Nintendo of America head Reggie Fils-Aime has recognized the difficulties the company had with the Wii U’s launch and must do better when launching the NX.
In an interview with [A]List, Fils-Aime said, “One of the things that we have to do better when we launch the NX—we have to do a better job communicating the positioning for the product.” This was a problem with the Wii U because consumers had a difficult time differentiating it from its predecessor, the Wii.
According to him, messaging needs to be their biggest concern. “We have to do a better job helping people to understand its uniqueness and what that means for the game playing experience.” And if rumors are to be believed and the NX truly is a hybrid handheld/console, communicating exactly what the system does will be the company’s biggest hurdle.
He went on to discuss other key decisions that need to be made to facilitate a good launch for the NX. Regarding games, he said, “Nintendo has been in this video game business over 30 years. We have a rich legacy of wonderful IP. Those are strengths that we have that our competitors don’t, and so leveraging those strengths as we drive our business forward is going to be critically important.”
Hopefully, this points towards a strong launch lineup that can prove why the NX deserves a spot under your TV. We already know of five titles coming to the system. These include Just Dance 2017, the newest Sonic title, Dragon Quest X and XI, and of course The Legend of Zelda Breath of the Wild. All signs point to Zelda being a launch title, which will certainly draw in consumers if they can take the newest Zelda experience on the go.
The Wii U has only sold 13 million units since its launch in 2012. This pales in comparison to the Wii’s 100 million, or even the 3DS’ 60 million. The NX might just be one of the company’s last chances to get back on top.
An unveil event is rumored to occur sometime in September while the console itself is slated to release in Q1 2017. Stay tuned to The Nerd Stash for more updates and musings on the NX prior to launch.
