A member over at the Neogaf forums has uncovered a document on a Singaporean government site that shows that Nintendo is currently on its fourth or possibly fifth Wii U development kit. To put that in perspective the Wii apparently had five development kits. Sounds interesting, this certainly shows the efforts Nintendo are putting into the soon to be detailed console

Ubisoft is a big believer in Nintendo’s upcoming Wii U home console.

“We are big believers in the Wii U, on two subjects… 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… We are supporting the machine because we believe Nintendo is going to push it to another level. We think (Wii U) will be successful.”

I do wonder if pricing will be an issue with Wii U but we shall have to wait and see. I truly hope Ubisoft’s outlook is correct.

Tecmo Koei localization head Peter Garza has told VG247 that Team Ninja are trying their absolute hardest to push the Wii U hardware to its limits with the forthcoming Ninja Gaiden 3. The game itself is still in the very early stages of development, but the team are already tinkering around with the Wii U controller to find out how to make it shine.

“We’re still finding out what the hardware can do and how to work with the hardware itself. Right now, we’re at a very early stage, so we can’t say that we’re pushing it to its limits right now.

“And we really wanted to use whatever hardware we were on, we want to use to its full potential and really push that. Not just in spec, but the features that make that hardware unique. So for right now with Wii U, we’re just starting to know what Wii U is and how we can make it fun.”

You’re probably all wondering why I keep talking about Darksiders 2. Its just a way of reinforcing the fact that big companies like THQ are right on board with the Wii U and its capabilities.

Vigil, the development team behind Darksiders 2 has told the Official Nintendo Magazine that the Wii U version of the game will be unique. The unique feature will be the Wii U controller, which Vigil say they’re utilizing to its maximum potential.

“Y’know, you could just throw in anything just to throw it in but we want to make sure it really works.”

“In the end it’ll have such as unique control set – we think it’s the best we can make for Wii U, but will it be definitive? You tell us when it comes out!”

THQ offer great praise about the sheer quality the Wii U will provide. Below is a Q&A involving THQ and a user from FedWars:

Question: In what ways would the Wii U version be superior over the 360/PS3 versions?

THQ Employee: Well the Wii U is full of potential as far as specs go. I know that Metro: Last Light is running at a good 50-60 fps on the PC, so I’m not sure how the Wii U version will compare to that. But the Wii U version of games from ALL developers and publishers, have potential for much smoother framerates, improved textures, and additional bonus content that the 360/PS3 version’s won’t have. In a way, buying the Wii U version over the 360/PS3 versions, will be like buying the Blu-ray version of a movie instead of the standard dvd version. You get better visuals, and more additional content with the Wii U version of any game compared to the other console version. But this will only happen as long as a developer or publisher puts in the time and effort instead of doing a straight port.

Question: I noticed a lot of games for 360 and PS3 don’t take advantage of TRUE 1080p. Could we see more games on Wii U taking advantage of true 1080p resolution?

THQ Employee: The Wii U is much more powerful than the other HD consoles, so Wii U doesn’t have a huge problem doing 1080p for the majority of its games. Will Darksiders 2 and Metro: Last Light be in 1080p on Wii U? I can’t speak for the teams behind those games. I don’t work on those specific teams so I can’t say what they plan to do with the Wii U versions of their games as far as graphics or content go. I do know based on the specs I’ve seen, the console is more than capable of graphics that surpass current consoles. It’s like I said before. Expect majority of third party Wii U games from most publishers to have true 1080p, additional content, and smoother framrates than what the PS3/360 versions offer. If you want the DEFINITIVE version of any game in your library, I would suggest either the PC version or the Wii U version…at least for now. This is not a knock agains the 360/PS3 versions of any games either. Fans of the 360 and PS3 are the majority of the gamers who games…period. So publishers have to give them the best product we can.

Question: There is a lot of emphasis on graphics nowadays. Where do you see graphics going with future consoles? And will the Wii U be able to graphically compete against new consoles from Sony and Microsoft?

THQ Employee: Listening to people within the company, people are pretty happy with the specs of the Wii U. I don’t think anyone has anything to worry about. There is one thing I want to mention though. Better graphics is not all rosey for gamers in the long run. Better graphics means that game developers have to increase their staff and their budgets so games will tap into the full potential of next gen hardware. The costs to hire more artists or programmers to a team would get passed down to gamers. Which is why 360 and PS3 games went up 10 bucks compared to the previous generation with Playstation 2, GameCube, and Xbox. It’s fun to dream about the possibilities of the kind of graphics you could see if a console had 10 times better graphics than the current consoles. But with a console that is 10 times more powerful…expect 10 dollars to be added to the price tag every generation. Again, I’m just speculating. I’m not saying any publisher would add to the price. But games aren’t selling like they use to, and costs to produce high budget games need to be passed down to the consumers who can afford to play. I predict a very expensive future in gaming.

Crytek, the developer behind Crysis, has told GamesIndustry.Biz that the company is extremely happy with the Wii U specifications. Crytek’s Avni Yerli also mentioned that the development team in Nottingham, England have Wii U development kits.

“The specs are very good. It’s a challenge for designers, but once thought through it can add value, and that’s what ultimately important. Our guys in Nottingham, they are very happy with their tests on the dev kits and they’re excited about it.”

According to the site TSSZ News, SEGA are currently developing 2 Sonic the Hedgehog games. One of which is believed to be a port of the upcoming 3DS, PS3 and Xbox 360 release, Sonic Generations. The second being a completely new title for the franchise, here’s a quote:

“Regarding the prospects of a Wii U Generations port, our source indicates Sega could prepare it for the system’s launch sometime next year, but only if sales of existing versions far exceed Sega’s internal expectations. Even if that doesn’t pan out, the source says there indeed is a Sonic in the works for the system, and it is likely another secondary title. If that holds, it would continue Sega’s strategy of keeping primary fare on XBOX 360 and PS3, while Nintendo consoles get their own unique games.”