Skyrim unlikely for Nintendo Wii U

If you’ve been wondering why you haven’t heard anything about Bethesda games on the Wii U, it’s probably because the developers are wary of the new console.  It looks like Bethesda’s current stance on the Wii U is to take a wait and see approach.  What that means for Bethesda fans looking to get a Wii U? It’s unlikely that you’ll see Skyrim, Dishonored, or other Bethesda published titles on the console.  A recent interview with Bethesda’s Pete Hines explains the publisher’s hesitance on moving any their titles to the new console.

While other publishers are lining up to push their wares to Nintendo’s next-generation offering,  Bethesda is waiting a little longer to see the console in its finished form.  Hines said in a recent interview with MCV, “The developers are trying to hit a moving target, because the platforms are being built.  A new console doesn’t just show up a year before launch and is exactly what it will be when it comes out. It moves and iterates along the way…Introducing something like that to games that are in development is always a bit tricky.  And that is obviously an element of risk.”

Aside from these development risks, Hines also claims that “Your install base always starts at zero.  Then it comes out and suddenly a certain number of people buy it but it won’t be the same number as the current gen.  So you have divided your audience.”  So there are obviously other economic factors at play here.