Wii U Will Be Region-Locked, Imports Will Require A Mod-Chip

If you were hoping to pick up a Wii U this November while living in the Americas or Europe and then import some of Japanese exclusives planned to release for the system after December, you're fresh out of luck. Nintendo has confirmed that the Wii U will not allow for multi-region support and each system sold in a different territory will be region-locked.

Nintendo confirmed to CVG that their newest console will not enable gamers to play games from different regions. What a chary approach to gaming culture, Nintendo...real smooth.

No further explanation was provided by the Big 'N' about why they're still using Feudal-era antics for console distribution, especially given that Sony and Microsoft don't employ the same kind of region restrictions on their consoles.

What does this mean for Wii U owners who feel like tasting the various flavors of other game releases outside of their own region? It means you'll have to taste said flavors with the help of a mod-chip. That's right, you better get real friendly with a soldering iron and the smell of hot chips if want to import any game for the Wii U outside of the designated retail region.

This kind of antiquated method of game distribution was common back during the 5th generation of gaming and earlier but, come on...this is 2012, Nintendo should at least have their rocks in a sack by now. Really.

This could turn out to be even more detrimental for Wii U exclusives that don't port outside of specific regions, which could turn a lot of those fears about Bayonetta 2 into a reality, given that if the game is exclusive to Japan you wouldn't be able to play the game even if you did plop down $300 or more for the Wii U, unless you modded your console or moved to Japan.

Will Usher

Staff Writer at CinemaBlend.