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Nintendo kicked off another day of E3 2011 with a presentation that featured a number of interesting announcements, including the reveal of their new system, dubbed the Wii U. Details from the press release can be found beneath the debut image of the new controller.



Previously, video games played on a home console have been confined to the TV and offered identical viewpoints to each player in a multiplayer environment. Furthermore, watching TV and playing console games have been completely separate experiences. The new controller removes these boundaries, creating a more dynamic and fluid gaming and entertainment experience. Visitors to the E3 Expo will see firsthand the type of gaming experiences made possible by Wii U and the new controller such as:

• In single-player games:

o The new controller can display information on its screen that does not appear on the TV.
o The information and viewpoint can also change in the new controller based on the orientation of its gyroscope.

• In multiplayer games:
o The player using the new controller can have a different experience than those looking at the TV. This will offer a wide variety of competitive and cooperative opportunities.

In addition to the 6.2-inch screen, the new controller also features an accelerometer and a gyroscope, a rumble feature, an inward-facing camera, a microphone and speakers. Adding these features to the Classic Controller™ button scheme – two analog Circle Pads, +Control Pad, A/B/X/Y buttons, L/R buttons and ZL/ZR buttons – will enable a breadth of game-play experiences while appealing to both casual and dedicated video game players.

Wii U combines motion-sensing game play with the ability to support full HD graphics. Each Wii U console will be partnered with a new controller and can also use up to four additional Wii Remote™

“Wii U redefines the structure of home entertainment by fundamentally changing how the TV, the game console and the Internet function and interact together,” said Nintendo President Satoru Iwata. “The experience enabled by Wii U and the new controller takes players deeper into their games, while reaching out wider than ever before to be inviting to all kinds of gamers.”

Nintendo 3DS™, which lets users see 3D images without the need for special glasses, launched in the United States on March 27 and continues to evolve. Owners will find that their Nintendo 3DS experience is different every time they pick up the system, thanks to new content and updates delivered by Nintendo, by third parties and exchanged between users.

A new system update is now available for the Nintendo 3DS system. Users who connect to a wireless broadband Internet connection and install the system update will instantly gain access to the Nintendo eShop, which contains a variety of games and applications for download using a cash-based system.

Users can browse original 3D software, 3D Classics (select classic video games re-mastered in 3D), classic Game Boy™ and Game Boy Color games, and more than 350 games and applications currently offered for the Nintendo DSiWare™

The system update also provides Nintendo 3DS owners access to free items, including an Internet browser that can show 3D images on sites specifically designed to show 3D images, a download of a re-mastered 3D version of the NES classic Excitebike™ game (free until July 7) and Pokédex™ 3D, which lets users discover and view more than 150 Pokémon™ from the Pokémon Black Version and Pokémon White Version games in visually engaging 3D.

Nintendo also announced a huge lineup of upcoming new and fan-favorite franchise games, many of which are playable on the E3 Expo Floor.

• Nintendo 3DS: Super Mario, Luigi’s Mansion™ 2, Mario Kart™, Kid Icarus™: Uprising, The Legend of Zelda™: Ocarina of Time™ 3D, Star Fox 64™ 3D, Animal Crossing™, Paper Mario™, Picture Lives!, The Rolling Western™

• Wii: The Legend of Zelda™: Skyward Sword, Kirby™ Wii, Wii Play™: Motion,
Mystery Case Files™: The Malgrave Incident™, Mario Party™ 9, Rhythm Heaven™
and Fortune Street™

• Nintendo DS™: Kirby™ Mass Attack, Professor Layton and the Last Specter™, Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker™ 2 and Super Fossil Fighters™

Project Cafe no more, Nintendo's next console is Wii U and as predicted, it features powerful new graphics processors and a brand new controller that sports a 6.2-inch touch screen. Though the system is in its early stages, we were able to get our hands on the Wii U and get a sense of the hardware and experiences we can expect to see next year.

While the console was present and viewable through a plexiglass cutaway panel, Nintendo wanted all eyes on the new controller, and with good reason.



The Wii U controller is likely to draw comparison to the Dreamcast controller, but the touch-enabled display is no gimmick. Nintendo isn't providing details about the integrated display, but so far we know that it is a single-touch touchscreen LCD with a 16:9 aspect ratio.

Though Nintendo didn't specify whether or not the controller boasts "HD" resolutions, it is clear that they haven't taken a similar approach to the Wii U as they have with the DS line, which features fairly low-res displays. The integrated display on the WIi U controller is crisp and clean, with no visible lines of resolution. The displays are bright and vibrant, though the units I used had a cool blue color temperature.

The controller is partnered with the Wii U console, and despite previous reports to the contrary, cannot be used as a standalone device. The controller communicates with the Wii U using Bluetooth and RF technology, in the same way that the Wiimote does with the Wii. How exactly the video is processed and delivered remains unclear; however, there was no discernible lag between video being displayed on TV demo stations and the video being presented on the Wii U controller.

The touch display is also pretty responsive, whether you're using a simple tap of the finger or the included stylus. As concept demos at Nintendo's press conference showed, the display also tracks finger or stylus movements across the surface, making swiping gestures and pen-style sketching pretty effective.

As for the tangible controls built along the edges and base of the controller, the controls felt surprisingly familiar. Though separated by the display, the dual analogs, d-pad, action buttons, shoulder buttons, and rear-mounted triggers were intuitively placed and easy to reach. The grips on the bottom allow you to get a firm grasp, but don't impede your ability to hold the controller vertically or casually along the edge.

Much to my dismay, there were no demos involving the built-in camera or the system's video conferencing functionality, but Nintendo's promotional videos suggest that the picture quality is improved over those used in the 3DS.

Then, of course, there are the internal sensors, which include a gyroscope and an accelerometer. Though the idea of tilting a controller to control in-gamer characters and features is fairly intuitive, using the gyroscope to control in-game perspective by holding up the controller and looking around was more difficult.

In one demo, Battle Mii, the gyroscope-based perspective controls are used along with the dual analogs to move a hovering craft, which at first can be quite cumbersome, but with practice the precision gyroscope becomes almost like second nature.



For a controller as large as the Wii U's, weight becomes a concern, but it actually felt comfortable to hold. Unfortunately, Nintendo has not specified what the approximate weight will be, and unfortunately, since the prototype controller was wired into a demo station, it was likely lacking a battery pack. Since, however, Nintendo will be using a rechargeable battery pack instead of AA or AAA batteries, they'll have more flexibility in terms of weight distribution.

Then, of course, there's the mystery of the console itself. Like I mentioned, the unit was hidden from close inspection by a special compartment, but from that limited vantage I was still able to get a sense of its design and scale. Though it has rounded edges and variations in the front interface, the Wii U is comparable to the original Wii in terms of size and aesthetic design.

Many of the console's technical specifications are still a mystery, but so far we know that the system has HDMI, S-Video and composite video output, with support for 1080p, 1080i, 720p, 480p, and 480i resolutions, which present media localized on the system's flash memory, external SD cards, or USB thumbtacks. As IGN's sources had originally indicated, Nintendo has confirmed that the system will be based on IBM Power-based multi-core CPU, though they have not discussed the GPU architecture.

All of the software on display were either limited mini-games or just tech demos, so the true graphical prowess of the system is likely to be revealed closer to launch. It was still clear from what was there, however, that the Wii U is packing some decent power under the hood.



There are certainly some lingering questions about the Wii U's performance, how the controller works, and what other applications the system is capable of.

Nintendo says the system can support up to four Wii Remotes at once, but the company has not specified how many of the Wii U controllers could be paired at once. In all of the demos presented at E3, as well as all of the publicity photos and videos, only one controller is being used. Could this mean that the system can only power on Wii U controller at once? Are there limitations in terms of the specific pairings of graphics quality and controller gameplay mechanics that can be used?

All will be revealed in due time, but our inquiring minds are hungry for details sooner rather than later.

Stay tuned for more coverage of Nintendo Wii U, including in-depth games impressions, videos, and more.

barbarosa wrote:Εμένα μπορώ να πω πως με ενθουσιάζει. Στα πλαίσια του Kinect υπήρχε το πρώτο Wii άρα γιατί να ασχολούνταν ξανά με αυτό? Απ ότι φαίνεται εδω πέρα η Nintendo είναι ένα επίπεδο μπροστά από τις άλλες εταιρίες.

Σε μια φάση είπε στο video ότι στο multiplayer (όχι μέσω ίντερνετ αλλά μέσω πολλών χειριστηρίων στο ίδιο μέρος) ο κάθε παίχτης θα βλέπει στην οθονίτσα του τα συμβάντα από τη δικιά του οπτική γωνία. Είναι πολύ πρωτοποριακό αυτό.

dexter wrote:εγώ περίμενα κάτι σαν το kinect..
ξενέρωσα που δεν θα έχει τέτοιο χειρισμό
επίσης μου φαίνεται ότι εξαφανίζεται όλη η χαρά του gameplay που είχε το wii..