Industry big-shots anticipate ‘Wii 2′ announcement this year

As Wii sales are gradually slowing, the ‘Wii 2′ rumour-mill has well and truly spun into action, as publications like CVG and GamesRadar get in on the act. They quote a variety of well-respected sources, all of whom believe an official announcement for Nintendo’s next assault on the home console market is on the horizon.

Our regular readers here at GGS will likely recall in August last year we reported on some information we received from a Nintendo associate, confirming plans for a Wii successor and the inclusion of a Blu-ray drive, to launch by the end of 2012 – to say it caused controversy could well be considered an understatement.

However, naysayers may be eating their words sooner rather than later, as GamesRadar quotes leading industry analyst Colin Sebastian. He believes, following the launch of the 3DS, Nintendo’s brand new handheld console – bringing some much needed re-invigoration of consumer interest in their products – it’ll be the perfect time for the gaming giant to reveal their new home console.

Elsewhere in the industry, THQ’s CEO Brian Farrell has said a ‘Wii 2′ reveal this year would come as no surprise to him. Farrell got onto the subject of hardware lifecycles while giving a speech at the Goldman Sachs Technology and Internet Conference, where he said he does not anticipate any announcements from Microsoft or Sony camps in the near-future. He added, “It’s difficult on Nintendo – we’ll let them announce their new hardware.”

So, could we be looking at an official ‘Wii 2′ announcement by the end of the year? These guys certainly seem to think so. There’s no smoke without fire, people.

[Source: CVG/GamesRadar]