Iwata confused why Nintendo stock is down, admits Wii U reveal could have been better
Nintendo seems a bit confused as to why shares in the company dropped following the announcement of Wii U at E3 this week. According to president Satoru Iwata, the stock market's reaction is in stark contrast to the reaction felt on the showroom floor.
Reuters reports that Iwata compared the reaction to Wii U with the reception of Wii when it was first announced in 2006, saying that like its predecessor, people cannot understand the device until they themselves get some hands on time with it.
"Honestly speaking, the reaction to (Tuesday's) presentation and what I heard from people I met and the mood of the convention did not chime at all with what happened in the stock market," Iwata said in an interview. "It's very strange.
"In the end, it is easy to get the mistaken impression that this is just a game console with a tablet. People who came to the presentation and tried it out have understood very well that it opens up a lot of new possibilities. But people who have not tried it will find it hard to believe that this controller will change things."
Iwata, however, admitted to the London Evening Standard that if Nintendo had shown the actual console during its presentation, even just a hint of it, the stock market's reaction may have been a bit different.
"Because we put so much emphasis on the controller, there appeared to be some misunderstandings," Iwata told the Evening Standard. "We should have made more effort to explain how it works1
"We haven't made any kind of blunder, but I should have shown a single picture of the new console, then started talking about the controller. The console is not drastically different, and Wii U is about the controller. The console itself will be almost invisible.
"There have been two groups of people writing about our announcement - those like the Evening Standard, who have been able to experience the Wii U, and those who have not, and are simply writing about it from wire stories and pictures. They cannot see how this can be a game changer. What Wii U will offer is very different, but I believe we have the strong potential to change the entire format of videogames and of entertainment."
Iwata went on to tell the Evening Standard that at the moment there seems to be a "barrier between the Wii...and the other companies' consoles," which are seen as for core gamers while the Wii seen for casuals.
"We are questioning whether that barrier needs to be there," added Iwata.
Nintendo share prices fell 5.7 percent following its E3 press conference on Tuesday, and a further 4.7 percent the following day. Today, ordinary shares in Nintendo are up 0.5 percent while depositary shares are down $0.10 to 0.39 percent on NASDAQ.