Riccitiello: EA’s “just beginning to realize,” what it can do with Wii U

By Stephany Nunneley

EA CEO John Riccitiello has said the firm is just “beginning to realize,” what it can do with the Wii U tablet, as having an extra screen “transcends anything,” he has “ever done before” with a controller.

Speaking with Industry Gamers, Riccitiello believes there are plenty of different things which can be done using the controller in games.

“It’s a high definition platform and I love the controller,” he said. “I just think it’s cool. You’re a gamer – so you’ve got the screen here [in your hands] and you’ve got the [TV] screen there and you’ve got full control. Personally, while there’s some great experiences on Move, and there’s some great experiences on Kinect, I’m not a motion control guy. It’s still too imprecise for me. I like shooting something and hitting it. I like turning a corner and feeling precision.

“So I still like my swizzle sticks and my shoulder buttons and my Xs and Os, etc. But there is something about having that second screen that transcends anything I’ve ever done before.

“I can draw a pass pattern for Madden, I can be playing an FPS up here while I’m calling in air strikes or whatever I want to do. I can give all the detailed control off the screen, I can see another part of a map… I always find it breaks the spell for me when I’m playing a game with a squad and I have to stop the action and move up for them. Now I can just move them down here [on the tablet].

“I think there’s something really powerful about a second screen that I think really matters. I think we’re just beginning to realize what we can do with it and I think it’s obvious we can do a lot with it.”

There isn’t an exact date for when Wii U will be released just yet, but it is expected sometime after April 2012.

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