Speaking at a shareholder meeting President Satoru Iwata promised that Nintendo would learn from the mistakes it made launching the 3DS to ensure its 2012 bound Wii U is released with a full host of top games.

Since the unveiling of Nintendo's new Wii U there has been speculation whether the console is repeating its predecessors mistakes. The original Wii, while breaking numerous records has been widely criticised for its lack of strong third-party developed games.

A similar criticism has since been lodged against Nintendo's 3DS console.

In the shareholder meeting, when asked about the 3DS's slow start Iwata gave credence to this claim, citing a lack of preparation by Nintendo toward the 3DS's launch titles for the console's continuing weakness. The president went so far as to describe the 3DS launch lineup preparation work as "lacking".

Iwata commented that he believed the console would have done better had it been launched alongside better games: "We also must reflect on the fact that we were not able to launch Nintendo 3DS at a time when a sufficient number of strong software titles were ready."

Further to this, Iwata added that the company was working to ensure that its forthcoming Wii U did not suffer the same fate: "In order to avoid the same thing from happening to the Wii U, we are considering details, such as what software is suitable for the launch, more carefully than ever before."

The news comes just after President and Chief Operating Officer of Nintendo of America Reggie Fils-Aime released a few more details about the Wii U, including that its release would be in the second half of 2012.

Already the Wii U has proved a costly exercise for Nintendo. Putting aside the costs Nintendo incurred developing it, just after the Wii U's unveiling Nintendo's stock value plummeted 5.7 per cent to 16,930 yen at the close of trading in Osaka. In the two days following a reported 2.2 million Nintendo shares were sold.

Nintendo