Rumors are abound that Nintendo are preparing wrapping up the Wii U’s production because of the of the impending launch of its NX console and poor sales.
These rumors originated from the well respected Japanese newspaper the Nikkei, but Nintendo have now gone on recording dismissing the papers claims.
“This isn’t an announcement from our company.” The spokesperson added, “From the next quarter and thereafter as well, production [of the Wii U] is scheduled to continue.”
The company also claim “That report didn’t come from us.”
So, that’s it – case closed? Nintendo will continue the Wii U’s production then? Well, it’s worth noting that Nintendo didn’t outright deny the original rumors and also Nintendo have a history of denying rumors which later turn out to be accurate.
For example, the larger screen DSI back in 2009 was outright denied by Nintendo after the Nikkei published the rumor… and we all know how that turned out in the end. Nintendo even denied the original reports claiming the very existence of the DSi, which further proves the lack of Nintendo’s credibility when it comes to disputing such claims.
The Wii U’s popularity simply hasn’t caught on, and despite being released in 2012 has sold just over 12 million units – far below market expectation. There are several reasons of the poor sales, but lower end hardware and Nintendo’s poor marketing haven’t helped.
Nikkei are reporting that components for the Wii U have ceased to be produced, and Nintendo are now in the process of essentially clearing the back catalog of hardware from its inventory. This is a normal process for any console as it ends production.
Nintendo are canning the Wii U entirely, and games production (at least in the foreseeable future) shall and will continue. Nintendo have enough Wii U consoles (and parts) in its inventory to service public demand for the machine.
With the rumors of the NX circulating, many gamer’s are not ready to take the Wii U plunge and would rather wait, and have instead opted for a PS4 or X1 for their console needs while waiting to see what Nintendo have hidden in their sleeve.
This is one of those instances where even if the Nikkei is not correct, in a realistic scenario Wii U production is not going to last much longer because hardware demand simply isn’t high enough.
Thanks, Kotaku
