Los Angeles - Nintendo on Tuesday spotlighted games tailored for Wii U as it tried to build excitement for its beefed-up new console featuring a tablet-style GamePad controller.
The Japanese electronic games giant boasted that Wii U would start a “revolutionary” trend in “asymmetrical play” that lets players using GamePads act as wily adversaries in multi-person matches.
Nintendo did not reveal the price it planned to charge for the successor to the Wii consoles launched in 2006, not did it indicate the precise date it will hit the market.
“At its core, the Wii U does three different things,” Nintendo of America president Reggie File-Aime said during a Nintendo press event just hours before the official start of the premier E3 videogame conference in Los Angeles.
“Change your gaming; change how you interact with gaming friends, and changes the way you enjoy your TV,” he continued.
“It is not just intuitive and accessible to everyone, but it stands to revolutionise your living room.”
Nintendo made scant mention of films or other digital content or services along the lines of those played up by Microsoft and Sony for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 consoles respectively.
“It's all about the games,” Fils-Aime said of Nintendo's focus at E3 this week.
“In the near future we will show you how Wii U will integrate and elevate your living room entertainment,” he explained. “The proof points are going to have to wait for another day.”
Winning franchises being adapted for Wii U included “Super Mario Brothers” and “Batman Arkham City” as well as “Scribblenauts” and “Assassin's Creed.”
“It is a wonderful time in the state of the industry to have an exciting new platform,” said Martin Tremblay, the president of Warner Brothers Interactive Entertainment, which is making 'Batman Arkham City: Armored Edition.'
France-based videogame titan Ubisoft shined at the Nintendo event, showing off versions of hit titles adapted for Wii U as well as original works such as “ZombiU” crafted to take advantage of the new console capabilities.
“It's accessible; it's social, and it's very innovative,” Ubisoft chief executive Yves Guillemot said while introducing a slate of titles during the event. “It is a revolution.”
Designers of “ZombiU” refer to the GamePad as a “survival kit” for the game because it lets players scan for the living dead, fight them off, and even keep an eye on them while trying to do tasks like unlocking doors under pressure.
Nintendo also boasted of the social networking features built into the GamePad to synch with the Miiverse online social network unveiled on Sunday by Sony president Satoru Iwata.
Fils-Amie equated Miiverse to a “main street” where players represented by animated “mii” characters congregate and communicate. - Sapa-AFP