The Game Cube disc argument doesn't hold out too much. They're the same discs as the Wii just in mini DVD size. I don't see how they can't be read by the drive unless they made it impossible to hold those discs in, which is just stupid if that's the case.

Did you not read Mr Kahn's comment above?  The Wii U has a slot loading drive like the Wii.  To be able to accept discs of both sizes requires a special drive that is more expensive than a standard slot loading drive.  On top of that, you would need to add all the controller ports and memory card slots to the hardware.  That would just drive up the cost of the console.

What would be the point?  Nintendo is just looking at diminishing returns here.  I'm sure a lot of people used their Wii to play GC games, but I bet that the frequency has diminished as the generation has gone on.  The Wii U will be able to play Wii games, and that is going to be good enough for the vast majority of people.  Fewer and fewer people are going to want to be able to play games that are two generations old.  Those people can hold on to their Wii or GC, or eventually buy virtual copies.

Not a surprise, well, it's time to move on for me...

If that is indeed the main thing stopping them, I would appreciate having an adapter to play GC games. It's not as elegant as Wii's drive, but works nonetheless.

http://www.amazon.com/Pocket-Adapter-Drives-Player-Cartridge/dp/B000067VBS

http://news.worldofapple.com/archives/2007/11/29/apple-developing-solution-for-mini-cd-slot-load-problems/

all the rest is mostly a software problem which shouldn't be that difficult to overcome.

I wonder if Nintendo would go after a third party company who offered such a solution... They could sell the mini-dvd adapter together with a GC memory card/SD card adapter to allow you to transfer your saves (Nintendo actually manufactured sd card adapters for GC back in the day) along with the required software to manage your saves on Wii U and emulate the controller. They could even offer an adapter that connects GC controllers to wiimotes like a CC, as seen here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1RE_s_X0Cac

Nintendo is in the same place as Sony was before PS3 release - after being so succesfull they started to belive they know better what consumer wants then that consumer himself.

keep your old consoles. simple answer.

Whilst it would be nice for convenience, I think I've only actually used GC compatibility on the Wii once in the last 2 or 3 years. On the rare occasion I get nostalgic for the GC (which isn't very often given how much of a disappointment it was, aside from one or two games), I'll just have to dig out my GC, which I still have.

I couldn't sell it after all, as I'd probably have to pay someone to take it off my hands.

I don't see why the Wii U controller couldn't be mapped (Unless you can't have more than one Wii U controller as the rumours suggest).  And yes the Wii uses a slot loading drive, the same drive that reads GC games.  I don't see how it would cost much more to modify the slot loader to load mini divds, the lense reads it without a hitch.

I have only really begun to appreciate the gamecube during recent years when I was forced to find games to play at times where there weren't any Wii games that interested me. Today I can easily list 20-25 games from the system that are truly worth owning, and enrich my gaming experience on Wii. In comparison, I probably won't have more than 35-40 Wii retail games by the time I complete my collection, so that's quite a considerable chunk of my library.

Of course counting VC and WiiWare changes that ratio, but it's still nothing to sneeze at.

No biggie. I can play Gamecube games on my Wii and will play my Wii games on my Wii U.