Iwata Rules Out Early Wii Sports Sequel

Nintendo president and CEO Satoru Iwata has indicated that no sequel to Wii Sports is expected in the near future and that the company will continue to concentrate on new game concepts, rather than traditional sequels to even its most successful titles. Sold as a pack-in title in the West and as a normal retail product in Japan, Wii Sports is widely credited as being one of the prime factors behind the Wii’s early and continuing success, with over 7 million units sold worldwide. Speaking in an interview with Japanese blog 1101.com, Iwata responded to a question asking which sports would be included in a sequel to Wii Sports by saying: “We're not going to take such an easy way, not by including seven new sports in the game since Wii Sports has five. We're not closing our doors to the possibility of a sequel, but it's definitely not coming out soon.” “If you start making such decisions without thinking, you start doing the easy stuff. You disengage yourself with the pursuit of true entertainment,” continued Iwata. “The reason why Nintendo isn't doing the easy is because our goal is clear. Our mission is to surprise people in a good way, and this became very clear as we made Nintendo DS and Wii. You can't open up a new market of customers if you can't surprise them”, he added. The interview was also conducted in the presence of Iwata's close friend EarthBound/Mother creator Shigesato Itoi and his staff, and gives the clear indication that Nintendo intends to continue to develop more unusual game ideas in the mould of Brain Training and Wii Fit rather than rely on traditional game sequels and concepts.