Nintendo can pat itself on the back knowing that it
beat both Microsoft and Sony in releasing next generation consoles, but being
first isn't always the best strategy. At least one analyst believes the Wii U amounts to a misfire, saying Nintendo
made a mistake in releasing it.
"I think
they misfired on the Wii U," Wedbush Securities managing director Michael
Pachter told GamesBeat. "It's just not that different from the other two
consoles, and the gameplay isn't as unique as the Wii. They made a mistake,
it's something they probably can't recover from."
Pachter's
comments echo we declared in our Wii U review that Nintendo
ultimately missed the mark. Here's a quick refresher:
"Beyond
the areas that Nintendo has bungled right out of the gate, the lackluster
hardware within makes us wonder if the Wii U has the horsepower to compete with
whatever Microsoft and Sony cook up next," we stated in our review.
"As it stands, the graphics here are about on par with an Xbox 360, but
how bad is the Wii U going to look when placed alongside the rumored Xbox 720
or PlayStation 4? Unlike a custom gaming PC rig, you can't just swap a new GPU
into a home console."
All that
aside, the only thing that really matters is how well the console is selling,
and some estimates have the number as low as 55,000 units in January.
Microsoft, meanwhile, sold 281,000 Xbox 360 consoles during that same month,
and that's a 6-year-old console. Don't like that comparison? Then consider that
Wii U sales are 38 percent lower than the original Wii during its first three
months on the market.
The long-term
prognosis is equally worrisome. Microsoft is expected to launch its Xbox 720 console by the end
of the year, and it's believed Sony's PlayStation 4 is
right around the corner. [HotHardware]
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