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Fate of Nintendo Wii U Likely Hangs on Price Tag

If it's $500, analysts don't expect great sales

By the Associated Press

Posted Jun 10, 2011 9:12 AM CDT

(AP) – The upcoming Wii U, part tablet computer, part game machine, could help Nintendo surpass its rivals once again. But not until we know how much it will set us back—investors so far are skeptical of that and other unknowns, and the company's stock has fallen 10% since the Wii U's unveiling this week. Expectations for the new machine have been high following the original Wii's roaring success. Wii U, which will go on sale next year, features a motion-sensing controller with a tablet-like touch screen and high-definition graphics. Only the tablet screen feature will be unique to the Wii U.

"People are getting harder to impress," said one analyst of the ho-hum reaction. Others called the console brilliant and believe Nintendo will have no problem selling it, as long as it costs less than $300. With an economy that's still on the rocks, money speaks. The lack of an announced price for Wii U, as one analyst said, "makes people worried that it'll be 500 bucks."

In this June 7, 2011 file photo, Satoru Iwata, President of Nintendo Co., Ltd., discusses their new gaming console the Wii U during a news conference at the E3 Gaming Convention in Los Angeles.
In this June 7, 2011 file photo, Satoru Iwata, President of Nintendo Co., Ltd., discusses their new gaming console the Wii U during a news conference at the E3 Gaming Convention in Los Angeles.   (Chris Pizzello)
Nintendo's next video game console, the Wii U, is demostrated with the Measure Up game at the Nintendo booth at the 2011 Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles, Wednesday, June 8, 2011.
Nintendo's next video game console, the Wii U, is demostrated with the Measure Up game at the Nintendo booth at the 2011 Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles, Wednesday, June 8, 2011.   (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
In this publicity image released by Nintendo, the latest product by Nintendo, the Wii U, is shown.
In this publicity image released by Nintendo, the latest product by Nintendo, the Wii U, is shown.   (AP Photo/Nintendo)
In this photo taken by AP Images for Ubisoft, Ubisoft's Samrat Sharma demonstrates Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Online at the E3 gaming convention on Wednesday, June 8, 2011, in Los Angeles.
In this photo taken by AP Images for Ubisoft, Ubisoft's Samrat Sharma demonstrates Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Online at the E3 gaming convention on Wednesday, June 8, 2011, in Los Angeles.   (Casey Rodgers/AP Images for Ubisoft)
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