Wii 2 ruled out for 2011

With Xbox 360 and PS3 currently doing everything they can to catch Nintendo’s Wii as it continues to lose momentum in the market, Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime has seemingly ruled out the possible launch of a Wii 2 in the coming year.

When asked by Kotaku if Wii 2 is a must for next Christmas” Fils-Aime replied:

No. As we sit here today we’re saying the Wii has many, many more units to sell. After we’ve reached an installed base of 45m here in the US we can have a conversation about the next generation.”

Last week Nintendo confirmed that North American Wii sales currently stand at 30.4m.

Fils-Aime also pointed out that the Wii continues to sell faster than the current home console champ PS2 was at this stage in its life cycle – 23 per cent faster, in fact. And the PS2 enjoyed a sales explosion once it dropped to the ‘magical’ $99/99 price point.

However, Nintendo itself has admitted that should Wii sales fall flat this Christmas it could prove disastrous for the format, meaning that a change of tact cannot be ruled out entirely – though some analysts thinks Wii still has enough muscle left to win the hardware battle this Christmas.

Still, the impending launch of the 3DS – a sequel to a machine that launched two years before Wii – could suggest that Nintendo is still 24 months away from launching a true successor.