the famicom lasted for 21 years in japan actually
games stopped being released in 94\95 but nintendo would repair your famicom if you send it in until 2004
the ps1 lasted for a decade as well

its the xbox
dramscast
saturn
the cube
and so far the wii U that are having somewhat stunted life spans

the xbox lasted 4 years

the dreamcast around 4 years as well

the staurn for around 3 years and even then it limped to its grave

the cube lasted for 6 years but for the last 2 years of its life it was pretty much brain dead
same as the wii really from 2010 till 12 nintendo saw fit to let the wii rot

nintendo seems to think that they are better then others that their brand recognition and games trump all and that people will buy them regardless

wii U proved them wrong
the shortest of all were the saturn ( 3 years )

dreamcast ( 4 years )

and xbox ( 4 years )

the megadrive lasted 8 years ( 88-96 ) and was alive in brazil untill 2012 ( !!! )
a good decent inning if you ask me

8 years is just about right for a console generation

I so much want a new Legend of Mario and Super Zelda Brothers games. Not to mention Nintendogs, Nintencats and Nintenturtles.

The last Nintendo console I had was N64, by the time I found out about the GameCube I was generations behind. Just too many new consoles all the time, I can't keep up.

You can order a refurbished system from Nintendo for $200.

"New console revealed" sure is an over-exaggeration. "New hardware announced" is much more accurate.

As the codename for this piece of hardware is NX, I don't think it is a successor/replacement for the Wii U. Considering that the rest of this announcement is regarding Nintendo entering the mobile app business, I would say that it is much more likely that the NX is a mobile device of some kind; likely a tablet of some kind.

Since they say that these new mobile applications will be available across 3DS, Wii U and NX, it doesn't really make much sense to assume the NX is a home console. Nintendo is notorious for dropping their old systems like dead weight once a new machine is launched, so positioning this new "membership program" across both the Wii U and the NX wouldn't make sense it the NX is meant to be the new home console.

Add to this that the letter "X" is usually used in Japan to mean the word "cross"; such as with Namco x Capcom, Project X Zone, Shonen Sunday X Shonen Magazine or Street Fighter x Tekken. Taking that into account, we can guess that NX stands for Nintendo Cross or, more likely, Nintendo Crossover. This would support my theory that the new hardware is indeed something mobile, such as a tablet. Something that could exist alongside both their console and handheld markets without directly competing with them. Something that would have Nintendo "cross over" into the mobile device market while still maintaining their sensibilities and level of quality.

Take all of this with a grain of salt, but I just don't think that Nintendo is ready to put the Wii U to bed so soon.

I dount Nintendo is axing Wii U with this announcement. It sounds more like they're taking even firmer step towards thier currently most profitable area which is mobile gaming.

What I'd love to seem them do really is a portable console which can be easily attatched to a TV set.

Not necessarily. Yes, it could seriously hurt them if it was to tank, but don't forget how massively successful the DS-line still is despite all the doom and gloom that was predicted due to mobile phone games.

I didn't think the DS line was still successful, though I may have gotten the wrong impression. Certainly, it seemed like the 3DS was quite the failure. Everyone who bought one tried the 3D gimmick for 5 minutes, concluded that while it worked, it was annoying to look at in the long run, switched it off, and never switched it back on again. And the high cost of the 3DS was too much to pay for a feature nobody wanted to use anyway. Hence first the major price drop of the 3DS, and later the release of the 2DS. Ah yes, the 2DS. A handheld that could have been a tremendous success if they hadn't chosen to eliminate the hinge in the middle. What's the point of a handheld that won't fit in any pocket? It's fine that the lack of the overly expensive 3D screen made the thing cheaper, but if you can't comfortably take it with you...

Still, looking at the combined sales figures for all the 3DS and 2DS models it seems like you're at least partially right. They have sold an outstanding number of units. However, sales do not necessarily translate into profits. Considering that they had to cut the price of the 3DS by a third, less than six months after its release has to mean that it was either hugely overpriced to begin with, or that all subsequent sales can't have been very profitable.

Also, comparing the sales figures for the 3DS line with the ones from the ordinary DS line, the 3DS line has only sold a third as many units as its predecessor, which can't really be considered progress. Naturally, the DS line has been around for longer, but looking at just the first four years of each line, the DS line sold close to 100 million units, while the 3DS line sold only half that much.

Of course, just like printer manufacturers make the bulk of their profit selling ink rather than printers, Nintendo probably makes the bulk of its profit selling games rather than consoles. Comparing the number of sold copies of the top 20 best selling games of each line, the sales figures are 234.6 million sold DS games, and just 106.1 million sold 3DS games.

Phew, sorry about the wall of text. I got interested and started to delve into the history and numbers. I didn't mean to actually spend so much time on it.

It is funny how Nintendo now is making a new home console, the NX, and it is probably because the Wii U sales are not good. Nintendo thought, riding the Wii mass craze, Wii- U would do the same due to the same name almost, which didn't work. Marketing campaign sucked (at least here in Ohio), price is bad, and name too.

First, there has been no confirmation whatsoever that the NX is a new home console. Personally, I think it is probably going to be a tablet.

Second, while the marketing for the Wii U up to its release was indeed too vague, it has gotten better. As for its price, it's fine for what it comes with. And the name? Are we still making fun of that? It's no worse of a name than Xbox One.

Lastly, while the system certainly got off to a rough start, it has made significant strides in the last 6-12 months. With the release of Mario Kart 8 and Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, the number of Wii U consoles sold has increased dramatically. Many solid games have been released like Super Mario 3D Land, Hyrule Warriors, Bayonetta 2 and Pikmin 3. And many more to come before the end of the year, like Splatoon and the new Star Fox and Zelda games. I don't think Nintendo is phasing out the Wii U any time soon.

Don't get me wrong, I love Nintendo, I have owned all the consoles except the SNES and Wii-U, I just can't justify the price point. The name I mentioned was because still to this day, people here in Ohio think the Wii-U is the Wii but a new tablet controller, so still, the marketing has not gotten better, I have never seen a Wii U or Nintendo commercial on TV in the past couple months, here anyways.

That's fair. However, I don't think that is Nintendo's fault. Most versions of the console nowadays come with two games and their console is still cheaper than the XBone and the PS4. Plus, and this is my personal opinion, there are far more "killer apps" for the Wii U in comparison to those other two consoles. My personal collection of Wii U games is already over 15 titles, not counting the eShop.

Ah, that's why you mentioned it. Gotcha. As I said in my previous post, Nintendo did indeed do a terrible job of informing people as to what the Wii U was when it was first released. In recent months, their commercials have focused on the games rather than the system which, while it doesn't fix their previous error, is better for business. Are there people who still don't know that the Wii U is today? Absolutely. But how many of those people would really run out and buy one if they did? I don't think very many. Word of mouth, the internet, and educated retail salespeople are doing a decent enough job of clarifying what the Wii U is, so Nintendo doesn't really need to bother.

Nintendo on mobiles?. I could imagine this in a similar way as they did one thing in the past - Philips CD-i.

One HUGE difference here, sir; Nintendo is producing the software, not just licensing out to some other group like Phillips.