Wii U Still Hurting in Global Sales

Global sales figures for May continue to look dismal for Nintendo’s Wii U console.

According to VGChartz, in the month of May, the Wii U managed to sell just over 106,000 units.  Its performance is a huge disappointment in comparison to the PS3 and Xbox 360’s sales figures.  Although these consoles are much older, having been on the market for over 7 years, their sales performance was still stronger last month.  Global sales for May sat above 523,000 units for PS3 and over 348,000 units for Xbox 360. 

“Even Nintendo’s Wii console managed to outsell the Wii U in the month of May with just over 118,000 units globally.”

If this dismal trend continues, the Wii U will drown, ignored in the background once Xbox One and PlayStation 4 are released later this year. Nintendo’s CEO, Satoru Iwata, also addressed several issues last week regarding the Wii U’s sales expectations. 

3 factors significantly hinder the console’s success: Nintendo’s relaxed marketing efforts, the lack of a flagship title (like Wii Sports), and lack of games upon the console’s  launch.

But all is not lost for Nintendo.

Global sales of Nintendo 3DS surpassed every other console in May with over 582,000 units sold. The release of Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D and Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon for the handheld system were also a major factor in the increase of its software sales.

Following E3, Nintendo also has a number of major Wii U titles expected to be released throughout the rest of this year.  From Nintendo’s response to the NPD May 2013 report:

“Starting in August and continuing through the end of the year, Wii U will launch one major game a month, including Pikmin 3 (Aug. 4), The Wonderful 101 (Sept. 15), The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD (October), Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze (November) and Super Mario 3D World (December). Nintendo 3DS will build on its momentum with the successive launches of Mario & Luigi: Dream Team (Aug. 11), Pokémon X and Pokémon Y (Oct. 12) Mario Party for Nintendo 3DS (name not final, November) and The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds (November).”  

With this upcoming flood of new titles, and more to come next year, Nintendo is not quite out of the running just yet. Though victory seems a long way off,  the Wii U still has slim, but definite, chances of making a strong comeback.

Do you think this console stands a chance against the PS4 and Xbox One?