Satoru Iwata has announced in today's Nintendo Direct stream that the long-awaited system update, as well as the launch of the Wii U Virtual Console, will arrive sometime next week. The system update will include improved load times for launching system applications, as well as returning to the Wii U menu after closing a game.

In addition to the improved loading times, there will be improvements to downloading and installing games as well. Games will now automatically install themselves in the background after they've been downloaded, instead of having to manually start the installation process. These download and installation processes will also take place even after you shut down the system. If you have games installed on an external USB hard drive, the update will also allow the ability to move data between two seperate hard drives.

Lastly, the update will also allow users to boot right into Wii Mode by pressing the B button during the Wii U's startup sequence, bypassing the need to select it from the Wii U menu.