THE BUZZ: A number of unnamed developers at major studios have suggested that the Wii U is weaker than both the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in terms of graphical power.

Speaking to GameIndustry.biz under promise of anonymity one source said:  ”No, it’s not up to the same level as the PS3 or the 360. The graphics are just not as powerful.”

“Yeah, that’s true. It doesn’t produce graphics as well as the PS3 or the 360. There aren’t as many shaders, it’s not as capable. Sure, some things are better, mostly as a result of it being a more modern design. But overall the Wii U just can’t quite keep up,” agreed another developer.

EGM’s TAKE: This is not what fans wanted to hear. The Wii U needed to be more powerful in order to take advantage of the small gap between its release and Sony’s and Microsoft’s next-gen consoles. Releasing your next-gen console and having it be weaker than current gen competitors will seriously put Nintendo at a disadvantage. Some developers in this interview believe that Nintendo placed too much emphasis on their new controller and therefore had to scale back the consoles specifications to keep the retail price down. While the controller looks impressive, it may not be enough to draw people away from the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. Nintendo’s other problem will be convincing its mainly casual audience to spend money on a console upgrade.

Source: GameIndustry.biz