BioWare Officially Announces Mass Effect 3 for the Wii U

Video game developer BioWare and publisher Electronic Arts have announced that they are creating a version of their action role-playing game Mass Effect 3 which will be launched on the new Wii U home console from Nintendo.

The official announcement from BioWare states, “Mass Effect 3 on the Wii U features a brand new control scheme designed to incorporate the Wiipad. It will also feature bonus DLC including the Extended Cut, an Interactive back story covering previous events in the Mass Effect universe, and Mass Effect 3′s critically acclaimed Multiplayer experience.”

Neither the developer nor the publishers have offered many details about the actions which gamers would be able to perform in Mass Effect 3 on the Wii U using the touchscreen-equipped GamePad.

It’s also not clear whether the Wii U version of the action role-playing game will also get the new Leviathan downloadable content and whether it will be part of the regular multiplayer-oriented Operations.

Nintendo has made a clear effort to get big franchises to commit to Wii U launches and Mass Effect 3 joins a line-up of titles that also includes the likes of Batman: Arkham City and Assassin’s Creed III.

The move is designed to make the new console appealing to hardcore players that have so far only been interested in hardware from Sony and Microsoft.

Mass Effect 3 was launched during March this year on the PC, the PlayStation 3 and the Xbox 360 and has been a critical and commercial success for Electronic Arts, although a vocal minority of players has been very harsh when complaining about the game’s ending.

The Wii U does not have an official price or a clear launch date but Nintendo has promised that gamers would be able to buy it on all major markets before the end of this year.