Nintendo consoles typically succeed based on their first party franchises. Mario and Zelda have boosted console sales as far back as the SNES. However, despite the Wii U’s powerful launch line-up, Zelda is absent, and Mario’s only appearance comes in the New Super Mario Bros. U, which may not have satisfied the apetites of those 3D Mario fans.
So why were these two behemoths absent from the Wii U’s launch? Nintendo isn’t saying, but they are saying they will arrive eventually. President Satoru Iwata said that Nintendo will announce launch schedules for a new 3D Mario and Zelda game sometime in the future, however he did not say when. So rest assured that we will see both mascots in new first-party titles for the Wii U, it’s just that we have no details at this point. Depending on how early the titles started their development, Nintendo may not know much either. Either way, once they hit the shelves, we’re sure to see Wii U sales start climbing.
Source: IGN