When Nintendo announced the WIi U at the recent gaming expo, E3, in Los Angeles, many in the audience were left slightly bemused by what they saw. Was it a whole new console, or just an add-on for the Wii? Was the Wii U just a tablet style controller that works with the Wii? It was an easy assumption to make, because the controller was almost all Nintendo spoke about - but there's more to Nintendo's new machine than just the controller.
Here it is!
This is the Wii U. The successor to the Wii, this is the box of tricks you'll have below/next to your TV instead of your Wii. While little's known about the console's innards, we do know it'll be infinitely more powerful than the Wii, and more powerful still than the Xbox 360/PS3 - although, as always, Nintendo are reluctant to talk about specific specifications. They have, however, announced a number of boxes their new machine will tick.
- It can output High Definition graphics in resolutions up to full 1080p, just like a 360 or PS3, letting you take advantage of your fancy LCD or Plasma display. It also outputs over an HDMI, just like a 360 or PS3. If you're still playing on an old chunky TV though, don't worry - Nintendo have said it'll support standard composite SCART leads, too, just like the Wii.
- It has a funky, self-loading "media bay" (or disk drive, to you and me), just like the Wii. Along with normal, Wii DVDs, the console also supports new 25 GB disks, which all Wii U games will come on. Disappointingly, though, the console apparently won't run GameCube games anymore. Boo!
- It'll have internal flash memory, that lets you store games, extra levels, trailers, and more on your Wii U. If you need more space, you'll also be able to augment your console with either SD cards, or, brilliantly, an external hard drive. Now we'll never run out of space!
- It's compatible with all Wii controllers. Whether it's your balance board, nunchuck, classic controller, or Wii Remote, you'll be able to connect up to four Wii Remotes, plus the brand new controller to your Wii U at any one time. Seeing as the Wii Remote was pretty much controller perfection for most games, we're glad Nintendo's kept it.
Although they didn't show it at their conference, this is Nintendo's new box of tricks - and now you know what it does. This is what powers your games, this is what draws the graphics, and this, along with the controller, is what you'll be buying. The controller itself doesn't actually have that much power at all - certainly not enough to render full high definition Wii U games - as it'll need to be able to wirelessly connect to the Wii U in order to do pretty much anything.
New Super Mario Bros. Mii was on of the "tech demos" Nintendo showed for the Wii U. It's such an impressive demo, though, we'd be surprised if it didn't turn into a proper game. Which is fine by us.
However, as many boxes as Nintendo have ticked, there are a few disappointments. While the console will run all current Wii games, Nintendo have said that it won't upscale them, meaning anyone wanting to see their current Wii games in swanky high resolutions will be disappointed. And secondly, we still don't know how much it'll cost, when it'll release, or even if you'll be able to use multiple Wii U controllers with the same machine.
Either way, with almost twelve months to go until the 2012/13 financial year, which is when Nintendo have confirmed the console will launch, we're sure there'll be a constant drip feed of information over the next few weeks. As soon as we find out anything more, we'll be sure to let you know.
