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Posted by: Matt Liebl

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Like its predecessor, Nintendo is hoping they face shortages with the Wii U. Of course, that shouldn't come as much of a surprise since shortages usually means demand for the product is high.

Speaking to Gamespot, Nintendo's director of product marketing Bill Trinen explained the company is "obviously hoping" for a situation similar to that of the Wii — where consumers could not find Wii units at retailers for weeks following the launch due to high demand.

"Any time that there is that much demand, it means people want the product. It's tough to say right now," Trinen explained. "The sense that we're getting is that there is a lot of demand for the system."

"As we did with Wii, we're trying to manufacture them as fast as we can and bring them to market as fast as we can so we don't have any shortages," he added. Earlier this week, Nintendo of America head Reggie Fils-Aime confirmed that stock for the Wii U will be replenished by the Black Friday rush and again by Christmas.

"But, back on the Wii, I think the volume for that system was unprecedented. So it's tough to use that as a barometer. We're going to do everything we can to make it as fast as we can," Trinen concluded.

Despite the early reported success with pre-orders, it seems consumers are a bit more hesitant to buy into the Wii U. With next-gen PlayStation and Xbox consoles presumably on the horizon (with a possible announcement as early as next year), gamers aren't as willing to buy into the innovation of the Wii U and its GamePad controller. 

Do you plan on purchasing a Wii U this year?

Tags: Wii U