Current Events > Reggie File-Amie: Switch was a make-or-break product for Nintendo after Wii U.

(+) Yeah! (+)

https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2021/01/reggie_admits_switch_was_a_make_or_break_product_for_nintendo_after_poor_performance_of_wii_u

In Reggie's words:

"You know, Nintendo has done so many innovations in the space... I think what Nintendo did with the Switch, after the poor performance of Wii U, I think to me and what I was part of, that's my lasting memory."

"People forget, when the Wii U launched, the performance over that life cycle was so poor, I mean it was the worst-selling platform, I think maybe Virtual Boy was a little bit worse, but Wii U underperformed pretty radically in the marketplace."

"And when your only business is video games that next had to be successful and the Switch continues to be a dynamic platform - selling exceptionally well. And the ability for the company to come up with the concept, to bring it to life, to bring it to the marketplace, to have not only great first-party content but great third party and independent developer content - that is going to be something I will always be proud of."

"Along with so many of the other things I was part of, but the Switch really was a make or break product for the company and luckily it was a hit."

It should be noted that it's not that Nintendo would have been in financial trouble if the Switch failed, but more that it would have signaled an extreme shift in focus, and they may have even gone third party. But as we all know, the Switch has been a runaway hit globally, so you won't be seeing Mario and Zelda games on Playstation or Xbox any time soon.

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Disappointed it didn't fail

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Switch is a great console from concept to execution tbh, except for damn joycon drift, but that seems to only be a problem from earlier models

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I really miss Reggie, Bowser seems okay but Reggie just seemed to really resonate with gamers.

so you're saying I could have been playing Smash on my PS4????

but for real, I'm glad that the Switch was a success.

I no longer own one, but I like how different it felt from the PS4/Xbox One

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The bizarre thing to me has always been that the Switch isn't inherently that much better than the Wii U. I guess it's a bit of a different story if you use it frequently as a handheld though. But it was disappointing that the Wii U was such a failure for no good reason.

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Bananana posted...

Switch is a great console from concept to execution tbh, except for damn joycon drift, but that seems to only be a problem from earlier models

Current models still have it. Even the Switch Lite runs into it which is worse since they are attached to the system permanently.

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Nintendo has stated multiple times over the years that they would never go 3rd party or sell IP's, if they fold they will take everything with them.

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GeneralKenobi85 posted...

But it was disappointing that the Wii U was such a failure for no good reason.

Oh, there were a few good reasons.

1. It was marketed wrong, putting much more emphasis on the GamePad than anything else, and along with the name made people believe that it was a mere tablet add-on for the Wii. Calling the system "Wii 2" to begin with would have much better gotten the point across.
2. Even that aside, most of the casuals who bought the Wii moved on to mobile games, which blew up tremendously in the years since the Wii's launch, so that well was unavailable for Nintendo.
3. Developers had to mind the GamePad, so porting games over from PS3 and X360 wasn't as simple of a task.
4. It launched when the PS4 and the XBOne were on the way, so most other companies would shift focus towards those consoles in short order, and the Wii U wasn't nearly powerful enough to handle ports of PS4 and XBOne games, cutting off the supply of third party support that was promised early on. They would much rather develop for much more powerful--and successful--consoles, without also having to worry about the GamePad.

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Solar_Crimson posted...

Oh, there were a few good reasons.

1. It was marketed wrong, putting much more emphasis on the GamePad than anything else, and along with the name made people believe that it was a mere tablet add-on for the Wii. Calling the system "Wii 2" to begin with would have much better gotten the point across.
2. Even that aside, most of the casuals who bought the Wii moved on to mobile games, which blew up tremendously in the years since the Wii's launch, so that well was unavailable for Nintendo.
3. Developers had to mind the GamePad, so porting games over from PS3 and X360 wasn't as simple of a task.
4. It launched when the PS4 and the XBOne were on the way, so most other companies would shift focus towards those consoles in short order, and the Wii U wasn't nearly powerful enough to handle ports of PS4 and XBOne games, cutting off the supply of third party support that was promised early on.

I meant more in comparison to the Switch, because like I said I don't actually think the Switch is all that much better on its own. All your points are certainly true though.

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