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[hotnheavyload]

I'm loving this WiiU comeback. Everyone hated it when it first came out and the the Dreamcast comparisons, sales numbers and general doom talk was the norm. And now it's the best console ever.

It's like the U stands for U-turn.

Well there was a good argument for not bothering with a Wii U last year, this year they have really put out some great games for the system and it's definitely a worthy purchase as a result.

I hope the quality output continues, for our sake and Nintendo's.

 

[foltzie1]

I didn't know Forbes allowed fan-fiction on their site.

Paul Tassi Contributor
News and opinion about video games, technology and the internet
Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own.

Afford this article the same deference you would to any GAF thread, it has the same or less amount of journalistic rigor.

As a fan of the Wii U, the only reason it would make a better Christmas present is the usual age of someone unwrapping a present.

 

[Jakoo]

You can play the console without patching. The patching can also be downloaded in the background. Plus Nintendo servers has gotten better since launch.

I guess the biggest time-waster I remember was merging my Wii data to the Wii U. At least it had that adorable Pikmin sequence.

 

[Oppo]

There's a palpable, mounting subtext of trying to push the Wii U hard these last few weeks, as this is probably its last big Christmas to make any sort of dent beyond what it has scratched out thus far.

I asked my two cousins (boys ages 9 and 7) if they wanted a Wii U. They asked if it played Minecraft.

 

[slit]

It might have been better researched for one. There are plenty local co-op games on both the PS4 and Xbox one. In fact both Manufacters released a tentpole release that have couch co-op as a big feature. Halo MCC and LBP3

Not to mention third parties like disney, the lego games, minecraft and a whole fuckton of indies.

I doubt it would be better researched, it's a video game piece afterall and anyway the article makes a point. It didn't say the other systems have no local mp focused games. It's more who's pushing it more out of the big 3.

 

[hotnheavyload]

There's a palpable, mounting subtext of trying to push the Wii U hard these last few weeks, as this is probably its last big Christmas to make any sort of dent beyond what it has scratched out thus far.

I asked my two cousins (boys ages 9 and 7) if they wanted a Wii U. They asked if it played Minecraft.

Buying Mojang and Minecraft is the smartest thing Microsoft has done in years. They've pretty much purchased an entire generation of future consumers and content creators.

 

[Jakoo]

There's a palpable, mounting subtext of trying to push the Wii U hard these last few weeks, as this is probably its last big Christmas to make any sort of dent beyond what it has scratched out thus far.

I asked my two cousins (boys ages 9 and 7) if they wanted a Wii U. They asked if it played Minecraft.

They can get something even better!

 

[foltzie1]

You can play the console without patching. The patching can also be downloaded in the background. Plus Nintendo servers has gotten better since launch.

You can? I thought you had to patch in order to do basic functions.

Do any of the Wii U games come with OS updates built in the way Wii games had Wii IOS updates?

 

[Percy]

Contributor.

Guess I don't need to waste time reading the article then

 

[SmokedMeat]

I think this contributor did this same style article a few times already. He's always trying to push the Wii U over the other consoles.

 

[Linkstrikesback]

You can? I thought you had to patch in order to do basic functions.

Originally, yes, you did. I presume any wii u being sold now has much more recent firmware.

 

[Interceptor]

You can? I thought you had to patch in order to do basic functions.

Do any of the Wii U games come with OS updates built in the way Wii games had Wii IOS updates?

You could download the updates while playing since day one. Always had to laugh at all the FUD articles complaining about non existent 5gb updates and long waiting times.

 

[royox]

Things that kids want on Christmas:

-Call of Duty
-Halo

Things that WiiU lacks:

-Call of Duty
-Halo


I'm not an expert, but I am sure most of the WiiU sales are from the +25 years old nintendo fanbase.

Just look who are buying those Amiibo things. Not kids.

 

[Led_Zeppelin]

I see everyone advocating for the Wii U so much, yet it still can't make a dent in the sales of its other competitors. Why is that?

You are expending to much time on Neogaf, even on other places like /v/ or reddit there is a loud community of people advocating for the Wii U and how it is the most "Fun" system out there even though Fun is a relative term.

 

[Kosma]

I'm loving this WiiU comeback. Everyone hated it when it first came out and the the Dreamcast comparisons, sales numbers and general doom talk was the norm. And now it's the best console ever.

It's like the U stands for U-turn.

haha

Dont get me wrong, I'd like a Wii U, but it's not making a comeback. That's why I'm holding out for a firesale.

 

[Cheerilee]

After "Forbes" seriously responded to an article claiming that Pokemon is bad for Nintendo because it's giving them hope and what they really need is to crash harder so that they can realize that they suck and need to make changes...

Also, Erik Kain already provided Six Reasons to buy a Wii U over PS4 and Xbone about two weeks ago, one of which was "local multiplayer".

 

[Asbear]

You should.

I say wait until that new slick Gamepad redesign launches, probably next year as well as Zelda U:

But yeah. It's christmas which makes me all nostalgic. There's nowhere I'd rather be than the Wii U right now, or the 3DS.

 

[NotLiquid]

After "Forbes" seriously responded to an article claiming that Pokemon is bad for Nintendo because it's giving them hope and what they really need is to crash harder so that they can realize that they suck and need to make changes...

Also, Erik Kain already provided Six Reasons to buy a Wii U over PS4 and Xbone about two weeks ago, one of which was "local multiplayer".

Let's be real here, jumping into any Forbes thread to get the first "contributor" post is getting pretty old. It doesn't discredit whatever merit an article might have, and is generally kind of rude.

 

[TheOnePercent]

I'm loving this WiiU comeback. Everyone hated it when it first came out and the the Dreamcast comparisons, sales numbers and general doom talk was the norm. And now it's the best console ever.

It's like the U stands for U-turn.

A 10% bump in the November NPDs compared to last year even with Mario Kart and Smash, and down YoY by nearly 200,000 units in Japan.

What a comeback.

 

[Linkstrikesback]

I say wait until that new slick Gamepad redesign launches, probably next year as well as Zelda U:

You're supposed to put /s when you're being sarcastic, otherwise silly people like me assume you're being serious. (SOMEONE IS WRONG ON THE INTERNET!)
There is no new gamepad, that was someone who screwed up greenscreening MK footage back onto the gamepad in post production, as has been said a thousand times by this point.

 

[foltzie1]

Originally, yes, you did. I presume any wii u being sold now has much more recent firmware.

I would hope so, can anyone confirm a recent Wii U purchase if they came with a functional OS out of the box?

 

[slit]

haha

Dont get me wrong, I'd like a Wii U, but it's not making a comeback. That's why I'm holding out for a firesale.

There is not going to be a "firesale" anytime soon until maybe when the next Ninty console drops. Nintendo really does not work that way.

 

[Thorakai]

This is not Forbes, it's a contributor.

I don't think I've ever clicked a Forbes thread where this wasn't the case.

 

[Air Zombie Meat]

A 10% bump in the November NPDs compared to last year even with Mario Kart and Smash, and down YoY by nearly 200,000 units in Japan.

What a comeback.

Yeah, there is no comeback. But it's at least getting some recognition for building up a decent library.

 

[MrBadger]

I'm loving this WiiU comeback. Everyone hated it when it first came out and the the Dreamcast comparisons, sales numbers and general doom talk was the norm. And now it's the best console ever.

It's like the U stands for U-turn.

Well, it's nice that there have been less snarky posts and Nintendo doom threads on Gaf since this year's E3 and the success of MK8, but the console's never going to reach the sales of the xbone and PS4. And really, so long as Nintendo keeps the great output coming, I'm okay with that.

 

[SmokyDave]

There is not going to be a "firesale" anytime soon until maybe when the next Ninty console drops. Nintendo really does not work that way.

The N64 and GameCube beg to differ. Both had their prices slashed to pieces here in the UK.

Not to say that'll necessarily happen for the Wii U, but it has happened before.

 

[Regginmad]

Let's be real here, jumping into any Forbes thread to get the first "contributor" post is getting pretty old. It doesn't discredit whatever merit an article might have, and is generally kind of rude.

I don't think its rude. but the poster who said it should be afforded the same attention as any other GAF post was probably more helpful.

 

[Stilton Disco]

Is this the same guy that wrote basically the same article last year?

I'm loving this WiiU comeback. Everyone hated it when it first came out and the the Dreamcast comparisons, sales numbers and general doom talk was the norm. And now it's the best console ever.

It's like the U stands for U-turn.

Actually the Dreamcast comparison is still very apt, it still sells like shit, and as a product was created with every wrong decision Nintendo could possibly make. It is an abject failure in basically every way.

I also bought one yesterday, because Nintendo really do get their hooks in us while we're young and just never let go.

And frankly, what you and I and the guy that wrote this article need to accept is that it doesn't matter to us that the WiiU failed. That's Nintendo's problem. We on the other hand, a small group of weirdos with unusual taste in entertainment, get to be pandered to with an awesome selection if brilliantly fun games.

Let's just enjoy that and be happy. Tomorrow may be uncertain, but today, we few WiiU owners get to have a great time. If most people don't feel the same, that's fine too. It's all good.

 

[Calamari41]

There's a palpable, mounting subtext of trying to push the Wii U hard these last few weeks, as this is probably its last big Christmas to make any sort of dent beyond what it has scratched out thus far.

I asked my two cousins (boys ages 9 and 7) if they wanted a Wii U. They asked if it played Minecraft.

Missing out on Minecraft was huge. When you think about it, the Wii U is actually the perfect system for that game. Inventory management and crafting on the gamepad...

 

[slit]

The N64 and GameCube beg to differ. Both had their prices slashed to pieces here in the UK.

Not to say that'll necessarily happen for the Wii U, but it has happened before.

I guess it depends on what you mean by firesale. The console price will drop of course, but a firesale implies they will knock something like $150 off the MSRP in a very short period of time. That never happens. Not in the U.S. at least.

 

[Maddness]

I can safely say that I purchased 2 WiiU 3D World bundles to give out as presents this year along with copies of Smash, so I'm doing my part. Even though fuck those guys for not making more villager amiibos.

 

[Yagharek]

Guess I don't need to waste time reading the article then

Fantastic contribution, would read again.

 

[Palculator]

Wait, I thought Christmas presents are unwrapped in the evening...

 

[LegendofLex]

Perhaps this is some amount of nostalgia talking, but it made me sad when I grew up and Sony and Microsoft seemed determined to leave local co-op behind. Instead of having a friend over to play a game, I had to send him home to play on his own console over PSN or Xbox Live.

Nintendo: You can play with up to eight players with a single copy of the game, a single console, and no online subscription.

Sony & Microsoft: If you want to play with up to eight players, each player needs a copy of the game, a console, and an online subscription.

Guess which future people have decided to buy?

 

[liger05]

Didn't these same articles come out last year.

 

[Broken Joystick]

I say wait until that new slick Gamepad redesign launches, probably next year as well as Zelda U:

But yeah. It's christmas which makes me all nostalgic. There's nowhere I'd rather be than the Wii U right now, or the 3DS.

There is no redesign.

 

[qko]

After "Forbes" seriously responded to an article claiming that Pokemon is bad for Nintendo because it's giving them hope and what they really need is to crash harder so that they can realize that they suck and need to make changes...

Also, Erik Kain already provided Six Reasons to buy a Wii U over PS4 and Xbone about two weeks ago, one of which was "local multiplayer".

But local multiplayer is a legit reason...

 

[Maddness]

I'd also like to say that as a person who travels a lot and as an older adult loves playing co-op with my younger brother who also lives a good bit of distance from me, I absolutely enjoy having online play.

I actually am probably the only person that absolutely HATES when Nintendo does local only for games. It pisses me off so much. I am in a situation where most of my friends and I don't live in the same state, let alone the same city, so not having that ability to enjoy games with them anymore on a lot of Nintendo games that we'd otherwise love to play is very sad to me.


I don't mind if they keep local play, but please add online as well.

 

[Michael F. Assbender]

I'm loving this WiiU comeback. Everyone hated it when it first came out and the the Dreamcast comparisons, sales numbers and general doom talk was the norm. And now it's the best console ever.

It's like the U stands for U-turn.

Meanwhile, it'd still need to sell an impossibly high number of consoles every month for the next five years to even be considered a mild success.

 

[foltzie1]

You could download the updates while playing since day one. Always had to laugh at all the FUD articles complaining about non existent 5gb updates and long waiting times.

I seem to recall not being able to use most functions and the first update taking some time (though nothing unusual compared to a Xbox update). Maybe I was just wanting to get a NNID setup before firing up Nintendoland.

Certainly subsequent updates are almost disconcertingly easy, the system just downloads and announces it is ready to update. iOS updates arent as clean.

 

[slit]

I'd also like to say that as a person who travels a lot and as an older adult loves playing co-op with my younger brother who also lives a good bit of distance from me, I absolutely enjoy having online play.

I actually am probably the only person that absolutely HATES when Nintendo does local only for games. It pisses me off so much. I am in a situation where most of my friends and I don't live in the same state, let alone the same city, so not having that ability to enjoy games with them anymore on a lot of Nintendo games that we'd otherwise love to play is very sad to me.


I don't mind if they keep local play, but please add online as well.

Don't get mad at Nintendo because you don't know how to make new friends.

 

[SmokyDave]

I guess it depends on what you mean by firesale. The console price will drop of course, but a firesale implies they will knock something like $150 off the MSRP in a very short period of time. That never happens. Not in the U.S. at least.

It happened here. Both suddenly dropped to £99 from significantly higher price points. I got burned by both. Again though, I wouldn't expect that for the Wii U.

Nintendo: You can play with up to eight players with a single copy of the game, a single console, and no online subscription.

Sony & Microsoft: If you want to play with up to eight players, each player needs a copy of the game, a console, and an online subscription.

Guess which future people have decided to buy?

The one that means you can play whenever you like without having to get 7 mates over? The one that means you can play with friends that live in other cities?

For most adults, I'd wager online multiplayer is far more convenient.

 

[Regginmad]

Nintendo: You can play with up to eight players with a single copy of the game, a single console, and no online subscription.

Sony & Microsoft: If you want to play with up to eight players, each player needs a copy of the game, a console, and an online subscription.

Guess which future people have decided to buy?

At least in my life, the Sony/Microsoft solution is more fitting. I live thousands of miles from the people I game with, and even when I did not syncing even a few schedules to be at the same place at the same time was never easy

 

[ironcreed]

It's the most underrated system I have ever owned. Fell in love with it the moment I heard the music that plays on the home menu and saw all the little Miis running down the screen. Then I loved it even more after playing Nintendo Land as my first game. It literally made me feel like a kid at the arcade and I have not felt that way in an age.

Now, I love my PS4 and Xbox One as well. They have more power, some neat features and great third party support. But the Wii U simply has more personality, exclusives that are polished to a fine sheen and feels more like a friendly old console, with none of the bullshit attached. All while feeling like the most unique of the three as well. I just can't believe it has not caught on more.

 

[Steve Youngblood]

I actually am probably the only person that absolutely HATES when Nintendo does local only for games. It pisses me off so much. I am in a situation where most of my friends and I don't live in the same state, let alone the same city, so not having that ability to enjoy games with them anymore on a lot of Nintendo games that we'd otherwise love to play is very sad to me.

I assure you that there was plenty of complaining when practically every first party title up until the release of Mario Kart lacked online, and rightfully so.

 

[slit]

It happened here. Both suddenly dropped to £99 from significantly higher price points. I got burned by both. Again though, I wouldn't expect that for the Wii U.


The one that means you can play whenever you like without having to get 7 mates over? The one that means you can play with friends that live in other cities?

For most adults, I'd wager online multiplayer is far more convenient.

The GC started out at 199 in the U.S. then it went to 149 then to 99 after two or three years. I wouldn't call that a firesale. The N64 started at 199 as well. I don't recall a huge slash in the price of the N64. Of course I'm talking about U.S. prices.

 

[Miles Quaritch]

it’s really the only console a family can get which can be set up and have the whole gang playing in practically minutes.

I question this. The update will take more than a few minutes to download and install.

I still have nightmares about the launch day update and the four hours it took to download and install.

 

[Michael F. Assbender]

Nintendo: You can play with up to eight players with a single copy of the game, a single console, and no online subscription.

Sony & Microsoft: If you want to play with up to eight players, each player needs a copy of the game, a console, and an online subscription.

Guess which future people have decided to buy?

Nintendo: This internet fad will end any day now, so we aren't spending any money putting any real effort into online multiplayer. Why not have a bunch of your friends pile into your tiny studio apartment so you can play some local co-op? You can sit on each other's laps!

Sony/Microsoft: ...?

Guess which future people have decided to buy. Hint: NPDs.

 

[dzelly]

it’s really the only console a family can get which can be set up and have the whole gang playing in practically minutes.

I have a problem with this quote. My Wii U took like an hour to setup when you include the console and software updates it takes to actually get going.

I agree with the article, though. If you have kids that like to play games, and you want to have some common gaming ground, Wii U is the solution.

 

[TheBaronOfNA]

I kind of saw this coming

Its the classic Nintendo cycle at this point

It gets cheaper and it gets big Nintendo games

Everyone loves them again. Predictable and Classic Nintendo

Is more like the yearly "WiiU is teh bestest console. Buy please." Happened last year.