Cuthbert: Nintendo needs a "new super IP" to revive Wii U

Software remains the key to saving Nintendo’s struggling home hardware, according to a leading indie dev.

Q-Games Dylan Cuthbert, best known for his once PS3 exclusive PixelJunk series, clearly believes that Nintendo has what it takes to reverse Wii U’s market struggles.

If they are going to win they are going to have to figure out the games,” he told Siliconera. They probably need like new super IP, a special IP that makes people really interested. But they always come up with something. They are always very innovative.

Even with the DS when it first came out people said that’s not very good and it’s not going to do very well, but it sold hundreds of millions and had lots of innovative titles. I think they will find something that will sell a lot. Who would have known Wii Fit would have sold like 15m units?”

Cuthbert is less convinced, however, that Microsoft has any significant chance of reversing the Xbox brand’s poor fortunes in Japan.

It’s very difficult,” he added. There are a few people in the office at Q-Games who are Japanese that do play on the Xbox 360 and play on the Kinect, as well. But, I think it’s quite small, the market there.

I think they need to reinvent themselves a bit. Their image is too corporate and big. They aren’t geared towards aesthetics and art and I think that’s a big problem. I think Sony is more in that direction. Nintendo is cute and has their own style, which is fine as well. It’s great for the younger market in Japan. I think that kind of outlook makes a big difference to the games you select and games that you sell.”