Without letting the people that support them know they had options.

Boo fucking hoo, let the 12 people who are gonna boycott Nintendo for making Zelda U a cross-gen release cry about it. Nintendo is going to make far more money by releasing it on Wii U & NX, Wii U owners are still going to get the game and NX owners will have a major title to play at launch. Everybody wins except for a few over-sensitive drama queens.

So how should they let people know about options without announcing the console successor too early?

The Wii version of Twilight Princess wasn't officially announced until 2006. Before that, they only said that they will bring "next-generation iterations of its lucrative Mario and Zelda franchises" to Revolution (who would have thought?), but they left it unclear that Twilight Princess gets a GC and a Revolution (Wii) version:

• http://www.ign.com/articles/2005/05/17/e3-2005-mario-and-zelda-go-next-gen
• http://www.ign.com/articles/2005/08/16/zelda-delayed-to-next-year

In the end, 1.6 million GameCube fans bought the GC-version, over 7 million Wii gamers bought the Wii-version and a unknown number of GameCube hardcore fans felt betrayed about the lost GC-exclusivity, still hold a grudge against Nintendo about that betrayal... but I doubt that the number of the last group is statistically relevant or even measurable.

Again you don't read what already is written.

Again, nobody couldn't predict very long devomplement time of Zelda U, terrible Wii U sales and shorter Wii U lifespan. Nintendo never said Zelda U is exclusive Wii U game, they just said "new Zelda game for Wii U". Also they already done same thing with TP on Wii, people also initially didn't know that will be cross gen game, and guess what nobody complain about that and game become huge success on Wii and helped Wii launch gretly, why Nintendo would not do same thing again!?

You basically don't have one single argument that make sense why Nintendo will not port Zelda U on NX, you just keep giving replies that dont have sense and on which we already give you answers.

Nintendo already said it totally new concept, so definitely will not be just traditional console like PS4/X1.

The big question for me is will it be 2 packages or one will they sell the HH side separate to the console or will the console come with a HH similar to the vita in size as the standard controller that also is the handheld component you just walk off with.

In the whole when will NX arrive I think if they are launching a new combined platform it needs to arrive at the same time both the HH and console either holiday 2016 or spring 2017, leaving it until holiday 2017 will be suicide imo.

GameStop Says Nintendo NX Releasing in Next 12 Months
http://nintendoenthusiast.com/news/gamestop-says-nintendo-nx-releasing-in-next-12-months/

Zelda U will be both on Wii U and NX (Either at launch or during the first year) The current Wii U owners will buy it and then some will double dip for the NX copy later down the line, You also have to think that if the NX is a combined platform there will be many millions of copies sold to people who are from the HH side and/or console owners that skipped out on the Wii U who grab the NX.

On the point of people buying a Wii U only for Zelda U.... They will play Zelda U and that's it and in 4-5 years time buy a NX to play Zelda NX, That's how they roll.

Pissing who off exactly? TP showed that anyone complaining was a non issue, DS, 360 and Megadrive also showed that releasing new hardware this way when you've got everything planned out well still outweighs anyone who would be upset. Fact is Wii U has a good library and can be sent off just fine it's not like the console has no games at all, those complaining will begin change their minds at the first sight of new first party games on NX as even if your scenario was the case Nintendo always has one thing in their favour and that's their IPs.

I'm fine with a unified system as a concept. but not having an option to have normal controllers like a traditional console and with the rumoured leaks of the NX gamepad? there would be people who wouldn't buy-in.