Unsurprisingly, Nintendo had no official statements to make during their E3 keynote about how much the Wii U will be priced when it goes on sale towards the end of 2012. Back in January earlier this year, we told you about initial prices for the system ranging from $500 to $600, which is obviously a figure that most of you would not be happy paying.

Despite staying silent on the matter, Nintendo has however revealed that consumers are going to be ‘pleasantly surprised’ once they see the final price for the Wii U unveiled. Reggie Fils-Aime told IGN that they are currently managing the ‘value equation’ and that consumers are going to get a quality product to reflect the price they are paying.

The most interesting aspect of his statement though was when he said that they won’t be following pricing strategies of that of competitors, i.e Sony or Microsoft. He referenced the fact that Sony traditionally price their products at a very high premium to start with (£425 for the PS3) and then reduce it afterwards with gradual price cuts. He made a big hint to say that the Nintendo Wii U won’t be following the same pattern, so obviously the great news for gamers is that we could see the system enter at a very reasonable price and then stay at that price for a considerable amount of time.

With that in mind, retailer ShopTo has picked the perfect time to put up an estimation of what they believe could end up to be an accurate price for the Wii U. If you head to their page online, you’ll see that they have put a £280 price up for the system, which when translated to USD equates to around $435.

For the brand new hardware and innovative touchscreen controller tech that you are getting, we would say that £280 is a reasonable price and certainly within the ‘pleasantly surprised’ bracket that Nintendo were hinting at. Considering that Sony priced their Vita at $249 at launch, we have a feeling that many of you wouldn’t mind coffing up a little extra for a brand new ‘next-gen’ console.

What are your thoughts on this? Do you welcome the idea of Nintendo sticking to one reasonable price point and not making any price cuts through the months? In a nutshell – how does $435 / £280 sound to you?

We still don’t know when Nintendo are going to release this exactly, as the company chose not to give out a release date at the event. Instead they focused on showing off more upcoming games for the system, as well as unveiling a secondary Wii U Pro Controller which will make it easier to play fighting games on the system as opposed to the touchscreen controller which is obviously more difficult.

An upgraded official spec sheet is now available to view though courtesy of Nintendo, who have posted it on the Nintendo Europe Twitter page. We see spec breakdowns for the console and Touch controller and it reveals that the console will be compatible with the list of existing Wii U accessories, while also carrying support for up to four of the new Pro controllers.

Nintendo are now not so secretive in unveiling that the system will be powered by an IBM multicore processor and an AMD Radeon-based High Definition GPU. Prior to E3 we saw leaked pictures of the new-look touch pad and we can now see that the button located between the battery light and power buttons has now been revealed as a button for ‘TV control’.

Another area which was up for debate was directly below the D-pad. This button has now been detailed as the location for the NFC chip, which will allow you to use your touchpad for Near Touch Communication features, which we’re guessing Nintendo will unveil at a later date.

What we didn’t see at the event though and what we’re most looking forward to is that Wii U Zelda game. We saw a tech demo last year which promised big things, but unfortunately the game wasn’t deemed fit for a second appearance this year, so hopefully Nintendo will give us an update on that soon.

Going back to this infographic though, what are your thoughts on the capabilities of the Nintendo Wii U? Are you surprised that Nintendo isn’t revealing exactly what IBM processor and what AMD graphics is being used?

Their prospects of achieving this may have been dealt a small blow though, as it has been revealed that the impressive looking Unreal Engine 4 from Epic Games will not be supported by Nintendo’s new console. The information has come from none other than Geoff Keighley, who you are probably familiar with from his work on GameTrailers.

According to the host, Epic president Mike Capps has told him that the Nintendo Wii U will only be using the Unreal Engine 3, which is obviously old tech by today’s standards. The Unreal Engine 4 has yet to be officially unveiled, but all signs are pointing to an unveil at E3 2012 which starts in a few days time.

Consumers who are planning to buy the Nintendo Wii U regardless of its new showing at E3 may be disappointed to hear that Unreal Engine 4 powered games won’t be available on the system. Obviously there’s always the chance of this being a misinterpretation, but it isn’t looking good at the moment.

Hopefully this little matter will be cleared up at E3, when Epic has the chance to give a proper presentation on their new tech. Is the next Xbox 720 and PS4 safely in Epic’s plans as well, or are they focusing on showing off the potential on PC games initially?

Until Epic unveils the Unreal Engine 4, we have no idea of what type of games will be shown off first. The Wii U is obviously capable of playing AAA titles alongside the PS3 and Xbox 360 now, but is it such a big loss to the Wii U if it doesn’t support this engine? Let us know your thoughts on this folks.

We have a feeling that the QA tester at Traveller’s Tales Games is going to be in for a fair amount of punishment for somehow failing to contain his excitement at having the new controller in his grasp. Traveller’s Tales Games if you didn’t know are responsible for the vast collection of LEGO xx games, so we can only presume that they were testing the new hardware for an upcoming LEGO game on the Wii U.

The image seen here is the real story though as there are actually a number of visible differences between the controller seen here and the one shown at E3 last year. For starters, there are now dual analogue sticks! Before we just had dual ‘nubs’ similar to the PSP, but now Nintendo has scrapped them in favor of actual sticks which are similar to the ones on the DUALSHOCK3 and also the PS Vita.

The start and select buttons have also moved position, from below the touchscreen to the right side of the pad close to the game buttons. There’s also a mystery new square button next to the power button on the bottom and perhaps even another one directly below the d-pad.

There is one major cosmetic change as well and that is actual Wii U branding. There was considerable speculation that the Wii U name may even be changed by the time the device releases to market, but it obviously looks like Nintendo plan to keep the name after all. How does the logo look there in your opinion?

It’s fair to say that all the changes minus the debatable branding are positive changes. The inclusion of dual analogue sticks is of major importance to FPS fans, as it underlines the seriousness that Nintendo are obviously aiming for in trying to deliver a new console to get back a slice of the hardcore community. It now means that FPS developers are under no restrictions control wise when making the likes of Call of Duty or Battlefield, so this change by Nintendo could turn out to be a crucial one.

What are your thoughts on the new look controller? Does the change to analogue sticks prove that the Wii U is going to be a force to be reckoned with?

You may be thinking, hang on a minute – Nintendo’s Wii U graphics presentation at E3 2011 was pretty amazing? But according to one developer who are already well underway in designing one of the Wii U’s expected launch titles, the quality of the game is just going to be on par with current gen consoles seen with the Xbox 360 and PS3.

The developer in question is Marvin Donald, game director for the Wii U version of Darksiders 2. In an interview with GameReactor he has said that the Wii U is ‘pretty much the same’ as current platforms, even confirming that they will not be upscaling the game in any way on the new console – Darksiders 2 is set for release on PS3, Xbox 360 and PC this June just so you’re aware.

Donald also spoke about ‘limitations on the Wii U based on Nintendo’s progress’, but did say that the Wii U version of the game will differ significantly thanks to the use of the unique touchscreen controller – which Donald and Vigil Games are definitely planning to make use of.

With the fact that we’re still no nearer to knowing when the next PlayStation or Xbox will release, is this an indication that Nintendo’s Wii U is going to be severely lacking in the hardware department when Sony and Microsoft’s next consoles finally arrive? Nintendo are obviously aiming to attract some of those lost hardcore gamers with the Wii U, but we’d hate to think that the console will end up suffering once Sony and Microsoft finalize their plans. Surely, the Wii U is all that Nintendo has in their pipeline at the moment and it will be this console that goes head to head with the PS4 and the Xbox ’720′.

Does Nintendo and their Wii U have what it takes to compete with the next-generation consoles? Based on what this Darksiders 2 dev has just said, perhaps not.

It is thought that around 4.5 million new Nintendo Wii’s have been sold recently, and with this in mind Nintendo is adding Hulu Plus support to the device. The new service according to Digital Trends was announced by Nintendo and Hulu, and owners of the device can get the Hulu Plus application from the Wii Shop Channel.

The application is free to download but the service is priced at $7.99 per month for access to complete seasons of TV shows that are still in production. For owners that are not already subscribers can make use of a free two week trial during the first month of the service being available on the console.

It has also been announced that the interface on the console has been enhanced so users can point and click easier with the Wii Remote. This will make browsing through the Hulu content of movies and TV shows a nicer experience.

Users will have to make do with standard definition content though, as unlike the PS3 and Xbox 360 the Nintendo Wii does not support HD. Hulu Plus arrived on the PS3 back in November 2010 with the Xbox 360 getting it the following April. Netflix has already been available on the Wii for almost two years now, and is priced at the same level as Hulu Plus.

There was also the announcement that the Nintendo 3DS will be treated to the Hulu Plus service later in the year, but no actual month was specified. The handheld console already has Netflix support along with Nintendo Video. Will you be using Hulu Plus on your Nintendo Wii?

While we still dont know officially if Sony and Microsoft will show new consoles this year, it is highly likely that we will only see the Nintendo Wii U emerge as the first next generation console, when it releases towards the end of the year.

There’s a lot of talk on how the Wii U will not be powerful enough when Sony and Microsoft finally announce their next consoles, but according to Nintendo, they believe that their console is suitably equipped to handle any new rival console and does not need any hardware upgrades of any sort.

Iwata has been speaking about this in his recent investor call and here is a interesting segment of his statement, as reported from VG247:

“As we will showcase the Wii U at E3 in June this year, the detailed announcements must wait until then, but we are aiming to make a system which shall not be forced into competing with the others where the contenders can fight only with massive developer resources and long development times as their weapons”

Is that a slight dig we detect there at Sony and Microsoft in relation that games sometimes take forever to come out? – we think it just might be. Iwata also added that sometimes it isn’t necessary to develop graphic-intensive games all the time, but rather deliver a game which is appealing to the fans – a strategy that we may see implemented on the Wii U.

Another important factor that Iwata commented on in his call is the fact that Nintendo plan to work with a lot more third-party developers for Wii U software, as opposed to the Wii which featured first-party titles from Nintendo primarily.

Given that we haven’t seen any concrete gameplay for the Wii U, we remain skeptical on whether the Wii U will be able to go on to be a huge success or not. There’s no doubt that there’s huge potential in that touchscreen controller, but gamers are very demanding these days and they will still want the Wii U to be able to deliver AAA games at least on par with the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

What are your thoughts on his comments – do you think the Wii U is sufficient enough to withstand an potential onslaught from a PS4 and Xbox 720 in 2013?

However, Nintendo’s online store has one added twist which may give it a slight edge over the PSN and Xbox Live stores, and that’s NFC support. Nintendo has confirmed that the online Network will allow Wii and Wii users to do the traditional tasks such as downloading DLC content, purchasing full games and accessing patch updates, but the Nintendo Network will also be accessible using the Wii U’s touchscreen controller and will utilize NFC technology for more convenient tasks.

Such tasks can include using the controller to purchase items away from the television, using safe purchase programs like Mastercard’s Paypass for example. This could be a very useful feature indeed and may become a common way to browse the Nintendo Network without needing to look at the television at all.

There’s no indication on when the service will be out yet, but two confirmed titles that will utilize aspects of the Nintendo Network is Mario Kart 7 for the Nintendo 3DS and also Theatrhythm Final Fantasy which will be available in Japan from February 16.

Could this now open up all sorts of DLC possibilities for future Nintendo Wii U and 3DS titles? It looks very likely now with the confirmation of this Nintendo Network. We think it is good news too, the current concept for the Nintendo Wii obviously needed improving so it is definitely a step in the right direction as Wii U owners will now have a direct store to get all their additional content should they desire it.

What are your thoughts on Nintendo entering the digital store marketplace? Do you think the addition of NFC support will be a big game changer for the company?

Nobody knew for sure when Nintendo’s next Wii console would be launching this year, but now the company has revealed that consumers in the US and Europe will be able to pick up the Nintendo Wii U as an ideal Christmas present, as reported from Reuters.

US and Europe will not be the only regions joining in on the Wii U launch party at the end of the year, as Nintendo also confirmed that the console would be available in Australian and Japanese markets as well, making the Wii U easily accessible this time around compared to the Wii.

The simultaneous Wii U launch in multiple regions is a stark contrast to Nintendo’s launch approach with the Wii. The original console first launched in North America in November 2006, before later becoming available in Japan early December. Australia then followed with Europe being the last region to get the Wii U on December 8 2006.

Thankfully everyone will be able to pick up the Wii U at the same time this year and it now means that Nintendo will have to have a much more successful E3 2012 showing if they are going to convince consumers to pick the Wii U as their next console. It is going to be interesting to see just what quality of graphics the new console can produce, as we have still had no evidence of actual gameplay, although plenty of speculation that the Wii U is ‘twice as powerful as the Xbox 360′.

What are your thoughts on a Christmas release for the Nintendo Wii U? Will it be on your wish list this year, or have you been left unconvinced following on from the ‘far from impressive’ showing at E3 2011?

A source who is currently working on a title for the console has been speaking to Develop anonymously about the Wii U. The source is claiming that the Wii U could achieve around twice the processing and graphical potential of the Xbox 360.

Many have thought previously that the Wii U would only match the current system from Microsoft, so it beats expectations of it so far. But it is being claimed that some studios expected more from the console.

A project designer has allegedly complained that the Wii U is below the power that Nintendo originally announced, which has meant some scaling down their plans. This comes as the next Xbox is rumored to be six times more powerful as the Xbox 360, which would leave the Wii U trailing behind again.

The site is also reporting that a leading UK racing studio has agreed to support the Nintendo Wii U with a title each year. A lot of Nintendo’s target audience won’t be to concerned how powerful the new system will be, and be more worried about getting a quality line up of games. It would become a problem though if the systems internals prevented this from happening.

Do you care how powerful the Wii U will be?