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Will Wii go HD at E3?

May 20, 2009 in Rumor comments 6

There have been a lot of rumors for awhile now that Wii would be entering the world of high definition; now there's a rumor that Nintendo could be announcing "Wii HD" at E3 next month. What would the new console be likely to have? Well, high definition graphics of course, as well as a built-in DVD player. And if you guys remember, when the "Revolution" was first announced, it was said that it would be able to play DVDs. So that feature is well overdue.

Rumours of an Wii with high definition graphics have been prevalent for quite a while now, with some sources even claiming to having these rumours confirmed by an official Nintendo representative, even though an official announcement has been mysteriously absent. With E3 2009 up and coming, however, could Nintendo be saving a “Wii HD” announcement for the event?

In terms of graphical power, the Wii can’t muster up much more than a mid-spec computer in 2004 could, meaning a large volume of games released on PS3 and Xbox 360 never receive a port to Nintendo’s motion sensitive machine. While this is perhaps a good thing for the common shovelware, this means the Wii has missed out on such multi-platform gems as X-Men Origins: Wolverine and The Orange Box.

Nintendo have repeatedly admitted that the Wii is not well powered graphically, explaining that the console was more an experiment to finding out if the Wii Remote technology was viable. Well, sales statistics show that it clearly is. This means a natural next step for the Japanese company would be working on a successor. But what sort of features would we expect on this?
chaos via zconnect.org.uk »
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  • 0
    Darknet May 21, 09
    A friend told me the Wii actually has a DVD player, it just needs to be activated to use.
  • 0
    Linkerd101 May 21, 09
    This is sorta old news...but still pretty cool, i guess.
    • 1
      Bale Fire May 21, 09
      quote Linkerd101
      This is sorta old news...but still pretty cool, i guess.
      It's not news, its a rumor. Though I think it has come up before.

      I don't see any real gain for Nintendo doing this, HD coming in now would just be confusing, tough to develop for and not appeal to the casual market Nintendo are focusing on.
  • 1
    Aussie Legend May 21, 09
    Going HD will not make Wii sell anymore units than it is now, so I don't see it as a necessity if it going to keep the costs down (even though a 360 costs less than a Wii now lol).
  • 0
    bbb7002004* May 21, 09
    I don't see it this year. Perhaps next, but it's still too early for Nintendo to show anything major in regards to their next hardware, especially with Wii setting up to possibly hit the 100 million mark.
  • 1
    Big Willie May 21, 09
    It doesn't necessarily have to bring anything to the table for them to add it in. Check out the DSi. Did the DS need a camera in it? Not really. But it does add perceived value to help keep their profit margins the same with diminishing product costs. It doesn't cost the same to build a DS today as it did 3 years ago. But I imagine adding a camera in the deal makes it pretty darn close if not just slightly under to create a higher profit margin. It also attracts the loyal fan base to buy the same product again, which I think is the huge selling point to adding new features to a console. Why find a new market when you can just get the same market to buy it again?

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