Difference between revisions of "Wii U"

Revision as of 01:36, 10 December 2012

Wii U logo

The Wii U is Nintendo’s latest gaming console. It is the successor to Nintendo’s current generation console, the Wii. The Wii U takes many of its design elements from its predecessor, including looks, user interface, use of Miis, backward compatibility with Wii remotes, games, and other accessories. However, it includes all new hardware, a new controller, and more new features. One such feature, the Miiverse community, has raised ethical concern regarding the harmful discourse occurring between different Miis. The Wii U will be the first eighth generation gaming console from the Big Three gaming companies (Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony).

The Wii U will also be the first Nintendo console to support high-definition graphics that include 2 GB of RAM and the capability of producing a resolution of up to 1080 pixels ^[1]. The gaming console was released in two versions: a "basic" white version with 8 GB of internal Flash storage, and a "deluxe" black version with 32 GB of Flash Storage. The deluxe package comes with stands for the console and GamePad, a charging dock, and "Nintendo Land" preinstalled. ^[2]

Conception

According to Genyo Takeda, Nintendo’s senior managing director of hardware development, a primary inspiration for creating the Wii U was the transition to digital HD terrestrial transmission for all television in Japan (as well as many other countries, such as the U.S.)^[3]. The Wii only supports standard definition whereas the Xbox 360 and PS3 both support HD, so Nintendo wanted to make a console that could take full advantage of HD graphics, something Takeda says has become the standard for the gaming industry^[3].

Genyo Takeda also talked about a couple core ideas that really helped shape the Wii U’s development. One of these driving ideas was to produce a console that was relatively cheap, but could handle breathtaking HD graphics efficiently, Takeda said, “Ever since the Nintendo GameCube, Nintendo has concerned itself with how to improve the game computer's efficiency while constraining power consumption, and this has been consistent in that design concept.”^[3] The other of these ideas was that Nintendo wanted the Wii U to be the best gaming console to entertain the whole family. Nintendo wants the Wii U to be the main attraction of the living room of every family in the world, so they developed it with every member of the family in mind.

Release Date

Nintendo held a press conference on September 13, 2012 to announce many details about the Wii U. One of these was its release date of November 18th in the U.S.^[4], November 30th in Europe and Australia^[5], and December 8th in Japan^[6]. During its first week on sale, the Wii U produced more revenue for Nintendo than the previous generation Wii's first-week sales. However, less units were sold, totaling 425,000 ^[7].

Price

Also at the Wii U press conference on September 13, Nintendo announced the price of the Wii U which will be for sale in two bundles: the Basic bundle costs $299.99 while the Premium bundle costs $349.99^[8]. The Basic bundle comes with a white Wii U console with 8GB of internal storage, a white gamepad controller and stylus, a sensor bar, AC adaptors for the console and gamepad, and an HDMI cable. The Premium bundle comes with a black Wii U console with 32GB of internal storage, a black gamepad controller and stylus, a sensor bar, AC adaptors for the console and gamepad, an HDMI cable, the Nintendo Land video game, a gamepad stand, a gamepad cradle, and a console stand^[8]. Those who buy the Deluxe bundle are enrolled in the Deluxe Digital Promotion that allows consumers to receive points for buying things on the Nintendo eShop. They can then use those points towards future purchases. The promotion is currently planned through 2014^[8].

Hardware

Console^[9]

Black Wii U gamepad and console

• CPU: IBM Power based multi-core processor
• GPU: AMD Radeon based high definition GPU
• Storage: internal flash memory with support for external USB storage
• USB ports: four USB 2.0 connectors, two in the front and two in the back
• Networking: built in wireless adaptor, USB ports can be used for Wii LAN adaptors
• Video output: supports up to 1080p
• Audio output: Uses six-channel PCM linear output via HDMI connector or analog output via the AV Multi Out connector

Controller^[9]

• Screen: 6.2 inch, 16:9 aspect ratio LCD touch screen
• Button inputs: two analog control sticks, a +control pad, L/R top-shoulder buttons, ZL/ZR back-shoulder buttons, A/B/X/Y face buttons, power button, Home button, -/select button, +/start button, and TV control button
• Other inputs: touch screen (stylus included), motion controls (powered by an accelerometer, gyroscope and geomagnetic sensor), a front-facing camera, and a microphone
• Other outputs: stereo speakers and rumble function
• Near Field Communication: allows users to transfer content/information to and from supported devices by simply placing the device near the NFC interface^[10]
• Battery: rechargeable lithium-ion battery
• Weight: approximately 1.1 pounds (500 g)

Features

Nintendo TVii

The Nintendo TVii allows users to watch TV and movies from a variety of sources on the Wii U gamepad. Users can browse and search for programming from sources they’ve subscribe to, including cable and satellite channels, video-on-demand services, and recorded TiVo shows. Users can watch the television programming on the gamepad as it’s aired or they can use the gamepad to set a DVR recording of the program^[11].

Video Entertainment

Video can be streamed from Netflix, Amazon Instant Video, Hulu Plus, and YouTube^[11].

Miiverse

Miiverse is an online gaming community built into the Wii U that features your Mii, your friends’ Miis, and random other Miis from other people currently using their internet connected Wii U. In the Miiverse “plaza” there will be icons representing various games, applications, or other entertainment content with Miis gathered around them. The more Miis around an icon, the more people using that content! Miis can share messages/drawings with each other which is input via the touch screen on the gamepad. Miis can also use content together which allows users to challenge their friends to multiplayer games or watch videos together^[11].

Nintendo eShop

Nintendo eShop is the digital storefront for Wii U owners that will allow them to buy downloadable games and add-on content for games they already have^[11].

Video Chat

The video chat capability enables users to chat with friends via the built-in camera and microphone on the GamePad in a real-time video call^[11].

Browse the internet

The Wii-U GamePad can also double as a TV Remote and can be used to navigate an internet browser ^[11].

Off-TV

Play aims to ease any tension between gamers hogging the TV screen in the living room and other family members who want to watch television. This feature (not available in all games) takes the graphics from the TV screen and puts them on the gamepad, which usually displays menus, maps, the inventory, etc. for a game^[12]. The transfer of the graphics happens in the blink of an eye. Since the screen on the gamepad is an HD LCD screen no graphical quality is lost. Skeptics were concerned that putting the graphics of an entire game onto the gamepad would cause major lag and affect gameplay, but Michel Ancel, a game developer at Ubisoft who is working on the Wii U title Rayman Legends, has confirmed that the gamepad’s screen only has 1/60th of a second of lag, which is extremely hard for the human eye to notice^[13].

Ethical Concerns

Miiverse

The Miiverse feature, which allows online Wii U users to communicate with each other via messages written on the gamepad’s touchscreen, has received a lot of criticism. There is concern about child users being exposed to obscene messages/drawings that other online users may display. Nintendo CEO Satoru Iwata addressed these concerns in an interview with video game news website IGN.com saying, “We cannot afford to always act on 'the ethical doctrine that human nature is fundamentally good.' At the same time, however, we would like to believe in the possibility of 'the wisdom of crowds,' which could create a very interesting and fascinating world, and make efforts for the services to realize it in one way or another.” Nintendo will be making a few adjustments as a result of the criticism. Users will be allowed to flag inappropriate content, and a team of content moderators will exist to approve messages/drawings before they are posted online^[14].

Games

Wii U launch titles courtesy of USA Today:^[15]

References

1. ↑ YouTube: "Nintendo Direct: Japan" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eBE-IxjCm0Y
2. ↑ WiiU News: "WiiU Price and Release Date Announced" http://wiiu.dcemu.co.uk/wiiu-price-and-release-date-announced-491879.html
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1 3.2} Nintendo Website: Wii U: The Console http://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/#/wiiu/console/0/0
4. ↑ Lost Angeles Times: "Nintendo's Wii U to go on sale Nov 18 for $299.99 and $349.99" http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/envelope/cotown/la-et-ct-nintendo-announces-wii-u-pricing-and-release-date-20120913,0,6891969.story
5. ↑ Vooks: Australia's #1 Nintendo Website http://www.vooks.net/wii-u-out-in-australia-on-november-30th-349-and-429/
6. ↑ Kotaku Website http://kotaku.com/5942871/wii-u-goes-on-sale-in-japan-on-december-8
7. ↑ Wii U SalesRetrieved on 12-9-12.
8. ↑ ^{8.0 8.1 8.2} Nintendo Website: Wii U - what's in the box http://www.nintendo.com/wiiu/features/whats-in-the-box/
9. ↑ ^{9.0 9.1} Nintendo Website: Wii U Technical Specs http://www.nintendo.com/wiiu/features/tech-specs/
10. ↑ NFC World Website: "Nintendo Confirms NFC in Wii U" http://www.nfcworld.com/2012/06/04/316040/nintendo-confirms-nfc-in-wii-u/
11. ↑ ^{11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 11.4 11.5} Nintendo Website: Wii U http://www.nintendo.com/wiiu/features/#/features-tvii
12. ↑ Kotaku Website: "My Favorite New Wii U Stat" http://kotaku.com/5952245/my-favorite-new-wii-u-stat
13. ↑ Slash Gear Website: "Nintendo Wii U GamePad delay only 1/60 of a second" http://www.slashgear.com/nintendo-wii-u-gamepad-delay-only-160-of-a-second-15251920
14. ↑ IGN Website: "Nintendo Talks About Censoring Miiverse" http://www.ign.com/articles/2012/07/05/nintendo-talks-about-censoring-miiverse
15. ↑ USA Today: Nintendo: 23 games launching with Wii U Console" http://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/gaming/2012/09/26/nintendo-wii-u-launch-games-lineup/1594191/