Virtual reality isn't a good fit for the Wii U, says Nintendo

Miyamoto
You don't make friends with VR

Miyamoto took the Oculus Rift for a spin at this year's E3, and while we don't know what he experienced on the headset, we now know a little more about his thoughts on virtual reality as a whole.

The upshot? Don't expect Nintendo to wheel out the Virtual Boy 2 any time soon. Speaking to Time, Nintendo's Shigeru Miyamoto said he was unconvinced by the type of experiences virtual reality offers for console gamers.

"When you think about what virtual reality is, which is one person putting on some goggle and playing by themselves kind of over in a corner, or maybe they go into a separate room and they spend all their time alone playing in that virtual reality, that's in direct contrast with what it is we're trying to achieve with Wii U," he said.

"And so I have a bit of uneasiness with whether or not that's the best way for people to play."

An antisocial perspective

While he's probably got a point, Sony, Oculus, Samsung, and probably Microsoft (if rumours are to go by) all see a big future in VR. But Nintendo has never been one to follow the rules, so if you're hoping for some immersive Mario Kart VR on Wii U any time soon (as brilliant as that sounds) - don't hold your breath.

However, Miyamoto did add that Nintendo could potentially approach VR from a different angle.

"There's interest in the technology, but we think it might be better suited to some sort of attraction style of entertainment, say something at a video game arcade or things like that, rather than something that one person plays alone."

Hugh Langley

Hugh Langley is the ex-News Editor of TechRadar. He had written for many magazines and websites including Business Insider, The Telegraph, IGN, Gizmodo, Entrepreneur Magazine, WIRED (UK), TrustedReviews, Business Insider Australia, Business Insider India, Business Insider Singapore, Wareable, The Ambient and more.

Hugh is now a correspondent at Business Insider covering Google and Alphabet, and has the unfortunate distinction of accidentally linking the TechRadar homepage to a rival publication.

Latest in Nintendo Wii U
Nintendo Switch Wii U
The best Wii U eShop games to buy before the store shuts down
Mario
Nintendo closing the Wii U and 3DS eShops makes classic NES titles subscription-only
If you’ve been thinking of buying a Wii U, now could be a good time to do it
The 20 best Nintendo Wii U games: titles you don't want to miss
Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is the last gasp for Wii U
A eulogy for the Wii U
Latest in News
Open AI
OpenAI live stream - could we see a major ChatGPT upgrade?
Apple WWDC 2025 announced
Apple just announced WWDC 2025 starts on June 9, and we'll all be watching the opening event
Hornet swings their weapon in mid air
Hollow Knight: Silksong gets new Steam metadata changes, convincing everyone and their mother that the game is finally releasing this year
OpenAI logo
OpenAI just launched a free ChatGPT bible that will help you master the AI chatbot and Sora
NetSuite EVP Evan Goldberg at SuiteConnect London 2025
"It's our job to deliver constant innovation” - NetSuite head on why it wants to be the operating system for your whole business
Monster Hunter Wilds
Monster Hunter Wilds Title Update 1 launches in early April, adding new monsters and some of the best-looking armor sets I need to add to my collection