Interesting Wii U news

[Howard_Casto]

Ok so Wii Fit U will be out early, Nov 1st to be exact, but only as a one month digital trial.  If you buy their fancy pedometer (which btw is already rated as one of the most accurate ones out there) for 20 bucks you get Wii Fit U for free!  The physical versions won't be available until Dec 13th.  Apparently it's frikkin huge as well.  There are 77 modes of play and in the Nintendo Direct video they actually recommend checking your HDD space before buying it.

They've also updated street maps to work with the balance board... which is kind of fun, but hey, it's free!

Wii Sports is being re-released as individual hd remakes of the various games, this time taking advantage of the motion plus and supporting online multiplayer and league play. 
They are a tad pricey though... 10 bucks a game.. which means if you buy them all it'll cost as much as a retail game?  They also have this interesting rental mode though.  You can rent all the wii sports games for 1.99 a day.  I'm not sure if that's stupid or brilliant, but I'm having flashbacks of renting games at the video store in the 80's.

This seems to be a new aggressive online tactic that they are sporting.  Recently released were Wii U apps for animal crossing and pokemon on the 3ds.  Again all free.  They seem to be up to something.... I wonder what they'll announce come the holiday season.

[TKW4rr10r]

So I take it the pedometer will be out on the 1st as well as the digital copy? $20 is a steal for both if you truly get the game for free in the deal.

Nintendo has not been selling the the Wii U in quantities they were hoping, so I wouldn't be surprised if they pulled out some tricks before the holidays. I got a deluxe set when it was released and like it, just miffed a Zelda special edition came out so (relatively) soon after launch. They should sell some accessories in the same look as the special edition.

What I'm really waiting for is some 3DS XL special editions for the US already!  So many cool designs overseas and still stuck with just red and blue. Not upgrading until I one gets released here.

[amendonz]

Sounds amazing. We only have lame as games like GTA 5 to play   

Keep at it though Howie. I'm sure you're bound to convince SOMEONE to buy one.

[Howard_Casto]

Well if we are going there the GTA series is horrible and for the "dude bro" types.  You can keep it thank you.  I'm not the only Wii U owner that feels this way.  There was a petition to bring the game to the PC and Wii U.  While the PC got half a million signatures, the Wii U one only got about 4000.  And before you respond, no, this isn't due to low sales... the rayman "release early" petition got over a million signatures.  So to be frank, we don't want it.  I'm not sure what your comparison is all about anyway  Wii Fit U isn't even a game.   I'm not trying to convince anyone to do anything, I only found it interesting, so please troll elsewhere, especially when you are this bad at it.


TKW4rr10r:

This isn't a rumor.  It was confirmed via Reggie himself in the Wii U Direct that if you buy the pedometer and sync it before your trial period expires you get the game for free.  Yes it's supposed to be released Nov 1.  I'm really glad because I was afraid they were going to do something stupid like sell the game for 50 bucks or make you buy a new "wii u balance board". 

[hypernova]

We only have lame as games like GTA 5 to play

Truer words ne'er were spoken.

Seriously.  GTA IS lame.  Everyone I know says it gets repetitive and boring quickly.  Watched it being played myself...couldn't understand the draw.

[TKW4rr10r]

TKW4rr10r:

This isn't a rumor.  It was confirmed via Reggie himself in the Wii U Direct that if you buy the pedometer and sync it before your trial period expires you get the game for free.  Yes it's supposed to be released Nov 1.  I'm really glad because I was afraid they were going to do something stupid like sell the game for 50 bucks or make you buy a new "wii u balance board".

Good to know.

I never understood the Nintendo bashing in general. I was lucky enough to purchase all 3 systems last gen, and bought them for different reasons. Many did. And while MS and Sony were in their pissing match, Nintendo outsold them both as the must have 2nd console for most, or the 1st choice for many more. You don't become successful, and stay that way for decades without knowing what you are doing and being the innovator along the way. And the upcoming consoles don't interest me other than the Wii U. ACTUALLY, it was this past E3 that finally motivated me to start my arcade collection! 

I've been into PC gaming for decades and see the line blurring between them and consoles in each generation. With my addiction to services like steam, I have way too many quality (and cheap) games to play to go broke buying a PS4 or XB1 this year, or maybe even next. (I'd rather spend the money on some cabs) And I don't believe I'm in the minority for saying so. I think the upcoming consoles will sell okay this holiday season (more so the PS4) but I don't think they will be hitting any milestones when compared to the previous gen sales in this market.

But I digress...... 

[Howard_Casto]

Yeah lord knows I'm not trying to start one of those which consoles is better debate.  They all have their strengths but I took offense to the fact that I was just posting some news and up comes the "wii u is lame" trolling. 

Also you know GTA V was released on LAST GEN consoles, so that comment is even more confusing to me.  If I wanted to play that game I would play it on one of my last gen consoles, it's not like they get thrown away, especially since all the next gen ones aren't out yet.  Now if the PS4 and Xbone was out and it was released on those guys it'd be a valid point.  Even then, it's a really terrible game... at least for me. 


I'm looking at the ps4 and xbone launch titles and I can wait for now.  For the Wii U I couldn't.... that would have been an entire year without a Mario game.... which is just not something I can stand.  And most of your last gen titles have been getting simultaneous release on it as well. Injustice, Assassin's Creed, ect... I don't think I've booted my 360 since I got it.

Anyway......  I think it's a very positive gesture on Nintendo's part.  Wii Fit and Wii Fit plus sold something like 30 million copies a piece, the adoption rate was super high, so it stands to reason the people who bought a wii u are going to get the title one way or another.  Instead of milking their consumers dry they gave us a really good deal.  Don't get me wrong, they probably have 3-5 bucks in the pedometer and are making 12 bucks a pop on it, but it's a win-win in my book.

[05SRT4]

I dusted off My Wii U the other day and no Joke played Nintendo Land for hours.

[Howard_Casto]

I need to finish that one.  Man that's a frikkin long game!  Yeah I know they are "mini" games, but if you want 100% completion it takes quite some time. 

I think at the time what burnt me out on it was the fact that it was pretty much all I had to play.  Still gotta beat pikmin 3 as well and then maybe I can get to buying some of the new titles that have came out. 

[lilshawn]

We only have lame as games like GTA 5 to play

Truer words ne'er were spoken.

Seriously.  GTA IS lame.  Everyone I know says it gets repetitive and boring quickly.  Watched it being played myself...couldn't understand the draw.

sooo.... hows that GTA V working out for everybody. You been able to look past the models that appear out of nowhere,  the cars that disappear, and the 30 (read as 17) FPS, 720p graphics yet?

[Malenko]

pretty great finished the main story last night, gonna play clean up side missions tonight.

[TKW4rr10r]

sooo.... hows that GTA V working out for everybody. You been able to look past the models that appear out of nowhere,  the cars that disappear, and the 30 (read as 17) FPS, 720p graphics yet?

Meh, I'm waiting for the PC version. They already found code confirming the game for that and the PS4 versions. Sure XB1 would be in that coming someday list, too. Got too many other things to occupy my time, so I can wait for the eventual steam sale 

The micro-transactions coming to the on-line portion sickens me, though. Rockstar says it will still be "balanced", but I don't see any way of that being true when you invite the "pay real money for quick cash" element into the game.

If anything, this blatant money grab by them could mean the PC version is coming sooner than expected, since they always touted as loosing money to pirates on their PC versions as the reason for not releasing them on the same time-table as the console ports, if ever.

[amendonz]

GTA V worked out pretty great really. By far the best GTA ever made. Incredible experience. The bugs were pretty minimal tbh there's a bit of pop in but it doesn't ruin it. The graphics are stunning in cases, flying over the city in particular i found just awesome.

the missions were 1000x more varied than IV and the mechanics were sharpened up with cover and stuff. Auto lock on is a bit op maybe..

500+ more missions when online drops in a couple days, i finished it after 3 days solid gaming. Haven't jammed liked that in years.

[amendonz]

I will mention though, after recently reading a lot of gushing over the Wii U controller I'm now keen actually try one so I will report back.

As for that last gen call, Howard.. Do you HONESTLY consider Wii U a TRUE  next gen console I mean really. Fanboy goggles off its a Wii.5 which was fairly underpowered in its day. (I realise the Nintendo consoles arent about pure grunt but it matters..)

[lilshawn]

Nintendo was (is) all about pushing the envelope on innovation. i mean, a ---smurfing--- touchscreen in the controller?!... sony and microsoft would never have even thought go there (yet). Nintendo was willing to go there...try new things. It's not about the system really, it's about changing the way people game WITH the system.

[ChadTower]

Yep, Nintendo's next gen has always meant "new gameplay experiences" instead of "bigger faster more powerful".

The SNES might be the only exception to that.

[lilshawn]

Yep, Nintendo's next gen has always meant "new gameplay experiences" instead of "bigger faster more powerful".

The SNES might be the only exception to that.

fx chips (and others)

they really gave themselves a boost by having direct to processor subsystem links in the cart connector. need some extra power?? stick another chip in the cart. BOOM 3D!

[TKW4rr10r]

fx chips (and others)

they really gave themselves a boost by having direct to processor subsystem links in the cart connector. need some extra power?? stick another chip in the cart. BOOM 3D!

OK history rant starting>
Agreed on the awesome setup of the SNES carts. Problem was when going to the N64 (It will always be the original "Ultra 64" name to me) they should have gone with the times and went with CDs. They didn't take what they learned with that botched Sony/Nintendo Super Nintendo CD deal to heart. The market was always a two horse race between Nintendo and Sega up to that point. Nobody else could get a decent market-share. And between Nintendo not being very new developer friendly with the 64, and Sega messing up the hardware on the Saturn trying to play last minute catch-up to the PlayStation, Sony was given the golden opportunity to capitalize.

If either didn't drop the ball the current state of consoles would be very different today. I mean even FFVII was originally planned as a N64 game before switching to CDs on PS1. Sony was able to bring in new developers for a much better deal Nintendo was going to give them (partly due to prices CD vs cart, partly due to the control they wanted), and we got  a lot of awesome franchises out of those early days we may never have seen. So that's the definite positive of that generation.

I started in gaming as a Nintendo fan many years ago, and while I've always recognized them as leading innovation, that was a major turning point for them. I'd say they didn't recover in the console sector until the Wii. But that's just market-share. I still don't see them recovering in 3rd party support yet. Not that the Wii-U is not a great system (I got one at launch), many have to be convinced it's worth the investment with the XB1, PS4, and PC options. And its showing not to be easy so far.

[ChadTower]

I love when people post stuff like that as if the rest of us are 8 years old and didn't live through it too.   

[lilshawn]

I love when people post stuff like that as if the rest of us are 8 years old and didn't live through it too.   

I love that we aren't talking about the Wii-U anymore in this thread.

you got to give it to nintendo for the design of the SNES controller...that mofo was BOMB PROOF! I've whipped a SNES controller so hard after losing on SF2T that I broke the entertainment stand the TV was in. Picked that bad boy right back up and lost 85 more times.

[TKW4rr10r]

I love when people post stuff like that as if the rest of us are 8 years old and didn't live through it too.   

Sounds amazing. We only have lame as games like GTA 5 to play   

Keep at it though Howie. I'm sure you're bound to convince SOMEONE to buy one.

Most of the comments I've read seem to back up that theory 

[amendonz]

lol. I acknowledge my post as a bit of a troll but COME ON!!! haha he came in with a new thread citing a freaking PEDOMETER as exciting news. I realise everyones definition of exciting is different but a god dam pedometer?

each to their own I guess

[TKW4rr10r]

lol. I acknowledge my post as a bit of a troll but...

Well good, admittance is a step towards recovery.   
JK, It's all in good fun. I almost forgot what this thread was about originally.

[ChadTower]

lol. I acknowledge my post as a bit of a troll but COME ON!!! haha he came in with a new thread citing a freaking PEDOMETER as exciting news. I realise everyones definition of exciting is different but a god dam pedometer?

each to their own I guess

I would enjoy a pedometer a lot more than another GTA game.  Not everybody wants to drive around slapping hookers pretending to be a gangsta.

I was really hoping they would extend the concept of that obstacle course they had in Wii Fit.  That was fun.

[Malenko]

have they even had hookers in the car to regain health since vice city?

Theres a TON more to do in GTA that. Theres a ton more to do that pretending to be a gangster too

http://venturebeat.com/2010/06/05/my-four-year-old-son-plays-grand-theft-auto/

[Howard_Casto]

lol. I acknowledge my post as a bit of a troll but COME ON!!! haha he came in with a new thread citing a freaking PEDOMETER as exciting news. I realise everyones definition of exciting is different but a god dam pedometer?

each to their own I guess

I would enjoy a pedometer a lot more than another GTA game.  Not everybody wants to drive around slapping hookers pretending to be a gangsta.

I was really hoping they would extend the concept of that obstacle course they had in Wii Fit.  That was fun.

This^^

Also in what way was I excited about a pedometer?  I was excited about the fact that I could get Wii Fit U for free, because I want the pedometer anyway (which again, as I noted is the most accurate on the market). 

Some of us are concerned about our health as well as playing videogames. 

Malenko: 

But the point is the main premise of the GTA series is running around pretending to be a gangster.  When a game's main story mode is so horrible that you have to play around to make your own fun there is something seriously wrong with the series. 

If gta had a shooting mode where you could actually aim well, a fighting mode where you could actually control the fight, and a vehicle mode where it actually felt like you were controlling the vehicle I wouldn't be so hard on it, but a game where you can do many things, only so poorly that the controls are worse than the worst example of that activity out there is the very definition of "jack of all trades master of none".  I'm just not into mediocre gameplay.  If the story was good I could ignore some of this, but it just isn't. 

[amendonz]

GTA V is not GTA IV.

4 was boring, repetitive with lame story.

GTA V is none of those things, and mechanics have been tightened up all round.

also, as far as being 'good' games, the GTA series weren't really there. But they were still great. Its still not perfect mechanicswise but its definitely a good game now.

[ChadTower]

I'm not saying these are awful games, even.  All I'm saying is that they aren't for me or for my kids.  We don't want to play them.  We enjoy other types of games.

We are Nintendo type gamers.  Platformers, cartoony games, games with interesting controllers.

[amendonz]

That was more for the people judging GTA 5 on the older games. I hated IV completely it was super boring and I hated the feel of basically everything. I just hope they don't pass such a great game based on the previous entrys. This one is Sooooo much better.

I realise not everyone likes these sort of games dude lol I just can't stress enough how this game is NOT LIKE GTA IV AT ALL

[Monkeyvoodoo]

I always preferred the saints row games over the gta series. They may be a tad over the too but so much more fun to play

[knave]

I only recently played into GTA III. I had played the two older top down versions and had fun. I have San Andreas and tried it for a bit and lost interest. 

On some levels I liked the sandbox...on others I needed the mission flow. I start loosing interest once I fail a mission endlessly and have to start at a checkpoint far away. That drive back to the event location is torture for me.

GTA V looks great. I think I would have fun with it...I'll pick it up in two years on a steam sale for $5

[Malenko]

Malenko: 

But the point is the main premise of the GTA series is running around pretending to be a gangster.  When a game's main story mode is so horrible that you have to play around to make your own fun there is something seriously wrong with the series. 

If gta had a shooting mode where you could actually aim well, a fighting mode where you could actually control the fight, and a vehicle mode where it actually felt like you were controlling the vehicle I wouldn't be so hard on it, but a game where you can do many things, only so poorly that the controls are worse than the worst example of that activity out there is the very definition of "jack of all trades master of none".  I'm just not into mediocre gameplay.  If the story was good I could ignore some of this, but it just isn't.

SO then I'll just assume you are basing that on never having played 5? The controls are tight, the auto aim is almost OP, and the driving is pretty great. The controls were pretty good in GTA 4, its just the "story" sucked. GTA:SA was great despite HEAVY usage of the word "---Bad words, bad words, whatcha gonna do? Whatcha gonna do when saint censors you?---" (which is actually used alot in GTAV sadly). ALso, the fighting mechanic is still subpar, but you really dont use it that much.

As for Saints Row 1 was terrible , 2 was stupid fun (especially co-op) , 3 was EPIC , 4 was a letdown but still better than GTA4

[ChadTower]

Games using that word, or even a context in which that word would be appropriate, are on the dark side of the moon relative to my gaming interests.   

[Howard_Casto]

Malenko: 

But the point is the main premise of the GTA series is running around pretending to be a gangster.  When a game's main story mode is so horrible that you have to play around to make your own fun there is something seriously wrong with the series. 

If gta had a shooting mode where you could actually aim well, a fighting mode where you could actually control the fight, and a vehicle mode where it actually felt like you were controlling the vehicle I wouldn't be so hard on it, but a game where you can do many things, only so poorly that the controls are worse than the worst example of that activity out there is the very definition of "jack of all trades master of none".  I'm just not into mediocre gameplay.  If the story was good I could ignore some of this, but it just isn't.

SO then I'll just assume you are basing that on never having played 5? The controls are tight, the auto aim is almost OP, and the driving is pretty great. The controls were pretty good in GTA 4, its just the "story" sucked. GTA:SA was great despite HEAVY usage of the word "---Bad words, bad words, whatcha gonna do? Whatcha gonna do when saint censors you?---" (which is actually used alot in GTAV sadly). ALso, the fighting mechanic is still subpar, but you really dont use it that much.

As for Saints Row 1 was terrible , 2 was stupid fun (especially co-op) , 3 was EPIC , 4 was a letdown but still better than GTA4

*sigh*  I hear this every single time a GTA game is released "Oh the last ones sucked, but THIS one is good, it's totally different, you should try it."  I've hated 1-4 (yes including SA, which had a stupid story btw), why should 5 be any different?

Auto Aim = Bad controls.  I want to play my games, I don't want them to play themselves. 
If I drive a car in a game, especially if the game has the word "auto" in the title, the driving controls better be as good as outrun or my favorite racers.  If the other two main mechanics are shooting and fighting then I better have aim as good as goldeneye and fighting as good as assassin's creed. 

GTA is second life for people that don't have pcs imho.  Second Life sucks too btw.....

It's fine if you like these dudebro games, just don't try to convince me that I'll like them.

The only sandbox game I've ever liked is No More Heroes, and the sandbox element wasn't the part I liked (it was actually dropped in the sequel). 

[Malenko]

I can understand not liking them, but I cant understand saying the aim sucks (auto aim is to center mass, and can be turned off) , the driving sucks (GTA 5 is down right great driving mechanics) , yeah the hand to hand fighting blows; but basing that all on an xbox/PS2 title that came out 9 years ago?..... kinda weak. You can go into any best buy or gamestop and prolly play the game for free (or borrow it from a friend) then say "yeah I played it, it sucks"

I thought GTA SA was fun, it was neat to be lazy and eat like a big and become fat, or work out a lot and be buff. It was by no stretch of the imagination the greatest game ever, but it was fun. You dont always need a driving narative to have a fun game. Saints Row 3 has a down right goofy story but is one of the best games ever (IMO).

As for Auto in the title, the felon is about stealing cars, so thats a pretty weak retort mnag, I have higher standards for you

[ChadTower]

What I don't understand is hating them so much that he played them all enough to know all of that.

[lilshawn]

Auto Aim = Bad controls.  I want to play my games, I don't want them to play themselves. 

PC Master race reporting in 

I hate gamepads. Mouse is really the only way to aim. 

[Malenko]

What I don't understand is hating them so much that he played them all enough to know all of that.

Well when he says 1 through 4, I dont know what he means. 1 and 2 were top down games (along with the London Expansions), 3 was 3D, 4 was Vice City , 5 was San Andreas , then they had GTA Advance, then of course liberty cities story and vice city stories, so the 8th game was IV (they justified this by saying 4 is a new story arc / universe) , then china town wars, and now GTA V .  So yeah I dunno which 4 he hated. I liked 3, it was great for its time, I didnt like VC that much, loved GTA:SA, hated both "stories" games, just seemed like a cheap ploy to rehash assets. China Town was pretty lame, but the mini games were novel. IV was all around terrible, from the physics, to the characters, to the story. If he only hated 4 then he didnt play 11 of the main games/expansions.

Point is, despite all the other games, I don't think its fair for him to criticize specific aspects (driving, shooting, etc) of GTA V having never played it.

lilshawn, mouse is definitely better to aim with, but controller is better to drive with

[marioxb]

So.. uh, what was this topic about again? Oh yeah, Wii U!

So yeah, I love my Wii U. I am actually really really looking forward to Wii Fit U (among other games) and that is fantastic information. My wife and I need to lose some weight anyway. The Wii Sports HD stuff is really cool as well, except for the pricing. Oh well, one game at a time and it won't feel so bad.

I'm sure everyone has heard of the fact that Wii games can be displayed on the Game Pad now? Yeah, just displayed, not actually PLAYED, meaning you need to use a Wii remote and/ or attachment or Balance Board. But it's a step in the right direction anyway.

Speaking of GTA, Lego City Undercover is WAYYYY more fun to me anyway. It's sort of a GTA where you play as a cop. I liked it anyway when I rented it.

I need to still pick up Lego, 101, Pikmin, Need for Speed, Injustice, Luigi, Zelda, and probably more. Yeah, I don't buy games often. I don't even own a 360 or PS3 (but I will get em eventually). The last game I bought was Tank, Tank, Tank retail for 20 bucks. I did also get DuckTales and D&D.

I wonder when, if ever, this "2nd player GamePad" option will happen?

[Howard_Casto]

What I don't understand is hating them so much that he played them all enough to know all of that.

Because every time I try NOT to play these throwaway titles, I have goobers like you guys insisting that "this one is different, sit down and try it"  and surprise, surprise, they are crap!

By all of them I mean the main ones in the series obviously, not the portables and other crap.  I played 3 first... hated it, SA, also hated it.  So I went back and tried the first two top-down games and while they are a totally different animal, I hated them for completely different reasons.  I tried 4 briefly... giving it another chance since it was a new console generation and all, but the underlying problems with controls were still there.  Sorry Malenko but I find it extremely hard to believe that after all of these years they've finally decided to fix their broken control system. 

Shoot I even bought the red dead redemption zombie game for the 360 thinking "this will be totally different as it's a different game and there are zombies" but nope, that god awful rockstar control scheme was used for that game as well.  I don't think Rockstar is capable of making a good game.


But getting back on topic, have you guys seen the gameplay video released of Super Mario 3d World?  Mindblowing!

I count around a dozen or so new powerups/gameplay mechanics just in the teaser clip they released a couple of weeks ago, check it out:



Kirbo's Ice Skate FTW!