Nintendo reports losses for FY2014

Nintendo has reported its financial results for the year ended March 31, 2014 (April 1, 2013 - March 31, 2014).

Overall, the company has recorded a 23,222 million yen in losses for the past 12 months. According to the company, the net sales were lower than expected due to the fact that the sales units of the Nintendo 3DS and the Wii U hardware and software did not reach their expected levels.

With respect to Wii U, while five key first-party titles, such as Super Mario 3D World, New Super Mario Bros. U and New Super Luigi U became million-seller titles, the Wii U business as a whole showed slow growth. The global sales of the Wii U hardware and software reached only 2.72 million and 18.86 million units respectively.

"The Wii U hardware still has a negative impact on Nintendo’s profits owing mainly to its markdown in the United States and Europe, and unit sales of software, which has high profit margins, did not grow sufficiently. As the Wii U still faces a challenging sales situation, Nintendo will focus on efforts that seek to stimulate the platform."

Nintendo aims to accomplish this by providing software that takes advantage of the Wii U GamePad, utilizing its built-in functionality as an NFC reader/writer, and adding Nintendo DS Virtual Console titles to the Wii U software lineup. Two major titles Mario Kart 8 and Super Smash Bros. are also expected to boost sales.

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