Iwata: Xbox SmartGlass Can’t Do Everything Wii U Can

During an investor meeting, Satoru Iwata talked about competitors and their approaches to Wii U. While Nintendo of America’s Scott Moffitt is flattered by Xbox SmartGlass, Iwata believes that Microsoft’s new feature is not capable of delivering the same experiences as Wii U. Iwata believes that the Wii U GamePad has an advantage over SmartGlass because, not only does it have a screen similar to tablets and smartphones, it has all the features of a traditional video game controller.

“The question is, is what they [Microsoft] are offering truly capable of doing everything that we’re offering? From what we have seen so far, it looks to us as if what they are able to offer really is only a small facet of what the Wii U is capable of.”

“We know that the core users who love playing video games like controllers that you hold with two hands. But what you don’t have on smartphones and tablets are the buttons and the control sticks that they prefer to use.”

“Previously after we’d introduced motion control, it took the other companies about three years before they introduced their own style of motion control.”

“This time, the fact is that we’ve seen something of this nature come out within a one-year time frame from when we first announced the Wii U. That suggests to me that they clearly see value in what we’re trying to do.”