My Wii U review/first impressions [Deluxe Model/SMBU/Trine2/ZombiU]

dalearyous

[H]ard|Gawd
Joined
Jun 21, 2008
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System
My system came Wednesday the 21st. Due to my location on UPS route I did not receive it until 6pm. My heart almost stopped at 5pm when the UPS truck sped quickly past my town home. Not sure what was up but I eventually got my Deluxe unit shipped from Target. Everyone can watch unboxing so I am not going to go into that. Here:
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The black unit is sharp looking! Yes it does get finger prints and the controller does as well but not as much as everyone was complaining. I think it depends on the overall grease and cleanliness level but mine hasn't been bad. Anyway, the unit is also heavier than expected. One random point, the slot loader is very smooth in and out. However, I wish I could eject the game from the controller.

I fired it up and it took no time to have the gamepad controlling my TV. Everyone has said this, it seems so trivial, but its so amazing too!
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Games
Nintendoland: This game is great if you have real life friends or family haha. But serious, its a great party game and for my friends who didn't quite get the Wii U idea it drastically opened their eyes to possibilities. A lot more depth and fun than Wii Sports in my opinion. The chasing game and Luigi's Manson alone are hilarious and a great time with 5 people. I can see how some people might not be blown away, especially if you have no one to play with. The plaza is really cool after you connect to the internet. Worth $60? IMO, no. But since it came with the system, GREAT!

NSMBU: Wow, HD Mario is just jaw dropping. The worlds are gorgeous and it takes me back every time I fire it up. The first epic battle with Bowser is intense and amazing to watch. Graphically I love this game. I find it the easiest to play the game 1 person on the gamepad. The buttons are a bit bigger and easier to use. 2 people it becomes a chore. 4 or 5 people and its just chaos. One thing I did like is my wife picked it up and was playing through. I was relaxing and didn't feel like playing but I picked up the gamepad and helped her along creating blocks and finding secrets and I think that is a great addition to the game. Overall, it is definitely worth the $60 and will get a lot of play through.
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*edit*
So I just beat the game ... it is shorter than the original on the Wii. There are a ton of extra levels you can unlock by finding different ways to beat the ghost levels and collecting stars opens up more too. It makes up for it. Please the different modes are actually fun.

ZombiU: I read the reviews and my heart sank. I really wanted this game to be the game that shut up all my friends who are PS3 or 360 fanboys. So I held off on getting it until I read around. After reading I figured ah screw it and picked it up. First off this game is not for the faint at heart. It is very hard, very creepy, intense, and I love it. I think it depends on the type of person/gamer you are. I will not disagree with the negative points in most reviews but its still to me an incredible game. The best analogy I can give is this: LA Noire had some of the worst shooting/chasing controls and gameplay. It isn't Call of Duty or Halo, and its not supposed to be. So don't give it a negative review basing it on a first person shooter. Its not. ZombiU is not Resident Evil or any other, its in genre of its own. I think it got harsh reviews. For a launch title, its incredible. I enjoy every second of it! Worth the $60!

Trine 2: I bought Trine 2 on Steam and the whole time I was playing it I wish it was on a console. I ultimately stopped playing (probably logged 6 total hours). I bought it in the eShop for Wii U (more on eShop later) and WOW what a gorgeous game. Again, graphics are stunning and the game is a ton of fun. This and NSMBU makes me happy I have a plasma for all the colors! Worth $20 for sure!!!

Controller
The best part, the controller. Sturdy, but light weight. Touch screen works great and the stylus is a huge plus. The charging cradle that came with the Deluxe I wouldn't be able to do without and anyone with a non deluxe unit go buy a cradle if its available!. The camera works great. I love how it shows your face on the TV when you are playing Nintendoland games. Because I live in a townhome, the controller worked on the entire first floor (includes a bathroom, i know yes!) and the outdoor porch. I walked up the stairs and got almost to the master bedroom door before it started lagging. Like I have said before on [H], its only matter of time before an extender or a hacker figures out how to make it work everywhere. The controller is everything I expected and more and its truly awesome. Being able to do all the console things on the controller while my wife watches football last night was awesome. I hope the game titles utilize it to its fullest potential.
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User Interface
A lot of people have complained about this and the loading times and the confusion about the friend system. I did not think it was all that bad. The load times can be fixed and so can the confusion. I LOVE what they did with the communities and being able to post things. It is like an instant forum for everything Wii U. I wish there was a bit more multitasking but again, this is a brand new OS and I am sure with time it could really develop into something amazing.I love where Nintendo is going with this. Keep it up!

eShop was a breeze to use and buy Trine 2. I really, really like the interface and I think it will attract indie developers. Took about 30 mins to download Trine 2 (2GB) so not bad at all.

Netflix, Hulu, Youtube, and Amazon Video apps all work. I will admit they need some polish but its great to have them!

Final Thoughts
Was the system worth the money? Absolutely. My friends are telling me to stay away from AC3 on the Wii U but that CoD actually looks better on the Wii U than 360 and PS3 (they have tested extensively). The second screen, Miiverse, the games, controllers all of it I am truly impressed. Nintendo has a long way to go and needs to keep the tweaks and updates coming but I can see this system really being a must have very soon.
 
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Thanks for the review. This is the first nintendo system in a long time I've actually been seriously interested in. I'm in an odd position because I just don't have the hands to use nintendo's ever increasingly quirky controllers. The unusable N64, weirdass stylus crap with the DS, and then the Wii had two pointless controllers you had to juggle. I'd about given up on nintendo. This seems like a step in the right direction.

The controller looks pretty immense, how easy is it to manage versus a PS3 controller?
 
its completely easy to manage. i think the biggest difference is the joysticks are above the buttons where as PS3 they are below. the one thing i am lacking is playing a twitching reaction shooter (like call of duty) which would be the ultimate test of the controller. its perfectly fine for zombiu but call of duty is faster pace. i might try gamefly or something to test it.
 
My thoughts on the system match the op. My family is really enjoying the Wii U. The controller works great for black ops 2, it fact the Wii U version even looks better than the 360 version and the PS3 one. We have it on 360, and I tryed my nephews PS3 one yesterday when he was over. The 2 player is great not having split screen. My son played against me with the game pad, then the pro controller, same result he kicked my ass. but it was fun!
 
yeah black ops might be a necessary pickup. trine 2 is so good so far.

i edited my nsmbu part

ok, apparently ac3 looks better on wii u than ps3. the lighting and shaders apparently are better and there are more details that were left out on ps3. i can't say for sure as i don't own it on any platform, but a user was noting that if you go inside and building or bar and look out the window on ps3 you see nothing. but wii u you actually see what is outside. not sure how relevant that is, but now i might have to add ac3 to my list.

WHERE IS XCOM?! i want xcom for wii u ... i would replay again (beat it on PC) just cause its awesome!
 
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yeah black ops might be a necessary pickup. trine 2 is so good so far.

i edited my nsmbu part

ok, apparently ac3 looks better on wii u than ps3. the lighting and shaders apparently are better and there are more details that were left out on ps3. i can't say for sure as i don't own it on any platform, but a user was noting that if you go inside and building or bar and look out the window on ps3 you see nothing. but wii u you actually see what is outside. not sure how relevant that is, but now i might have to add ac3 to my list.

WHERE IS XCOM?! i want xcom for wii u ... i would replay again (beat it on PC) just cause its awesome!
Yeah I definitely have to get trine 2,BTW there is planned dlc galore for Mario U. AC3 looks the worst on PS3 I tryed it on PS3 bought it on launch for 360. A lot of games that are cross platform end up like this its aPS3 memory thing BUT allot of the PS3 first party games are awesome. I pick and choose between systems all the time depending on the game. That is why its good to own all systems if you can.
 
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DLC for Mario U sounds awesome! and yes i totally agree. uncharted series is stunning! users have said wii u ac3 its better than 360 as well though (again can't confirm). i have all consoles (ps3, 360, wii, wii u, and awesome gaming pc) and i, like you, pick and choose best on correct system.
 
DLC for Mario U sounds awesome! and yes i totally agree. uncharted series is stunning! users have said wii u ac3 its better than 360 as well though (again can't confirm). i have all consoles (ps3, 360, wii, wii u, and awesome gaming pc) and i, like you, pick and choose best on correct system.

I have to wait to compare ac3 till Christmas pretty sure my daughter grabbed it for my son today at toys r us they had that buy one get one 40% off. She won't tell me though she likes to keep presents secret. Batman is cool on Wii U if you haven't played that, the PC version is best if you have a nvidia card with physx but of the consoles the wiiu version is best. For the PS3 I'm still anxiously awaiting the last of us! One more from what I've seen aliens colonial marines ifs gonna rock on the Wii U (motion tracker game pad)!
 
Glad you got yours finally Dale :), glad to see you're also happy with it.

What's your nintendo ID? I'll have to figure out how to add people since apparently I'm too stupid to find out how to by just clicking around.
 
Glad you got yours finally Dale :), glad to see you're also happy with it.

What's your nintendo ID? I'll have to figure out how to add people since apparently I'm too stupid to find out how to by just clicking around.

its a separate app called friendslist dont use mii verse.


add dremic
 
Wow! That article was nothing but wild conclusions based on wild assumptions. I definitely DO NOT recommend it.


I have no idea how much is true about the article, but the GPGPU part should be correct. WiiU is designed around the idea that GPU should take the load of the CPU and be the main workhorse.

Now, if this works as intended or will it become like PS3, theoretical power is huge but practically its such a pain in the ass to program that its simply not worth it. Maybe in few exclusive titles we may see what the console is really capable of, but thats it.
 
Thanks OP. I've had my wii U unopened in the box since launch day. Debating between returning it or keeping it.

I have Mario bros, but my hesitation is that I'm not seeing or hearing any other games for it. So 300+ for a system I'll just play Mario with for now seems a bit much
 
Alright guys, I really don't want to read into critic reviews for ZombiU. So many mixed scores. What are your thoughts for the people who have played ZombiU does it deserve that score? If not.. do you think I would like it? (subjective, I know) If only they had a demo in the game store..
 
Alright guys, I really don't want to read into critic reviews for ZombiU. So many mixed scores. What are your thoughts for the people who have played ZombiU does it deserve that score? If not.. do you think I would like it? (subjective, I know) If only they had a demo in the game store..

don't take it from me, the Mii plaza is full of people posting that they were glad they ignored the reviews and bought zombiu
 
yeah black ops might be a necessary pickup. trine 2 is so good so far.

i edited my nsmbu part

ok, apparently ac3 looks better on wii u than ps3. the lighting and shaders apparently are better and there are more details that were left out on ps3. i can't say for sure as i don't own it on any platform, but a user was noting that if you go inside and building or bar and look out the window on ps3 you see nothing. but wii u you actually see what is outside. not sure how relevant that is, but now i might have to add ac3 to my list.

WHERE IS XCOM?! i want xcom for wii u ... i would replay again (beat it on PC) just cause its awesome!


I would hope AC3 looks better on the wiiU than on the ps3 and xbox. Its a brand new system vs 7 year old systems.
 
yeah but he makes a great point and honestly when i purchased it i was expecting on pair graphics but with the wii u hardware there is a lot more potential which makes me happy about future titles. i have an awesome gaming PC if i want eye candy.
 
It takes time for developers to learn new consoles though.

Exactly! Look at launch titles for 360 and PS3 compared to what they can do now there was MAJOR improvements in quality. Cod2 to mw3. Resistance to the newest uncharted. Launch titles never tell what a system can do, do you guys have that short of memories?
 
I'm pretty happy with my Deluxe as well. On the day after launch, I walked into Target and picked up the 32GB unit, MarioU/ZombiU/Scribblenauts Unlimited, and an extra controller. I could have saved quite a bit of money by not buying the extra remote or games at Target, but I didn't feel like driving 30 miles to the nearest competing store. I did just take advantage of the Wal-Mart sale on Wii Play: Motion and picked up three more controllers for 15 dollars each. Awesome deal.

I know that it just launched, but I can't recall ever playing a console this much, nor having as much fun while doing so. I'm old enough now (29) that I am nostalgic for the games I played on my NES and SNES and I'm hoping the Wii U continues to deliver. Hopefully it doesn't end up gathering dust like my 3DS that I impulse bought (complete with Ambassador Certificate).

Had Nintendo included Blu-ray playback, this would have been the perfect system for me. Since it didn't, I will hang on to my PS3 just for movie viewing. Any cross-platform games I'll pick up for my PC. The Nintendo exclusives will guarantee I keep my Wii U for the long haul (come on Mario Kart and Zelda)!
 
Had Nintendo included Blu-ray playback, this would have been the perfect system for me. Since it didn't, I will hang on to my PS3 just for movie viewing. Any cross-platform games I'll pick up for my PC. The Nintendo exclusives will guarantee I keep my Wii U for the long haul (come on Mario Kart and Zelda)!

No love for the PS3 exclusives?
 
I'm extremely happy with my purchase. Wii U was well worth it! I'm really looking forward to the future Nintendo exclusives. Hoping they have an update to Wii Sports! As much as I love the tablet controller, Nintendo needs to still show love to motion gaming.
 
im excited for more games to come out. pikmin 3 is gonna be dope. im not far from beating mario although i will probably go back and play all the levels.


nintendoland is a lot of fun if you have people to play with
 
No love for the PS3 exclusives?

Not really. I own the first two Uncharted games, both Little Big Planet games, God of War 3, Killzone 2, Valkyria Chronicles, and a few others. I guess I did beat the first Uncharted, GoW3, and really enjoyed the Valkyria game.

I haven't kept up on any of the PS3 exclusives that have come out in quite awhile. I do somewhat wish I hadn't sold my Xbox 360 before Halo 4.

One of these days I'll actually play the copy of Uncharted 2 I bought new. :(
 
Thanks for the review. I'm probably going to pick one up after the holidays. Looks great.

And with the argument for a new system looking better than a 7 year old system and new games being not that great - rumors were said that the Wii U was just about on par with the current Xbox and PS3. With the games looking better than that (with a launch game), it does sound like it can hold it's own now and in the future.

I wonder if/when this thing gets modded if you could use your Wii U controller as a type of programmable remote similar to the Logitech Harmony remotes.
 
something i have been thinking about, if you are like me and have a great PC that you use for gaming, where do consoles become useful except for console exclusive titles. my biggest struggle for the 360 and the ps3 (non exclusive titles) is why not buy them for the PC. they go on sale more and earlier and i can get far greater eye candy. to this day, the only reason i bought a ps3 is for the uncharted series (and its a great media extender) and then hacked it but thats besides the point. i don't care how powerful or great the new 360 or ps3 will be, unless they have something truly different i just won't care. from the recently leaked info, kinect would have to come a LONG way for me to consider the 720 (or whatever the name will be).
 
something i have been thinking about, if you are like me and have a great PC that you use for gaming, where do consoles become useful except for console exclusive titles. my biggest struggle for the 360 and the ps3 (non exclusive titles) is why not buy them for the PC. they go on sale more and earlier and i can get far greater eye candy. to this day, the only reason i bought a ps3 is for the uncharted series (and its a great media extender) and then hacked it but thats besides the point. i don't care how powerful or great the new 360 or ps3 will be, unless they have something truly different i just won't care. from the recently leaked info, kinect would have to come a LONG way for me to consider the 720 (or whatever the name will be).

Playing with more than one person in the same room same game, my kids and I play alot of co-op together. That is were a PC just won't do. and yes we all have game capable PC's but it isn't the same thing.
 
man I have a Wii U but the wife wont let me play it will X-mas. She says we will have more presents under the tree and my daughters will enjoy it better also.
 
man I have a Wii U but the wife wont let me play it will X-mas. She says we will have more presents under the tree and my daughters will enjoy it better also.

Lol. You Americans. ;)

HisSvt76 said:
Playing with more than one person in the same room same game, my kids and I play alot of co-op together. That is were a PC just won't do. and yes we all have game capable PC's but it isn't the same thing.

Right on, that's where consoles like these shine.
 
I pick the Deluxe version and enjoy it a lot. Super Mario Bro U is lots of fun and the best part is I can play the game on the pad. I pick it up because i would love to play some of the older games from SNES and N64 era.
 
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I pick the Deluxe version and enjoy a lot. Super Mario Bro U is lots of fun and the best part is I can play the game on the pad. I pick it up because i would love to play some of the older games from SNES and N64 era.

Dude, if you could play DS games on the Wii U...that might be something..
 
I would buy one today if played old Wii games in higher resolution.

They do look better than they do on the Wii, not much but because of the HDMI when I had my Wii hooked up to my TV we tried smash Bros on both the Wii u image was cleaner.
 
Can this play N64 Zelda games and the gamecube and Wii games??? If so I am using my book return money for this system. I really want to play zelda over again.
 
They do look better than they do on the Wii, not much but because of the HDMI when I had my Wii hooked up to my TV we tried smash Bros on both the Wii u image was cleaner.

Thats cool, not enough to make me jump though. They had 2 chances to take my money.
1. Display Wii Games @ higher res.
2. Play DS Games, even via Virtual Console.

Sooo much potential there.. Oh well. Glad some of you guys are digging it.
 
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