Pachter: Nintendo "blew it" with Wii U, company is "in disarray"

He then clarified his words on NeoGAF.

On some points, he's kinda right though.

He doesn't seem to have a whole lot of facts to base things on, just speculation. However from my observations people are always trying to buy the latest product in a certain line, heck the iPad 3 is apparently in the works and Apple seems to think that will sell even though the line is only a few years old. I don't see why people wouldn't replace something they've had for half a decade.

Grandma's not buying another console.

I have a PS 2. not 3, 2. It's not by choice, but i'm not constantly bothered by it. Once in a while when a cool game comes out, but not often.

though it's Possibly because my mom dosnt like shooters.

He also stated that the Xbox 720 and Play Station 4 would have a SKU with a 4GB HD and the Wii U would not ship with a HD at all.

Both make sense. Lower price, upgrade to a better hard drive when you want to. Especially if the fully loaded Wii U costs $399.99.

I never said she would, however I don't see why it's unlikely for parents to buy the next one for their kids just because. The economy might be problematic but if Nintendo focuses on all the new features and really promotes it I don't think it should matter. The fact that it will probably be cheaper than the competition also helps.

What are you talking about? The Wii U has been confirmed to be HD since it was unveiled. Also I will not take the 399 price as fact since they do not say how they calculated that.

edited 25th Feb '12 12:02:18 PM by Kostya

... What does "high def" have anything to do with hard drive?

And hard drive-LESS. As in, buy the HD separately.

Say HDD, girl.

You said the Wii U would not ship with (an)HD at all. I'm not very good with tech so I read that as the Wii U not being HD which is blatantly wrong. I'm sorry.

edit: He says. Now does this guy work for Nintendo or some gaming company? If not then that's as meaningless as the 399 price point IMO.

edited 25th Feb '12 12:11:24 PM by Kostya

Then maybe you should clarify, or not use acronyms that are commonly used for something else.

“I think Nintendo is in disarray. I think they’ve completely blown the Wii U by not telling people what the price is going to be. It’s going to launch at $249 because it has to. I think they’re dead anyway because Xbox with Kinect will be priced below that by the time they launch.”

Lolwut? From my understanding, casuals don't make up the entirety of the video game market, and the Wii U is obviously aiming for the hardcore market, which will be deciding between PS 4, Xbox 720, and Wii U.

Of course, I think the Wii U could backfire horribly on Nintendo, since the Hardcore Market is almost entirely found Xbox 360 and PS 3 (and also the uberhardcores who are willing to spend 2k on a gaming rig are on PC), and if Publishers can't be convinced to release highly anticipated titles on the Wii U, its going to tank and drag the company down with it. While Nintendo is a big company, Microsoft and Sony are so much bigger, and can and likely will operate their gaming departments at massive losses to give publishers an incentive to stay away from Wii U if it means killing Nintendo.

People did say this sort of thing when the Wii was coming out, IIRC.

We'll just have to wait and see how veracious it turns out to be.

Yeah, I was thinking that. Nintendo did say that they specifically wanted the Wii U to also please the "hardcorez" fanbase that the Wii didn't appeal to as much. So, the idea of all the "casuals" leaving the system for other pastures isn't as devastating as it's being made to sound.

The problem is that the Wii U might not appeal to the core so they'd lose both.

Personally I'm not sure how likely this is though. I don't think the average 360 or PS 3 owner is as militant as the ones that think Nintendo should die out.

He does make a good point. But at the same time, I think the Wii U looks more promising than the Wii did. It may not be a good financial investment for Nintendo... but it could be a better console for the fans.

The one point I agree with most in that article is the market on handhelds being taken by smartphone and tablet games. At least that's the general direction I see handhelds going in.

Hey, remember when the Wii was a terrible idea that no one would buy? And how the Wii-mote was a laughable idea for a controller?

Remember when the DS was a silly gimmick concept that wasn't going to do well?

Yeah, how did those do again?

I think at this point, writing Nintendo off before they release something is just a bad idea. They keep coming up with stuff that people think will fail, and they keep making tons of money off their ideas. They've got the hardcore systems playing catch-up with them.

Also, if all else fails, they can put out a new Star Fox, and all the hardcore gamers will be forced to buy it.

I think it's quite telling that an April Fools post in 2006 turned out to be the most accurate prediction of this console generation, being the exact opposite of what most pundits predicted at the time. Hilarious in Hindsight indeed, And You Thought It Would Fail.

This comic nicely illustrates the point.

In other words, I don't put much stock in pundit predictions like that. Nintendo is not a company to be underestimated, even if they do falter sometimes.

edited 25th Feb '12 2:40:41 PM by NamelessFragger

Yeah, as a PC gamer, I will admit that taking out Nintendo will not be easy.

I don't think it's wise to say Ninty won't do well, but I'm pretty secure in saying I don't like the road they're taking.

Eh, just Pachter. He's doomed Nintendo for over 5-6 years now and they seem fine. Besides, if Nintendo really would be doomed, Sony would probably head the same way game-wise, considering their losses this year.

So many people have been pronouncing doom on Sony, Nintendo and (less often) Microsoft) when it comes to consoles that its basically become baseless speculation.

edited 25th Feb '12 3:49:55 PM by Rationalinsanity

Yeah I don't think Nintendo is doomed. They've got staying power based on brand name alone. However, I do think they've made a few less-than-stellar calls.

As has everyone else. Really, no matter what, all three major companies are going to remain pretty solid for a long time.