The Wii U’s most traditional controller will last a while, but don’t expect to use it on Wii titles.
With three controller options available from launch, we expect to be charging Wii U accessories left and right from day one. The Wii U Pro Controller, for its part, will make things a bit easier with a remarkably long 80-hour battery life on a single charge. Compared to current generation controllers which top out at around the 25 to 30-hour mark, that’s quite an improvement.
The new Pro Controller takes after the Xbox 360 controller in a number of ways, including shape and much of its button layout. It features a rechargeable battery pack – as opposed to AA batteries that Wii owners will be very familiar with replacing – which is recharged via a cord that plugs into the system.
Of course, you didn’t expect all the new details on an upcoming accessory to be positive, did you? Oh, silly you. It seems that despite being nearly identical in function to the Wii’s Classic Controller Pro, you won’t be able to use the Wii U’s Pro Controller to play any of the backwards compatible Wii software.
The Wii U Pro Controller will launch alongside the console on November 18th, though it won’t be included in any bundles out of the gate. You’ll have to shell out an extra $49.99 for one if you want to put its crazy battery life claim to the test.
Source: Nintendo Life
