Miyamoto: Wii U will only read one screen-pad

The once-inestimable potential of the Wii U console has been cut to size – with Nintendo confirming that only one screen-pad will work with each system.

Nintendo development boss Shigeru Miyamoto said Nintendo’s “basic premise is that you can use one [Wii U controller] with a system."

How this impacts on third parties hoping to bring dual-analogued triple-A games to the system is unknown, though it will likely become a talking point for developers.

Nintendo Wii classic controllers can work with the system, theoretically opening up the possibility of “core game multiplayer”.

It is not known if Nintendo is going to assure third-party publishers that it will manufacture and promote other “core controllers” for the system.

The success of the Nintendo Wii U, as a core games platform, is hinged on how third party studios work with the tech.

Nintendo’s business is selling the Wii U through exclusive games and innovative use of the tech, the company’s US boss said this week.

Today, Miyamoto told News.com.au that a 3DS could theoretically be used with the system.

“If we got to an idea of having multiple controllers it might just be more convenient for people to use their Nintendo 3DS and have a way to connect that," he said.

That claim suggests the Wii U can theoretically transmit visual data to more than one separate controller screen – a theory that Nintendo is investigating.

"We are doing research about if someone brings their controller to their friends house and they want to play together on Wii U to whether or not something like that would be possible," Miyamoto said.

The Wii U can play five-player games using up to four Wii Remote Plus controllers.