Earlier this year Nintendo reported losses for Q1, as its poor run of financial results continued. Despite those troubles the company stuck to its projections that it'd return to profit this year while hitting more modest sales goals, and today's Q2 results bring good news in key areas; the company's still sticking to its projections, is back in profit and the Wii U is showing signs of life in the West.
Let's start with the key numbers: between 1st April and 30th September Nintendo's Operating income — the core business of making and selling things — brought a loss of 215 million Yen, which is roughly $2 million / €1.56 million / £1.23 million; that's a substantial improvement over Q1 this year and the equivalent six months in the last financial year. Nintendo did actually make a net profit — so it made money when all is said and done — of 14,300 million Yen, around $132.3 million / €103.8 million / £82 million. The financial report says the following in relation to these figures.
During the six months ended September 30, 2014, for “Nintendo 3DS,” “Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS,” released in Japan in September, showed extremely strong initial sales, and marked 3.22 million units in sales globally, partly because shipments for the October release in the overseas markets began in September. “Tomodachi Life,” released in June in the overseas markets, continued to show steady sales, and marked 1.27 million units in sales worldwide during this fiscal year (3.12 million units on a cumulative basis). As a result, the global sales of the “Nintendo 3DS” hardware and software were 2.09 million and 23.3 million units respectively.
With respect to “Wii U,” Nintendo released “Mario Kart 8” globally in May, which has continued to show steady sales, as well as “Hyrule Warriors,” released in September in the overseas markets, which has gained popularity. The worldwide sales of the “Wii U” hardware and software were 1.12 million units and 9.4 million units respectively
As the above states, there have been solid sales on key titles. Though "exchange rate gains" largely account for the net profit, it's been an impressive reduction in operating losses as the company moves towards the ultimate goal of returning them back to black by the end of the year. Results for New Nintendo 3DS sales don't feature here due to its October launch in Japan, either, though they've been described as "off to a good start".
Below are the overall hardware and software figures, meanwhile, covering 1st April to 30th September.
Wii U
Hardware Sales (Q1 + Q2) — 1.12 million units (up from 460,000 units in equivalent period last year)
Hardware Sales (life to date) — 7.29 million units
Hardware Sales Projection (2014 to 2015) — 3.6 million units
Software Sales (Q1 + Q2) — 9.4 million units (An increase of 3.1 million units over equivalent period last year)
Software Sales Projection (2014 to 2015) — 20 million units
3DS
Hardware Sales (Q1 + Q2) — 2.09 million units (down from 3.89 million in equivalent period last year)
Hardware Sales (life to date) — 45.42 million units
Hardware Sales Projection (2014 to 2015) — 12 million units
Software Sales (Q1 + Q2) — 23.3 million units
Software Sales Projection (2014 to 2015) — 67 million units
Wii
Hardware Sales (Q1 + Q2) — 170,000 units
Hardware Sales (life to date) — 101.23 million units
Hardware Sales Projection (2014 to 2015) — 500,000 units
Software Sales (Q1 + Q2) — 1.6 million units
Software Sales Projection (2014 to 2015) — 6.18 million units
DS figures are no longer provided.
A major positive is the Wii U's drastically improved momentum in comparison to last year, undoubtedly helped by games like Mario Kart 8 and Hyrule Warriors — Wii U software sales are actually up by over three million units in comparison to Q1 + Q2 last year. While Wii U hardware sales are unfortunately down on the same period last year in Japan, they're well up in North America and Europe; it's a dramatic European improvement, as the equivalent period in the region last year had a negative number due to sales being so low and stock being returned by retailers.
As for the 3DS, much will rest on Pokémon Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire to hit its target of 12 million system sales this year, as it's had a slow six months that represented a decline over last year. The New Nintendo 3DS will also be vital, and we'd speculate that the company will do its utmost to get the New system in Western stores (Europe and North America) before the end of March next year, in order for those sales to be included in this year's financials.
There are certainly positives, overall, with the company's finances having an improved six months and Wii U momentum going in the right direction ahead of the Holiday arrival of Super Smash Bros. for Wii U and the amiibo range.
Let us know what you think in the comments below.
Image credit: leavelucktogames.com
[source nintendo.co.jp]
Comments 142
New 3DS int he West will be announced after Xmas I expect. . Bah! Want it now!
I'm expecting Smash Bros. to boost the sales of both Wii U hardware and software.
Smash Bros. and Pokemon will help them to earn more. I'm sure of that.
This is nice to see. I've been doing my bit I suspect we will see a big boost when smash wiiu and amiibo come out.
Nintendo + Profit = Gamers Wins
Wii U should easily hit the 3.6 million as all hardware gets a major, major boost in November and December. As always it's bittersweet, as though its a big improvement last year, it's still quite poor, still having sold less than the Gamecube and Dreamcast at this stage of the lifespan. I really don't think the 3DS will come close to 12 million though. The new 3DS will launch well due to upgraders, but I don't know how many brand new 3DS owners it will attract. They'll definitely want to launch it in the west before the end of the financial year though which is good for us.
Great to see Wii U sales improving but tbh it still needs to do a lot more than that...
Reading that title made me smile a bit. I'm happy for Nintendo, they still deserve more for what they're doing and for what Smash for Wii U will be. 2015 will be a great year for having a Wii U too. I'm looking at you Splatoon
At least they had a good ratio of software sales to hardware sales, even if the hardware sales weren't super amazing.
Why a sales forecast for 2014-2015 of 6million for the wii? Surly by then the wii will have no ninty titles available first hand.
Decent...
Yay!
@Lord That's software, and Just Dance 2015, Skylanders etc still sell well on Wii.
Glad to here things are getting greener across the board!
I think Nintendo's hardware predictions for the Wii are a tad ambitious though...
All I'm going to say is SCREW YOU NINTENDO "IS DOOMED" HATERS!
Back to profit is good. Sales maybe down, but there's still a lot to look forward to including Super Smash Bros, Mario Kart DLC and lots of games next year.
Huge improvement over last year and that's the important . Last year Wii U only had Super Mario 3D World as key title for the holidays and even if that game is a masterpiece, is not considered a system seller compared to other games such as Mario Kart or Smash... and just precisely this holidays Wii U will have those two games available!! Good times ahead for Nintendo. This is the first step.
Nintendo is one of the few companies (if not the only one) that i really want them to be succesful. I don´t understand why the Wii U can´t sell more. It´s really a great console with ( the most important factor) really great games.
Don´t ever die Ninti!
I´m helping by owning a Wii U and a 3ds
Well done Nintendo!
But they're still doomed
My money for Nintendo will go towards CAPTAIN TOAD, SONIC BOOM, YOSHI'S WOOLY WORLD, XENOBLADE CHRONICLES, ZELDA, NN3DS XL, hopefully PROJECT ZERO 4 if that ever comes outside Japan.
@ThomasBW84 I know that but why would Nintendo list third party in their sales forecast?
Woo good news
Good. Showing some improvement. It could still be doing better, but it's improving a little.
Impressive, finnaly some good news
I can see the WiiU achieving those 3.6 with a strong holiday support... Dont really know about the 3ds, 20m more seems quite a lot !
Amiibo... Do your thing
@Lord
Because licensing agreements mean that they earn a percentage of each sale.
Well they "take" my money all the time and I will continue to support with buying a New 3DS XL, Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire, Bayonetta 1+2, Super Smash Bros. for Wii U and probably a few Amiibo figurines. And then there is Zelda for Wii U. @donvito I would love to see Nintendo shine. Other than Apple, Nintendo is my second favourite company.
The 3DS is dropping fast, and no wonder, it is growing more outdated hardware-wise every minute. They can't get the new 3DS out in the wild fast enough, in my opinion.
Wii U is also thankfully getting that much needed boost, but after Smash releases I almost expect the hardware sales to divebomb. Everyone is "waiting for Smash" and as such by the end of the year the majority of interested consumers will have one. Now if marketing steps up they could help to spread awareness of the Wii U, but I don't count on it due to their inconsistent marketing thus far.
With software though, that's where Wii U will truly shine, in 2015, as every new user will be finished with Smash.
Great to see profits being made. The Wii U and 3ds Hardware prediction may be hard to meet, but software is doing well. However, I'm glad as long as they're in the black
@DarkAngel_17 Project Zero 5
Finally! But I expected Wii U to reach 20 million by now but I guess that's too much to expect.
@Artwark They will be lucky to hit 15 million by the end of the Wii U's life never mind 20 million!
Sure the sales figures of the WiiU aren't staggering, but it is headed in the right direction. It's all about momentum heading into the holidays. And Nintendo has that. Now, announce a Smash bundle already!
Good news indeed, now Nintendo could you just announce the "New" 3DS for the west??
And Amiibo hasn't even came out yet! This is fantastic news.
@OorWullie
Unfortunately I think you are right. Unless some stellar games get continually announced and released over the next two years, then the best we can hope for is that it matches the NGC lifetime sales.
If it doesn't reach NGCs sales then many will see it as an utter failure, even if it is a commercial success, which would be a shame as the Wii U is a fantastic console.
It's encouraging that they've finally struck some black ink for a change. The improvements are great and all, however it's going to be a nail-biter for the financial results next year. I think it's direly important they keep their word this time to their investors and come to a profit. It's a good thing exchange rates have been good to them over the past few years.
The Wii U should easily hit it's target, especially with Smash on the way, but I'm a little concerned about the 3DS, that's a pretty steep decline from last year. (for this year anyway, hats off to them for making this thing successful overall). There is a lot of pressure on Pokemon to push the hardware, plus we have no idea when NA and Europe will get the new 3DS. Unfortunately, the loss of the Holiday season for the new system is a shame.
Still though, good news is still good news, so let's enjoy that.
With the amazing 2015 schedule, they are gonna be looking fine.
@OorWullie I believe that the Wiiu will easily hit 20 million. It has been trending upwards and at over 7 million units sold in 2 years, it is not hard to imagine 20 in 6 years ( I'm assuming that the new console will be released 4 years from now ). Great new software titles, bundles, price cuts, holidays....I'm predicting 30 million, 10 by the end of this year. With every big game release, the hype grows. I think after Smash, Nintendo will push Splatoon HARD. We only have to look back at the last generation and the PS3 to see that a big turn around is obtainable. Nintendo dropped the ball on the release of the WiiU, no question. But it is a marathon, not a sprint.
@Hero-of-WiiU next years lineup is spectacular, assuming Zelda and X are released by then. In my opinion, they have enough titles to warrant a purchase already. The other system's owners are starting to take notice. I drives me bonkers to see how well the PS4 is selling. All from the bomb they dropped on the Xboxone at last years e3.
I bought my Wii U back around April, so I am proud to have contributed to the system's improved performance. Nintendo, you're very welcome.
@ThomasBW84 Hey Thomas, I thibk it would be fun if you guys ran an article asking people to give their best idea for Nintendo to boost sales. You guys pick your favorite ones, and create a poll for people to vote on their favorite. Top vote getter gets some eshop credit! I speak for myself but it seems sales figures and predictions are always a hot topic. Let's have some fun with it! Who is with me???
All Nintendo need to know is their IP's are good and will near always make good sales. So start cranking them out! 3rd party devs will come later when they see Nintendo making a big comeback.
Also, don't forget to support the great indies!
This is very good news and with Pokemon ORAS and SSB U coming soon Nintendo looking like its sales to increase further.
It's better than no sales I guess and they are back in the black which is most important, can't say that for Sony no matter how well the ps4 is selling, and I have one. Oh well, I'm happy with my WiiU and 3ds for the moment.
I think Zelda will be the last big game from them for the WiiU wheather it comes summer next year or winter or start of 2016 I'll be happy with what has and will be released.
2015 is shaping up to be a great year to own a WiiU anyway.
I just can't help and wonder what their next home system will be. Will they go down the twins route and make a super HD system with just a standard controller like the pro? or, will they make another gimmick? Will they keep the Wii name or come up with something completely different? what will it look like (i know that's not important, but I like system shapes and design's )? Will it connect to their next handheld? Will they drop the ds name? Will it be a hybrid of home and handheld? Or will they just skip the next gen and stick with handheld seeing as that seems to be the trend in Japan (and the west recently) for the past 4 or so years?
So many questions I wanna know the answers to lol.
Big holiday coming up for Wii U, 7m in 2 years is dreadful, even if it has momentum and will sell better this quarter thats still a horrible number. Didnt they originally predict 9-12m its first year?
So they better start advertising and marketing in a big way. Its a great console w/ the best exclusive games list on the planet this holiday at the cheapest price. But they need to scream this from the rooftops once Halloween is over and the holiday shopping sesson begins in earnest. They have only themselves to blame if Wik U doesnt sell well this holiday.
New 3DS should be announced for the west in Feb and go on sale in March to mark the 4 year anniversary with a new name, 3DSn fits the bill, we're used to DSi. If they release or announce it sooner they'll PO everybody who bought the old model this Christmas. People shouldnt be too upset if a new console comes out 4 years after the original. And they should announce and sell the amiibo portal at the same so it looks like they arent forcing people to upgrade, theyre giving them an option not to. (The n in 3DSn stands for NFC for me, but "new"works too.)
And this is with only two major releases (well, one major and one cashing in on the popularity of a Nintendo IP)… I see a bright future for the Wii U next year. There are already several such system movers announced, and that's without the usual surprises and E3 announcements. I never lost faith. I questioned Nintendo's marketing strategies (with good reason), but they've turned a corner with their efforts in that area as well. Here's hoping they capitalize on this small uptick in momentum and don't regress into 'We're Nintendo - we know best' mode again. When Nintendo is hungry and the underdog, they always do well. When they start to believe their own press, that's when things go badly for them.
Wow, those Wii U sales figures are awful. I actually thought it has sold more by now....yikes....
Pathetic.
3DS is losing momentum outside of Japan and Wii U is basically dead in Japan.
Sure, yeah, great numbers.
After comparing directly to some of the worst months for hardware sales Nintendo has ever experienced.
Wii U is still nothing if not on life support.
It's in critical condition and will NEVER be 'good'.
I can see it, it's obvious.
PS3 and 360 are still competition.
Specs wise, they're comparable.
And developers are phasing them out.
Without the Japanese developers' support (the last holdouts from the current gen systems), the old guard will at last fall by the wayside.
The Wii U will not get a renewed 3rd party with more hardware sales.
That ship was never an option.
No one will 'dumb down' their precious software for the Wii U and Nintendo's budget console will be relegated to niche machine.
It's not pessimism. It's being able to see and hear how things really are.
Nintendo's time in the sun has long passed.
So now, they need to release the games they're pushing to release and go back to the drawing board. Forget Japan as far as consoles are concerned and do it properly this time.
People are 'waiting for Smash'..?
Nintendo fans and a handful of gamers on the Internet are waiting for Smash.
People don't care.
Mainstream media doesn't care.
Sakurai thinks this will do a third of the 3DS' numbers? He's smoking something funky, if he thinks the Wii U version sells anywhere near a million units this year. It'll bomb in Japan where they don't care, bomb in Europe where Smash already fell short of expectations and bomb in the US where the Wii U is seen as a blackmark on Nintendo's reputation.
It's not the salvation for this dying console. It's nowhere near enough to satiate gamers, heading into a 'stacked' 2015, a year that looks promising but will likely signal Nintendo's final year in the home console market.
Like the Wii, the Wii U dies with Zelda.
Aaaand I love how people just have to turn good news into bad. Well enjoy, my little video game Eeyores. Nintendo will be just fine, the Wii U will continue to see modest gains and a bit of a rebirth in 2015, major 3DS releases and the 'New' 3DS' will give portable sales a bump (although they are still very good, btw), and the rest of us will enjoy emo, pessimism and drama free Nintendo experiences.
@SahashraLA 'Smash' will bomb? I literally just LOL'd… each and every time I re-read it (I had to make sure I read that correctly, after all). Someone needs a nap, methinks. Grumpiest post ever. Thank goodness all of your 'predictions' aren't based in any sort of reality. But hey, whatever, right? I'm going to enjoy the heck out of my Wii U… for years to come. It's given me more pure gaming joy than all of my other consoles combined since it's release.
@SahashraLA
The Wii U's sales will get better and better as its high-quality library of exclusives grows. Super Smash Bros. should help. I'm really interested in seeing how gamers take to it in 2015 after it gets games like Splatoon, Xenoblade Chronicles X, and The Legend of Zelda U.
off topic i don't play pokemon games but hangout here a lot so first come first serve and you are welcome A05Q4M142R5YP471 -7:05 am mt 10/29/14
@SahashraLA
Whoa, you are saying a lot of things. I don't even know where to start. Regardless of what Sakurai is smoking. The Wii U Smash is going to do very well software wise. I would expect to see MK8 related numbers, maybe not quite as high, but pretty close. It should at least make 500K within it's first week on sale in the U.S. alone, and I expect it to be even higher. Don't forget, they are wisely placing it's release right before Black Friday in the states. vgchartz.com has U.S. pre-orders (last update was Oct. 18th I believe) already at 150K since they announced a date. That number is going to at least double, if not triple by the time it releases. Then when the game actually hits the shelves, sales are remarkably higher.
The real question is how much hardware they can push throughout the Holiday Season. They are going to be in much better shape since they have 3-4 games worth marketing and pushing. Last year we only had Mario 3D World. The Wii U numbers are bad, that is obvious, but let's relish in it's improvement and see how the Holidays effect it before we start making wild accusations. If the Wii U can level out and just pay it's own bills, Nintendo will continue to support it. I'd argue, it is starting to look that way already.
The 3DS is a bit more worrisome given what their target is for this year, but that handheld is the little engine that could. It has come a long way since 2011.
It is not possible to know how much of an impact the new 3DS will have in the other markets. Again let's just wait and see before we start jumping to conclusions.
Overall, I hate to see that the Wii U was met with skepticism and has eked out such low numbers after the insane success with Wii, but these numbers show a turn around and an upward trend that is great news to someone who has had one since day one. Not going to suddenly outshine PS4 and XB1 as that launch defied expectations. People like to game (aggressively) in bad economies apparently.
Super Smash Bros. is a title that spans all sorts of tastes in gaming triggering that gotta-play-this response. That friend with the Wii U and the new Smash Bros is going to be indirectly selling a bunch of consoles this Holiday or at least planting the seeds of desire.
We are looking at a real gain for the Wii U in 2015 if Nintendo can pull off Zelda in time and with quality. Between Zelda, MK, SSB, DK, and Mario the big hitters will all have arrived so that the console is bound to have a couple of must-haves in anyone's book. Add to that some excitement about games like Splatoon and I think we may finally have some consistent success for the Wii U and maybe even some new respect for Nintendo.
That respect for the Nintendo brand is something I think Iwata is guarding and actually fixing with the Quality of Life platform. It's going to attempt a clean separation between casuals and traditional gamers I think. That way an entire console doesn't get written off as a console for casuals or just mini-game compilations. The success of the Wii seems to have had that side effect.
2015 is when this should all come to fruition, but sadly I think the Wii U is going to be a transition console of sorts and never a giant success in terms of sales.
I am just wondering about next year, since 3rd party support seems almost dead for next year (No COD, nor new Assasins creed, Platinum is busy with Scalebound, no news from Capcom)
2015:
-Splatoon (a sleeper hit or just another good game?)
-Xenoblade Chronicles X (niche market?)
-Zelda Wii U (will sell well but is it 2015?)
-Yoshi wolly world (young audience)
-Mario Maker (budget title, maybe only digital?. May become a big thing with amiibo. Can you imagine Metroid theme stages?)
-Sonic Boom (previews do not look good for this game)
Total 6 "big" games
Unknow/unconfirmed
-Fire Emblem x Shin Megami Tensei (no info just a teaser since 2012)
-Metroid 6(Surprise announcement)
-Starfox (official announcement, but is it 2015?)
Total 9 games for 2015 (with little 3rd party support)
I just hope that there are some surprise announcements
Their momentum is going to drop off the cliff after the Holidays. We know nothing about release dates going into next year. Again they're going to favor a drought going into April, and leave 2015 heavier during fall-winter.
They never learn.
Good for them some good news for a change.
@Peach64
Tsk, tsk. The Wii U has already sold a tremendous amount of software. The PS4 doesn't have nearly as many games sold as Wii U does, even with roughly 4 million more consoles in peoples' homes. It may not be as bittersweet as you think.
@SahashraLA Wow you just like writing alot of nonsense huh? Good thing i don't read your comment's except when i want to laugh at something.
Well, it's something.
Sales figure mean little to me at this point. I look at all the games available on the three current home consoles being pushed and see more games on the wii u that interest me as a gamer. Hyrule warriors and the bayonetta bundle would be mine if not for all the great sales ive been grabbing up on the vita. Not enough time or money to enjoy all the great games available. I will say that the xbone sunset overdrive bundle looks tempting but I dont think I will be buying another xbox console any time soon.
Nintendo are starting to realise their target audience even though its took quite a few weird and questionable decisions to reach this point. Bayonetta 2 is the game of the moment simply because it offers everything modern gamers want in a game, the other thing is, nintendo need to realise that parents aren't going to be spending a ton of money on next gen for kids with the wide availability of tablets and cheaper games formats, the older gamers who grew up with n64s snes are the ones who will pay for next gen so its important to keep this group happy and I think nostalgia factor cannot sell a game or console alone these days which is why new mario,sonic,zelda and co games won't exactly impress next gen gamers who have been there and done that and want something entirely new to justify a wiiu over the other consoles. Nintendo can keep a younger image but it also needs to cater more to the older gamers who make up a huge majority of the nintendo fanbase. I haven't got a wiiu because the biggest dissapointment for me was finding out the controller is not a take anywhere handheld, the price of the console is too much right now and needs to be aggressively priced to attract a casual market aka families/people with jobs, I think a redesign version 2 of the console could fix this but until then despite some great looking games I can't justify spending £250
@SahashraLA isn't MK8 at around 3m? I think Smash will hit a million pretty easily on the Wii U. Given that there aren't any 3rd party games, what else are we going to buy?
I agree with the sentiment above, that after the holiday season, things will be tough sledding until Zelda, which from the sound of things, won't come out till 2016. With the titles out, and coming out in 2015 tho, while there isn't the one system seller, it will have respectable library, so it has that going for it.
@SahashraLA Yeah, there are still trying times for the WiiU especially post smash and the New 3DS it needs to be here SOON! But.. Heh, overselling it much? All I heard was
@SahashraLA "Nintendo's final year in the home console market."
The video game industry is not structured the way it was when Sega went that route. Microsoft and Sony are largely fighting each other to do the same thing, like a Blu-Ray/HD-DVD fight. Mobile gaming, Steam, and plenty of PC options show that there are other options, and I think that's the route Nintendo is going. It's the only current-generation console I own and I'm very happy with it. No need for doom and gloom. Just wait, see, and enjoy your time with a controller in the interim.
Gabby Jay! YAY!!
@mastermp2 You might put it in the same category as Yoshi (and I want that and I'm not at all a kid), but don't forget Kirby.
I gotta say, the amount of software sold per Wii U in just 3 months compared to its install base is pretty impressive. We Wii U players are a committed bunch
I'm gonna grab some popcorn and watch the haters, trolls, and Nintendoom choir's heads explode as they spin this away.
Look, it's a modest gain and the expectations were lowered...no one is saying this is an unqualified turnaround and all the dark days are behind Nintendo.
However...this goes to show that despite being the David between two Goliaths, Nintendo can sustain themselves by doing what they do best: making great games!
YES!!!!
Exchange rate gains, huh?
Since they made pretty much zero adjustments to their business plan it's hardly surprising their 'turnaround' comes from currency volatility. They could just as well be 100 million in the red. They need to change.
A lot of people will discover Wii U this Christmas. It will sell 3 times last holiday season's numbers.
Excellent. Profit all that counts.
Stock is jumping now because of the profits, more than 6%. Keep up the Good work nintendo!!!
Let's just stay positive about it. If there isn't enough going wrong in the world, let's just enjoy video games as a beacon of light!
A Wii U/Smash bundle would easily move consoles.
Better than last year, but still godawful. Hopefully Wii U makes at least Gamecube level sales eventually.
@LUIGITORNADO All system sale 'drop off of a cliff' after the holidays. Momentum is another thing. There will be lots of holiday cash and gift cards, which may fuel some sales for those excited about the 2015 releases, as well as the AAA, incredibly fun games already out. Some discounted. There are plenty of existing titles, and indy/eShop releases to keep people busy until E3 where, just like last year, I fully expect excitement surrounding the Wii U to explode again. Barring any mega surprises from the other to hardware companies, Nintendo has a chance to own E3. I just don't understand the hyperbolic pessimism a handful of people are spouting. The Wii U was looking near dead on arrival, but has not only held it's own, it continues to grow as a system and a contender for people's gaming cash. Look at the line up for the Wii U and the review scores as well as word of mouth. Now look at the other big two. The same applies to the 3DS and it's meager competition. Nintendo has defied all odds and silenced many pundits Wii U bashing staging a solid comeback. 2015 looks like a breakout year. What's the problem?
I think there are some people here who need more fiber in their diet… and maybe a hug.
@Yorumi said:
Ahhh...the all or nothing approach, please recall that this was in the post you are responding to:
So please don't mis-state my position...victory dance? Nope.
However, for all those who insisted Nintendo would be "dead" or "going third party" by this time are just full of sour grapes. There is something gratifying to be said for proving the haters wrong, even if it doesn't merit a 'victory dance'.
@SahashraLA i follow the japanese preorder charts religiously. you are wrong about smash. the numbers are already higher than hyrule warriors, fatal frame and bayonnetta combined. by the time it releases it will be higher than mario kart 8. for a region of dead home consoles thats quite a success.
@mastermp2 sonic boom comes out next month. not next year.
@Yorumi They have adjusted their business/marketing plan, and they have seen results. Moreover, they have seen these results with only one huge hit. 'Hyrule' has seen decent sales, but I don't think we can call it a system mover. But they have obviously turned a corner. It IS up to them to keep the momentum going and to continue to be agile with their positioning and marketing of the system and build on this modest success. When you reflect on the fact that these sales are in the face of a major shift in how the Japanese market plays games/a soft console market, this is good news regardless of historical comparisons.
@Yorumi Nobody is saying it will surpass the PS4 or that it won't go down as the worst selling Nintendo console, but it is showing some growth and it has started to dig itself out of the hole that landed in last year.
The PS4 is a beast, and I highly doubt it will lose this generation unless Sony gets stupid. Its selling pretty much on hype right now, and it will likely never lose its lead once the good games arrive.
But the Wii U has a chance to take second place this generation. Why do I say that? Because the Xbox One is struggling itself. Think of how many tricks Microsoft has pulled out of the hat to even stay in the market. They dropped the Kinect, they dropped the price of the system twice this year(once around June, the second for the holidays), they have given away free games, and have done everything in their power to make the Xbox One look good.
But outside of Halo and Forza, what can you get on the Xbox One that you can't find on the PS4?
And that is where I think Nintendo will find its success with the Wii U. As a secondary console that people buy for the exclusives. The Wii U is seeing growth, and while its not an insane number it does show that people are starting to show interest in the system.
If things keep going this way, I could see the Wii U take second place right behind the PS4. The Xbox One just seems lost, and Microsoft is throwing everything at the wall in an attempt to get people to buy it.
@Yorumi - I'm not sure I get this obsession with the Gamecube and victory dances...look, I called you out for overstating and misrepresenting what I said.
Repeating the same thing doesn't make it different now. If you aren't one of the "haters" - you know...the people who always attack Nintendo and want to see them do poorly - why are you defending them so religiously?
It's the haters who overstated the dire situation of Nintendo and told us the Wii U wouldn't last until 2015, not me. I always said I was cautiously optimistic and that good games will move consoles. I also said that Nintendo has a lot of work to do to improve their image...sorry if it bothers you that I am pleased at positive news.
The real question is: Why are you so angry about it?
@DilMan33
"So what if it ends up in 'third place'? - someone has to be there. But what's more important is sustainability of the console, and I think Nintendo have overall played it very well."
Thank you for speaking sensibly. Nintendo has always been very good at managing it's money, even with the losses it has been taking recently. That's the advantage you have when you've been doing business for 125 years. If Nintendo can get the Wii U to pay it's own bills, they will be happy. I think it'll get there.
The reason why the 3DS is doing not so well is the lack of piracy. The moment somebody creates an easy way for dads and mums to copy 3DS-games the numbers explode.
Sigh... Wheres the QOL?
@Caryslan
"But outside of Halo and Forza, what can you get on the Xbox One that you can't find on the PS4?"
In my case at least, I would say Scalebound and Sunset Overdrive. And those two games have me considering getting a One this holiday. There are other things like Quantum Break or Killer Instinct that do not interest me, but they are still there.
Hmm so VGChartz hardware sales were right!
So, after 3 years of loss, they are finally back to profit.
I think it is telling that they are still expecting a half million Wii sales 3 years after any software releases for it. And meanwhile in the prime of the Wii U they are only looking at 150k sales per month on average. You'd think that would teach them about product differentiation, but no... They're sticking with the new model New Nintendo 3ds. If I was a Nintendo investor I'd be very wary of the future for this century-old company.
Yeah
Purchased Wii U for MK8, the game was kinda "meh" in a matter of single-player experience (too chaotic and luck-based), but then Bayonetta 2 and Smash Bros showed up to make me a happy Wii U owner.
@sinalefa Games like Scalebound and Quantum Break don't have specific release dates though. Getting an Xbox One for those now is like getting a Wii U during E3 2013 solely for Tropical Freeze (and then finding out it got delayed to February 2014).
I'm happy to hear positive news but I am also realistic: Nintendo will be the "outsider" console forever (until/unless sony or MS give up). Anyone that thinks Nintendos next console will get any more 3rd party support than the Wii U is delusional: we will hear the same excuses gen after gen. They are not actively trying to compete with sony or ms, and the last time they did (arguably) was the GameCube, and ppl hold that up as a model of failure!
@mh1989 FFS! Where does it cost £250!?!
You can get it with Bayonetta 1 & 2 for under £190!
Stop spreading such BS and get out there and buy it!
@gcunit I'm not spreading bs, maybe there was an offer somewhere but normal retail is around 250
Gee, a Nintendo system that starts out with lackluster sales, then picks up considerably after a while? It's just like the 3DS! This is exactly what I predicted!
@Falk_Sturmfels
How would piracy increase profits? Hardware sales may go up a little bit, but software sales would go down at the same rate. And please don't tell me that typical parents would be able to figure out anything like that. These are the same people that can't even figure out Android.
Has anyone stopped to consider Nintendo might have always intended the Wii U to be a transitional console, hence why it kept the Wii name and barely any marketing?
The Wii success was massive, so why wouldn't they take a step back to reassess the market (one smash hit directly followed by another is too much to ask), so in the meantime put out an HD-upgraded Wii (virtually the same OS), compatible with all the wiimotes, nunchucks and balance boards swimming about out there. There can't have been much spent on Research & Development for the Wii U.
Just keep the market ticking over with quality software on an HD big-brother while developing a strategy for the next 10 years.
I am hopeful that the Wii U is just a sleeper train designed to fill the gap before something different. And I say this while loving my Wii U.
I think the next generation has to be a home console/hand-held hybrid, capable of making telephone calls and streaming games content over the internet to the detachable part of the system. Probably requires 4G network coverage to improve to relieve dependence on wifi connections, but why not?
the Wii u future is brighter than it was a year ago the new game's that are to be released look like it might well have a good future.
project cars.
xenoblade chronicle's.
Mario party 10.
Lego batman.
watch dog's and the new Zelda game.there is something for everyone
we are going to enjoy the new game's for sometime to come.
Well, let's be honest. Not great but not bad. We know where we are with Wii U now. It isn't going to be a big success and it's almost certainly going to be Nintendos worst-selling home console.
The goal for Nintendo is to sell enough machines and enough of their own software that Wii U breaks even or maybe even turns a small profit. The high attach rate is very promising on that score.
The Christmas line-up is a bit shallow but hopefully they should achieve their modest sales targets for the year and maybe a bit more next year if they get XCX/Zelda/Starfox out. By 2016 I expect to hear rumblings of a new machine....
@mh1989 Which country are you in?
I bought my Wii U Premium, with NSMBU/Luigi bundled, for £199 in November 2013 - 12 months ago.
Deals at that price level have continued ever since, and deals for the Basic version (not much difference from Premium) have been significantly cheaper and right now you can buy, at Shopto, the Basic bundle (with Wii Party U and a Wiimote Plus), plus Bayonetta 1&2 for £189.85.
So, with respect, it is total BS if you're in the UK, which I assume you are given you use of £.
@ryanator008
It's a strange thing but the DS, Wii, PS1 and PS2 were formats where it was easy to pirate games and look how they sold. How profitable they were is another question of course....
This is the equivalent of a quadriplegic guy twitching his pinky finger for the first time in ten years. Nice to see, but in the big picture, not much to be excited about.
@electrolite77 I don't think it's strange. The fact were always hearing that consoles sell at break-even or at a loss surely indicates that it's software sales that's where it is at.
Nintendo has finally turned around the Wii U's horrible sales? What sorcery is this?!
Nintendo's profit margin is, like always, being boosted by the 3DS and its software sales. The Wii U is the thing keeping Nintendo from reaching its projections.
Here are last week's total sales for consoles.
System NA Europe Japan Global
PS4 96,756 127,262 7,546 287,962
3DS 41,113 50,879 114,769 218,443
XOne 64,242 37,141 709 127,423
PS3 9,276 22,388 4,535 45,923
WiiU 21,808 15,522 4,638 45,795
X360 18,281 10,226 89 33,319
These totals are the norm. Wii U is consistently 5th or 6th as it tries to stay ahead of last gen consoles. That includes out west which tries to state that the U is showing life, despite it being far below its competition and barely with the older gen systems. Life time, PS4 has doubled up the U in total sales and the One has already overtaken U's lifetime sales in NA/EU. Needless to say anything Xbox related doesn't sell in Japan.
So Nintendo can still break even overall thanks largely due to the constant success of the 3DS brand which is giving them an extra surge this quarter with strong New 3DS sales. The U will see a better Q4 thanks to the release of Smash but overall its looking like another Gamecube where it'll be remember and treated as a major disappointment.
@ColdingLight
No it hasn't. The sales are still horrible and below their competition. The return to profitability is due to overall success with emphasis on the 3DS brand. This article and comments are just trying to spin it into assumptions of U success which numbers show is not the case. It'll have positive spikes when new titles such as Smash/Zelda are released, but serious downturns when nothing is out there.
@Prof_Clayton after smash they will have a first half of 2015 with games like Splatoon (that game just seems so much fun) and Yoshis. But dont forget they will start releasing trailers and new info about Zelda to keep the hype train.
And, i think they are saving a card in the sleeve by annuncing a new Metroid somewhere early next year. This is just my opinion, but a great announce trailer can bring a lot of new costumers and still have time to develop the game to maybe a Q1 2016 release. Fingers crossed
Sounds like great news for Nintendo's popularity as well as increase of sales. Nintendo out of anyone deserves to be in the spot light, with their creativity, and generosity to their customers. I sure hope this good news keeps up!
That's great news! I'm pretty interested in seeing the impact Smash Wii U will have.
People are saying the Wii U will be Nintendo's worst selling home console. While this may be true, I can also counter by saying the 3DS will be Nintendo's worst selling handheld, which is also true. How far below the GBA is the 3DS tracking again? Exactly.
Strange that this is what most of us have been saying for almost two years.
@Yorumi Not really a counter honestly, but just a fact that people seem to be forgetting. Both the Wii U and the 3DS are set to be Nintendo's worst selling home console and handheld repsectively.
Well at the very least this an improvement. I do hope the Wii U hits 15-20 million units by the end of its life. Damn shame no one cared about it now...can't wait for it to end up like the Gamecube and have almost insane cult following I'm disappointed 3DS sales have bottomed out too, hope that the New 3DS will help, which it should.
Oh also @IceClimbers if you count the Virtual Boy (as handheld or console, personally I think its a handheld ) the Wii U and 3DS are far past the under 1 million club the VB is in. And if I am remembering correctly if you split the Gameboy Color off from the Black and White GB that would sit around 46ish million units sold. While its unlikely the 3DS will outsell say the Gameboy Advance line at this point its likely we could see the 3DS end up around 65 million+, which isn't to bad in this Smartphone era we live in
Gotta remember folks times are a changin'
@SahashraLA
@iceclimbers
Though that may be true, the situations aren't relatable. The 3DS family is clearly the #1 non-phone related portable gaming system there is and has been a very profitable venture for Nintendo. It will always be remembered as a great success. The lower numbers just account for the competition its had to face from the PSP/DS/VITA and smart phones which previous handhelds really didn't have. The Wii U on the other hand thus far has lost a lot of money for Nintendo, missed every projection, has had terrible software sales, and is at the bottom of the barrel. It may be remember as the worst Nintendo console release if things stay as is. Though personally I totally think its one of the most underappreciated consoles to ever be released.
Now naturally the Wii U's life is far from over. Things can change and if they find a way to really boost the product to build a momentum steam it can change its perception in a early.
@gcunit alright relax yeah the cheapest I've found is ebay so far
It's always great to see a company like Nintendo enjoy a profit. Even if it isn't as much of a profit as I would hope. It's a good start though!
@Grumblevolcano
Well, there are still good games like Forza Horizon 2, Sunset Overdrive and Halo Collection that are either out or very close to be released. Scalebound is the game I want the most (and knowing that it is coming, I don't mind waiting, as with Bayo 2) but not the only one I care about.
Just another sign that Nintendo isn't going anywhere anytime soon.
The problem with the wii u eshop is that the average mom or dad in Target or Walmart don't have any clue how much the wii u eshop has to offer because all they see is the retail games on the shelf and think that's all there is. Nintendo needs to advertise the eshop somehow. That being said they still need to straighten out the dismal virtual console situation by adding more classic systems and games and maybe finally one day get past the 1 vc game a week crap!
@darthllama I enjoy the games on it and I'm looking forward to the ones announced. To me that makes it a success. Not my job to worry for their accountants. Yeah, doing well means we get more of what we like, but I doubt anyone believes their IP, if nothing else, is going away. Might as well relax and enjoy the games-that was what I took away from the GCN, which I still love.
@darthllama BTW, thank you for including the numbers. Good to get that perspective.
@SahashraLA Don't worry, you can always revert back to your old tactic of blaming the entire continent of Europe and us 'ungrateful' European gamers if the Wii U has a bad year in 2015, just like you did in this past topic....
https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2014/01/video_this_dr_luigi_trailer_may_be_the_perfect_remedy
.....although you appear to have deleted your original comment when most people called you out on how ridiculous you sounded.
BTW The Wii U has been outselling the PS4 in Japan, and Super Smash Bros 3DS had massive sales over there, not bad for a country that 'doesn't care', eh?
@SahashraLA Preach
Fascinating how some folks always manage to pull negativity out of a generally positive news article/report.
November and December are going to be solid months for Nintendo with the Pokemon remakes, Smash Bros. Wii U, NES Remix Collection, Mario Kart 8 DLC Pack 1 and Captain Toad(NA) coming out within a short span of time. Good time to be a Nintendo fan.
@ColdingLight
No
@SahashraLA
While some of your assessments aren't wrong they aren't all right either. 3DS sales are way down, but still the 3DS and XL combined week in and out moves more units than any other system. So what U fail to acknowledge is the entire dedicated gaming machine market is in flux and sort of down. PS4 has done great, but mostly off hype and remakes like TLoU and TRaider. Many PS4 owners I know are sort of bored until more content comes. Xbone has under performed everywhere but USA and is not eve outselling PS4.
So its a strange new world and all of the manufacturers and publishers are going to have to navigate some rough waters. It is important that Nintendo has stemmed the bleeding as they were posting sizable losses and now essentially broke even.
As for WiiU.......2015 is stacked even if 1/2 of it gets pushed back there is a lot more coming than just Zelda and even after Zelda I still expect to see a new Metroid an true 3D Mario before WiiU life is up.
@ryanator008: Well, you know, I´m over 40 years old with young kids. Many of my old schoolfriends have kids too. I as a collector don´t want to pirate games and I i don´t wanna show my children to do that.
But some of my old schoolmates bought each of their sons a DS BECAUSE of the unbelievable easy way to play pirated games. Then the 3DS came out and the FIRST question they came to me was: "Oh, cool, with 3D, is there any good R4 in stores?"
Another guy told me later: "We don´t buy the system, we cannot play games for nothing on it."
PS4 has 10 million sales, Wii U has 7 million, Xbox One has 3 million. So it is close between PS4 and Wii U. Although don't expect Wii U to have 20 million sales yet lol
@TheGreatBrawler
Latest estimates put PS4 over 11 million, Wii U over 7.3 and Xbox One close to 6 (its certainly on a lot more than 3 as that was its confirmed level of sales at the start of 2014). Sounds like Wii U is doing OK except of course its taken Wii U twice as long to reach that point. On sales since the other two launched the Wii U is in third place worldwide.
The really good news for Nintendo is a solid attach rate. 7.29m hardware sales and 41.67m software sales. Nearly a tie-in ratio of 6:1. If Nintendo can keep that up they'll be happy.
@gcunit
Oh sure but I find it interesting that those machines where software margins would theoretically be destroyed by piracy sold 100m plus and were still hugely profitable.
@gcunit
Things is, if it was just a stop gap they would have been far better served by launching a straightforward 'Wii HD' in 2011 without the Game pad and selling at a lower price.
@electrolite77 It's easy to casually speculate that in the risk-free environment of an internet comments section, but there's no way of knowing what would have worked better. Perhaps the gamepad was felt important to be sufficiently different to drive fresh sales - I don't think I'd have bothered with a WiiHD, but the gamepad gives me a semi-portable second screen (off-screen play was the deciding factor in whether I bought a WiiU or not), plus the touchscreen element is great for bridging the gap to those who don't get on too well with conventional console control pads e.g.toddlers (the next generation of Nintendo fans).
The market has clearly expanded massively in the portability/touchscreen direction over the last 5 years, the gamepad is a logical way for Nintendo to move in that direction without committing too much R&D money too early.
@gcunit
True. I just felt it was/is a gimmick for the sake of it, so they could say they'd stuck with their philosophy of trying to 'innovate'. The Pad has made it difficult to get the cost of the machine down and added little in Gameplay terms. It could just have easily been sold as an optional extra for Off TV Play (with a better screen as they wouldn't need to compromise for costs sake). They also should have got the machine out at least a year earlier which may have been easier if it was a straight iteration.
All guesswork of course, but I love a bit of idle speculation
@Yorumi I've not got any evidence to say you're wrong, but I'd just like to think that a company with as much experience in the video games and console market as Nintendo would not be acting so simplistically. Would you gamble millions of dollars and the reputation of a long-standing global company on 'tablets are cool now'?
@kingc8 Not anymore!
@Yorumi
Yeah I loved its use in SC Black List and a few other games have done some nice things as well like Deus Ex and Batman AC. I really agree that the second screen conept is cool and should be more than has so far been shown, i have several solid ideas myself so I hope some dev things of them as well. The fact that we are 2 years in to WiiU with no real jrpg or srpg is obsurd, the system was made for it, also no TCG or puzzle games is odd considering how well suited they woud be. Last one is poin and click adenture like Walking dead or Wolf Among us makes total sense.
One place I think ppl are off base is that Ninendo will abandon WiiU early. Why, when WiiU is a decent enough box for Nintendo to make the transistion to HD and better online features. It is taking them time but so far the results are awesome. I can't wait to get Metriod, a real 3D mario, some sort of Fire Emblem game and others wiiU will surely get
@electrolite77 The Dreamcast had the easiest piracy ever, and its sales were crap.
@Falk_Sturmfels
That's terrible! Freeloaders really get on my nerves.
@SahashraLA That's negative man, Yknow there were people who were saying mario kart 8 was gonna bomb and the only people buying it would be among those who already owned a wiiU. They said a lot of the same things you're saying and yet they were wrong in their predictions.
@Yorumi
Well.....3DS semi-abandoned??? Do you say this because they just released the New 3DS and it has features (2nd analogue nubbie) and power (cpu/ram) that the current model doesn't have? Sort of, but I doubt the difference in power is enough that it will cause many games to not support the original models......
My biggest disappointment with 3DS is the fact that it has sold 45mil units and can't get crap in western 3rd party support. Devs support the Vita (which I own) when it has a base of 7-8mil but treat the 3DS like its poison. I know it is a less powerful machine and wouldn't be ideal for a lot of 3rd party games, but you would think they would use their big named licenses like GTA, COD, AC to put games specifically developed for 3DS out....kind of like China Town wars on DS. I think it speaks overall to Nintendo's real problems with 3rd parties which is they don't want to compete against Nintendo. The 3DS release schedule was certainly a little slim this year, although it contained some great games. I suspect 2015 will be strong as they will want some main line titles to help push new 3DS sales.
One thing I found interesting was that Nintendo said they are basically going the IOS/Droid route with the OS and their machines starting with WiiU. That means they could possibly put out a WiiU+ that has more horsepower, ram, storage space, still have it be compatible with the current and forthcoming WiiU library, but have a more powerful machine just incase the 3rd parties want to port their ps4/xb1 games......I guess we will see but I honestly don't care as I own those other systems and as long as Nintendo keeps putting out their gems and supporting special projects like W101, Bayonetta, X, and Devils Third I am a happy camper with WiiU......
the WiiU will regain its rightful place as Number 1 in the console market by the end of next year!!! from this point on expect things to get better and better!!! Bayonetta2 is Awesome!!!
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