Coffee Talk #412: Predict Nintendo’s Future with 3DS and Wii U

Today I’d like you guys and gals to put on your analyst caps and predict Nintendo’s future. In the past, people have questioned Nintendo’s DS and Wii consoles, which went on to become two of the best-selling systems in videogame…

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, Kurt Angle’s fiber solution, Apple and Samsung being best frenemies, or why people were scared of mummies back in the day, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

Today I’d like you guys and gals to put on your analyst caps and predict Nintendo’s future. In the past, people have questioned Nintendo’s DS and Wii consoles, which went on to become two of the best-selling systems in videogame history. A lot of analysts and journalists have doubts about the 3DS and Wii U systems, but will they proven wrong by Ninntendo once again? Or will the “experts” be right this time?

As for me, I don’t see how Nintendo can go anywhere but down. This really has nothing to do with the 3DS and Wii U, but rather the remarkable sales of the DS and Wii. Those systems sold like crazy and I’m not sure when the business will see something like that again. The 3DS will surely sell well, but it faces stiff competition from smartphones and tablets. The Wii U’s tablet-as-a-controller strategy is odd, but it could work. There are lots of idiots out there that are saying “Nintendo is teh doomed!!!” but the company will always sell millions of Mario, Metroid, Pokemon, and Zelda games. I guess what I’m saying is that Nintendo won’t be able to duplicate the ridiculous success it enjoyed this generation, but it will be fine during the next.

How about you? How do you think things will play out for Nintendo? Will the 3DS recover from its rough start? Will mainstream consumers flock to the Wii U and its tablet controller? Will Nintendo rock next generation? Or is it “teh doomed”? Channel your inner Jesse Divnich and analyze Nintendo’s future (please)!

Author: RPadTV

https://rpad.tv

34 thoughts on “Coffee Talk #412: Predict Nintendo’s Future with 3DS and Wii U”

  2. I don't think theyre the doomed but they should keep an eye on message boards and an ear to the street to see what gamers really want from them. I love Nintendo and I will always get one because of their first party titles but I'd really like to play third party titles and actually enjoy doing it too. If they don't react quick enough or have something better up their sleeve they will start losing the handheld market even more to smartphones and the console one once the next gen ones come out.

      2. Agreed. Among the things people say on the street is that Nintendo rushed the release and that it came poorly due to this factor. Although Nintendo doesn't want people to think this (surely), making additions like this post-release really hurts their image.

  4. i think you got it right Ray, Nintendo's hardware will always sell very well, but for them to expect to duplicate the sales of their current gen systems would be foolish

    You wouldn't like Reggie when he is angry

    #eyelasers

  5. Mummies were what zombies are today. The both walk slow, have torn or tattered clothing, moan like black snakes, and they aren't the smartest kids on the block.

    1. nah mummies are completely different. Mummies were an escape to the past and mystical. They open a door to "the other" because mummies are from a far away foreign land and always shrouded in mystery. Zombies, on the other hand, are more of a social commentary on American culture and society (Romero's zombies at least). Past that, zombies offer a chance for every single person to put themselves to the ultimate test of survival against all odds. Mummies don't pose the same type of survival challenges that traditional zombies do, that could change depending on which zombie style you are comparing, but I think the difference between any zombie and mummies are too different to be called similar at all.

  6. Nintendo will be fine, as Ray said, they will always sell crazy amounts of games but nothing like the Wii.

  7. I think Nintendo will lose a tremendous amount of 3rd party support with Wii U for multiplat titles. Multi platform is where the cash is and already a game is either ported to MS or Sony now with the Wii U having capable architecture a whole new way of controlling for the end user has to be devised, created, tested and sold.

    I think the 3DS will do better in the long run compared to Wii U. Lower price, and the games for it will be dedicated.

    Long term for Nintendo I can see them becoming the console company that puts out good hardware (Like Apple) with really awesome first party software (Like Apple) who relies on 3rd party indie devs to put out titles that are priced lower than market (Like Apple) to stay relevant. Don't get me wrong, I love Nintendo but 90% of the reason I buy their hardware is solely to play their first party software. I think Deadly Creatures was the only non Nintendo made game I bought for my Wii.

    1. 1. WOW! I couldn't agree more. Very well put too.

      2. Do you think Big N will eventually take a route like OnLive or those dedicated Sonic console thingies that you just plug into the TV and play? You know, the ones they got at like Toys R Us but not Gamestop that are in that aisle we never go down?

      3. How far away do you think Apple is from entering the console war? Do you think they'd do like a iPad to AppleTV kinda thing first? Or, do you think they'll just pop out with Pippin II? Or, not at all?

  8. My only concern with the Wii U is the comfort and design of the controller. It looks to bulky and uncomfortable with poor button placement. It has enough design similarities to current controllers that ports shouldn't be a huge issue.

  9. Nintendo's financial position is also way different than Sega's was back in the day. Nintendo has always had cash in the bank, even during the N64 and GCN days. Sega was bleeding money during the Dreamcast generation.

  10. Okay… but I'm saying that technology is reaching a point where they don't need the space that they did.

    I don't see why Nintendo couldn't get away with selling an old school 64 controller that plugs directly to the TV that plays Mario 64 for like $20 and things like that. If they implement cloud storage and purchases via the Wii Store… sky could be the limit. The whole console could possibly be in the sensor bar.

    Airplay mirroring is one thing, but I mean games dedicated to using your iPad or iPhone strictly as the controller and the game is designed to be more like that of a console.

    I may be thinking too far out of the box over here.

    1. Nintendo doesn't seem to interested in content that isn't local though.Airplay mirroring is just that. The iPod or iPad is the controller. Heavy lifting is done on the hardware and then beamed over to the AppleTV. You are on the right track.

      1. Oh… I thought the airplay mirroring just "mirrored" what was on the phone. They should have picked a better word like transfer or streaming. That's just my opinion though.

        Nintendo doesn't seem to interested in content that isn't local though… as of what we've seen. If the iCloud really pops (which it almost seems forced to), it's gonna be much harder for Big N to poo-poo the concept. Ultimately, it seems like a huge money saver on the publishing side to me.

      1. I first heard of Cibo Matto back in like '97 I believe. One of the weirdest guys I've ever met was wearing a Cibo Matto shirt and I made the mistake of asking him who they were.

        All of their songs are about food.

  14. In my (not-so)-professional opinion, Nintendo's systems will sell just fine… when the average consumer finally figures out just what the heck they do. Nobody really knows exactly what the Wii U will do, nor what it's capable of. The 3DS is still "discovering" itself at the moment; that is, trying to figure out what its niche is. Is it a child-friendly casual gaming device, or is it a more core-gamer double-analog enhanced-graphics device? Will 1st party or 3rd party games dominate the device? I don't even think Nintendo's completely decided on just what the 3DS IS yet. Once they start cranking out the Mario games, though, they'll be rolling in Christmas dough.

  15. As an old-school Nintendo fan, I think they really need to step up their game. They need to get serious about HD and a better way to connect with friends (and dare I say, strangers) when playing games online for their next console. Most importantly, they need to give third parties a reason to develop quality titles on the console. You can give me that argument of "oh, well, Nintendo doesn't compete with Sony and Xbox" and I will tell you that's a bunch of baloney, but for the sake of argument, let's say it's true. Fine, then let's talk about the 800 lb. gorilla in the room known as the smartphone. If Nintendo wants to go the casual, portable way, they'll have to attach a phone (or Skype) functionality to their next hand-held. If not, they will be forever doomed to be a niche product.

    -M

    1. I just read an article about Dolphins management consulting with Eric Mangini. I think you need to get some of your fellow DolphAns and mess up their yards like Leodis Mckelvin had done to his. If they seriously hire that guy for anything besides selling beer then the franchise is done. Gratz, you are the new Clippers.

      1. … did you know that you can get a bulk discount for buying torches and pitchforks from Amazon? I'm thinking more along the lines of this:

        [youtube FQa9zWK5XJA http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQa9zWK5XJA youtube]

        Can't you call us the new Lions, instead? It gives me hope for the future. I mean, have you SEEN the Clippers? Now if you'll excuse me, I need to see when the Heat start playing again. Football is dead to me this season… like many others before it.

        -M

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