E3 2013: Nintendo feels ‘good’ about competition

Most of the E3 buzz has been devoted to Sony and Microsoft heavyweight consoles, but Nintendo hasn’t given up hope of being a serious contender this holiday season.

The Wii U has been something of a slow starter, and has sold only 3.5 million units to date.

But Nintendo communications director Charlie Scibetta tells Gamespot that the new lineup of exclusive titles and the Wii U’s lower price point will draw consumers to the established brand of beloved games.

"If you’re a consumer going in and you have these options; we know what the price points are now from the competitors, we know what the games are from the competitors; and we know now what the Wii U is going to offer," said Scibetta.

"We feel good about where we stack up. It’s the software that’s going to motivate them."

Scibetta bases his confidence on the increased sales of the 3DS handheld console after the lineup of games improved.

The Wii U definitely has an advantage in Nintendo’s rich library of franchises, a number of which are getting their first showing on the new console this holiday season including Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze and Super Mario 3D World, with Mario Kart 8 to follow in the spring.

"We saw with the Nintendo 3DS, it got off to a slow start, but then when software started rolling in, sales have done really well," said Scibetta.