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[Mr. B Natural]

Since your in-laws seem to be very gullible, you realize now they are going to catch an assault charge thanks to you?

There's nothing gullible about being lied to to your face by someone that is being paid to answer simple questions like theirs. Not everyone lives in the same bubble you do.
But they're not the smartest people around, so your point stands.

 

[metalslimer]

Agreed. Panic mode Nintendo is best Nintendo.

And no, they're not in any danger of going out of business. Overreaction much? They have fucking $13 billion saved in the bank... they're could endure 5 Dreamcast level failures in a row and still be fine.

This is just so wrong on so many levels. First of all as said before panic mode Nintendo is the same exact Nintendo they always have been. Nintendo has never been afraid of cutting prices if something isn't selling great, and they had already made software and deals long before 3DS even came out. Also the Dreamcast, is not what killed Sega. It was their previous financial stupidity. Nintendo most certainly could not withstand 5x the amount of financial incompetence that killed Sega. If Sega's financial position hadn't been so terrible the Dreamcast could have survived a lot longer on the market.

For Nintendo's sake, you better hope the Wii U doesn't bomb or they will have immense problems as they no longer have a tight grip on the portable market worldwide to subsidize costs.

 

[TheExecutive]

The Wii was impossible to find at launch. I don't remember how long it was until I saw some on the shelves, but it felt close to six months when I saw them regularly.

I'm seeing Wii U in stock at most stores: Wal-Mart, Best Buy, Gamestop, and even at Frys.

Not a good sign.

It's early yet but it's going to be extremely hard for anyone, Nintendo included, to match the initial 2 years of the Wii. That sucker was hot I tell you HOT.

 

[ShockingAlberto]

People think panic mode Nintendo secured Monster Hunter for the 3DS when it was totally arrogant, complacent Nintendo that did that.

Panic mode Nintendo simply dropped the price before announcing MH.

 

[Hcoregamer00]

Is there confusion about the WiiU amongst the general public? You better believe it. There is confusion, apparently, with retail.

Yeah, it just confirms what we all have been saying.

THE NAME SUCKS, Nintendo could have opted for a more marketing friendly name like Super Wii, Wii 2, or N6. They have also done a horrible job marketing the product as a successor product.

They have had (or are having) the same problem with the 3DS. I noticed when I was buying some 3DS games in Target that some older folks were asking if the 3DS was playable on the DS. The Target guy explained that the 3DS is the next DS, the older lady said, "They could have labeled it better." It didn't help that Target likes mixing all the 3DS and the DS games together, it is really mucking up everything. Finding the games I wanted was a bitch compared to stores that segment the 3DS from the DS games, like Gamestop and Best Buy.

 

[Bgamer90]

So I was at my inlaws and I saw a brand new Wii on the table. I asked them what they were doing with it and my father-in-law said that he wanted to play the new call of duty. Apparently, they asked some guy working the counter at target if they could play Wii-U games with the Wii and the dumbass said yes, you can.

Are you freggin kidding me?

So, luckily they didn't open the thing and didn't buy the game. I told them to take that Wii back and find the moron that told them the lie and smack him upside the head.

Is there confusion about the WiiU amongst the general public? You better believe it. There is confusion, apparently, with retail.

Haha, wow.

 

[LiveFromKyoto]

The shop I pre-ordered at back in September finally got some in - Basic only. Still waiting on my deluxe.

Sounds like the basics are the only things still kicking around.

 

[Terrell]

This is just so wrong on so many levels. First of all as said before panic mode Nintendo is the same exact Nintendo they always have been. Nintendo has never been afraid of cutting prices if something isn't selling great, and they had already made software and deals long before 3DS even came out. Also the Dreamcast, is not what killed Sega. It was their previous financial stupidity. Nintendo most certainly could not withstand 5x the amount of financial incompetence that killed Sega. If Sega's financial position hadn't been so terrible the Dreamcast could have survived a lot longer on the market.

Yeah, Sega's situation can be summed up thusly: competition talked about doing add-ons to hardware rather than a new generation, Sega pulled the trigger first to lukewarm interest. Tried an add-on again on the same hardware, to a deleterious effect. Tried to mitigate this by being first to launch in the next generation, siphoned all their loose cash. Arcade business started to collapse, destroying new revenue to compensate. Then Dreamcast happened, getting it right MUCH too late. That's 3 outright disasters and a market collapse followed by a too-little-too-late success.

Yeah, it just confirms what we all have been saying.

THE NAME SUCKS, Nintendo could have opted for a more marketing friendly name like Super Wii, Wii 2, or N6. They have also done a horrible job marketing the product as a successor product.

The name has very little to do with this. It's a visibility problem. If it's not in someone's face, they can't tell you what the difference is.
The brand is fine, the marketing is questionable. I think Nintendo was leaning too heavy on the idea that people didn't need things explained to them so heavy-handedly in a world of Google in the palm of your hand. This situation proves that, yes, you still need to use the bluntest instruments possible.

 

[TheFLYINGManga_Ka]

Definitely don't want Wii U to bomb. I want to at least see the system flourish with the similar releases of the 1st party games the Wii had.

My main concern is Nintendo's success in Japan. The Wii U is in a different situation since it's competing with the cheaper PS3. Dragon Quest X is a MMO so I'm not sure how much of an impact it'll have in pushing Wii U systems. If it was a numbered DQ game, than that could've been the Wii U's savior. Don't feel the same vibe with a MMO.

As for Monster Hunter, Nintendo better do everything they can to secure it on their systems. If Capcom makes a new MH game from the ground up, they could easily port it to the PS3 and the Vita which could take away the Wii U's marketability for that franchise. Of course I'm just spewing out hypothetical scenarios, and it may or may not happen. But DQ and MH seems like the prized gems that can secure any system in Japan.

But I think Wii U and 3DS success, or should I say, Nintendo's success, depends on how successful it is in Japan. I'm hoping both of the systems become a haven for Japanese developers and we get some amazing games for it.

In the west, I don't see the Wii U becoming a huge hit with casuals like the Wii. It'll be a hard core system whether Nintendo wants that or not. Their bread and butter will be the Nintendo faithfuls again, like the N64 and GC days.

 

[Hcoregamer00]

The name has very little to do with this. It's a visibility problem. If it's not in someone's face, they can't tell you what the difference is.
The brand is fine, the marketing is questionable. I think Nintendo was leaning too heavy on the idea that people didn't need things explained to them so heavy-handedly in a world of Google in the palm of your hand. This situation proves that, yes, you still need to use the bluntest instruments possible.

The name has a lot to do with it.

What we see is an issue in branding that stems from a name that doesn't signify progress to the general public. A Wii 2 would signal to the general public that this product is a successor to the Wii and that it is progress to the next generation of hardware. Wii U doesn't signal anything, what does the "U" stand for? Does it stand for "you" as it is a more personal hardware, or "you" have more of a focus in the Wii experience through your Mii avatar? This confusion leads to other marketing issues that Nintendo is having. If they cannot convey where they want to go in the name, they cannot create a clear differentiator to signal to the general public that this is in fact the "new" wii console.

 

[Anth0ny]

This is just so wrong on so many levels. First of all as said before panic mode Nintendo is the same exact Nintendo they always have been. Nintendo has never been afraid of cutting prices if something isn't selling great, and they had already made software and deals long before 3DS even came out. Also the Dreamcast, is not what killed Sega. It was their previous financial stupidity. Nintendo most certainly could not withstand 5x the amount of financial incompetence that killed Sega. If Sega's financial position hadn't been so terrible the Dreamcast could have survived a lot longer on the market.

For Nintendo's sake, you better hope the Wii U doesn't bomb or they will have immense problems as they no longer have a tight grip on the portable market worldwide to subsidize costs.

yes, panic mode Nintendo has always existed. no one is saying it started with the 3DS price cut.

nintendo could easily endure a sega cd/32x/saturn/dreamcast/+whatever the fuck else killed sega in the console business level failures. 13 billion in the bank. i guess not 5 times though, you got me there.

and no, the wii u will obviously not bomb in the traditional sense. nintendo won't lose money on each console sold in a few months (they already make a profit if they sell a single game with each console). At worst it'll be a gamecube esque failure, where they won't be losing money, they simply won't be making as much money on it as they'd like.

 

[Digital-Hero]

So where are the people who said wait until the numbers? We have a place to start talking now.

Black Friday Week:
1. Xbox 360 - 750,000
2. PlayStation 3 - 525,000
3. Wii U - 400,000
4. Wii - 300,000
5. Nintendo DS - 275,000
6. Nintendo 3DS - 250,000
7. PlayStation Vita - 160,000

Source:
http://www.ign.com/articles/2012/11/29/comparing-nintendo-sony-and-microsoft-black-friday-sales

 

[donny2112]

Welcome to threads we've been having all day?

What numbers were being waited on?

400K for Wii U could be good, could be bad, could be <more information required>. Just having the November total doesn't tell us much other than that's what it sold in November for launch, and based on reports, the shipments probably weren't a whole lot more than that. That could be a PS3 result (early shortages), a Wii result (long-term shortages), or more likely something in the vast space between those two results.

 

[antonz]

Welcome to threads we've been having all day?

What numbers were being waited on?

400K for Wii U could be good, could be bad, could be <more information required>. Just having the November total doesn't tell us much other than that's what it sold in November for launch, and based on reports, the shipments probably weren't a whole lot more than that. That could be a PS3 result (early shortages), a Wii result (long-term shortages), or more likely something in the vast space between those two results.

December is really going to be the telling month I think though it wont matter much in the long run. Will just give us a better view of the launch. They managed 604k Wii in December 2006 for US

 

[fluffydelusions]

So where are the people who said wait until the numbers? We have a place to start talking now.

Black Friday Week:
1. Xbox 360 - 750,000
2. PlayStation 3 - 525,000
3. Wii U - 400,000
4. Wii - 300,000
5. Nintendo DS - 275,000
6. Nintendo 3DS - 250,000
7. PlayStation Vita - 160,000

Source:
http://www.ign.com/articles/2012/11/29/comparing-nintendo-sony-and-microsoft-black-friday-sales

Yeah but you couldn't really find a Wii U anywhere though? At least not here in NYC

 

[donny2112]

December is really going to be the telling month I think though it wont matter much in the long run. Will just give us a better view of the launch. They managed 604k Wii in December 2006 for US

PS3 was still selling for outrageous amounts until a week before Christmas or so, and then there were stacks unsold in stores by New Year's. Really don't think Wii U will follow either PS3 or Wii roads, but probably be a more traditional result. Low numbers for December with lots of extra stock would be a very bad sign, though. Not sure what would actually be a good sign this early. 360 was lambasted for its performance relative to PS2 the first year with talk of how PS3 would show Microsoft how it was done, and then the PS3 came out and did worse.

In short, we may be able to tell something with these next months results if they're extreme one-way or another, but more likely, we'll be waiting to see how PS4/720 are doing in 2014 to be able to really gauge if Wii U was decent or not over this next year.

However, that shouldn't stop speculation on its heights/depths of performance. Just don't put too much stock in them (excluding extremes).

 

[Digital-Hero]

Yeah but you couldn't really find a Wii U anywhere though? At least not here in NYC

I saw two today at Fred Meyer, a local grocery / department store chain. I was there 5 times in 6 days and have seen them everytime. (All basic sets mind you. Saw a deluxe once earlier in the week.)

 

[Bog]

I saw two today at Fred Meyer, a local grocery / department store chain. I was there 5 times in 6 days and have seen them everytime. (All basic sets mind you. Saw a deluxe once earlier in the week.)

And I've yet to see one at any BB's, Targets, Walmarts in the Philly suburbs. We could do this all day.

 

[fluffydelusions]

I saw two today at Fred Meyer, a local grocery / department store chain. I was there 5 times in 6 days and have seen them everytime. (All basic sets mind you. Saw a deluxe once earlier in the week.)

I don't know what Fred Meyer is. All bestbuys and GameStops around me have none and haven't had any since launch.

 

[Digital-Hero]

I don't know what Fred Meyer is. All bestbuys and GameStops around me have none and haven't had any since launch.

And I've yet to see one at any BB's, Targets, Walmarts in the Philly suburbs. We could do this all day.

It sounds like a different world. They are so easy to find for me.

If you guys want a basic set. Let me know, we can go through paypal and set this up.

 

[Baconsammy]

It sounds like a different world. They are so easy to find for me.

If you guys want a basic set. Let me know....

Theyre easy to find for anyone. Target.com has them.

 

[grimshawish]

So where are the people who said wait until the numbers? We have a place to start talking now.

Black Friday Week:
1. Xbox 360 - 750,000
2. PlayStation 3 - 525,000
3. Wii U - 400,000
4. Wii - 300,000
5. Nintendo DS - 275,000
6. Nintendo 3DS - 250,000
7. PlayStation Vita - 160,000

There were other threads on all of these, you want everyone to repeat themselves?

 

[Boss Man]

It sounds like a different world. They are so easy to find for me.

If you guys want a basic set. Let me know, we can go through paypal and set this up.

Same for me. Although I doubt many people are lying. It's probably just YMMV depending on where you live.

 

[Digital-Hero]

Same for me. Although I doubt many people are lying. It's probably just YMMV depending on where you live.

Definitely, but I'd help anyone out who wants one.

[EDIT: Like Baconsammy said, Target.com has them now.]

 

[Terrell]

Seeing that the basic is extremely more available makes me think that the basic was a pointless idea.

 

[Currygan]

Seeing that the basic is extremely more available makes me think that the basic was a pointless idea.

that's what i kept thinking since it was announced

 

[gryz]

Seeing that the basic is extremely more available makes me think that the basic was a pointless idea.

only reason I have the basic is because the deluxe preorders were sold out, I still think the white one looks better so I don't totally care

 

[chubigans]

Same for me. Although I doubt many people are lying. It's probably just YMMV depending on where you live.

Pretty much every Target has them in stock in my area according to the online thingy. Even though people say that's not reliable, I took this pic about thirty minutes ago at my Target.

 

[Hero]

I think white was just made so Nintendo could have a 299.99 SKU. It's all about the psychological pricing with the consumer.

 

[netBuff]

I think white was just made so Nintendo could have a 299.99 SKU. It's all about the psychological pricing with the consumer.

... and as soon as you're in for $300 most will think to themselves: "$50 more isn't going to break the bank, is it? Might as well purchase the Premium Pack" (which seems to be a better value, anyway. Not to forget about the sexy black colour).

 

[Hero]

... and as soon as you're in for $300 most will think to themselves: "$50 more isn't going to break the bank, is it? Might as well purchase the Premium Pack".

Well, sure, there are definitely people who will do that as well and justify that 50 extra dollars will provide them with plastic stuff and a game when it doesn't cost Nintendo nearly 50 bucks to put it in the box. But there are definitely consumers who just need the barebones, lowest priced model. It's part of why Apple's pricing scheme is so effective.

 

[netBuff]

Well, sure, there are definitely people who will do that as well and justify that 50 extra dollars will provide them with plastic stuff and a game when it doesn't cost Nintendo nearly 50 bucks to put it in the box. But there are definitely consumers who just need the barebones, lowest priced model. It's part of why Apple's pricing scheme is so effective.

I meant my comment as an addition to yours, not as a contradiction: A lower entry price-point is important for getting the people more interested in a bare model to purchase as well as for getting other people interested in the system, but then sway them to spend a little more. A higher entry price-point would possibly have deterred the latter group, even though they end up spending as much.

 

[Hero]

I meant my comment as an addition to yours, not as a contradiction: A lower entry price-point is important for getting the people more interested in a bare model to purchase as well as for getting other people interested in the system, but then sway them to spend a little more. A higher entry price-point would possibly have deterred the latter group, even though they end up spending as much.

Oh, totally in agreement then!

 

[brandonh83]

I sold three units today and I don't even work in electronics. I would just walk by electronics, see people staring at them in wtf mode and say "can I help you with something?" and the usual reply was "what is this?" They didn't seem to think it was a Wii add-on, they just wondered what all it did, if it would play original Wii games, etc.

However, I think one of the managers now wants me to work in electronics.

 

[gamergirly]

Definitely, but I'd help anyone out who wants one.

[EDIT: Like Baconsammy said, Target.com has them now.]

You cant help anyone with the Deluxe:

Wii U 32GB Deluxe Set Console- Black (Nintendo ... Nintendo WUPSKAFB
available in stores

currently unavailable online

Pretty much every Target has them in stock in my area according to the online thingy. Even though people say that's not reliable, I took this pic about thirty minutes ago at my Target.

That's only 2 systems. Could be gone tomorrow morning/evening. As someone said YMMV

 

[-PXG-]

I went out with a buddy tonight. Every store had a the Basic models in stock. He ended buying the last Deluxe at Best Buy.

 

[Gahiggidy]

Surprised how much more popular deluxe is to basic. Nintendo should've priced the deluxe at $369.

 

[gamergirly]

Surprised how much more popular deluxe is to basic. Nintendo should've priced the deluxe at $369.

They saving the $250 trump card for next Christmas

 

[donny2112]

Pretty much every Target has them in stock in my area according to the online thingy. Even though people say that's not reliable, I took this pic about thirty minutes ago at my Target.

http://i.imgur.com/SIxAv.jpg[IMG][/QUOTE]

Wal-Mart was the real killer in being bad for stocked purposes, I think. Figured it was mostly due to being right after Black Friday, though. Christmas season is generally more difficult to get online to match in-store stock reporting due to speed of selling items, and Black Friday is even worse. Not sure if people were reporting Target as being out-of-synch as much, though.