Gamers and Nintendo fans are certainly a bit distraught that the Wii U price wasn't revealed at E3 earlier this week. European retailers have begun to list the prices, and while not a definitive answer it certainly gives us a ballpark estimate.
Retailer ShopTo places the console at £279.85, which equates to about $433.13 USD. It's worth noting however, that console manufactures rarely sell their consoles for the same price in North America. For example, a 160GB PS3 can be bought from GAME UK for £199.99 ($310 USD). However, in North America that same system retails for $249.99 USD - $60 cheaper than the Pounds Sterling equivalent. It's seems more likely then that the system could retail for a price between $350 and $400.
This is especially important considering that GAME's Swedish website has the console listed for 4,995 Krona (£450). In US dollars, this is around $696.49 - more than the cost of a launch day PS3. GAME also listed possible pricing for the Wii U gamepads. The controllers - which have undergone a redesign - are listed for 1,499 Krona (£135), or$209. That's a lot to pay for a controller, even with the tech inside.
Nintendo's Reggie Fils-Aime says gamers will be pleasantly surprised by the price Nintendo has in mind. Judging by his words, that would make ShopTo's price the most likely estimate. $350 is still a bit of a high price, but it's at least more affordable than the price GAME has listed. The high cost could also be attributed to the tech in the Wii U and the Tablet Controller - it's probably not cheap to manufacture tablets with each console.
Of course, let us all remember that this could just be speculation on the retailers' end. While shops have outed unannounced games in the past, nothing is official until it comes from Nintendo - and the discrepancy between prices is even more reason to be skeptical. Still, this should give gamers some idea of what the console may cost.
Ranters, how much would you pay for a Wii U?
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