The Nintendo Switch is an industry-shaking success, but the hybrid console will not have been created if not for the failure of its predecessor, the Nintendo Wii U.

Nintendo is back on top of the video game industry with the Nintendo Switch, going head to head with the PlayStation 4 and the Xbox One. Who would have thought that the company would be able to turn things around after the disaster of the Nintendo Wii U?

Nintendo Wii U Failure Leads To Nintendo Switch Success

Reggie Fils-Aimé, the president of Nintendo of America, talked about the company's failure and successes over the last decade, leading to the launch of the massively popular Nintendo Switch.

Apparently, the Nintendo Wii U played a huge part in that.

"We had launched the Wii U, following on the heels of the Wii, which had sold 100 million units globally," Fils-Aimé said. "The Wii U did not have that same level of success. But what we heard from consumers is that the proposition of a tablet that they could experience gameplay [with], coupled with the ability to play games on the big screen TV, was really compelling."

There were only 13.56 million Wii U consoles sold, branding the Wii successor as a failure. However, it was necessary to get Nintendo's wheels turning for the idea that eventually became the Nintendo Switch.

"If we had not had the Wii U, we would not have the Switch," Fils-Aimé said.

Nintendo, The Entertainment Company

Fils-Aimé also talked about how Nintendo wants to be defined as an entertainment company, not just one focused on video games.

According to the Nintendo executive, the company is currently divided into three businesses: video games, mobile games, and projects that leverage on its intellectual properties. An example of the third division is the upcoming Super Nintendo World, which is currently under construction at Universal Studios Japan.

Fils-Aimé went on to say that reinvention is in Nintendo's DNA, and fortunately for the company, it did not close up shop after the Wii U. The company kept pushing and released the Nintendo Switch, bringing Nintendo back to its glory days.