After the somewhat lukewarm reception to the Wii U, Nintendo Co Ltd has already been rumored to be wrapping up the console’s life cycle by pushing forward with its next device, which is currently known as “NX”. The Japanese game company has even reportedly started giving out the software development kit for NX to a select number of game creators, but aside from speculation, there are few concrete details about the upcoming console.

After the incredible success of the Wii, the Wii U can be described as nothing but a disappointment, especially at launch. With its sales falling far behind those of the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, and Nintendo will need to avoid some of its previous mistakes if it wants to bounce back with the NX.

1. Don’t rely on a gimmick

A good deal of the Wii’s success has been attributed to the console’s novel use of motion controls, and this could explain why Nintendo felt the need to go with such a gimmicky strategy on the Wii U with the introduction of the gamepad controller.

The nearly tablet-sized gamepad was supposed to offer the same kind of revolutionary new experience as the Wii-mote, but few games have made good use of the gamepad’s extra screen, and the device’s unwieldy size means that it is often discarded in favor of a more traditional controller.

2. Don’t have “Wii” in the name

Perhaps one of the biggest blunders when it came to the launch of the Wii U was the console’s somewhat confusing name, which left many consumers unsure of whether the device was a new console or if was simply an incredibly expensive peripheral for the Wii.

Because many of the Wii U’s advertisements focused so heavily on the gamepad, many prospective buyers assumed that the controller was the actual product and did not realize that the Wii U was an entirely new system.

Unfortunately, this does not seem to be a lesson Nintendo has learned, with the release of products like “New 3DS” and games such as New Super Mario Bros U.

3. Play nice with third-party developers

This is honestly something Nintendo should have learned a decade or two ago, but since the days of the Gamecube, the House of Mario has fallen behind Microsoft and Sony when it comes to third-party game support.

Nintendo’s first-party titles, such as this year’s Splatoon and Super Mario Maker, still do fairly well when the studio actually gets around to releasing them, but there are numerous major game releases that are available only on PlayStation and Xbox due to Nintendo’s poor support for external developers.

If Nintendo wants NX to be able to compete with Sony and Microsoft’s devices on a level playing field, it will need to offer the same level of variety in its games, especially for the international market outside of Japan.

Photo by FaruSantos