Reggie Calls Wii U A "Failure Forward" Because It Led To Switch

I enjoyed the Wii U, but they made a LOT of mistakes with that thing. Solved most of them with Switch though, even if they also went a step back in certain other regards.

Looking forward to hearing more of Reggie's insights from his time at Nintendo. He's so much more than the smooth talking suit some people wanted to paint him as.

The Wii U was Nintendo's first HD console, and they've admitted it took time for them to learn how to make HD games and have enough people who knew how to do it. The 3DS has been melded into the business model of the Switch to make a compelling console.

I don't think the Wii U was a hardware or software failure, as much as business wise failure for Nintendo as they learned they would have to concentrate just on the Switch instead of the Wii U and 3DS to satisfy the platform owners.

Still some absolute corkers on the wii U tho. I wont ever sell my WW edition.

The Wii U was massively valuable for me because I didn't have a Wii, so the backcompat was important. It also plays Gamecube games unofficially. So it's something I'll hang onto for decades. As long as it works.

Had a lot of fun with the Wii U, together with my son. Mario wii u and mario 3d world was excellent co op games.

The Wii U was a failure as far as sales-wise. There is no denying that. But from a creative standpoint, I feel it housed some of Nintendo's best first-party offerings... Splatoon and Super Mario Maker were born on the Wii U, for instance.

WiiU was awesome... I have no regrets.

It’s a great console with great games and backwards compatible and has a great library of eshop and virtual console games and has. . . And . .

As much as I love my Wii U I can acknowledge it had plenty of problems and no amount of improved marketing would have saved it. But like any failure, the best thing you can do is learn from it (and hope you have the ability to bounce back from it).

Hope to re-hook mine up back soon and start acquiring some TG-16 and GBA titles.

It took a failure as total as the Wii U to right Nintendo's outlook after the hugely successful Wii. Lightning often doesn't strike twice in the tech field, as Apple is slowly being forced to learn with their constant phone releases in a saturated market ripe for something different, and Nintendo is no exception to that. The Wii U was ambitious but hard to communicate, and its gimmick made the act of simply enjoying good games unnecessarily challenging (see Starfox Zero).

The Switch is a return to form for Nintendo, and ranks more in line with the Nintendo 64, GameCube, Nintendo DS, and the Super Nintendo than it does the Wii U or Visual Boy. They have not only released a superior product with merits that can be communicated in a literal "snap" sound effect and changed the internal specs of the system to make developing for Switch incredibly simple for third parties, but have fundamentally changed how they work with those third parties. Most importantly of all, they have changed how they schedule their own first party releases, guaranteeing a full year of solid titles year-round every year since its release. The software is what sells systems, and having a great system that helps rather than hinders software development is a huge plus for the Switch over the Wii U.

You need to fail sometimes to get better. Basic principal of learning.
I enjoyed (still is) Wii U for what it was. It had great games on it that were often in the top 10 rated every week. But the marketing of that thing was just awful and I grew tired very quickly of the gamepad especially when being forced to play on it when co-op. I played 90% of the time with the pro controller only. Still no regrets in having one.....and its still has some of the best version of some games for that generation such as NFS Most Wanted and RE: Revelations.

PS - Wii U still has a better eShop UI than Switch. There I said it...

The Wii U wasn't a mistake, the incredible library it has left behind will remain entertaining and the template for new games for years to come.

I'm one of the many who didn't get the WiiU. Nintendo owner since the SNES but the controller on the WiiU was the turn off for me - far too big, and I wasn't buying into the second screen benefits.

However, Nintendo clearly started to look at the market performance and nailed it with the Switch and the intervening investment in the 3DS family.

Well yeah the Wii U was NX V1
i played most of my Wii U games exclusively on the gamepad,
and then it dawned on me that the NX was perfect for me.

Marketing wise the Wii u was a failure. It also was limited hardware wise so with the concept they had, I honestly don't think they could have done any better. All of last gen, I mean PS4 and Xbox one, was in a weird place where hardware made a jump a couple years after it came out which is why the pro and X were a good idea for the hardcore crowd. Basically, yeah, the switch is basically what they wanted the Wii u to be, but with all the marketing lessons they learned from it's relative failure.

I still think the second iteration of the switch is what I really, really, want. Mobile tech hasnt really hitting the same plateau (or at least slowdown) yet as the solutions going in the consoles now. I mean, the big thing that's always the limiting thing is heat. I think what the switch is is incredible, but I'd wish it wasn't as limited in terms of cpu especially so we could get deeper and more varied games. Like, people think better hardware means we get to play games that look a bit better, and it does, but it mostly means devs have more room to push gaming forward. More juice let's the devs do cooler stuff. Like Botw with more than 5 colors of 7 enemies and the same hill and plain retextured 6 times. That game is a marvel of physics and art design than anything else.

@kuliddar I mean, I think the thing is you need to fail to learn full stop. No one changes things that work.

I think Switch is a transition console.
Some signs show more and more that it's a portable in Nintendo's heart. And that it's the succeessor of DS and 3DS.

That's a big technological leap for a portable.

So maybe it hints that Nintendo is preparing a new home console, a big technological leap too. Maybe as powerful as PS5 ? Who knows 🙂

(go crazy internet !)

I was out of the gaming loop during the Wii U era, and didn't experience that console.

It’s a failure but I love the console. Still buying games for the old bag

I don't understand how the WiiU was a failure. I enjoyed it much more than the original Wii. It did everything the Wii did, but better and didn't require me to use a Wiimote and point it at the screen to begin a game as the cursor wildly moved around the screen. In terms of sales it was a failure, but it fixed all the technical issues of the original. I think the WiiU also suffered because people who didn't have a great experience with the original Wii were probably skeptical of how the WiiU could be any better. The name Wii "U" also didn't help

It's clear from the Switch's success that Nintendo learned a LOT from the Wii U's failure. Hardware missteps and marketing fails aside, the system still has a lot of value for me. The backwards Wii compatibility, handful of amazing exclusives (though this is understandably shrinking) and VC are welcome in my book.

Putting aside better marketing and a massive launch game in the form of BotW, I think the big difference between the two is that the Wii U felt reactionary, like Nintendo was chasing a tech trend without understand the reason that trend was popular in the first place, whereas the Switch is Nintendo leaning into their strength as a manufacturer of portable hardware in order to offer something that the competition is unable to.

The success of the Switch also cements something else, I think: Nintendo's probably never going back to traditional home consoles again. And thank goodness for that.

Nintendo's mistake is in putting consoles ahead of games. i would play Nintendo games on a playstation if that were possible.

What I have realised is that Nintendo has found its place in the games market and high end graphics are not on their must do list.

So to play NEW big open world games (other than Zelda) we need a second console. Which I guess a lot if gamers have anyway. I like the Switch but some games are better on a big screen and the graphics trade off for portability is not always better.

Back on topic, the Wii U was a good example of Nintendo putting the cart before the horse.

@smashboy2000 I mean, the switch fills a great niche of it kinda being a homeconsole, but primarily being a handheld. It's so much better at being a handheld that I tell anyone that ask if they should get a switch now to get the lite considering the thing as a whole is better handheld and the lite is significantly better than the OG as a handheld.

But, I don't think the hybrid thing is a stopgap — they found out there is a market for this thing and they literally own it — the technology is just not cheap enough to make the concept as full as it should be. Kinda. They, like next year, could try selling a console a lot like the switch but with a better SOC that allows stable 720-900p handheld docked all the time. If that's all the do with a hypothetical switch 2 or switch pro, it's not worth it because docked mode would only see more stable framerates and maybe hit 1080p much more often. Which is dope, but it's about what the new 3ds is in terms of an upgrade

However, if they find a way to cost effectively integrate a graphics solution in the dock, there you go, it's now an effective home console. Now, do I think that if they did that now it would be ps5/scarlet level? No chance. Even ignoring cooling the dock, that would be crazy expensive on top of all the stuff that makes the switch handheld. But maybe they could hit better than the base PS4 and under the ps4 pro and allow 4k upscaling on some games. Hell, I dunno anything about this, but just throw a 1060m and a fan in the dock and call it a day. The problem is that it probably would have to come before or after the next gen because it won't be cheap and unlike the base switch, it'll compete with the same market that's interested in less casual gaming.

Still love, and absolutely play mine as often as my Switch. Yes, there were things Switch improved on, and things Switch could mimic from WU, such as a somewhat easier to navigate e-Shop, and definitely allowing users to backup their own data at the very least, if not also their own digital games.

The WU was Nintendo's headfirst dive into hd graphics, nfc, and to my knowledge, dlc. Also, the experiment of their own closed social media platform, Miiverse, which in my opinion, could have lived, just needed to be overhauled. Nintendo, and Namco having Pac-Man Vs. on Gamecube/Gameboy Advance was already an experiment into asymmetrical gameplay, but WU was a system that made that concept of that style gameplay more mainstreamed, though to my knowledge, it never fully caught on outside of the WU itself, or even really inside.

And yes, I believe WU helped lead to Switch, and its success. I also love the backwards-compatibility with Wii, and Wiiware/Wii VC.

It was surely a mistake. The gimmicky controler was unnecessary and made it expensive. Poor hardware specs didn't help to convince people to buy it. Nintendoland wasnt wii sports.
Worst of all, Nintendo didnt really support the system.

I wanted a Wii U but I was waiting on an Animal Crossing title to be announced...which ended up being Amiibo Festival. Imagine my disappointment.

Still, I came this close to picking up one anyway so I could play Mario Kart 8...and the rest is history as I'm glad I waited for the Switch. (I'm especially glad Nintendo decided to port some Wii U titles over which would have been criminal otherwise between Mario Kart 8 and Zelda: Breath of the Wild alone.)

@Xansies I agree with that. I don't think a "Switch Pro" would present a bigger gap as the New 3DS did. And I think the more probable scenario would be that a "Switch 2" would be a PS4 with 4K ability in some way.

BUT. Never forget that the "probable scenario" in the Wii U's time, when it was obviously a failure, was that they go for a big technical leap for the next console, going back in the technical war with Sony and Microsoft. Everybody thought that they had absolutly no choice but that one.
And... they went "the Nintendo way", with a whole new concept, the Switch. First reactions were "Oh no, they're doing it again, they never learn and that will be a huge failure again obviously !", which is kinda funny to remember two years later as the Switch is an enormous success

As you say, the Switch makes more and more sense every day as a handheld machine. So... are they gonna leave the home console market to competitors ?
I'm sure they won't. But I can't guess what they're going to do for that because Nintendo has its own way.

Maybe the Switch is made only to strenghted their handheld power as I was assuming in my last post. Maybe not

The Wii U was a failure of circumstances more than a bad idea. The marketing for it was a disaster, the development of games took too long and then was trickled out, EA did everything in it's power to undercut it, and then Activision and Ubisoft put the nails in the coffin.

Nintendo never embraced the console fully, and games that could (and probably should) have been on the console was put on the 3DS. They also insisted on using features no one was interested in which killed sales of games (Amiibo Festival and Star Fox Zero).

But it was a console I still love, and probably will remain one of my favorites.

What i believe is that Nintendo should make hardware on par with its rivals or stop doing so.

The WiiU had a lot of potential at the beginning, but i think it fell apart because: (1) it didn't differentiate itself enough from the Wii at launch. Had it come out with a totally different game--not mario bros. that looked like the wii version--maybe that would've helped. (2) the 3rd party launch games did not sell well enough to keep them on board with Nintendo. (3) the lengthy dry spells between releases made Nintendo look like they didn't know what they were doing with the Wii U.

But it was those first 9 months after launch that killed the Wii U.

Wii U had some of my favourite Nintendo Exclusives of any generation. MK8, Mario Maker, Pikmin 3, Donkey Kong TF, Super Mario 3D World, Windwaker HD, Yoshi, Captain Toad, Splatoon, Wonderful 101... I had such a good time with that console.

@Ralizah "Nintendo's probably never going back to traditional home consoles again. And thank goodness for that."

But Nintendo needs something at least twice as powerful as Scarlett to compete! Didn't you know?!

Seriously, the Cube was their last "traditional console" and it was a trainwreck. Wii and WiiU were more novelty experiments (one tremendously successful, one an abject failure) than "traditional consoles" in any sense.

Back in 2012/2013, most people I knew either didn't know what a Wii U was or thought it was some fancy Wii controller accessory.

Now, most people I know either still don't know what a Wii U is or think it is some weird fat version of the Switch.

Pretty sad honestly. Being confused as a fancy accessory of your predecessor or a downgraded thicc version of your successor is not a position any platform deserves to be in.

The switch would not be dominating the market right now if the wiiu was successful. And we would have more titles with less effort put into them as well! Failure leads to miracles, you just need to learn and work from them

Ha the Wii U wasn't even a mistake. Most games on the switch are better on the Wii U. The only mistake they made was the lack of advertising. Especially when you consider for the Switch Nintendo paid millions for a spot on the most expensive ad time in the states, the Super Bowl. Probably more than the entirety of the Wii U's advertising the Switch spent in 30 seconds.

When I first saw the Wii U, I thought, "Man, it'd be cool if they made a whole game console that could fit in just the tablet!" and what do you know, Nintendo actually did it.

The WiiU had many great games, they deserved a second chance on the Switch. It was let down by poor quality ports (Watch_Dogs, Assassin’s Creed, FIFA), hopefully the lesson has been learned with sublime magic in Switcher3 and Doom et al.

@Cheez "Most games on the switch are better on the Wii U."

How that? Even if we treat the Switch as a pure home console and ignore its 'switching' ability, nearly every game that's on both systems performs better on Switch, has more content on Switch, or, as is often the case, both performs better and features more content.

Nintendo is one of few companies in this industry that can step back and say “yeah we screwed up”. Then just move forward with the hope of being better.

They fixed a lot of things, like the slow UI and the insistence on gimmicks, but a lot of other things haven't improved like the awful online (and now they charge!)

There's no arguing that it was a commercial failure in the end, which is more a matter of timing than quality. As a piece of hardware, it was basically their best console to date during its era. It brought Nintendo games into HD, and was able to pretty much handle everything their previous consoles could, including having their most successful console basically built into it.

On paper, that sounds pretty solid. But the marketing was handled terribly, from the poorly thought out name to the lack of proper promotion, and the competition just squeezed it out of the running.

@Ralizah
Seemingly the Switch and the Wii U undocked in the living room are the same. But what about in docked mode for both? Lets look at Assassin's Creed on the Wii U you constantly have a map in your hands that you can plot where you want to go, look for items, etc. without entering another menu. On the Switch you can't. This is the case for about every game that has been on both systems, you have a map, or some functionality that you can interact with all while staying in the main game. Or Captain Toad(which has the same amount of levels they only switched, I believe, old Super Mario 3D world levels with Mario Odyssey. So there are some levels you can only get on Wii U, vice versa for Switch.) but you could use the gamepad to physically interact with the level in ways that you can't in the Switch version. Also most all Wii U games from Nintendo had Miiverse interactions, which is more content than Switch because they got rid of Miiverse. I know that Mario Kart 8 has a battle mode, but aside from that I am not aware of any other ports that have more content, only ones that have less. Also, as I understand most ports perform more or less the same. BotW for instances runs better in some areas and worse in others depending on the system.

I really enjoyed the asymmetrical gameplay of some games.

@zool Nintendo games on another console just wouldn't be the same, nor would they be better. It's the combo that makes the Nintendo magic, and you'd lose that on a generic power-box.

Aside from that, you're completely mistaken about Nintendo's method of operation. Everyone who has even ever so slightly researched that specific topic, knows that it's a well-known fact that Nintendo works according to the top-down pyramid method, in which they come up with the game concepts first, and then and ONLY then, do they start to work on what kind of hardware they would need to go with that, to achieve their goal, so they're never putting consoles ahead of games. In fact, it's the EXACT opposite.

@Flugen

@Cheez

1) Several Wii U games that have been ported to Switch feature new content (battle mode and new characters/items/an extra item slot in MK8; new characters in DKC: Tropical Freeze and NSMBU; new dungeons, songs, etc. in TMS, based on the footage; reams of new content in Hyrule Warriors; new characters and gameplay modes in Pokken).

2) The vast majority of the Wii U --> Switch ports feature, at minimum, a decent bump to the in-game resolution. BotW is 900p on Switch, versus 720p on Wii U (and, while the framerate might have been uneven on both systems at first, I believe the framerate is more stable in the Switch version after patches). MK8 went from 720p on Wii U to 1080p on Switch, and stabilized the weird framerate issue it had in its original release. I could go through the list, but, in general, every Wii U release seems to be higher res on Switch, and often features small framerate improvements. Nothing dramatic, of course, but it does lead to the Switch versions looking and performing better.

3) Miiverse hasn't been a thing for years.

So, what I will grant you is that, perhaps, if you only play docked, a couple of third-party games that made decent use of the GamePad are better on Wii U. Pretty much all the first-party games aren't, though.

I will say, though, that, as a cooperative multiplayer game, Rayman Legends was VERY cool on the Wii U. And I don't think Switch ports of ZombiU or Xenoblade Chronicles X would be able to top their Wii U versions, thanks to their excellent use of the GamePad.

The WiiU had great potential i loved it for real and the D-Pad was great (better than switch)
It even plays breath of the wild in a great way.
I still enjoy the WiiU. The WiiU was victim to poor advertising.

I could see the Gameboy brand coming back for the next Nintendo system. The Switch is already portable and cloud gaming is becoming a big thing. Being able to play on TV really helps with what they can do now.

I got later WII U after some pricedrop. Of course I was already spoiled with other systems with better quality in graphics. So when I got the Switch the gamepad itself the screen was a bit horrible to me. Low resolution. But it was also a time to adjust and then it became a little prettier. But the touch thing wasn't also that responsive at some times. It was low quality that's for sure. If it had more horsepower i'm very sure a lot more support from 3rd party gaming would be there. They already moved a lot from xbox 360 era and staying at that level it wasn't really rewarding so that's what I believe it didn't have much 3rd party support. Other hardware did better that's for sure. Switch made it right, but system is already old. Nintendo isn't really much focused anymore on hardware specs as much as they did in the past. To me Gamecube era was their best. Got the WII as well, but I didn't like it that it was around the first original xbox hardware specs wise.. I was like how can do this to the gamers Nintendo? you should've released a way better system with higher specs. But they didn't and I hated the motion controls.. Dragon Quest game forced to play it like slashing in the air. It's fun for 5 minutes but after that don't bore me. Well WII U i sold after 6 months... the most A++ titles were expensive even after the (near death WII U) it still had pricetag on their games like €60. And other games.... there wasn't enough for me so I sold it and never regretted. I'm going to wait for their next Switch system. So i'll be patient. I just hope it will have backward compability with the 1st switch games so I can buy those and play them. But the lower resolution puts me off.. Well enjoy gaming people

@deep-dave do you not realize your comment is ignorant and hypocritical?

@Kosterpeter the Wii u was great. It really has a fantastic library of games. I really should say the AAA titles looked as good as anything from the competition but Nintendo games always play better. Much more polished.

@ThanosReXXX Sonic games are fine on any console. And better looking on the Xbox and playstation, Mario would be no different.

I don't go along with your thoughts that the game idea comes before the console. That sounds a very sloppy way of working. The console is only the box under the TV, it's the remote that is the light bulb moment. The head of Nintendo at the launch of the Wii said they designed a controller that a Grandmother could use. A simple controller that resembled a TV remote that everyone uses.

Games are programmed around the controller and can be adjusted to work on other consoles, hence all the Wii U ports on the Switch.

Where Nintendo fails is with 3rd party developers. They ported games but we're not that interested in using anything other than basic controllers. Whether it was waving a Wii remote around, a second screen on the Wii U or 3d on the ds. Nintendo have reverted back to normal controllers with the Switch, and the Switch has become a bit of a dumping ground for anything and everything.

@zool They aren't my thoughts, they are facts. It was discussed in pretty elaborate detail in one of the "Iwata Asks" episodes, back in the Wii days. Maybe they've adapted their stance, but that would seem highly unlikely, since they've hardly ever done so.

So, you can't argue with it, because it is simply how they have been confirmed to go about things. And contrary to Sega, Nintendo has never made multiple successive hardware failures, leading to an entirely different philosophy and/or strategy, which all but necessitated them to move away from hardware.

Nintendo isn't even remotely close to being in that position, so it'll only ever be a speculative theory, and a rather shortsighted one at that.

I think that there needs to be a distinction drawn between what we mean by ‘failure’. From an objective point of view the Wii U can’t be seen as anything other than a failure: sales, install base and amount of content were poor compare to other systems made by Nintendo and its competitors. Any arguments against that just are not supported by the evidence at hand.

However, in an entirely subjective sense it it could be seen as successful. 10 million odd people bought it and (presumably) got some enjoyment out of it. It housed some cracking games and has a fantastic backwards compatibility/ virtual console feature. Taken on its own merits it is a good system (but not without faults, such as over reliance on the gamepad, slow OS, control issues for some games etc).

There are many things which can be seen as a ‘failure’ if we simply look at the financial side or uptake, but in truth they are perfectly good and enjoyed by a community. We probably can all think of a film, book, tv show or game that failed to reach a wide audience but they are still good. For example, the TV show Firefly was a flop when aired but achieved cult status (as it is a great show). Yes, objectively a failure at the time, but a wonderful failure. In my opinion the Wii U falls into the same category.

@1UP_MARIO gotta agree... the catalog of the WiiU was amazing if you were an informed gamer and knew what to buy... and I can see you have pretty good taste...

(I feel bad for you that you bought AC: amiibo festival though, LOL)

@ThanosReXXX you read something, I read something, seemingly contradictory. We both can't be right and it does not make it a fact.

@fafonio lol. It’s a bad game but I did pay only 5 pounds for the game and my kids enjoyed it

This dude is a legend. He retires, returns just for the heck of it and still owns it.

Like the terminator, the reginator will always be back.

@Cheez
Games with both improved performance and either no lost or more content:
Pokken - extra fighters
TMS#FE - extra characters, new sidequests
Bayonetta 1 - Touchscreen mode remains in portable, new local 2 player coop
Bayonetta 2 - same as Bayo 1
Donkey Kong: Tropical Freeze - literally didn't use the gamepad. Added Funky Kong mode.
Mario Kart 8 - already mentioned.
Hyrule Warriors - about double the roster, far larger draw distance, tons of new maps, extra modes, new story content

The only first party games I know with significant downgrades are New Super Mario Bros U (no boost mode), Lego City Undercover ( no tablet) and Captain Toad (3D World levels, which were literally copied and pasted from 3D world instead of being proper puzzles)

Mistake worth enduring?

I'm clearly in the minority as I bought the Wii U day 1 and NEVER regretted it. I LOVED that system

I'll defend the Wii U until the day I die. Yes it was a failure, but that doesn't make it any less great. And it definitely was the stepping stone needed to bridge between the Wii and Switch. A necessary failure if you really think about it.

@1UP_MARIO ... at least it came with an amiibo ..... just curious... what were your thoughts of Star Fox Zero and Wonderful 101?

@Snugglevixen true... it was really fun

He's absolutely right. The Wii U leading to the Switch is one of the best examples of a company learning from their mistakes that I have ever seen. I hold that the Wii U was a cool idea but was poorly executed and in hindsight, I am grateful because it led to the Switch, which has become my favorite game system to date!

@zool Well, what you said doesn't exclude what I said. Actually, I also remember that part about the Wii remote, and that's probably from the same series of Iwata Asks as where the explanation about how they work from a game concept towards what kind of hardware they might need to go with that comes from.

That part was more about the console, and not so much about controllers, although that bit was also related, and was, as you already mentioned, more about giving more people access to it and making it easier for them, because of the instant recognition of the Wiimote looking like a remote control.

But hey, I'm just the messenger. I'm not just making this up to be right or anything. I honestly don't mind either way. It's just that your comment stood out in its, shall we say, conviction of how things are done at Nintendo, when people who actually work there have already explained what Nintendo's philosophy in that regard is.

The reason that stuck with me throughout the years, is because of the whole "top-down pyramid" thing. You hardly ever see that in companies, unless it's a REALLY specific industry, so Nintendo definitely stands out in that regard.

Now, it may not always be the best solution, but as we have now been able to witness with the current success of the Switch, if it pays off, it REALLY pays off big time.

So, I have been searching for some related articles, because I did want to at the very least offer you something that supports what I'm saying, but I came up short for the exact quote, mainly because for some weird reason, all the Iwata Asks pages give a virus warning on both browsers that I use (Firefox and Chrome), but the answers should be mentioned somewhere in here, more or less:
http://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/#/wii/wii_console/0/0

And here are some more articles either outlining or mentioning Nintendo's design strategy, which also clearly show how their hardware design department is taking queues from the software department and vice versa, and how the idea of the games or innovation of how to play them, is more important than the hardware:

• https://www.nyfa.edu/student-resources/nintendo-can-teach-us-game-design/
• https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2015/07/the-quotable-satoru-iwata-nintendos-late-president-in-his-own-words/
• https://www.theguardian.com/games/2018/apr/25/nintendo-interview-secret-innovation-lab-ideas-working

With the other two parties, it's always just a matter of external developers telling them the minimum specs, or desired specs wanted, and then they just stack something on top of that, to make sure that the box can run it all, and that's just not how Nintendo works.

They come up with a concept of (new and innovative ways of) entertainment, and think of what they might need to make that happen.

And of course, there is their also famous "Lateral Thinking with Withered Technology" philosophy, which ALSO focuses on game design first, and with hardware as a secondary concern:

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gunpei_Yokoi#Lateral_Thinking_with_Withered_Technology
• https://medium.com/@adamagb/nintendo-s-little-known-product-philosophy-lateral-thinking-with-withered-technology-bac7257d8f4

@fafonio I enjoyed wonderful 101 so much that I replayed it again last year, game looks great. Actually most Wii u games look good as or equal to switch games.
Haven’t really given much time to starfox zero unfortunately but would like to, I know people have complained about the control system but I’m sure I’ll get the hang of it if I give it some time. I still have a lot of Wii u/3ds games to complete. I need to calm down on buying games so I can at least try and finish the ones I have. Luigis mansion 3 won’t help

I blame developers for not developing games to utilize the touch screen and EA for leaving Nintendo high and dry after Madden 13 which is one of the best Madden games ever.

I loved the Wii U

@Pod Still. Several great system features didn't carry over to Switch.

• Folders, Move from Storage to Storage, Backup to SD, Game Statistics, External HDD support and other things.

Anyways. Wii U were a great console with loads of great exclusives.

@NEStalgia the cube wasn't a trainwreck because they had a bunch of good games, it was because people was so into ps2 that is why, even though the ps2 had the weakest specs of that generation.

The Wii U is Nintendo's Dreamcast, it was a great console that nobody wants to support.

The Wii U was an amazing console that Nintendo never properly utilised. There is an absolute mountain of stuff they could have done with it, compared to the Switch which brings nothing new, other than portable play.

@Ralizah Miiverse was and until after the Switch was released. And hasn't been shut down for 2 years yet. But I'll trust everything else you said because I just don't know. I did think that all the Hyrule Warriors content was just DLC out from the 3DS version though.

@1UP_MARIO How did ANYONE give this a Thumbs Down? This is dope! Impressive collection man.

I love my Wii U. I still have it hooked up in my living room. I didn't buy all the first party games, but Splatoon was the only game I needed. I was going to buy Tokyo Mirage on Switch because I loved that game on Wii U as well, but saw it was edited, so what's the point? I liked the backwards compatibility too.

Although there wasn't a lot of great concepts for using the pad and the tv at the same time, I still miss having the map on a second screen for splatoon. You'd think in the smartphone app they could have made a way to view the map there while you played. MAYBE for splatoon 3?

Anyways, I know that the Wii U was a flop, but I REALLY think if they had given it a different name so people KNEW it was a different system, and came in with a few more amazing titles at launch, it would have caught on quicker and not been such a flop. But what do I know? I'm starting to feel like I should buy a new one right now to keep as a backup.

I really loved the WiiU, but even after it launched I could tell it was going to be a bust with the general public. All my friends who had Wii's, and their parents who also had Wii's (mainly for Wii Sports) said, "we're not buying another Wii when we already have one." It was a mistake to use the "Wii" name in the title. It caused general confusion with the casual or lapsed gamer who came back to the Wii because it was the causal "family" system. I loved the WiiU, but I'm glad Nintendo recognized it was a bust early on, and we got the Switch as soon as we did.

@SoIDecidedTo thanks

@SoIDecidedTo Tokyo Mirage on Switch is the same version you enjoyed on WiiU. The WiiU version was also edited. Japan had a very different chapter 2 - the dungeon/plot line about "being true to your inner self" and so on was, in Japan a chapter touching upon being forced into gravure (risque) modelling. They "localized" it because that concept doesn't really exist outside Japan, but they "localized it" in a censored (weirdly) way.

There's no new controversy. That's the same controversy that raged when it came out on WiiU, too. The only "new" part is that Japan is now ALSO getting the badly localized/censored version instead of the original culturally relevant (to Japan) version they got on WiiU. I.E. Japan's getting Western sensibilities forced into their Japanese version of a game about kids in Tokyo....

But if the modifications didn't bother you on WiiU, you'll enjoy the same exact game again on Switch - it's not different, and has expanded content.

I would play the Wii U so much more if it had bettet wireless range, and if all games supported remote mode.

Is there homebrew hack for this? I'm sure not, it must be a hardware limitation.

@Cheez The DE integrates the content between the two previous versions of the game while improving the framerate (in docked mode, anyway). Oh, and the fairy in the My Fairy mode is improved from the Legends version of the game. It's an actual 3D model in the Switch version.

The WiiU had some fantastic games to hold to it's name, however it certainly had droughts which were mostly down to how poor the console sold. And this was down to how the console was advertised, people genuinely believed it was an add-on to the Wii. It had too many control options, instead of focusing on one or two (tablet and pro-controller for example), they had games which offered loads. Good for party games, not good for much else. And it came in 2 versions, the 8gb Basic and the 32gb "Pro" model. Honestly, should have just had the Pro.

I only picked one up due to a clearance sale, was planning to get one at a later date but the price was too good to miss. It's UI is still pretty sold, and the eShop design holds well (looks and feels better than the Switch store). And, it has a Virtual Console (and with some tweaking, can run GameCube games as the machine has a Wii inside)

Shame it didn't sell as well as it should have, but lesson learned and we have the Switch (which in turn has many of the WiiU games ported over for a 2nd shot)

I mean, you can call it a failure sales wise and not be wrong, but I had 10x the amount of games on it than the still lackluster Xbox One. It introduced new IPs and released some very strong sequels to older ones. All in all it was an amazing system with amazing games, and the Switch has only grown to be a great successor. Meanwhile Scarlett is looking to be as much a failure as the One...

It had great moments, but ultimately my overall feeling is one of disapointment. There's so much potential surrounding asymetric gameplay and very little of it realised.

But the biggest crime is the lack of 4Swords and Crystal Chronicles.

@Pod Yeah no idea why they wouldn't port wiiware or even remaster dragon quest swords to the switch, with better thrust controls and 2 player.

But yeah I think the wii u could have sold of the controllers had standalone games that have the main screen turn on lol zero wing, but seriously enhance gameplay.

Who wants a controller the size of a boom box that still needed your tv?

@electrolite77 At MY Login Nintendo would have made a Zelda way better even from Breath of the Wild Just because a stronger graphic card a proccessor would do by itsself and we would have witness a game that even in 20 years would be still on top.

At MY logic Nintendo would have made EVEN MORE millions because having all the nintendo library PLUS all the 3rd party support would give NO reason for Microsoft or even Sony at some point to make sales.

Think with your mind and not with your heart.

Its like someone feels blessed because he just have a job and he can pay his rent, but with his power he could have his own company.

electrolite77

PS4 sales prove you wrong. majority of players love graphics. Nintendo should ilfitrate That market too. alongside with a switch lote type gaming console for the mobile gamers

I just wish my entire library (ok...80%) wasn’t rendered obsolete by the (beloved) Switch. Tokyo Mirage Sessions hurt, but if they port Xenoblade: X, I might as well pack it away...

The Wii U had gem like Devil's Third... If that game was firstly released now on the switch it qould be a boomm!!

@NEStalgia That's what I'm saying, I already have the edited version on the Wii U, so why buy it again? I was going to buy it for the original version. I never did Homebrew on my Wii U, but almost did for this game. They're not actually showing nipples or Pu$$y or anything, so just let it be. But apparently, we aren't ready for an uncensored game. So why spend the money again for something that is literally hooked to the same TV as my Switch and that's the game currently in it. haha

Thanks for pointing it out, but I'll just stick to my "Classic".