Nintendo scored huge points for the Wii U at E3 2014. Game reveals like Xenoblade Chronicles X and The Legend of Zelda were some of the best of the show, and new game announcements included the likes of Kirby and the Rainbow Curse, Star Fox, and even new IP Splatoon. But is all this enough to push Wii U away from its huge slump in sales numbers? Ubisoft’s CEO doesn’t seem to think so.
Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot shared with CVG:
With Mario Kart, Wii U made one step and we expect with Smash Bros it will also do more. If Nintendo put the right price on the machine then they will probably have a chance to do further.
Although he doesn’t mention a price drop directly, he makes it clear that at $300 it’s a machine that has trouble competing with the big boys.
Ubisoft invested heavily in the Wii U for launch, producing the exclusive ZombiU and porting over Assassin’s Creed III with unique improvements. It was even going to release Rayman Legends exclusively on the platform… until things took a turn for the worst. Not only did the Wii U’s sales drastically dampen shortly after launch, but software sales made third-parties like Ubisoft re-think their strategy.
Just a couple of weeks ago I purchased a Wii U after seeing how good Mario Kart 8 was, and I don’t regret that decision. I know I’m not alone when I say the Wii U on its current path has enough to at least build a reasonable audience, but a second price drop would do wonders. $199 is the golden price point where consoles tend to begin flying off store shelves. Unfortunately, I don’t think Nintendo can drop the price that low without sacrificing the GamePad, and they’ve shown no intention to make such a move.
The problem is, while Nintendo can keep pushing on, retailers can only handle so much. Keeping an overflow of Wii U stock is frustrating for stores, at some point enough is enough. A price drop must be in the cards in one way, shape, or form. The questions are: how will Nintendo do it, and when?
