What does the lack of Far Cry 3 mean for the Wii U?

By: Musa Afridi

  |   September 22nd, 2012   |  

Uncategorized

Ubisoft confirms that they have “no plans to release Far Cry 3 on Wii U” despite their strong support for Nintendo’s next-gen console.

It seems publishers are still testing the Wii U waters, as none of the studios have committed everything they have to the console. Nintendo took almost everyone out of their comfort zones with the Wii U with its dual screen design and the level of power the console boasted.

Many developers passed on the title with early announcements of games heading towards the console of games that had already been released in the market, such as Mass Effect 3 and Batman: Arkham City.

Ubisoft was the one studio that seemed to want to seriously commit to the console with a Wii U exclusive title, ZombiU. At the same time the publisher is also bringing Assassin’s Creed 3, Just Dance 4 and Rayman Legends (another exclusive) to the console, which is by far the most committed by a single third-party publisher.

However, that is as far as the studio is willing to go, as it confirmed that it had no plans to release their upcoming first-person shooter, Far Cry 3, on the Wii U. The reason behind the move could be anything, ranging from a lack of certainty surrounding the Wii U being successful, whether or not the core gamer – the target audience for the game – will turn to the Wii U, time constraints or already having a number of titles on offer.

All of the above make sense, but one can sense a bit of caution in the move. The Wii U is set to expand on the Wii’s reputation of being a family, party friendly console to one that is all of that but can also cater to the core gamers who want shooters and deeper gaming experiences.

ZombiU, Batman: Arkham City and Assassin’s Creed 3 demonstrate this intention, as does the inclusion of Black Ops 2 on the console, however, those seem safe bets. ZombiU has the benefit of being the only first-person shooter exclusive to the console, Assassin’s Creed 3 and Black Ops 2 are sure to sell well and Arkham City’s developer has nothing to lose with the port of their game.

Far Cry 3’s inclusion would not only have demonstrated faith in Nintendo’s new approach with the Wii U but it would also have made other developers look up and take notice.

Are we overanalyzing the situation or is there something more to the lack of Far Cry 3 on the Wii U? let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.

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