With the release of Nintendo’s Wii U game console, the company hopes to re-position itself in the gaming market, which has seen a surge of gaming on social networking sites. Hundreds of people have queued up at electronic shops across Japan to get their hands on the new device.
More than 100 people were seen waiting outside Bic Camera’s flagship store in Tokyo’s Ikebukuro commercial district before was opened at 8 am. The number then quickly increased to several hundreds.
A 24-year-old graduate student said, “I have already ordered one. But I lined up to catch this carnival atmosphere”. The student had waited overnight to become the first Wii U buyer at the Tokyo shop and expressed that he is excited to take it home and play.
The Japanese company has already released a successor to its video game console Wii in the US, Europe and Australia. During its first week more than 425,000 new units were sold in the US market after it was released in November 18, 2012. On the other hand, the original Wii device has sold more than 97 million units around the world since its launch in 2006. The Wii U is equipped with a touch screen controller known as the Wii U Game Pad.
