“The Wii U GPU is several generations ahead of the current gen. It allows many things that were not possible on consoles before. If you develop for Wii U you have to take advantage of these possibilities, otherwise your performance is of course limited. Also your engine layout needs to be different. You need to take advantage of the large shared memory of the Wii U, the huge and very fast EDRAM section and the big CPU caches in the cores. Especially the workings of the CPU caches are very important to master. Otherwise you can lose a magnitude of power for cache relevant parts of your code. In the end the Wii U specs fit perfectly together and make a very efficient console when used right.”

– Shin’en’s Manfred Linzner

Shin’en is talking about something I’ve been putting out there for a while now: The Wii U’s architecture is fundamentally different from a PS4, PC, or any other console out there. You can’t use the same “engine layout” (as they put it) and get the results you want, so if you want to get the most out of the console you have to be able to put in the extra effort to make an engine that takes advantage of what its strengths are. This is a huge reason why we aren’t seeing third party, multiplatform support on Wii U, and why we generally haven’t seen it on past Nintendo systems.

Via HDWarriors

Ubisoft E3 2013 teaser

Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, Videos | 0 comments

Miiverse’s web interface gains new functionality

Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News, Podcast Stories, Wii U | 0 comments

The PC and smartphone version of Miiverse was updated earlier today with new functionality. Users can now post and delete posts in communities, follow and unfollow others through their profile, and more.

The full overview, as described in an official Miiverse post from Nintendo, is as follows:

Fans invited to Nintendo World Store for E3 Nintendo Direct viewing, play games as well

Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News, Podcast Stories | 0 comments

Nintendo World Store has an annual tradition when it comes to Nintendo’s presence at E3. For years, fans have been invited to watch the company’s E3 presentation with others.

Nintendo won’t be having a major conference this year, but a Nintendo Direct will be aired online. And Nintendo World Store is once again inviting gamers to gather at the store, watch the presentation, and “play our featured games”.

On 6/11 @ 10 AM EST watch Nintendo’s #E3 Direct at #NintendoWorld! Be one of the first to take part in the action & play our featured games!
— Nintendo World Store (@Nintendo_World) May 29, 2013

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Nintendo shares more details on E3 program with Best Buy

Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News, Podcast Stories | 0 comments

During the last Nintendo Direct, Nintendo announced that it has teamed up with Best Buy to allow fans across the United States and Canada to experience Wii U titles that will be shown at E3 2013. More details about the program have been confirmed today.

Games will be playable at 110 Best Buy locations. They’ll be playable between 4 PM and 8 PM local time on June 12 and between 1 PM and 5 PM local time on June 15.

The full lineup of participating US Best Buy outlets can be found below. Follow this link for the most up-to-date list.

Ubisoft launches “UbiBlog”

Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 0 comments

Ubisoft has gone live with a new blog focusing on the publisher’s titles. Fans can expect the latest news, videos, previews, and more on the site. Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag and Watch_Dogs are just a couple of titles the UbiBlog will highlight going forward.

You can visit the UbiBlog by visiting this link.

Club Nintendo adds Super Mario Accessory Box

Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 0 comments

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The Super Mario Accessory Box has been added in as a new reward on Club Nintendo. You can grab the item here for 700 coins.

Japan received the same reward last week. It can be used to organize games and accessories in a “sturdy” box.

Nintendo says that there’s a “limited quantity” of the reward available, so use your coins while you can.

First 4 Figures producing Shadow the Hedgehog statue

Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 0 comments

The next release in First 4 Figures’ “Sonic the Hedgehog Modern Line” is none other than Shadow the Hedgehog. Only 600 pieces will be produced worldwide.

First 4 Figures’ Shadow the Hedgehog statue is 15.5 inches tall, and will retail for $229.99. It’ll be available sometime during Q4 2013.

You can find more details and photos here.

Image: Luigi timeline

Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, Images | 0 comments

Nintendo UK published a new timeline image on its Twitter account highlighting Luigi’s history. You can find it below.

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Conker’s Bad Fur Day commentary from original devs

Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, Videos | 0 comments

Commentary from three former Rare developers can be found below. Designer Chris Seavor and programmers Shawn Pile and Chris Marlow comment on the game, Rare’s culture, and more.

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