Today in Japan, Nintendo confirmed the upcoming release of the Wii's successor. The still-unnamed console will be revealed at this year's E3 gaming expo in Los Angeles in June.
The new console will go on sale in 2012, said Nintendo in an official statement.
Sales of this new system have not been included in the financial forecasts announced today for the fiscal term ending March 2012, which suggests that the new console might not be out before the April 2012 calendar year.
Kotaku broke the news that Sony and Microsoft are apparently waiting until 2014 for their new machines, making Nintendo first out of the gate in the next console generation.
This console, believed to be code-named "Project Cafe", is rumored to be a powerful machine, boasting bigger and badder specifications than either the Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3.
According to Nintendo president Satoru Iwata, "We would like to propose a new approach to home video game consoles." But don't look for that to include 3D.
The Wii successor is also suspected of using a novel controller interface which marries a traditional d-pad-and-buttons scheme with a large touch-screen input. Kotaku also reported that while the new console will feature a new controller, it will also support Wii Remote-style controllers.
"We will show a playable model of the new system and announce more specifications at the E3 Expo, which will be held from June 7-9, 2011, in Los Angeles", Nintendo said in a written statement.
Nintendo's announcement today confirms what Kotaku originally reported. According to Nintendo, there will also be more details shared at that time.