My Wii U First Week Impressions
Photo was previously posted in the Pick-Ups thread
Hardware
I was afraid of how clunky the GamePad controller will be given how wide it is. I had tested a demo unit at one of my local Targets and was very surprised with how light it was and how quickly I adjusted to it. After ample play time with the three games I have (Call of Duty: Black Ops II, Nintendo Land and New Super Mario Bros. U), I don't mind using it as the "primary" controller. With the case of COD:BLOPSII, I do prefer using the Wii U Pro Controller. It did take me some time to get used to the right thumb stick being in that position instead of the face buttons. After an hour or two, I adapted and actually like using the Pro Controller. I thought about returning it before giving it a chance but it has grown on me.
The GamePad Cradle included in the Deluxe set can be used to charge the GamePad, so I have that conveniently stationed on my coffee table. The GamePad Stand is not being used and is staying boxed as I have no use for it since the GamePad will be on the Cradle when not in use. I really like the Console Stand as it positions my Wii U vertically, lending itself to a smaller footprint on my entertainment center.
"Built-In" Software
I do plan on using my Wii U as my primary Netflix machine and I'm glad it doesn't have the Xbox 360 interface. Plus, I don't need Xbox Live Gold to use it. The picture quality seems to be washed out in comparison to the 360/PS3's output but on the plus side, you can view whatever you're watching on the GamePad. I find it especially useful when I have to transition from the living room to the kitchen to have dinner with the family, and still continue to watch our movie/shows without a break in between.
The Internet Browser works rather well. It won't replace my iPad for my browsing needs but if I want to show someone a Youtube video or a news article, I can have it displayed quickly and easily on the TV. Speaking of Youtube, the dedicated app is horrible. You can't view videos that are not authorized to display on mobile devices, issues resulting in choppy video/audio and you can't view the videos on the GamePad itself. I'm sticking to the Internet Browser to view Youtube vids.
Finally, I really like what I've seen so far with Miiverse. Given how the integration works with the games, and how you can attach screenshots, text and drawings where anyone can see, it's a nifty feature that I'll definitely use when I can.
Games
Of the four Wii U games I've played (including Scribblenauts Unlimited), I was thoroughly impressed and surprised by Nintendo Land, in a good way. I passed the game off as being a measly collection of mini-games to distract us until the bigger titles are released for the Wii U. From the start of the game, I solo-played The Legend of Zelda: Battle Quest and didn't think much of it. Looks like a combination of Swordplay from Wii Sports Resort and Link's Crossbow Training. I then tried Captain Falcon's Twister Race and was extremely disappointed when I saw that I was racing with a top-down view. Boo! After one race, I exited and made my way to Donkey Kong's Crash Course. Now this was a bit more interesting and held my attention enough so that I can come back to it and try to best my progress/score later. From there, I played Octopus Dance and...well, meh. Just when I was going to give up on Nintendo Land, a few of my family/friends came over and wanted to try the Wii U out. Since I already had Nintendo Land in the console, I figure we can try some of the multiplayer games. The five of us jumped into Mario Chase (I was the GamePad user) and we had a blast. We then moved to Luigi's Ghost Mansion and Pikmin Adventure and had fun with those as well. Lastly, we played our favorite mini-game of the evening, Animal Crossing: Sweet Day. Three hours later, we're recalling our favorite moments from our little session and dying from laughter from it all.
I began playing New Super Mario Bros. U with a friend and we had some good old Mario fun, though frustrating at times due to our inability to work together. Things get even crazier when we add three additional players (for a total of 5, one playing as the "helper" on the GamePad). At the end of it all, I don't think we were even trying to beat the game so much as beat each other. Or in the case of the GamePad user, sabotaging everyone by blocking paths and de/reactivating obstacles within the levels. After having completed the Story mode, I can see that there is a slew of other things to do (collecting all of those star coins, Challenge Mode, Boost Mode, Coin Battles, other areas to explore post-story mode, etc.).
And then there was Call of Duty: Black Ops II. I wanted a third-party game that was a "safe" choice. Despite having read how the frame rate drops in certain missions and how it's the weakest version of the big three, I still had a fun time with it. Having gone through three missions in the campaign mode, the game is definitely more over the top than previous Call of Dutys that I've played. I might try and slug through the campaign mode despite my interest dwindling as to how ridiculous the story is playing out. As for multiplayer, I can still get into matches despite the game saying that there's anywhere between 200-800 players online at any given time. I do like that when I'm playing online with another local user that one of us can use the GamePad as the screen, and the pad player can utilize the TV's full screen instead of sharing the view via splitscreen.
A friend brought over Scribblenauts Unlimited and we spent a good half hour creating silly things. I can't tell you much about the game itself but we had a good time coming up with the most useless items needed for a mission.
Misc.
Updating the console on launch day, creating a Nintendo Network ID and downloading day 1 game patches for the games wasn't a big deal to me. It gave me time to actually look at the game's packaging, read the instruction manuals, make a sandwich and snap a few photos of what I bought. Time doesn't stand still when I wait for something to download; I find something else to preoccupy myself with.
I was surprised at how fast and easy it was to transfer my Wii content onto the Wii U. It even carried over 400 points that I had never used. I was hoping the Daily Log would keep track of how long I've played Wii games (or even using the Wii Mode, for that matter) but it doesn't. The only indication of you using the Wii Mode is checking each individual day in the Daily Log and scrolling to the bottom with a small blurb that says you did.
I added a Western Digital 500GB My Passport to my Wii U. At first, it wasn't recognized and was continuously making clicking noises when it was plugged in. I ordered a Y-cable and the Wii U immediately read it. One format and two seconds later, it is now ready to be used. I actually won't purchase many digital retail titles from the eShop but this was just an extra portable HDD that I had laying around. I now have 465GB of free space to use aside from the 25GB available on the Wii U's internal storage. Besides, it matches quite well with my black Wii U.
The only lockup/hard lock/freeze/whathaveyou that I had was when I was redownloading Muscle March from the Wii's Shop Channel. It froze and never completed the download. I promptly shut the console down and turned it back on. Went back to the Wii Shop Channel in Wii mode, downloaded Muscle March and a few minutes later, it was done. No issues thereafter.
Daily Log
From Sunday, November 18 12:00AM - Saturday, November 24, 11:59PM
Total: 41 hours, 9 minutes
1. Netflix - 12:24
2. Call of Duty: Black Ops II - 8:37
3. Nintendo Land - 7:47
4. New Super Mario Bros. U - 6:36
5. Internet Browser - 3:13
6. Mii Maker - 0:40
7. Miiverse - 0:31
8. Scribblenauts Unlimited - 0:29
9. Youtube - 0:24
10. Nintendo eShop - 0:20
11. Amazon Instant Video - 0:06
12. Hulu Plus - 0:01
13. Nintendo TVii - 0:01
Having spent a good week with the console and a few games, I can safely say that I'm satisfied with my purchase. I am now anticipating a number of titles in the next few months, namely Pikmin 3, The Wonderful 101, Game & Wario and Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate.