It’s hard to imagine it’s been 6 years since the Wii was launched. Many wrote it off, calling it technically underpowered and claiming a gimmick such as motion control would not sell consoles in the current age of high definition. Microsoft had launched a full year earlier.
Sony were unleashing a powerhouse in the PS3. Could a console with no traditional controller really compete? Nintendo’s little white box went on to sell 96 million units worldwide and in the process, opened up gaming to a brand new audience. After an underwhelming E3, Nintendo are ready to take the gaming world by storm and prove that lightning really can strike twice.
Here are a few reasons why the Wii U will dominate the next gen battle.
7. Universal Appeal
Nintendo really struck gold with the Wii. It didn’t need a blu ray player or HD graphics. It didn’t need a competitive online community. The Wii succeeded in it’s brilliant simplicity. The motion control felt natural, meaning anyone, young or old, could just pick up and play. It broke down barriers between gamers of all levels and styles.
The hardcore gamer bought a Wii for Super Mario Galaxy. Your Grandad bought one for Wii Sports. For all the money companies spend on advertising, the best method also happens to be free; word of mouth. The Wii became much more than a video game console, it became a family experience. The Wii U is taking this to the next level.
Core gamers are finally at the forefront of Nintendo’s plans but they are also yet again catering for the lucrative casual market. Finding the balance will be key but if anyone can do it, Nintendo can.
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48 Comments
what could let this machine down is the hard drive space, 8 to 32gb, is sad and no media player for it, but Nintendo tv could be a real winner, this could chnage the way people interact with tv, only november 30 will tel, but i do love Nintendo games, i feel that they give something that sega or sony or Microsoft have never done.
Nintendo have confirmed you can connect an external hard though, up to 3TB which is huge. The lack of a media player is a let down, but then again doesnt everyone own a dvd/bluray player now? Tvii will be good if it can offer the same or even more content than current streaming services. The Wii U will sell regardless because of Mario and Zelda but the difference this year is Nintendos attitude about their console.
I think the 3TB was just a random number, I am not sure it is an actual upper limit. And who doesn’t have an external HD?
The part where it doesn’t double as a media player doesn’t concern me, either. I used to use my PS3 for Blu-ray and media file playback, but nowadays I have a separate player. It plays every disc (unlike that PS3) and takes NTFS HDs (again, unlike the PS3).
I still wouldn’t say WiiU is next gen. Its current. Its barely more powerful than the ps3/xbox 360.
The Wii was just a gamecube repackaged. Nintendo are (were) just a generation behind $ony and M$
A lot of people (in fact all) of the people i know with a Wii never play it. Do you think they will buy the new WiiU? Sony has Move (better than Wii) and MS have kinekt (more flexible but ive never used it so i can’t comment further)
“Nintendo will not fall into the same trap again. Core gamers were rightly annoyed by the lack of fully featured third party games with the Wii. If you wanted a proper Call of Duty or Grand Theft Auto experience, you had to buy an Xbox 360 or PS3. These games sell consoles. The Wii didn’t have the power to match and instead focused on stripped down ports which were usually abysmal. The Wii U has already got some of the worlds biggest developers on board. EA, Ubisoft, Warner Bros. and Activision have already signed up to bring some of their biggest franchises to Nintendo’s new console. This can only be a good thing.”
But in a year when the ps4 and xbox next are out, the WiiU will be 6 years out of date, again, and wont be able to play the latest games. Its a cycle. Are ALL WiiU games actually 1080p?? Not upscaled, i mean native?
Ya good argument man. But, the Wii U is 20x more powerful than the Wii so can you imagine a Super Mario Galaxy with 20x more power for Nintendo to play around with? Nintendo don’t need to concentrate on competeting with the next Sony/Microsoft console because they offer something different. I’m not saying the Wii will win the tech battle, but then how far more can the consoles go? PS4 is being rumoured to be 4K output which is crazy. The cost would be astronomical. You could play on your same TV, but then why buy it it all? It would be like buying a ferrari and not being able to drive it. I reckon the earliest we will see the next Xbox/PS4 will be E3 2013 with a release in 2014. That gives the Wii U a strong headstart and two Christmas markets which will see millions of consoles sold. Wii games will be upscaled. Third party games will be full 1080p and first party games will be 720p to start and then moving to 1080p.
Most if not all consoles are 10000x more powerful than a pocket calculator, but the Wii U should be more powerful than the Wii. The Wii was terrible hardware.
Also the Wii U lacks a decent CPU, some devs having issues getting current gen stuff to work on Wii U. Doesn’t seem to be able to handle too many things on the screen. I wouldn’t hold my breath for Skyrim on Wii U. Bethesda says it’s a possibility, but I don’t think they have signed on to Wii U.
As of May 21, 2012 the next Sony and Microsoft consoles – according to Epic – will NOT be able to run Unreal Engine 4. The WiiU will be on exactly the same ground as PS4 and X720 with the exception being that Nintendo will have been on the playground close to two years by the time those guys show up. And then… Nintendo will likely release another “bridge” console to jump their game again. Again.
you can tell how many people that play video games and post dumb things haven’t been to college, if your going to say things like you do, please post sources, you sir are not a source, so post where you got your information from that its not a next gen system and only current gen in its technology, don’t just make stuff up, grow up and get an education
this article is correct. The wii u will dominate
The PS4 may output to 4k but it won’t play games at 4k as even the latest gpus can’t do that. The WiiU line up consists mainly of games from this generation, something which will surely hinder rather then help sales, and it’s tech is barely better then what exists with some devs stating the CPU is actually worse then what is in the 360 and PS3. I’m not sure if you were paid to write this article, but that’s what it honestly seems like – a pro-WiiU article with not a lot of reading around the subject matter.
Speaking of which – where are your sources? There are NO “verified” devs that have said those things. None.
Feel free to prove me wrong.
Imagine if Nintendo finally make a fully connected open world Pokemon RPG.
not only would this be a disaster gamefreak has indicated nobody wants that
I still think it could be amazing if done right
I always thought the playstation move was garbage. I have a playstation, xbox 360 and going to get the new Wii. I will agree the Kinnect is better than both the motion things the PS3 and Wii can do. However, the wii motion wise is way better than PS move. Also if I seem to recall playstation copied the Wii’s idea in the first place.
Based on all the reports I have seen I think overall for the people who love the old school Nintendo games they have to be thrilled knowing alot of those games will be created and have even better graphics. Not to mention what sold me on the last Wii was the Virtual Console. Being able to get all of the old school Nintendo games as well as various other ones.
7. No, it has nothing to appeal to casuals, as they already have a Wii and an iPad. It also has only one game to appeal to hardcore gamers. So, its “universal appeal” consists solely of Nintendo fanboys.
6. Yeah, you know what else takes Wii peripherals? The Wii. You seem to be confused and think casuals upgrade just cause Nintendo says they can. Thats not how they work – the WiiU doesn’t offer a single compelling reason for them to upgrade. They already have a tablet.
5. $50 more than $299 is $349 ya freaking idiot.
Anyway, you may have noticed that Sony’s new hardware has 500 gigs of memory, while the equivalent WiiU has 8. So, yeah, slight difference.
4.Yes, because the Wii gimmick created so many worthwhile experiences.
3. How dumb are you? Look, its really quite simple. Companies we see as staples of modern gaming, like Bethesda, have not yet pledged a single bit of support for the WiiU, therefore the WiiU’s third party support is already terrible. Look, its really quite simple. If they don’t have 100% of the third party support than Sony and Microsoft have, then their third party support is lacklustre by definition.
2.Here, “unique” means “terrible”, “moderated to a Big Brother level” and “Laced with all kinds of pedophilia”.
1. And now you’ve given up all pretensions of not being a complete fanboy.
” Idiot” “Dumb”
Can you not make your point and criticise without being personal?
7 & 6. Ya good arguments but I still think you are off the mark with a few. The Wii U does appeal to the casuals. Personally 10 of my relations with ages ranging from 25-55 have preordered one. The last gaming related product they bought was the Wii. It’s a new product. Look at the Iphone 5 which is practically the same as the 4s and thats selling like crazy. People like buying the latest gadget just to buy it. It’s going to be on every kids Christmas list. What would you call them? Hardcore gamers? So, parents will buy them, older gamers(40+)and Nintendo fans, as well as someone like me who just likes to have every console. That seems widespread.
5. Sorry about the simple miscalculation, feel like I’m back at school ;)
Sony’s new hardware? Its a super slim PS3 with a shockingly expensive price. External HD’s are cheap now so I’m not sold by 500gbs of memory in the price.
4. Zelda? Resi 4? Wii Sports?
3. I actually agree here to be honest. I wouldn’t say terrible though. It depends your preferance. Do you want Uncharted or Mario? Halo or Smash Bros.? Apart from GTA and Skyrim, they have most major franshises. Fifa, Madden, Modern Warfare, Batman, Mass Effect, Assassins? At least you know you will get the exact same game on the Wii U now.
2. Nintendo COULD mess this up in fairness, but to be honest you still have the option of getting abused on xbox live and PSN. I know what you mean, it will be moderated, maybe strictly but what harm? It might create a fun service
1. I’m not a fanboy! I own all consoles, (my PS3 is actually broke atm) and cannot wait for the next Xbox and PS4.
Cry moar casual.
REAL gamers love Ninty.
7 & 6. Ooh, 10 people. Yeah, thats not completely anecdotal.
They upgrade for the iPhone cause Apples schtick is that its products are futuristic – their entire design is based around this, presenting arguably powerful technology in a non-threatening environment to make the people using it feel advanced, touching upon a history of our cultures vision of the future as laden with easy conveniences, up to and including subservient robots – why do you think they made Siri’s female voice sound ever-so-slightly robotic? Therefore, there is a need for the most up-to-date product not for the new features, but because an iPhone thats not the most advanced is simply old technology, and doesn’t feed into the futuristic vibe they have created.
The Wii’s message was not that, it was that it was simple. There was no talk of technology, of using the internet, of interfacing, exporting, or anything – it was all the simplest gaming experience possible. Whereas the WiiU is complicated. The message they used does not fit in with upgrading to a newer machine.
5. So $269 is “ungodly”, but $359 is a bargain? The hell?
4. Two Gamecube ports and a minigame compilation. Forgive me if I don’t see them as the true cruxes of gaming.
3. Thus putting it in the situation Nintendo were in with the Gamecube, when it recieved Fight Night, Beyond Good and Evil, Prince of Persia, Soul Calibur, etc.. Basically, this “huge step up” in terms of third party support consists of them getting back to the level they were at in 2002. You know, when they were still hugely overlooked. At a time when third party support has become, if anything, more ubiquitous, they still fail to attract the third parties to a good level.
2.Yes, but Microsofts online service doesn’t encourage live, uncut video feeds between random strangers. Try a mental excercise for me – pull up that weird E3 video of Nintendo about their video chat service, but replace the 20-something guy with a 6 year old.
1. And yet you’re sticking with the idea that what matters is the name of a franchise. Not quality of gameplay, innovation, or anything – just slap a name on there and thats important.
you sir are a bellend
all of your points in this article will probably be null & void w/in 2 years….sure they have 3rd party support now, but are companies going to water down their games so they will play on wii u? for the sake of gaming as a whole i sure hope not….same goes for the online community which will most likely disappear with the games…sure the system’s got novelty, but remember your grandparents already bought a wii, and it’s kind of absurd to assume that they will shell that money out again when most of them got tired of wii sports a long time ago….sure nintendo has some great 1st party games, but how many of those does anyone really expect this generation? 2 marios, 1-2 zeldas, maybe a metroid or star fox? Look at the launch, the only game out of those that interest most hardcore gamers would be zombi u, which has already been said to likely hit multiple platforms before too long….will they sell a lot of units with the wii u? More than likely, but don’t expect the numbers that the wii got…not saying the console is going to be awful, but it’s a next gen console in time frame only, the hardware is not doing much that we haven’t already seen 6-7 years ago…..seems like another pagecount grabbing, controversial, completely wrong headline from what culture
this article must be a joke.
7 universal appeal? that was the wii, not wiiu, the people who want the wii feeling will opt for the cheaper wii not the wiiu
6 backward compatibility? few people care about most wii games, the wii was a console that sold millions but was used little. this is hardly a factor, though nice, the majority of people who would use this feature will probably just stick the original wii.
5 the xbox and PS3 bundles are cheaper and come with more games and memory. though technically the wiiu will be more powerful the price won’t matter for the xmas sales in this situation.
4 new gaming experience. as we saw with PS Move, kinect, and the wii’s sales to gamers new experience isn’t always good. Will it sell the wiiu? maybe it’s a valid reason, but it isn’t a huge reason why it will make a wiiu win next gen.
3. 3rd party support, it’s actually unknown if they will have support until the next gen consoles all come out. if next gen consoles are a huge leap from this gen the wiiu will lose 3rd party support, right now no games come on the wii because of the controller and it’s a terribly weak system.
2. “miis” were terrible, it’s hardly a unique universe, no one really cares about miiverse sorry to burst your bubble. It’s not even know if the online will be smooth or not on Wiiu, the wii had the worst online of any console.
1. best franchises is subjective. best platformers? maybe. but franchises? nah, though many games are fun to play only 1-3 titles on the wii were really good ( mario kart, and super smash) everything else was garbage
I am sure the fanboys will flip out and disagree, but this is what gamers are thinking. The nintendo released a graph of sales, 5-14 and 30+ year olds were their main market, the gamer market (15-30) were not really buyers.
and before people claim anything ridiculous, i have had every nintendo home console since NES, N64 was their last good console and since they have basically freefalled off a cliff.
not sure what cliff you’re talking about, the wii was a huge success for nintendo
I don’t know about mass appeal. The Wii had mass appeal because of the controller, the gamepad does not have the same appeal. Also a lot of the 3rd party support comes from games already released on other systems for several months.
The war has not even started. Yet this is a very big win for nintendo. Games are what win the console market. Yet lets ask some better questions.
The argument that next gen xbox or ps will render the wiiu unable to play ports is a little extreme. We have pcs that can do this. Why would developers wait on a console? They can do this now directx 11 tools and engines exist now. Ask your self why is this not happening. There are way more pcs, smart phones reaching directx 11 benchmarks. Steam, app stores, open development systems. Then we have a gamer above claim Bethesda wont port their games to a wiiu. Yet this developer has also expressed they dont care about a next gen ps or xbox, suggesting they will not take advantage of the extra tech. Why invest in tech that would balloon development cost when the core does not respond like Nintendo`s fanbase. So its possible that Nintendo is one of the few that can afford such development projects.
Why would gamers pay another $600 for tech that is lower than a current gaming pc? Why is a gpgpu so easily dismissed now? Did you know that amds apu is very similar?
These are the same gamers who want every thing cheap. They want trade-ins. Most Nintendo gamers dont trade in their games due to the quality. Most wii gamers casual and core where angry once they viewed the wii on an hdtv. Suddenly that problem is fixed. It warrants an up grade just like those hd cable boxes.
So ms and sony are at an end game scenario. Nintendo is designing for an ignored customer, the console customer. ms has woke up to this gamer and sony has fallen for what we could call the next gen pc gamer on an extreme budget.
This is very similar to the real reason why iphones continue to sell. These things are easy to argue with bias but insolvency is a real threat to gaming companies right now.
Excellent points man. People think the next xbox and PS4 will be have photo-realistic graphics with thousands of things happening on screen. PS4 will have 4k output? How much will it cost? Is your average 16-25 year old gonna spend $10,000 on a tv? Then games will cost $75-$100 each. The argument of power and tech is of no concern to Nintendo. I guarantee you Nintendo will drop the price by $50-75 dollars next Christmas with room to drop more if needed. Is a new Xbox gonna cost less than $500?
Nintendo are keeping things relatively cheap for developers. The cost to develop a game is huge atm, the more it costs, the more profit it loses.
“Yet this developer has also expressed they dont care about a next gen ps or xbox, suggesting they will not take advantage of the extra tech”
Next time try reading the quote before you try to form an opinion, dude. What Bethesda said was they aren’t interested in making games for the Ps4 or Nextbox while said systems are in development. As in, they don’t want to try and make games for these systems when they aren’t finalised – implying when they are finalised, they are on board with them.
Also, real great insight – Wii gamers don’t trade in games cause they love them so much. Yeah, its definitely not cause only actual gamers are aware of most trade in deals available in games stores, while most Wii owners just think to store it in the closet when they get bored alongside other fads.
7. Universal Appeal. No, that was the Wii, and somehow it lost it after 3 and a half years or so. Can the gamepad do the same? That remains to be seen, but paying attention to 2 screens, one of them a gamepad with more buttons than the Wiimote and nunchuck combined doesn’t strike me as very straightforward/casual-friendly.
6. In terms of peripherals, yes and great. In terms of software No. If people would like to play Wii game they would still be using their Wii, and it would have sold better the last two years. Also, it’s also already confirmed you can’t play Wii or Virtual Console games on the gamepad screen, big thumbs down for this one.
5. Christmas Launch & Price. Yes and No. The standard unit is priced $300 and no game. Games are now $60, just as the other consoles, but what’s the killer app in the launch library? The Mario game? Zombie U? Nintendo Land which is sold separately for $60? There’s plenty of room for a miss here, but it’s Christmas and it will probably do great. Not a reason to “win” any battle in the long run, though.
4. A Brand New Gaming Experience. That may or may not hit it with the casual audience. It will depend on the kind of apps Nintendo will provide for the tablet more than what it brings to the gameplay.
3. Third party support. Which is on “wait and see mode”. If third party software fails to sale at a desired tie-in ratio, it will only drive away those on the fence and limit the number of releases from anyone on board (shovelware galore). Sales will have the final say.
2. A Unique Online Experience. First steps on a wild an unknown field. Can’t really tell just yet. But unique doesn’t equal great or good, just one of a kind.
1. Best Franchises. Agreed. Although not many of them will be present in the first year.
You do realize your here writing a whole book all over a gaming machine that is made of pure plastic and a few wires ha ha wow get a life serious ha ha what losers on here
Well, I clicked this link to find one reason, where the author would like me to click through 6-8 pages to read one article. Well, no. I won’t be doing that. I’m leaving now before even clicking to your second reason.
Stupid article. The WiiU doesn’t have the ablity to play next gen games (look at how small it is) and yet it’s apparently won the next gen battle? Someone needs to learn about hardware before making frankly absurd comments. The WiiU won’t be able to play the next Unreal engine or CryEngine so good luck having it dominate a generation which it can’t participate in.
He idiot, as of May 21st 2012 Epic (the guys that make UE) said the PS4 and X720 are NOT capable of playing Unreal Engine 4. There’s this amazing thing called Google where any retarded 10 year old can find the info if they actually cared about facts.
By the time those consoles come out the WiiU will have been on the playground close to two years and will have dominated their asses before they got on the swingset.
Everyone has an opinion but like one comment said about having all the consoles. just make some money and own everything instead of hating cus you cant afford all simple as its like having as much girls as you want ha ha. the lesson here children is make sume monaaaaay lol ha ha
Probably the article is right, we’ll see. Downside is that core gamers have lost a bit of faith in ninendo, and only remaining are hardcore fans (small part of hardcore gamers), and I don’t see old/young gamers having interest into this after they bought the wii a first time.
This is going to be interesting to see now what sort of emerging population the wiiU will gather.
Finally to all Nintendo haters, this article could be right. But it’s not because they have success that it means they are the best. They’re just good in product marketing, they’re the video game’s Apple, that’s about it. Wii already proved it.
YES! Nintendo would sell meat to a vegetarian. The Wii u willget a bit of every market. What is the big toy this christmas for kids under 16? Then it will get hardcore gamers who are bored and want to give it a go.
Whats the big seller this christmas to kids under 16? The iPhone 5.
Oh, in the sense of gaming? Well, parents could go with the machine that has that violent zombie game – oh, but look, for $200 theres this console that has this exclusive game by J.K. Rowling. And its got a kart racer with an adorable doll character. I think the kids might like this.
3 reasons the Wii U has already won:
X720 will be bundled with Kinek2 and Smartglass, and all the advertizing will focus on drawing in casuals who are already happy with their Wii (or Wii U, if they wanted to get a new console at all)
PS4k will be a feature of a new line of Sony 4k OLED TVs, competing with Apple TV and Steam Big Picture, and leaving the console war to Ouya, Nintendo, and Microsoft.
Ouya is being built to be hacked- any AAA game on the system will be instantly pirated, and the console will be a lawsuit magnet.
Agreed man, I never claimed Nintendo would win the next gen technology battle. The Xbox will cater for a different audience, as will the PS4, I agree 100%. Within 3-4 years, Nintendo will release a new Zelda, Mario Kart, Super Mario Galaxy, Pokemon, Smash Bros and Donkey Kong, all which will shift systems to gamers (16-25) who might not buy one initially. The funny thing is I love my Xbox the most and cannot wait for official news on the next one. I just think the Wii U will win even if I don’t want it to.
Yes, Sony don’t care about games. Thats why they certainly aren’t the people making new IPs next year. Yep, there totally isn’t The Last Of Us, The Puppeteer, Tearaway and Beyond that show that Sony are the only people who actually care about games enough to create a new IP anymore instead of recycling their decades old dried up played out games again and again and again and again.
Calling Mario dried up and played out is an odd statement, like you believe that simply the same setting/characters makes it the same game.
Even if you havnt played 2 different mario games in the last decade, consider this… Is World of Warcraft the same game as Warcraft 3 was? Or even the same game it was when WOW launched, let alone Warcraft 1?
SMB1/lost levels, SMB 2(Doki Doki panic), SMB 3/World, Mario 64, Mario Sunshine, Mario Galaxy 1/2, and the NSMB games are different enough to be fresh when you move from one catigory to another, even though they’re all some form of platforming, rescuing a princess from a castle. And that’s leaving aside games like Luigi’s Mansion, which dont even try to be “proper” mario games.
Great counter argument!! I can always respect criticism, but this is just pointless even replying to. The console battle won’t be won by hardcore gamers buying the machines, the casuals are a bigger market. Look at The Avengers and Dark Knight Rises. Both good films, with differnet audiences. How much money do you think kids added to the Avengers total? You are telling me that parents are going to spend $600+ for a new Xbox or PS4 when a wii u is sitting on the shelf?
Tell me, did you need to apply lube, or did you just do it really quick, when you pulled that number completely out of your ass?
Where the hell did you get $600+ from?
David, you’re an idiot. Go play with your old PlayStation…my guess is that he is using the price of the PS3 at launch for a pricing reference. They WILL be over $500, or they WON’T be light years ahead of the Wii U.
P.s. Hey David, I don’t care if you buy a Wii U.
Get Wii U cheap @ Zavvi.com for under £250 and £300 when you sign up enter referrer code: ZV15625875 to get 5% off your first order!
I love it that it bothers all the little kids humping thier ps3′s and xbox’s that Nintendo are doing better again… And more importantly they’re doing it first… Goes to show how much they’re doing right.
Gameplay and innovation will always beat system power and storage, the latter are irrelevant for a well performing games console.
I’d still dig out my N64 over my Xbox any day of the week, Nintendo revolutionise gaming with every console release, everyone else is just playing catch up
David, nobody likes you, and we don’t care about your opinion.
Jesus still loves you, David.
haha
Absolutly patétic arguments, there isnt a single one which may be true, since you dont known the specs of the other next gen consoles by microsoft or sony, saying Wii u already won a war before even knowing the oposition army its completly ridiculous… complete biased point, and cheap propaganda, for me Wii u, its a bit like N64 in 98… something between to ages… but not much better than the old age, and not as good as the next gen will be, some third party game studios already said that the hardware limitations on wii u are ridiculous if they meant “next gen ready”
games like Zombiu promissed a lot, but overal they suck… and they show that third party studios dont make big eforts on wii u side,