nintendo

Nintendo has another new console to offer you in the coming weeks -- if you're in the right place.

Behold the Wii Mini, which is coming to store shelves on December 7. But the device, which is notably smaller than the well-established original Wii, will only be available in Canada. The device, matte black with a distinctive red border, will retail for $99.99.

With the reduction in size comes a reduction in capabilities. Nintendo says that the Wii Mini is "designed exclusively to play Wii games." The device can't connect to the Internet and does … Read more

Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime has some sharp words for Microsoft and Sony: you react to us, not the other way around.

Speaking to CNET in a telephone interview today, Fils-Aime brushed off an assertion that the Wii U could be faced with irrelevancy issues if Microsoft and Sony launch their new consoles in the coming year, as expected.

"In the end, our competitors need to react to what we're doing in the marketplace and need to figure out what their innovation will be," Fils-Aime told CNET. "It's likely that faster processors and pretty … Read more

Nintendo sold more than 1 million hardware units over the last week, the company has confirmed to CNET.

Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime told CNET in a phone interview today that during the last week, its internal data has shown total U.S. hardware sales have reached more than 1.2 million units. That figure includes the Wii U, Wii, 3DS, and DS.

According to Fils-Aime, Nintendo sold over 700,000 consoles during the last week. The Wii U topped the Wii with 400,000 units sold. The Wii, which Nintendo launched all the way back in 2006, was … Read more

Forget all the talk about the unique tablet-turned-game-pad controller in Nintendo's new Wii U game console. Forget, as well, the highly hyped possibilities of dual-view second-screen gaming. The real triumph of the Wii U is in its advocacy for a nearly lost concept: same-room multiplayer gaming.

Yes, a reasonable amount of same-room gaming still goes on in living rooms and dorms, usually in the form of Street-Fighter-style beat-'em-ups, or sports games such as the Madden NFL series. But the classic concept of sharing a physical space alongside a virtual one has been eclipsed for years by other forms of multiplayer gaming that are not reliant on the participants being in the same place or even playing at the same time.

Let's call the experience of playing NintendoLand or New Super Mario Bros. U "synchronous-local" gaming. It's how we would play classic games from Combat on the Atari 2600 to Super Mario Bros. on the original Nintendo Entertainment System. It's also how we've played games from chess to Monopoly long before video games existed (apologies in advance to the legions of correspondence chess players who will no doubt object to this description).

… Read more

Hulu Plus is now available on the Wii U.

The company launched its service on Nintendo's new console yesterday. Hulu Plus users will find that as they watch shows on their television, the GamePad will play an integral role in the viewing experience. While watching a show on the big screen, the Wii U's GamePad displays information on a host of topics, including the current show or episode. Users can also queue up another episode to watch on the big screen.

Hulu didn't just stop there. According to the company, users can also watch the show they … Read more

If you're looking for a Black Friday break on the brand-new Nintendo Wii U or just-released games such as Halo 4 and Call of Duty Black Ops 2, you might be out of luck. But, just about everything else in the world of console gaming is, well, fair game.

It's hard to imagine that anyone who wants an Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, or Nintendo Wii doesn't have one already. But just in case you need one or more to fill out your hardware collection or are looking for a gift, there are some deals to be had. … Read more

After using the Wii U for about a week, I've had a decidedly mixed experience.

The positive future-forward idea of a tabletlike GamePad that works away from the TV, Nintendo's fun family-oriented ideas of same-room party play -- well, so far, those benefits have been outweighed by a lot of question marks.

You've probably heard about some of the issues in our still-unfolding Wii U review. The Wii U, as it currently stands, is a new game console that's in need of a confidence boost. It needs to compete against the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, and even Apple's devices, and be good enough to succeed.

Here's what I think it needs most, and what's standing in the way of success.… Read more