Why the Wii U is the Best Console You Can Buy

[Mike Andronico]

A stellar game library, innovative tablet GamePad and low price point make Nintendo's Wii U the best gaming console you can buy.

Why the Wii U is the Best Console You Can Buy : Read more

 

[ta152h]

If your other choice was an XBone, that kind of disqualifies any opinion that follows it from being rational.

Outside of that, clearly the game mechanics and user interface are always more important than the resolution, etc... I could still argue that games from the 1980s (like Defender) are a lot more fun than many of the games made today, despite very primitive visuals. So, if you prefer the Wii U, despite having clearly inferior hardware, its completely understandable. Everyone has different taste.

 

[hixbot]

I really like the Wii-u, but this reads like an advertisement more than an article.

Nintendo first party games always hook me, and I'll always buy a Nintendo console in order to play them. but I'm not impressed with this hardware, and the gamepad is a cheesy gimmick in most games (although I do like the offscreen play sometimes).

 

[larkspur]

"Like the motion-sensing Wii Remote before it, the Wii U GamePad reinforces the fact that it's not just the games that make Nintendo consoles special, it's the way you play them."

Exactly. My sister asked for a Wii U for her birthday. I figured whenever I visited, we could revive our old Kart rivalry that goes back to the SNES. So I (reluctantly) bought it for her during a visit in October. After setting it up, and trying just a few of the 'Nintendoland" included mini-games and Kart 8, man I was impressed. She loves it and likes the ease of touchscreen controls for the games and netflix, and also to whoop her boyfriend's butt in Smash Bros. The variety of controllers and unique gameplay with each different controller make it stand out from its competitors. Its nice to be able to walk away from the TV while still playing or watching a movie. The few games I've played with it were beautiful and very well polished. I game on PC, but I kinda wish I had a Wii U also... It certainly doesn't replace a gaming PC, but it definitely compliments it.

 

[airborn824]

I am a PC gamer first and formost so graphics importance is covered already. But when i wand a polished well made game that i can just pick up and have fun, Wii I wins. I have always had a gaming PC and i also have always had a Nintendo console, no matter what i play nothing is as fun as throwing shells at my wifes kart or using fire poer in Mario World. Nintendo games are unmatched in polish and design. I will always play Nintendo AND PC games to get my graphical fix as well as my kid fix.

 

[Bloob]

A PC and Wii U seem to be made for each other this gen as most of the multiplats run on PC as well (not that there have been many that caught my interest), and Wii U for great exclusives. Most of my solo gaming is done on Wii U, as well as local multiplayer (the best kind really), PC still dominates online mp though.

Just wish I had more time to play, and that the gamepad had a longer battery life (gotta get a Pro controller I guess).

 

[Mike Andronico]

Thanks for all your feedback, guys! It's funny, I have several friends who feel that, between a good PC and a Wii U, you're pretty much set in terms of good games. I'm still a bit attached to Xbox exclusives (mostly Halo), so right now a combo of Xbox One/Wii U has been doing the trick for me.

@BulkZerker, I see where you're coming from, but SteamBoxes don't seem to have hit the mainstream yet (I'm personally not sure if you can buy one right now). Sure, you can buy something like the Alienware Alpha for your living room, but those will run you way more than a console.

 

[Retail Ready]

I guess you haven't noticed that literally no one is buying (Wii U is the biggest home console flop in Nintendo's History) this line of garbage. I own a Wii U (although I own a PS4 and PC as well) -- and besides Bayonetta 2 there is pretty much nothing on the console worth playing for anyone over the age of 12. Once the third party abandoned it this year, I knew it was game over. Most retail stores barely carry the Wii U at this point..... As much as I like the hardware, it is really a poorly designed console for kids. What was Nintendo thinking? Let's design a game console with an incredibly expensive/difficult to replace gamepad for a younger demographic = Disaster. I can't tell you how many used Wii U consoles I've seen on eBay with a broken gamepad. It appears kids are breaking the gamepad and most parents ditch the system. Let's be realistic now, the Wii U probably has one last full year of new releases because it appears like AMD let it slip that the Wii U replacement was being greenlit for a 2016 launch..... You should probably advise potential console buyers of this -- instead of writing puff pieces detached from reality. You know what that extra $100 buys for PS4 / Xbox One systems? = A viable system that gets new software more than a year from now.

 

[knowom]

No thanks I'll stick to PC games on Steam with games like Divinity: Original Sin and Grim Dawn. I prefer PC games with modding support they tend to be a lot better in large part.

 

[eklipz330]

my bro got a wii-u. pc/wii-u combo is the way to go. i can't speak highly enough for their quality control. PC may be king when it comes to community and modding support, but nothing, NOTHING touches local multiplayer like nintendo. 7 people on SSMB is comparable to nothing else.

 

[Retail Ready]

my bro got a wii-u. pc/wii-u combo is the way to go. i can't speak highly enough for their quality control. PC may be king when it comes to community and modding support, but nothing, NOTHING touches local multiplayer like nintendo. 7 people on SSMB is comparable to nothing else.

Quality control? Whatever, man.... I guess it's easy when they just retread the same game over and over again. Smash Bros. ain't gonna save the Wii U, it's just another rehash of the same game. The Wii U is struggling to sell 3 million systems a year, when the original Wii peaked around 18 million in a single year. Too many people already own Smash Bros. Brawl to really make it a necessary upgrade to the U. Which is exactly another reason why the Wii U is collapsing.... Almost all the games are either tablet quality (NintendoLand) or straight remakes (Zelda) or retreads of the same franchise over and over again (Mario Kart 8, Super Smash Bros). Nintendo is the new Atari -- all they are doing currently is clinging to their past greatness.

 

[Carlrg]

really people please don't talk about things you haven't experienced based on facts SSB4 bayonetta2 mario kart 8 and you can play all oldies + they are always giving away great games PC + Wii U is the way to go as a gamer all new games on other consoles comes with so much problems you can't expect quality from anyone anymore only Nintendo shines like a beacon where did the master race gone to if we go mainstream we lose all our privileges anyway can't you all see that almost all games are becoming fps shooters with basically same rehashed content nintendo at least has diversity and people bashing it for having nothing to play are no gamers at all it is the same in the music industry this smudge sense of superiority with no real backup has to stop. IT really is SAD

 

[DarkSable]

Here's my thing... I have my monster PC for when I want to frag noobs. Why would I want to do that on a exponentially inferior console?

The reason that the Wii U is the only console I would possibly consider is a pretty simple one... when I have friends over, there is NOTHING better for friendly, casual gaming than Nintendo's offerings. It's just simply FUN, and if you want to complain that the games are targeted at 12 year olds, well, yeah, they are... and that doesn't change the fact that it's a great thing to have if you don't feel like locking yourself in your dungeon that day.

 

[zodiacfml]

advertisement since what matters is what you run on it.
it is not the hardware but the games.

if you prefer games in Android for more casual, portable fun, then it is the best.

for more serious, complex gaming, the PC is still king and others only get close.

there are plenty ways to game these days and nothing is the best but your favorite games.

 

[Christopher1]

If your other choice was an XBone, that kind of disqualifies any opinion that follows it from being rational.

Outside of that, clearly the game mechanics and user interface are always more important than the resolution, etc... I could still argue that games from the 1980s (like Defender) are a lot more fun than many of the games made today, despite very primitive visuals. So, if you prefer the Wii U, despite having clearly inferior hardware, its completely understandable. Everyone has different taste.

I would disagree strongly on that and so would nearly everyone I know. I've had my second cousins sit down and play older games (they asked me what gaming was like when I first started) and I have to say that compared to newer games, the older Atari
XXXX games were overly repetitive, used artificial difficulty, and basically just were not very good games.

 

[zetzabre]

Ok, now tell us...How much $$$ did you receive to post this garbage?.

On the other hand, Tomsguide is starting to suck at technology.

 

[TJB88]

What a biased article.

The library is horribly limited - want a racing sim, indie games etc? Not happening with this console. The games are only bug free due to zero innovation and development of the game from previous generations. None of their games for years have pushed technical limits which create these bugs.
The pad is a joke and only rubs salt in the wound (the huge lack in power). It is incredibly award to use and has a dire lifespan. "Free from your tv"? Sorry, but only very young kids have this problem as everyone else has their own tv in their room or in their house.
PS3 had netflix years ago, and most smart tvs aka most tvs nowadays have connectivity and boot way faster.
Nintendo selling yet more extras for their console? Well I never. That instantly kills your next point - it being cheaper. With all the extras, it is far more expensive and very old hardware.

Next time, keep the fanboy drivel for forums and not on a decent and impartial site like this one.

 

[Rodney Wilder]

I still love my original Wii. Party/Drinking games like Boom Blox, Mario cart wii, and Ravin Rabbids or even Super mario wii make it tons of fun with friends. you haven't really played super mario until you've drunkenly jumped off a friend's head and caused them to fall into the lava. The best house party's I've hosted started with drinking games using the Wii, and I can promise that they were quite hilariously epic parties. And using the wiimotes with Star Wars force unleashed was beyond awesome for feeling right in the game when you had some frustrations to let out. We'll definitely be replacing our aging Wii with a Wii U

 

[Dorian1975]

Been a PC mostly MMO gamer for 12 years. Got tired of the FTP, cash grab pc games out now, so I bought a Wii U. I already had a Wii, so being that all my games and accessories are compatible with the Wii U, the decision on which console to buy was easy. That and my PC is already twice as fast as PS4 and X Box.

The only performance drawback I have noticed with the Wii U is loading times and storage space (which can be easily upgraded with a flash or external drive). I'm really impressed and haven't had this much fun gaming in years. Great general review of the system.

 

[bin1127]

"Maybe it was the fact that I could slay demons in Bayonetta 2 while still watching football on TV"

Clearly this is a paid advertisement piece.