7 Reasons Why the Wii U is Tanking

1) The Terrible Name
When the 3DS first released there was lots of commotion over the name. So it really shouldn't surprise anybody that Nintendo chose a questionable name for their new home console as well. The biggest issue with the Wii U was the name and the fact that it was released before Sony and Microsoft had even mentioned new consoles. The general media launched a seemingly endless campaign on the "tablet add-on for the Wii." On June 5, 2012 CNN released an article stating that the Wii U was a solid accessory for the Wii. The public was confused and as a result the hype was not there like it should have been.

2) A Failure at Returning to Core Gamers
The release of the Wii U left us with Nintendo telling gamers that this was a device built with the core gamer in mind. On paper this idea sounded great! After a long 7th Generation with the Wii having a strong focus on children and casual gamers Nintendo was finally coming back. However, this didn't work out quite as planned.
The Wii U received mostly ports of older games (some that were already available for $19.99 or less on PS3, 360 and PC) of games like Mass Effect 3, Batman Arkham City, and Sniper Elite V2 with brand new $59.99 price tags. Not only have some games been known to run poorly on Wii U such as Assassin's Creed III but a lot of games have cut content as well.
Sniper Elite V2 on the Wii U despite its higher price was missing Co-Op, Leaderboards, and Multiplayer. On top of that future releases are already being announced with less content as well. Batman: Arkham Origins for example will not feature Multiplayer on Wii U.

3) A Year Head Start Thrown Away
Nintendo had a full year with the Wii U without competition from PS4 and Xbox One. So how did the Wii U sell a measly 160,000 units worldwide during Q1 of 2013? The answer is the poor media attention, bad marketing and severe lack of games. Wii U offered no immediate benefit over PS3 and 360 and at launch only offered titles that were going to sell better on platforms with larger install bases from the start. This leads on to the next point.

4) No New Entries in the Best Selling Franchises
Critics like Adam Sessler have criticized Nintendo for their lineup of games and lack of releases in 2013. Sessler argued that there was no excuse in Nintendo saying their games take a long time to develop and that they should have planned ahead of time to get those hard hitting exclusives out early. It's hard to disagree with the man. After all who wouldn't have liked Zelda U, Mario Kart and the new Smash Bros to have been released this year?

5) No Grand Theft Auto V
It may sound ridiculous but when you think about it, why doesn't the Wii U have GTA V? It isn't unfair to assume that people would have been more encouraged to purchase a Wii U if they could play the biggest hit title of the year on it. Nintendo is lacking third party support right now and it's showing. There is no reason for it either, it would be wise for Nintendo to try and get these big titles put on to their consoles.

6) Last Gen Hardware
Nintendo did it last gen and got away with it but the times are changing now. This may not be a particularly big deal for every gamer out there but it is a strike against the Wii U nonetheless. What it will do in the long run is hurt third party support. Devs may not want to port and water down their future titles to the system especially if it has a small install base and the returns won't be high.
On top of that the hardware based DRM in place by Nintendo isn't particularly appealing either. It's not necessary for them to treat their customers with such limiting policies. In reality there is no purpose nor excuse for it.

7) Not Enough Hype to Combat Sony and Microsoft
Nintendo isn't bringing their best to the table yet and with powerful 8th Generation consoles coming from Microsoft and Sony, Nintendo might just be left in the dust.



What are your thoughts on the Wii U? Will it be a success or will it prove to be one of Nintendo's not so bright moments in history? And if you are an early adopter of the Wii U do you have any good or bad opinions regarding Nintendo's new DRM or lack of 2013 releases? Comment below or on our Facebook Group.