MCV/DEVELOP News, events, research and jobs from the games industry
The Wii U will cost 199.99 and be launched on July 14th in the UK – according to Amazon.co.uk.
In truth the release date, at least, seems highly unlikely. Were the console so close to launch then E3 would have included far more detail than it did, and third parties would not have been as coy regarding their Wii U plans.
As for the price, though – that’s not impossible. Nintendo learnt from its recent 3DS experience that a premium launch price harms a machine. And it also for the first time proved willing to take a hit of each unit sold in an effort to increase its user base.
Fellow etailer ShopTo last week opened Wii U pre-orders with an RRP of 279.99. It did not give an estimated release date for the machine.
Amazon must be very confident, however, as its pre-order price guarantee means that anyone who places an order for the machine today will not have to pay a penny more come the release – whenever that turns out to be.
UPDATE: Having removed the listing from its website, Amazon is now in the process of cancelling any pre-orders made by customers.
