The core experience of the Wii U has got to be in its GamePad which essentially serves as an additional screen that can be used a multitude of ways when playing games or using certain applications like its upcoming TVii application. But as with most products, the Wii U’s GamePad had very humble beginnings which was highlighted in a recent “Iwata Asks” interview whose topic of discussion was the creation of Nintendo Land.
In the video, Nintendo President Satoru Iwata speaks with members of the EAD development team about how the GamePad came to be. At first, the GamePad prototype was a Wii Zapper with a small LCD screen attached to the front. From there, it progressed to a large LCD screen with two Wii remotes attached to the sides, which was used for approximately 30 Wii U game concepts.
The second prototype turned out to be the controller that most resembles what the GamePad is today, and in our opinion, the better of the two prototypes as a Wii Zapper with an LCD screen would have been seen as a not-so-kid-friendly controller option.