QuickSilver88

Really little has changed for Nintendo since the N64. Look the 3rd party thing is getting stupid and here is why......Nintendo is not a universal system or a system for 'common' games. Reggie's arguement would hold water accept for the fact the Wii sold 100mil units and 3rd party still didn't do real well.....especially multiplatforms. The only 3rd party that worked for Wii were the exclusives like Mad World, Red Steal 2, Zak, Epic Mickey....those were all really well made but still only sold so so in most cases....this is with 100mil base. So Nintendo should probably just give up on getting the Maddens, CODs, ACs and all that. Yes they could be the budget console with enought power to get devent versions of multiplats but most multiplat gamers actually own multiple platforms and will buy the titles on other systems because they look better, have better online, or more DLC. The theory that they should go more mature themselves was tried and failed with gamecube....which mind you was a bit of a comercial failure selling only 23mil unit world wide. They did the excellent Starfox adventures, Eternal Darkness, wave race, fzero, two metroid games, they had 3rd party stuff like Rogue Squadron and Resident Evil, time splitter, BGE, POP series, and pso. The system had better grafx than ps2/xbox and faster load times with the much panned minidiscs. Still sold only 23million units. In retrospect the GC library was awesome and despite being much smaller than ps2 has way more games with lasting appeal. Thats why they went casual with Wii and it worked but not for 3rd parties. I love Nintendo but am an all systems gamer. I think they need to quit caring about the multiplats and Nintendo gamers should as well. Do a robust array of 1st and 2nd party (which they are)....yive the casuals their WiiSports, WiiFits, and party games. Do some hardcore exlusives like X and Bayonetta, Metroid. Do your classic titles like Mario, DK, Zelda, do your quirky stuff like Pikman and W101. They need to work with their japanese friends like Capcom, Namco, Square, Bandai, Sega, and Altus to get WiiU exclusives or cross over titles (which they are). The eShop is way more attractive than XBL for self publishing and should bring some intersting content, if the bas gets big enough then maybe the western publishers will vring some unique content. They are not the same as PC, PS4, and XBone and shouldn't try to be. Their message should be come here for unique and different gaming experiences that you can't get anywhere else. That has really been their path since the SNES days...all of you so annoyed or disturbed by the lack of MutiPlats.....why did you buy a WiiU? Go get a PS4 for $400 and you will get all that content and $ony's own very fine exclusives....Keep your WiiU for a change of pace or sell it to someone who wants that different experience!

I was initially very disappointed but all the hype about a new 3D Mario, and Retro killer title as well as a crappy 240p feed were all factors. After watching the direct again on my WiiU and the dev clips I was less disappointed...Still....i have legit complaints. First, Gamepad is supposed to be what sets U apart from the others and they did very little to highlight it. Second and other have said this but DKC and Mario3d could be done on 3DS or Wii so do little to change perceptions of WiiU as weak hardware. Third, nothing new or surprising was announced in the way of 3rd party relationships.....just announcing one big title coming like COD or GTA would have really helped the perception that Nintendo is struggling with 3rd party relations. X, MK8, and B2, and SSB all looked pretty sweet but its wait until 2014. Also given the name recognition and universal success why not a new WiiU sports using both gamepad and Wiimotes? We already have Nintendoland, and Wario coming, and we need another party game this year? And why not make it a MarioParty game if U are going to make one? I hope this article is right and 2013 titles do drive sales, but I have my doubts. I think their best hope is a $300 pro bundle that packs in the highly anticipated Disney Infinity....that would sell systems to kids and families and the game is highly DLC and collectable driven so Disney and Nintendo could afford to give the core game away as a pack in. I honestly think Iwata needs to go back to developing and Nintendo needs new, more aggressive leadership. Sadly I think Nintendo is having an identity crisis and is wasting all their great IPs.......I am sure I will buy W101, DKC, and Zelda WW this year......the rest we will have to see how they review. The second half of the year does look much better but at $400 the PS4 is looking very strong....Nintendo would be in huge trouble if M$ wasn't so busy killing themselves and angering gamers.

This wasmthe second biggest dissappointment after Mario World 3D. I mean this is Retro...your best grafx team and they aren't working on a major 3D title? Why not DK 3D (like DK64). Why not new shocking metroid, or star fox or fzero? I have been a vocal supporter of Nintendo and WiiU on this and other boards but today I am so let down. Everything Nintendo showed could be done on Wii or 3DS. The only games that had Wow factor were X, W101, Bayonetta. Nintendo needs to fire Iwata and get new leadership.....the WiiU has been a disaster and Nintendo was obviously not ready for the HD era.....now they are rushing out 3DS rehashes to have content this year while $ony is showing amazing things. Also the big featurenof WiiU is gamepad and they showed NOTHING in unique features for it with any of their big titles. I thought Watchdogs ans Splnter Cell looked current gen on U.....sad sad day!

Ok but not much love for RPG fans with Tales, Etrian O, and Kingdon Harts all MIA. I have to say Shadow Wars was a great game for a launch title. I played that a lot in early months and it is a fine SRPG only topped by FE. I alao ooked Nightsky but wouod have never even known it was good if not for playing it on PC. I do like the list in that some were soewhat unkown to m e so gives me a few to give a try while waiting for new Zelda. Zero's last reward is very hard to find at retail. I got it on Vita because I found it used but recomend it if you want something quirky.

Man this sort of blows...2k Basketball is really the definitive game for us NBA lovers. I didn't buy 2K13 because I already had it on X360, but considered it because of off TV play. I certainly would have purchased it on WiiU for 2K14, but now will have to go on another platform. I reeally think Nintendo does need a sports lineup, so maybe they should consider aquiring or assmbling a US based dev team to work on sports series. I am not buying another new console this year as their will be just too much to play on WiiU and current generation. Sometime next year I will likely buy a PS4 but we will see what happens with DRM, price point and other unknowns. I have a nice quad core MPC and I am just going to put a $200 video card upgrade on it and use it more for gaming. Between that, the U, and last gen systems I should be fine for the next year, then Holiday 2014 will consider a Ps4.

As much as I love Nintendo's traditional lPs, I really think they shouod have their top talent working on some new IPs.....Miyamoto last new IP was Pikman? I would love to see something new out of him and Aonuma. Also after the new Zelda U it might be interesting to see someone like Retro put a new spin on it. I really hope W101 and Bayonetta 2 turn out good and do well, as I would love to see Nintendo fully own Platinum games and Monolith as well. That and it would be nice to see Nintendo try to aquire or assemble more Western teams as they did so great in working with Rare and Retro and even Silcon Knights.

I like UBI approach which is good, full versions of their top apps and patience. Look I think EA, Activision, and others may have some suprises when the other bigs launch their new systems this xmas. The WiiU launch has some really good MultiPlats with ME3, COD BO2, NBA2K13, AC3, BM AC. Why was it suprising that they didn't sell well? I mean these were all major releases on other systems and months or more old. What people like at launch are new titles or IPs. The only company that brought that was UBI with Zombie U and it sold well and had a good attatvh rate. The only other two new titles were SMBU and NintendoLand which also moved well. In other words no one took any risks on the U....so shame on them basically. What have we gotten since launch...not much. NFSMW was a really nice port as was MHU, but the only other otiginal property was the Lego game. I am really looking forward to all 4 of UBIs big hits this year and if they review well plan to buy them on U....I think watch dogs and splinter cell could be very cool with gamepad eatures...lthanks Ubi please keep it up.

So much Nintendo can yet do with the system both in games and functionality. The guy that tore the gamepad down said there was no reason why gamepad couldn't be connected via wifi with a firmware modification. Meaning gamepad could be a true remote play device allowing you to do off TV play anywhere you have wifi. Imagine that!

For 3rd party I am very interested in WatchDogs. I just hope it lives up to the hype. I will not be getting a PS4 until next year so will get this on U, as I expect it to look better than ps360 versions. I also think this game is perfect for gamepad featutes. ubi has been very coy about features and I believe they have someting cool planned. Like others I am very much looking forward to Dues EX...i hope the delays mean it is getting a full and proper port, unlike the reent Sniper V2 dissapoontment. Splinter Cell should be on here as it is announced and coming in the fall. The WiiU video showing gamepad features look cool. I know I am in the vast minority but Mario Kart really hasn't done it for me for a long time. I really liked excitetruck on Wii and would love to see Fzero or a new Exitbike64 or Waverace. Mario 3D will be a must buy whenever it hits. Still wondering what retro is cooking up and personally hope it is a new Metroid title because gamepade is dying to be a true scanner and metroid needs to be in HD. Pikman was never my cup of tea but I think this new version looks awesome so may give it a whirl this generation. All in all I think the next year will do a lot to populate the WiiU with lots of great tiltles.

@Dreamcaster-X amazing when somebody outside of Nintendo doesn't check in until #16 with GTA on PS2 (which BTW had 150mil user base). Most impreesive was Mario on NES and Tetris on GB....the universe of gamers was cosmiderably smaller back then. Aother thong to note is the diversity in types of games they have made best sellers out of. I laugh at all the people who thing Nintendo is going the way pf Sega....lno when they are so succesful selling systems and games. Whats great about Nintendo is how their huge successes allow them to take risks and do seires/titles and even accesories that no one else would deliver.

@OptometristLime Dude Nintendo has never bricked systems and no on else has either....the closest anyone has come to that was M$ banning consoles when flagged for running burned games. Problem is this cart is likely emulating a real cart and using non-decrypted raw rom dumps meaning it will be very difficult for Nintendo to detect. In the past all Nintendo did with firmware updated and or anti-piracy schemes was block the flash cart from working or block the game from launching. I am surprised it took this long and Nintendo deserves some credit for better security because there were GBA and DS flash carts available before those handhelds even released in the west. DSI ware was never hacked and I doubt 3DS system will be fully hacked any time soon.

Man why always the over reaction by people. First, yes piracy is bad...ok. The thing is though of all the many, many, many people over the years I have known that have owned gb, gbc, gba, and ds very few ever had flash carts. Many of Nintendo's traditional hanheld customers....kids and parents don't even have a clue this stuff exists. I just think too many people have been brain washed into believing piaracy is killing the gaming industry. Top titles sell in the millions (hell Animal Crossings already sold nearly 4mil in Japan alone) and missing out on a fee thousand sales because of piracy isn't going to kill well made and well selling games. The good news is from the demonstration this device appears to be an optical drive emulatortype or catridge slot based hack. That means the 3DS system has not been hacked. They may not have even hacked the rom encryption itself. Likely just raw dumping a rom and puting an image on sd. The bad news is this may be hard for Nintendo to detect as anything but a normal cart. The good news is it will be cumbersome, I mean microSD are dirt cheap but certainly it is not an elegant or user friendly solution like previous flash carts. My guess is game saves are stored on the SD with the rom image. Its not the end of the world. This isn't like the dreamcast crack which required no modification or like a system softmod that plagued Wii or PSP. Some HK retailers will sell some but this isn't going to kill 3DS or even efftect Indies because you likely aren't going to be able to run eShop stuff from it....ly ou could never run DSI ware from DS flash cart so likely same problem here. 6 months after this is out I want you all to report back and tell me how many people you know that bought this....my guess not many!

I am pretty sure Microsoft will come up with a license recycling feature.....which if the price is reasonable and the devs get the biggest part of the cut that might be acceptable. Aslo everyone talks about Gamestop but in my mid sized city there are multiple mom and pop used game shops that are making a nice business out of this and the dvd/brd market. So the system needs to be fair and open, maybe even to users so you can deactivate the game youself to lend or give to a friend? To those talkin about the used marktet hurting devs bottom lines.....i think this is simplistic and let me explain why. Major releases when they are good or excellent sell well.....generally in the millions, sometimes 10 mil copies. Bad games thankfully usually don't sell. Occasionally an excellent game doesn't sell well and this is often related to distribution issues or the game being released alongside other better known titles. The used market really doesn't effect much of this. Note to devs...make good games and they sell well. Now two things people have failed to mention here is many times the best games do not show up used right away because people keep them, play them, want them forever. When they do they will be newr full proce so I and others say so what and pay a little more for new. The next issue is at retail games rarely stay on the shelf more than a year. So if you want to try spec ops the line or dues ex or some other game from 2+ years ago you won't find it new because it is out of production. Great games get rereleased at budget sometimes or part of GOTY with DLC or as a series. This is good and provides good value for consumers and allows devs/publishers to continue to proffit. Something else to consider is if used goes away then the only way to get these older games is by buying them digital, if they are available. The problem is the console digital market is not like PC with steam and the pricing is warped and too expensive....without a compeditive used market this will not improve. Also what rights do I the gaming consumer have? WhenI buy a game domI own it? Do i have the right to play it forever? Am I really just leasing it and whenever the DRM says goodnight I am screwed? The important thing here is we as consumer get a say and should not tolerate being strong armed by publishers or manufacturers and can vote with our wallets. Last point and that is I say the used market is largely its own niche. Many people participating in used can not or would not be able to afford gaming without the used option. These people will likely be slow to leave this generation and may drop out of gaming altogether if they don't have access to lower priced options, or migrate to PC or tablets which have cheaper, more open environments. So these issues are not as simple as some of you would indicate. I have been in gaming forever and seen it all. With the poor economy and ridiculous sucess of all 3 systems, this transiton is going to be precarious. I think Nintendo has staked out the most old fashioned and consumer friendly position, Microsoft so far the least....what will $ony do?

Also reminds me of old Sonic 3D blast on sega cd. Looks super cool and I love the change in apects from side, to isometric, to 3D. Blazing speed, collecting rings and catching big air is what Sonic is at its best. I wonder what they will do with gamepad as this is an exclusive and hopefully they do something cool with it.

I bought 3DS at launch and must admit it was pretty disappointing. Thank goodness for the Tom Clancy game at launch which is really a vy good little SRPG and I recoomed it if you haven't tried it. Finally after months eShop came and then they gave us ambassador. Those GBA games are all awesome.....Then the flood of good titles came. Last month I finally moved to the XL and it is a HUGE improvement. The promos are what pushed me to upgrade. I was able to find a Mario Kart bundle at Walmart and got the new Luigi DM game and then got the Layton game on promo...So basically 3 great games or the price of one. Then gamestop was running a trade in promo so I got $110 credit for my original 3ds and mariokart cartridge....after I transferred my ambasator titles of course. Now the system is so rich....I own 10 cart games, all those good gba and retro titles, a few dsi goodies and some nice 3ds ditties. I agree they need more VC patricularly DS classics at a reduced price like their own stuff, layton, castlevania. Also more GBA for everyone. These game would be eay to offer as the 3ds is essentially compatible with these titles without emulation or modification. I was suprised they didn't mention Nintendo Video which I like and find fun. My only request is please Nintendo bring us a new side scrolling Metroid game this generation as it has been wayyyyyy to long. Aso I think more should be explpred in 3DS/WiiU cross play and promos like Sony is doing. MHU was a good start but needed special pricing or even a free download code for 3DS when you buy WiiU retail. Something with Fire Emblem where you could transfer people from 3DS to U and pokemon as well. A new advance wars for both systems with cross play/save. The things would help sell WiiU as 3DS already has 30mil and fast growing audience and it would encourage those gamers to buy a U!

I have conkers for N64 but not sure if I have box or manual still.....Cart alone goes for about 100-150 on Ebay. Won't see a sequel as Microsoft owns the IP now but something new from this mad genius would be just fine....they wouldn't have purchased 3 dev kits if they werent planning something.

People I think some patience is in order conerning these 3rd party titles. Let me explain. I honestly believe we are in a new dangerous era for gaming and consoles. I really don't believe any console this gen will match the 70-100mil units of the last generation. First off notice how so many multiplats are still supporting current generation and I think this will continue a few years. This is really a detriment to new hardware sales.....used to be a big incentive to upgrade was new content exclusive to new systems. Honestly major publications can't afford to skip current gen and their 100mil plus userbase. I have heard direct statement from both Sony and Micrsoft execs saying this generations grafx leap is not going to be that big and its not about grafx......so I think some people will be underwhelmed and decide to stay put. $ony and M$ are going head to head...same launch window and presumabaly similiar price points. Add to that they are getting so much of the same conten and mostly aiming for the same gamer and they are going to end up splitting those people. In some ways I think the fact that M$ launched so early and it took $ony almost 2 years later to gain momentum with ps3 was a plus for gamers and the manufacturers. I think this is why M$ is trying so hard to appear as something more than a games machine hoping to ad value for feature conscious buyers. So here is what I see....they canabilize each other and all these devs so eager to put all the same 3rd party titles out on all systems get lackluster results on the new systems.....meanwhile I will be shovked if WiiU doesn't get some great content in the next 18-24 months as well as price reduction. I also believe it will be first to 10mil and then 20mil units and it may suprise people but I think it may end up winning this round...maybe. Eventually 3rd party may grow some nads and decide to do some things with the U unique features and burgeoning us base......at worst we get GC which had some really great content and some great 3rd party like RE, Timesplitters, Tales of Symphonia and amdecent amount of multiplats alongside Nintendos own gems...i just don't see the great reception others anticipate and their are far more gamers but way more choices.....these systems will evtually penetrate but not as soon or fast as devs hope/need. Also I think comsumer unfriendly policies may hold people back. Not everyone plays online or cares much for DLC....the used issue is big as in addition to multiple gamestopsmin my town their are seveal Mom and Pops that are built on used media sales. As a gamer and consumer I like choices and options not restrictions....the way Microsoft is heading you wont ever really own hour games, you will just be paying $70 for the right to play it.

@undead_terror Hey just wanted to let you know DK orginal will be the last 30 cent promo game for WiiU VC available I believe in mid July....can't wait to get this one....looks like DK @ Kmart tommprow for $30 is a steal.

I don't think this sales spike in itself means much......I mean Target in the US cut basic to $240 which is awesome and I havent heard much about a salws spike here. Look i do believe this Xmas is Nintendo's to lose. If most of the announced title come out and the Ubi titles look good and COD Ghosts makes it over as rumored then I think that with the price advantage and the likely shortage of the new consoles the WiiU can soar. I do think Microsoft is going to struggle. Look the product may be great...not saying it is as in my mind who cares about some of these features as many other devices and TVs perform them....just saying even if product is great the company is adopting a lot of cosumer unfriendly features. I own all systems and have enjoyed xbox and x360 but the online activation, kinnect watching me, no used or shared games, and just Micrsoft arrogant stance in general is too much....plus most xbox exclusives make it to PC eventually and I find it interesting they are releasing new Kinnect for PC......So for now its WiiU and ps360, then next year I will buy a ps4 after 1st price drop and also get about a $200 grafx card upgrade for my PC so I can play newer 3rd party on it.

Wow.....lots of strong emotions and feelings here. I think what we are seeing is the gaming world is changing and many of us shall I say 'traditional' gamers are worriedmabout the direction and trend with these new products. Casual gaming and social networking is eroding or diluting the world we (the classic gamers) built and enjoy. Honestly I think xbox1 is trying to be a pre-built consumer MPC. This would be ok but for the fact that those in the know can build an MPC for less than $500, can have anytime upgradeablitly (going with more ram, storage space, video card), have the best of media playing, pay for streaming, social networking, hdtv or multiple hdtv tuner cards, can have dvr, brd/dvd and br/dvd burning capabilty. Then the gaming....you get great emulators for everything...best mame,psx,ps2.. Gc,n64,dreamcast....you name it. Then you have Steam so you get new stuff cheap for day one download...you get crazy sales....just got Sleeping Dogs for $12.50 you get all the mmorpg and mmsrpg and all the best od indie titles. Now listen I am primarily a console and handheld gamer, but I am also a tech guy and been on computers since the first 8bit home computer. The point is if you really want what X1 offers a properly built MPC can do it an do it better without all the silly restrictions like no used games, online always, xbl subscription fees and Kinnect being big brother. Now would be a really good time for a cheap consumer PC company like Acer to offer a nice spec media Pc with a decent TV tuner and wireless controller and keyboard/glidepad, webcam, tight little microatx case and position as a x1 compeditor. All that said whoever attempts to cater to this core 'traditional' gamer that I mentioned is still going to have a huge niche and do just fine. Honestly Nintendo is best positioned to do this so lets see if they captilize on it.

Ok first to those that say gamepad will be mirrored on ps4 with Vita and X1 with tablet glass......uh Vita is $250 and a seven inch andriod is abot $200 so those are not included and therefore will not get the same developer support. People keep saying WiiU this and that vs the other as yet revealed systems......ok hold tight. WiiU is out and has already had two major OS updates with another coming this summer. So the user experience has improved greatly and will continue to. Meanwhile $ony has struggled with SEN and the new versison sucked and was sooooooo slow and cluttered that eShop is a dream by comparison. So all you people act like these new systems will just come out and shine and not have to go thru an infancy stage.....uhhhh history would say NO. Also all 3 systems will run at 1080p so the fidelity difference is not going to be whats people think either between WiiU or ps360 and these new models. Look are these devices supposed to be game consoles or do everything and braid my hair devices? I have so many devices that do social media, stream video, play brd/dvd and provide dvr and pip features do I really give a crap that X1 does all this? I think this is more M$ attempt to strike back at Apple for taking away the home PC market, the mobile phone market, and the tablet market, and Apple TV. They are trying to strike back and are losing focus on gamers. I am sure $ony and Nintendo are salivating. Also others have said this and it is surely true which it will take a few years for devs to really show these new platforms off....we will see a lot of multiplatform support for a while as ps360 has too much of a base to just drop. I think the next few years is Nintendos to lose. They will have a price advantage, a software advantage, and an installed base advantage vs the other two. Also $ony and M$ will be fighting head to head while Nintendo has a seperate path. Personally I am somewhat worried for the future of gaming, but hopefully Nintendo will again surpass expectations and keep some reminants of what we all love alive

I have been watching some interesting things on YouTube. One was an interview with the head of $ony Europe out and out saying that PS4 is not going to be that much more powerful than PS3 and that it is all about improving user expierience and creating new game play methods to lure in casual and girl gamers.......hmmm sounds a lot like Nintendos strategy since the Wii first came out. People. In another 'talking head' video the guy talks about how Sony and Microsoft would not be able to have significant jump graphically over Wii-U unless they released in 2014 or beyong because they will not be able to incorperate killer silcon without the cost being thru the roof. I really expected both to wait until 2014 myself, but to his point they can't afford to because Nintendo is out so soon and they don't want to give up significant units installed. So all you 'spec' whores are likely going to be a little let down by the fact that the Wii-U will not be that far off these other new consoles. He equates it to the difference between the PS2 and the GC/Xbox which had marginally more powerful grafx and ram but never really showed a huge difference in multiplatform titles......I agree with that, but will say that Nintendo titles on GC look much better than the multiplatform titles that came out for all three.

People are soooo funny bemoaning lack of 3rd party support and then say well if Wii-U gets same games as everyone else then that won't sell systems. In itself you are likely right, but seeing there will be lots of Wii-U exclusives out in the next year, and being able to get multiplatform 3rd party, and the fact U will likely cost 1/2 as much, and gamepad features, and off TV play.....all this can't hurt. Now I do expect Legends to be the definitive version on Wii-U because it was developed for U and is known to have some interesting gamepad play mechanics. Watchdogs is a game about hacking and controlling cameras and such and even though Ubi has been vague about gamepad features the gamepad fits so well in the concept of the game it could be very unique. They have already also stated splinter cell will heavily use gamepad features and that it is a natural. So chill people and lets just seen what they come up with.....Plus they are rumored to be working in a Zombie U sequel and that is an exclusive. I am grateful for their support and if these upcoming games review well I will definitely by them on U because I don't plan on buying a Ps4 until 2014.

Look lets get one thing straight and that is Nintendo's problems, and this is not new, is with Western 3rd party developers and publishers that Nintendo struggles with. Over the years and now with Wii-U Nintendo has done lots of projects with Sega, Capcom, Namco, Altus Konami, Tecmo, and Square. At times they have had rivalries with these companies but now they are working on collaborations with all off them. This should continue because Microsoft can't sell squat in Japan which has always been considered one of the major territories. I am not sure making Iwata the head of NOA was a good move because truly I think an American would make more sense. They should go dig up old Trip Hawkins or someone with deep roots with Western publishers to start schmoozing and making deals to get projects back on U.....then they need to do some serious advertising and help promote games on the system other than their own.

I liked it well enough but wish their was a little more info on some of the 3rd party titles I am interested in being Dues EX and Sniper v2. Nintendo needs to be reaching out to devs with games coming soon and say 'hey we want to help promote your title send us so demo footage to include.'

That said I think the Sega announcement is a big deal,and the Winter game looks slick and supports a bunch of varied control schemes for different events which looks cool. If Sony or Microsoft had announced an exclusive deal with a major developer like Sega it would have been huge news everywhere so I feel this being largely overlooked by mainstream gaming press is one more example of anti Nintendo bias going on now. Game and Wario looks really fun and is going to be cheap as well at $40. I have very fond memories of the DS titles so if they can capture that element they will have a fun party game. Pikman 3 is looking really good. The environment grafx are certainly looking very crisp and next gen to eye. Again impressed by the variety of controller support and off tv option. I can't wait to hear the multiplayer and online features as if they handle it right it could be a really breakout game for Nintendo in the online arena.

Can't wait for E3 directs and hope they do both lengthy and separate videos for 3DS and Wii-U. I too think the back end of 2013 is really going to make up for the drought we have had in the first half of the year.

You know there are a variety of factors why games keep improving over the life of a system.

1. The manufacturer continues to imrove and release new dev tools support new libraries and feautres.
2. The render equipment on PC/Macs keeps getting better and more sophisticated.
3. Early geneartion engines get optimized.....this is what happened with games like AC and Oblivion/Skyrim
4. Secret hardware features got figured out or unlocked.....what about that 'blob' of unkown silcon on the Wii-U mothetboard?

I own all systems but worry a little about ps4 in particular going to such a PC centric architecture....part of the lifespan of ps2 and ps3 were tied to the facts they had some exotic design elements that took a while to fully utilize. On the one hand we get better software earlier, on the other hand do they max out sooner?

I do always find it interesting that nothing looks as good on Nintendo systems as their first, second, or colaborated 3rd part games. Fzero, TWP, Mario Sunshine, RE4, SF Adventure all looked awesome on cube and I play a lot of legacy games. Sony is similiar...their stuff on PS2 and PS3 looks so much better than most 3rd party. As a result I don't think a lot of xbox classics have held up as well as the best stuff on $ony and Nintnedo systems.

The one game I am really interested to see at years end is Ubi's WatchDogs which will be on current gen, Wii-U, and Ps4 . Curious to see the differntiation of versions but honestly I think a lot of people are overestimating the grafx leap from here forward as we are definitly at the point of diminishing returns and this a reason why current systems went 7-8 years and are still going strong.

It really looks like soon there will be something for everyone on Wii-U. Personally I want X, SmtxFE, W101, Zelda Ww and am also lookijg forward to RE and Dues EX in the near term......Luigi DLC coming in June was a pleasant surprise and also have a lot of interest in Rayman, Splinter Cell, and Watchdogs.....honestly I won't be able to afford or play all these games this year but I think soon the drought will be over.

Honestly I don't think they will bring this over as it never sold that well on PS2 which had a huge user base. I played the 3rd one on ps3 and its good but I think sleeping dogs is much better and also would way prefer to have a Shenmue 1/2 HD remake! Still I think this is good for Japan and the good Sega relations are good for all of us....now how about Skies of Arcadia on VC!

Lord this guy is a tool.....I mean honestly people if this brings me down at all its because this war between two of the biggest names in Video games is not really good for anyone.....not good for Nintendo, EA, gamers, or the many devs EA owns. This guy is entitled to his opinion but many devs have expressed quite a bit of enthusiasm form doing projects on Wii-U and with gamepad. Its why older ports like Sniper V2 and Dues EX may be worth buying and playing and why those games as well as NFS MW are considered the definitive versions. As others have said anyone actually deving on the U has said it is more powerful than ps360. What EA and its employees are doing is defamation and a smear campaign and is very irresponsible and unprofessional. Also EA are notorious whores...When Wii-U sales pick up and one of their devs has a title concept that is well suited to Nintendo's audience then EA will publish it.....think about it people what they are doing is they have decided not to support the U.....so they don't want you buying it because then they won't have you as a potential customer, so they are defaming it so you will save your money and buy the systems they support later this year. I respect Nintendo for keeping quite and the tables will be turned because Wii-U should have 10mil user base before the others are out of the gate....truly I think Microsoft could be the one in trouble as they have sold like less than 100K consoles in japan in two generation and if the rumors are true they are going to be pretty much a USA only platform while Sony and Nintendo are worldwide!

@Roadshow.....regardless of what EA said lots of devs have dispelled this. The Wii-U is not less powerful than ps3and x360. It may only be marginally more powerful but it is designed to push video to multiple devices at the same time so its architecture is not about raw power. Tell me why it is that Cryengine 3 runs wonderfully with full features, why the team that ported NFSMW was able to support PC textures and better lighting effects, why Enix Montreal is saying Wii-U Daus EX will have best grafx, and also the company doing SniperV2 when asked in an interview on this site if Wii-U is more powerful than ps360 they said and I qoute 'In a word YES'. I mean this is just total BS and EA knows it. This is all about business and orgin.....just think if Nintendo had gone for whatever EA wanted then all these games would be coming to Wii-U and we wouldn't hear poopiedoodledingdongs about this....so please stop your nonsense......and don't bother calling me a fanboy because I have been a gamer since the beginning of video games and owned just about every console and handheld ever made.....I am just tired of peoples ignorant crap. I also wont be boycotting EA.....if they have games I want to play I will just play them on another platform.

Please Nintendo bring GC greats to VC with off TV play. $15-$20 seems reasonable to me based on what games and ehat features they add. Not just their titles either but how aout Tales of Symphonia, Skies of Arcadia and Baten Katos games. I retro game quite a bit and have all my old systems.....when comapring Xbox, PS2, and GC.....the exclusives for cube bynfar hold up the best!

Klei is sooooo awesome. Mark of the Ninja is my favorite 2D platform game in a long time and ranks right up there with the best Castlevania or Metroid games. Please go buy this game of you have a 360 or PC. I had some discussions with them on their facebook page begging them to bring it to Vita or 3DS and they said they couldn't because it was published by Microsoft studios and essentially exclusive. They also did the solid Shank 1/2 games on PS3. I hope they do branch out to handhelds as their games would be right at home. If you haven't played MOTN then go get it and you will love it if you are a fan of old school platforming at all!

The GPU bump would be easily believable in that it is an AMD made GPU and those of us using AMD APU inebrated chips on the PC side know they are easily overclockable even with stock cooling. The A8 series are stock 600mhz eand easily go to 800mhz and in overclock testing people get them to 960mhz no problem. So that is easily believable. The CPU side could only be explained if the processor was designed for higher speeds and was intentiomally being throttled for power saving. Otherwise pushing the mutliplyer a 1/3 would be the max so getting to 1.8ghz would be a real push. With all that said we do know manufacturers do throttle and sometimes later remove the cap or hackers do as evidenced with the PSP.....The proof will be in the pudding if Devs start to produce better results and warm to the system then it will leak from more reliable sources.

What I hope Nintendo is going to do is focus on the games.....look Sony and Microsoft are going to be focused on showing new hardware. Like all years when a company shows new hardware they are not going to have much playable...Mostly tech demos and the 3rd parties will be showing their stuff running on current hardware saying 'it will look better on nextgen'. Meanwhile if Nintendo has playable versions of major IPs they will steel the show and get far more gaming press attention as they will look on the others and only be able to speculate while Nintendo titles they will have real impressions from playing

Yeah I don't think it will be Zelda or Mario Game as they like to keep them at at home in Japan. Starfox and F-Zero were sadly missing last generation but a true 3D DK platformer has not been seen since N64. I don't know what will happen with Eternal Darkness 2 as Silicon Knights was supposedly working on it before they got their pants sued off by Epic games. I for one loved Starfox adventures and never really dug the shooter games much. Honestly Metroid would probably bring the most bang for the buck with system sales and the gamepad could be used as an active scanner which was a big part of the prime mechanics.

@SpaceApe: Who says there are no compelling games coming this year for Wii-U? We already know Bayonetta 2 ( which people were complaining wont be on other systems), W101, Zelda WW HD, MarioKart, Mario3D, Pikman3, WiiFit, LuigiDLC and other 1st part titltes are coming. Then on the 3rd party from all of UBIs titles are coming, Batman, looks like COD Ghost, still possible GTA5 and some others that will surely be announced at E3 because Sega and Capcom have said they both have projects in the works. I own all systems so will play good games no matter where they appear but Wii-U should have worthwhile content later this year. Additinally Nintendo is making all the right mives with the Indy scene and eShop has more announced content coming than Sony or Microsoft. Meanwhile Nextbox and PS4 will be getting all the same multiplatform titles as x360 and ps4 which will use current generation engines and will not blow us away. The games Microsoft has leaked as exclusives are weak and while Sony has shown a few compelling launch titltes what do you want to bet 1/2 of them slip into 2014. No console ever (and I have owned them all since the Atari 2600) has shown its best stuff at launch or in the first generation of games. Next spring while ps4 and nextbox are struggling thru their infancy Wii-U will have dozens of quality titles and a significant price advantage.

Ok let me clarify a few things....Your car can easilt handle 100-150w no problem so those worried about your car battery don't. Even alternators in small cars put out 80amp 12v which is plenty. The other issue about voltage regulation is also wrong. Your cars devices and lighters outlets run from the battery and the alternator charges the battery so iits just like a UPS in your house meaning you get fairly stable amperage. The device likely uses a capicitor circuit to comoensate for any spikes or dips. Go study a little electronics and DC power if U don't beleive me. Those sayinh why not use an AC invertor.....well anytime you shift from ac to dc you bleed or waste power so going dc to ac to dc is senslees plus you will have to take you invertor and your wii power supply. I know lots of U in Europe drive dinky cars but here in the good old USA most people with kids have vans, suvs, cross overs which have more than enough space. Also the RV market here is huge and people often have mid sized LCD screens in their rigs...I know many people that configure them with game consoles. Now about the optical drive....I would avoid using it unless you give the wii-u a proper mountng. We had CD players in cars for decades and they worked fine when mounted properly. Still if U have a 32gb model you can have a fair amount of contrent and 2.5 inch Usb drives to have some rubber around them in the case and also use very low power so that would be the best option. What we really need to put this over the top is a decent video player app for Wii-u that supports mp4,avi,mpg, and mkv and then you could put movies on a big usb stick or sd card and use this as both a game player and portable video player.......my last thought is here is a better idea I had and that is gamepad tcp repeater.....so it would talk to the U like your gamepad and direct the signal thru your home router then you would have a palm sized module you take with you that talks to your game pad and connects to wifi which is readily available at so many places for free and essentially your gamepad has true remote play...kind of like vita with ps4.....this would be possible if someone canjust figure out the radio the gamepad uses and the protocol it talks on.

I think Nintendo is really missing the boat by making 3DS and Wii-U appear a rivals. The Vita has had pathetic sales but look what $ony is doing which is cross buy and cross play and transferable game saves. They have a great opportunity with Monster Hunter U which supports these features. So you put out the retail MH for U with a download code for 3DS and if you buy Wii-U on eshop you get 3DS for free. This encourages people to buy Wii-U that already have 3DS and want cross play. Now imagine they did this with big titles like Pokemon, Fire Emblem, or Animal Crossings. Sony did this with new Sly, MLB, Guacamelee, and has plans for others. As a Vita/PS3 owner I love being able to get both games for the price of one or a lower price and love to be able to move my save to the handheld and hit the road and continue playing. In $ony case the Ps3 is well established and Vita struggling but in Nintendo's case 3DS is established and U is struggling. It doesn't matter as fans of your products are the best target audience to sell new products to they just need a little extra incentive!

LDXD....both wii and wii-u seem to have weak wifi radio...you can get a cheap usb to lan adapter that works well if you can get a cable to your console...rocketfish makes one you can get at bestbuy for $15.

What $ony does works well. You can activate two ps3, psp, vita per PSN account. Once you activate a system then any downloads tied to that account will play with it offline. If your system gets lost or stolen and the 2 times a year you can deactivate all systems to get your 2 activations back. If the loser who stole your system logs on to you psn account then it would deactivate that system and they couldn't play your downloaded content. Believe it or not they used to allow 5 systems but probably realized that wad being abused. 2 seems fair as I do have 2 ps3 and 2 psp and a Vita so for things like music and movies I get to access them on all my systems. Nintendo really does need to utilize club Nintendo as most of us already use it and have it tied to our eShop accounts. I really rarely buy full releases digital as I want permanent copies so like my carts and discs. Some one else's advice on home insurance is good but the problem is most people have at least a $500 deductible so if a single system is lost or stolen won't be worth it to make a claim!

@Moshugan If you are in the USA you might check WallMart or Sam's club if you are a member. I was able to get a Mario XL at Walmart for 200 and had mariokart loaded on it. I then purchased Luigi and with the club nintendo promo was able to get another download game for free (i took in prof layton) so i basically got 3 great games for the price of one game. The free club Nintendo game promo ends the end of April so you will have to act fast. If you are a Sam's member you can get the MarioKart model online only and they also throw in a starter kit that has a case and some other goodies. If that is not an option then just watch the retailers as last month Target had XL's on sale for $159 and bestbuy will price match anything even legit online retailers if you take them a current printout. I bought 3ds at launch and always thought the screen was a little small....XL screens are awesome, system is thinner and lighter, and has better battery life. DS stuff looks great on it. Also the transfer is a little tricky. You have to have both systems, it will ask to move your dsi titles to sd, say yes....after the transfer you then have to copy all the data from your old SD to your new....any content you already had on the new SD you will have to re download. It is a little cumbersome but everything will get moved and even any eshop credit you have will be transferred. You will not be disappointed by the XL....its the system they should have put out from the start.

@doctor doak.....Ok I appreciate your 3rd world awareness, but remember much of our gadget gear is made in China......who is having a sort of industrial electronics revolution.....many of these works were likely in the fields 10 years ago. Even if you paid more for a console these workers wouldn't get paid more as they live under a communist dictatorship that controls all aspect of industry in their system.....also remember during the industrial revolution in USA and Europe people were worked, treated, and paid like dogs......it took decades of social evolution to get the rights we have in the western world.....in theory other less economically evolved countries will follow the same path...all I can say is if you were born in a first world country, or escaped to one just thank your lucky stars and buy all the luxuries you can afford.

Oh yeah Patcher is an idiot as an analyst.....he again reiterated he wouldn't recommend Nintendo stock but meanwhile they just posted a 9% gain, they have already one this generation of handheld wars, oh and BTW have always owned handheld market, wii-u is having a rocky start and surely get better yet he says crap company and don't but their stock.....don't care what he says this guy hates Nintendo.

Good article, and I think he hits on a lot of good points. I for one will be shocked beyond belief if Nintendo doesn't have a price drop in November when the competition comes out. The other thing is some desirable bundles will be great. I mean how about MFU or Legos with a pro console and controller for $300. I have a Wii-u and love the concept and off TV play. Also the browser on Wii-U is awesome and doesn't get enough credit....it is fast, supports html5, youtube and has sensible controls. I do like some of the moves Sony is making with cross buy/play between Vita and Ps3....I got Sly for $30 at best buy for PS3 and got Vita version as well....Guacamelee just came out on PSN and get both versions for $15. I think with Nintendo having the best selling handheld they need too wise up and leverage this. MHU should have had a cross buy to encourage people to buy Wii-U and Wii-U game then get 3DS eShop download for free. How about Fire emblem or Pokemon on Wii-U with cross play/buy for 3DS. This is what Sony is attempting with a way less penetrated handheld. I do think if nextbox goes always online they are going to regret it. Another point and that is times have changed. I think gamers will continue to buy or keep ps3/x360 and buy used games. The economy is crap and these current gen systems had so many great games people never got to. Also just because last gen system sold 75mil each doesnt mean there are that many gamers. In the end I bought 3 x360 (one fried) and 2 ps3. In the early days I bought multiplatform games on x360 because it was out sooner and now later in the generation I buy multiplats i want on ps3 because I like dualshock better and online is free. In the next gen i will buy ps4 first and may never get x720 because I hate the online all the time idea, subscription xbl and they have a weak 1st party lineup compared to Nintendo and Sony. I think M$ is really expecting the FPS bros crowd to carry them and this may be a bad strategy

This looks great....I actually played the last one on Vita.....and why....because it was the best 2D platformer on Vita at a time when vita had little to nothing else to play. So this looks great and will probably get it used when discounted but the real attraction was it was going to be out at a time when nothing else new was out to attract our $$$. Now we will have all sorts of choices this fall so just not as attractive. Still love Ancel and really looking forward to the BG&E sequel they are working on!

Epic Mickey is really cool and one of the best non-Nintendo Wii games. Too bad the sequel didn't live up. The first one had great play mechanics and a somewhat dark theme for a Mickey game. He is a quality guy so surely will land somewhere else. I own both Iphone and Ipad2 and other than MTG TC game I have not been able to get excited about much. Suffice to say the new consoles will have considerably more power than anything portable will have for many years and maybe ever. Power is the issue in that you are not going to drive CPUs and GPUs like consoles or computers have on batteries....just not possible something that plugs in will always have more oomph than something that runs on batteries.

This is likely limited to some markets but not a big problem here in the midwest of good ole USA. I live in a mid-sized cit but have like 3 gamestops, mejiers, target, walmart, and best buy all within reach. So I have seen copies off all 3 March titles in stock. i was shocked that Lego came out for 49.99 US retail because it is a major release in a dry market. I do think retail orders are a factor, but I for one prefer har copies as I am a collector and I also like to give games to friends and family. I am sure devs and Nintendo love digital as no used and no middle man cut but retailers need incentive to or they won't want to give shelf space to consoles and accesories!

@Peach64 I second the first part of your statement in that WTF have Nintendo's internal teams been doing as nothing much has come out for Wii other than ZeldaSS since 2010.

I disagree in that wii-u isn't quite 6 months old and is getting some better stuff now like MHU, Legos, and NFSWM. Plus I like old school platforming so Mario 2D is good by me. Also I bought Vita and its first 6 months was horrible and both PS2 and PS3 first 6 months was bad as well. Even x360 first 6 months was poor other than Oblivion coming out in Spring of 06. Please tell what consoles you bought that the first 6 months just knocked you sox off? I have owned them all and can't give you one that came out of the gate like gangbusters

Well he makesmsome good points in that Nintendo was slow to get into the online gaming world and still has yet to provide much in 1st party that really reinvents their franchise into online....Now come out with 16 player mario kaet or SSBM online with ladder tournements or Wii-U pokemon MMORPG and all that wouod change overnight. Look at something simple like Mii-verse which is a nice little idea that let people express themselves and talk about games. There is a lot of conflict in his statements like they are exectuting in eShop but are too late, that users will be underwhelmed by nextgen graphics but this doesnt greatly help Nintendo and that other next gen will hurt Nintendo if they are priced compeditively. My question is what does that mean? I can tell you they won't be $300 and thats for damned sure. I am saying the 'pro' packages will be $500 and it is not their history to bundle games so with a game and second controller it will be closer to $600. If wii-u can do a pro bundle with game and pro controller for $300-350 it will be considerably cheaper. I also somewhat agree on the 3rd party but not so much on multiplatform.....Nintendo more needs 3rd party exclusives which I think they are showing they can get with things like Bayonette2, W101, and FExSMT. Another interesting point is that 3rd holiday point so at least that can chill out those that say wii-u is already a failure....that cant be determined until for quite a while.

Wow....Sega has so many good licenses that they could revisit and do right...

How about Skies of Arcadia which was an awesome RPG.....Shenmue, VF, Crazy Taxi, Daytona, Phantasy star, Panzer Dragoon, Sonic, HOD, and how about those great fishing games using a Wiimote.

Alos people remeber F-Zero was deved by Sega but is Nintendo's IP....Still would loveto see it on Wii-U.