14 DAY TRIAL // The Nintendo Wii U is still coming, despite the fact that the Japanese company hasn't revealed anything concrete for quite some time about its next console, so Ubisoft is very confident that it's going to take the casual appeal of the Wii to a whole new level.
Ubisoft has quite a few big, triple-A franchises, including Assassin's Creed, Splinter Cell or Prince of Persia but, as we saw earlier this year, the real money arrives from more casual franchises like Just Dance, Imagine, Petz, or Raving Rabbids.
As such, the company is fully endorsing the Wii U with everything it's got, at least according to Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot, who talked to Gamasutra about the new console.
"We are big believers in the Wii U, on two subjects," Guillemot said. "One is for high-end games, where we'll be able to do a game for the Wii U, but also for other [high-definition] machines, but also with specific use of [Wii U's] tablet. Two, is we like the Wii U for all the [potential of] casual games."
"Today, the Wii still is 45 percent of our business. Just Dance, all those casual games, are selling extremely well. So we are supporting the machine because we believe Nintendo is going to push it to another level. We think [Wii U] will be successful."
This success, however, depends on how Nintendo is actually going to promote the Wii U and what its target user base will be, at least according to the Ubisoft executive, who noted that the innovative controller will also play a huge role in attracting new customers.
"Now to [what audience] will it be addressed? We don't exactly know yet," he said. "But the potential of the machine, and the tablet [controller], I think is a good way to improve the potential gameplay. What we see is the ease of play is a part of the revolution we are seeing today. The fact that it's easier to access games is what can make more people play. Maybe they can do a good job there."
Quite a lot of companies have already proclaimed their support for the Wii U, but it seems that Nintendo isn't rushing to release it, saying recently that the final version of the device will be presented at E3 2012, and only after it might actually be released onto the market.