Nintendo Reveals Wii Successor, ‘Wii U’

Right on schedule, Nintendo announced its Wii successor at E3, named ‘Wii U’. Whereas most console announcements have discussions more about the console itself rather than the controller, the opposite is true here. The controller, as recent rumors have predicted, features a large touch screen, making this a controller like none other. The fact that its dimensions are about 8×4″ could be the biggest reason for that.

Unlike the “Wii Remote”, the controller for the Wii U console doesn’t seem to have its own name, so for now it’s referred to as “Wii U controller”. It features a large 6.2″ touch-screen in the center, dual analog sticks, and has the aesthetics to perfectly match the Wii U console itself. It can be held like a tablet or like a mobile gaming console (such as the 3DS), but with its bigger size, it will no doubt take some getting used to.

The Wii U controller isn’t just for gaming, although its main function is just that… to either extend the game you are playing or to act as the console itself. If someone wants to watch a TV show but you’re in the mood for gaming, you’ll be able to play it just fine using the screen on the controller. If not for the fact that this functionality requires a Wii U itself, a portable Wii in this design could almost be its own product.

With the front-mounted camera, users can take advantage of video chats with friends and family, and thanks to the included stylus, you can even draw if you wanted. Or, you could go as far as to use the controller as a game system itself taking advantage of select titles. In an E3 demo, Othello was a game being played between two people. Another option is to play a golf game, and when used in conjunction with a Wiimote, the Wii U controller could be set down on the floor with a golf ball displayed. Swing and hit it, and the result will be seen on both your TV and the controller itself.

The number of uses that this controller can have seem almost endless, and there’s no way a single news post can sum up even half of them. One thing’s for sure though… developers will be having a lot of fun trying to take full advantage of it, if it’s to be effectively used in any game.

At 1.8 x 6.8 x 10.5″, the Wii U console is a bit larger than the original Wii, though unlike the original, it’s designed to be laid down, not stood up. Also, just as the Wii was backwards-compatible with the GameCube, the Wii U will play all of the original Wii’s games, and it can be hoped that it will again run GC games without much issue.

For console games, I’m a big fan of optical media, so I’m glad to see Nintendo return with that here. A new proprietary format has been brought to the table, and while final specs have not been announced, we’d assume that the discs will hold at least 15GB. In another major plus, the Wii U will support resolutions up to 1080p. With the limited number of games being shown off so far, though, it’s hard to know how much of a leap from the Wii this will be.

Wii U will be launched next year, with pricing as expected to be announced a lot closer to launch.