Capcom’s longtime producer, Yoshinori Ono—best known for revitalizing the Street Fighter series—recently shared key insights into the Nintendo Wii U’s innovative hardware.
Speaking to 3D Juegos, Ono underscored how the Wii U would bring a host of "unique possibilities" to gaming, capabilities that are difficult to fully grasp through traditional reporting or previews alone. While Capcom has been involved in the development and adaptation of numerous titles across Nintendo platforms, Yoshinori Ono’s remarks emphasize how the Wii U’s leap in technology represents more than an incremental hardware update.
Instead, it’s a fundamental shift in how games can be experienced by players, much like the company’s own pioneering work on street fighting mechanics and online play over the years. Ono explained, "The demonstration that took place at last year’s E3 doesn’t encompass everything the Wii U is capable of." He went on to say that Capcom’s development teams have already been hands-on with the Wii U development kits.
"Some of the platform’s new features significantly expand what’s possible," Ono added.
He made it clear that, unlike motion-focused accessories such as Microsoft’s Kinect, the Wii U’s innovations take a different approach, opening distinct creative opportunities for game developers. As for details on Capcom’s own progress with the Wii U, Ono lightheartedly remarked that revealing more would have drastic consequences from Nintendo, quipping that he would be "in trouble" for disclosing unannounced information.
Even so, Ono reiterated that the Wii U will offer so many original and distinctive features that simply reading about them or seeing them in promotional materials won’t do them justice.
"The console’s unique value will be difficult to capture on packaging or in magazine articles—it needs to be experienced firsthand," he observed. Nintendo officially launched the Wii U in November 2012, introducing notable features such as the GamePad controller with an integrated touchscreen, asynchronous multiplayer, and enhanced online functionality via the Nintendo eShop.
Despite being succeeded by the Nintendo Switch, the Wii U remains a crucial part of Nintendo’s hardware history, having sold over 13 million units worldwide. Capcom’s developers have a longstanding reputation for leveraging unique console features in their franchises, from the innovative use of the DS’s dual screens to motion control support on the Wii.
Ono’s reflections signal anticipation among developers about the fresh gameplay mechanics and creative expansions possible on Nintendo’s platforms—both for Capcom’s own properties like Street Fighter and for the wider industry. With both Capcom and Nintendo maintaining a robust partnership in recent years, including collaborative showcases at Nintendo Direct presentations and the success of titles like Monster Hunter and Street Fighter, Ono’s perspective affirms that the Wii U era brought a spirit of experimentation that continues to influence modern game development.
Speaking to 3D Juegos, Ono underscored how the Wii U would bring a host of "unique possibilities" to gaming, capabilities that are difficult to fully grasp through traditional reporting or previews alone. While Capcom has been involved in the development and adaptation of numerous titles across Nintendo platforms, Yoshinori Ono’s remarks emphasize how the Wii U’s leap in technology represents more than an incremental hardware update.
Instead, it’s a fundamental shift in how games can be experienced by players, much like the company’s own pioneering work on street fighting mechanics and online play over the years. Ono explained, "The demonstration that took place at last year’s E3 doesn’t encompass everything the Wii U is capable of." He went on to say that Capcom’s development teams have already been hands-on with the Wii U development kits.
"Some of the platform’s new features significantly expand what’s possible," Ono added.
He made it clear that, unlike motion-focused accessories such as Microsoft’s Kinect, the Wii U’s innovations take a different approach, opening distinct creative opportunities for game developers. As for details on Capcom’s own progress with the Wii U, Ono lightheartedly remarked that revealing more would have drastic consequences from Nintendo, quipping that he would be "in trouble" for disclosing unannounced information.
Even so, Ono reiterated that the Wii U will offer so many original and distinctive features that simply reading about them or seeing them in promotional materials won’t do them justice.
"The console’s unique value will be difficult to capture on packaging or in magazine articles—it needs to be experienced firsthand," he observed. Nintendo officially launched the Wii U in November 2012, introducing notable features such as the GamePad controller with an integrated touchscreen, asynchronous multiplayer, and enhanced online functionality via the Nintendo eShop.
Despite being succeeded by the Nintendo Switch, the Wii U remains a crucial part of Nintendo’s hardware history, having sold over 13 million units worldwide. Capcom’s developers have a longstanding reputation for leveraging unique console features in their franchises, from the innovative use of the DS’s dual screens to motion control support on the Wii.
Ono’s reflections signal anticipation among developers about the fresh gameplay mechanics and creative expansions possible on Nintendo’s platforms—both for Capcom’s own properties like Street Fighter and for the wider industry. With both Capcom and Nintendo maintaining a robust partnership in recent years, including collaborative showcases at Nintendo Direct presentations and the success of titles like Monster Hunter and Street Fighter, Ono’s perspective affirms that the Wii U era brought a spirit of experimentation that continues to influence modern game development.
