Nintendo Wii U Launch Date, Pricing, & Bundles Revealed By Distributor?

Could it be that this distributor listing for the Wii U be right on pinning down its most wanted and purposefully undisclosed details, well before Nintendo has a chance to?

Nintendo Wii U console gamepad black image

Eight days and counting is all that separates us from Nintendo’s press powwow in New York City, where on September 13, its expected that the company will reveal the last, crucial details – launch date, pricing, specs, what haves you – for the Nintendo Wii U.

Or not, as it seems. Because according to the latest piece of Internet scuttlebutt, Video Product Distributors, who so happens supplies stock to a popular little Mom & Pop online retailer called Amazon (perhaps you’ve heard of them), had its inventory listing for the dual-displaying gaming hardware leaked.

A significant listing which allegedly spills out what Nintendo might make privy come next Thursday. The first apparent item? The website lists the release date on November 11, which counters gaming-accessories makers PDP’s own “cat out of the bag” claims of a November 18 release for the Wii U (hmm, I wonder who ends up being right?).

But things get much speculatively saucy, folks; the inventory listing also surprisingly sheds light on three, unbeknownst to the public, Wii U oriented bundles, each priced differently from each other. Just take a good gander as how the VPD website divvies up the Wii U:

Click for full image!

VPD Wii U listing screen image

Breaking it down, the top entry lists the Wii U at $249.99 USD, while the other two, come in at $299.99 USD, and $349.99 UDS respectively. If this turns out to be true, a two-hundred-and-fifty dollar base price for Nintendo’s next gaming machine sounds totally awesome, but then, what are you getting at that figure exactly?

Really, the crux query should be what makes each individual SKU laid here unique from the next, besides its cost? Obviously, “GM” must mean game, right? Okay, a game must come with that bundle – I get that. But what’s going on with that third listing? Why redundantly list the price in the product name? Baffling that one, seriously.

As you would expect, a huge response of pontification has risen forth from the Twitters over exactly this rumored proposition, and as best as I can surmise from website to gaming forum, the general consensuses has come up with there following scenarios:

$249.99 – Wii U Console, Gamepad
$299.99 – Wii U Console, Gamepad, and a game (a lot of people assumed Nintendoland as this choice)
$349.99 – Wii U Console, Gamepad, a game, and a Wii Remote & Nunchunk

Seems pretty reasonable – wait, the Internet, reasonable? I can’t believe either, honestly – and knowing Nintendo’s family-friendly MO, I would expect this very kind of straightforward bundling for the general masses (i.e. the casuals) to decide on a Wii U option that best fits their overall needs.

And as for the other far side of the spectrum (i.e. hardcore gamers), those of us who already have their living rooms piled ridiculously with Wii accessories a plenty, the $249.99 base configurations lets us get on Wii U bandwagon quite comfortably, especially at that sweet price which undercuts their gaming console rivals.

That is if – yes, there’s an “if,” I’ve got some journalistic duty, gosh darn it! – Video Product Distributors’ data is on the nose. As far as we know, it could just be speculation on VPD’s part, a placeholder for when Nintendo actually doles out the truth on the 13th. Till then, I guess we will just have to wait this one out and see. Oh, that timeless favorite, The Waiting Game.

Meanwhile, we here at Walyou shall keep you company with our many geeky posts about the Inebriator, an incredible robot bartender, or highly cool and informative Punch-Out!! encyclopedia on Kickstarter.

Source: VG247