-Greg Livingston

According to early translations of an investor Q&A with Nintendo president Satoru Iwata, the Wii U may ditch friend codes. It appears that instead the Miiverse—an experimental social networking tool pioneered by the Wii U—will allow for more intuitive friend keeping as compared to the Wii, DS and 3DS.

This has not been confirmed, but if true, this could prove essential for Nintendo. The company has had trouble integrating online components in their consoles in the past. The Friend Code system is Nintendo’s current method of tracking who you can contact to play games online, and it has widely been criticized as unintuitive and clunky.

Iwata also addressed other consumer concerns. He mentioned that the Wii U price has been set at a level that will encourage sales in light of the 3DS price drop. (The Wii U will start at $300 USD.) In addition, Nintendo is watching the Wii U’s release schedule so that major titles are released not only during the immediate launch window, but also after the holiday season.