Gaming Cafe Diem Baby: The Nintendo Wii U Discussion

Stopped my local Best Buy earlier and they had a Wii U kisok setup- though, unfortunately, it seems like the GamePad wasn't hooked up and/or charged so I could only hold the controller and watch some of the video demos on the screen.

The GamePad seems pretty comfortable- and I don't think the switching of the right stick and buttons will take much getting used to before it's fully natural. The Z triggers are much better than the Gamecube ones as well (they're basically where I wish the GCN controllers had put them). Felt pretty light as well (though the connection to the kiosk anchored it down a bit).

 

The pressure sensitive triggers from the GCN?

 

I haven't read one way or the other that I can recall. Would make some GCN games difficult to be backwards compatible via Virtual Console though, if and when GCN games go digital.

 

Saw the Wii U commercial before Skyfall tonight, but it was different: it had narration not present on the video embedded earlier. There it specifically says "1 versus 4" and "shoot from here to here". It then points out Nintendoland as an exclusive.

 

Several tracks of Wii U menu music. Very chill, synth stuff. Dig it.

 

Could be worse- I preordered at a mall GameStop, so it won't be open until 11am on a Sunday (mAybe 10 @ best, if they open early).

On the upside, I'm working that morning anyways, so I can't pick it up till noon anyways (enough time to pick it up, get it home and start charging the game pad so it's ready to go when I get back home after work at 5)

 

EDIT- In other news, it seems that VC games will not play on the Gamepad screen, but that there is a future service update that will allow it (though its not clear if that means a new service or updates to existing titles).

 

Got mine, have it charging at home so it's good to go when I get home from work.

Got the deluxe, ZombiU, NSMBU, a motion plus adapter and a screen protector.

However, I was a little disappointed that it doesn't come with an RCA cable (GameStop lied to me? you don't say!) but it looks to be compatible with the Wii's cable so at least that's a temporary solution til I get a new TV or an extra cable

 

So last night me and a friend gave the multiplayer a spin for the three games I got. And the system in general. The Gamepad itself is awesome, and the new Mii creation tool using the camera is a lot of fun.

Nintendoland is a mixed bag. You'll probably only end up playing about half the games with any frequency, but the variety is nice.The tutorial robo screen is really annoying though- they should let you bypass the tips on the first pass.

Metroid Blast is, far and away, the highlight of the compilation. It's basically Jet force Gemini meets Metroid, which is both ironic and awesome. The flight controls take some getting used to (and it really helps if you're playing in a computer chair so you can swivel around easily) and turning around on the ground is a tad tricky but once you get it down, it makes for some great death matches or co-op, depending on the mode.

The Animal Crossing and Mario games are really good as well, being inspired by the Pacman VS concept (chase games with one person having a larger view of the playing field than the others). I'd actually recommend playing the Animal Crossing one with an uneven number of players as well- controlling two characters with the Gamepad at the same time is both challenging for the Gamepad player (having to coordinate the motions and attacks) and the Wiimote player (having to deal with enemies using "Clever Girl" tactics on you). And being chased through the mud by Yoshi punching robots is a bit creepy as well, ha.

The Zelda game is pretty decent- basically on-rails, with the Gamepad player being an archer and the Wiimote player being armed with a sword and shield.

The Pikmin game seemed to have some depth to it, but I wasn't digging it that much. The Ninja game looks like it could be decent- but while the aim is perfect on the game, I seemed to have trouble actually slinging the stars off the touchscreen. I might just have to practice pressing harder on the screen, though.

The Yoshi Fruit Cart game is also decent, but simple. The DK obstacle course game is REALLY hard, though. F-Zero is ok, but not as deep as I would have liked. The octo game is basically a dance rythym game I could take or leave it. Balloon Fight is Balloon Fight. Didn't get a chance to play the Luigi's Mansion game yet (though that one laso looks like it's inspired by Pacman VS, so that will probably be pretty good).

Metroid Blast, Mario Chase & Animal Crossing (and maybe Luigi) are the clear highlights. Yoshi, Zelda & Balloon Fight take up the next tier down. And the others you're probably not going to play all that much.

Although not a full attraction on it's own, you'll definitely end up playing the Plinko coin game (where you use coins earned at attractions to unlock extras) in the tower a lot, though- and though simple, is still a lot of fun. The train tour might have it's own minigame too, but I didn't get a chance to play that yet.

Then we did ZombiU- we played both capture-the-flag and Killing Box modes. The former has a lot RTS strategy to it for the Gamepad player (choosing what units to use- grunts (the equal to SCVs) that capture flags, guards to defend them, hunters to go after the human player, and then you can choose upgrades later on for different units like bombers, sprinters and spitters) and the latter is more "survive what i throw at you" challenge for the human player.

The multiplayer also has a fun sense of humor, what with the Patrick Stewart-sounding announcer making me think of Mad World. Which is in contrast to the grim, serious nature of the single player mode (which I only played for a little bit, but even on normal difficulty is a very hard game- I died fighting the first non-trapped Zombie I came across, LOL). While the wiimote made targeting head shots a lot easier in the multiplayer mode, I think (without having used one yet to verify this) using a Pro Controller would be more ideal (but this could just be because I hadn't learned the wiimote controls very well, since the single player mode does have a quick turn around button that i couldn't seem to find in multiplayer).

And then we finished up by playing the first world and a half of NSMBU, along with some of the Challenge and Boost Rush modes. NSMBU is the design excellence you'd expect. And since my friend is actually as good at Mario games as I am, it was refreshing to not have the multiplayer mode of a NSMB game be worse than the single player mode (which was truly the highlight of NSMBWii, IMO). And the fact that the itek inventory system has reverted to a SMB3-style inventory that doesn't stack item quantities, the game's challenge is definitely going to be higher than what NSMBW's was.

We chose to have both of us use wiimotes, instead of the Gamepad- though one of us would occasionally switch to the Gamepad to throw down some blocks to reach Star Coins.

Boost Rush mode is very cool though- the level of coordination needed for that really requires some skilled players, and even then, it's a totally new experience that no level of Mario experience can really prepare you for (unless you've done hardcore speed run practices on the classic games).

Challenge Mode is the real gem, though- it's taking Mario skills to their max (depending on the nature of the challenges, of course). This will be the mode most rewarding to hardcore Mario players.

EDIT- Also, I've naturally claimed The2ndQuest as my Nintendo Network ID.

 

So, it seems users were able to hack into a mock-up debug menu for Miiverse (since removed) that seems to leak upcoming Wii U title announcements: Yoshi Land, Metal Gear Solid, Resident Evil & an original title called Soul Hackers.

In an interview, Reggie also has said GTA5 is a possibility for Wii U but didn't confirm/announce it.

Elsewhere, it seems ME3 won't be getting the recent Omega DLC on Wii U

 

Additionally, you can apparently download the firmware update in the background even though it doesn't say so anywhere- just hit cancel when it asks you to download it and should die load in the background if your wifi connection is setup. Play for an hour or so and afterwards it'll ask you to install it.

It also seems that, even though they said it wouldn't, people are reporting the Wii U is up scaling some (but not all) Wii games... Which, if true, is making me reconsider not transferring my Wii game data to Wii U.

EDIT- It's also been revealed that, while the Wii U is sold at a loss, it becomes profitable after a single software purchase.

EDIT 2- Having had a chance to play Metroid Blast more, I've finally gotten the controls down. The ground controls are pretty brilliant, actually. Got to do 3 player mode in that, Mario Chase (no creepy robo-Yoshis with 3 players) and Animal Crossing (no drop off points for candy in 3 player mode). Also tried Luigi's mode with 2 players earlier (those robo flashlights are WAY too hard. Would be better in 3+ player mode).

Did some more ZombiU multiplayer as well. Got a little better with the wiimote controls but while I dig them at times, others (like when you need to go back and forth without a full quick turn around) I dont. Picking up items/weapons seems to be a pain as well.

 

Not yet. The transfer process seems pretty painless, though. You just need to make sure you have a large enough SD card for what you're transferring and download the transfer application.

I was going to hold off, since I don't want to lose GCN controller functionality for some Wii games. And, I figure they'll eventually make it so you can play VC games on the Gamepad, so I'll wait for that. BUT now with the reports of upscaling on the graphics, I've been reconsidering that (considering Smash Bros is the only game I have so far that I would really NEED a GCN controller for, and that my restarted save file isnt very far along, I might be able to swing it).

 

I've only played a little single player, but plan to play much more once I get my system set up again. Normal difficulty is hard (died fighting the first mobile zombie I came upon). Very creepy environment, certainly keeps you on edge and punishes you for engaging zombies too openly (in other words, unless you got the ammo- don't). Looking forward to implementing the Miiverse functionality (apparently, your friends are notified when you become a zombie and your zombie shows up in their game, allowing them the chance to loot your corpse and vice versa).

I've also only had a few chances to use the Gamepad features lightly (beyond maps and sonar pings), so I haven't hit any of those "hack the door as the zombies approach" type scenarios yet.

It does seem to be a game that rewards longer term play, though. Most of the early reviews (well, at least the ones that weren't in the "I don't like horror survival games" reviewer category) were mixed but it seems the later reviews with those who stuck with it (or didn't try to rush their reviews online for launch) favored the game more, with the backend of the game addressing many of the concerns over the frontend (ie: you eventually do amass enough ammo to move beyond cricket batting zombies all the time).