With this morning's revelation that EA does not have any Wii U games in development comes the outright confirmation that FIFA 14 will not be appearing on the system as well.

"Although FIFA 13 on Wii U featured our award-winning HD gameplay and innovative new ways to play, the commercial results were disappointing," an EA representative told Joystiq. "We have decided not to develop FIFA 14 on Wii U. We have a strong partnership with Nintendo and will continue to evaluate opportunities for developing FIFA for Nintendo fans in the future."

The game was initially announced for PC, Xbox 360 and PS3, so while Wii U was never in the picture for the game, it still marks a noticeable absence for a series that launches on every major platform each year. It's not the only EA Sports title to avoid the system, as EA confirmed earlier this month that the Madden series will not see a release in 2013 on Wii U either.

This morning's Nintendo DIrect, hosted by the ever gracious Satoru Iwata, covered NIntendo's plans for the summer. The company has another Nintendo Direct planned closer to E3, since it isn't holding a press conference at the mega show. Here's the highlights from this morning:

• Sonic: Lost World was confirmed as a Wii U and 3DS exclusive. This comes after yesterday's trademark, domain registration leaks.
• The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages and The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons will be discounted at $4.99 for the first three weeks after launch on the Nintendo eShop May 30.
• Mario and Sonic are teaming up again to sell millions of copies in Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games. No release window was given.
• Super Luigi U is both downloadable content and a standalone product.
• The Wonderful 101 are set to save the Wii U the best they can on September 15 in North America, flying into Europe on August 23.
• Sega's Game Gear lives again with several more games for the 3DS virtual console.
• And, finally, if you can't attend E3, Nintendo will hold special demo sessions of unreleased games at Best Buy. Specific locations will be detailed in the future.

In a "one more thing" moment on the latest Nintendo Direct, Big N president Reggie Fils-aime announced a special partnership with Best Buy. During the week of E3, the big box electronics store will be hosting playable demos of unreleased Wii U games. Presumably, these will be the games that Nintendo is showing off during the industry's annual trade show, but Fils-aime did not reveal specific titles.

The week of E3, incidentally, begins June 9. Your friendly Joystiq staff will probably be too busy to make it to Best Buy though.

Nintendo has revealed that Wonderful 101 will land on the Wii U on September 15 in North America and on August 23 in Europe. Coming from Platinum Games, Wonderful 101 sees players wielding ordinary citizens as weapons. It's as nutty as it sounds.

The Super Luigi U DLC for New Super Mario Bros. U is being released as a digital download for the game on June 20 in both North America and Europe. However, it's also coming to retail as a packaged standalone. It'll be available August 25 in North America, and July 26 in Europe. The DLC will be priced at $19.99, while the standalone is $29.99. You won't need NSMB U to play the packaged game.

This morning's Nintendo Direct also revealed that Nabbit, a little critter who you chased in the first game, is a playable character in the new content. He'll be available in multiplayer games as an easier alternative to Luigi and the Toads. He won't take damage when he touches enemies, but to balance that he won't be able to use power-ups.

Super Luigi U makes changes to NSMB U's campaign to make every course "all-new" - it's essentially a new Luigi campaign.

A new Mario & Sonic game is headed to the Wii U. Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games reunites the members of the Mushroom Kingdom with Sonic and friends for a bit of snowy competition. Winter Games will offer lots of events that make use of both Wii Motion Plus and the Wii U GamePad, sometimes in combination. For example, the Biathlon uses the Wii Remote for skiing, while the GamePad is used as a scope for rifle sections. (Side note: The Biathlon is a weird event.)

Other events shown include bobsledding, snowboarding, skiing, skating and more.

Launch timing was not announced, though winter seems like a good bet.

Sega and Nintendo have entered into a "worldwide partnership" on three upcoming Sonic games, and the first fruit borne from it is Sonic: Lost World. It's coming to Wii U and 3DS, and there'll be more news on it prior to E3.

Nintendo president Satoru Iwata said on this morning's Nintendo Direct: "Sonic: Lost World is a brand new action-adventure platforming game that will launch exclusively on Wii U and Nintendo 3DS."

We're not sure today's Nintendo Direct will announce much in the way of new Wii U games. Well, it' unlikely to reveal any new EA ones, anyway. What we do know is that the North American broadcast covers Wii U and 3DS games coming in the summer.

As ever, the North American stream intertwines with simultaneous ones from Europe and Japan. Ninty's Euro division says its stream is about spring and summer Wii U games. Should you prefer, you can find both those streams after the break.

We hope you're ready to rumble, because this summer party gets started at 10AM ET (7AM PT, 3PM UK) right here on this post, right here on this Joystiq. We'll have all the news for you as it's revealed, like lots of little suns peeking out from behind an Iwata-shaped cloud.

Update: It's all over, friends. And there was a new game...

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Mega publisher Electronic Arts has no games currently in development for Nintendo's Wii U. EA recently confirmed the detail to Kotaku, following mounting evidence the publisher was no longer planning to make games for the struggling console.

It was previously revealed that some of EA's biggest franchises would not make their way to the Wii U this year, including Madden NFL or Battlefield 4. The final sign of something being terribly wrong would have been EA's top-selling FIFA franchise ditching out. That's a certainty now.

Another hot, fresh loaf of financial data has been pulled out of The NPD Group's analytical oven, and its buttery goodness contains sales information for the four week period between April 4 and May 7, 2013. During that time, the physical retail sector of the games industry was down 25 percent when compared with its performance over the same four weeks in 2012, pulling in a grand total of $495.2 million. It's worth noting, however, that this figure does not include the sale of PC games.

Hardware sales brought in $109.5 million, a 42 percent decrease from the $187.8 million seen last year, with the Xbox 360 once again enjoying the highest sales with 130,000 units moved. Meanwhile, the brief reprieve from year-over-year decline seen by the Accessories segment last month was short lived, as in April it by dropped 19 percent to a total of $131.4 million.

Software sales (including PC games) topped out at $267.8 million, with NetherRealm Studios' Injustice: Gods Among Us taking top honors as the best-selling game for the period, the first time a fighting game has finished in first since 2011's Mortal Kombat. Dead Island: Riptide and BioShock Infinite rounded out the podium in spots two and three respectively – meanwhile MMO/Syfy series Defiance debuted in fifth. As always, scope the full list after the break.

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Hey, remember that bundle of Red Son Injustice: Gods Among Us DLC that GameStop had as an exclusive pre-order bonus? In a fitting turn of events, said bundle will no longer be the privileged purview of the bourgeois and will instead be available to the sweaty, overworked proletariat masses as of next Tuesday.

No word yet on how much the DLC will cost, or whether it includes the pre-order's 20 bonus challenge missions in addition to the costumes seen above. The game's official twitter account has also asked which other characters from Red Son we'd like to see; we think the answer should be obvious.

A number of YouTube members report that Nintendo is issuing "Content ID Match" copyright claims en masse for videos featuring gameplay from its published titles.

The move appears to target the "Let's Play" community, in particular. Let's Play series authors often produce full video walkthroughs of featured games, with voiced or subtitled commentary accompanying gameplay.

When a "Content ID Match" is claimed for a YouTube clip, the claimant is given the right to place an advertisement at the beginning or the end of the video. Content ID Matches differ from DMCA takedown notices or outright video removals, in that matched videos remain viewable by the public and do not count as a copyright strike against their producers. All revenue earned from views, however, will go to the content's copyright owner, rather than the video uploader. The act is common for publishers like Activision, Electronic Arts, and Square Enix, but it's only recently that Nintendo has joined in the practice.

Multiple affected authors have come forward on Reddit to confirm Nintendo's new policy. To date, Nintendo's Content ID Matching spree seems to focus on recent releases like Super Mario 3D Land, Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon, and New Super Mario Bros. U. Currently, Let's Play videos for older Nintendo-published games are unaffected.

Nintendo explains its position in a statement issued to GameFront: "As part of our on-going push to ensure Nintendo content is shared across social media channels in an appropriate and safe way, we became a YouTube partner and as such in February 2013 we registered our copyright content in the YouTube database.

"For most fan videos this will not result in any changes, however, for those videos featuring Nintendo-owned content, such as images or audio of a certain length, adverts will now appear at the beginning, next to or at the end of the clips. We continually want our fans to enjoy sharing Nintendo content on YouTube, and that is why, unlike other entertainment companies, we have chosen not to block people using our intellectual property."

British publisher/developer System 3 has announced an enhanced remake of its blue-blob-based action platformer Putty Squad, available sometime this summer on Xbox 360, Wii U, PlayStation 3, Vita, 3DS and Windows 8.

The original Putty Squad was initially released on Super NES back in 1994, as a sequel to 1992's Putty for the Amiga. A demo was also released for Amiga and DOS systems, but the full game never dropped for either of those platforms. This new version, beyond offering obvious graphical improvements, will also include free downloadable levels and "location-based services used for extra content."

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Nintendo of America tell us it's got a Direct for tomorrow that's focused on summer Wii U and 3DS games. The company's Euro division also has a Wii U-focused Direct scheduled for the same time. Just to be different, its Direct is on spring and summer Wii U games. We've no confirmation of one for Japan yet, but chances are tomorrow's another worldwide triforce of Directs.

Nintendo of Europe also announced there'll be a Direct broadcast around the time of next month's E3 conference, and that one will cover Wii U games for "autumn and beyond." Nintendo recently revealed it'll have two closed events at E3 in lieu of the traditional presentation. The company noted "Nintendo Direct videos in the run up to E3," so there may be more pre-E3 broadcasts beyond the autumn one.

As ever, you'll be able to tune in to tomorrow's streams here on Joystiq, so we recommend you move precisely no muscles for the next day or so. Well, the streams will be in a new post, so you'll have to move some muscles. Apart from that, we'll see you right here(-ish) at 10AM ET (7AM PT, 3PM UK) tomorrow.

The ol' eShop gets a double dose of "super" this week with the release of both Super Metroid and Super Ghouls N' Ghosts on the Wii U. And, don't forget that Super Metroid is only $0.30 until June 12. The Blue Bomber continues his assault on the 3DS Virtual Console with the debut of Mega Man 5, along with the original Harvest Moon. Also available is a new 3DS port of Swords & Soldiers from Ronimo, creators of the excellent Awesomenauts.

Meanwhile, the Wii gets some love this week with a Virtual Console release of King of Fighters '99.

Finally, there are a couple of sales. Runner 2 is available for 25 percent off its usual $14.99 price. Also, those who purchase (or already own) Super Mario World on the Wii U Virtual Console can pick up Super Mario Bros. 2 for half price.

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This Batman: Arkham Origins tease features no gameplay, no real concept of how the game will differ from the excellent Arkham Asylum and Arkham City. What it does feature is grizzled Batman in a CGI fight ballet with Deathstroke, and that's good enough for this morning.

Though Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag launches later this year, North American retailers are vying for your dollars today by announcing a slew of retailer-specific pre-order bonuses.

GameStop has the 'Black Island' pack, which includes the deadly black ship, a Captain Morgan costume and his silver flintlock pistol. Amazon.com will offer the 'Hidden Mystery' pack, an extra treasure-hunting mission on Mystery Island, Stede Bonnet's ship and Sted Bonnet costumes and multiplayer items. Walmart gets the 'Sacrificed Secrets' pack, a collection centered around Captain Drake that includes his dual-wield swords and pistols, plus his picture, title and relics. Best Buy has the 'Lost Treasures' pack, an ivory wheel and spyglass relic, and Target gets the 'Trove of Mystery' pack, which includes an iron wheel and astrolab relic.

Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag launches on the PS3, Xbox 360, Wii U and PC on October 29. Next-generation console ports of Assassin's Creed 4 are also planned. All UK pre-orders get access to "The Watch" app.

EA has announced it will discontinue its Online Pass program. "Yes, we're discontinuing Online Pass," EA's senior director of corporate communications John Reseburg told GamesBeat in an e-mail. "None of our new EA titles will include that feature."

Reseburg added that "many players didn't respond to the format," despite EA going on record months after instituting Online Passes, reporting it had not seen a "significant" backlash. "We've listened to the feedback and decided to do away with it moving forward."

The Online Pass, a one-time use code required for online play, was first introduced in 2010 with the intent of being exclusive to EA Sports games, though it quickly escalated from there. Online Pass revenue generated between $10-$15 million for EA in its first year alone.

Super Metroid (SNES) is on sale for $0.30 through the Wii U Virtual Console right now, as part of the Trial Campaign promotion celebrating the Famicom.

Super Metroid is fourth on a list of discounts that kicked off back in February – predecessors include Kirby's Adventure, Punch-Out!!! Featuring Mr. Dream and F-Zero. Super Metroid will be $0.30 for 30 days, until Yoshi comes in and takes over on June 12.

The Virtual Console launched on Wii U late last month. The initial launch list included Balloon Fight, Donkey Kong Jr., Excitebike, Ice Climbers, Kirby's Adventure, Punch Out, F-Zero and Super Mario World. This week, Super Mario Bros. 2 will be available for $5.

In his weekly column, writer Bob Mackey will alternate between two of his passions: the Japanese RPG genre and classic games. This week, Bob returns to the world of Monster Hunter.

Since I don't play MMOs, it's a rare occasion to see the timer on any of my games roll past that magical 99:59 mark. Still, it's happened more times than I'd like to admit; whenever an especially deep or content-rich RPG hits me during a particularly inactive time in my life, I'll focus on it and it alone. Since I've chosen a career path laden with vast periods of inactivity, RPGs Fallout 3, the Persona and Dragon Quest franchises, and Dark Souls have done a fine job of soaking up free time that would have otherwise gone to waste on frequent power naps or community service.

Chalk it up to fate if you want, but Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate found me in the familiar condition of "nothing better to do," and for the past six weeks, Capcom's hardcore action-RPG has given me a whole new set of complex mechanics and arcana to obsess over with thousands of my fellow monster-hunting fans. Now that I've reached that monumental 100-hour mark, it's time to ask myself one question: Did I invest my time wisely?

Short answer: no, but I'll save regrets over playing too many video games for my death bed.

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