Topic: Do you think the Wii U was rushed to market?

Just looking retrospectively, it launched without a strong 1st party lineup, it required a large day 1 update for several features, and the OS has had serious problems lacking things present in previous Nintendo consoles. It also launched a year before the competition, and Nintendo had suggested recently before the system's announcement that they were sticking with the Wii for a while. It just seems to me that something forced Nintendo's hand to launch the system a year early? Why do you think that was?

Not really, I feel the Wii U always had its release date but the software ended up facing more delays than Nintendo though on multiple projects.

In hindsight they might have waited back to launch with the other two consoles.

I think Software was rushed to the Wii U launch so there was nothing while other games went through delays. I also think Nintendo was giving Ubisoft a open period for Rayman to run un-contested almost and then Ubisoft pushed the game back. I don't think their was a deal or anything Nintendo just heard Rayman Legends exclusive to Wii U is coming in Spring, so they left Spring kinda open, then Rayman was pushed back and we were left with a little. Wii U had too much software at launch and not enough the rest of the year. Hardware rushed? No. Software rushed? Yes.

I don't think it was rushed. I do think if it had launched alongside the PS4 and Xbox One it would have sold much less than it has now though, but nothing about the console really feels rushed to me. Yeah the OS is kind of lacking but I think Nintendo are updating it as they learn, not because they rushed it out.

If they had launched it with the PS4 / Xbone it would have had the best launch lineup.

It really only started to die off when the Wii U was announced. Nintendo stopped making Wii games pretty much.

If it was rushed to the market it would of come out in 2010/2011 when the Wii lost most of its momentum.

The system wasn't rushed and unfortunately neither were the games.

Nope, got a quality console with quality games.

The hardware was solid. Software? Not so much. I think the reason why Nintendo launched the Wii U regardless of the rushed software is to gain momentum before the other 2 consoles enter the ring. If the Wii U's software was solid from day 1 and game line ups was solid, it would probably be doing much better. That is why people kept saying Nintendo dropped the Wii U ball HARD. The extra year was suppose to give the Wii U a fair amount of advantage, but instead.....you know the rest.

I don't think it was rushed, but that they released it ASAP. Their hardware was complete, so they just threw it out there with a handful of software. Microsoft and Sony didn't have their final console design until like months before they released. This whole generation seems like it was just slapped together, honestly.

Really? To me it seems like Sony took their time with the PS4 and fixed with it the complaints that people had with the PS3. If anything, I think Microsoft rushed a bit with the Xbox One in response to Sony unveiling the PS4.

They release everything ASAP these days that is why their level design is not as good as it used to be.

We don't really have any official reasons why, though. There's alot of products out there, so they must have some sort of figured deadline that says they need to be out there during so and so.

Wii U got announced earlier, for example, so that probably effected MS abd Sony's deadline.

With Ps3's stronger late game support, I wouldn't be too surprised if they kept it open for a 2014 release for Ps4 at some point and Xbox likely coming out in 2013 made them release it earlier. That's my guess.

I blame level design in the fact that sadly level design is often not as focused on nowadays. No one likes Skyrim because of its intricate and complex dungeons, let's just say.

With Ps3's stronger late game support, I wouldn't be too surprised if they kept it open for a 2014 release for Ps4 at some point and Xbox likely coming out in 2013 made them release it earlier. That's my guess.

I blame level design in the fact that sadly level design is often not as focused on nowadays. No one likes Skyrim because of its intricate and complex dungeons, let's just say.

Of course it was. Reggie in 2011 said he thought there were several more years of the wii. 2012 comes and the wii u is suddenly on the marketplace.

Suddenly?

I would say yes, the Wii U was rushed. Considering the OS barely worked upon launch, seriously it took an insane amount of time for pretty much anything to load up. Nintendoland, the "essential" Wii U launch title seemed a bit half-baked, as in half of the games were fully satisfying experiences and the other half seemed like they maybe made then in a few days (come on that octopus dancing game?) It took way longer than expected for Nintendo's own internal teams to figure out how to make games on the thing. And I think the most striking reason is the lack of understanding in just what is the point of the gamepad. If the company had trully spent a lot of time and R & D on the system, we wouldn't be playing first party games that basically ignore the gamepad all together. The first year of the Wii U has felt very thrown together, as in we're witnessing Nintendo figuring out what to do with their new console after it was already out in the wild.

I do not think it was rushed to market, what I do think is that they did not handle the release well (maybe those are the same thing?).

They did not have effective advertising in the time leading up to the release, and immediately after release. As a result, the console was released into immediate obscurity.