[Coda]

It's not so weird from a business perspective. Nintendo NEEDED to release the Wii U as quickly as possible even if that meant finishing the software AFTER they had sent the hardware specifications to fabrication. The Wii had lost most of its traction in the market and the 3DS still isn't selling well enough on its own. Nintendo had to release a product not just for the sales values but also to get third-party developers back in the game -- consider just how few good third-party Wii games were produced. Releasing the Wii U told developers that their efforts weren't going to just be vaporware.