As the original Nintendo Wii approaches its sixth birthday, Nintendo announced what most people in the video game already saw coming.
On April 25, Nintendo released a small memo alongside its earnings release and dividend report announcing the Wii's successor. More is expected to be released about the new console at the E3 Expo, which will be held June 7-9, 2011 in Los Angles.
When pressed for details at an event in London earlier in the week, Shigeru Miyamoto, the legendary Nintendo producer who created some of the most popular video games in history such as Mario, Donkey Kong and Zelda, replied "Don't ask."
In another interview commenting on the rumours of a successor to the Wii, Miyamoto replied, "There isn't smoke without fire."
According to gaming site IGN, the Wii 2 will launch in 2012 between mid-October and early November, and it will most likely not be called Wii 2 or any other variation including the name Wii.
It will also retail for $350 to $400 when it launches.
Currently going under the code name Project Cafè, the new console is rumored to be named the Nintendo Stream, but IGN admits it could be one of many names that are up for consideration.
The console will also be markedly different than the original Wii. The Wii system was not a great leap forward from the previous Nintendo system, the Gamecube, in terms of processing power. Unlike Sony and Microsoft, Nintendo's concept for the Wii involved focusing on a new form of player interaction.
"The consensus was that power isn't everything for a console. Too many powerful consoles can't coexist. It's like having only ferocious dinosaurs. They might fight and hasten their own extinction," said Miyamoto in 2001.
Due to this strategy, Nintendo lost touch with many hardcore gamers. With the new system, Nintendo's focus returns to the power that attracts them. The new console is believed to incorporate a Blue-Ray drive and HD capabilities, and according to CNET.com, "The Wii 2 will have more advanced components than the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3."
However, the most anticipated part of the new console is the new controllers, which industry sources have claimed is not merely an upgraded Wii Remote. Rather, the controllers are rumored to feature a built-in six inch HD screen with dual analogue sticks and a built-in camera. The controller may possibly also double as a stand-alone playable device allowing gamers to take their games with them out the door.
The release of Nintendo's plans come at a time when Nintendo's sales are lagging with profits dropping 66 percent and annual sales falling 29 percent. The original Wii had surprising success that revolutionized the video game industry with its unique controllers and sold over 86 million units.
However, the average life cycle of a gaming console is five years, and with the Wii approaching its sixth anniversary, Nintendo was able to sell only 15 million consoles last year, a drop of 27 percent from the previous year.
The Wii's rivals, Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's Playstation 3 consoles have also been be out for six and five years, respectively. However, with both companies releasing new controllers that attempt to copy the success of the Wii's controllers, and with sales still strong, the companies are not expected to release successors until 2014.
Nintendo is hoping to use this period to gain back market share lost during the current console generation. The Wii 2 along with the recent release of the Nintendo's 3DS handheld system are expected to boast Nintendo's sales.
Although the announcement of the system has created plenty of excitement on the Internet, the mood of Baruch gamers is mixed.
Sophomores Martin Rossi and Evan Lehman had contradictory reactions to the news of the Wii 2.
Martin, a self proclaimed casual gamer, said, "if it's expensive, I don't know, it needs have a good games library."
Evan, who has owned almost every console since the 1990s and once owned a Wii before trading it in for an Xbox 360, was more enthusiastic.
He said, "I'm buying it as soon as it comes out. I missed the Wii after I had traded it in."
Junior Ben Wu, like Evan a hard core gamer that Nintendo is trying to target with the Wii 2, was not as impressed.
"I'm more interested in the games on the Xbox 360 and PS3. The games are better and less childish," he said.
Nintendo seemed to be prepared for this type of reaction with plans to make the system friendlier to third party game developers. Leading game producers have already been informed of the new console, and launch titles from third party developers are already in the works.
More will be known about the system during this year's E3 Expo in less than two months. Unlike Apple, Nintendo is good at stopping information from leaking to the public, so little can be discovered until then.
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