Though the PlayStation 4 and Wii U may be competitors, Sony has spoken out to say it would like to see Nintendo's home console business be successful. More people playing games will benefit the industry at large, Yoshida argued in a new interview with IGN.

"We need Nintendo to be very successful to help induct as many consumers who like to play games with controllers, sticks, and buttons because we believe they are great things," Yoshida said after the interviewer asked about the impact of smartphone and tablet gaming.

Nintendo's Wii U has underperformed so far, selling 3.91 million units, below the company's internal expectations. Yoshida said the console's lower-than-expected sales may come down to Nintendo's pushing the system at core gamers when instead the company should stay focused on the family friendly market.

"I think success or making mistakes depends on how you set your goal. I don't know what was Nintendo’s goal when they launched Wii U," Yoshida said. "To me, it was a bit confusing because what they do really well was create some very safe environment for anyone, especially children to enjoy games like induct those people who have never played games ever to become gamers. And they always do very well."

"To me, what they have made with Wii U was continuing what they were doing well [with the original Wii]. But the messaging when they were saying 'we are for core gamers' was a bit confusing," he added. "But this year I think they slightly changed their messaging, and it seems to me like they are coming back to where they are focused."

Nintendo has a number of marquee first-party titles in the pipeline, including Super Mario 3D World (November 22), as well as Mario Kart 8 and a new Super Smash Bros. game for 2014. Meanwhile, Sony's PS4 launches tomorrow, November 15, in North America.