Tag: hardware

2153: Should You Buy a Wii U?

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The temptation to make this post just the word “YES” in 120-point bold underlined text is enormous, but most people will probably need a bit more convincing than that.

So, going against everything I learned about writing headlines — “never write a headline that is a question that can be answered with a single word” — I shall now attempt to explain to you why the Wii U is a really solid investment, certainly as much and possibly even more so than the Xbox One and PlayStation 4.

Hardware

The Wii U hardware may not pack as much of a punch as its competitors in this generation, but it’s a nice bit of kit. The console itself is a pleasant, shiny black box with subtle lights on the front, and it will look good under pretty much anyone’s TV. The accompanying GamePad is also an intriguing-looking piece of kit that is sure to be a conversation piece for people visiting your living room, and its second-screen functionality is impressive.

The Wii U doesn’t have the flashing disc slot that the original Wii did for notifications while it was turned off; instead, the GamePad can light up with announcements about new patches, new content and new releases. These announcements also appear as a banner ad on the Quick Start screen when you first turn the console on, so it’s usually pretty easy to find the thing that was announced.

The GamePad itself is a surprisingly pleasant controller, even with its enormous size. Its triggers are comfortable and ergonomic, despite not being that nice brand of squishy analogue that Microsoft in particular has specialised in, and all the buttons are easy to reach by people with normal-sized hands. The only slight adjustment some people may have to make is the fact that the A, B, X and Y buttons are presented in a mirrored arrangement to how they are found on the Xbox controllers (they go “YXBA” instead of “XYAB”) but this will be nothing new to anyone who had a SNES.

The Wii U Pro Controller is a really nice controller, too. It doesn’t come with the console, but it’s a worthwhile investment for those who don’t get on with using the GamePad as a controller, or simply as an extra controller for multiplayer games. Modelled somewhat on the shape of the Xbox 360 controller, it lacks analogue triggers but makes up for this with a much nicer D-pad than anything Microsoft has ever come up with, and a built-in rechargeable battery immediately puts it ahead of both the 360 and One controllers.

You can also use your old Wii Remotes, Nunchuks and Balance Board accessories on compatible games, which is a nice nod to backward compatibility that both the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 lack. That said, some games don’t support some of the older, more specialised controllers such as the Classic Controller and Classic Controller Pro, so check the packaging for the games or reports online before expecting to jump into multiplayer. One example I can think of is Ubisoft’s ZombiU, which supports Wii Remote and Nunchuk, but not the Classic Controller or Classic Controller Pro; for a second player to play with a controller, they must use the Wii U Pro Controller.

The only real letdown so far as hardware is concerned on the Wii U is the pitiful 32GB storage space it comes with. Fortunately, this is easily upgradeable using any standard USB hard drive, and this is highly recommended, even if you generally only play disc-based games — patches, DLC and optional “fast loading” content for larger games can chew through that available space incredibly quickly.

Oh, there’s also no Ethernet port; you’re stuck with wireless networking only by default, but a third party USB-to-Ethernet converter box works absolutely fine for those who prefer the stability and speed of a wired connection.

OS and Online

The Wii U’s OS is a natural evolution from the Wii’s “Channels” setup and is rather similar to the 3DS. One screen — the TV by default — shows a splash screen with your own Miis and others from the Internet — assuming you’re connected — along with icons representing popular games at the time and related Miiverse posts selected randomly from the community. The other shows a customisable grid of the disc you have inserted into the console and any software you have downloaded. There are also icons for the various tools the system offers.

The Wii U’s online service is a significant improvement over past iterations of Nintendo Network. Friend Codes are out of the window, replaced instead by the much easier to share Nintendo Network ID. Online activity is pushed into the background and is completely unobtrusive, perhaps to a fault; the only way you will know friends are online in many cases is if a game directly notifies you, or if you happen to press the Home Button and see a notification.

You’re also pretty limited in what you can do with friends. You can see what they’re playing and hit a link to it in the eShop, save their Mii to your console, and view their Miiverse profile, but that’s about it. There’s no chat, no messaging, nothing like that. For the most part, this is fine, since any Nintendo games that offer online functionality are generally designed to be played without requiring direct communication, but the option would have perhaps been nice. There are alternative solutions, though, so it’s not exactly a dealbreaker, particularly for those who prefer to play solo.

Miiverse is an interesting idea, with communities for most games as well as more general topics. It’s a good place to find comments and some surprisingly impressive fan-art for games, but its execution is a little slow and clunky to make it something most people will want to dip into on a whim. It can be a good place to find information, though, and it’s always interesting to see what people are saying about a game. The latest version of the Miiverse software also allows you to save screenshots and keep a “Play Journal” with annotated screenshots, which is a nice evolution of the notes page in the back of old game manuals.

The eShop is a well-designed storefront that makes discovering new things to play quite easy. A colourful front page features new releases — including, in many cases, music from the games — as well as links to the store’s various sections. A solid search function allows you to find what you’re looking for, but browsing can throw up some interesting surprises too.

The selection available is pretty good, though prices are not particularly competitive with physical editions and in some bizarre cases, digital versions even cost more than their physical counterparts. A big highlight of the platform is the Virtual Console section, which includes games from older systems ranging from the NES to the Nintendo 64 and even the previous-generation Wii, though the selection here is relatively small. It’s worth noting that switching the Wii U into “Wii Mode”, though, allows you access to the older system’s much more substantial Virtual Console library, though you’ll have to satisfy yourself with playing these versions in 480p rather than the lovely sharpness of 1080p, but in the case of retro titles this may not be a dealbreaker for many of you.

The main issue with the Wii U’s online functionality is that not much of it is explicitly explained. There’s a very convenient image sharing website that allows you to quickly post screenshots to Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr, for example, but you won’t know it’s there unless you happen to peek into the system’s default web browser bookmarks. A bit of experimentation — or perhaps being told about these things by friends — will reveal what it offers, though.

Games

This is the highlight, really. While the Wii U’s overall library is very small compared to the Xbox One and the PlayStation 4, its quality is pretty consistently excellent. Here are some personal recommendations:

Super Mario 3D World — one of the best Super Mario games in years, Super Mario 3D World takes the isometric perspective of the 3DS game Super Mario Land and presents the player with more complex, longer levels and a wide variety of mechanics to learn and play with. It’s a beautifully presented game with wonderful graphics and music (and a somewhat redundant “cooperative” multiplayer mode that doesn’t really add much to the game) that is an essential purchase for anyone with a Wii U.

Super Smash Bros. for Wii U — Super Smash Bros. remains one of the most accessible fighting games out there, but its hidden depths mean that it is one of the most consistently popular titles on the tournament circuit, too. It’s a tremendously fun game, and in terms of the sheer amount of content you get both on the disc and available as downloadable content, it’s hard to think of a fighting game with more to offer both solo players and parties of fighters.

Mario Kart 8 — It’s Mario Kart, so not much more needs to be said, really; it runs beautifully, it has some wonderfully inventive tracks (with more available via optional DLC) and it has an excellent online mode.

Super Mario Maker — It’s wonderful to see a resurgence of the “Construction Kit” genre of games, and Super Mario Maker is a wonderfully accessible, friendly opportunity for people to try their hand at making 2D platformer levels with a Super Mario Bros, Super Mario Bros 3, Super Mario World or New Super Mario Bros U aesthetic. Even if you have no intention of creating levels, though, the sheer volume of custom levels available online is enough to keep any platform game fan busy, and the game’s voting system ensures that badly designed levels drop to the bottom of the rankings pretty quickly.

Splatoon — The shooter for people who don’t like shooters. Splatoon is a lovely twist on the team-based multiplayer shooter genre in that it’s never just about killing the other team; rather, it’s about claiming territory by painting it. A wide variety of weapon types and other equipment keep the game interesting in the long term without unbalancing it, and the fact the game is continually expanding over time means that it’s always… fresh.

Xenoblade Chronicles X — If you’ve read my posts over the last few days about this, you already know how I feel about this. It’s one of the most spectacular games I’ve ever encountered, one of the biggest open worlds I’ve ever seen and one of the best realisations of “sci-fi” in video games of all time. It’s not a game for the faint-hearted as it is absolutely riddled with interlocking mechanics that you need to figure out for yourself in most cases, but it’s a significant step forward for the role-playing game genre and absolutely one of the best games I’ve ever played.

NES Remix — Enjoy retro games but can’t quite face playing a whole one through? Enter the NES Remix series, two games that feature numerous snippets of various popular Nintendo games, coupled with bizarre challenges and sometimes complete revamps of how you play them. Can you get through Super Mario Bros. backwards as Luigi? Can you perform perfectly in Excitebike? Can you do anything involving Zelda II without wanting to throw things? SNES Remix now please, Nintendo…

Conclusion

Yes.

#oneaday Day 880: Not Going To Make a “Livin’ La Vita Loca” Joke

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I bought a PlayStation Vita today. I’d had my eye on one for a little while, but having successfully paid off my credit card for the purchase of my new Mac, I decided a little treat was in order, so I did a bit of research as to what the fine folks of the Internet thought was good games-wise, and grabbed one today. I was fortunate enough to be able to snare a preowned but unused model from Game in Southampton today, which cut down the price considerably, allowing me to also grab an (overpriced) 32GB memory card along with a copy of Everybody’s Golf to enjoy for about £270 in total.

I’ve only spent one round with the latter so far (but it’s bringing back pleasing memories of Tee Off on the Dreamcast) so I won’t comment on that too much, but I did want to talk a little bit about the system itself, as I believe it’s worthy of note.

The Vita distinguishes itself from its predecessor the PSP immediately with its touchscreen-friendly interface. Featuring an icon-based homescreen somewhat akin to modern smartphones, the Vita invites you to touch, swipe, flick, peel and all manner of other things. You can reorganise your homescreen icons as you see fit, and even set backgrounds for different pages. You can’t organise things into folders, though, which is a bit of a shame, but I can cope with that. PlayStation Network (sorry… Sony Entertainment Network, which still amuses me because its abbreviation is the same as Special Educational Needs) provides plenty of downloadable goodness, ranging from complete games that you could also buy as physical products at retail to smaller, cheaper, download-only titles and even free apps for access to Twitter, Facebook, Skype and Flickr.

The downloadable side of things has, for me, always been a big strength of Sony’s systems from the PSP onwards. The PlayStation Store is a veritable treasure trove of underappreciated and overlooked gems as well as some of the most memorable “art games” (for want of a better term) in the business — games like Flower and Journey, for example. PlayStation Minis, too, provide portable-friendly experiences akin to what you might play on a smartphone, only with dedicated controls to enjoy them with, which is a big boon to anyone sick of poorly-implemented touch controls.

Besides the games themselves, though, Vita has a number of interesting and intriguingly noteworthy features. For starters, the system actually does multitasking considerably better than both iOS and Android. A tap of the PlayStation button freezes whatever you’re doing and takes you immediately back to the “OS”. From here, you can “peel” the app off the screen to close it completely, switch to something else (like, say, the settings app, or Twitter) and then be back into your game without any messing around. This is particularly beneficial when you want to browse the PlayStation Store for addon content, for example — even the PS3 requires a quit out of a running game to access the Store, whereas Vita manages to seamlessly switch to it, let you browse as you see fit, then switch back. This functionality also allows you to effectively do what the Steam Overlay does for PC gamers — while running a game, you can pop open a browser window and, let’s face it, look at GameFAQs.

Vita’s interface is gorgeous, too. The big, high-resolution LED screen makes things look great anyway, but the design of the OS just begs to be played with, too. On the homescreen, flicking between screens causes the icons to wobble like they’re hanging on pegs. Rather than “slide to unlock” if the machine goes into standby, you use the same “peel” motion that is used for closing apps. And the soft keyboard is pretty good, too, with a decent predictive text dictionary built in — though the size of the screen and its position means that “thumb typing” as on a smartphone is next to impossible. Fortunately, as the Vita is primarily a gaming platform, you won’t be doing that much typing on it, so it’s a design flaw I can forgive.

The built-in apps are interesting, too. Near allows you to see other Vita owners in your nearby vicinity, see what they’ve been playing and their responses to them. (I was surprised to see quite a few Vita owners living near me — I was expecting it to be a virtual ghost town around here.) Welcome Park introduces the system’s little quirks — the multitouch screen, the rear touchpanel, the two cameras and the built-in microphone — through a series of simple but surprisingly engaging minigames, all of which have Trophy support for those who care that much. There’s also a pleasing number of free downloads from the PlayStation Store, including a selection of social apps, a simple finger-painting app and even some games, including the hilarious and WarioWare-esque Frobisher Says.

All in all, I’m very pleased with my purchase so far. I’ve become somewhat disillusioned with iOS gaming recently — perhaps due to the fact I get to see some of the very best and worst titles as part of my day job — so I’ve been surprised how good it feels to have a dedicated handheld system again, particularly one that doesn’t possess an app ecosystem that encourages developers to include “Get More Coins!!” options even where they’re not wanted/needed. I shall look forward to many Everybody’s Golf sessions on the toilet in the near future as well as a thorough exploration of the myriad joys the PlayStation Store has to offer me.