The Wii U doesn't have too many big-name games still confirmed to be on the way, especially from third-parties. As a result the cancellation of Yooka-Laylee on the platform has led to quite a reaction, which I suspect is partly reflective of some wider frustrations.
First of all, it's come up a lot and I included the link in our most recent article, but any Yooka-Laylee backers affected by the Wii U cancellation should read this official FAQ; it addresses options and has a link to contact the developer.
This isn't the only prospective project to bite the dust, with The Binding of Isaac: Afterbirth seemingly being another, along with Stardew Valley; in both of those cases a move from Wii U to Switch is either confirmed or strongly teased. There are also a number of titles once listed for the Wii U that have quietly dropped off the radar over the past 12-18 months, some of them exciting games long since released on PC and other consoles. Though I plan to follow-up on long-forgotten releases with developers to see what prompted the end of Wii U plans, two key reasons seem rather obvious.
One is the system's limitations, which have been cited by Playtonic Games. The Wii U, in adopting a similar architecture to Wii (which closely followed GameCube) is unlike other current-gen systems in how it works, and naturally that's an extra headache for developers. Even Unity support - so widely used in the Indie space - can be an issue; in the past when speaking to developers they've told me (at that time) how they would build Wii U games in an older version of the Unity software, using updated versions of the engine for other systems. While Nintendo has tried to open the door to make running games on Wii U easier, there have still been issues not found on other hardware.
With each passing year that problem can only get worse. The Wii U may have boasted more RAM and arguably more power than Xbox 360 and PS3 when it launched, but it's always been a good bit behind PS4 and Xbox One. As generations progress, developers also push systems further, so as titles of various budgets and sizes get flashier on PS4 and Xbox One (and often PC, of course), they become increasingly difficult to get running on Wii U. Yooka-Laylee, for example, was evidently quite demanding in the PC demo given to backers, so I can imagine that Nintendo's current system was a tough ask. While I'm not on the ground floor in knowing the current Unity options with Wii U, I'd bet limitations are still a notable concern for ambitious projects.
The other core issue is the Wii U's commercial failure. It's the worst-selling mainstream home console since the Dreamcast, and though it's admirable that Nintendo has persevered and essentially brushed off the failure to plan for a brighter tomorrow, I've argued before that it's persistently done little to save the situation. It seems to me that the rescue effort ended by late 2015, and it's been clear that the company has been playing out time. Limited releases at retail and a projection of shipping less than a million units this financial year have been self-explanatory; little to no effort was made for a last hurrah during the Black Friday period, for example, with manufacturing also drawing to a close.
At retail the Wii U is pretty much an irrelevance. My local GAME store has a small corner for Wii U, probably just to facilitate a handful of potential customers, to shift remaining stock and maintain a cordial relationship with Nintendo. The system's place in current day gaming discourse - ie its place in the 'scene' - is minor too. If it wasn't for the attention around The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild it would have been even worse this year, and many simply wanted to see the Switch version anyway.
This isn't necessarily the case for many reading these pages, Nintendo gamers that still harbour affection for the Wii U. I consider myself in that camp, and often invite gentle teasing when I defend the system and talk up its unique games. Yet the reality, outside of the Nintendo Bubble, is that the Wii U is at best largely ignored, or at worst the butt of jokes. Nintendo has ditched it, and the wider public has done the same. It's worth noting that the big N put its focus on the 3DS this Holiday season, and that's hardly surprising.
It's been a rapid decline, though, and that leads to lingering frustration. The Wii U shouldn't be on life support yet - as I've pointed out it's barely past four years old. Yet here we are, where even download game developers look at the situation and are tempted to shy away.
How does the Switch avoid this fate? There are lots of lessons to be learnt, probably something I'll tackle at length soon. The first challenge is building early sales momentum, validating the system's place in the industry and providing encouragement to retailers and developers. Another task will be to make it flexible and powerful enough to last. Raw power isn't the only issue, but also ease of support - by utilising Tegra technology and with relationships in place with game engine providers, hopefully the Switch will support up-to-date tools in the best possible way for developers.
It'll be difficult, though. We're in a strange period where mid-gen refreshes are a thing - I've been following the PS4 Pro closely, for example, and to say opinion on that is divided is an understatement. Then there'll be the Xbox 'Scorpio', and there's continual growth in phone and tablet capabilities. The 'generation' lines are blurring, to the point that they're barely relevant in the traditional sense, and that causes blowback among consumers. Nobody bought a PS4 thinking they'd be asked to consider upgrading in a few years; just like no-one bought a Wii U and thought it'd be effectively retired (barring one off hits like Breath of the Wild) after four years.
It's all about adjusting consumer expectations, I'd suggest. Plenty (including me) buy at least two versions of Nintendo portables - I'm onto my third in this generation, from original 3DS, to 3DS XL, to New Nintendo 3DS. Some will have more, or some will have just bought one, but the point is that iterations are expected in the handheld space.
How will Switch work in this respect? Will a Switch iteration with more grunt come along in 2-3 years, or perhaps there'll be an accessory that can provide extra processing power as an external unit, as we've seen in some patents? I don't know, but frankly I'd be amazed if the Switch doesn't iterate.
That's the modern industry. Technology isn't waiting, neither is consumer expectation, and devices lagging behind lose in record time. The Wii U had arguably lost after 2-3 years - it couldn't find an audience, support declined, and eventually even the basic technology under the hood became an issue. Multiple factors combined to bring an early death.
I think, for many of us Wii U fans, that's been the saddest thing. Unlike the Wii, which seemed to have 4-5 solid years (dominant in its first 2-3) and a poor sixth year, the Wii U has been struggling for a while. Now it's being left behind, with developers and many gamers more interested in the next generation of Nintendo hardware.
On the plus side it means some potentially enticing early support for Switch; on the downside the Wii U is ignored and forgotten too soon.
Comments 136
WII u LAUNCHED last gen lol
@LetsGoRetro If your definition of "launching last gen" is "being the one who starts the new gen" then yes, Wii U did launch last gen.
Wii U was almost outdated at launch. I remember when it was nearing release and people were trying to figure out if it was even more powerful than the Xbox 360 or PS3... systems that had been out for many years by that point. Throw in lazy games, bad delayed ports, a very confusing name (some people to this day still think the Wii U is the Wii) and bad marketing, and you have the Wii U as being an afterthought on all levels.
The Switch is off to a much better start as far as making it clear that this is not the Wii but a brand new console. Now I hope that Nintendo's marketing can properly support it, the stock at launch is there, and a strong launch lineup (something else the Wii U lacked) are present. With it's hybrid home/portable concept, I see this possibly becoming something big.
I am going to say this again. The devs of Yooka laylee lied about the game is in development for the wii u. It was not. They look all the money and gave Team 17 to port the game to the Xbox one and ps4. Here a video showing these devs lied and yooka laylee is a scam. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s7uQjLeiGFk
Sick of all the lies
Wiiu similar to wii and GameCube which apparently were easy to make games for but wiiu is difficult...... I don't understand
I sure hope Nintendo is putting a lot of thought into how to make sure the Switch doesn't get left behind like the Wii U.
This only happens for Nintendo systems. Name the last time they had good support on an older system after launching a new one. Mean while they're still making PS360 games!
The wii u is more powerful than 360 and PS3. Here is what went wrong with the wii u
1) No hard drive - If the wii u had a hard drive they will get more 3rd party games. Nintendo want to cut down development cost of the system to not include a hard drive. The wii u should have a hard drive to support 500gb. Skyrim can easy ported to the wii u but bugthesda cannot make the game on the wii u with no hard drive. There games are buggy and relied on patches and updates. 32 gbs is not possible
2) Lazy Devs. These devs are really lazy. They know the ps3 and 360 is more powerful than the wii u. But they want to just port games to the wii u but not build a game form the ground up.
2.5) Lieing devs, like Ubisoft, Activison, Playtonic games, EA, and other game devs are leirs. The lie that seen the Wii u is not power than the 360 and ps3.
3) Finally is the marketing
In crazy world they still making ps3 and xbox 360 games
For the very few games I enjoyed that were Wii U gen it was in no way worthy of the purchase....even with all the free games got with it. Most of my playtime with it has been older catalog stuff and leftover Wii games.... that is my personal memory with the console. hated the controller and the screen was mushy compared the large HD display, so using it for games was just a bright annoying distraction on an uncomfortable clunky gamepad.
I can't believe this was a Nintendo product
When they shut those servers down at a drop of a hat and you lose access to MarioMaker Wii U and Splatoon becomes worthless, we'll have no choice to "pay up" to the next system or jump ship.
Oh well, I am glad some of you liked the system so much.
@yomanation Yes they lied. They said they were working on the wii u port long side with the PC. The game will fail mark my words
When the PS4 was announced and the specs were thrown to the wild, a quick comparison between the Wii U and the PS4 showed that the former system was essentially a generation 7.5 upgrade from the Xbox 360 and PS3.
Had the Wii U sold a tonne, I'd say the 'technical limitations' many developers are citing right now wouldn't be an issue then.
Do note, I 100% believe that it is technical limitations that is causing issues with games running on current middleware engines such as Unity and Unreal 4.
Nintendo has another underpowered system under their wings right now, and that's the 3DS. Since the system has sold much more than Sony's VITA, there are games that are available for both systems. Guess which one looks much worse?
My point is that technical limitations can be overcome, but only if it's worth it. The Wii U is essentially done, and stock is being liquidated for the holiday season in time for the Switch. It's a shame the system lasted about as long as the original Xbox (and fared worse) but technology moves on.
I think anyone expecting the Switch to do better is in for some serious disappointment.
@A01 Very well said!
I was going to make a joke about the U being almost last-gen 4 years ago but I see that it's covered. Carry on.
@Spoony_Tech "Mean while they're still making PS360 games!"
I don't follow 360 enough to know it's current output, but that was generally my reaction when seeing the title as well. PS3 is still getting games in Japan, almost every PS4 game it seems gets a PS3 version over there. And some "now gen" games also released on PS3 - Destiny, MGSV. Not sure about Madden but FIFA I'm pretty sure.
So yeah, this is just Nintendo being Nintendo, Sony consoles get plenty of support after their newer counterparts release.
Oh, and Y-L being canceled is your fault, you agreed w/ me yesterday, threw the whole universe out of whack.
@therealgamer "2) Lazy Devs. These devs are really lazy. They know the ps3 and 360 is more powerful than the wii u. But they want to just port games to the wii u but not build a game form the ground up.."
That doesnt make them "lazy" that makes them smart lol. Large publishing/dev companies dont want to invest extra time and resources building something from scratch when the system has piss poor sales like the wii u in most cases. There wouldnt be very little return on investment. Thats just smart business not laziness, Come on!
"3) Finally is the marketing"
That's ALL on nintendo, cant blame 3rd parties for that
"In crazy world they still making ps3 and xbox 360 games"
Probably because their install base is over 100 million. And are very easy to work with at this stage
Look man the Wii U was a commercial failure, period. I know people have emotional attachments to Nintendo, and the Wii U but when thinking from a logical standpoint I really cant see how anyone can be surprised companies are moving on.
I really felt sorry for the wii u at least we have shantae next week.
Here some games are coming to wii u and might get can (lol)
Rive -2017 (possible cancel)
Kerbal space program - 2017 (I spoke to the devs online they said "Yes KSP will come to Wii U but we don't have a date yet, any news we will let you know")
Bloodstain 2018 - Yep its cancel. IGA need to announce right now.
Hive Jump 2017 - Not cancel its still coming early 2017
Runner3 2017 - Cancel (Switch is in works)
The fall part 2 - Its still coming in 2017
World to the West 2017 - Yes its coming
Earthlock 2017 - Yes (switch is possible)
Assault Android Cactus 2017 - Unknown possible cancel
I.E.L : Indo European Languages - No I am still going to release the game on the wii u and switch
Its a shame the wii u is a great system. IMO its better than the wii, and the N64.
I've enjoyed wiiu and I'm glad I bought it on day 1.
Some unique fun games and owning one has felt like an exclusive club..I've made some great friends through miiverse.
I'm ryanmushroom by the way 😀
@redd214 "Large publishing/dev companies dont want to invest extra time and resources building something from scratch when the system has piss poor sales like the wii u. " Okay know why devs make games on the gamecube when the gamecube have low sales. "There wouldnt be very little return on investment. Thats just smart business not laziness, Come on!"
Shovel knight sold 1.6 million and most the sales are on the wii u. Many devs put there game on the wiiu and make a profit.
"That's ALL on nintendo, cant blame 3rd parties for that'" - Did i blame 3rd party for the bad marking?
"Probably because their install base is over 100 million." - Okay but why devs stop making wii games?
Soulless, narrow-minded simpletons. Last gen, next gen, current gen, etc, etc...words. Playing SM3DW, Bayonetta 2, MK8, Splatoon, Tokyo Mirage Sessions, X, Pikmin 3, DK Country, I could go on. Play any of them TODAY, you'd be hard pressed to want more, both visually and playability. I could give a fudge about labels.
@therealgamer There are always outliers and you can pull exapmles to prove your point of course. Im more talking as a whole 3rd parties didnt make games for the wii U becuase they didnt make money from it in MOST cases. Especially the big guys Ubi, EA, Activision etc. If there was money to be made on the Wii U for them do you really think would have abandoned it?
"Okay know why devs make games on the gamecube when the gamecube have low sales"
Great question. Im sure the devs were asking themselves the same thing back then.
"Okay but why devs stop making wii games?"
Seriously now youre just reaching. Nintendo dropped the wii like a hot potato back in 2011/12. When the parent company isnt even supportng their own product why would a 3rd party? Now the same could be said to extent with the 360 I concede that.
@therealgamer A Breath of the Wild also, lest you forget.
@Pazuzu666 Not forget
@redd214 "Seriously now youre just reaching. Nintendo dropped the wii like a hot potato back in 2011/12. When the parent company isnt even supportng their own product why would a 3rd party?"
Okay what is the last time that Microsoft made a game on the xbox 360 and what is the last time Sony made a game on the PS3? Also devs were making game to the wii since last year like Just dance, skylander, movie titles, and more shovelware games. One good game came out of the wii last year was rodea the sky soldier. Also this year one game came out of the wii is just dance 2017
@therealgamer If you read my edit you would see I said that the same could be said about the 360 to an extent, MS quickly moved on once the Xbone came out. Now with the PS3 and 360 big, especially 3rd party, AAA games were still releasing on those well after the ps4 and xbone were out. That was certaintly not the case with the wii/wii U. Now I agree releases on those are getting fewer and far between, but their replacements have been on the market for 3 years now so thats expected.
Using Just dance and skylanders as examples honestly is not a great way to prove your point bud, sorry. Those games go to virtually everything. Those are not an indicators at all.
EDIT: also in regard to Shovel knight sales it seem at least as of April the Wii U only accounted for 17% of the 1.2 million sales at the time. Most sales were on Steam and 3ds, 32% and 29% respectivley. Thats straight for Yacht Club Games so not sure were you got your info from.
Really well written
Love the Wii U and I have since day one! While it is a shame that such an awesome device died so young it had problems and no one can deny that fact. It is like the Dreamcast where while it may have faded out fast its memory will leave a powerful impression on those who owned one.
I still plan to own a complete physical release collection at some point. I mean with only a 100 odd games it is quite do-able.
Wii U is Dead. Long Live the Switch!
Since when do we expect hardware generations to last longer than 4 years. With the exception of last gen and handhelds we have always had about a 4 year gap between hardware. Most people didn't adopt day on back in the day. They waited a year or so for the price to drop on SNES or N64 or ps2.
I remember when the N64 was coming to an end before the GameCube. There were a lot of titles planned on a list of future releases. One was Resident Evil Zero which even had screenshots of the 64-bit game. This, along with others ended up being moved on to the GameCube. I assume because it made more sense to bring them out on the new higher spec console. It's the same with the Wii U / Switch.
It's maybe more unfortunate in this case given the shorter lifespan of the Wii U. Especially for kickstarter games with Wii U stretch goals.
I just want BotW for my Wii U so I can stop caring about Nintendo for a while. A very long while.
The Wii U has its flaws but I still love the games that are one it.
I have a simple philosophy. If you say it is coming out for a system, release it for that system. Even if you have to do a dual gen release (ala Zelda on wii and wiiu). That fosters good will, because let's face it every wiiu owner is not going to run straight to NS on launch day. This happens every gen with every console, you have a decent number of people that are waiting for the early adopters to beta test and for the prices to drop. Burning bridges means you lose out on potential sales.
It would be something else if the game was early in development and they didn't have enough assets to finish the game but with about four months before launch they knew this game was DOA for some time. Consumers can have long memories. For me every dev that does this gets blacklisted in my house. My backlog is too large to waste money on devs can't deliver their product. This is also why I'm wary of kickstarter.
Good riddance to the Wii U. And while the Switch has the potential to be something special, I'm still cautious. Cautiously optimistic but still cautious because... Nintendo.
Couldn't agree more with this article!
I often argue the merits of the Wii U, the library of stellar games, asymmetric gaming etc, to sniggers and muted laughter!
But the sad truth is, from the outset, the console was a failure.
The Wii U is dead, long live the Switch!!
Wii U failed because it was aimed at trying to please Nintendo fans and PS/XBX users. The formers are a very small niche and the latter don't give a damn. They could have learned from the Wii and make a mass market console but no.
Let's hope they have learned their lesson and Switch is the true succesor of the NES/SNES/Wii
@Clownshoes lol. Nicely put. You can always trust Sony with third party
Nintendo advertised this as well. Is there not a vid on wiiu about yooka? Definitely seen one on YouTube from Nintendo
@LegendOfPokemon You mean what also happened to the Dreamcast like when it's games got ported to the Gamecube, Xbox and PS2?
http://www.racketboy.com/retro/sega/dreamcast/list-of-dreamcast-ports-on-other-systems
Its not surprising at all. Its just sad that nintendo didnt feel like bringing out more to those fans who invested in it. In regard to yokai laylee I think it was a pure business decision. Thats why its sad. Nintendo fans will buy the switch no matter what so it doesnt really make sense to cater for the wii u fans. Its understandable.
@Yorumi can't agree. Sony consoles last longer. Ps2 had games coming out until 2014. Come on PS3 still has games coming out.
@Yorumi Just saying the comparison was more of a great system that was unplugged too early and will be remembered well by those who owned it at the time. That and I love the Dreamcast, but a ton of the must have titles did get ported to other systems or projects meant for it got can'ed and given to the Xbox.
@Yorumi I loved it. But to each their own I guess.
I like to think that the Wii U had to happen- it was Nintendo's first steps into HD gaming that their developers admitted not being ready for, and probably taught Ninty a lot about modern western gamers that they didn't understand before. They now know what to do- and what not to do, and it seems likely a lot of good things about the Wii U are likely to carry over leaving the underpowered system behind. Plus it made Nintendo be far more adventurous which gave us stuff like Splatoon, Mario Maker, and a connection to Platinum with Bayonetta and W101.
Frankly I think a humble Nintendo is a far more positive thing than a lazy Sony with their lacklustre attempts at 1st party content.
Is Kerbal Space Program cancelled for Wii U?
@Issi the switch gamepad is tiny. It wont be lugged by anyone its smaller than a 10 inch tablet.
@rjejr I doubt that decision came down today. Probably came a while ago they just didn't say anything. Now with that said I'm not agreeing with you ever again.....unless you make sense.....so, never again! 😝
@MrGawain
Nintendo definitely has NOT learned it's lesson. The continued secrecy of the Switch, expecting people to buy an entirely new system rather than fix the current one, and add in, what will be viewed by many, another gimmick, Nintendo hasn't learned a thing. If anything the Switch is aimed squarely at the Japanese market. It is after all the only placed the Vita didn't fall flat on it's face. Westerners aren't going to lug around an 8 inch tablet just to play games.
At least Sony tried to right the PS3 ship and was rewarded. Nintendo just...yeah.
Good luck getting a copy of Zelda Breath of Wild on Wii U. Nintendo will make less than a million copies in total for Wii U. Switch on the other hand.....
I am and will always be a massive fan of the Wii u but I do not share this feeling of sadness. I've enjoyed playing it and have great games but it seems natural that it has run it's course. I am now completely ready for something new and I feel similarly to how I did with the Gamecube which had a similar lifespan, although I am more excited for the Switch than I was the Wii.
Hopefully they don't have unrealistic goals like 100 million unit seller.
@SharkAttackU Fine, just be quiet then
My daughter actually has no interest in the Switch as she really likes the WiiU. Maybe if I ask her nicely, then she'll let me pick up a Switch. Mind you, she'll probably just tell me to do what she does--ask her Dad or ask Santa. One of those two people will provide!
tom u r gud at riting an stuf gr8 post thx.
It's a really good post. I don't know what to add. Here's a largely useless comment to affirm the spot-on-mess of the post. It's gr8.
@A01 Mid generation refreshes aren't always limited to specification changes, they're also cosmetic changes too!
@SharkAttackU I'm very tempted to do that as well. I just want a console. I have no use or desire to have a portable console. I have a 3DS so I can play Zelda games and, you guessed it, Animal Crossing. The only reasons the 3DS ever comes with me is so that I can get play coins while walking to work. I earned 2500 steps today in the lovely -17C this morning. I see it's warmed up to -13C.
I'm a big fan of the WiiU and I really like its local multiplayer. If the Switch can deliver in that aspect, then I'll consider it.
they should have drop the price in 2014 to 199.99
Nintendo's fault lies in the fact they didn't launch WiiU when everybody were asking (and of course wirh the right architecture inside the system): 2010.
Sony and Microsoft did see the error and covered with big money big third parties and gaming "journalists" to kill wiiU at release. Why? Console market splitted in 2 and no more 3 pieces and Possibly to have those preciousssss nintendo's ip's on sony/microsoft consoles. It will be the same with the switch, unless big N has thrown big money ti developers this time. (Bad english sorry)
Im still fully convinced that the Wii U Breath of the Wild will be cancelled despite thier continuing reiteration of it's release. I just don't believe it.
The biggest blow to me was when Hyper Light Drifter abandoned the Wii U. Hope it comes to Swith even though it will be a little old by then...
I think it became clear to everybody very early on in its life that the Wii U was a commercial flop. Even Nintendo learnt this pretty fast. They probably knew by the end of its first year that it wasn't going to shift the numbers they wanted.
People generally say that Nintendo didn't do enough to help the Wii U, which may be true, though I would argue that Nintendo did well by the console. What I mean by that is - if the Wii U was a sinking ship - they were the captain that was not afraid to go down with it, or at least see it through to the end.
They still released Smash Bros., Mario Kart, Splatoon, etc. when every other developer had abandoned ship. They were smart to support the Wii U for a few years, if only to not completely alienate their hardcore fans.
Despite the shortcomings of the console, I still think it's had better games than the Xbox One. I feel much more ripped off by my Xbox One than I do by my Wii U.
The Wii U is still a great system. Nintendo just needs to make games for it. How, about a new Ten Eighty, F-Zero, etc. Why the new iPad thingy with a basic gamepad. Has Nintendo forgotten how to make interesting gamepads? Such as the ones for the SNES, N64, Gamecube. This Switch looks like a generic game system.
@Syrek24
"Not the sales, not the negativity, and certainly not the toxic fanbase."
It seems you have something in common with Nintendo. They don't care about sales, negativity or their fans either!
Do you really think MK8 or Smash 4 will stand the test of time once their inevitable successors release? Or mario maker for that matter? Maybe DKTF will, but the others likely won't.
@Syrek24 Woah, you're back... Welcome back.
@Xaessya I knew there was something off about that "peeking behind the curtains" depiction...
I think what a lot of y'all are forgetting is the general public's role in this. The GP chose to reject the Wii U the moment it was launched (also due to the pricing, bad advertising/marketing techniques, and lack of strong launch titles) and once they have done that then the system is basically doomed for good.
Everyone loves to overuse the name confusion excuse but honestly I don't think that many people were confused by the systems title it was more so that they already owned a nice Wii they enjoyed and didn't want to spend the extra money for what seemed to be an unpromising system at launch. It's like saying "Well since it is called the Xbox one people may be confused that they are re-releasing the first generation Xbox" The Xbox has always been called the Xbox and the PS the PS through each recent generation because they have always offered a similar concept. The Wii U always had a similar concept to the Wii but with an extra strange controller and not much else so I don't know why some of y'all feel so betrayed by Nintendo when you were the one who chose to buy it considering the circumstances.
The Wii U wasn't a bad system, just extremely rushed which caused a poor launch with some not so up to standard specs (which really weren't all that horrible for nintendo?), and a lot of misconceptions and false negativity especially from people who never even owned the system. Hopefully Nintendo has learned from this and their mistakes, I am excited and hopeful for the Switch's future.
Good article! I'm glad that you did include the Yooka Laylee issue. Wild speculation and accusations ruled today, even with concrete information becoming evident.
When it comes down to it, the Wii U has had many struggles attributed to it, for various reasons... Time to let it go and move on. It is the Sega Saturn 2.0. (Outside of Japan- the Saturn performed better than the N64 in Japan.) Both the Wii U and Saturn have plenty of decent games, and several excellent games that stand out from the crowd, but they both ultimately failed to catch on like their immediate predecessor. There are many parallels between the two- that could be an article in itself!
Let's hope Nintendo doesn't make the Sandwitch into a Dreamcast. I don't think they will, though, since Nintendo has plenty of money in the bank. Signs point toward a much better 9th console generation performance. Let's hope they kick it off with a bang!
I'm playing Tokyo Mirage Sessions and it's a reminder of how unique and amazing a Wii U game can be, yet is very underrated. Sadly. That said, I'm not so sad with the Wii U death, it was dead even before, and the anticipation for the Switch is a great thing to feel.
@therealgamer Backers can get a full refund.
@Frank90 Yeah, it would be different if it wasn't getting replaced with something as amazing as the Switch.
@Syrek24
I didn't care for those things either (the voice chat and the console's power compared to the competition, that is), but I think that your comment sounds a tad arrogant.
Putting the words "Nintendo" and "fan" between quotation marks to suggest that dismayed or less than pleased fans aren't true fans just makes you look like a jerk.
I mean, it's GOOD that YOU and a few others had a good time with the console, but superimposing your opinion over that of other people, who have a problem with how Nintendo handled the Wii-U, and chalking it up to "fan toxicity" instead of legit reasons seems super ignorant, and highly uncalled for.
Almost all the games you listed there will more than likely get an enhanced version on the Switch, which makes my (along with many other people's) purchase of those same games redundant.
Ironically enough, the game that finally made me purchase my Wii-U was Mario Kart 8. I saw that as proof that Nintendo would do everything in their power to develop more interesting games from their core franchises for the console. Now it turns out that the same game will come out on the Switch with more content. To a lot of people, that's infuriating.
In the end, the Wii-U didn't even get an exclusive Zelda game. ZELDA, out of all their franchises. All we got were slightly altered HD versions of pre-existing Zelda games. That says a lot about why a lot of people feel ripped off by Nintendo.
@Syrek24 Yeah. The Wii U had some of the greatest games of its era, and the gamepad helped to make them unique as well, including Splatoon and Mario Maker.
To me it has more must own games than any other current gen console.
Wii U was last generation and died about 3 years ago. Still had some great games despite its failure.
@G_M "Nintendo fans" shouldn't get so upset because they never got a particular exclusive they think they want. All gamers really want are great games, and when we say we want a specific thing it often goes south when they give us what we think we want.
The only reason why the Wii U got the software it did was because of the ARM processors in the thing. The PPC (PowerPC) part of it was just used to decompress the files and nothing more. 1/3rd of the games are PPC while 2/3rds are running on the Duel ARM processors in the system itself. As in, the Wii U games are hack jobs for the ARM part of the system.
Which explains why the Nintendo Switch is getting upgraded ports of Wii U titles. And I don't blame developers making the "Switch". lol
The switch has more power, ram and more processor cores for games.
TBH, I'm not a big tablet fan either.
I miss GBA really. And N64.
@Syrek24 The fanbase has a right to be toxic. The Wii U had some great games, but so did other systems like the PS4, XBone, and PC (If you want to count PC as a system). Unfortunately, due to the third parties dropping off, people who only owned a Wii U didn't get to experience those games. Not only that, but the gamepad was under-utilized for the most part. Plus, the Wii U didn't get games from a lot of Nintendo fans most beloved franchises, like a true 3D Mario. It also didn't get a new Zelda until the end of it's life, which the Switch also happens to be getting.
I'm glad you enjoyed the Wii U, but a lot of people didn't, and I think there's a reason it had such abysmal sales. I consider myself a Nintendo fan, and my fondest gaming memories come from Nintendo games, but I still never seriously considered a Wii U. I just hope Nintendo gets back on track with the Switch, because it would be a shame to see another failure on their part.
@Kirby, Yeah.
I see the releases of HW Legends, and SMM3ds, and I get angry cause it was stuff already with a place on Wii U.
The Wii U version gets dropped, leaving ppl to repurchase the game. It's frustrating.
What others have said before I hated seeing games that were already on steam for a while and then they port it to Wii U. Why bother?
Probably end up buying Switch to play Nintendo games only.
This will be the Wii U's fifth holiday season, and it isn't replaced yet.
That's the lease of life that all Nintendo home consoles are given, and the Wii U has continuoudly received and good bit of titles over the past year, albeit in form of eShop releases.
I'm slightly desmayed about not getting to play Hyperlight Drifter and Yooka Laylee on my Wii U, but that's how it is.
"The Wii U is only just over four years old, but is almost last-gen", umm...the system has felt like a last gen console basically a couple months after it was released, when x1 and ps4 where revealed, then eventually released a year after the Wii U. Nintendo finally went into that generation in its last year, while the other two where doing it for like 6 years before Nintendo bothered to make a system to compete
@Syrek24
I'm like you. didn't want a wii u. sorta defaulted into one because a guy on craigslist traded me straight up for a zelda 3ds that I got on sale. basically a wii u for $150......... then i loved it. Luigi U, Mario Maker, DKC:TF, Mario Kart 8 (first i've enjoyed since DoubleDash) some of my greatest gaming experiences.
Thing is... a lot of people are like us, but a LOT more want voice chat, grafixxxx!!!!1, annual CoD and Battlefield, etc. That's why we are so happy and others forgot about it. There is a very real but relatively small crowd of people for whom Wii U was a nice fit. Switch is trying to please both but no one has pulled that off yet.
@Moon
But it was Nintendo's ship and they ran it into the rocks because they were the captain. You can't exactly expect people to jump on board a sinking ship just because it says Nintendo on the side.
I actually think it took 2 years for them to realize they couldn't save it and 2 years to figure out the switch. I guess they went down with the ship but I'm not sure what other choice they had.
@SharkAttackU The Switch should be completely different. Up until this point, Nintendo has been dividing their games in half, some for the portable and some for the home. Now that they're all one, the library of just 1st party games alone should be huge.
For instance, the Wii U had 718 games, and the 3DS has had 988 games, so that's 1706 games if they had a unified console. Nintendo game droughts are about to be a thing of the past.
@Syrek24 I don't think anyone really questions that the Wii U had several great games going for it. Most people are just disappointed that it turned out like a Sega Saturn 2.0 in more ways than one (outside of Japan). Plenty of fun to be had for those who embrace it, but not much in the way of volume.
The Saturn received one of the most acclaimed games of all time in Panzer Dragoon Saga in 1998, prior to it's final year, but no one could reasonably deny that Sega had screwed the Saturn over from receiving more excellent titles in it's final year (again, outside of Japan). Just like there was never a true flagship Sonic title for the Saturn, there was never a true 3D Mario adventure flagship for the Wii U. (And possibly not even a Zelda flagship, either...) Nights Into Dreams and Super Mario 3D World were both very good for their respective time periods, but they cannot replace the true icons.
We're seeing history be repeated here with the Wii U. It was somewhat barren in 2016, but 2017 will be a wasteland for Wii U, nearly mirroring the 1998/1999 situation for the Saturn. Nintendo's portable console business is once again single-handedly carrying them amidst a stormy decline. Let's hope they'll learn their lesson for the NS.
@therealgamer Sony put Little Big Planet 3 and MLB16 on PS3 as well as PS4, just not much more. Sony will make more games on PS4, where the install base is higher, and who would blame them.
For people defending the Wii U, it's fine to do so! I own a Gamecube and love it to death, but I knew that it wasn't the highest selling system of the generation but I was still fine with it. People can love their Wii U's, but nintendo Will and Wants to put it behind them, even they wouldn't have made big huge games for it, because there was a strong hope of not getting the money back in return for it, which is the same for 3rd party developers. PS4 and XBONE have the highest install base, leaving Switch to try and catch up with that...and Switch has a ways to go at launch. If the Switch sells out and becomes a huge hit, the companies will release the 'BETTER' and 'BIGGER' games on it, take risks with games only for the system and bring more games out for it...the reason the Wii U didn't have many games, wasn't due to 3rd parties, it was the lack of people actually buying the system itself, and with the Switch coming out in March, who could blame a developer wanting to rush their game over to that instead of a console that even the main company that made it, has moved away from? The companies are going to go where the money is.
@SharkAttackU "Westerners aren't going to lug around an 8 inch tablet just to play games."
You don't ride on public transportation very often, do you? I've seen all kinds of people lugging around tablets bigger than the NS mobile component on the bus and train, while playing games on them. The only reason why I wouldn't do so, personally, is because there would be a higher risk of it being stolen than the more pocketable 3DS.
Technically the Wii U was in the 8th gen along with the 360/PS3; as those systems went for double the regular lifespan. That makes the XBO/PS4 and Switch 9th gen systems.
For me the Wii U was the best console of the 8th/9th gens. It might not have had all the 3rd party junk but it did have the best games (Bayonetta 2 alone is better than the other consoles 8th/9th gen efforts). Sadly it was overlooked because of 'graphix' and Nintendo's inability to market anything effectively.
@james_squared I kinda felt that way- until I saw the ad and the demo. I will still love my Wii U no matter how cool the Switch is. i have too many games on it not to.
"As Games Jump to Nintendo Switch, We See How Quickly the Industry Moves On"
Everything is wrong about that title. The industry is not willing to move on. PS4 Pro? XB1 Scorpio? The industry is resistant to change. They want to keep their consoles for as long as possible. Sony and MS are famous for making mid generation consoles, pro or slim versions to extend how long their current console can be sold. They are resistant to move on to a new console without backwards compatability.
It's Nintendo who have had an approx 5 year console cycle since the SNES that is bucking the industry trend to move on to newer consoles at a much more rapid pace. I do think the Switch if it sells really well could be sold for longer than 5 years though.
Also the article author is clearly ignoring game stores outside the one he charry picked to talk about here. My EB games has the Nintendo section right at the front of the store. Actually all EB games stores in Australia do. (Nintendolife had Australia though).
There's so much wrong about this article.
It's odd people are fighting over whether the Wii U is more powerful than the PS3 or the PS3 is more powerful than the Wii U are completely missing the point. The chip architecture that was used in the Wii U is much more limited than the PS3, 360 and especially the newer generation. You can put all the RAM you like behind a bad chip & you will still get bad results. Consider this, the chip architecture used in the Wii U is basically a modified, overclocked gamecube.
As for "lying devs", any quick scouring of gaming sites shows that developers like Activision and Ubisoft were struggling to get things to work right from the start of the Wii U. Activision came straight out and said they had to cut SO much from their Call of Duty games to get them to run, they didn't know if they could even call them Call of Duty.
It's tough, but if Yooka-Laylee is chugging under some modern PCs then what was the Wii U going to do. I find it ironic people attack the power of the Switch which uses the latest chipsets but then defend the Wii U which threw RAM at a 90's CPU.
@Spoony_Tech New SNES game being developed in 2016 - Unholy Night: The Darkness Hunter
https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2016/12/former_snk_staffers_are_bringing_a_new_fighter_to_the_snes
You say old Nintendo consoles don't get new games?
@the8thark Well to be fair, Playstation only exists due to Nintendo trying to extend the life of the SNES.
If the darn Wii U just worked with x86, had a stronger CPU, and a hard drive the Wii U might still be doing well today, but Nintendo wanted to copy the success of the Wii by releasing something difference with weak hardware, the only thing good inside the Wii U was its GPU which is strong than the Xbox 360 and the PS3's GPU.
To the people complaining about the lack of WiiU 3rd party games I say this:
How many Sony 1st party games are there for the PS4?
How many MS 1st party games are there for the XB1?
At times Nintendo fill the void when the 3rd parties are not there. That's not a bad thing, that's just how Nintendo consoles are.
Sony and MS need 3rd parties because they have nothing else. Nintendo need 3rd parties too but nowhere as much because Nintendo make their own games as well.
I feel that those demanding that 3rd parties still support the Wii U need to grow up. Like others have said earlier, why support a system that the platform holders themselves have all but abandoned. I mean if you compare the releases that hit the ps3 during it's last years and compare that to the releases that the wii got, you see a huge gulf. Nintendo has been infamously poor at supporting their old systems when the new one is coming up. The only exception I could think of is with the ds and the 3ds.
Think about it from a dev's point of view. Let's use the Hyper Light Drifter team since they are a great example. In their video that they posted about canning the wii u and vita versions they stated that it took them months of work just to release on pc, ps4, and xbone. They put themselves into terrible health conditions. Now they have to try to port their game to a system that has next to no one still playing/ buying games on it and they'll have to start over from scratch to build that specific version. In addition, the longer you wait to release that version, the less people will be interested in buying it due to how long it took to come out. So do you choose to work on that version or do you cut your losses and can it to save your own health and sanity? It's not that hard of a choice. It sucks but what can you do.
@DanteSolablood A well thought out comment (#114). Couldn't agree more. Nintendo fans really are blind sometimes, and apparently it is completely not done to both be a fan and be critical of Nintendo's mistakes. Oh, well...
@Syrek24 I will quote you because what you said is just so true and well said.
"Nintendo fans are truly some of the most ungrateful, spoiled fanbase I've ever seen. It's not about having fun with you guys. It's about sales and about staying in the past, never looking towards the future like Nintendo always does. Your love is as hallow as your passion for gaming. Soulless and fake."
This article was a good read and I think tackles the biggest challenge for gaming companies nowadays. What is your product? Who is it for? What will replace it down the road? These are questions all developers will face. I didn't know the Wii U existed for its first year (I wasn't really looking for a console either TBH). I bought it after playing a demo of SMB3DW in a mall in Vancouver. I bought my system at the end of 2013 and had one year where I could buy older games and look forward to MK8 SSBU etc. It's been years of feeling behind. I still enjoy the system and as a quasi-collector, I know I'll play the games for a long time and be happy with the substantial collection I have (in relation to how many games actually exist). However, Switch better deliver for me as consumer or I can't justify forking out the money. I'm very happy with my XB1 and PS4 consoles because I always know there is something coming next. Haven't felt that way with Nintendo for ages.
@DanteSolablood Sony wanted it but Nintendo said no. If Nintendo was on board it would have happened. Nintendo were happy to move on. Nintendo even canned Star Fox 2 because they wanted the N64 to be the next big thing.
@3MonthBeef
The PS4 is just a better PS3.
The PS4 Pro is just a better PS4.
Mid cycle or new generation, all have the same results. There is no big shake up of how the players play the game like the Wii, WiiU and Switch have.
@the8thark Incorrect, Nintendo wanted it but gave Sony the rights to games released on the CD component and later regretted the financial aspect. Nintendo wanted it so much they then went to Phillips & gave them rights to Nintendo characters in exchange (remember that terrible Zelda CDi game?). Nintendo didn't even tell Sony about the Phillips deal until the DAY Sony were to reveal the Nintendo Playstation.
BTW, interestingly a (mostly) working Nintendo Playstation is out there.
@DanteSolablood Nintendo made the prototype with Sony. True. I've even seen demos for it. And yes the CD-i thing exists too. Nintendo thought they wanted it but realised at the last minute that it would be a bad idea. In hindsight I think Nintendo were correct.
Nintendo changed their mind on this just before the deal was signed. Saved by the bell so to speak. This did anger Sony and further strengthened their efforts to make their own console.
@the8thark Actually the Sony deal was signed & the Nintendo Playstation was at a trade show when the Nintendo-Phillips partnership was announced. Nintendo got out of it through a loophole. Nintendo basically dropped the CD attachment based on dismal sales of Phillips made Nintendo games on the CDi. Nintendo have a history of annoying companies by being strong handed.. remember Nintendo losing Final Fantasy 7 by refusing to let Square have a bigger cart?
But yep, Playstation probably wouldn't have been a thing if Nintendo wasn't looking for a hardware iteration (there are actually Japanese iterations like the SNES (floppy) disk system that never made it over.) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Family_Computer_Disk_System
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/64DD
@the8thark I'm pretty sure the other consoles' fanbases are just as toxic as the Nintendo one is, it's just that the Nintendo fanbase has a bit more to complain about with the whole WiiU-situation and all...
Saying "I love your games Nintendo, but what have you been doing the past few years?" isn't hollow or fake, if anything it's the blindly taking whatever Nintendo dishes out and going "Thank you sir, may i please have another?" that's hollow and fake...
It was effectively last gen the day it hit store shelves
@SharkAttackU I think you're in for a huge shock then
I have loved my wiiu , i still do and i will continue to do so. it has a large enough library of really good games , certainly more than i'll ever have time to play through. yes Nintendo launched it badly and there are lots of things that could of been done better, but it is still a good system. PS4 has started to catch fire in recent times with quality and interesting releases, the XBOX for me is still totally dull, of the three i spent more time playing the wiiu and my trusty 360.......unless there is a Steam sale on
I think it didn't reach full potential because of the name Wii U.
I think Wii 2 would have at least made a big difference. To the general public awareness.
@Issi those are some (mostly) great games you cite, natch, but those I cited are easily their equal. Good thing being it needn't be old or new, but both.
@Issi I totally dig your retro gaming response up there lol. I LOOOVE my old games collection, have spent waaay too much cash this year on GBA, GB, and SNES relates games and consoles Plus PSP, I now own all the final fantasies available on PSP including the japanese only ff3 which is actually also playable in english (not many poeple know this) and both Star oceans...
I often check Pushsquare and have a read of some reviews and the comments.I've never owned a Playstation and don't have any real desire to any time soon but I can't say I'm not a little envious of the constant game releases they get.There's no real negativity over there because why would there be.It would be great if the Switch becomes a huge hit and Nintendolife is bursting at the seams with games to review.I'm not sure I could handle coming here regularly if the Switch bombs like the Wii U in its 1st year and all we're reading is game cancellations and 3rd party abandonment.
@OorWullie Well if it helps, the Wii U could have survived it's disastrous launch if developers hadn't had to spend so much time & money rebuilding games almost from scratch for it's Gamecube+ processor. One poor choice killed it. I think it's a good sign that Nintendo have partnered with Nvidia and are using something cutting edge.
So far I've not been too dissapointed with how Nintendo have been handling marketing for the Switch. Let's hope they've learned & the Switch will have a beefy launch line-up.
@MajorasMax agreed. Fact is, every console has its strengths and weaknesses. The WiiU remains my go-to console for the reason it's strengths FAR outweigh it's weaknesses.
The issue is not whether or not games are still being released for Wii U. The issue is that promises and contracts are being broken on a widespread basis, and many people are willingly defending that. Again, if you promise to make a Wii U game for someone, you don't have to make it for EVERYONE. Just make enough copies for the people who have already paid you for one. It's REALLY not this difficult.
The portability gimmick will have to sell the Switch, surely. Because based on the glimpses we've seen of games, there's nothing there that the Wii U itself could not do. Have you seen Assassins Creed on the Wii U? It's about as good as the brief glimpse we had of Skyrim.
@ducktrapper Yeah, when people broke down the Skyrim footage they found that it possibly had a higher level of graphical detail than the 360 version, plus the draw distance on the Zelda BotW footage from Jimmy Fallon would be impossible on the Wii U & didn't drop a frame.
Let's put it this way, it is FACT that the Switch will be at least twice as powerful than the Wii U based on the previous version of the chip the Switch will use. The Switch uses all the latest chip architecture and developing tools (the Wii U used a modified Gamecube processor). The Switch is going to be close to the power of the XB1 when docked.
All of this "it's like a Wii U" nonsense is complete garbage & getting really tiring. Comparing the Switch to the Wii U is like comparing the PS4 to a PS2 & saying they're the same because they both have similar controllers. It's about time people thought of a better way of trying the get attention.
@sandman89
What lies is that?
@Syrek24
Given your spite towards other people ("Nintendo fans" as you so patronisingly call them) and your unpleasant dismissal of a fan base consisting of millions of people because they don't love Nintendo as blindly as you, I find you labeling other people as 'toxic' hilariously ironic, as well as distasteful. People have valid opinions on Nintendo and how, as a consumer, their relationship with the company works that are different to yours. That's how it is. It's not worth spewing bile about.
Consoles, IMO are like two old sayings; "beauty is in the eye of the beholder" and "a product is only worth as much as the buyer is prepared to spend".
For me, I bought my Wii U on launch day, full price, and have not regretted my purchase for one second. For me it was worth the money alone just for off-screen play on the GamePad. Nintendo have always been my first, go-to brand, and this will never change (bare in mind I am 30 now). They produce my style of games that are beautiful, over the top, vibrant and colourful, and just plain fun. And they do all this with games that I do not have to pay the utmost attention to a lot of the time which suits my lifestyle perfectly, as I do not have much time for gaming whatsoever, and sometimes just want a quick half hour Mario Kart session for example.
This doesn't reflect everyone's views obviously, as everyone's tastes in games varies.
I bought an Xbox One in August 2014 and think it is a fantastic console, and it is my second go-to console. It seems to be doing the job nicely this gen for me (unlike last gen when the 360 was my least favourite). I enjoy the exclusives it has, and again, it seems to fit my lifestyle better than my PS4 ever did. The exclusives that I play I feel like I can play for half an hour and get somewhere, or 3 hours straight and have a damn good gaming session. I was lured by the likes of Ryse, Sunset Overdrive, Halo Masterchief Collection and Forza Horizon 2.
I got a PS4 in August 2015, and though there is nothing wrong with the console whatsoever, it is a perfectly fine piece of hardware, it was always my last go-to console. I loved God Of War 3, The Order 1886, and The Last of Us is probably one of the finest games that isn't a Nintendo game that I have played in the last 10-15 years (if not one of the best non-Nintendo games for me full stop). However, no matter how much I tried, I never found the time to fully immerse myself into the Nathan Drake Collection or anything else, so I sold the console to my Brother-In-Law just last week. However, when the final edition of the PS4 is released in years to come, and there are lots more exlusives that tickle my interest, there is no doubt in my mind that I will buy another one one day. It's just that I prefer games that with very little time now, that I can play for 30 minutes to an hour at a time. With PS4 exclusives that are a very in-depth, storytelling style, 30 minutes is not enough to ever really get anywhere in the game. I would spend half an hour in Uncharted just trying to figure out where I need to go next. Sometimes it's just the cut scene and then a few minutes of game play and I have to turn it off. This is not a bad thing though, as I love games with stories that are as good and well written as the ones I just mentioned, it's just I personally do not have the time for them, and when I do, I'm either too tired to concentrate on the story, or, I would simply rather play something else on the big screen for my Wii U or Xbox One that doesn't need my deepest thoughts and braincells.
In a few years I will probably sell my Xbox One though, as eventually, the games that I personally enjoy for it may dry up, and it becomes another dust collector.
My Wii U though, I look at the games it has like a fantastic childrens author; they are just timeless. And there is only one of them per console. If you want to play the original Mario Kart 8 (not a port) for example, then there is only one console you need to have to play it on. And that is why I will never sell or trade in my Wii U or any of its games.
Everyone's tastes and what they want from a console are different. Me personally? I want colour, imaginitive, over the top mindless escapism in a game, and the Wii U has provided this for me for over 4 years now, and for that I am grateful, and will always love my Wii U for. It reminds me of owning an N64, Dreamcast, or to the biggest extent IMO, the Sega Saturn, where you wore your ownership like badge of honour, because no one else had one, but they all wanted to come round your house to play on yours.
Buy what you like, but like what you buy. Leave the sales figures, profit margines etc to the people that deal with that, and let it be their problem whilst you enjoy your purchase Does it matter who has the biggest market share to us gamers? As long as we personally are part of the market share that has the games we want to play, be it Nintendo, Sony or Microsoft
As much as I love my wii u I remember launch day when I was done my update and I finally started the system I thought to myself, " this is a disaster". After many of updates the system started to run a little better but never rebounded from the bad press. I hope that Nintendo learned from this disaster and the operating system on the switch is running decent out of the box or we could be in for a short run.
@GuruOfGreatness "Buy what you like, but like what you buy. Leave the sales figures, profit margines etc to the people that deal with that, and let it be their problem whilst you enjoy your purchase"
Truth.
Most of the comments above have great points and a lot of truth to them but I've never questioned or regretted buying the Nintendo Wii U. I never cared what others said. At the time, I purchased the system with most games that I wanted to play. The games that came out for the Wii U have great replay value. Most can be played past the initial single player campaign, or have very deep or addictive multiplayer. I've said it before, I probably got my money worth with just Mario Kart 8 & Smash, and that's not even including Tropical Freeze, Bayonetta, 3D World, Mario Maker, Yoshi, & Splatoon. None of those games can be found on another home console. Anyways, I think the Wii U's library even though it's small, will live on and be fondly remembered.
@WiltonRoots Well said!
@dkxcalibur I was just quoting @guruofgreatness
I've always been about getting my money's worth out of a console. That's already happened with the Wii U so I have no complaints.
@sandman89
The difference is relative. It has become much easier to develop for PS4/XB1 due to uniform architecture.
@flapjackashley2 How powerful will the Switch be you think? Will it be on par with a PS4 or Xbox One?
Wii U is officially the worst Nintendo console I've ever owned and by far the least played.
I'm glad the Switch is looking much better and I can't wait to switch' console (sorry!)
@the8thark I don't think you're aware of his history on here.
@3MonthBeef It's a reference to overall console generations, with the 1st gen being the Magnavox Odyssey. We're in the 8th gen right now, so NS will be a 9th gen console. PS4Pro/Scorpio could be considered 8th gen upgrades, but will probably be moved up to the 9th gen bracket next year.
'How does the Switch avoid this fate?'
Why not have the Switch put out games that are actually good?
I'm cautiously optimistic for the Switch as if it's close to xbox one specs on the go that's a huge win imo. That said, let's talk about the complete dumpster fire that was the Wii U. Honestly I don't know how it could've possibly succeeded as there was, and still is, so much wrong with the system, my problems are:
1. Online infrastructure is a mess- They finally made purchases tied to accounts which is great, however the account is tied to the system so in reality, purchases are tied to a system still. This is archaic and needs to be fixed asap. In addition, online features like voice chat are still not included in any game (don't give me that lobby in mario kart 8 horse crap, it's a garbage compromise). When you have a system with last gen specs and still doesn't have an online as good as ps3/360 you have a problem. Yes, it's free, but so is online gaming on pc which is leagues better.
2. Low specs, lack of hdd space- R&D clearly did not think this system through. Not only was this system laughably outdated at launch they give you a measly 32gb of space to work with. Games like Xenoblade Chronicles had patches upwards of 5gb in size. Nintendo is clearly trying to get us to buy digital with the Nintendo rewards (which are also crap honestly I miss the physical stuff) but they don't give us any space. Sure you can buy a hdd, but at 300 dollars your system better include some space.
3. Overpriced, gamepad never took off- I'll be frank, the gamepad is awful. As a controller it works but as far as a "OMG I've never played a game before where I could do (insert cool gamepad feature here) Nintendo is on to something," it never had anything of the sort and was quietly nixed and relegated to off-tv play and on the low res screen everything looks muddy and washed-out and frankly isn't fun to play. While Nintendoland showed promise Nintendo never capitalized and as such left the gamepad which adds 50 bucks to a system already overpriced. The Wii U is still retailing for 250-300 dollars which is a joke considering you can get a one of ps4 for the same price.
4. Lack of games- How many months was common between releases? 3, 4? And what if you didn't like said game genre, especially platformers because early on that's all the Wii U had so it wasn't uncommon to go a whole year in between releases that were worth a pick up. Nintendo never bothered to court third parties (ie: throw money at them) and their indie stuff was mostly games released months earlier on other consoles, the scraps if you will, and as such was unable to make games for the system. The 3ds and Wii U both existing stretched Nintendo to thin and it wasn't rare at all to see one system thriving and the other getting next to nothing and the system that got the shaft was mostly the Wii U.
These are just a few things I found wrong with the Wii U. While most fans will say things like, "lazy third parties," and "Nintendo never advertised," the truth is the Wii U had no business existing in its current state given everything that was wrong with it. The Switch looks cool but I have a hard time putting 100% faith in a company that abandoned a sinking ship 2 years ago and forced Wii U owners to deal with that trainwreck of a system in hopes the NX(at the time) is awesome.
For the switch to succeed online and voice chat are a must, indies and third party devs must be on board (not just with boards, they need the multiplats), at least one first party title every 2 months and the system must have specs comparable to at least the xbox one to be a viable home console. If not, it's a handheld you can hook up to your tv which is fine but low specs leads to poor performance once you go from 720p to 1080p. Also hoping the screen is of decent quality as well. Hoping for OLED or something similar.
Looking at sales it's very clear to see why people are moving away from wii u
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_best-selling_Wii_U_video_games
There are some who think that sales don't matter and that they don't make a system. Sales DO determine the success of a system and the success for the people that make games for them. When there are only about 15 or so titles that have sold > 1 million units on the system, it makes very little financial sense to put games on this system. People forget that games are a BUSINESS as well and as a result need to make money to continue making games.
I have had a full year and a half since E3 2015, and I'm done lamenting the fall of the Wii U. We knew back then that Nintendo was finished with the system, though many denied it.
Smash/Kart/Bayonetta in mid-to-late 2014 was the Wii U's peak, and when those games failed to drive hardware to desired numbers, Ninty pulled the plug on all future developments. They've been finishing off completed projects since then.
All else was moved to the Switch. We'll see just how well that move has paid off on January 12th and E3 2017. Here's to finger crossing that Nintendo has been crafting some awesome games in the shadows these last two years.
Wii U was a catastrophe, that's why publishers and even Nintendo themselves are so quick to move on. At the same time, Wii is still getting new games like Just Dance 2017. And as the recent UK charts show, Wii owners are still buying these games.
xP Now I feel bad for having focused on current games more.
It's like a sort of "It's here now, but maybe it won't be later" reaction.
Issi, that's so totally true!
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