No Release Date Yet?

[Queue]

Poor sales of 3DS? Seriously?

Poor initial sales, yes. The 3DS only began selling after a substantial price cut. It's been the same issue with the Wii-U. I almost guarantee that the Wii-U will begin to fly off shelves after another price cut and/or better bundles. The only problem is that they were selling the thing for a loss at $350, so they'll take even more of a financial hit by lowering the retail price to boost sales.

If Nintendo wants to be the family-friendly and budget-based console manufacturer, they have a very large consumer base to tap into, but the price has to match what they offer. $350 was an insane sticker price for a console that doesn't offer nearly as much as the PS4, which retails at only $50 more. The Wii was a great value at $250, because the competition retailed at $500-600. But this is a whole new ball game, and consoles aren't selling for as much as they used to. What adult, excluding Nintendo fans, is going to choose a $350 seventh-generation console over a $400 eight-generation console? If that isn't an unsustainable business model, I don't know what is.

 

[Illuminosopher]

What adult, excluding Nintendo fans, is going to choose a $350 seventh-generation console over a $400 eight-generation console? If that isn't an unsustainable business model, I don't know what is.

Wii U is considered 8th gen, Wii U is the only next gen system I own and plan to own ( I have owned every major console sense the 2600)
my reasons for wanting it are not because I love nintendo (though I do think they make quality games) it's for a multitude of reasons
1) Color Palette, the games that come out on the wii u have more then grey and brown.
2) Free online play (for the games that have it)
3) backwards compatible with the wii (despite what people say the wii had a great number of good games and you have access to the virtual console for old games)
4) I don't mind the lack of third party support because I generally don't like the games that are put out nowadays by 3rd party (there are a few here and there that I like)
5) Community, I find it much more tolerable then the xbox live psn community especially xbox live. (though nintendo community has it's faults)
6) the controller I really like the game pad not only for it's touch screen but also it's size (so sick of controllers that feel to small in my hands)

The only thing that would get me to get a ps4 is the indie games and I am hoping that a lot of them go to eshop sooner or later.

 

[Sumez]

WiiU looks like it's becoming a pretty popular platform for larger indie developers, getting games like Shovel Knight, and Mighty no. 9.
Personally I ended up enjoying WiiU's remote play ability hell a lot more than I thought I would. I played AC3 almost entirely on the gamepad screen.

But yeah it's not selling well. Not because of the price tag (it's already sold much cheaper than the Wii was at this point in its lifetime), but because its target demographic doesn't realise that it exists! They still buy Wii games, and game retailers keep getting WiiU games returned because people buy them for their Wii, not realising they aren't Wii games. Their product didn't fail, their marketing did.

 

[Queue]

Wii U is considered 8th gen

The Wii-U is only eighth-generation in terms of release cycle. In terms of hardware, it's a seventh-generation console. Although its GPU is marginally superior than the GPUs in the PS3 and the 360, its CPU is arguably weaker than their CPUs, so you're never going to see it significantly outperform those consoles. There is really no way to dispute that once you study the Wii-U's specs. It's an incredibly weak console, by modern hardware standards.

But yeah it's not selling well. Not because of the price tag (it's already sold much cheaper than the Wii was at this point in its lifetime), but because its target demographic doesn't realise that it exists!

The similarity of names certainly didn't help its case, but to say that market awareness is the sole contributing factor of poor sales is to deny the basic fact that the Wii-U is subpar hardware-wise when compared with its competitors. I don't know what the original Wii retailed for in Europe, but in the US, it launched at $249.99 — $100 cheaper than the Wii-U. The launch retail price of the Wii-U was probably the primary cause of its poor sales, in my opinion. Once the PS4 was announced to launch at $399.99, few tech-savvy consumers were interested in purchasing a significantly weaker console for only $50 less.

I don't think that even the Wii-U's new retail price of $299.99 goes far enough, because you have to consider that the PS3 launched at $499.99-$599.99, depending on the model, which was at least twice as much as the original Wii's launch price. The Wii didn't succeed only because it offered an innovative, unique gameplay style and because it appealed to casual gamers. It succeeded because it was so much cheaper than the competition. Cost-conscious gamers are generally willing to support a weaker console when the savings in price outweigh the benefits of better hardware. However, when we're only talking about a $50-100 difference, the average consumer isn't going to hesitate when deciding which console to purchase, because $50 is equivalent to pocket change in the modern economy. The Wii-U simply isn't worth what it costs. And I say this as an owner!

 

[Sumez]

I bought a WiiU BECAUSE it was so cheap compared to anything else. I guess the prices in Europe aren't really comparable to USA, but the PS4 is launching here next year, at nearly three times of what I paid for my WiiU Premium a year earlier.

That said, the WiiU price likely only dropped so much because it's been selling so poorly.

 

[Queue]

It's definitely an entirely different situation in Europe, then. Maybe Wii-U sales will pick up overseas after the holiday season, but my guess is that Nintendo will have to do quite a bit more to win over US consumers because things retail for less in the States.

 

[Illuminosopher]

The Wii-U is only eighth-generation in terms of release cycle. In terms of hardware, it's a seventh-generation console. Although its GPU is marginally superior than the GPUs in the PS3 and the 360, its CPU is arguably weaker than their CPUs, so you're never going to see it significantly outperform those consoles. There is really no way to dispute that once you study the Wii-U's specs. It's an incredibly weak console, by modern hardware standards.

Your argument is shaky at best, if you look at the history of consoles it's almost never the technically superior console that wins out

Ps1>N64, PS2>Xbox, 360>PS3 (though the wii sold more then both) nintendo almost never aims to be the best game system they aim to be the best at what they do and almost always make a profit without losing sight of that, sony is hemorrhaging money if the PS4 fails they go with it, Microsoft seems like what sony was with PS3 they have lost touch with the consumer in seemingly every way and then you have Nintendo who is doing what nintendo does.
We will see in a year who is doing good or bad, in the end the system with the games You want to play is the winner.

Edit : Side note I use the words winner and wins but I actually hate to use them when talking about game consoles, generally every game console has something good to play on it, and nor do I think that it's a competition. Just easier for conversation sake.

 

[Queue]

Your argument is shaky at best, if you look at the history of consoles it's almost never the technically superior console that wins out

I don't see how my argument can be "shaky" when I wasn't arguing anything. I was citing facts. The Wii-U's hardware more closely resembles the seventh generation consoles than it does the eighth. This is incontrovertible fact.

And your analogy proves my point. The PSX, PS2, and Wii didn't win their respective generations because they were the best consoles. They won because they were the most affordable. Both the PSX and the PS2 had a massive library of $20 games (greatest hits) that the other consoles of their generations lacked. The consoles themselves were also less expensive after annual price drops than their competitors.

Nintendo's mistake with the Wii-U was that, unlike the Wii, they put a premium price tag on a mediocre console. Sure, at $249.99, the Wii-U would have been a bargain, but they were asking $349.99 at launch, which is absolutely ridiculous for what you were getting. For only $50 more, you could pre-order a PS4. Once consumers realized this, they lost all interest with the console, which inevitably contributed to its abysmal sales. Maybe Nintendo can win back consumers with another price cut, but the fact remains that the Wii-U wasn't a good value at its initial price point. The market doesn't lie.

 

[bigdictionary]

Yeah I'm going to have to go with Queue on this one. The Wii U can make a comeback, but it'll need ANOTHER price cut. I made the mistake of getting one at launch, and it's been rather disappointing. It's already down to $300 with ~$100 MSRP worth of games (New Super Mario Bros. U and New Super Luigi U on one disc), but I think $249.99 is going to end up being the magic number.

 

[Illuminosopher]

I don't see how my argument can be "shaky" when I wasn't arguing anything. I was citing facts. The Wii-U's hardware more closely resembles the seventh generation consoles than it does the eighth. This is incontrovertible fact.

Nintendo's mistake with the Wii-U was that, unlike the Wii, they put a premium price tag on a mediocre console. Sure, at $249.99, the Wii-U would have been a bargain, but they were asking $349.99 at launch, which is absolutely ridiculous for what you were getting. For only $50 more, you could pre-order a PS4. Once consumers realized this, they lost all interest with the console, which inevitably contributed to its abysmal sales. Maybe Nintendo can win back consumers with another price cut, but the fact remains that the Wii-U wasn't a good value at its initial price point. The market doesn't lie.

My Point was that the ps1 and n64 and the ps2 and xbox are considered a part of their respective generation and yet they often are completely different in terms of specs.

I don't think nintendo is asking a premium I mean they are losing money on each console. I mean current gen systems that are 8 years old are only $100 cheaper (per each respected lowest end) and they do not come with a controller that works like the game pad and are not backwards compatable.

I mean yeah the ps4 is only $100 more but you also have to pay for online and you can not play your old games. so in the end you have a console that is $450 and you can only play the games it launches with out of the gate, frankly I would rather stack another $150 in there and get a descent PC but then again I am not a PC gamer.

Edit : I would also add that I think Nintendo actually sold the original wii at a premium they were making a profit from the first one sold.

 

[Illuminosopher]

Let's just agree to disagree, we are getting off topic and I do dislike console war arguments.

 

[PiN WiZ]

Let's just agree to disagree, we are getting off topic and I do dislike console war arguments.

I agree...console wars have nothing to do with the release date of the Wii U version of The Pinball Arcade. Please stay on topic.

 

[bigdictionary]

And like magic, the $249.99 price point has arrived! http://www.rakuten.com/prod/q/loc/101/256845224.html?c3ch=Linkshare&c3nid=lw9MynSeamY&&

If we do get TBA for Wii U, this is probably the most cost effective way of doing it. Those pack in games are worth a bit too, even on the secondary market.

 

[dreassic]

Funny how they can whip out a ps4 version in no time but let the wiiu version linger for well over a year now with no end in sight.
Might as well can it, as I doubt there wil lbe many people left waiting for this vaporware to release, with such lack of faith in the Wiiu.

 

[Everly]

Funny how they can whip out a ps4 version in no time but let the wiiu version linger for well over a year now with no end in sight.
Might as well can it, as I doubt there wil lbe many people left waiting for this vaporware to release, with such lack of faith in the Wiiu.

I agree. We are always told that things take longer with a new console, but they sure didn't waste anytime putting it out for the Sony platform. Meanwhile there is nary a comment about the Wii U. I'm thinking they are hoping if they don't talk about it we will just forget they said anything.

 

[Rafie]

Of course they will put out a PS4 version over a Wii U version. Sony already has a huge following in TPA. It's really not surprising. Still, I do wonder about the Wii U version as well. I will get it if it ever comes. There hasn't been a breath about it in a while now. I guess we'll see.

 

[rehtroboi40]

Of course they will put out a PS4 version over a Wii U version. Sony already has a huge following in TPA. It's really not surprising. Still, I do wonder about the Wii U version as well. I will get it if it ever comes. There hasn't been a breath about it in a while now. I guess we'll see.

And FarSight is still showing "WiiU" and "Xbox live" on their FB page. Even though it (for all we know) has not been submitted to Nintendo and delisted from Xbox Live.
As much as I love FS for putting out this collection and as little as it affects me now, since I have all tables on Android and PC, I still think it's unethical to advertise your game as being available for a system...when it isn't.

Good on FS for releasing this on multiple systems, bad on them for only saying they will release it on some systems.

 

[Rafie]

Well for their sake (FarSight), I hope they don't disappoint all of those Nintendo fans waiting to play their tables. A lot of fans on Miiverse are old school guys/gals that like Zen, but would rather have authentic tables to play digitally. We all know FarSight is the way to go for that. They've been waiting patiently for quite some time. People always ask me when it's coming since I'm on here regularly. I always tell them that I don't anymore because FarSight hasn't spoken on it at all in months. To say the least, the fans are nervous!

 

[Everly]

I always tell them that I don't anymore because FarSight hasn't spoken on it at all in months. To say the least, the fans are nervous!

Yeah....I'm catching the scent of vaperware Rafie.

 

[AshleyAshes]

Yeah....I'm catching the scent of vaperware Rafie.

I get the feeling that the WiiU has not proven to be a profitable area for digitally downloaded non-First Party games to do well so the plans are back burnered at best. You can't really blame them either.