Nintendo Wii U
- Manufacturer
- Nintendo
- Production
- 2012–2017
- Generation
- Gen 8
- Type
- Home
- Launch price
- $349
- Units sold
- 13.6M
About Nintendo Wii U
The Wii U is a home video game console developed by Nintendo as the successor to the Wii. Released in late 2012, it was the first eighth-generation video game console and competed with Microsoft's Xbox One and Sony's PlayStation 4.
Source: Wikipedia (text under CC BY-SA 4.0).
Library & collector facts
776licensed games
- North America: 488
- Japan: 500
- PAL: 470
Lineage
Release timeline
- 🇯🇵 Japan
- December 8, 2012
- 🇺🇸 North America
- November 18, 2012
- 🇪🇺 Europe / PAL
- November 30, 2012
- Lifespan
- 5 years on market
Pricing
Launch price (2012)
- 🇺🇸 USD
- $349
- 🇯🇵 JPY
- ¥26,250
Controller
Wii U GamePad / Wii U Pro Controller
Launch titles & exclusives
New Super Mario Bros. U · Nintendo Land · ZombiU · Call of Duty: Black Ops II · Assassin's Creed III · Mass Effect 3 Special Edition · Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed · Scribblenauts Unlimited · Just Dance 4 · FIFA 13
Nintendo Land (32GB Deluxe SKU); none on Basic 8GB SKU
Super Mario 3D World · Super Mario Maker · Splatoon · Mario Kart 8 · Bayonetta 2 · The Wonderful 101 · Pikmin 3 · Xenoblade Chronicles X · Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE · Star Fox Zero · Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze · The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (also Switch launch) · Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker
Big Brain Academy: Wii Degree successors and a few late JP eShop releases; the eShop closed for new purchases in 2023
Devil's Third (~$200+ CIB, low print run); Xenoblade Chronicles X CIB; sealed Premium Zelda Wind Waker HD bundle; Splatoon Deluxe bundle sealed
Hardware specs
- Os
- Wii U system software
- Cpu
- 1.24 GHz tri-core IBM PowerPC "Espresso"
- Gpu
- 550 MHz AMD Radeon-based "Latte"
- Ram
- 2 GB DDR3
- Power
- 75 W
- Sound
- 5.1 linear PCM, analog stereo
- Dimensions
- Width: 17.2 cm, Height: 4.6 cm, Length: 26.9 cm
- Display Output
- Composite video, S-Video (480i), RGBS, RGB SCART (480i, 576i), Component video, YPbPr, D-Terminal, :(480i, 480p, 720p, 1080i, 1080p), HDMI (480p, 720p, 1080i, 1080p) Wii U GamePad (FWVGA)
- Storage Internal
- Internal flash memory:, 8 GB (Basic Set) / 32 GB (Deluxe Set)
Hardware revisions
- Wii U Basic WUP-001(2012)
8GB internal storage, white plastic, no included Nintendo Land
- Wii U Deluxe / Premium WUP-101(2012)
32GB internal storage, black, included Nintendo Land and Wii Remote stand
⚠ Premium Membership digital-purchase rebate program (discontinued)
Launch colorways & special editions
- Zelda: The Wind Waker HD Premium (2013)
- Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Set
- Super Mario 3D World Deluxe
- Super Smash Bros. Bundle (2014)
- Pokken Tournament Bundle
- Splatoon Bundle
Modding scene
- Difficulty
- soft-mod
- Custom firmware
- Haxchi / CBHC (Coldboot Haxchi); Mocha CFW; Aroma (modern)
Reception & legacy
Cool reception — consumer confusion over whether it was a Wii peripheral or a new console; weak third-party support after early ports were rushed
Marketing fiasco — many buyers didn't understand it was a new console; third parties abandoned the platform after underwhelming launch sales; eShop closure (2023) created preservation concerns for digital-only titles
Commercial failure (~13.5M lifetime) but a critically beloved library; the GamePad influenced Switch development; pivotal lesson Nintendo learned about clear product positioning — the Switch's name and marketing were direct corrections
References
More from Nintendo
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