TV, movie features on new Wii U delayed until Dec. (Update)

TV, movie features on new Wii U delayed until Dec.
In this June 5, 2012 file photo, an attendee plays a video game using Nintendo's Wii U controller at E3 2012 in Los Angeles. Nintendo unleashed 23 games for its upcoming console featuring a touchscreen controller at the Electronic Entertainment Expo, or E3, the gaming industry's annual trade show. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)

Some of the entertainment features on Nintendo's new Wii U won't be available when the game machine goes on sale Sunday.

Nintendo didn't give a reason for the delay in Friday's news release, and representatives did not immediately respond to inquiries by email.

The new service, Nintendo TVii, promises to take into account all the ways users watch movies, TV shows and sports.

If you like the TV show "Modern Family," for example, it will present you with a list of the show's episodes gathered from available sources, whether that's Hulu, Netflix or traditional cable TV.

The Wii U is the first major game console to launch in six years. The free TVii—pronounced "tee-veeee"—features were supposed to be available at the time of Wii U's launch in the U.S. and Canada. Nintendo said the TVii service will now be activated sometime in December.

With TVii the GamePad controller that comes with Wii U is supposed to work as a fancy remote control. Viewers will be able to browse shows to watch or send suggestions to other Wii users. The service also captures scenes from live TV and displays them on the controller's touch-screen display.

Nintendo also said the ability to watch Amazon, Hulu and Netflix content on the Wii U won't be available for a few more weeks. These are separate apps, though the content services will also be available through the Wii U app.

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Citation: TV, movie features on new Wii U delayed until Dec. (Update) (2012, November 16) retrieved 19 March 2024 from https://phys.org/news/2012-11-tv-movie-features-wii-dec.html
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