Miyamoto talks more about why Wii U struggled, taking a step back with NX, Nintendo focusing on excitement
Shigeru Miyamoto previously discussed why the Wii U struggles in an interview with NPR. Speaking with Fortune, he once again touched on this topic and pointed to the fact that “people never really understood the concept behind Wii U and what we were trying to do.”
He said:
“I feel like people never really understood the concept behind Wii U and what we were trying to do. I think the assumption is we were trying to create a game machine and a tablet and really what we were trying to do was create a game system that gave you tablet-like functionality for controlling that system and give you two screens that would allow different people in the living room to play in different ways. Unfortunately, because tablets, at the time, were adding more and more functionality and becoming more and more prominent, this system and this approach didn’t mesh well with the period in which we released it.”
Miyamoto also shared some regret about how the console won’t live up to its potential, in which he stated: “I still feel it was a very novel approach—and a very interesting idea.”
Nintendo’s next system will be the NX, which will see a proper reveal sometime next year. Interestingly, it sounds like Shigeru Miyamoto isn’t heavily involved with its creation – at least when it comes to “actively participating and making decisions.”
“I’ve pulled myself back out of some of the hardware section and I’m really focused on some of the software that I’m involved in—for example, the new Starfox game. Of course I am observing and looking at the hardware, but I am not actively participating and making decisions.”
Shinya Takahashi, who oversees Nintendo’s Software Planning & Development Division, also commented on NX (albeit vaguely). Takahashi relayed that Nintendo is looking for “that element that is really going to catch the attention of a large number of players again and get them excited.”
Takahashi mentioned:
“For us, the next step is to think about what is going to be that element that is really going to catch the attention of a large number of players again and get them excited. We’re constantly thinking about this idea from the perspective of the players and the needs of the players in terms of what can we can do with our ability and our technology to capture that excitement and passion.”
