What could Nintendo do with its suddenly empty 2016?
Nintendo's week has been full of glum news. Its 2016 flagship game -- a new Legend of Zelda -- had been pushed to next year; its NX platform wasn't appearing at E3; its console and handheld lineup is thin, at best. The company saw its profits fall 61% this year, and it doesn't look like fiscal year 2016 (which starts in April and runs to the end of March next year) will be much stronger.
This doesn't spell positive things for Mario's keeper, which already didn't have enough releases on its 3DS and Wii U platforms in 2015 -- hits like Splatoon and Super Mario Maker notwithstanding. While it seems like the company is putting a lot of stock into 2017, when its mysterious NX platform will be released, these next few months can only be described as slow.
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Rather than write another think piece on Nintendo's doom, let's focus on the ways it could make the best of the next 12 months
Make the Wii U a virtual console paradise
Everyone inside and outside of Nintendo recognizes that its intellectual property -- beloved characters like Mario, Link, Bowser and Donkey Kong -- are its biggest asset right now. Not only do those characters, and the classic games they appear in, command big audiences of older fans, but they still captivate younger players as well -- those who grew up in the GameCube era, instead of the original NES's heyday.
The Virtual Console programs on both the Wii U and 3DS already have all the staples. You can grab most of the original Super Mario Bros. titles, some older Legend of Zelda games, and other NES classics. The New 3DS just got a smattering of Super Nintendo greats, including A Link to the Past, Super Metroid and Earthbound.
But Nintendo could blow it out even more. The Wii's Virtual Console was so successful because there were many games that didn't even appear on a Nintendo console, but were licensed by Sega from its Genesis console. Giving a platform for publishers like Capcom, Square Enix and Konami to release older games like Street Fighter II: Turbo Edition, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, Chrono Trigger, Secret of Mana and more would keep current console owners playing on that system, and reinvesting in older games.
Improve Miitomo -- and continue to crush it on mobile
One fact Nintendo trumpeted during its earnings report was the fact that its first app, social network Miitomo, had over 10 million installs since its March 31 launch in the U.S. But based on Miitomo's falling ranks on the App Store charts, those installs may have been a flash-in-the-pan success. The app doesn't seem to be keeping users engaged.
Its App Store reviews are full of comments for reasonable improvements, including the ability to add friends from other social networks (and your phone's address book), ways to favorite your real BFFs and more uses for some of the in-game currency. App makers have learned that products released on mobile are ever-evolving services, and Nintendo should do the same.
Users are willing to teach the company lessons that it should take to heart as it explores are the brave, new frontier of mobile (something NOA President Reggie Fils-Aime even called "a learning process").
That is especially true as Nintendo aims to launch two new mobile games in the fall. Mobile is a different animal than console or handheld gaming, and hopefully it can translate those games into successful ventures.
Slash the Wii U price dramatically
The Wii U, a console that's one year older than the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, is only a little cheaper than either; its current retail price is $279.99. Nintendo should drop that to something that could incentivize anyone on the fence about picking up a Wii U -- maybe even by $100.
The surprising thing about the Wii U is that, despite the lack of many third party games, it has an amazing library of Nintendo-produced titles. There are enough really solid games on the Wii U that you'll still get a couple hundred hours of entertainment from it, but it's easy to overlook that when the device itself doesn't match the horsepower of its current-gen brethren.
Add more support for existing titles and communities
Nintendo has finally shown that it's prioritizing downloadable content, as well as long-tail support for games. That struggle should continue as it balances games that have been successes on platforms like YouTube and Twitch, including Super Mario Maker.
These games have spawned passionate, vocal communities who want to support games, and Nintendo isn't always known for making transparent decisions. That runs counter to how other game publishers have rushed forward with more community support, more direct interaction with fans and -- most importantly -- speedy answers when things go wrong.
Don't screw up esports
This year's EVO, the world's biggest fighting games tournament held in Las Vegas every July, will feature three different Nintendo system games. That includes two flavors of Smash Bros -- the Wii U version and 15-year-old Melee -- and the Pokémon-inspired arena fighting game Pokken Tournament for Wii U. All three of these games have received a massive number of entrants at EVO as fighting games take their place as a solid pillar of esports.
But while publishers like Capcom have made a point of diving in head-first to competitive play with Street Fighter V, offering massive prize pools for its own sponsored tournament, Nintendo has done the opposite. It's gone from aggressively stopping events from happening in 2013 to, only slightly better, being an absentee parent in the esports community.
But both Smash Bros. titles drew nearly 2,000 entrants at last year's EVO. And Pokken, which was just released in the U.S. in March, already has over 1,000 signups for this year (with more than a month to go).
Capcom, again, has had great success by hiring professional players and getting their valuable insight. That's easily something Nintendo could emulate, as there are a lot of talented Smash Bros. players who have been involved with Melee for years and understand what's best for the community.
That also includes offering balance fixes and other support for games as players uncover bugs. While this may not be possible on an older game like Melee, it's totally possible to do for titles on the Wii U and 3DS.
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Chelsea Stark was the Games Editor for Mashable, where she covered everything from AAA titles, mainstream consoles, indie gems, mobile games and gaming culture. She handled news, feature stories and reviews. Before that, Chelsea was Mashable's Multimedia Producer, where she helped develop visual storytelling aids, whether they were photos of video. She came to New York in 2010 to pursue her master's degree in journalism at NYU's Studio 20 program, which focused on innovation as journalism is changed by new technology. Before coming to New York, Chelsea lived in Austin, where she did online journalism and social media for the local CBS affiliate. She loves good beer, classic Nintendo games, and all things geeky, and spends her time attempting to find anything close to good Tex-Mex in Brooklyn.
