Report: Iwata On Wii U's Price: "This Is Not Going To Be Cheap"

by Matthew Kato on June 10, 2011 at 12:45 PM

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Nintendo global president Satoru Iwata is facing some tough times. Even though the company unveiled the Wii U just days ago, he's facing a slipping stock price and confusion regarding the new platform. Now he's saying the system might not be as value priced as previous Nintendo systems.

CVG reports that Iwata – who has said he expects the Wii U to be priced at more than 20,000 yen in Japan ($250) – admitted of the console's price: "This is not going to be cheap."

Of course, when you've got the controller that the Wii U has, this isn't a surprise, especially considering that the 20GB PS3 debuted at $499 and the Xbox 360 (w/HDD) originally cost $399. The Wii itself cost $250 at launch. But Nintendo may find itself in a difficult place with the Wii U after becoming known for its lower-cost platforms through the years. Assuming there are no further price cuts for the competition's systems before the Wii U comes out in 2012, Nintendo would be facing the Xbox 360 that starts at $199 (4GB version) and a PS3 that starts at $299 (160GB).

Iwata has also admitted that he thinks the Wii U's launch could have gone better and created less confusion. "Because we put so much emphasis on the controller, there appeared to be some misunderstandings," he told The Evening Standard. "We should have made more effort to explain how it works." Nintendo did run through some tech demos explaining what the controller is capable of, but some thought the lack of actual games for the platform hurt its unveiling.

Iwata also said that some people weren't even sure if Wii U was a new handheld or home console because of the emphasis on the controller. "We haven't made any kind of blunder, but I should have shown a single picture of the new console, then started talking about the controller." Despite Iwata's belief that showing the Wii U console (shown above) itself would allay confusion, he then turned around and played down the console anyway. "The console is not drastically different, and Wii U is about the controller. The console itself will be almost invisible."

Comments

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by CalamityNess Friday, June 10, 2011 at 12:58 PM

Oh boy, this is gonna hurt.
by Soldierx0fxGod Friday, June 10, 2011 at 12:59 PM

Count me out.
by JakeDaGr8 Friday, June 10, 2011 at 01:01 PM

ouch.. no thanks. i'll just with the consoles i have.. on a side note the wii u console itself looks cool. reminds me of a psx.
by Skyrim Friday, June 10, 2011 at 01:03 PM

GoodBye Nintendo :(
by Zackwell Friday, June 10, 2011 at 01:04 PM

I wonder which will end up costing more: the 3DS or the WiiU... Kinda funny when you now have to compete with the price-friendly PSVita.
by LB11 Friday, June 10, 2011 at 01:05 PM

Yeah, when I first saw the controller, I thought it was an add-on for the Wii. They could have at least told us that it was for the new system. The name Wii U didn't help either. Hopefully they rename it to avoid more potential confusion from consumers.
by LouBattle Friday, June 10, 2011 at 01:07 PM

Poor Nintendo has a hell of a wall to climb. In order to please investors and gamers alike, but announcing this isn't going to be cheap so soon isn't a very good idea either. That's what i think the problem is. Keep everything under wraps until you have something amazing or revolutionary to show. I was somewhat impressed with what they displayed. Critics can be very brutal at times.
by Romars202129 Friday, June 10, 2011 at 01:08 PM

Just add in a good pack in game. Does more to eleviate high price phobia than anything else.
by XxSUPERSNAKExX Friday, June 10, 2011 at 01:09 PM

But the Wii U is a next gen platform, that means in 2012 may not have great nor bad sellings but when sony and microsoft bring their next gen consoles the Wii U may sell better.
by Fullmetalhans Friday, June 10, 2011 at 01:10 PM

they have a year to get things going, and 250? that;s not that bad
by sheep-n-gnorcs Friday, June 10, 2011 at 01:12 PM

Iwata- i would like to annouce the Wii U will be released at retail price of 300$

People- AHHHHHHHHH YEEEEAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!11

Iwata- and the controller will run for 300$ thank you and goodnight

People- FFFFUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU.....!!!!!
by Xavier Bolton Friday, June 10, 2011 at 01:12 PM

Ive got faith in Nintendo, they have time to make changes!
by Dark Lord Kaan (Skullmanic) Friday, June 10, 2011 at 01:13 PM

I've spent 400 on the xbox way back in the day. As long as it's not more than that.
by Zebra3 Friday, June 10, 2011 at 01:13 PM

I think Nintendo put way too much philosophical thought into naming their console. Calling it the Wii 2 would have been entirely acceptable. Even giving us an entirely new name would have been better than Wii U. And what the heck does he mean when he says "The console itself will be almost invisible"?!! The console is EVERYTHING!! Without the console there is nothing, not even the controller. The controller is cool and all but the technology behind, its system, is what really matters.
by HACK Benjamin Friday, June 10, 2011 at 01:18 PM

I'll buy it day 1. looks dope
by Brokensteel1228 Friday, June 10, 2011 at 01:18 PM

stupid stupid decision nintendo the U.S is in a recession and your going to put a high price on your NEW product one which will posibly have to be tested before seeing as though nintendo likes to bring new tech in the market. how are we supposed to trust nintendo again the wii sucked,unless its a handheld nintendo cant put a guarantee on there product.one of the wiis strong points was its low price for a new console if this is $300+ i wont buy it other than the fact that nintendo made it this is turning out to be a dumb decision in marketing for nintendo,something there usually goo at
by MSL83 Friday, June 10, 2011 at 01:20 PM

The console looks pretty cool, and the controller's features seem cool. However, if the major graphical improvements only include HD and not much of anything else, such as graphics similar to or better than the 360 & PS3, I'm not sure that too many gamers are going to want to potentially spend around $300+ for Nintendo's new system.
by Kyledk05 Friday, June 10, 2011 at 01:21 PM

Well, there goes my interest...
by Harvester of Sorrow Friday, June 10, 2011 at 01:24 PM

Then it's going to have problems. I don't know what Nintendo's thinking but they picked the wrong time to go high-end on both of their platforms.

Especially when it's all about a controller.
by Naeem2132 Friday, June 10, 2011 at 01:25 PM

Depending on how good it is I might buy it, but PSV is first on my list as far as new hardware goes.

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Report: Iwata On Wii U's Price: "This Is Not Going To Be Cheap"