http://wiiudaily.com/2012/04/wii-u-launch-date-set-for-november-18-2012-report/

Not officially confirmed at this point, but all signs point to yes. The date is exactly 11 years after the release of the Gamecube and just shy of 6 years since the release of the Wii.

Get saving people.

I'm gonna have to flag this as a rumor for now buddy. It's not truly a confirmation yet. But I appreciate your effort! And I even used your spelling of rumor! ~ DrFinkelstein

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Too bad there is no price information. Lets hope I don't have to crawl through hoops just go get this device at launch.

lol come on this is hardly a confirmation. And the source has been in serious question. Why the hell has this been tagged as news? Came in expecting more than the original flimsy rumour. Shame on you ShadowLink. You're better than this!!

This is pretty much what I was expecting datewise.

Not really a shock, and in line with what the GameStop guys wagered.

carlosrox said:

Shame on you ShadowLink. You're better than this!!

...No I'm not .

Actually I saw the original story on the online version of my local paper, then I checked here and couldn't believe this hadn't been posted, so I obliged. Big scoop and all .

I ended up posting the WiiU daily link as that was the source for the news article here and I thought it was a better choice than linking to my than my local rag. And I did say it wasn't fully confirmed, but it *seemed* good.

And now I've just seen the WiiU rumor thread where I see you guys are already talking about this .

We can ignore this thread for now if you want, I'll edit it later as more info comes to light.

Sounds right. I won't be buying at launch most likely, but this is when Nintendo likes to release big stuff. Just in time for Black Friday.

Goddamn birthday is always a day to early :|

I'm ready!

Like I said in the other thread, I think Wii U Daily just made this up, but it's probably right. The third Sunday in November is when Nintendo likes to release their big holiday release. The GameCube, the DS, the Wii, New Super Mario Bros. Wii, Animal Crossing: City Folk, Donkey Kong Country Returns, and Skyward Sword all released on the third Sunday in November of their respective years.

Not too much of a stretch, it's the date I've been expecting.

If this turns out to be true I say it's just too late. November is a huge rush of great holiday titles, and by that date Nintendo will have missed a lot of third party games in the weeks before, including ones back in October. Now of course those games can still release as Wii U launch games, but they will still not perform as well if they've already been released on the other platforms earlier. Think about it, if a big game is coming out, but you can get it earlier on your PS3, and you're not a huge Nintendo fanboy, and there's no real big improvements on the Wii U version, why would you wait?

It isn't so much a rumour as it is a safe bet, but I see no reason why Nintendo won't go with that date. After the troubles Nintendo faced with the 3DS, which launched in March, I see Nintendo sticking with a tried and true date like November 18th.

@Brick

Yeah I'd prefer an October or September date personally.

@Brick
This.

November feels too late not only personally, but strategically. Now I don't mean DOOMED too late, but missed opportunity too late.

I don't see how it's too late... No one's going to buy a Wii U for games they can already get on their Xbox 360 or PS3. The exclusives are what's going to draw people to the system, so its launch date isn't very important.

DrFinkelstein said:

@Brick

Yeah I'd prefer an October or September date personally.

Same, but that's because I'm so busy come November that there will be no time to just sit back and enjoy the console until 2013!

@Mop it up

We want third party games to sell well, so that pubs/devs see that releasing on a Nintendo machine isn't a waste of time and money. Launch time might be a little rocky, and not worth basing anything off of regardless of whether the system releases in late November, or early September, but still, why not have a good start? Nintendo missed a lot of great games in past holiday seasons, so why go through another year of that when now they actually have a system powerful enough to run these big games? Sure Wii U looks to be like they'll be getting them, but how well are they going to sell if no one buys the Wii U version because they already have the game on their PC/360/PS3?

Seriously, even though nothing is set in stone, I would bet that this is probably the release date and if not the 18th, then the 11th. I only say this cause most of Nintendo's system launch right around this timeframe. I doubt the Wii U would launch later, cause the next weekend is thanksgiving weekend and the black friday event.

Hell, maybe Nintendo will release the system in Oct or Sept. The N64 was released in NA Sept 29,1996. I remember, cause I had my N64 reserved at Toys R Us, and for whatever reason, I was able to pick up my system and Mario 64 game on Sept 26. I remember getting the call that the system and games had arrived and the lady said people who reserved the system could come pick up theirs whenever they wanted, that way there would be a huge line and mass hysteria on the actual launch day.

I know that would never fly in today's world. Who knows, maybe Toys R Us did get in trouble for breaking the street date or maybe back then Nintendo wasn't on top of things the way they are now, plus the internet and PC's really wasn't even available for the masses. Im sure there were a few people online, but for most of us, the internet was just a dream.

I guess I'm still one of the people who would love to see Nintendo show all the big guns at E3 and then say the machine is out in a week. Even if the machine gets off to a slow start, it'll be hitting hard by the time the 4 month long holiday season arrives, with all those multi-plats and whatnot

@gamewizard65
I was 10 years old and I remember being so antsy for the N64 I begged my parents if we could drive by the store to see if we could get it. If I recall correctly it actually released a day early or something, and if I'm not mistaken AGAIN, we still got it the night before that. I think the clerk felt sorry that I came so late at night to see if I could get my N64 that he broke the street date for me. I could be wrong, but that's how I remember it.

I remember how he took it out from their boxes and placed it above his shoulder as he carried it to the counter. One of the most exciting moments of my life.

@grantimusprime
Wouldn't we all love that? Just won't happen (99% chance?). I think New Forms said the same thing, that it should launch early for the "hardcore" early adopters, then release the big games later on. I don't see why that'd be so bad. They KNOW it'll pick up come holiday season.

Not a crazy rumor, as Nintendo has released lots of big stuff on the 18th or close to it over the years.

i am still unsure if i will be able to make enough money to buy the system at launch, i will be working hard to at least try... I am going to preorder it regardless the moment i can.