LOS ANGELES—Nintendo Co., reacting to slow sales of its latest videogame console and the threat of new competing hardware, is turning for help to Mario and its other classic videogame characters.
The Japanese company said it is planning a barrage of new games in time for the crucial holiday season—including the latest installments of past blockbuster franchises Super Mario 3-D, Donkey Kong, Pikmin and Legend of Zelda.
Among the many titles planned is a sequel expected in September to the hit game “Super Mario 3D Land,” which is credited with helping to ignite sales for the company’s struggling 3DS hand-held when it was released in November 2011. This time around, the company is serving up a new installment on its Wii U console.
In 2014, the company plans to release new versions of its racing and battle games, “Super Mario Kart” and “Super Smash Bros.,” pitting many of the company’s popular characters against one another in the first incarnations of those titles for the Wii U.
Nintendo’s blitz aims to resolve what it blames for sluggish sales of the Wii U since its introduction last November: a lack of appealing titles exclusive to the new machine.
Nintendo has long argued that consumers will continue to buy dedicated game machines if the software available is compelling enough and can’t be matched on smartphones and tablet computers.
“People will buy hardware just to buy a single game if the game is really attractive,” Nintendo President Satoru Iwata said during an interview earlier this week. “The hurdle has gotten higher, but if we can clear it, then we think the games can still sell.”
Nintendo is competing with more than just smartphone games. It also faces new game machines later this year: Microsoft Corp.’s Xbox One and Sony Corp.’s PlayStation 4. Both companies are also expected to point to their array of exclusive game titles playable on those machines.
The Wii U has fallen short of Nintendo’s expectations since its November launch. The company originally targeted sales of 5.5 million units in the five months through March, when Nintendo’s fiscal year ends. However, it only sold 3.45 million units, causing a wave of concern that the quirky game maker was out of touch in a world increasingly dominated by smartphones.
Shares of Nintendo have fallen 10% over the past year, and are off more than 80% from what they were during the same time in 2008—a difficult five-year period for Japanese exporters because of the yen’s strength. By comparison, shares of Japan-based Sony have fallen roughly 60% from what they were in 2008. Meanwhile, the stock of U.S.-based Microsoft has risen nearly 30%.
Nintendo’s renewed push comes as the industry faces a harsh transition. World-wide sales of console videogames are expected to rise 4.2% to $25.98 billion this year, up from $24.93 billion a year earlier, according to the latest estimates from market researcher PwC. In 2014, sales are expected to rise an additional 6.4% to $27.62 billion.
That is far less than the 28% growth the industry recorded in 2007, after the last batch of new consoles were released. But it is still potential relief for game makers, which have experienced more than a year of contractions in sales in the U.S., according to NPD Group.
The Wii U’s difficulties follow a lukewarm reception for the Nintendo 3DS, although there are signs of improvement with demand for the hand-held game system. One factor in Nintendo’s problems, the company has said, was a lack of compelling new titles at each videogame device’s launch period, dampening enthusiasm and incentive for gamers to buy.
In a video message prepared for showing at the Electronic Entertainment Expo, or E3, Mr. Iwata bowed deeply and apologized.
“After the Wii U launch, we couldn’t release games as smoothly as we have done,” he said. “To those of you that have been eagerly awaiting these titles, I appreciate your patience.”
Nintendo explained that its developers struggled with the requirements of the new system. What’s more, Mr. Iwata said Nintendo pushed for a more-than-usual refinement of games, so consumers can justify paying more than $50 for a new Wii U game when game apps are available for a few dollars.
But he is optimistic that the new titles can turn around the console’s initial disappointments.
“I think there is plenty of opportunity left for the Wii U,” said Mr. Iwata. “We don’t think anything has been decided in the first six months.”
The Japanese company said it is planning a barrage of new games in time for the crucial holiday season—including the latest installments of past blockbuster franchises Super Mario 3-D, Donkey Kong, Pikmin and Legend of Zelda.
Among the many titles planned is a sequel expected in September to the hit game “Super Mario 3D Land,” which is credited with helping to ignite sales for the company’s struggling 3DS hand-held when it was released in November 2011. This time around, the company is serving up a new installment on its Wii U console.
In 2014, the company plans to release new versions of its racing and battle games, “Super Mario Kart” and “Super Smash Bros.,” pitting many of the company’s popular characters against one another in the first incarnations of those titles for the Wii U.
Nintendo’s blitz aims to resolve what it blames for sluggish sales of the Wii U since its introduction last November: a lack of appealing titles exclusive to the new machine.
Nintendo has long argued that consumers will continue to buy dedicated game machines if the software available is compelling enough and can’t be matched on smartphones and tablet computers.
“People will buy hardware just to buy a single game if the game is really attractive,” Nintendo President Satoru Iwata said during an interview earlier this week. “The hurdle has gotten higher, but if we can clear it, then we think the games can still sell.”
Nintendo is competing with more than just smartphone games. It also faces new game machines later this year: Microsoft Corp.’s Xbox One and Sony Corp.’s PlayStation 4. Both companies are also expected to point to their array of exclusive game titles playable on those machines.
The Wii U has fallen short of Nintendo’s expectations since its November launch. The company originally targeted sales of 5.5 million units in the five months through March, when Nintendo’s fiscal year ends. However, it only sold 3.45 million units, causing a wave of concern that the quirky game maker was out of touch in a world increasingly dominated by smartphones.
Shares of Nintendo have fallen 10% over the past year, and are off more than 80% from what they were during the same time in 2008—a difficult five-year period for Japanese exporters because of the yen’s strength. By comparison, shares of Japan-based Sony have fallen roughly 60% from what they were in 2008. Meanwhile, the stock of U.S.-based Microsoft has risen nearly 30%.
Nintendo’s renewed push comes as the industry faces a harsh transition. World-wide sales of console videogames are expected to rise 4.2% to $25.98 billion this year, up from $24.93 billion a year earlier, according to the latest estimates from market researcher PwC. In 2014, sales are expected to rise an additional 6.4% to $27.62 billion.
That is far less than the 28% growth the industry recorded in 2007, after the last batch of new consoles were released. But it is still potential relief for game makers, which have experienced more than a year of contractions in sales in the U.S., according to NPD Group.
The Wii U’s difficulties follow a lukewarm reception for the Nintendo 3DS, although there are signs of improvement with demand for the hand-held game system. One factor in Nintendo’s problems, the company has said, was a lack of compelling new titles at each videogame device’s launch period, dampening enthusiasm and incentive for gamers to buy.
In a video message prepared for showing at the Electronic Entertainment Expo, or E3, Mr. Iwata bowed deeply and apologized.
“After the Wii U launch, we couldn’t release games as smoothly as we have done,” he said. “To those of you that have been eagerly awaiting these titles, I appreciate your patience.”
Nintendo explained that its developers struggled with the requirements of the new system. What’s more, Mr. Iwata said Nintendo pushed for a more-than-usual refinement of games, so consumers can justify paying more than $50 for a new Wii U game when game apps are available for a few dollars.
But he is optimistic that the new titles can turn around the console’s initial disappointments.
“I think there is plenty of opportunity left for the Wii U,” said Mr. Iwata. “We don’t think anything has been decided in the first six months.”