It is as true in marketing as it is in love: desperation does not smell good. This is why the recent tactic from Nintendo, in which they message current Wii owners about the Wii U through their consoles, reeks so badly. The message, which entreats Wii owners to “discover Wii U,” goes a step too far and states that, “It’s not just an upgrade — it’s an entirely new system.”
While touting new hardware is to be expected, the tone of this message betrays a deeper issue behind the sluggish sales of Nintendo’s latest piece of hardware: people are confused. When the NES was displaced by the Super NES, this made sense. Super is better than normal. With the Nintendo 64, there were already over ten years invested in the “bit” designations, from the 8-bit NES through the 16-bit Genesis and SNES to the 32-bit Saturn and PlayStation. Naming the console “Nintendo 64” served to remind people that this system was more powerful and an all new experience.
The Wii U, though? What does “U” indicate? Between the ambiguous naming and the fact that the new console can still use some of the Wii’s old accessories, the average consumer is scratching their head. Some don’t even know the Wii U exists. Thus Nintendo’s oddly desperate marketing tactic.
Source: Gimme Gimme Games