Wii U Ushers in New Age of Video Games with Integrated Second-Screen Experience
- By: CM Boots-Faubert
- Posted 6th Jun 2012
Despite the announcement on Monday by Microsoft at its Pre-E3 Press Briefing of the SmartGlass app that largely trumps the proprietary Wii U second-screen technology, Nintendo carried on at the show as if nothing had happened, declining to comment or offer any response to the game-changing announcement. Instead they carried forward with the new games announce that was expected...
The embattled Japanese game publisher and game hardware manufacturer revealed a massive lineup of first- and third-party video games for its upcoming Wii U home console today, including new games in the Super Mario Bros., Pikmin, Wii Fit, Batman: Arkham City, Scribblenauts, Assassin's Creed and Just Dance franchises.
The Wii U console launches this holiday season and introduces the Wii U GamePad, a controller with a 6.2-inch touch screen that redefines how people interact with their games, their entertainment and one another. Video game publishers from around the world, including Ubisoft, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, Electronic Arts, SEGA, THQ and NAMCO BANDAI Games Inc. are demonstrating how their biggest franchises are being reimagined for Wii U.
In addition to the wide array of established brands shown during the Nintendo All-Access Presentation @ E3 2012, Nintendo also revealed new games like Nintendo Land, a Wii U game set in a virtual theme park with a dozen attractions inspired by fan-favorite Nintendo franchises such as The Legend of Zelda and Donkey Kong. Just as the motion-controlled games in Wii Sports helped players discover the fun of the Wii console, Nintendo Land brings the promise of the GamePad to life with a range of single-player and multiplayer experiences.
"The GamePad doesn't just introduce a new type of game play, it redefines an entire dynamic. With asymmetric game play, multiple experiences are possible in the same game at the same time. That's transformative," says Nintendo of America President and COO Reggie Fils-Aime.
"While games are the focus of this year's E3, the Wii U story also includes the enhanced social connections and integrated entertainment experiences created by the GamePad. We're providing a glimpse of that with the introduction of Miiverse and by revealing partnerships with some of the biggest content providers on the planet."
Regardless of how much -- or how little -- the SmartGlass announce impacts the new Wii U game system and its video-screen equipped controllers, the announcements made at E3 by third-party developers who will be supporting the Wii U by releasing titles whose genres are not usually among the list thought of when the Wii U is mentioned means that the newest game system in the Wii line still has a paddle in this race...
For a better idea of the scene, check out the replay of the complete Nintendo All-Access Presentation @ E3 2012, a "virtual hands-on" video that gives consumers who can't attend E3 a taste of the Wii U experience and additional Wii U and game details can be found online at http://e3.nintendo.com or http://www.youtube.com/nintendo.
