No one really buys into this Nintendo Fusion business, surely.
Locking down the specs of a whole new console before the Wii U has even turned two? Unlikely at best.
And as for replacing the 3DS, the best selling console of 2013, in the process - now that really doesn't really add up.
NintendoNews is confidently standing by its "very reputable source" – fair enough – but it all smells pretty fishy. I don't dispute that Nintendo has begun work on its next big project because that's just the way these things go.
But if Nintendo has any sense, which I believe it does, we won't be seeing the Wii U successor for a long time yet, by which point these purported specs will be outdated anyway.
"I can see the attraction in hoping Nintendo might have super computer waiting in the wings. A machine capable rendering Mario's individual moustache bristles in 4K? Sounds cool," Official Nintendo Magazine's Editor Matthew Castle tells us.
"But I don't believe it for a second. It sounds to me like some wily writer has taken two things they know to be true - a 'Fusion' trademark dating back to 2003 and Nintendo's announcement that its home console and handheld teams would be unified into one - and spun it into something crazy."
Get together
But the rumours do highlight another potential strategy. Nintendo missed a significant opportunity to converge the Wii U and 3DS early on, and I think there's every chance we could see Nintendo re-market both consoles in an effort to change that. It's no quick-fix solution, but it would be a big step in the right direction.
The 3DS is proving largely successful, so use it as a flotation device for the Wii U. Ideally, I'd like to see a more unified OS and more cross-platform gaming. Hey, maybe even give the Wii U a new look with a less ugly gamepad.
But more importantly just convince us that the handheld and the main console are meant to be together.
Sony had that exact same idea in tying the PS4 and PS Vita together. Nintendo converged its handheld and console divisions last year, yet the 3DS and Wii U still feel awkwardly disjointed.
Ok, so the Wii U isn't particularly powerful. Neither is the 3DS. But both have two screens, including a touchscreen at their disposal, so why isn't Nintendo making more of that?
Super Smash Bros will be one game to show off the cross-platform possibilities this year (Monster Hunter did it last year) but why hasn't there been more of it? Nintendo needs to give the two a new, more converged identity.
Still breathing
Nintendo is far from dead. It's cash rich and still pushing out quality software. There are some heavyweight titles heading to both consoles this year, with Mario Kart 8 and Super Smash Bros promising to be big hitters. But it still needs to act swiftly if it's going to revive the Wii U.
A small part of me would like to see Nintendo strike back with a power-heavy new console, but I know that it's far, far too soon, and ultimately a bad idea. That should be Plan F right now.
Plan A is to give us a reason to buy what it's already got on the market, and I think the 3DS should be a big part of that. A U turn is still possible.
