Iwata: Wii 2 will surprise you @ Gaming Target

Written by John Scalzo on August 04, 2010

News: But no word on when it'll surprise us.

Here's something that managed to slip through the cracks. During a shareholder's question and answer session (published on July 9), Nintendo President Satoru Iwata talked a little bit about the successor to the Wii.

Nintendo has been very cagey about their future console plans (even though analyst Michael Pachter has been saying a Wii HD will be announced any day now for years) and from Iwata's comments, it looks like Nintendo plans to keep the Wii 2 in the dark for a little while longer.

First, Iwata confirmed that the Wii 2 is in development:

"Speaking of other products, we are of course studying and developing the next console to Wii."

However, Iwata continued by saying that a great console has to surprise the public with what it offers, and as such, no information on the Wii 2 will be forthcoming anytime soon:

"However, there is a big difference between studying a product and announcing what it is and when we will release it. I am afraid to say that the history of entertainment is also the history of imitation. A great idea will promptly be copied unless protected through patents. At the same time, it is really important for our business to positively surprise people.

He finished up by implying that the Wii 2 is still three years away while officially stating that the Wii 2 has no release date and will not have one for a very long time:

Will you be surprised by our completed product if we told you how it is surprising three years in advance? Therefore, we basically disclose information on our products as late as possible. We believe this is the best approach for the entertainment products we are developing. Again, we are planning the next products for Nintendo's continuous growth, but we cannot tell you what, when and how we will release it here.

So basically, all we really know is that the Wii 2 is in development and that it'll be released someday.

That Iwata, he is a cagey one.