Current concern on the gaming forums is the lack of high-profile launch games, with Splatoon 2 and Mario not being present at that time. Can Zelda alone sell systems? (probably yes)
Legend of Zelda - NES
Link to the Past - SNES
Links Awakening - Gameboy
Ocarina of Time - N64
Wind Waker - Gamecube
Twilight Princess - Wii
Skyward Sword - Wii
Heck, even the promise of how perfectly the WiiU's controller could have been for a Zelda game, was enough for me to buy the system.
I guess that makes me a fanboy. As long as Nintendo keeps making Zelda games, I'll keep buying the necessary hardware.
Maybe so, but there's no way[1] I would by a console just because I want to play a single game. It takes at least half a dozen exclusives that interest me (announced, they don't all have to be released yet) for me to consider buying another console.
[1] Not actually true: I'm considering buying a PS3 so that I can play Demon Souls. But a second hand PS3 is very cheap, so its not really the same thing IMHO.
(Cost of the console / number of hours played on Monster Hunter alone) always justifies it.
How many consoles can Nintendo make per day?
Not having both Zelda and Mario at launch is probably good for reducing demand a bit to help them keep up, because it's nice to sell out but not by too much.
Mario Kart's turning up a month later. Splatoon is coming during the year some time (can't remember if they said when).
And saving Super Mario Odyssey for next holiday season is clear marketing savvy. They get the Nintendo hardcore now, a nice flow during the year as the library strengthens, and then a big boom of Mario people for that bizarrely crucial holiday season.
And staggering out games with online multiplayer makes sense if this new service they're offering needs to have a bit of shakedown time.
If there are 100 games released for a console, how many of those games would appeal to you ? 10? 20?
How long do you play a game for before you've finished it. And then what ?
One game every few months isn't enough. So they release Splatoon in a few months, I'm not interested in that so from my point of view there isn't anything to play that month.
Personally, I was waiting for zelda before picking up a wiiU, it's the first nintendo machine I haven't owned since the NES (which I was too young for).