Nintendo’s new Wii U console isn’t performing to the company’s expectations, but they have a plan to get it back on track, says Nintendo president, Satoru Iwata.
Speaking at an earnings Q&A, Iwata stated that new Wii U games that will begin launching in the second half of 2013 will communicate the value of the system to consumers. Iwata added that these games will include those that the company has not yet announced, and that, going forward, Nintendo will also get more creative with their messaging in conveying the Wii U’s appeal.
Additionally, Nintendo Senior Managing Director, Shigeru Miyamoto, provided his own thoughts on conveying the appeal of the Wii U as well.
“A common practice in the entertainment industry is to offer a new proposition whose appeal can instantly be understood, enabling it to be popularized quickly,” Miyamoto said to attendees. “Nevertheless, while it is perhaps strange for Nintendo to say the opposite, our belief in designing this hardware was to create a standard machine full of convenience for every living room.”
He later elaborated: “We have not yet launched many titles, but Nintendo has been striving to sell its software for as long as three years in an industry where a typical software title has only a few weeks of product life. In this sense, we are confident that even our existing ideas are attractive enough to draw people to our hardware. During development, I found myself becoming increasingly accustomed to using two screens, and now I feel compelled to take a look at the screen in my hands even if that is not necessary.”
“While it will take more time to give shape to our new propositions that take advantage of being able to use two screens, we have various ideas already. In terms of our research and development resources, as we need more staff in response to the high performance of this hardware, we are working to recruit more people, including people from outside the company.”
Miyamoto added that Nintendo’s real challenge will be to figure out how to communicate the appeal of the Wii U through promotional activities, and that he isn’t worried about the company being out of ideas for using the Wii U hardware.
“Apart from these issues, we are working hard without becoming worried about whether we are out of ideas or the system will be accepted into people’s living rooms. It seems to me that we have a larger challenge in how to have many people understand the value of this hardware through our promotional activities,” Miyamoto concluded.
