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Jamba

Is the Wii U hurting the 3DS?

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Simple question. What do you think?

 

With tons of resources being pushed at the Wii U I have a genuine concern that Nintendo will not have the financial or development capacity to create a decent line-up for both.

 

It has been argued that Nintendo having to rescue the 3DS actually detracted from the resources available for the Wii U launch, so it's not like there isn't evidence of this issue already and Nintendo has already stated that it has massively underestimated the resources required to make HD games. So it's pretty likely that this going to happen all over again.

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At first, the 3DS hurt the Wii U, but I don't think it has prevented them having the ability to create a decent lineup for both.

 

Let's look at the last year

 

3DS

Fire Emblem: Awakening

Brain Age: Concentration Training

Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon

Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Gates to Infinity

Lego City Undercover: The Chase Begins

Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D

Animal Crossing: New Leaf

Mario & Luigi: Dream Team

Pokémon X and Y

The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds

Mario Party: Island Tour

Tomodachi Collection: New Life

Tokyo Crash Mobs

HarmoKnight

Kersploosh!

Mario and Donkey Kong: Minis on the Move

Dillon's Rolling Western: The Last Ranger

Chibi-Robo! Photo Finder

 

 

Wii U

New Super Luigi U

Game & Wario

Pikmin 3

The Wonderful 101

The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD

Wii Party U

Wii Fit U

Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games

Super Mario 3D World

Art Academy: SketchPad

Pokemon Rumble U

Wii Sports Club - Tennis

Wii Sports Club - Bowling

Wii Sports Club - Golf

NES Remix

Dr. Luigi

 

Decent lineups on both. Wii U's could be a little bit better, but that's common first year issues.

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I categorically disagree with your view of the Wii U lineup as both evidence of capacity and quality and I would back up my claim with the market's response to it. NSMU and 3D World are the only games on that list that are 1st party development, have a decent budget, require sizeable development resources.

 

Pikmin 3 for example has been developed over about a million years so it's impact on development capacity would be minimal.

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Simple answer. No. And liger - if you are going to post, post an answer to the god damn thread. If you wanna slag the wii u games off get to the wii u thread. Or the sales thread. Or the eshop thread. Or the virtual console thread. Or the other wii u thread. Or any nintendo thread for that matter!

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@Serebii The Wii U's list of games is absolute pants. You can lump the 3 Sports together, listing them individually is stretching it. I wouldn't even call some of them games, they're an insult e.g. Wii Fit U, Game & Wario and Wii Party U. Only about a handful of those games are good. We know which ones they are. For originality only Wonderful 101 counts from that list.

 

In answer to the question the answer is NO. If anything the 3DS is hurting the Wii U.

Edited by Wii

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In answer to the question the answer is NO. If anything the 3DS is hurting the Wii U.

 

Care to expand?

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Simple answer. No. And liger - if you are going to post, post an answer to the god damn thread. If you wanna slag the wii u games off get to the wii u thread. Or the sales thread. Or the eshop thread. Or the virtual console thread. Or the other wii u thread. Or any nintendo thread for that matter!

 

Aneres you arent a mod or an admin, its not your job to tell people what they should be posting in threads. liger posted a reaction to something in this thread. You expect him to go to the Wii U thread and then have to link back to this one just so he can make his post?

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Aneres you arent a mod or an admin, its not your job to tell people what they should be posting in threads. liger posted a reaction to something in this thread. You expect him to go to the Wii U thread and then have to link back to this one just so he can make his post?

 

Thanks for pointing that out. Wasn't aware I wasn't a mod or an admin.

Oh and for what its worth - not that you will even take it on board, this is the reason the boards are like they are. Someone asks a question to begin a discussion. You come to give an answer and instead its people posting something that adds nothing to the original purpose what so ever. Naturally though, loads of people will love it as its another excuse to slag nintendo off. So go for your life. I know how much some of you enjoy it. I'm out.

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Care to expand?

 

The 3DS sales in Japan dwarf Wii U sales and the same in America, just look at NPD figures yesterday, 3DS was double Wii U. Some of those sales could have potentially been Wii U sales were it not for 3DS. Look at sales of Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate. Again sales were far higher on 3DS and when Smash Bros. arrives because it's on both platforms Wii U will lose sales. Nintendo won't care I'm sure as long as they get your money. Something else I think I remember but at the time SM3DW came out didn't 3D Land re-enter the charts and fairly high up. I may be wrong but I don't think so. Now haven't people said 3D Worlds sales weren't that impressive and maybe some people looked at the game and thought I don't need to buy a Wii U, sure isn't there an equivalent game on 3DS?

Edited by Wii

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Thanks for pointing that out. Wasn't aware I wasn't a mod or an admin.

Oh and for what its worth - not that you will even take it on board, this is the reason the boards are like they are. Someone asks a question to begin a discussion. You come to give an answer and instead its people posting something that adds nothing to the original purpose what so ever. Naturally though, loads of people will love it as its another excuse to slag nintendo off. So go for your life. I know how much some of you enjoy it. I'm out.

 

I actually though liger was countering serebii's point you can take what you want from it. Either way, I think you're overreacting.

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Oh and for what its worth - not that you will even take it on board, this is the reason the boards are like they are.

 

The reason the boards are the way they are is not because of negativity or people deviating slightly off topic. Its because of a few members deciding they dont like what people are talking about and getting annoyed about it.

 

But I'll also bow out here as this is whats derailing the thread, not what liger said.

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Can we nip this bud here please? Jamba created an interesting thread, let's put Liger's comment behind us please.

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As for the Wii U hurting the 3DS. Im honestly not sure but looking at the upcoming lists that have been posted recently I did notice that there was only 2 games that I'm actually planning on buying. Might have to come back to this question after E3 when we see how much stuff is unveiled for both consoles.

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Yeah i see it, if anything, the 3DS hurting the Wii U more. The 3DS is doing fine, it has an incredible line up of game, it's not like it needs more. The Wii U is desperate though, any time taken away from sorting the Wii u is damaging.

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Yeah i see it, if anything, the 3DS hurting the Wii U more. The 3DS is doing fine, it has an incredible line up of game, it's not like it needs more. The Wii U is desperate though, any time taken away from sorting the Wii u is damaging.

 

I guess they need to figure out soon if diverting those resources to the Wii U is actually making a difference to that console. Otherwise it starts to hurt both of the platforms and not just the Wii U.

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The 3DS seems to be doing just fine, of course there is always a balance to be struck between how much time is spent developing for each console but overall I would say that it needs to be a 70% / 30% development ratio in favour of the Wii U right now which should only level out to being more even once there are a few more decent games released on the Wii U, namely Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, Mario Kart and Super Smash Bros.

 

Besides I currently have quite a decent backlog on the 3DS, at least five amazing titles which I need to find the time to play, on the Wii U my main priorities are finishing Zelda and Pikmin 3 but after that...

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I guess they need to figure out soon if diverting those resources to the Wii U is actually making a difference to that console. Otherwise it starts to hurt both of the platforms and not just the Wii U.

 

It'll make a difference to the Wii U, but will it make enough of a difference. Nintendo won't let their home console die though so no way will they move away from it and focus on the 3DS. I think the 3DS will be fine. Thing is, if Nintendo want to keep both safe and still go the two console route, then they need to create more development studios to create more content :)

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I think it could when it comes to Smash Bros. I imagine, in Japan at least, most will opt to get the 3DS version over the Wii U one. It's kind of lost its exclusivity and probably would have helped the Wii U a little if it had only been on that platform.

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I think it's clear that Nintendo had to put extra resources into 3DS games to help revive the console which ultimately hindered the Wii U. I mean, compare the Wii U's first year line up to the Gamecube's and it shows they've been on the back foot by a huge amount.

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No. The man power that is going into the Wii U's lineup hasn't prevented Nintendo from having an absolutely banner year for 3DS software.

 

Their issues with the 3DS unfortunately appear to be more fundamental than that. Even with one of the best yearly lineups that any console has ever had AND a new cost cutted hardware revision, they still ended up being down YoY for 3DS hardware - a sign that saturation is reading its ugly head :(

 

Sadly I get the feeling that the issue comes mainly down to software pricing and that the industry-wide downwards pricing trend is taking its toll on Nintendo (who based their entire business on premium prices, for premium quality of course). Tablets/smartphones, Steam Sales, ludicrous price slashing at retail; they're all taking their toll on the industry as a whole - and it's especially bad for handhelds, with iOS & Android being the leaders of the downward charge.

 

Shibata/NOE's numerous crazy promotions (So Many Games, free Monster Hunter, free Super Mario 3D Land etc) are a sign that they can see the problem; but it doesn't look to be enough. People are extremely tight these days and clearly are not comfortable with the idea of buying specialist hardware and high priced software :(

 

I can't see them being able to continue on much longer like this. Even if they manage to get the Wii U's costs down and eke out a profit from it, they can't continue to live off scraps forever.

 

The problem is that they're caught between a rock and a hard place though. Taking themselves further upmarket would be suicide (and trying to compete directly against Sony & Microsoft over an ever shrinking pie is a fool's errand that they could never hope to win anyway), while putting out their own games onto existing mobile platforms would be tantamount to destroying themselves. Their entire business model thrives on the premium value of their software and giving up that margin would kill them (their skill set and development philosophy is also completely incompatible with the existing iOS/Android/F2P market - where quality means nothing and entertainment value is secondary to sleazy, money grubbing whaling tactics).

 

Quite frankly, in order for them to be able to survive, they need to be able to have their cake and eat it too... Putting their games out on MS & Sony's machines is not the answer as their staff counts would be slashed (say bye bye to IRD, SRD, NBD, SDD as well as all of their 2nd party partners like HAL, Skip and everyone else, and probably Int Sys, Retro Studios, Monolith Soft, NST, NERD and most of SPD as well - leaving nothing but a shrivelled up EAD and SPD1), development costs would skyrocket (while their software margins get slashed since they would have to pay royalties AND conform to the MS & Sony's terms of license. - stifling their creative output and raising costs even further), their entire company culture would fall apart, their quality would falter, most of their talent would leave, their output would shrink down to just their absolute top IP like Mario (if you think they're milking Mario now, you ain't seen nothing yet!) and they become a mere shadow of their former selves. Their games are built around their own unique hardware and it is the continued evolution of their own hardware that has enabled them to continue to keep their existing IPs fresh with new and novel concepts and to enable their staff to make the kinds of games that they want to make.

 

Damned if they do, damned if they don't :(

 

Perhaps it's time for another 3rd pillar?

Edited by Dcubed

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I would have to say absolutely it is.

 

I accidentally dropped my Wii U GamePad onto my 3DS during a drunken Nintendo party, and now there's a slight scratch on the upper screen.

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Thanks for pointing that out. Wasn't aware I wasn't a mod or an admin.

Oh and for what its worth - not that you will even take it on board, this is the reason the boards are like they are. Someone asks a question to begin a discussion. You come to give an answer and instead its people posting something that adds nothing to the original purpose what so ever. Naturally though, loads of people will love it as its another excuse to slag nintendo off. So go for your life. I know how much some of you enjoy it. I'm out.

 

You do this all the time, acting like you get to say what people can talk about. If people see a post they can comment on it. Not every post in a thread has to immediately answer the topic title; it can be loosely related/comment on an existing post.

 

I think you also don't realise that the more you tell people what to do, the more people will be likely to ignore you.

 

 

Second: apologies, didn't realise the topic had progressed so much from this post. Active topic is active.

 

As for the question - in some ways I think the Wii U is hurting the Nintendo brand as a whole. On the other hand though, I don't think some games like Pokemon on 3DS are affected at all. People want those games, and the performance of the Wii U isn't going to change that.

Edited by Sheikah

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The way I see it, Nintendo puts immense focus on any games machine when it's new, then moves the teams over to the next one. I do see the 3DS in decline, yes, but it really has had an extraordinary run. Now Nintendo has released all its main games for the 3DS, I'm afraid I don't see them making another huge title for it, but arguably that has happened with all their handhelds. After Link's Awakening, Zelda was given over to Flagship; Minish Cap was the only Zelda on the GBA; and the DS only got another same-engine Zelda, with Spirit Tracks (which I think might happen with the 3DS, but no more than that). If you look at Mario, arguably that's had more effort put into it than on any other handheld, with both 3D and 2.5D entries.

 

I'm sure Nintendo's teams are all working away on the Wii U now, and the effort will pay off, at least in terms of making the Wii U sought-after by gamers. Then, they'll start to focus on the 3DS's successor. It's the way of things. The huge difference this time, though, is that 3rd-parties aren't coming in to support the handheld. I remember I spent the last few years of the DS almost just playing Dragon Quest titles. If they never do step in, Nintendo will just have to move on. They've done a lot and they can't make the same sort of effort again if it's not going to shift more units.

 

One thing's for sure, though, Nintendo hasn't properly finished with the 3DS until they've created a 2D Metroid for it. :)

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I do think they're split on resources. Neither is truly living up to star potential 1st party games wise. I don't think any will tank, but the way I play games these days (mostly 3DS) I wouldn't be sad if Nintendo junked the TV/console and stuck to their portables.

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