2. Nintendo will reluctantly start porting its back catalogue ‘classics’ to iPhone and Android and get some cash in the coffers before it’s too late.

Let’s face it, the WiiU has so far failed to capture the imagination and disposable income of an increasingly mature gaming crowd waiting to see how the new PS4 and Xbox ONE consoles shape up. Some months after launch, the number of ‘must have’ games is still severely lacking, third-party publisher support is practically non-existent (Electronic Arts has now followed Ubisoft and said that they will no longer be supporting the ailing platform [1]), whilst the downloadable content story, although showing some green shoots, is still not compelling enough for publishers who need to make the numbers add up before committing to support a new platform with an install base still best described as ‘niche’.

The company is no longer seriously haemorrhaging money [2], but even the most ardent Nintendo fan cannot have failed to notice that the once proud Japanese giant is speeding its way to the emergency room and will quickly need radical surgery if it is to survive. Surely now is the time that Nintendo needs to leverage the massive install base of smart phones and re-position itself as a mobile publishing powerhouse by drip-feeding re-engineered versions of its console classics to a quality craving new generation of gamers who are willing to part with relative mega bucks ($10 or even
$15) to play Mario Kart, Zelda and Donkey Kong on their iPhone 5 or Galaxy III.

These days, Nintendo is less of a corporate console giant and more of a boutique hardware and software firm – and it needs to start thinking like one and maximising its assets, which means leveraging its incredibly popular IP.

The firm that brought us the analogue stick (on the N64), touch screen input (on the DS) and the Wii’s motion sensing controller has consistently opened up the world of gaming to a whole new audience who felt disconnected from the traditional game pad, but are perfectly at ease with the TV-style Wii remote and pen like stylus. That expanded audience helped drive Nintendo forward as a hardware company and it enjoyed huge success with the DS and the Wii – but the ubiquity of the smart phone and tablet now means that the very same ‘casual’ gaming collective can play easily accessible games for pence rather than forking out hundreds of dollars on dedicated hardware and expensive software. It’s hardly surprising that the Wii U hasn’t sold as fast as its predecessor – what good is an iPad style controller when just about every house with a console in it has an iPad or Kindle Fire?

Mario Kart 8 and Super Mario 3D World might prolong the life of the Wii U for another year or so at best, but its becoming increasingly clear that only a change of leadership and strategy will see the company survive. 

Sega swallowed its pride rather than fall on its sword after a doomed hardware launch and if Nintendo doesn’t follow suit the Wii U could well turn out to be the new Dreamcast and bring the company to its knees. Hell, sign an exclusive six month deal with Apple to launch on iOS first – they have more money than God and would at the very least make some nice TV ads. On the other hand, how many goatee-chinned die-hard Apple fans would re-consider swapping their beloved iPhone 5 for a shiny new Samsung device if it came with Mario Kart and an exclusive Nintendo app store pre-installed?

Expect to see the first collection of optimised for mobile ‘Nintendo Classics’ appearing on a smart phone near you by Spring 2014 – priced at a sensible $9.99 or thereabouts (with lots of nice extra downloadable episodes, levels and other in-app purchasable stuff). And wouldn’t it be great if the mobile classics range included unlockable bits of content in the latest Wii U and 3DS versions?

[1] http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2013-05-16-ea-pulls-plug-on-wii-u-support

[2] http://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2013/04/24/nintendo-operating-income-shortfalls-leadership-changes-and-wii-u-sales-numbers-disclosed.aspx