Nintendo Wii U set to out-sell predecessor at launch
But it will never be as popular long term
Nintendo will shift more Wii Us in the first three months of release than it managed with the console's predecessor, analysts claim. But an estimated 53 million sales by the end of 2016 puts projected long-term success of the tablet-inspired console quite some way behind.
Nintendo is said to have 5.5 million Wii U units in stock ready to allow it to continue selling consoles to punters through until the end of April 2013. However, market watcher IHS ScreenDirect reckons Nintendo would do better if it had even more to hand.
When the original Wii hit shelves in 2006, Nintendo shifted 3.1m units in the run up to Christmas, a figure predicted to reach 3.5m over the same time frame with Wii U.
Source: IHS Screen Digest, November 2012
IHS believes this will lead to supply shortages, and many of those on the hunt for one of Nintendo's new consoles may have to wait until 2013.
Regardless of when gamers get their hands on the Wii U, over the four years that follow its release, Nintendo is forecast to shift 30 per cent fewer than it did with the Wii. The motion-controlled games box is fast approaching the 100 million mark and is rated as the second best-selling console in history.
"This time around, Wii U's innovation, coupled with a limited volume of high-quality Nintendo software, will not be enough to drive the ongoing sales momentum we witnessed with the Wii console, especially at a higher price point," predicted Piers Harding-Rolls, a senior analyst at Screen Digest.
The Wii U starts at £260 for an basic, 8GB model, rising to £310 for a 32GB version.
If the console does manage more than 50m sales over the coming years, it will only be ten or so million behind total figures for the NES, Ninty's best-selling games box for two decades.
You can read what our first impressions of Nintendo Wii U here on Reg Hardware. ®
COMMENTS
£50 for 24Gb
Did you see that, Apple? Did you? Huh, HUH?
Re: No must buys here
The Wiimote was also a pointing device, like a mouse.
Except that it was shit, or are we forgetting the Motion + (that then never got used in-game because developers would be excluding customers)?
FPS games were more challenging...using the Wiimote
A control input makes a game harder to play, and that's a good thing to you?
Re: Outdated by what?
It's just a multi core PowerPC processor with paired an AMD GPU of some kind. Little different than the 360 really. It might be clocked a bit higher, and a bit more performant. But it's quite obviously not a radical design. I expect when Nintendo put it out to tender their specs slightly exceeded the other consoles but not by a huge amount.
It certainly doesn't justify the launch price unless you count the controller. But then again you can buy a wifi enabled tablet for $50. I doubt their controller costs more than $30 tops to manufacture.
Re: Consoles are losing their lustre for me
Back to the PC for archaic and un-involving Keyboard/Mouse gaming
You mean back to the PC for cheaper games, better consumer rights, no online passes, easier distribution, better sales, etc, etc, etc? Man, how archaic.
And yes, I'll bite. K/M combo > thumbsticks.
Consoles are losing their lustre for me
I don't think I'll be getting one of these either anytime soon. I think my interest in consoles is coming to an end with the current generation. Time to go back to my PC.
