Nintendo Wii U Launches on November 18, Costs $299.99 for ‘Basic’ Model

Haul that suit of armor and javelin out of the closet, because Nintendo has finally announced the release date and pricing for its upcoming Wii U console. Why the armor and weapon? If the Wii U’s launch is anything like the Wii’s, you’re going to need any advantage you can get to score one on launch day. For those who might not recall, Wiis remained very difficult to purchase for an entire year after its release. Whether or not Nintendo has the goods to make that happen again, we’re not sure.

The release date: November 18. The pricing: $299.99 for a white-colored “Basic”, packing in 8GB of storage space, and $349.99 for a black-colored “Deluxe”, which boosts that to 32GB. That additional storage, to me, would be worth the extra $50 alone, but the Deluxe packs in other extras as well, including a Nintendo Land game. In addition, it also includes a console stand and both a stand and cradle for the gamepad. I think it goes without saying that the Deluxe looks far more attractive than the Basic.

Both versions of the console include a single Wii U gamepad (pricing hasn’t been announced for additional units), a gamepad stylus, sensor bar, HDMI cable and AC adapters for both the console and gamepad. On the side, Wii U Pro gamepads can be purchased, and for those with a Wii, you’ll be able to use your remote and Nunchuck controllers on the Wii U.

It’s not quite known at this point how many games will be available at launch, but a popular choice will be New Super Mario Bros. U (Nintendo’s naming creativity never ceases to amaze me). Nintendo says that “dozens” of games will be available during the holiday season.

As neat as the Wii U might be, it’s going to be the first console where I don’t rush to the stores to buy one. I bought a Wii about a week after the launch, and in all these years, I’ve probably put less than 100 hours into it. The Wii U doesn’t exactly instill much confidence in me that things would be different here. What about you guys? Is this on your shopping list this holiday season?