The company has posted a loss for the first three months of the fiscal year

Jul 30, 2014 09:09 GMT  ·  By

Video game hardware maker and publisher Nintendo is announcing its financial results for the first quarter of the current fiscal year, and the company seems to still be in a lot of trouble, despite some solid sales numbers for Mario Kart 8.

The Wii U home console has only managed to deliver 0.51 million units to gamers in the three-month period from April to June, which is slightly better than during the same period of 2013, but still way less than expected at this moment in the platform’s life time.

The 3DS handheld has also posted a big drop in its own sales and has only delivered 0.82 million devices to its own fans.

Mario Kart 8 is the only bright spot in the financial report of the company, as it has managed to move 2.82 million copies to gamers since it was launched in May, which is impressive given the rather small install base of the Wii U.

Nintendo has posted an operating loss of 9.47 billion Yen, which is about 92.6 million dollars (67 million Euro).

Total sales for the Wii U at the moment are around 6.7 million units, which is a small number when taking into account that the device was first launched in November 2012, one year before Microsoft and Sony introduced their own next-gen devices.

Unofficial data suggests that the PlayStation 4 has managed to pass the 9 million unit mark and that the Xbox One is also over 7 million.

Nintendo is still expecting to have a full fiscal year profit for the period ending on March 31, 2015, of about 40 billion Yen, which is more than 391 million dollars (291 million Euro).

Sales of the Wii U are expected to reach 3.6 million units, and the 3DS is set to get past the 12 million mark.

The good performance of Mario Kart 8 means that Nintendo will probably invest more in the promotion of the upcoming Super Smash Bros., which is seen as one of the titles that can significantly boost hardware sales for both platforms.

At the same time, the company has big hopes for the new open world title The Legend of Zelda that will arrive in 2015.

The launch of the Amiibo figurines, with Mario leading the charge, in the fall of this year might also boost the overall sales of the Wii U for Nintendo.