dip in for another Nintendo system just yet, despite what they are saying.

Well, I'll always have my PC games...

[Solace]

Overall I haven't been too impressed by this generation. There's been some games I wanted to play, but I'm not spending hundreds of dollars just to play a handful of games.

I'd love to see a "serious" Nintendo console, but that hasn't existed since the SNES imo. N64 did have some gems, but outside of a few games, mainly first party, I spent more time with my PS1/Saturn. Ditto for the Gamecube vs Ps2. Never liked Xbox (or the 360).

I'm sure Nintendo will make money with the next console, but it's been a long time since I've felt the "magic". Motion controls and other gimmicks are neat, but I think the new console shouldn't reinvent the wheel again. Imo, the market doesn't need a "better" Wii, it needs another Super Nintendo, metaphorically speaking.

[Kurosu]

Originally Posted by Solace

I'm sure Nintendo will make money with the next console, but it's been a long time since I've felt the "magic". Motion controls and other gimmicks are neat, but I think the new console shouldn't reinvent the wheel again. Imo, the market doesn't need a "better" Wii, it needs another Super Nintendo, metaphorically speaking.

On the contrary, if they aren't lying about the vague specs that their new console will be sporting, I feel they might lose money on the next console. It might be a trade-off since they made a lot of money with the Wii and DS and will make money on the 3DS.

[Solace]

Nintendo's pretty savvy when it comes to making money. If I remember correctly they've never sold a console at a loss, which is a stark contrast to their competitors. Plus the system specs aren't that outlandish if you think about it. Something a little more powerful than a PS3? Not only do PS3/360 games still look good, but the technology to surpass them is rather cheap compared to five-six years ago.

On the other hand, the controller will probably eat into those cost savings, since it sounds like it'll be crammed with technology. Not that I mind, I just hope they go for something a little more traditional. None of the current gen controllers are overly cheap anyway.

That said, Nintendo almost needs to refocus on better graphics/audio for their next console. The Wii has aged too much, and the PS3/360 still have a few years of life left. Combined with slowing sales, it's easy to see that the marketing and the Wiimote just aren't a big enough draw anymore, and the library is saturated with "casual" games. The lack of good third party support is once again creating a drought like it did with the N64 and Gamecube, which isn't good for their "ocean" philosophy of expanding the market. Hardcores are turned off by Nintendo these days and the casual market is tapped out. Plus, Sony and MS have both made great strides in catching up to Nintendo's casual gaming niche and both offer superior online services.

In any case, I'm sure whatever they do, it'll print money.

[HayashiTakara]

Lets put it this way, the Wii wasn't built with planned obsolescence the way Sony consoles did and resulted in a massive civil lawsuit over it because people had to constantly rebuy faulty products

Anyways, am anticipating E3 even more than ever now!