When there's no hope left... Firstly and foremost, I haven't sought complexity in my entire life. I've always thought that worthwhile things come in simplicity, but when it came for the gaming section, I had a "whitelist". At first, because the marketing and advertising of both Sony and Microsoft was smashing the other competition's ones, I tended to not inform myself on other alternatives beside these two neverendingly-disputing money-hungry companies. I've even bought a brand-new Xbox One - because it was more convincing from the online reviews and TV commercials -, but it didn't manage to fully content me, only in the first period of time, afterwards it became utter garbage (I've already made a thread on this subject. In the case you are considering a console from Microsoft, you should read my very first thread, urgently!) . I must confess I was truly dissapointed after the horrendous experience with Microsoft, not because I lost a "mere" $500, but because I had other issues with them in the past and I still fell for their derisive bait. The console wouldn't have been used solely by me, but by my entire family, as they're rather in this kind of entertainment. I'd personally read a book. ... a light beam slips inside! I was told by a good friend of mine, after long and tedious conversations which ultimately bored him to death, that I desperately needed to check out the Wii U. At that particular moment, I had the urge to laugh, because everybody from my entourage said that it had horrendous graphics, unfriendly user-interface and such unpleasant features, and I didn't bother to inform myself afterwards. However, after slightly scrutinizing some videos, I immediately ordered it, because this particular console was more of a family one rather than a gaming-exclusive, and that's what my family would've needed anyway. Upon arriving, unboxing and getting past the intro, I must confess I couldn't have been more contented with anything that enters in this category, ever! Its simplicity combined with its seriousness made an overwhelming duo, there's no doubt about it. The only reproach I must make though is the fact that they're rather closed from any other developers other than themselves, mostly focusing on the Japanese folklore. I'm not truly a fan of manga, but for the ones who can't bear a day without watching Naruto, this will come in Handy, definitely! My score: 4.5/5 (Excellent!) ~ Thymeless
I owned a Wii and enjoyed some of the games but the Wii-u really doesn't have much that appeals to me or screams must own. Wind Waker HD looks cool but I already played the game when it came out for the gamecube years ago. Still, very nice review. I'm glad someone enjoys it, I haven't purchased one so I can't provide a review, I can only make jokes about the Wii-u name, like Pee-u.
On its own, the Wii U is a decent device by any standards. It has the power to run some pretty complex and beautiful games. It has the power of Nintendo's first party properties, too. Despite Nintendo's best efforts, the console has still been branded as a family entertainment console, though. In fact, major developers of action games and the biggest franchises have chosen to ignore the Wii U completely. You have to compare the console to the Xbox One and PS4, since most people will choose the offerings from Sony and Microsoft. Nintendo has yet to offer enough compelling titles on the Wii U to compete in the video game console market. Wii U sales are lagging far behind the One and PS4, despite the fact that it came out months ahead of those two consoles. The Wii U is a great device on its own, but that's not enough for it to stay competitive with other consoles. Nintendo made the mistake of not releasing enough compelling games and features for its next-gen console.
The reason for which Nintendo hasn't managed to mesmerize the market is that the masses preffer a realistic approach for the games they'd eventually buy, and they - Nintendo - clearly don't excel at this chapter because, like I said, they rely too much on their cartoonish manga folklore. They clearly want to get implied more on this market, but they will not succeed, not whilst Sony and Microsoft currently exist and fiercefully try to conquer this gold-mining market by any means. Probably they need another strategy, but they shouldn't try to copycat Sony, nor Microsoft, it wouldn't be a proof of wisdom whatsoever.
I actually think the Wii U is the most promising of the big 3 'next-gen' consoles. It has unique features that don't feel forced or unnecessary and the big big plus for me is the huge amount of titles that won't come out on other consoles. Almost every game for the PS4 or XB1 will eventually come out for PC (except a few, I know), but there will never be a SSB or Mario Kart for PC because Nintendo won't sell the rights for it. For me that's the biggest selling point for the Wii U and I also quite like the cartoonish style of Nintendo games.
The problem is that gamers in general don't find Nintendo's first party properties to be a big enough draw to buy Nintendo's consoles. It doesn't matter how much promise a console holds if it's not flying off the shelves. The PS4 and Xbox One are selling millions of consoles, and they're the successes right now. There's no chance the Wii U catches up. In fact, I would be surprised if Nintendo released another full-sized console again.
