Two of the most powerful next-gen engines, the Unreal Engine 4 and Frostbite 3, won’t run on Nintendo’s new console, the Wii U. On the Frostbite 3 side we already have big upcoming games like Battlefield 4, Dragon Age 3 and the next Mass Effect – none of which will be available on the Wii U (unless EA will choose to downgrade to Frostbite 2 just for the Wii U market, which I doubt will happen).
As for the Unreal 4, here is what Epic Games co-founder Mark Rein had to say during the studio’s panel at the 2013 GDC:
“Hahaha no. I mean, sorry, it’s not really a correct answer. We’re not… we have Unreal Engine 3 for the Wii U. Right? And Unreal Engine 3 is powering all kinds of amazing games, still lots of games are being made with Unreal Engine 3. We announced today about a new Unreal Engine 3 license. Unreal Engine 3 doesn’t disappear because of Unreal Engine 4. But our goal for Unreal Engine 4 console-wise is next-gen consoles. That’s really what our energies are focused on. If you want to make a Wii U game, we have Unreal Engine 3, and it’s powering some of the best games on the Wii U already.”
So does that mean we won’t actually see next-gen games on the Wii U? Not necessarily, but it could mean Nintendo won’t be able to compete with Sony and Microsoft over the AAA crowds.
Incidentally, Epic Games has released a new demo for the Unreal Engine 4, which you can see right here below, as always. Wii U owners might want to avert their eyes.
Source: Kotaku
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