Topic: Don't Bet Against Nintendo, GameStop Says

@WaLzgi Easy. Make Nintendo Land 2 with online and a massive lobby hub. Voila.

@Punished_Boss

Eh? Totally disagree. I don't understand why people treat the video games business as if it's different from every other business with it's own set of rules, solely because people are passionate about one product vs the other (talking fanboys).

Coca Cola is WAY larger than Pepsi. But Pepsi is also very successful. Why? Because they profit quite a bit, support thousands of jobs, have a strong, recognizable brand, people who believe in their products, etc.

Nintendo is Pepsi in this scenario, in that they were last place of the 2 or 3 console companies each generation, but still very successful. Funny enough, they're king of actually the Coca Cola in the scenario, in a way, when you focus in that they're actually worth more than Sony. Obviously not when you factor in MS' size, but the point is the same.

A company worth billions, with some of the strongest branding and intellectual properties in the world, is not a non factor because another company sold more than them. There is so, so much more to it than that.

Well said. I also think of Burger King or Wendys. McDonalds absolutely DOMINATES the fast food market, the others aren't even close in terms of market share. Yet they still do well and thrive in the market, because they offer an alternative that people enjoy.

@Punished_Boss
I disagree. I think Nintendo still has a huge console following. The situation is that gamers are choosing Xbox and PS for whatever reasons they have, not that Nintendo is irrelevant. Wii U isn't a handheld console, regardless of ANY opinion otherwise.

I'd sat the Wii U's image is a mix between N64, Wii, and DS. The point is that Nintendo is still in the console business, and undermining that means you have a closed mind on the subject. Like say if Wii U appeals more to me than any other console, it would be ignorant to say PS4 is any less of a console. So when people say PS4 is their "God" console and Wii U is "dead", that opinion is technically void, because they are being ignorant to its appeal. The same thing goes with PC "master race" people. Go play you s*** at max settings and STFU while I go play Wii U or Xbox One

Well, for what it's worth, I think Nintendo is Coca-Cola Company in terms of taste, Microsoft is 7-Up with Sun Drop and Dr. Pepper, and Playstation is Pepsi with Mug Root Beer and Mountain Dew, but that's just from my perspective. That's the thing; Nintendo is my Coke, and Playstation is some else's Coke. That's just how it goes. If someone likes Pepsi and Playstation, then Nintendo is still my Coke, figuratively speaking.

Umm...doesn't the fact that gamers are choosing PS4 or Xbone over the Wii U prove that it is irrelevant to the majority of gamers?

If said gamers are still getting Wii Us, then it is relevant

Only "core" fans have bought any of these consoles, for the most part, so not really. Do I think alot of PS fans have bought the PS4? Yes, but PS gamers are not the only gamers, whether you think so or not.

Wii U even has more software sales than either, and still has a bigger install base than Xbox One. The software attach ratio of Wii U is factual proof that people are playing more games on Wii U, despite lower console sales.

A head Sony guy is actually AFRAID that all they are only selling to is the "core" gamer.
http://venturebeat.com/2014/08/20/even-sony-doesnt-know-why-p...
They have no clue why people are buying PS4 this much.
Xbox One has just as many 3rd party games and has had just as much advertising.

Ok...fair enough, but still even if Wii U has a strong software attach ratio, 3rd party games aren't selling well enough to warrant support and in this day and age supporting a console on 1st party software alone is not going to cut it. Even for Nintendo...

It ultimately doesn't matter. If their games aren't selling on Wii U, they need to make something that does. Common sense, right? If CoD doesn't sell, the only other reasonable option is making something that does. They can't blame people for not buying their games. That logic is backwards.

Besides, Nintendo is coming off of the success from Wii, which gives them far greater leeway than they had during 6th gen. I'm sure they'll figure something out.

I think even if Nintendo has lost 3rd parties, that the last few months bring the "we need lots of 3rd parties on board" idea into question. Though admittedly, Smash and the new Zeldas are realistically the only things Nintendo has that have any significant chance of getting similar sales in the long term (unless Mario Kart 8 magically stops selling soon, which I would put under neverhappening.mov)...

But while Nintendo is still being a mix of respectable and unnecessarily stubborn with its refusal to compete for 3rd parties, considering how half of the relevant (if not necessarily best selling) games from this year so far are downloadable only (Broken Age, Child of Light, Shovel Knight, everything Telltale released, Transistor, etc) and no one would buy much of the AAA stuff on Nintendo anyway, it makes you question "what's the point?" If anything I think Nintendo should just make a new (small-ish?) section of their company just for porting other people's games. Like the few mid-tier stuff left and higher profile indies. I mean, that might as well be what Sony has been doing, so it would make sense to me.

But, I doubt 3rd parties really want to take the risk of creating specific content for a group of gamers who haven't been supportive of them in the past and might not support them now even if they try and make content specifically for them.

At the same time, the industry as a whole isn't in the condition to blame the Nintendo crowd. Companies are constantly making mistakes even outside of Nintendo's systems

There is also the point of people who have more than one console, so selling a PS4 to someone does not automatically mean they will not get one of the other two, or even both. I wonder how many of the 10 million PS4 owners also have or plan to own a Wii U or One.

I love this thread... at least the beginning with the confusion.

That specific content doesn't necessarily have to be exclusive, either, though. Ubisoft said they have that game that's just sitting around. Can you guess why they are doing that? The answer is that Ubisoft is going to wait until all of Nintendo's big games are out so they can capitalize on the Wii U owners that bought Mario Kart, Smash Bros, etc. Them doing that is pretty self-explanatory. If it's a game Wii U owners actually will buy, they are milking Nintendo's Wii U sales for themselves and letting it accumulate.

Or for example, if Activision publishes a Crash Bandicoot game that appeals to the "Mario Crowd", they can have that game targeted at Wii U owners, but ultimately have it available on all consoles, similarly to how Rayman Legends turned out.

Thats a whole other discussion and point entirely, my point was never that Nintendo wasn't successful in general, they just aren't very successful in the console market (20/30 million sold when you're competitors will likely triple that amount is just not enough). Sure if you look at it from the global picture (including software, handheld, console and other avenues) then yes Nintendo is very successful but that wasn't what I was doing. Nintendo has a console market and handheld market, they're separate. Every handheld Ninty has produced is a breakaway success (if not at first, eventually), however since the 1996/7 the same can't be said for their consoles. There will also be time that the handheld market decreases (that time is now). They can't be complacent regarding their console market but I fear that's exactly what they're doing.

Sigh. The Wii U has sold close to 7 million in two years, the Xbox One has sold 5 million in less than a year. Looking at it like that do you really think The Wii U has an advantage? Both consoles (PS4 One) will eclipse them in software and hardware sales in years to come. That software attachment proves people are buying more games, not playing them. Do you really expect me to believe that 10 million owners consist solely of PS fans who would buy PS4s in less than a year, and not at launch? That's nonsense.

@Punished_Boss

Xbox One has only sold 5 million? Wow. It's a way better console than that (and the Wii U is, too, obviously.)

But I think what some other people are getting at is that those PS4/One sales may start to slow down while Wii U's has been picking up, which is a pretty darn nice scenario for Nintendo.

It's not how you start, it's how you finish, and none of us have seen the "finish" of this generation yet, so everyone, including you, will just have to admit that this is all speculation.

I'll only admit it when i see it. The only thing that is speculation thus far is the scenario for Nintendo. What's happening now are facts not speculation.