The Nintendo Wii U did not do well in overall sales, selling around 13 million units compared to the Nintendo Wii with around 100 million units. The Nintendo Switch is scheduled to be launched on March 3, 2017, and Nintendo apparently does not want a repeat of the same scenario.
Reggie Fils-Aime, the president of Nintendo America, said that the company has "thought deeply" about the weak sales of its last gaming system.
Reggie Fils-Aime highlighted that two reasons for the less than ideal sales of the Wii U. In an interview with Game Spot, he admitted that the company failed to properly inform its consumers about the system's gimmicks. According to Fils-Aime, "the clarity of consumer proposition" was inadequate. The second reason was the lack of interesting games for the gaming system. However, the Nintendo executive believes that the Switch will have a different approach.
Fils-Aime has voiced confidence in Nintendo's latest game console. He believes that the company has sufficiently informed their customers about the Switch's features and advantages. The system will also have a lot of interesting games, unlike its predecessor.
Forbes noted that the Wii U and Switch are two very different gaming systems. However, Nintendo's decision to keep everything under wraps after the Switch's was unveiled apparently created more confusion among customers.
Some believe that the Japanese company could have built more hype around the new system if it had released regular updates and information about the system's unique features. Some critics have warned that the Switch could have marketing challenges in its way. The constant Wii U comparison could be a sign of the rough times ahead for the Switch.
The Nintendo Switch will reportedly launch with five games. The most notable game is "The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild," which Nintendo's Reggie Fils-Aime described as a "masterpiece."
Other titles will follow in the coming months after it is officially launched. Games like "Super Mario Kart 8" and "Splatoon 2" are scheduled to be release in April and summer respectively. However, "Super Mario Odyssey," which stars the company mascot, will be available by the holiday season.