‘Mario Kart 8’ fails to stem growing Nintendo losses

In the first quarter of 2014, Nintendo reported an operating loss of ¥9.47 billion ($92.7 million). Despite the surge in Wii U hardware sales following the launch of “Mario Kart 8”, the company’s financial standing continues to weaken. The game sold 2.82 million units, contributing to more than half of all Wii U game sales for the quarter and became the third top-selling game on the platform. However, the additional revenue wasn’t substantial enough to bring the company back to profitability. With 510,000 sales between April and June, Wii U sales saw a 219 percent increase year-on-year. Notably, more than 80% of “Mario Kart 8” buyers were already Wii U owners, indicating that the game hasn’t attracted a significant number of new console purchasers.

The revenue for this period amounted to ¥74.7 billion ($731 million), showing an 8.4% drop from the same quarter the previous year and culminating in a net loss of ¥9.92 billion ($97.1 million). 3DS handheld sales declined further, with only 820,000 units sold over the quarter, compared to 1.4 million during the same period of the previous year. Despite these figures, the company’s forecast for a ¥40 billion operating profit for the fiscal year 2014 stays firm, along with its projected sale of 3.6 million Wii U consoles during this period.

In June, Nintendo’s E3 conference garnered considerable positive response from its online audience with the announcement of new titles such as “Splatoon”, “Mario Maker”, and “The Legend of Zelda” for Wii U, and experimental prototypes including a new “Star Fox” game. Paired with the popularity of games like “Mario Kart 8” and “Shovel Knight,” Wii U’s appeal greatly increased compared to the previous year.

Nonetheless, the major releases from Nintendo for the remainder of 2014 were confined to “Super Smash Bros.” for 3DS and Wii U. Other releases included “Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker,” a 3D puzzle game derived from special stages in “Super Mario 3D World, and the action title “Bayonetta 2,” developed by Platinum Games. These games, while promising, were not expected to significantly drive sales. Furthermore, Nintendo was preparing to release its NFC-powered Amiibo figurines, aiming to mirror the success of Activision’s similar Skylanders series.

Light edits were made in 2025 to improve clarity and relevance.