After a dismal first fiscal quarter in 2013, people are doing everything they can to find the solution to the Wii U conundrum. Does the console need a price cut? Is the hardware too underpowered to compete in an industry that’s preparing for a new generation? There are likely many different contributing factors that should be considered, but according to Nintendo president Satoru Iwata, it’s a lack of software, not the Wii U’s pricing, that’s led to the sales slump.
Speaking with a CVG contributor, Iwata revealed that it’s the Premium model of the console that’s actually selling the most units worldwide, making it pretty clear that people aren’t too concerned about the price.
"If the price is actually an issue [with Wii U], then there is some contradiction between the current sales balance between the Basic and Premium versions of the Wii U," Iwata said. "The basic version should have sold a lot, but the fact of the matter is that people are buying more of the premium version. So the issue is not there."
Publishers want to see the Wii U sell at a lower price point, but it’s apparent that Nintendo doesn’t agree with that move. The console continues to sell at a loss, so it’ll take a healthy software library to bring Nintendo back into the green.
"I understand that the real issue is the lack of software, and the only solution is to provide the mass-market with a number of quality software titles,” Iwata concluded.
