The WII U was released by Nintendo in November 2012. It was described by the iconic creators of Super Mario and WII as a home video game console that 'comes with a unique controller that redefines the dynamic of playing games together'. In simple terms, it's a sequel console to the WII that's a handheld edition you play at home, meaning whilst it isn't portable it's still handheld. It was great for playing old video games. Comparing the WII and WII U, the WII U was more powerful though Nintendo did state the WII and WII U don't have any similarities, the only reason people connect the two is because they both are called the WII.
In this blog, we explore the long-lost console, seeing its introduction after the powerful WII console was released and watching how the WII U paved the way for Nintendo's other iconic console, the Switch.
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What are the features of the WII U?
The WII U was available in black and white and looked like any classic video game console. It had a screen in the middle and buttons round the side, the actual console itself was quite chunky and there was very little screen space on the console. The WII U also played most Nintendo games, obviously a WII U version.
What does WII U means?
As we mentioned, the WII U isn't actually completely connected to the WII console. The only similarity they share is their names being the same. At the time of release, many gamers were keen to work out what the U meant in the console's title name. Upon researching ourselves, we were actually surprised to discover the U has no official meaning. A couple of online pages have given their guesses, let's take a look at them.
- WII U (WII You)
- WII U(nique)
- WII U(pdated)
- WII U(niverse)
- WII U(Be You)
In our opinion, calling the new console the WII U when it isn't a WII console is confusing for gamers. Do they buy the console if they already have the WII? Do the WII U and WII work together well? Can you only buy the WII U if you already have the WII console? So many questions were left unanswered.
How successful was the WII U?
And when it finally came to the WII U release date, the console performed... badly. Usually if a console gets discontinued early or is a clear failure, it peaks for a certain amount of time getting a substantial number of sales, but the WII U didn't.
The WII U sold very poorly. Let's break down its sales. The console was available from 2012-2017. In those 5 years, it managed to sell 13 million units. The Switch on the other hand ran from 2017 and is still active meaning it's currently 8 years old. Within the Switch's first 12 months of sales, they managed 13 million units. It took the Switch 12 months to match the WII U's lifetime sales. When it was cancelled, all leftover devices were destroyed or bricked. (Which is when an electronic device becomes completely unresponsive and can't function or be easily repaired)
What year did WII U end?
As mentioned in this blog, the WII U was discontinued quickly. In 2015, it was revealed the console would be winding down production before officially ending in 2017. (Perfect timing for the Switch) As you can guess, the console was discontinued because it sold badly and was getting worse. We think it was a big risk for Nintendo, officially shutting off the era of the WII and opening up a new era of the Switch. Considering they had no idea how well the Switch console would sell, halting all productions to get this upcoming console out was a big risk that paid off! Although the WII U is forever gone, it certainly had a lot of pressure put onto its name (literally) to continue the WII legacy. Whilst also paving the way for the Nintendo comeback with the introduction of console and handheld gaming.
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Conclusion:
In conclusion, the WII U failed for many small reasons that made a huge issue.
Firstly, its name. WII U. Causing confusion over what the console does and who should buy it. With people assuming the WII U was a WII add-on, they didn't seem a need to purchase.
Second, the console had very little preparation. It followed on from the WII console, so Nintendo assumed the console would sell well following its predecessors monster success. It's almost like Nintendo forgot to market the console after its release and they hoped it would follow off the WII's back so people forgot about it quickly. This theory can be proven however with the console being called the WII U. They wanted to remind gamers of their previous consoles with this new edition.
Finally, it was alleged the Switch 2 was already in production when the WII U was released, so it's clear Nintendo didn't put full attention into the WII U. It's clear Nintendo always had something bigger in the back of their head which although proved correct at the time it didn't play well to their advantage.
