Although some Wii U games will support voice chat, it will not be standard across all games or even the system itself, Nintendo has confirmed.

On top of that, chat requires a licensed stereo headset from Turtle Beach or Mad Catz plugged into the game pad – its built-in mic cannot be used.

The Wii U’s pro controller doesn’t even have a headphone jack, so players will need to plug their headsets into the game pad whether they are using it or not.

In-game chat functionality has been confirmed for Call of Duty: Black Ops 2, Assassin's Creed III, and Mass Effect 3 so far.

Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing Transformed won’t have voice chat on Wii U, despite the feature’s inclusion in the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 version.

The game’s executive producer Steve Lycett said the Wii U’s difficult voice chat setup was to blame.