This is how Nintendo hopes to grow 3DS and Wii U sales

While Nintendo’s return to profit this week was welcome, the fact that both 3DS and Wii U missed sales targets was most certainly not.

To address the issue Nintendo has identified two strategies – women and DLC.
“Four years since its release, we are seeing a certain level of positive results by the release of New Nintendo 3DS, but we still have not been able to break free from the period beyond the popularization of the Nintendo 3DS in which the performance levelled off,” Nintendo president Satoru Iwatatold investors.
“I believe that the key to revitalizing the Nintendo 3DS business in Japan is by intensifying its appeal to even more generations of female consumers.
“Meanwhile, in the overseas markets, the Nintendo 3DS hardware has not spread to a level where it has reached its market potential. In other words, there is plenty of room for growth. Since the release of New Nintendo 3DS in February this year, especially for the large-screened New Nintendo 3DS XL, stock in stores has continued to run low in the US and Europe, which of course is a sign that the game platform has momentum.”
The same strategy is not being applied to Wii U, however. Iwata says the console is “maintaining momentum” so far in 2015 and that software sales are up year-on-year – most of which is credited solely to Mario Kart 8 and Super Smash Bros.
“Our analysis is that this increase is not so much owed to the release of new titles but instead to the release of two classic multiplayer titles for Nintendo’s home console last year,” Iwata added.
“I believe it was significant [both games] were released in the same year and that we have been able to maintain users’ active use of these titles months after their respective releases.
“We are trying to motivate our consumers to continually play the games that they have purchased and are placing emphasis on the ability to keep a high replay value even after time has passed since their release by adding new functionalities via software updates or by digitally offering new add-on content such as new characters and new courses. This is an important effort for maintaining the performance and momentum of evergreen titles and further extending their lifespan.”
Iwata added that some still unannounced games will be released on Wii U before the end of the financial year in March 2016, some of which will stem from Shigeru Miyamoto’s Wii U GamePad utilization project that is tasked with using the console’s unique features.

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