Wii U: launch news, our review, and more – The Verge

Nintendo Wii U update speeds up access to ‘Mario Kart 8’

2014-06-03T04:23:35-04:00

If you've been busy shaving seconds off lap times in the stunning Mario Kart 8, you'll be pleased to know that Nintendo has shaved some seconds off the time it takes to boot up the game. A new Wii U system update, version 5.00, comes with a "quick start" menu that displays recently played games on the controller screen as soon as you power the system on, letting you load them straight away rather than wait for the full operating system to start up. Version 5.00 also includes the facility to automatically download and install system updates, and Nintendo can send a new kind of notification to the GamePad controller even when the console is sw …

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Why the Wii U’s failure won’t change Nintendo

2013-12-18T10:57:05-05:00

nintendo mario stock

The Wii U's poor sales performance is hardly news anymore, but last month's arrival of the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 brought Nintendo's predicament into sharp relief. Sony and Microsoft touted their new machines as the best- and fastest-selling consoles in November, respectively, whereas Nintendo simply chose to tell the world that Wii U sales were up 340 percent on the previous month. Given that October figures were said to have been around a dismal 50,000 units, and that November includes Black Friday and the release of the Wii U's biggest and best game to date, Super Mario 3D World, the statistic is less than reassuring.

As ever, some c …

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Nintendo dropping Wii U price to $299.99 ahead of Xbox One and PlayStation 4 launch

2013-08-28T11:41:59-04:00

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The Wii U hasn't been selling quite as well as Nintendo might like, and come September 20th it's giving the new console's Deluxe package a $50 price cut that'll bring it down to $299.99. Earlier this month, Nintendo estimated that it had only sold 3.45 million Wii U consoles so far, after having been on the market since November. The company has said that it thinks the lack of strong, first-party titles has been the reason for the tepid response, and it's been working to get its big names - including Mario, Donkey Kong, and Zelda - over to the console soon.

The price drop comes about two months before the Wii U will begin facing even stiffe …

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Nintendo talks up former glories after Wii U sales flop

2013-08-06T10:14:30-04:00

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As Nintendo's Wii U hardware continues to fall flat in the market, the console maker is hoping to remind consumers and investors of the good times that they've had with its cadre of beloved characters. In a report released today, Nintendo sugar coats the Wii U's tepid debut with highlights of that past success: it notes that over the last 30 years of console making, the company has sold nearly 269 million home game systems, such as the NES, N64, and Wii, and over 385 million handheld systems, such as the Game Boy and Nintendo DS.

"We strive to regain 'Nintendo-like' profits"

While the Wii U has only been on the market for about six months, i …

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Wii U flagship title ‘ZombiU’ wasn’t profitable

2013-07-08T19:53:18-04:00

Wii U Zombiu Deluxe Set

ZombiU was the first, perhaps the only game so far for Nintendo's Wii U to truly show what the console is capable of. It made the Wii U Gamepad more than a gimmick, it displayed compelling HD graphics, and the game itself was actually quite good. But according to Yves Guillemot, chairman and CEO of Ubisoft, the audience simply wasn't there. He told GamesIndustry International that the game wasn't profitable, not even a little bit, and there won't be a sequel as a result.

Early Wii U supporters not happy

It's the latest bit of bad news for Nintendo's Wii U, which is struggling to attract any third-party developers to build games for the conso …

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Nintendo defends Wii U region locking after Xbox One reversal

2013-07-06T08:06:01-04:00

Gallery Photo: Nintendo Wii U hands-on pictures

After Facebook and Twitter campaigns, an online petition, and even a Miiverse outcry all calling for Nintendo to remove region locking from the Wii U, the company is defending its decision to keep it in place. In an interview with IGN, Nintendo President Satoru Iwata said that the regional restrictions imposed on the company's latest home console are the result of legal and cultural issues.

"I hope that game fans can understand that the industry isn't doing this solely out of business ego," Iwata told IGN. "There are some reasons behind it." The president essentially said that Nintendo's hands are tied because it needs to comply with differ …

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Can Mario save the Wii U?

2013-06-14T13:00:08-04:00

Nintendo stock

Nintendo's booth at E3 contained nothing unexpected. There was a new Donkey Kong Country, Mario Kart, and 3D Super Mario, and a version of Smash Bros. for Wii U and 3DS that we weren't allowed to play. Meanwhile, The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past is getting a sequel, and Wind Waker is getting a remake. The lack of surprises is in no way surprising; people buy Nintendo consoles and handhelds to play Nintendo games.

But with each successive generation, the company is losing any semblance of a supporting cast. The NES and SNES each had a huge range of amazing third-party games to complement the likes of Mario and Metroid, but since the N …

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Ubisoft won’t develop Wii U-exclusive games until Nintendo sells more systems

2013-06-13T04:02:00-04:00

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One of Nintendo's strongest traditional partners has said that it won't create exclusive titles for the Wii U as long as the system's poor sales continue. Speaking to Kotaku at this week's E3 conference, CEO Yves Guillemot said, "We need more sold." Ubisoft is one of the few publishers to release a bona fide Wii U exclusive - horror action game ZombiU launched with the system last year - and Nintendo has historically enjoyed solid third-party support from the company.

Guillemot expressed hope that Nintendo's own titles might spur further sales of the struggling system. Nintendo typically releases the best-selling games for its own consoles, …

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Nintendo looks to boost Wii U’s prospects with more Mario, Donkey Kong, and Zelda

2013-06-11T10:51:14-04:00

Mario 3D World

Nintendo's timeless characters are the most powerful weapon in the company's arsenal, so it's no surprise to see them called upon to reverse Wii U's troubling retail performance. To boost its console's momentum in the months ahead, Nintendo today announced several new games that include two Mario-related titles (Super Mario 3D World and Mario Kart 8).

Super Mario 3D World will allow four-player cooperative multiplayer gaming with a cast of characters pulled directly from Super Mario Bros. 2 - yes, the NES game. Gamers will be able to play as Mario, Luigi, Peach or Toad when the title ships this December. Each character has unique abilities …

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EA producing Wii U games, but ‘not anywhere near as many’ as for PS and Xbox

2013-05-21T21:13:40-04:00

via assets.sbnation.com

So is EA making Wii U games, or isn't it? Last week, company spokesman Jeff Brown said that the company has "no games in development for the Wii U currently," but according to CFO Blake Jorgensen, there actually are plans to make games for the new console, reports Polygon. Responding to a question at the Stifel Nicolaus 2013 Internet, Media, and Communications Conference, Jorgensen stated that "we are building titles for the Nintendo console, but not anywhere near as many as we are for PS or Xbox." He also contrasted the power of the next-generation consoles from Sony and Microsoft with Nintendo's Wii U, which he described as "more an extens …

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