14 DAY TRIAL // Video game hardware developer Nintendo is not yet ready to talk about the launch line-up for the upcoming Wii U home console or about its hardware, but that has not stopped rumors from cropping up about what the new device might offer.
Nintendotown, a French website, has suggested that Wii U will get access to a number of video-on-demand services, meaning that users will have the ability to get the same kind of content that is currently being delivered on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.
Netflix is already offered on the current Wii and Nintendo has long sought to expand the media possibilities of its devices in order to better compete with Sony and Microsoft.
The Wii U is also rumored to be integrated with the Android operating system from Google, which might mean that the home console will be able to run a number of small titles, presumably using the new touchscreen-enabled controller and new connectivity options.
Neither Nintendo nor Google commented on the rumor, and it’s unlikely that the two companies could dilute their own brands by combining it, especially seeing how they are competing in the mobile gaming space, with the Nintendo 3DS directly threatened by the Android powered devices.
The French website has also suggested that a new Metroid, using the classic mechanics of the series, will be delivered for the Wii U, using the Unreal Engine 3 technology from Epic Games.
A tech demo of the title was apparently shown to a number of Nintendo executives recently and more information will be unveiled at E3 2012, when the company plans to reveal all the details about core Wii U titles.
Nintendo has promised that the Wii U will be available in the United States, Europe, Japan and Australia before the end of 2012.