Nintendo spins delayed Wii U entertainment apps as proof of a ‘living, breathing system’

The Wii U’s launch didn’t exactly go off without a hitch: Nintendo was forced to delay a number of popular video-on-demand apps and its own TVii software as the console’s release drew near. Now the company is trying to paint the situation in a positive light, with Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime spinning the initial lack of Amazon Instant Video, Hulu Plus, and YouTube as proof that the Wii U is “a living breathing system.” In an interview with MTV Multiplayer, he goes on to say, “what I mean by that is the experience that consumers will have tonight as they first open the system will be different than the experience that they have two weeks from now, it will be then even more different two years from now.”

Fils-Aime emphasizes that Netflix, arguably the most critical app among that trio, was made available on launch day as planned and says the others will arrive “In the days and weeks ahead.” Nintendo’s explanation isn’t entirely preposterous: one needs only to look at the massive evolution Microsoft’s Xbox 360 dashboard has seen over the course of its near seven-year lifetime to understand that consoles can improve dramatically with time. But the problem is that both of the Wii U’s prior-generation competitors already offer the three apps that Nintendo has so far been unable to deliver. If Nintendo is struggling to keep up with aging hardware from Microsoft and Sony, it doesn’t bode well for the true next-generation battle likely to kick off next year. Nintendo has the advantage of time to shape the Wii U into a competent home theater machine, but the clock is ticking.