Nintendo's Deception : Is There A Wii U Shortage?

The numbers are out. The Wii U sold a little more than 400,000 consoles in its first week in America.  In comparison, the Wii sold about 600,000 units for the same region and time of year when it launched.

The Wii was a success, it was hard to find, it was sold out everywhere, even pre-orders were on a limit and got sold out in a matter of hours.  As soon as Wiis were put on shelves, they were taken by customers waiting days for a restock. It really did great.  I've helped many friends get one by telling them when and where shipments were received for different retailers. Future Shop couldn't even put the console on the shelves that they were sold out. They received about 2 or 3 units per week for every retail store.

But what about the Wii U?  Regis Fils-Aime told CNET that 400,000 unit is a great number because the console is SOLD OUT all around the country. He also added that "As soon as product hits retail, they're selling out immediately." Nintendo is apparently doing its best to restock the retailers.  Seems like the story of the Wii success is upon us again!  So if you want one for Christmas, you might have to get one of those cardboard consoles instead.

Should you get one of these until Wii U gets restocked?

Well I find it a bit awkward that after the Wii's long term shortage that lasted about 6 months, Nintendo did not plan on making their new console a little bit more available at launch due to the increase in Nintendo buyer potential. So I went and looked around the web for that shortage. Where is it? I can't tell!

I check store availability for Walmart in many states:

Florida : Out of 17 stores, 4 are Out of Stock.

California : Out of the 8 Stores, 1 is Out of Stock.

New york : Out of 20 Stores, 6 are Out of Stock.

Stocks everywhere in New York, same thing all around the country.

In Quebec, I checked Future Shop, it's a little more true for them, but still less than 50% of the stores are out of Wii U.

On about 30 stores, 12 are out of Stock.

Canada the same thing, It's everywhere!

Just take that in context, those stats were taken just after Black Friday!  So if it was such a big success, shouldn't it be sold out everywhere?  I called a Future Shop store just to make sure. Well it seems they have about a dozen consoles for sale. WHAT!!!

I'm calling it a big deception by Nintendo that is trying to make a false shortage to raise sales by having everyone jump on the "New Trend" that is supposedly out of stock making sure people grab one when they see it in case it disappears from the shelves for months like the Wii did! I'm really sorry for Nintendo today. 

Feel free to tell us if you had a hard time getting a Wii U or if you see them in stores where you go.

EA Forces Wii U Owners To Use Origin To Play EA Games Online

You just knew this was coming, didn't you ? EA announced that to be able to play their games on Wii U, you will have to use Origin.

Ok, EA, here's what. GTFO with your service. For starters, PC gamers by and large hate it, and for good reason. It hogs resources like no other. One of my friends for example, had to close Origin to get normal performance back from his computer and he's a techie gamer. He knows what he's doing. Even when not playing BF3, he had to close Origin because it was making his other games lag. Didn't know it was Origin doing it until he closed it.

Secondo, I do not like how you're trying to shove Origin down our throats. How, in any way, will using Origin help with Wii U online gaming ? It is just an additional hurdle to just be able to power up the console and play.

I like some of your games, EA. I'm not a total hater. Mirror's Edge was amazing. Mass Effect, Dragon Age, and SWTOR were some of the best gaming experiences I've had. Why though, must you always do stuff that enrages gamers ?

I will never understand you, EA.

Wii U Consoles Already On Sale On eBay

As you can see in the above picture, Wii U consoles have started to appear on eBay. Prices are currently ranging from 365$ to 620$, with other gaming websites reporting seeing some for 1000$ and more.

This sometimes happens in this industry, but most of the time it's games, not consoles. With so many shipping to gamers homes, what will happen ? Will we see Youtube videos of all the games, weeks before their release ? Will reviews appear on gaming websites before they're due ? Will forums be full of spoilers ?

And there's one other thing. Since the Wii U is supposed to boot into Miiverse, will the console even work ? I doubt Nintendo has already implemented Miiverse. I guess they can play the included game(s).

It will be interesting to see the outcome of this.

Wii U Games List: Launch vs Launch Window

Thanks to engadget for the list. For the most curious of you we've divided the games in three easy lists.  Games launched with the console on November 18th in USA/Canada. The November games that should release within 2 weeks of the Wii U launch, and the Launch window games that will be launched in Winter/Spring. A total of 52 games announced so far.

Launch Titles Nov. 18th (23 titles)

• Call of Duty: Black Ops II
• Skylanders Giants 
• TRANSFORMERS PRIME 
• Wipeout 3 
• Disney Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two
• EA SPORTS FIFA Soccer 13 
• TEKKEN TAG TOURNAMENT 2 Wii U Edition 
• New Super Mario Bros. U 
• NINJA GAIDEN 3: Razor's Edge 
• Nintendo Land 
• SiNG PARTY 
• Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed 
• WARRIORS OROCHI 3 Hyper
• Darksiders II 
• Assassin's Creed III 
• ESPN Sports Connection
• Just Dance 4
• Rabbids Land
• Your Shape: Fitness Evolved 2013
• ZombiU
• Scribblenauts Unlimited 
• Game Party Champions
• Batman: Arkham City Armored Edition 

November Release (9 titles)

• Chasing Aurora
• Cloudberry Kingdom
• Madden NFL 13 
• Trine 2: Director's Cut
• Mighty Switch Force HD
• TANK! TANK! TANK!
• Nano Assault Neo
• Little Inferno
• Toki Tori 2

Launch Window titles (Winter/Spring) (20 titles)

• JEOPARDY! 
• Funky Barn 
• NBA 2K13 
• 007 Legends
• Cabela's Dangerous Hunts 2013 
• Rapala Pro Bass Fishing
• Rise of the Guardians: The Video Game
• Ben 10 Omniverse
• Family Party: 30 Great Games: Obstacle Arcade 
• Mass Effect 3
• Runner2: Future Legend of Rhythm Alien 
• Game & Wario
• LEGO City: Undercover
• Pikmin 3
• Wii Fit U 
• The Wonderful 101 
• Aliens: Colonial Marines
• Wheel of Fortune 
• Marvel Avengers: Battle for Earth 
• Rayman Legends

Wii U to be region locked

Famitsu reported that the Wii U is region locked. This must not come as a surprise as most consoles are having the same "feature". Only Sony's PS3 and Microsoft's Xbox 360 had put the region lock into the publishers hands. This means that in most cases, you can buy a game from anywhere in the world and play it on your console, unless the publisher has decided not to let you do that with their game(s).

Those  European and Asian gamers who wish to get their console early by importing the US model will have to also import games from the US.  It also means that if you are an avid Japanese games player, and want that Japanese exclusive game, you'll also have to buy the Japanese console as well.

Region Lock has nothing to do with hardware or format as every console with region locks has been bypassed by hackers. Not that I support piracy, I always believe that the best way to fight it is by offering a better service than what hackers can manage to "Unlock".

So, what are your feelings about region lock? Is it a good way of protecting regional licensing and market, or just another way of restraining the players to have the most out of their console?