Nintendo Will Not Sell GamePad Separately In North America

When Nintendo finally revealed Wii U would support up to two GamePad controllers, one of the first questions many fans asked was "How much will one of those cost?" After Nintendo's Wii U launch presentation earlier today, I caught up with Nintendo of America president and COO Reggie Fils-Aime to ask just that. Much to my surprise, Fils-Aime said gamers wouldn't have to worry about it - Nintendo isn't planning on selling GamePads as accessories in North America.

[Emilio_Estevez]

Misleading title is misleading, they aren't going to sell them right away cuz nothing will use 2 or more for a while

[guitarded77]

Misleading title on n4g... well I never.

[SandWitch]

Controller accidentally falls on the ground.

Need to buy a new console.

-----------------------------

Sounds like a good plan to sell more consoles

[HammadTheBeast]

@Gynga

Game over.

[--Onilink--]

and honestly, they have a point. Why spend 130-150 on a controller thats not supported right now. Better to use that money on games and 1-2 pro controllers. And when games that do use 2 gamepads start to come out, they put it for sale

[--Onilink--]

i know its dumb to ask this on N4g, but whats with the disagrees?

Why would you prefer to use $150 at launch for a controller thats not supported in any game, instead of buying 3 more games, or 2 games and a pro controller??

You can even use part of that money to get the HDD and you no longer have to worry about space.

Theres a ton of stuff i would prefer to use that money on, instead of a $150 controller that i cant use yet

[vortis]

Because there might be firmware updates or software patches for some games to include support. Better be prepared than trying to fish around for more at the store.

I know COD gets a lot of hate on here but it's pretty cool being able to play on the WiiPad instead of the TV screen for multiplayer. If they added support for four players using multiple pads then yeah, THAT would be cool. It's also possible some people would like to buy a second one just in case something happens to the first one.

[BattleAxe]

Just make sure that you or your kids don't break the game pad that the system comes with. Thats the problem I see with this situation.

[rainslacker]

They do have a point, and it's likely a supply issue more than anything else. However I'd hate to be the person who breaks their controller or has their dog chew it up when they're not looking and have no way to replace it without buying a new system.

They'll end up selling them eventually though and it could make a good lesson for the kiddies in how to take care of their stuff.:)

[J_Cob]

What if you or someone you know breaks it accidentally? (Dropping it, spills etc.) I'm pretty sure the Nintendo warranty doesn't cover accidental damage. Also exchanging it at the store might also be a problem if it sells like the Wii did. That is if the retailer will even accept an exchange if the controller has a cracked screen or other damage. No matter how safe someone is sh_t happens. It may have never happened to you, but if they plan on selling a ton at launch it's bound to happen to someone.

[live2play]

thats what i said since the beginning

people said it would be confusing because some people will buy the pad thinking it would work on the wii

i said that scenario cant happen because nintendo wont sell seperate gamepads on launch day

i got downvoted like 30 times
called an idiot

and see i was right

i deserve an apology n4g :]

(yeaaaaa right)

[LOL_WUT]

Yawn

[ThePsychoGamer]

Really stupid decision, what if your game pad breaks? pretty much SOL until they decide to start selling the gamepads separately

[Fishy Fingers]

Or, return it to the retailer?

[Ben_Grimm]

Or send it to Nintendo for them to fix.

[--Onilink--]

i dont know about you, but if something of mine breaks, i get it fixed or replaced by the manufacturer. I dont go out and buy another one

[kornbeaner]

He must be a 360 owner and used to it with the RRoD. *ZING!*

[stragomccloud]

Nintendo's warranties are pretty good about things like that though.

[rainslacker]

They are pretty good actually. But warranties don't usually cover accidental damage. Probably what you'll see in an accidental scenario is people buying a new system then returning it with the broken controller, which kinda sucks for retail.

[stragomccloud]

Excellent point rainslacker.

[ninjabake]

To everyone complaining about "what if it breaks?" Keep in mind there is a number to call for Nintendo and I'm sure they'd be more than happy to fix it, which is a much better option than running out and buying a $100 controller. Other than that, take care of your electronics! If you can't you probably don't need em in the 1st place.

[Da Ill One]

So what do you do if the only you have break? because you know accidents happen

[Emilio_Estevez]

probably send it back to Nintendo?

[abc1233]

Ever heard of a warranty? They will sell it once games that use 2 gamepads come out, which should be within a year anyway.

[metsgaming]

hes talking about an accident not that it just is broken by itself which would be warrantied but if someone dropped it, threw it against a wall etc. Unless Nintendo covers accidental damage than its a problem. I was also thinking this aswell, i guess they could order one directly from nintendo but that shouldnt be

[swansong]

I can't wait to get me a wii-u when it drops down to $99.

[ssb3173]

Not even the Wii is at that price yet, and even so, should you wait till then to buy one then the next generation of consoles will be out by that time.

[rCrysis]

Dude. The Wii is 79.99 pre-owned at gamestop.

[swansong]

That was my way of saying I am in no hurry to get one. Eventually I probably will but first on my list will be the next gen ps4 or xbox.

[ScubaSteve1]

how much are the extra controllers will cost? did they say

[Sgt_Slaughter]

The GamePad Pro will cost $49.99 at retail.

Pretty good for a controller.

Also if you have the Classic Controller Pro for the Wii, you could use that first until you save enough money for the extra controller.

[ChunkyLover53]

Makes sense not to sell a controller that isn't supported, but what if someone breaks theirs?

[Sgt_Slaughter]

Call up Nintendo and sent it in for repair. Shouldn't take as long as a RROD Xbox did, though. (I hope, anyway.)

[PopRocks359]

Nintendo and Sony are typically better with customer service than Microsoft. I highly doubt it'd be a problem.

[ChunkyLover53]

@PopRocks359

I don't think so, my brother had RROD and got his new Xbox within 9 days. I bought a XBL Starter Kit once and the chat pad didn't work, they sent me a new one without even getting the old one back. I cant even recover my old downloaded games from Nintendo. I had around 15 Virtual Console games on my first Wii, that one broke so I bought a new one, they wont let me download those games again.

Cant really say when it comes to Sony, but I hear if your PS3 breaks, you don't get that same model back, so I treat my backwards compatible PS3 with kid gloves, the last thing I'd want to do is downgrade.

[Smashbro29]

That's a smart move, they'll be able to put all the manpower into console production to meet demand. Reggie is a smart dude.

[vortis]

Reggie reminds me of a salesman.

He looks like a used car salesman.

[Smashbro29]

Oh totally, but he's also really smart.

[DivineAssault]

So if a bad batch comes out w a faulty controller, the retailer will prolly be sold out & u gotta wait 30 days or so to send it in & get it fixed.. Holiday season will mean u aint finding one til january for an exchange

[metsgaming]

I guess the real reason is so no one goes into the store picks up the controller and tries to use it with the wii and cause mass confusion. This way that wont happen as much when they actually sell it separately because it will be out a while and many will learn that its not just a controller..

[colonel179]

Your logic sounds stupid, but I can totally agree with it. Since a lot of people were confused about the controller thinking that it is a Wii add on, (also due to the poor presentation they had) Nintendo might have thought that selling them separately would cause confusion and even lawsuits from stupid people.

For everyone wondering about the controller breaking, if it's within the warranty I guess Nintendo will replace it, and if not, they will sell one to you. Just like they sell sensor bars, cables, etc.

[chrisarsenalsavart]

I still don,t get the concept

It seems to me to be quiet a single player experience.?!?

Guess time will tell.

[AWBrawler]

more like 2 separate games that affect one another simultaneously. Its like parallel universe that affects the one next to it XD

[Ck1x]

But remote play on PS3 probably makes all of the sense in the world to you though right? Ok I Get it... lol

[stragomccloud]

At first I was thinking it was a bad move. However, Nintendo's reasoning is pretty good. It's so they meet demand. If they produce the same number of game pads, then only a percentage would be included with the system.

[gamer7804]

they will sell controllers at a later date when the games for 2 come out, for a whopping 173$ (usd exchange) O.o. Insanity.

[CharlesDCI]

It does make sense because why produce a ton of the Gamepads if launch games won't support more than one of them and there is no guarantee that the system will even sell to meet the demand in the first place.

I see kids being the real reason a Nintendo Gamepad is in danger of being damaged. Would you keep your Nexus Tablet just sitting there on the table with a 6 or 7 year old in the house? My best friend's son broke their Wii by sticking a penny in it lol. If Nintendo wants kids to be a part of the fun they have to realize that they break stuff, but don't have the money to replace it.

[Man-E-Faces]

This is disappointing to me for 1 important reason local co-op what a selling point it could have been at launch. Imagine no split screen multiplayer/co-op on your T.V all you would have to do is pick up another GamePad and bam your own screen with full view of the action even better with supporting up to 4 local players all with their own screen. Now maybe this will come later on or maybe not if 3rd party devs abandon the WiiU for PS4/NEXTBOX/PC much like Wii but to me this is a big missed opportunity for Nintendo's launch they could have made these simple launch ports into something special or worth a second purchase example MASS EFFECT 3 4-player local co-op have your family/friends for the first time control the squad mates only on WiiU.

[DevilishSix]

OH CRAP I just sat on the controller....Houston we have a problem and a big problem it will be.

Think I will pass until Ninty gets their act together.

[ninjabake]

They're not selling a seperate gamepad(multiplayer gamepad games aren't even supported yet) so now they need to "get their act together? LOL OK man.

[Double_O_Revan]

Jesus people, READ the article.

[Monkeysmoke]

Isn't Fifa 13 a Wii U launch game?
Am confused here, how am i suppose to play fifa 13 with my friends?? Fail!

[TBONEJF]

Why would anyone want to buy a extra GAME PAD? It's more money if you have a friend that have one just bring it over that simple