Wii U Architecture • Hacker News Board

Re: Wii U Architecture

#11

Post by djur » Mon, Oct 31, 2022, 7:59 AM UTC

causi wrote: post #6

ace2358 wrote: post #3

The Wii U was unfortunately not a very successful console, but I feel that it had plenty of power to make fantastic looking games and great experiences. It came out in a weird time for technology and Nintendo always uses slightly older hardware. As a homebrew device it is amazing. There are still exploits being found with a new, safe, simple method out now thanks to some crazy dedicated modders. There’s a whole homeb…

The problem was that albatross of a gamepad. Not only did it have garbage battery life, but its presence led Nintendo to actively make games worse just to force mechanics onto the gamepad. Anyone else remember how godawful Star Fox Zero was, for absolutely no good reason?

I really liked the Wii U pad and used it a lot. The Switch is a more fully realized version of the concept, but it has its downsides -- it's not as comfortable to hold and play for long periods, and the lack of a two-screen mode makes certain concepts less effective. Mario Maker, for instance, worked perfectly with the Wii U and feels compromised on the Switch in comparison.

The battery life was completely irrelevant to me. I just kept it plugged in.

Re: Wii U Architecture

#12

Post by djur » Mon, Oct 31, 2022, 8:02 AM UTC

mikepurvis wrote: post #4

meibo wrote: post #2

The Wii U was such a fun console with so many great games, it's a shame that it was relatively inaccessible due to horribly bodged marketing and weird choices - luckily they're porting most(but not all) of the gems. I actually think that the gamepad screen did contribute a lot to a lot of games, especially if there was a lot of action and you were able to use it as a map/for quick actions. It's good that they basical…

Which games really used the secondary screen in an interesting way? The main ones I can think of are: Splatoon— second player without split screen. New SMB U— gamepad player can spawn blocks to help you reach secrets. Wind Waker— map and inventory. But an awful lot of titles just mirrored the TV or had a button to enable off-TV play.

Mario Maker used the touchscreen effectively. You could seamlessly go back and forth between editing your level on the touchscreen and testing it on your TV. I also liked the touchscreen effects in Super Mario 3D World and regret their (effective) absence in the Switch port.

Re: Wii U Architecture

#13

Post by c0balt » Mon, Oct 31, 2022, 8:06 AM UTC

mikepurvis wrote: post #4

meibo wrote: post #2

The Wii U was such a fun console with so many great games, it's a shame that it was relatively inaccessible due to horribly bodged marketing and weird choices - luckily they're porting most(but not all) of the gems. I actually think that the gamepad screen did contribute a lot to a lot of games, especially if there was a lot of action and you were able to use it as a map/for quick actions. It's good that they basical…

Which games really used the secondary screen in an interesting way? The main ones I can think of are: Splatoon— second player without split screen. New SMB U— gamepad player can spawn blocks to help you reach secrets. Wind Waker— map and inventory. But an awful lot of titles just mirrored the TV or had a button to enable off-TV play.

It was mostly used as a secondary, supporting display: - Zelda Windwaker HD - Deus Ex: Human Revolution - Assassin Creed Black Flag

While it wasn't necessary it freed up screen space for the main diaplay while also allowing you to play only on the gamepad.

Re: Wii U Architecture

#14

Post by 111111101101 » Mon, Oct 31, 2022, 8:10 AM UTC

causi wrote: post #6

ace2358 wrote: post #3

The Wii U was unfortunately not a very successful console, but I feel that it had plenty of power to make fantastic looking games and great experiences. It came out in a weird time for technology and Nintendo always uses slightly older hardware. As a homebrew device it is amazing. There are still exploits being found with a new, safe, simple method out now thanks to some crazy dedicated modders. There’s a whole homeb…

The problem was that albatross of a gamepad. Not only did it have garbage battery life, but its presence led Nintendo to actively make games worse just to force mechanics onto the gamepad. Anyone else remember how godawful Star Fox Zero was, for absolutely no good reason?

I always thought that the name was the cause. I don't follow Nintendo very closely so when I heard about the Wii U I just assumed it was a slightly enhanced Wii, not a separate console.

Re: Wii U Architecture

#15

Post by pjmlp » Mon, Oct 31, 2022, 8:22 AM UTC

langsoul-com wrote: post #10

I reckon Nintendo has the best strategy almost game consoles. Not focusing on the power/realism and instead of other aspects. At some point, if someone buys a ps5 or xbox for power only. Then they just get a pc, those consoles takes years to design. By the time they're released, it's already outdated

That is exactly why game studios prefer to target game consoles, there aren't a zillion of different ones to support.

Re: Wii U Architecture

#16

Post by actionfromafar » Mon, Oct 31, 2022, 8:23 AM UTC

ace2358 wrote: post #3

The Wii U was unfortunately not a very successful console, but I feel that it had plenty of power to make fantastic looking games and great experiences. It came out in a weird time for technology and Nintendo always uses slightly older hardware. As a homebrew device it is amazing. There are still exploits being found with a new, safe, simple method out now thanks to some crazy dedicated modders. There’s a whole homeb…

When it hit the stores, the reaction of most I know of was something like "I have a Wii already". So I think the naming was incredibly hampering.

Especially considering a lot of Wii buyers were not exactly deep gamers, but very casual customers.

Re: Wii U Architecture

#17

Post by m_st » Mon, Oct 31, 2022, 8:55 AM UTC

Slightly OT but Wii U games seem to be a topic here: There were many great games, but the IMHO single best game on this console was Lego City Undercover. It was like a less violent GTA. Such a joy to play, plenty of jokes, fantastic open world and great story mode with funny missions.

Luckily they ported it to other consoles too. My kids are still playing it with their friends.

I hope they are working on a successor.

Re: Wii U Architecture

#18

Post by ThatPlayer » Mon, Oct 31, 2022, 8:58 AM UTC

djur wrote: post #11

causi wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The problem was that albatross of a gamepad. Not only did it have garbage battery life, but its presence led Nintendo to actively make games worse just to force mechanics onto the gamepad. Anyone else remember how godawful Star Fox Zero was, for absolutely no good reason?

I really liked the Wii U pad and used it a lot. The Switch is a more fully realized version of the concept, but it has its downsides -- it's not as comfortable to hold and play for long periods, and the lack of a two-screen mode makes certain concepts less effective. Mario Maker, for instance, worked perfectly with the Wii U and feels compromised on the Switch in comparison. The battery life was completely irrelevant…

Another example of the two-screen mode I liked was asymmetrical local multiplayer like Nintendo Land. It's not that it's impossible now, with two switches, but I haven't seen any games do it (with 4 players on a single switch, and 1 on the other).

Re: Wii U Architecture

#19

Post by m_st » Mon, Oct 31, 2022, 8:59 AM UTC

My reason to buy a Wii U back then was that whenever I found the time to play a video game, I had to go through a session of Windows Update, Steam update and game update that I lost interest by the time it was ready.

Compare that to the Wii U back then: Turn on and play.

Nintendo even achieved to keep this mindset with the Switch: It will update in the background so usually you just turn it on and play.

Re: Wii U Architecture

#20

Post by Narann » Mon, Oct 31, 2022, 8:59 AM UTC

ace2358 wrote: post #3

The Wii U was unfortunately not a very successful console, but I feel that it had plenty of power to make fantastic looking games and great experiences. It came out in a weird time for technology and Nintendo always uses slightly older hardware. As a homebrew device it is amazing. There are still exploits being found with a new, safe, simple method out now thanks to some crazy dedicated modders. There’s a whole homeb…

> Always felt like it deserved more popularity, but it couldn’t compete with the ps3/4 and Xbox 360/one.

The Wii U marketing was a total disaster. Using the same name as a well established, casual platform, with a tiny suffix + pushing the "same gamepad compatibility" makes this hardware looks like an expensive "revised" version.

I can't understand how Nintendo didn't catch on this.