Uploaded June 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
What if? Those two words when put together can open up an entire world of discussion, endless debate, and fascinating possibilities. Welcome to a brand new series where we play a little game of what if. We are going to look at a number of different gaming alternate realities, we're reimagining gaming history, and the very first one we are going to start off with today is: what if the Nintendo Wii U was actually a massive commercial success instead of a flop?
To fully appreciate this timeline, we first have to acknowledge that the Wii U genuinely had an incredibly great library of games. How can I say that with such certainty? Just look at how many of its exclusive titles got ported directly over to the Nintendo Switch! Games like Mario Kart 8 and Super Mario 3D World are perfect examples. The system also possessed a fantastic Virtual Console library, offering an unparalleled retro experience. It brought Nintendo into the modern era with crisp 1080p HDMI output, and it was completely backwards compatible with the massive library of the original Nintendo Wii.
With all of those incredible things going for it, why was it such a monumental failure? And more importantly, what are the core things that we would change to completely alter its fate?
First, we would absolutely change the branding. We would definitely not call it the Wii U. That single letter caused unprecedented confusion in the marketplace. We would actually call it the Nintendo Switch, the Nintendo Revolution, or something along those unique lines to signal a fresh start. Furthermore, while the GamePad itself had a decent overall design that pioneered off-TV play, the main system console looked far too similar to the original Nintendo Wii. You have got to make this piece of hardware look physically different. It caused severe confusion among casual consumers and parents who mistakenly thought it was just an expensive tablet add-on.
Next, you have got to aggressively drop the retail price. Between the system hardware and the GamePad screen, there was a lot of extremely expensive technology going in here. So, to successfully win the living room, you either drastically drop the price of the base unit, or you include a traditional Pro Controller with the system to add value. Honestly, here is what I would do: I would have done both. I would include a Pro Controller, the standard GamePad, and a Wii Nunchuk and remote right in the physical box. That way, you are heavily fostering the fact that this is an entire gaming ecosystem ready for any type of player.
Finally, I would ensure the console is less reliant on forced hardware gimmicks. Gimmicks are what got Nintendo through to the successful end of the Nintendo Wii's life cycle. Motion control was heavily utilized, and I honestly liked it. Resident Evil 4, for example, is my absolute favorite way to play that masterpiece on the Wii. However, they needed to get rid of motion controls and asymmetric GamePad screens as a strict, mandatory necessity for developers. Make it an optional enhancement so third-party studios aren't alienated.
Look at what Nintendo has intelligently learned from the Wii U and how they evolved between the Switch and the upcoming hardware generation. They might utilize a similar naming convention, but the messaging is perfectly clear. Even with full backwards compatibility, there is absolutely no confusion that the new system is a distinctly different, more powerful machine. They needed to execute that strategy with the Wii U launch.
If they had done that, would we have gotten the Switch? I firmly believe we still would have, just pushing its release back a few years. Let me know what you think about this alternate timeline down in the comments! What are some other major what-ifs in the gaming world you'd like to see me discuss next? There are a few I definitely have in mind!
#Nintendo #WiiU #NintendoSwitch #GamingWhatIf #RetroGaming #ConsoleWars #MarioKart #NintendoHistory #Zelda #GamingCommunity #VideoGames
What if? Those two words when put together can open up an entire world of discussion, endless debate, and fascinating possibilities. Welcome to a brand new series where we play a little game of what if. We are going to look at a number of different gaming alternate realities, we're reimagining gaming history, and the very first one we are going to start off with today is: what if the Nintendo Wii U was actually a massive commercial success instead of a flop?
To fully appreciate this timeline, we first have to acknowledge that the Wii U genuinely had an incredibly great library of games. How can I say that with such certainty? Just look at how many of its exclusive titles got ported directly over to the Nintendo Switch! Games like Mario Kart 8 and Super Mario 3D World are perfect examples. The system also possessed a fantastic Virtual Console library, offering an unparalleled retro experience. It brought Nintendo into the modern era with crisp 1080p HDMI output, and it was completely backwards compatible with the massive library of the original Nintendo Wii.
With all of those incredible things going for it, why was it such a monumental failure? And more importantly, what are the core things that we would change to completely alter its fate?
First, we would absolutely change the branding. We would definitely not call it the Wii U. That single letter caused unprecedented confusion in the marketplace. We would actually call it the Nintendo Switch, the Nintendo Revolution, or something along those unique lines to signal a fresh start. Furthermore, while the GamePad itself had a decent overall design that pioneered off-TV play, the main system console looked far too similar to the original Nintendo Wii. You have got to make this piece of hardware look physically different. It caused severe confusion among casual consumers and parents who mistakenly thought it was just an expensive tablet add-on.
Next, you have got to aggressively drop the retail price. Between the system hardware and the GamePad screen, there was a lot of extremely expensive technology going in here. So, to successfully win the living room, you either drastically drop the price of the base unit, or you include a traditional Pro Controller with the system to add value. Honestly, here is what I would do: I would have done both. I would include a Pro Controller, the standard GamePad, and a Wii Nunchuk and remote right in the physical box. That way, you are heavily fostering the fact that this is an entire gaming ecosystem ready for any type of player.
Finally, I would ensure the console is less reliant on forced hardware gimmicks. Gimmicks are what got Nintendo through to the successful end of the Nintendo Wii's life cycle. Motion control was heavily utilized, and I honestly liked it. Resident Evil 4, for example, is my absolute favorite way to play that masterpiece on the Wii. However, they needed to get rid of motion controls and asymmetric GamePad screens as a strict, mandatory necessity for developers. Make it an optional enhancement so third-party studios aren't alienated.
Look at what Nintendo has intelligently learned from the Wii U and how they evolved between the Switch and the upcoming hardware generation. They might utilize a similar naming convention, but the messaging is perfectly clear. Even with full backwards compatibility, there is absolutely no confusion that the new system is a distinctly different, more powerful machine. They needed to execute that strategy with the Wii U launch.
If they had done that, would we have gotten the Switch? I firmly believe we still would have, just pushing its release back a few years. Let me know what you think about this alternate timeline down in the comments! What are some other major what-ifs in the gaming world you'd like to see me discuss next? There are a few I definitely have in mind!
#Nintendo #WiiU #NintendoSwitch #GamingWhatIf #RetroGaming #ConsoleWars #MarioKart #NintendoHistory #Zelda #GamingCommunity #VideoGames
