Nintendo explains Wii 2 silence

By Wesley Yin-Poole Published 3 August, 2010

Get ready for a surprise.

Nintendo is keeping schtum about its next home console because it doesn't want sneaky rivals to pirate its plans.

That's according to president Satoru Iwata, who told investors that Nintendo is staying silent so fans will be mega surprised when the Japanese company eventually lifts the lid on its Wii successor.

"We are of course studying and developing the next console to Wii," Iwata said.

"However, there is a big difference between studying a product and announcing what it is and when we will release it.

"I am afraid to say that the history of entertainment is also the history of imitation. A great idea will promptly be copied unless protected through patents.

"At the same time, it is really important for our business to positively surprise people. Will you be surprised by our completed product if we told you how it is surprising three years in advance?

"Therefore, we basically disclose information on our products as late as possible. We believe this is the best approach for the entertainment products we are developing.

"Again, we are planning the next products for Nintendo's continuous growth, but we cannot tell you what, when and how we will release it here. Thank you for your understanding."

Don't worry Satoru. We understand. Sniff.

Picture of Wesley.

About Wesley Yin-Poole

Wesley is Eurogamer's news editor. He likes news, interviews, and more news. He also likes Street Fighter more than anyone can get him to shut up about it.

Read more articles from Wesley by visiting the Wesley Yin-Poole archive page.

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Comments (68) Latest comment 2 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • MiniAmin #1 2 years ago

    I guessed they've learned from their episodes in the 90s.

  • Eraysor #2 2 years ago

    Iwata is actually Captain Obvious in disguise

  • Skandalle #3 2 years ago

    Wii 2....Kinect in disguise!

  • Essien #4 2 years ago

    "Will you be surprised by our completed product if we told you how it is surprising three years in advance?"

    Does that mean Wii2 is three years away?

    Ha! That's what I call reading between the lines.

  • LegendarySins #5 2 years ago

    I think it is going to try to become the best online service I'd put money on them putting most of the innovation to that area to get people connected. Xbox live or pc are the best at the minute but there is still loads of room for improvement

  • StringBeanJean #6 2 years ago

    Virtual Boy 2 please.

  • Shikasama #7 2 years ago

    If you follow their current scale, the Wii 2 has massive potential. It could literally be as powerful as the original Xbox.

  • Miths #8 2 years ago

    Earlier this year I was considering buying a Wii just to see what the motion/pointing controls were like. Then more info about the Move started appearing and buying a Wii suddenly seemed pointless when I already have a PS3 (although it does look like we'll probably have to wait until 2011 for most of the interesting "core" Move games to show up).

    I love imitation :).

  • NewbieZilla #9 2 years ago

    I came across a site that holds the opinion that Nintendo will go the way of Sega - third party - after next generation making a console that comes last of the big 3. Their thing was the motion control was new last time, so what will they do next gen? "I don't know" became "they will become a third party company."

    Depressing that such stupidity exists.
    Edited by 1 at 03/08/10 @ 21:16

  • SpaceMonkey77 #10 2 years ago

    Nice, but I won't be holding my water for Nintendo. Don't know why they are so scred of others copying their ideas, when such actions evolve an industry. What they need to do is not be scared to take a leaf out of such practices.

    Say the chant 'I am just a man.'

  • UKLL #11 2 years ago


    Three Cube's taped together and 100% more waggle?

    I kid I kid.

    Please make it powerful, online and HD.

  • bdc #12 2 years ago

    It isn't going to stop Sony and Microsoft from copying the fuck out of it once the successor to the Wii comes out

  • FenderMaster #13 2 years ago

    if the hardware is too dated to recieve current gen Sony/MS ports, then it's going to be some lean years, all over again...

  • Kalime #14 2 years ago

    I expect integrated 3D and movement recognition... yep virtual reality... we are on the verge... we have 3D, we have motion controller.... we just need to integrate the two in one compelling gaming experience ^_^

  • darth_paul #15 2 years ago

    whatever they announce, expect sony to copy it afterwards, release it 2 years after the PS4 has been launched, and say that they built the PS4 around that feature ... (*cough* ...Move... *cough*)

    as for the Wii2, i just expect it to have full online integration (no crappy friend codes) and to be HD. Also hope im able to redownload AT NO EXTRA COST all the wiiware/vc games i have bought (dunno if you know, but you can only re-download the games you bought from the online shop TO THE ORIGINAL HARDWARE)
    Edited by 1 at 03/08/10 @ 18:03

  • CrispyXUK64 #16 2 years ago

    They can release the same console with better online functions and I'll be happy, it only seems that Mario Kart is alive online these days :(

  • Mr_Brown #17 2 years ago

    Would be brilliant if Nintendo announced that it was moving away from useless motion controls. Revealing that the Wii was merely a smoke screen to fool their two competitors to piling hundreds of millions into two years of useless technology and raising cash for their real surprise.

  • waynenot #18 2 years ago

    In other 'news', Sony and Microsoft won't be announcing things they're not ready to announce, either. How is this 'story' worthy?

  • GoDo69 #19 2 years ago

    I've got such a big surprise its gonna knock you dead but l can't tell you what it is yet as no one's told me !!!!
    Typical PR bull - we want a full HD 360 degrees 3D virtual reality system.

  • fiery_jackass #20 2 years ago

    +1 for miniamin on the off-chance that you're referring to the Silicon Graphics-beating bullshit that surrounded the N64 for aaaages before it appeared, that was mental

  • Burkey123 #21 2 years ago

    @ Miths

    I understand what you're saying but the PS3 will never have a game that comes close to Mario Galaxy 1 & 2...
    Edited by 1 at 03/08/10 @ 18:23

  • Caimbeul #22 2 years ago

    if it is 3 years away then its Boo from me. It better be backwards compatable with my Wii too! (ooh maybe thats what it will be called?)

    So if they are waiting to get things patented, everyone needs to keep a sharp eye at the patent office sites. Many future insights are dicovered via the patent system.

  • alcides #23 2 years ago

    Munch ado about nothing (Wii2)

  • spekkeh #24 2 years ago

    How is this 'story' worthy?

    To me the story worthy part is that they're ostensibly afraid of being copied. Nintendo probably ditched the hardware/polygon ratrace for good, and if they didn't there's no reason to be afraid anyway, because they know they're going to be 'copied'; all the manufacturers want the best tech.

    So that means Wii 2 will innovate pretty drastically beyond simply being a Wii HD.

  • mrboshingles #25 2 years ago

    Consider this a divorce.....

  • waynenot #26 2 years ago

    They have always kept their announcements close to their chest. They wouldn't show the Wii's controller up until the death as they didn't want that copied. This is nothing new - the 'story' is meaningless filler
    Edited by 1 at 03/08/10 @ 18:34

  • Kalime #27 2 years ago

    @spekkeh: Well, yes Wii has had tremendous success thanks to Nintendo trying to bring real innovation to the table and not just upgrading... so why would they change the way they work. They will try to bring a new unique proposition to the table.. so nothing really new in the end...
    That comment on the Virtual Boy 2, as funny as it is, is probably the closest to what it will be ^_^

  • Centrifugal #28 2 years ago

    Was that a sly dig at the Playstation Move I saw in there? I believe it was.

  • beastmaster #29 2 years ago

    It's going to be thought controlled. Like Firefox with Clint Eastwood.

  • Woffls #30 2 years ago

    I like to think it will be as significant a step from Wii as from DS to 3DS. I don't mean to imply that it will be 3D - though I'm sure Microsoft and Sony will assume it is and pump all their money into it - but it wont just be a Wii with tacked on HD. I'm sure anyone that looks at Nintendo's approach to the industry in recent years will acknowledge that just adding pixels doesn't make them money.

    First off, it wont have Wii in the name. It will be an equally abstract name, but it will mean something new and consumers will buy something new before they buy an improved version of what they already have. It will definitely be 1080p because the hardware capable of doing it is now commonplace and cost effective, and I expect it will have similar specs to current consoles, if not better. Maybe the vitality sensor be the first step towards what Nintendo 6 will be (it's 6 right?), but then they didn't experiment with motion control, touch screen or 3D shortly before Wii, DS or 3DS so that's unlikely actually. It will probably have motion control of some kind, but that wont be the focal point.

    This one's out there a bit, but I think the online will be something special. Wii does some special stuff, but it doesn't have the seamless unified structure we all know and enjoy on XBL. I'm not saying it will be comparable, but I think they'll put a lot of focus there as historically each console they've made has been about bringing people together more easily. Be it 4 controller ports, a handle, link cables, wifi or motion control, Nintendo wants us to play together, just not the way that most of us enjoy doing so! The innovation might not be in playing games, but it will be akin to Home, LBP and whatever that Arcade thing is called on XBL. It'll be about bringing people together, but not necessarily to play Call of Duty or whatever.

    I could type endlessly speculating about this, and maybe if I was paid for it then I would :p, but I've gotta' say I'm far more excited about Nintendo than MS or Sony at the moment... and I've barely mentioned 3DS!

  • lucky_jim #31 2 years ago

    Will someone hurry up and release the AR system from Red Dwarf please? I've been waiting long enough.

  • FogHeart #32 2 years ago

    It's going to be thought controlled. Like Firefox with Clint Eastwood.

    Do we have to think in Japanese then?
    Edited by 2 at 03/08/10 @ 19:01

  • spekkeh #33 2 years ago

    It's going to be thought controlled.

    Could actually very well be true. I know a number of universities that have been experimenting with this for some time now. And of course a big company muscling in on it with serious dough to spend, can do a lot more than some isolated state sponsored phd students. Additionally, they have some experience with similar biometric tech in the Vitality Sensor.

    Not sure if it would make for exciting games though.

  • Stomp224 #34 2 years ago

    I totally read that caption in the voice of Arnies mask from Total Recall 8)

    Also, surely NOW would be the best tim eo show off their next console? If its as forward-thinking as the Wii/DS, it would take the wind out of Microsoft and Sony's motion control powered sails, showing them up for being 4 years too late to that particular party

  • dripping_brain #35 2 years ago

    @Mr.Boshingles: Get your ass to Mars!

  • Kaminari #36 2 years ago

    The GameCube 2 was the biggest fraud in the entire history of video games.

  • alcides #37 2 years ago

    I don't mean to imply that it will be 3D - though I'm sure Microsoft and Sony will assume it is and pump all their money into it

    @Wolfs

    Sony will not have to assume anything, as they already have a 3D console on the market with 3D games right available NOW, contrary to Nintendo. Severely NOT assuming anything based on spying on Nintendo's next hardware, then. As to who was first on the IDEA of 3D... It's like asking who was first on HD or polygonal 3D....

  • KayJay #38 2 years ago

    Old...
    We already know what the Wii 2 is...

    It's called Move ;-)

  • hy4000uk #39 2 years ago

    nope the Wii2 will be something new. Not a direct copy attached top a failed console

  • Razz #40 2 years ago

    @alcides

    The first video game to use polygons was I, robot in 1983

  • pomegran #41 2 years ago

    Well, all I want is backward compatability to play the Galaxies in 1080p. That's it for me. Day 1!

  • Razz #42 2 years ago

    As for HD, that's subjective as it's just a marketing buzzword, for instance in the eighties Sega proclaimed the mega drive had high definition graphics and even physically etched out on the console.

    http://ar cona.files.wordpress.com/2008/1...

  • Goodfella #43 2 years ago

    Four Gamecubes duct-taped together this time?

  • Quixz #44 2 years ago

    I wonder what Apple are up to..

  • mkreku #45 2 years ago

    I predict underpowered hardware in an overpriced shell, with a half-working gimmick as its main selling point. Said gimmick will be restored to full capacity via an expensive upgrade (that almost no developers will take advantage of) a few years later.

  • makeamazing #46 2 years ago

    The problem for Nintendo is that they are the only people generally making money from it at the moment and a few 3rd party games. If they go HD, unless it can be an easy port from Xbox/PS3 i don't see 3rd parties supporting it. But then even if it is an easy port, i just don't see Xbox/PS3 game ports selling on that platform.. the nintendo is an acquired taste (much like the other two consoles if your just a nintendo fan).

    I am very interested in what Nintendo are going to do, because i really think this is their biggest challenge yet. But its fascinating to see how they might try to be successful again.

  • disappointed #47 2 years ago

    3D, HD, motion controls and online are all well established as being the baseline for the next generation. Therefore, Nintendo must be planning something beyond that.

    Nintendo aren't about to suddenly start manufacturing new displays and expecting everyone to fork out for them - not when price was such a deciding factor in this generation, even before the recession. And they aren't going to expect everyone to strap electrodes to their heads and concentrate really hard, so I think mind control's off the schedule, for now.

    No, what the current generation of motion controllers want for is force feedback. If they've come up with a solution to the problem of force feedback in full body motion control systems, that would certainly be something to keep a lid on. Other than that, I haven't got a clue but I'd guess it's something on the software side.

  • makeamazing #48 2 years ago

    Full body suit :)

    I really dont know what they could be working on, you have the waggle and you have no controller, i just dont see there being much of a middle ground where Nintendo can introduce something that now hasnt been covered in this generation. In fact that wouldnt surprise me if Sony and MS released their camera based products now to ensure that Nintendo werent first to that party.

  • septimus #49 2 years ago

    Yeah, got to keep the secret of their new console which is about as powerful as an iPad with a virtual boy strapped to your face. Waggle away!

  • BuddyChrist #50 2 years ago

    You pay the money over and a tiny Japanese man with "wII" written on his forehead lives in your house, claiming to be both Italian, and a qualified plumber...

    wII (the i's being roman numerals for two...). It's going to happen. Simulating sushi making in HD, harvest moon HD (Happy Days), mario SOS (Same Old Shit), another 2d kirby remake but in HD, and a luigis mansion where you do the sucking.

  • makeamazing #51 2 years ago

    Maggotman, i think that will work for some people, but for others, like myself, i was fooled once into buying a wii on the basis of the best gaming experience ever, not going to get fooled twice... would certainly wait a while this time.

  • Cloud-Strife #52 2 years ago

    Judging by the 3DS. We won't be dissapointed by wii2. Simple as. Nintendo are on a roll.

  • drumbaby #53 2 years ago

    Wow, about as mysterious as the plans for PS4 and Xbox 720....not.

  • CliveJames #54 2 years ago

    @ krispy
    try mh3 - ftw!!!!

  • androidave #55 2 years ago

    I hope they release what everyone thought the revolution was going to be before they showed it off and changed the name.. ie a virtual reality headset, full HD, 3D please, with head tracking for movement and a glove(s) type controller so your hands can actually be in game as well.. now that would be something. keep the Wii going, maybe release a HD version.. do the casual Wii owners even want a next gen? properly not.. So make your next console the Wii for the core please :D !

  • Quak #56 2 years ago

    The later they leave it I guess the less time Sony has to shoe-horn its ideas into the next PlayStation.

    I believe developers only had 2 weeks with the Sixaxis before E3 because Nintendo was so good at keeping the Wii's controllers secret.

  • Phishfood #57 2 years ago

    Theres a lot of simplicity and genius in Nintendo's products. Even if they don't add any new technology they'll surely combine existing technologies in such a way that other companies will be thinking "why didn't I think of that?"

  • 3william56 #58 2 years ago

    Maybe it's a console that owners still use three weeks after purchasing..? Or a Kinect that works? Or a Move that doesn't look like a glowing dildo?

    Ahem...

    Hard to say whether this is something to watch or not. Ninty may be on a roll with the Wii and 3DS, but they were also on a roll with the NES/SNES (as was Sony with the PS1 and PS2), and we know how they ended up. So that, unfortunately, doesn't mean much. They're somewhat boxed into a corner now, as MS (sorta) have the controllerless option done, and Sony have the Wii HD / Wii 3D in the pipe. They're not going to compete on raw horsepower. So where to go? Gimp mask virtual reality is one option, but with people whining about tiny 3D specs, that will be a tough sell. So they're going to have to make a huge jump in concept, or it'll be them playing catchup and copy next gen (but they will be catching up and copying *this* gen from MS and Sony).

  • DAN.E.B #59 2 years ago

    Thats a different tactic!
    Back in the day Ninty would show everyone there new console then lie about the release date for the next four years.
    Although to be fair the Snes and the N64 were worth the wait they were amazing.
    Cant say the same for there consoles since tho.

  • SG #60 2 years ago

    Cloud-Strife
    04/08/10 @ 00:26

    Judging by the 3DS. We won't be dissapointed by wii2. Simple as. Nintendo are on a roll.

    But look at how innovative the DS' software lineup is compared to the Wii's. That's like saying the Wii would have been as good because of the original DS.

  • spekkeh #61 2 years ago

    All this could also simply mean that they're going to do an Apple. I.e. here's our new console, it's in shops next week.

  • SpaceMonkey77 #62 2 years ago

    All I see on the horizon is another Nintendo fuckup. They've dropped the ball too much the last few gens, that they now have a mountian of stuff the get right, much of it with no experience, because they refuse the concept of learning from copying others. Nintendo are all kingly on the Wii throne, are learning from others is below them, apparently.

    Decent, lagless online service (with no crap friend codes), HD (and/possibly 3Dtv support), a decent sized optical hard drive, demos for all games and actual dvd playback (why they still gimped this on Wii after GC, I will never know or understand). All of these are far too much for Nintendo to suddenly get right, as good as their games are, it just isn't going to happen and be up to the high standard we expect, but feel free to surprise me, Nintendo. I think getting all of these right matter much more than motion controls, or any other gimmicks like vitality sensor crap. I feel that if they can't get the above needs right, they should really think about leaving the home console market, and just focus on handhelds.

    Of course, some of you guys might miss something. There's always been consistent success for Nintendo in the handheld sector. Their home efforts, however, are still always hit and miss. As for their games, they seriously need new IP. Mario isn't enough to convince me to buy their product anymore, though many will still eat it up..

    @Cloud Strife
    You should never judge the success of a handheld, to that of a home system. The two are very different, and the vast differnces on mild yet miserabe success of PS3, and the bombing failure of PSP (which Sony still don't know what to do with it) are a good example of that. Many thought both would do well, but alas no. 3DS will get its market easily, as its much like a 3D iPhone update. A Wii successor however, has no firm landing pad of certainty this time, and the industry home console expectation won't be met by Nintendo, as usual.

    The more stuff changes via MS and Sony, the more it'll stay the same via Nintendo.
    Edited by 1 at 04/08/10 @ 13:17

  • Stuz359 #63 2 years ago

    Don't worry Nintendo, whatever innovation you come out with next is going to be dismissed by the other two as a gimmick and fad and will only copy you 5 years later when they realise they were wrong.

  • linksdad #64 2 years ago

    Nintendo are paranoid, as if anyone will hurriedly copy them for launch and then spend the next five years improving the tech until it is superior.

  • Geowolf #65 2 years ago

    @ Essien "Does that mean Wii2 is three years away?"

    No, it means it is somewhere within a three year development cycle. Could be in the first year or the lasy year or the middle.

  • smelly #66 2 years ago

    @link'sdad : judging by what happened at the ps3 launch - surprised we've not seen a hurriedly announced psp3d yet..

  • smelly #67 2 years ago

    "The more stuff changes via MS and Sony, the more it'll stay the same via Nintendo. "

    uh?

    And there was me thinking ms and sony were doing more of the same fps/gta clones and nintendo were innovating trying out new gameplay ideas (braintraining/wii music/etc - which may or may not have been sucessfull, but at least they were trying), attracting new audiences/etc.. and the other 2 just copying their more succesful ideas!

    Obviously i have all this wrong!

    Please educate me!

    Edited by 1 at 05/08/10 @ 00:15

  • IronCladChicken #68 2 years ago

    'how it is surprising three years in advance?'

    So... a 2013 release then?