Hasta La Gadget!

The touchscreen controller of the Nintendo Wii U is admittedly a nice touch by the Japanese company as it adds a new dimension to gameplay. However its use was somewhat limited to the Wii U console itself, and unsurprisingly so, but if you’ve ever wished that the controller could be modified to be used on the PC, you’re in luck as Kotaku reader Chris has managed to get the Wii U touchscreen controller working on the PC, allowing him to play games on his PC using it by remapping the pad necessary for the game’s input.

In the video above you can see him demonstrating this by running an emulation of the Zelda game on the Dolphin emulator, although we have to admit that we’re more curious as to how more modern titles might be able to use it. According to Chris, he is currently working on an update that will add touch-screen support to the controller, and he hopes that future updates will allow him to get the streaming function working, thus allowing you to play your PC games on the touchscreen controller itself. For those interested the necessary files to get your Wii U controller working on your PC, click here for the download (Warning: RAR file).

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: $99 Ouya Arrives At Stores This June, Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance On PS3 Gets Exclusive VR Missions,

Yesterday, we heard that Nintendo was revising its Wii U sales forecast, bringing the number of consoles it plans to sell in the year ending in March 2013 down to four million. Previously, Nintendo has expected to sell 5.5 million consoles, so this is suggesting to some that Nintendo is struggling on the Wii U sales front. Sorry to say, but if you were hoping for Nintendo to cut the price on the Wii U in a effort to boost sales, you’re not going to get your wish.

In a presentation to investors after Nintendo revised its sales forecast, president Saturo Iwata said that the company isn’t planning to drop the price on the Wii U any time soon. Some were expecting a price cut if Nintendo found itself in hot water with the Wii U, since it implemented a price cut when 3DS sales were lagging. Iwata said in his presentation that he “would like to make this point absolutely clear,” so it seems Nintendo is holding firm on the issue.

One of the reasons Nintendo doesn’t want to cut the price on the Wii U is because it’s already offering the console at a loss. Dropping the price below where it’s at now would definitely widen that loss, so it may not help that much. Instead of dropping the price, Nintendo says it will try to better communicate the value of the Wii U as we wait for the console’s software line up to improve.

Software will also be a major focus for Nintendo moving forward. During the most recent Nintendo Direct livestream, Iwata revealed a number of exciting Wii U games, announcing an HD remake of The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker and informing us all that the company will have new Mario and Mario Kart games for the Wii U on display at E3 2013. We’ll see how Nintendo addresses Wii U sales that are below expectations soon enough, but after today, a price drop just doesn’t seem to be in the cards.

[via Joystiq]

Wii U price cut isn’t happening, Nintendo says is written by Eric Abent & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Nintendo has cut its predictions for Wii U sales, with dwindling interest in the tablet-equipped console forcing a 27-percent cut in expectations, though hopes are still high for a profitable year. The Japanese firm now expects to shift four million Wii U units in the twelve months ending March 2013, being up to the 3.06m point by the end of December,  though net income for the nine months leading up to the end of December hit 14.5bn yen ($159m) versus a loss of over 48bn yen ($528m) in the same period a year ago.

There are still some surprises in store for the end of the year, however. Nintendo had been predicting net sales of 810bn yen for the full year ending March 31, 2013, with net income of 6bn yen ($66m). However, in an odd shift of fortunes, Nintendo now says it expects sales of just 670bn yen, a 17.3-percent reduction, despite also predicting more than double the net income.

In fact, Nintendo says it foresees 14bn yen ($154m) in net income by the end of the year, helped in no small part by the waverings of the currency exchange market. That’s an impressive rise from the 43bn yen loss in the year-ended March 31 2012.

As for elsewhere in the company’s range, Nintendo sold 12.7m Nintendo 3DS units and 3.5m Wii units, bringing the lifetime sales of each to 29.84m and 99.38m respectively. Nintendo DS sales halved versus the same period a year ago, to 2.5m units.

More in Nintendo’s full report [pdf link] and updated forecasts [pdf link].

Wii U sales predictions slashed is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Get ready, Super Smash Bros. fans, because it appears that Nintendo will be showing off the upcoming Wii U and 3DS Smash Bros. titles at E3 later this year. Iwata said during this week’s Nintendo Direct event that we would see screens from the games at the expo, but it seems that designer Masahiro Sakurai wants to show off more than just still images. Perhaps we’ll get to see trailers of the titles in action?

Sakurai took to Twitter to tell fans that there may be more to see of both games come E3 time. Google Translate always appears to have a rough time translating from Japanese to English, but in his tweets, he tells fans that even though some games were given trailers during Tuesday’s Nintendo Direct stream, Smash Bros. fans will have to wait. That wait will apparently pay off, however, as Sakurai plans to show something “better” at E3.

It’s impossible to say for sure, but it certainly sounds like Sakurai wants trailers on display during E3 2013. Nintendo revealed that its new Mario and Mario Kart titles will have playable demos at E3, so if Sakurai can put together some Super Smash Bros. footage before the expo kicks off, then it should be an exciting show for Nintendo fans. It should be an exciting show for gaming fans in general for that matter, as it’s been rumored that we’ll see new consoles from Sony at Microsoft there.

In any case, we’ve known about these new Super Smash Bros. games for a while now, as they were announced around the same time that Nintendo revealed the Wii U. At that time next to nothing had been done on them, as Sakurai was busy putting the finishing touches on Kid Icarus: Uprising. Now that Uprising is on shelves (and has been since March 2012), it sounds like Sakurai has more time to devote to these incoming Smash Bros. games, so don’t be surprised to hear new details moving forward. Stay tuned.

[via Joystiq; via IGN]

Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, 3DS will make an appearance at E3 2013 is written by Eric Abent & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Today’s Nintendo Direct livestream shows that the company is taking the future of its new console very seriously. There was a bit of worry there, since Nintendo is somewhat famous for botching big launches, but after a couple of months of letting the Wii U‘s launch titles support the system, Nintendo came out with guns blazing today. Wii U owners have a lot of new games and features to look forward to, with Nintendo proving that it isn’t simply going to sit back and let its famous name move units.

Let’s recap just a few of the games that were revealed during the livestream. Nintendo will be releasing an HD remake of The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker later this year, and even though a handful of fans probably scoffed at such a re-released, the company also said that it has an all new Zelda game in development for the console. We’ve also heard of a new Mario adventure to look forward to, along with a new Mario Kart release, both of which will be showcased at E3. We saw an exciting gameplay trailer from The Wonderful 101, Xenoblade Chronicles developer Monolift Soft has a new game in development, and Nintendo and Atlus are joining forces to bring us Shin Megami Tensei x Fire Emblem (which sounds totally awesome).

There were more than those titles announced for the Wii U, but you get the idea – as far as new games go, Nintendo hit it out of the park today. The Nintendo Direct livestream didn’t stop at just new games, however, with Nintendo also revealing new features for the console, like a version of Virtual Console made specifically for the Wii U, and the ability to access MiiVerse on your phone. If you’re a Wii U owner, I have a feeling that your purchase was validated today.

Keep in mind that the Wii U is only a couple months old. At this point in the lifespan of the 3DS, there wasn’t all that much to look forward to. Gamers had Super Mario 3D Land and ports like Star Fox 64 3D and Ocarina of Time 3D on the way, but that was mostly it as far as notable first-party titles from the big N. While the 3DS is doing great these days and has a number of excellent games to offer players, the first few months of the handheld’s life weren’t very exciting.

Contrast that with the Wii U environment at present moment, and it almost seems like Nintendo has done a 180. Nintendo has wasted no time getting up in front of the camera and showing off games that get players excited. Remember when Nintendo had just launched the 3DS and Reggie Fils-Aime was making the rounds to talk about what an excellent game Steel Diver was? There was none of that nonsense today, with Iwata introducing a strong lineup of games that players will want to own.

For a while there, it seems that Nintendo was simply counting on the company’s name to sell handhelds and consoles. Release the console, make promises of a new Mario game, and it’ll sell like hotcakes. We did hear some Mario news today, sure, but there were also a number of good looking third-party titles that have nothing to do with the plumber. The Wii U will live or die by its third-party support, and I was pleased as punch to see so many third-party titles show up in Iwata’s presentation.

If Nintendo can get that kind of support to stick around, then it has nothing to worry about when Microsoft and Sony launch their next consoles. Make no mistake, though, Nintendo is going to be at a disadvantage when those new consoles launch, but instead of just letting the Wii U fester while the name brings in sales, Nintendo is going all in. This attention is just what the Wii U will need to flourish, so here’s hoping that this strong start continues and ultimately turns into a strong life. Keep it up, Nintendo, and your legions of fans will shower you in money.

Nintendo proves it’s serious about Wii U’s future is written by Eric Abent & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.