E3 2011: Each Wii U Console Will Only Support One Touchscreen Controller

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Nintendo, as of late, seems to be falling into the habit of rushing announcements and releases. They did it with the 3DS, putting it on store shelves before most of the handheld’s features could actually be used, and some feel like they did it again with the reveal of the Wii U (as well as Pikmin 3 and Super Smash Brothers). Indeed, there’s weren’t many details on the Wii U to give during their E3 presser, with Nintendo choosing to focus mainly on the controller.

Ah, but that controller. If there’s one thing about the Wii U that qualifies as cool, it’s the tablet-like touchscreen controller. While other details about the console have taken a backseat, the new controller has become the center of Nintendo’s Wii U reveal, at it actually seems like something that could potentially change the way we game.

But it may not be as awesome as we thought, as Shigeru Miyamoto says that at the moment, the Wii U can only support one touchscreen controller at a time. That means no multiplayer games where you each have your own inventory screen or your own individual HUD, and also probably an increase in sibling fist fights, as other players are relegated to using a Wii remote – or, as Miyamoto suggests, possibly a 3DS.

“Our basic premise is that you can use one with a system,” Miyamoto said in an interview with news.com.au. “If we got to an idea of having multiple (controllers) it might be just more convenient for people to use their Nintendo 3DS and have a way to connect that.”

Sticking a limit on the number of controllers will probably be fine with most folks, considering that buying one for every member of the family will likely get expensive fast. It still puts a damper on multiplayer sessions though, but Miyamoto says that they’re still looking into whether or not the Wii U can actually handle streaming to multiple controllers at once.

“We are doing research about if someone brings their controller to their friends house and they want to play together on Wii U to whether or not something like that would be possible,” he said. So how about it, does the one controller per console setup sour the deal for you? Let us know what you think in the comments section.