I think were at a phase where we have to have a re-invention of gameplay to get rid of the stagnation of shooters and other series as far as all the big 3 are concerned but yes Nintendo need to try to come up with some new stuff, Sony try to get new IP's out and they don't always win so why can't Nintendo, it cant be the risk of financial ruin.

"Nintendo needs to step out of their comfort zone and create new and interesting franchises. "

Nintendo is, but they're not "hardcore" games.

"They also need to work on their marketing. A lot of people still think it's an expansion because the games really aren't very different from the Wii in terms of their aesthetic."

Watch Cartoon Network or Nick and you'll see like 4 different TV ads that address this topic. They've been pushing hard that you need to "upgrade" to Wii U in various ways.

"Nintendo releasing Donkey Kong Tropical Freeze, Smash Bros (as much as I love it) and Super Mario 3D Land is not doing them any favors. "

A) You mean World.
B) I think banking on past favorites makes sense than trying to have lightning strike twice. Not every Nintendo franchise has proven commercially successful and it's impossible to say if their next one will either. Especially not to the point where they entrust the console to it.

"truly don't shake the gameplay mechanics we have seen over the past generation. "
A new generation does not mean that everyone must or will reinvent the wheel. In fact, I can't think of a generation where we really saw drastically different games. Fighting games play fairly similar to how Street Fighter II played in 1991. In all honesty, 20 years later and the games just look better, play faster, moves are flashier, larger rosters, better mechanics, though at its core, the games are fairly similar. You can play Killzone from the PS2 days and see that it plays similar enough to SF. Honestly, outside of crazy new franchises, we typically don't see games reinvent the wheel to the degree some of you people expect.

"All of the big three need to drastically change their game lineup to gain ground on the previous generation or consumers will think what is the point of upgrading?"

The point of upgrading is bowing to Sony's superior RAM's, which makes magic possible! Seriously though, people upgrade because graphics look better, systems can do more, far more is possible and all their favorites are coming out. There are plenty of games on the PS3 that innovated ideas (Vanquish anyone?), but they rarely got sales, are not system sellers and are very small in the equation.

"First, when did I say these games needed to be hardcore to get out of their comfort zone? "

Because they're doing new things? Wii sports, Wii fit, Wii music, Captain Rainbow, Xenoblade, Rhythm Heaven were some of the weirder ventures they took recently on the Wii, with Nintendoland and The Wonderful 101 (though this is just published) were riskier things on the Wii U.

"In response to 3B, yes I meant World but there is evidence that there is fatigue with the lowest sales of a 3D Mario game ever with 3D World. "

No offense, but the only evidence here is that you're an idiot... The Wii U has a small demographic, two video game consoles launched (PS4 and Xbox One), a new Zelda released on the 3DS and Tearaway on the Vita. There is INFINITELY more evidence that the release was crowded, people lacking the funds or time and plenty of other things that point to the lower sales. Especially when Super Mario 3D World is pulling down a 93 on metacritic and 8.9 from user scores.. For those wondering, this is higher than Super Mario Bros. U, Super Mario 3D Land and 15 points higher than the significantly more unique The Wonderful 101.

"There are plenty of games which change the way we think about games and become successful. "

You missed my point. My point is that a new generation does not point to every game doing bold new things. Most games do the same things that work or go off established concepts. I then used an example of a game that changed up the standard TPS genre that was released last gen, since being interesting does not assure you success or failure, though doing it is a lot riskier than doing the standard "FPS formula".

"They are not differential enough for the average consumer to see what has changed"

Since when did the average consumer give a **** about actual differences? CoD kills almost everything in terms of sales and almost every "hardcore" gamer claims they're largely the same game.

"In addition, there have been so many times where people bought the inferior console (in terms of graphics) instead of the more powerful. For example, the DS and the PSP.."

A) My point is that people upgrade to SOMETHING (even the Wii U) because it has improvements in all areas. If you went from a GBA to a DS, then the games looked better / were more complex. That is the point.
B) People are cheap. This has always been the case and rarely does the most powerful console do the best if it has the highest price tag by any significant amount. (like 3DS vs Vita)

And the next Zelda, Bayonetta, Xenoblade,
Etc. The Wii U still has quite a bit to offer. I'll be picking mine up soon.

Ya scary , seems more like a talent acquisition more then anything , nothing IP related

It's a 'Rare' opportunity