Nintendo’s Plan to Make Wii U Profitable Starts with First-Party Games

The Wii U just isn’t performing. After Nintendo’s startling earnings report this morning, that fact became as clear as ever. From the November launch to March 31, the Wii U missed the company's already revised four million hardware target by 550,000 units. Before that, Nintendo had planned to sell 5.5 million Wii U consoles.

That’s not a good sign for a manufacturer that was seemingly printing money with the innovative Wii, but Nintendo does have a plan to turn all of this around. A strategy to return to profitability during the next year has been outlined, and it all starts with strong, first-party releases. After significant delays to games like Pikmin 3 and The Wonderful 101, a greater effort will be put into releasing "key" first-party party titles during the second half of 2013 and throughout 2014. System sellers like Mario Kart, Super Mario Bros., and Wii Fit are intended to revive the small momentum Nintendo carried last year, and the two Zelda games are seemingly on the horizon.

Sales will also increase through "communicating the compelling nature of our hardware and software," but little detail on this online-centric plan was provided. It will be done through the Miiverse, which is Nintendo’s user-friendly, connected  service.

Finally, manufacturing costs need to change. Nintendo plans on reducing these expenses to improve profitability. And, while there was no mention of a price drop, we could see cheaper Wii U units if costs are cut down far enough.

Changes need to be made, and with Satoru Iwata now taking the role of Nintendo America’s CEO, it seems like things will be heading in a new direction.