Topic: Was this E3 the final nail in the coffin for the Wii U?

I think the question has to be asked: Is there a reason Nintendo should make another home console?

If we look at their console sales, they've trended down in every generation since getting into the business, the Wii being the obvious exception. They will be launching this presumably in year 3(2016) or year 4(2017) of the XB1/PS4 life cycles, right when a lot of the big exclusives will be launching. Also have to take into account that Nintendo is going to have to provide the vast majority of the support for the console.

We already know Nintendo is not going to be competing directly with MS/Sony, so nobody should be expecting a console with a lot of power and standard controller. We also know that the "casual" gaming crowd is not in any hurry to jump the the next gen. That demographic has moved toward mobile for gaming and there are countless options available for them to get the streaming services(Apple TV, Roku, Firebox/stick, Chromecast, etc). If that crowd is upgrading, they are going to go with Sony/MS because of the additional media features those systems provide.

The apple thing IS going to happen, the question is when. What will happen is, the appleTV will get updated and allow apps on it. Some of those apps will become games, and increasingly better games at that. Don’t be surprised to see the nintendo branded controller for nintendo games on those type of devices happening. Apple is still very much a focussed company, and cook is running it very very well, so I disagree with you there. Plus, their product quality is a lot more than the sum of its parts from a user experience standpoint, so count on them hitting a homerun in this space at some point.

Whether or not that controller/extendable is NX is debatable. I also challenge the notion that nintendo shouldn’t want their own hardware - it is a catalyst for their business. It’s a lot of effort for maybe a bit above break even each time, but they need it in order to capitalize on the other stuff they sell. Worked great with the wii, not so much this wii U, a bit during the gamecube, great with the ds, not so much during the final days of 3ds… it’s a business risk but they manage. Without that hardware, nintendo will become a software studio and not have the creative power that allows them into the business the way they do.

But NX could be something hardware agnostic - a path that seems likely. NX could also be something hololens-like. Aka, no tv or screen required at all. So whatever is up and coming, things are definitely going to change, but nintendo will not give up on their own ecosystems, as they catalyse business for them. My bet is that they diversify their hardware, but will still have some form of premium hardware, whether or not we’d call that a console or anything else.

That's how I'm feeling. I can't imagine the niche of the dedicated home console will remain large enough to support big budget games for too much longer. It will be interesting to see what the NX will be, but it's feeling like a last gasp effort to me.

Despite this sentiment I'm keeping the Wii U - why? Because it has games on it that I enjoy playing right now. The idea of selling a machine with a pre-existing library because Nintendo may drop support for it based upon a showing at a conference they don't prioritise makes little sense to me. They're also unlikely to drop support completely with big-selling networked games out there. Honestly some of you people must have such boring lives to manufacture drama like this, but I'm ever so glad there are folk on this very board who are ready to tell Nintendo "what gamers want" by dumping your machines. I will not miss the posts, thanks.

Even if this marks the end of the Wii U I won't sell mine either. I still enjoy Mario Kart 8 plus their are plenty of games I still need to get like Bayonetta 2 for example. Even if nothing that comes out for the Wii U interests me there are still plenty of games on it that do.

Honestly, yea, we may be in the waning years of console gaming (heck, maybe even traditional desktop PC gaming, too). If Nintendo jumps ship, I actually don't think the entire system will come crashing down. Sony and Microsoft have a rather rabid fanbase, and as that fanbase moves into their late teens and early-mid twenties when both companies are ready to launch their next consoles, I think that fanbase will eagerly buy the next piece of hardware. No problem, really.

What I CAN see happening more realistically is that Nintendo "hangs on," whatever that may be (which really all depends on what the NX actually is), and the other two "hardcore" consoles sort of blend into one over time. Third parties will start to put more and more pressure on the idea of "why have two consoles that basically do the same things/run the same games?" and either Sony or Microsoft will say, "You know what? Yea... we're done" and pull out, still making tons of money from software and such. I think the likelier company to leave will be Microsoft given their interest in so many other areas. With the starting direction of Xbox One, it was pretty clear they wanted to move more toward entertainment and connectivity rather than just gaming, but the backlash was so strong and the need for justification and profit was too high to allow them to be stubborn.

I saw more effort for 3ds than Wii U. I said before E3 that Nintendo had to show some fresh new games for the Wii U that people wanted.They didn't, they showed games we knew about for the past year, and the games they did show for the Wii U were either underwhelming or irrelevant. I respect Nintendo but the whole vibe felt like they were just getting ready for the NX. I honestly don't feel we will see any major AAA games, the ones shown will be stretched out until NX comes and Wii U will be dead by that point. I'm afraid Zelda U will be the final major game that wraps up the Wii U.

In Nintendo's defense, the 3DS looked dead in the water this year. Pokemon Super Mystery Dungeon was their "big game", and that's pretty saf

But we're getting Fire Emblem so all is forgiven. No sarcasm, by the way.

Lol, no.

...and the other two "hardcore" consoles sort of blend into one over time. Third parties will start to put more and more pressure on the idea of "why have two consoles that basically do the same things/run the same games?" and either Sony or Microsoft will say, "You know what? Yea... we're done" and pull out, still making tons of money from software and such.

Lol, double-no. All I can say about this post, if it's serious -I can't tell-, is that it's characterized by a profound lack of understanding of the industry and business in general.

I think the Summer of nothing but Splatoon was NoA's plan simply because of how reliant the game is on people playing online. As a new IP you couldn't guarantee the interest would be high enough to be able to take the release of another game over the summer.

Ah, I'm sorry. I forgot that you work in the industry.

Actually, my dad works for Nintendo, m'kay?

Lol, you don't need to work in this industry to grasp the basic concept, and I certainly don't need a half-baked, probably-made-up ethos argument to prove my point.

Stationary (console and desktop) gaming isn't going away just because smart phones got popular, neither are the respective consoles. Know why? Because they sell, a lot. The demand is obviously still there, in droves and spades, no less, and it will continue to be met by companies who, whoa-aho, want to make money.

@GrumbleVolcano I hadn't really thought of that angle, being seeing Nintendo's treatment of Splatoon and how bad they want it to sicceed, that's honestly a really good point. Still doesn't make me happy that I have to wait until September for Yoshi. Especially as you guys already have it. Stupid region locks. >=T

@Haru17 My uncles's roommate's wife works for Nintendo and says she's never heard of a "Haru17's dad" in the workplace, so I think you're full of bologna! More to the actual point, agreed. And as consumers we'd better hope there's more than one console each generation. Monopoly is a bitch to a great number of people, both inside and out of the industry. (Yes, I know PC gaming and Mobile gaming will still be options, but come on! You know there are people that want a traditional console.)

Again, I'm so sorry to insult your intelligence. I obviously must be mistaken if you think counter to me. Your strong, needlessly insulting words have set me straight.

I don't know how to embed the videos

Selling a lot isn't enough. They need to profit. And the AAA market is proving itself less and less profitable every day not just because smartphones got popular, but because AAA games are getting expensive. These two factors combined will make AAA unsustainable at some point, so the console market will likely die out at that point and shift towards mobile and PC. Nintendo might hang on a little longer since it already scales back costs if they're smart enough, but they need mass market demographics the most to stay in business.

Fixed.

I disagree with this, I don't think the marketing would've fixed anything. The games themselves simply don't attract new audiences to 3DS and Wii U nor appeal to their userbase no matter how they spin them. The only thing they could've done short of having a different lineup would've been not to have the Mini Direct and Smash Bros. direct and incorporate those announcements into the Digital Event. It wouldn't have fixed things entirely, but I do think they would've looked upon the lineup slightly more favorably.

I also liked what this person said

http://www.ign.com/articles/2015/06/25/opinion-why-nintendos-...

That comment section illustrates a major problem with IGN and gamers in general. "I refuse to see the good in things I don't 100% agree with and will continue to call you delusional, claim you're being paid off, and just generally be a jerk about a fifty minute presentation that didn't soecifically give me what I wanted."