Wii U Be Good?
At this year’s Electronic Entertainment Expo E3 which was held on June 7-9, Nintendo presented its latest console: Wii U. The presentation left many confused as it seemed to have focused on the Wii U controller rather than the whole console, making it appear as though the only new addition to the Nintendo family was a gimmicky controller.
However, the Wii U is in fact a console scheduled for release in 2012. Wii U promises fun for all (Wii=We), and fun for one (U=You) with a new Mario, a new Zelda, and other Nintendo and third-party exclusives. But can the console withstand competition from its successful rivals Microsoft and Sony?
Mazen S., a 19-year-old medical student from University of Dammam, recently bought his first Xbox 360 after years of exclusive Nintendo gaming, and insisted Wii U is up against a tough battle in the gaming world.
“I’m a loyal, proud, and passionate Nintendo fan,” he claimed. To reward himself after a long period of preparation and final exams, Mazen bought an Xbox 360. He grew weary of Nintendo’s new approach to gaming and expressed a nostalgic yearning for serious gaming. “Wii was fun in the beginning but abruptly became very boring.” Wii, Mazen said disgruntled, focused too much on casual and how-to games like Cooking Mama while neglecting hard-core gamer needs for serious gaming and third-party support. But for him, the Xbox 360 provides a bigger variety of games. “I’m having a lot of fun. There are a lot of games which appeal to my character like first-person shooters and adventure RPG’s like Oblivion.” Rumor has it that the Wii U hardware will be able to surpass the quality of current generation consoles. And third-party support has already been confirmed. But aside from a controller with a mini screen and lots of fun options, Wii U will also be released in HD- a bright new feature which should have been included years ago in its predecessor Wii. “My dream is that Nintendo releases a strong console with high quality visuals, third-party and online games,” Mazen said hopefully. Can Nintendo find the perfect balance between attracting new, casual gamers while still maintaining its loyal fan base- or will it end in console graveyard like Sega’s Dreamcast? Only time will tell.
