Wii U, good concept, bad implementation?

jasong · 2013-10-20, 13:49

For those of you not familiar with the Wii U, it was a gaming setup created by Nintendo that consisted of a Nintendo box and a tablet dedicated to gaming on the platform. They're still making games for it, but it is most definitely not doing well.

In my mind, the screwup was the fact that they use a dedicated tablet. I think the secret to success is to have the tablet-usage be something that can be added on, but is not absolutely necessary. Additionally, they should allow people to use Android, and possibly Ipads when they game.

From what I've heard, the Sony people are working on games that use this feature. So it's the Wii U concept, but people aren't forced to invest in dedicated hardware. In the game Lost Souls(I think that's the title) you can use an Ipad to control the entity attached to Jodie and maneuver around and attack things or cause general mayhem. I was watching a Let's Play without a camera shot of the players in the corner, so I had to take their word for it. From what they were saying, the implementation was sub-optimal, the interface was very non-intuitive and they had trouble figuring out basic maneuvers. I think in the future, some of these games should have plastic things that go over the tablets to simulate an actual gaming thingie.

So what do you think? Is dual-screen gaming the future, or something that should be immediately thrown to the trash?

TheMawn · 2013-10-20, 19:46

Making a console where the controller is someone else's product is a terrible business idea, unless the concept is absolute genius. I never thought it would be in the first place, but I need a few iterations of it to really see if it's actually all that bad. Unless Android and Apple are both willing to help develop the software, ensure it works across all platforms, OS versions, blah blah blah, getting their support is going to cost Nintendo. I can't see Android being a willing victim of that debauchery. On top of that, your console has to be cheaper on account of you need to buy a tablet to use it. Unless Nintendo offers their own device too, which has the benefit of being designed for the console, but then everything costs the same amount and Nintendo has to materialize the money to get everyone on-board with the tablet thing while making no extra money from the whole deal. Scrap that.

Everything Nintendo has made in recent times except for the GameCube and DS has been a gimmick. Sad fails to describe the situation in which Nintendo can still be bigger than Belgium after making such awful decisions. Nintendo is the Apple of the console industry. They have a bunch of rampant fans (yes PlayStation and Xbox do too) who are fans because they are fans and they put up with awful products / service / support because they've chosen to ignore the rest of what is out there.

I own a Wii which has probably taken until recently to properly pay itself off. I don't own many games for it because I'm more of a PC person and too many of the games feel childish. On top of that, the Wii was a poor piece of hardware when it was brand new, so anything more graphically complex than Mario Party barely runs. Of the games I do own, Wii Sports was the one that best took advantage of the motion controls. Mario Party 8 does a good job too, though there are many instances of some kind of motion happening where a button press could happen instead. Twilight princess had some of the best integration of motion controls that I ever saw, because it all fit. Nun-chuck forward to shield bash, swipe controller to slash sword, etc, but barely anything so complex the machine couldn't recognize it.

Anything else I can think of that used the motion controls well was a sequel (Wii sports plus or whatever the hell, Skyward Sword, Mario Party 9). The rest was awful. I was having a horrible experience with Super Smash brothers (I thought I was just bad) until I tried using the GameCube controller. Goldeneye was good for a laugh but anyone using the classic controller instead of the Wii Mote won by default.

The point of that awful rant is that anything that is a gimmick needs to remain a gimmick. A lot of places have a few ideas for a game that would benefit from a motion controller, or a controller with a display on it (anything involving a minimap has serious potential right there) but once those ideas are exhausted, they'll resort to the usual standard setup that has worked since the beginning of consoles. Good luck doing that on the Wii U. The Wii was just a controller with all the same buttons in different places. Almost comfortable to hold, too. The Wii U is some clunky boxy thing (not its fault really, it has a mothertrucking display on it for God's sake).

If anyone other than Nintendo tried pulling that, they would get eaten alive. Microsoft and Sony were getting eaten alive no matter what they did as it was, actually...

So, I guess I would say the handheld display dual-display gaming kajiggy is a bad idea.

R.D. Silverman · 2013-10-21, 16:42

Quote:

Originally Posted by jasong

For those of you not familiar with the Wii U, it was a gaming setup created by Nintendo that consisted of a Nintendo box and a tablet dedicated to gaming on the platform. They're still making games for it, but it is most definitely not doing well.

In my mind, the screwup was the fact that they use a dedicated tablet. I think the secret to success is to have the tablet-usage be something that can be added on, but is not absolutely necessary. Additionally, they should allow people to use Android, and possibly Ipads when they game.

From what I've heard, the Sony people are working on games that use this feature. So it's the Wii U concept, but people aren't forced to invest in dedicated hardware. In the game Lost Souls(I think that's the title) you can use an Ipad to control the entity attached to Jodie and maneuver around and attack things or cause general mayhem. I was watching a Let's Play without a camera shot of the players in the corner, so I had to take their word for it. From what they were saying, the implementation was sub-optimal, the interface was very non-intuitive and they had trouble figuring out basic maneuvers. I think in the future, some of these games should have plastic things that go over the tablets to simulate an actual gaming thingie.

So what do you think? Is dual-screen gaming the future, or something that should be immediately thrown to the trash?

You should not play with your Wii in public.

firejuggler · 2013-10-21, 17:03

unless it is between consentual adualt?

fivemack · 2013-10-21, 17:53

"Adults you are, consenting you may well be, but I would question the privacy of Lowndes Square."

R.D. Silverman · 2013-10-21, 18:05

Quote:

Originally Posted by fivemack

"Adults you are, consenting you may well be, but I would question the privacy of Lowndes Square."

Keep playing with it and one will go blind.

jasong · 2013-10-23, 18:34

Quote:

Originally Posted by R.D. Silverman

You should not play with your Wii in public.

When I was in line for the first Wii, back when it was brand new, I gleefully annoyed people by saying,"I'm in my mid-30s, but I'm just a Wii boy."

After a few iterations of that, Mom(my ride because of my seizure disorder) decided to wait in the car.

2013-10-20, 13:49	#1
jasong "Jason Goatcher" Mar 2005 3×7×167 Posts	Wii U, good concept, bad implementation? For those of you not familiar with the Wii U, it was a gaming setup created by Nintendo that consisted of a Nintendo box and a tablet dedicated to gaming on the platform. They're still making games for it, but it is most definitely not doing well. In my mind, the screwup was the fact that they use a dedicated tablet. I think the secret to success is to have the tablet-usage be something that can be added on, but is not absolutely necessary. Additionally, they should allow people to use Android, and possibly Ipads when they game. From what I've heard, the Sony people are working on games that use this feature. So it's the Wii U concept, but people aren't forced to invest in dedicated hardware. In the game Lost Souls(I think that's the title) you can use an Ipad to control the entity attached to Jodie and maneuver around and attack things or cause general mayhem. I was watching a Let's Play without a camera shot of the players in the corner, so I had to take their word for it. From what they were saying, the implementation was sub-optimal, the interface was very non-intuitive and they had trouble figuring out basic maneuvers. I think in the future, some of these games should have plastic things that go over the tablets to simulate an actual gaming thingie. So what do you think? Is dual-screen gaming the future, or something that should be immediately thrown to the trash?

2013-10-20, 19:46	#2
TheMawn May 2013 East. Always East. 11×157 Posts	Making a console where the controller is someone else's product is a terrible business idea, unless the concept is absolute genius. I never thought it would be in the first place, but I need a few iterations of it to really see if it's actually all that bad. Unless Android and Apple are both willing to help develop the software, ensure it works across all platforms, OS versions, blah blah blah, getting their support is going to cost Nintendo. I can't see Android being a willing victim of that debauchery. On top of that, your console has to be cheaper on account of you need to buy a tablet to use it. Unless Nintendo offers their own device too, which has the benefit of being designed for the console, but then everything costs the same amount and Nintendo has to materialize the money to get everyone on-board with the tablet thing while making no extra money from the whole deal. Scrap that. Everything Nintendo has made in recent times except for the GameCube and DS has been a gimmick. Sad fails to describe the situation in which Nintendo can still be bigger than Belgium after making such awful decisions. Nintendo is the Apple of the console industry. They have a bunch of rampant fans (yes PlayStation and Xbox do too) who are fans because they are fans and they put up with awful products / service / support because they've chosen to ignore the rest of what is out there. I own a Wii which has probably taken until recently to properly pay itself off. I don't own many games for it because I'm more of a PC person and too many of the games feel childish. On top of that, the Wii was a poor piece of hardware when it was brand new, so anything more graphically complex than Mario Party barely runs. Of the games I do own, Wii Sports was the one that best took advantage of the motion controls. Mario Party 8 does a good job too, though there are many instances of some kind of motion happening where a button press could happen instead. Twilight princess had some of the best integration of motion controls that I ever saw, because it all fit. Nun-chuck forward to shield bash, swipe controller to slash sword, etc, but barely anything so complex the machine couldn't recognize it. Anything else I can think of that used the motion controls well was a sequel (Wii sports plus or whatever the hell, Skyward Sword, Mario Party 9). The rest was awful. I was having a horrible experience with Super Smash brothers (I thought I was just bad) until I tried using the GameCube controller. Goldeneye was good for a laugh but anyone using the classic controller instead of the Wii Mote won by default. The point of that awful rant is that anything that is a gimmick needs to remain a gimmick. A lot of places have a few ideas for a game that would benefit from a motion controller, or a controller with a display on it (anything involving a minimap has serious potential right there) but once those ideas are exhausted, they'll resort to the usual standard setup that has worked since the beginning of consoles. Good luck doing that on the Wii U. The Wii was just a controller with all the same buttons in different places. Almost comfortable to hold, too. The Wii U is some clunky boxy thing (not its fault really, it has a mothertrucking display on it for God's sake). If anyone other than Nintendo tried pulling that, they would get eaten alive. Microsoft and Sony were getting eaten alive no matter what they did as it was, actually... So, I guess I would say the handheld display dual-display gaming kajiggy is a bad idea. Last fiddled with by TheMawn on 2013-10-20 at 19:49

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2013-10-21, 17:03	#4
firejuggler "Vincent" Apr 2010 Over the rainbow 2²·7·103 Posts	unless it is between consentual adualt?

2013-10-21, 17:53	#5
fivemack (loop (#_fork)) Feb 2006 Cambridge, England 14466₈ Posts	"Adults you are, consenting you may well be, but I would question the privacy of Lowndes Square."