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Nintendo's Wii U woes (The 3:59, Ep. 15)

We talk about a report that the Japanese gaming company will stop making its flagging console, plus hit on "Batman v Superman" and on cartoons teaching computers what's funny.

Ben Fox Rubin Former senior reporter
Ben Fox Rubin was a senior reporter for CNET News in Manhattan, reporting on Amazon, e-commerce and mobile payments. He previously worked as a reporter for The Wall Street Journal and got his start at newspapers in New York, Connecticut and Massachusetts.
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Roger Cheng Former Executive Editor / Head of News
Roger Cheng (he/him/his) was the executive editor in charge of CNET News, managing everything from daily breaking news to in-depth investigative packages. Prior to this, he was on the telecommunications beat and wrote for Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal for nearly a decade and got his start writing and laying out pages at a local paper in Southern California. He's a devoted Trojan alum and thinks sleep is the perfect -- if unattainable -- hobby for a parent.
Expertise Mobile, 5G, Big Tech, Social Media Credentials
  • SABEW Best in Business 2011 Award for Breaking News Coverage, Eddie Award in 2020 for 5G coverage, runner-up National Arts & Entertainment Journalism Award for culture analysis.
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Ben Fox Rubin
Roger Cheng


Nintendo's Wii U is on the ropes and the company may be getting ready to give up on it.

A Japanese newspaper reported that Nintendo will stop making its troubled gaming console, perhaps to refocus on a mysterious new system dubbed NX to gain ground against Sony's PlayStation and Microsoft's Xbox. We discuss Nintendo's denial of the report and what may become of the long-time gaming company.

We also talk about The New Yorker's new crowdsourcing algorithms for its cartoon caption contest, which may one day teach computers what's funny, and also delve into the movie "Batman v Superman" while trying to avoid giving away any spoilers.

The 3:59 gives you bite-size news and analysis about the top stories of the day, brought to you by CNET Executive Editor Roger Cheng and CNET Senior Writer Ben Fox Rubin.

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