Wii U Ad

Much has been said about Nintendo's Wii U lineup that was shown at E3 2013, with opinions from across the spectrum generally all making an appearance. It was an occasion short of surprise reveals — aside from Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze — simply because Nintendo had given us so much advance notice of what was coming. The games shown prompted plenty of debate about whether they — particularly those arriving in time for the crucial Holiday season — would give the Wii U the shift in momentum it needs. There are good arguments on each side, and only time will truly tell.

Most will surely agree that the lineup shown was short of brand new ideas, but rather fresh takes on concepts and franchises that are familiar. That makes commercial sense, in its way, but some may have still wondered what Nintendo is planning to deliver to definitively show consumers why they simply have to upgrade to the new system from Wii; releases that surprise, delight and sell systems. Perhaps some of the upcoming games will do that, but Satoru Iwata has told investors that there are unannounced games for Wii U due in the 2013/2014 release windows highlighted at E3; they simply weren't shown as the broadcast was targeting loyal Nintendo gamers, and because Nintendo plans to release these games at relatively short notice for greater impact.

At the start of the E3 show this year, we announced our Wii U software lineup until 2014 mainly through Nintendo Direct, rather than holding a large-scale presentation as we did in previous years. However, we did not announce all of the games to be released during this period. Most of those who are interested in E3 are video game fans that are eager for information on so-called traditional games and we had a lot of information to be disclosed to such people. Therefore, we first tried to inform consumers of the software lineup to relieve those who might think that they should have waited to buy Wii U until more games were released or those who might be concerned whether the software lineup will be really be enriched in the future. On the other hand, when it comes to brand-new types of games, we have to announce them not too far in advance of the actual release dates in order to have a strong impact in the market and minimize the chance of others introducing similar or competing products. We are working on new types of games, but we would like to announce them much closer to their actual release timings for this reason.

We would like as many people as possible to pick up, experience and enjoy our video games. It is important to let people who originally had no interest in games, find themselves enjoying Wii U in their living room every day. We must also satisfy avid video game fans. When it comes to Wii, as “Wii Sports” spread throughout the world at a sensational speed, some misunderstood that all Wii could do is enable them to play games by moving the Wii Remote. With Wii U, therefore, we planned to satisfy existing video game fans first and provide new surprises later. But, just as you pointed out, it is becoming increasingly difficult for the consumers to be impressed by improvements in graphics alone, so we would like to seek different ways to make an impression on consumers.

These are encouraging and intriguing words, specifically in terms of Nintendo delivering "brand-new types of games" that sell the concept; it bodes well that Wii Sports was referenced, as well as the aim of avoiding others copying the ideas for similar products.

The Wii U is arguably yet to have its "oh snap, I have to have that system and GamePad controller now" moment. If Nintendo does have something up its sleeve for later this year or early 2014, we're certainly intrigued. Feel free to speculate wildly on what it could all mean in the comments below.

[source nintendo.co.jp]