Nintendo Announces Wii U Console, This is What We Know

It has been a long time coming the next generation Nintendo Wii, and we have covered it a lot. From rumours regarding it being called the Nintendo Zii and the Nintendo HD, we now have an official name for the consumer product and more notably, images of it’s design and also features it’ll come with out of the box.

Yes it’ll be called the Nintendo Wii U, and it’ll feature a design reminiscent (kind of) to the original Xbox. In contrast to the console itself, the controller for the Wii U is so different to the first generation console’s that you’ll wonder whether Nintendo even designed it. Apparently, the Nintendo Wii U will pump out 1080p video over HDMI and also be compatible with component, S-video and composite cables. As of yet the amount of flash memory the console will ship with is not known, however it will be expandable via either an SD card or external USB HDD.

Processor wise IBM has supplied Nintendo with the heart, and around the back of the console you’ll find four USB 2.0 slots, and the games themselves will be good old fashioned but modernized high performance optical discs. The Wii U will also still be able to play your older Wii games.

Wii U Controller

Oh. My. Word. These were the exact words that slipped from my tongue as I watched the E3 conference and Nintendo’s keynote speech from my seat as the Nintendo Wii U controller was unveiled to the world. In prior reports, we covered rumours regarding whether the Wii ‘mote will feature a touch screen, and these rumours appear to be right.

The image above is the real deal, and that huge display is a 6.2-incher built into the controller (and yes, it is a touch screen). The controller will also feature a microphone, a gyroscope, an accelerometer, dual analog controls, two shoulder buttons and two triggers and a stylus for easy input. Now, as Nintendo pointed out this controller is ”not designed to be a portable game machine,” however you will almost certainly be able to game without needing a TV.

Engadget got the first hands on with this controller and we have to say it looks fairly good. It could be classed as on oversized PS Vita, however with it coming along with the Wii U, we doubt anybody but us would come up with this assumption (we’re pretty mental).
Hit up the video below for some E3 action!