任天堂（Nintendo）能否在Wii U上复制Wii的奇迹？Wii发布于2006年，这款名字有些拗口的游戏机凭借动作识别技术，一举颠覆了成千上万玩家的游戏方式。这一次，任天堂卷土重来，希望触摸屏能助其再现奇迹。

    我们此次评测的是价值350美元的“豪华版”Wii U，配置包括：内置32GB存储空间的黑色游戏主机、一个Wii U游戏手柄、一套手柄座充，以及迷你游戏合集《任天堂大陆》（NintendoLand）。游戏主机是一个厚厚的黑色塑料盒，看起来很像外置硬盘，不过与游戏手柄相比黯然失色。Wii U手柄高5.3英寸（13.4厘米），宽10.2英寸（26厘米），有将近1英寸（2.5厘米）厚，绝对是个庞然大物。这款手柄功能众多：摄像头、麦克风、扬声器、动作感应器、甚至在手柄正中还有一块6.2英寸的触摸屏。任天堂对这块屏幕寄予厚望，希望开发者能借此打造出独一无二的游戏体验。

    不过游戏体验和游戏息息相关。生存恐怖游戏“僵尸U”（ ZombiU）是Wii U的独占游戏，它对触摸屏的使用堪称完美。当艰难行走在逼真的末日后病毒蔓延的伦敦街头时，我不得不寄希望于触摸屏。它可是名副其实的大救星，能显示周边环境，还能在雷达上标出附近的僵尸。而且，我只需点击一下，就能管理武器和物品。这使我的体验感觉更完整，甚至得到提升。在《任天堂大陆》中，有一款名为《忍者城堡》（Ninja Castle）的小游戏。它把触摸屏变成一个平台，从平台上瞄准、射击飞镖到电视屏幕上。这个理念一点都不复杂，但有趣极了。

    不过对于《忍者龙剑传3：刀锋边缘》（Ninja Gaiden 3: Razor's Edge）等其余首发游戏而言，触摸屏部分更像是开发完成后才添加的。虽然玩家也能在屏幕上指指点点，但这还不如他们用Wii U Pro直接在电视屏幕上操作方便。Wii U Pro售价仅为50美元，没有屏幕，外形很像Xbox 360手柄，握在手里非常舒服。游戏开发者有责任充分利用Wii U的大手柄及其触摸屏。当然，我们这次见到的只是第一批游戏，也许假以时日，我们能见识到真正的Wii U游戏。

    Can Nintendo do with the Wii U what it did with the Wii? When Nintendo launched that console in 2006, the oddly named system changed the way millions of players interacted with games with a controller that recognized gestures. This time, Nintendo aims to repeat that success, this time by including a second screen.

    Our review unit was the "Deluxe" package, the black console which retails for $350 and includes 32 gigabytes of onboard storage, one Wii U GamePad controller, a charger stand for the controller, and NintendoLand, a pack of mini-games. The console, a thick slab of plastic that resembles an external hard drive, takes a back seat to the controller itself. Standing 5.3 inches high, 10.2 inches wide, and nearly an inch deep, the Wii U GamePad is positively huge, hosting a buffet of features -- video camera, microphone, speakers, motion-sensing tech, and a 6.2-inch touchscreen display -- among them. By adding a second screen, Nintendo hopes developers will create gaming experiences that can't be found elsewhere.

    That experience depends on the game. The survival horror game "ZombiU," exclusive to Nintendo's console, uses the second screen to excellent effect. As I anxiously stumbled my way through a convincing, post-apocalyptic, virus-infested version of London, I was forced to look at that second screen. It was a veritable lifeline that offered a map of nearby surroundings, helped suss out nearby undead via radar, and let me manage weapons and supplies with a tap. Doing so felt integral and even enhanced my experience. In "NintendoLand," one mini-game called Ninja Castle turned that same screen into a sort of platform from which to aim and shoot ninja stars from to the TV screen. It's a simple enough concept, but incredibly fun.

    Yet in other launch games like the action game, "Ninja Gaiden 3: Razor's Edge," the screen felt more like a gimmicky afterthought, where players can tap into features that otherwise could have been easily accessed on the TV screen with the Wii U Pro, a $50 screen-less controller shaped a lot like the Xbox 360's that also fits snugly in hand. The onus is on the developer here to fully utilize the larger GamePad and its screen, and obviously we're only looking at the first wave of games, so it may be some time before we see what the Wii U can really do.

    上周末，任天堂对Wii U进行了软件升级。虽然我们仍然无法证明Hulu Plus及亚马逊（Amazon）Instant Video等流媒体视频应用的进展如何，但Netflix这次倒有如神助。它全新的用户界面和Wii U手柄配合得甚是完美。所有内容都加载得很快，我能在触摸屏上非常方便地进行视频搜索、跳过片头片尾、快进和后退等操作。整体效果明显强于PlayStation 3和Xbox 360上的Netflix。

    不过并非所有一切都完美无缺。举例来说，退出游戏或应用程序时，我发现Wii U主界面的加载时间非常长。最快也要16秒之久，最慢一次长达28秒。（平均用时20秒。）虽然这并不是个影响全局的问题，但用户很快就会对此感到厌烦。手柄的触摸屏也经常掉链子。我有时发现屏幕对我的点击毫无反应。

    此外还有价格问题。对于一台新款视频游戏机而言，300美元是一个很中规中矩的价格。但眼下，父母们完全可以给自己的智能手机装上1美元、5美元或是10美元的游戏，然后给孩子玩，相比之下，300美元就是个大数目了。因此，韦德布什证券（Wedbush Securities）分析师迈克尔•帕切特预计，任天堂今年能在国内卖出350万台Wii U，其后再卖出1,000万台Wii U，可能不及Wii上市头两年半的销量。

    现在，任天堂比以往任何时候都更需要一次巨大的成功。该公司将本财年的净利润展望从2.51亿美元下调至7,520万美元，而休闲游戏只会更加普及。但是，Wii U会为任天堂带来马里奥、林克和银河战士那样的经典热卖大作吗？Wii U具备很多必要的元素，包括可靠且具有创新的硬件。假如在五年前，我会毫不含糊的说：“会。”但如今眼看着《愤怒的小鸟》出了无数续集，我感觉没那么确定了。

    译者：项航

    Over the weekend, Nintendo updated the Wii U's software, and while we still can't testify to how video-streaming applications like Hulu Plus and Amazon Instant Video fare, Netflix worked like a charm, with an entirely new-interface that uses the GamePad very well. Everything loaded quickly, and I could handily search out content, skip around around movies and episodes, fast-forward, back-track, and so on with the touchscreen. The experience overall is superior to Netflix on the Playstation 3 or Xbox 360.

    Not everything's perfect. For one, I found that loading up the Wii U's main menu, say, when exiting out of a game or an app, took too long. At best, I counted 16 seconds; at worst, 28. (The average time was 20.) It's not a dealbreaker, but it gets old quickly. The GamePad's screen can also be hit-or-miss. Once in a while, I found the screen didn't recognize my finger taps.

    There's also the price. $300 is pretty standard pricing for a new video game console, but may now seem like a lot to parents who could more easily load up a $1, $5, or $10 app on their smartphone and hand it over to their kids. This reasoning is why Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter predicts Nintendo could sell 3.5 million units domestically this year, and then 10 million units thereafter, potentially less than what the Wii sold during its first two-and-a-half years on the market.

    Now, more than ever, Nintendo needs a homerun. The company slashed its net profit outlook from $251 million to $75.2 million for the fiscal year, and casual gaming devices will only proliferate. But will the Wii U be that for the company that spawned memorable properties like Mario, Link, and Metroid? Many of the ingredients it needs are there, including solid hardware with an innovative twist. Five years ago, I would have given an unequivocal "yes," but in a time when Angry Birds persists with its umpteenth sequel, I'm not so sure anymore.