The Wii U was better then the Switch.

People like to give the Wii U a hard time.

They liked to say that the Wii U was pretty bad and is the worst console Nintendo has ever put out.

The thing is though, the Wii U is better then the Switch.

Hear me out, The Wii U's launch was just as rough as the Switch's no doubt, but the worst you really had it at Launch was the dreaded Day 1 update that practically took half a day to download. It was recommended and still to this day recommended that you actually take the system out of the box and update it before gifting a Wii U to someone. (if you buy New that is)

The Switch? Day 1 update took maybe 2 minutes and you didn't risk bricking your system if the power went out or something went wrong with your Internet. (which was a thing for the Wii U)

HOWEVER the Switch has a slew of problems. For one, The Docks are poorly designed to where the dock will actually scratch the screen of your Switch, unless you bought a Screen Protector, The Joycons can get out of sync rather easily, People have reported that GameCards will randomly stop reading or not read at all unless you plug in headphones for some reason, System Locks, Graphic card fails, The Joycon wrist strap issue... The Switch feels very rushed and poorly designed.

Meanwhile the Wii U, Day 1 not only had issues with it's Day 1 Update, but every game in it's Launch Line up actually loaded SLOWLY. You had no Quick Menu like you did today, every game would hang on the load screen for a very long time. It months to a YEAR to actually get to where it is now, but other then that the Wii U was just fine. You needed an External Hard Drive to download a lot of games to it, but in the end it was fine.

The Best thing about the Wii U vs the Switch was the fact you didn't need a Friend Code to add people to your friendslist. For whatever reason Nintendo brought this feature back from the grave for the Switch. Sure you needed a Friendcode for the 3DS, but they got rid of it for the Wii U with you only needing a Nintendo ID, an ID that we used and linked up with the Nintendo Network accounts that we now use for the Switch.

Wii U had some issues at Launch, but at least everything is had worked and it's issues don't seem to be as widespread as the Switch had. Also the Wii U had a lot more games for it then the Switch at Launch. It also had a packed in game that was WAY better then 1, 2, Switch IMO.

In conclusion, While I love my Nintendo Switch VERY much and it is definitely going to get better from here on out, The Wii U at launch to the end of it's cycle was a WAY BETTER machine then the Switch now.

For those that don't want to Read,

Wii U had

1. Less Design Flaws
2. Better Game Line Up
3. No Friend Codes

With that said, The only thing the Switch had that the Wii U did not was have Zelda there day 1.

Here's to expect a New Zelda at Launch for all future Nintendo Systems.

The WiiU was like a Fisher Price product. Between the Switch and the WiiU, both are complete trash. GC was the last Nintendo system (excluding handhelds) that made sense.

"The Best thing about the Wii U vs the Switch was the fact you didn't need a Friend Code to add people to your friendslist. For whatever reason Nintendo brought this feature back from the grave for the Switch." I was told this is just an option. So why are sheep themselves criticizing it? I don't get it.

I liked the WiiU too, but can we at least give the switch a week or two before declaring it worse than the Wii U or any other console for that matter?

Full disclosure, even though I liked the Wii U, it made it impossible for me to complete my life's mission of becoming a one console home. The Switch looks to continue that trend, sadly.

Wii U had a horrible name going for it and Nintendo Switch is a new console with no Wii name attach to it. Wii U name itself is what really mess itself up from the start and Nintendo got wiser by choosing a good name this time around.

Just ignore them and buy 3ds.

Heaven.

dude the 3DS had a WAY worse launch then either.

$249, no eShop, Terrible Selection of Games, Closing the 3DS actually scratched the Screen. It was BAD.

This is judging both consoles AT LAUNCHThis isn't me saying "Oh yeah a 5 year old Console is totally trashing a System that's only been available to the public for 5 days."

This is Me saying that the Wii U was a better system from DAY 1

I think the WiiU will be shown to be the better home console in the long run.

The Switch is a great portable gaming system, but that is where the great ends for it. The thing is a turd of a home console.

Nintendo says the Switch is whatever you want it to be. I do not use portable gaming systems, so it's home console prowess is all I can judge.

Nice opinion. Was the Wii U better than Switch at launch? I wouldn't know, I didn't get a Wii U at launch cuz there was crap to play.

I dont care that Zelda is on both systems, having it at launch for NS makes it desireable day 1.

On top of that all you need is 2 mins with the UI to realize the NS is everything the WU wanted to and should have been. I'm not convinced by the OP.

@enzyme36: Same here, i didnt buy Wii U at launch cause the games were garbage. Zelda machine greater than Wii U.

All the Switch has is a WiiU port of Zelda that was delayed to fill up Switch's launch lineup. Without this delay, Switch's lineup would've been the worst ever seen on a home console.

But we aren't at launch bro. By waiting, it's now much cheaper and it has a bounty of games.

Almost every console barring (incredible) Dreamcast sucks big butt at launch. Yet people insist on rush buying because it's new and hot.

Being very adult like, just play something else and wait, Breath Of The Wild ain't going anywhere and sure as heck not dropping £350 for a console that currently has only 1 decent game.

Waiting = big win

Well said. PLUS, you could play BOtW on WiiU while you're waiting.

Although the wiiu was a bit a a weak console, the games for it made it the best console in years.

Agreed... and I would not get a NS at launch either if that was the case. But that is a made up reality at this point. Irrelevant

HOWEVER the Switch has a slew of problems. For one, The Docks are poorly designed to where the dock will actually scratch the screen of your Switch, unless you bought a Screen Protector, The Joycons can get out of sync rather easily, People have reported that GameCards will randomly stop reading or not read at all unless you plug in headphones for some reason, System Locks, Graphic card fails, The Joycon wrist strap issue... The Switch feels very rushed and poorly designed.

___

One website reports their screen being scratched and everyone loses their minds. I don't see anyone reporting this problem. My joycons have never been out of sync. Never heard of that gamecard reading problem. What joycon wrist strap issue?

The Joycon strap issue is simply just that it's rather easy to slip the wrong strap to the other Joycon. If you do that they are glued together and it takes some serious time and effort to get the straps off.

I've actually had none of these issues myself, but I can see how pretty bad I think this system was designed. Honestly I think a mini fan in the Dock would have been nice since the Switch gets rather hot when playing it in docked mode for long periods of time.

Don't get me wrong, I love my Switch, I think it's going to be one of Nintendo's best Systems yet, but I just want to say I think the Wii U back at it's Launch was better.

What im saying is that after you're done with Zelda, you'll be in the same situation the WiiU has been since 2015.

Zzzzzzzzzzzzz.

I got a Wii U when Mario 3D World launched. So by then all the kinks had been worked out.

The WiiU itself was a design flaw. It's just a poorly designed console in terms of fun-factor. It was dead on arrival and has been dead since. Focusing on a couple of technical problems experienced by a couple Switch users isn't really much of a way to judge a console (notice all complainers literally post the same video showing the same handful of people and their issues?). The Switch on the other hand is very well designed and has a much more interesting target goal as a platform that the WiiU ever had.

I know a ton of people who already own a Switch...none have technical problems with it. On the other hand, I only even know 1 person who ever bought a WiiU. Says it all right there IMO.

@silversix_: Maybe right... but I do like the year 1 lineup. Looking forward to Blaster Master tomorrow as well. And I am one of those sucker looking forward to Skyrim portable.

But it's all moot at this point... I have only unlocked 4 map sections. This puppy is huge!

I still think the screen scratch report is fake. If it does scratch why are the scratches not straight lines and why are they only in the bottom corners of the screen.

@silversix_: " GC was the last Nintendo system (excluding handhelds) that made sense."

SNES>>>>>N64>>>>>GC

@LegatoSkyheart: Well Wii U now, 5 years later, is much better. But Wii U's launch lineup was terrible too. At least the Switch had Zelda. All Wii U had was Nintendo Land, another Mario 2d game, and some crappy third party games

And the Switch will have a innovative looking Mario game, a Fire Emblem spin off, a mainline Fire Emblem game, Xenoblade 2, and Splatoon 2 within the first year (supposedly). Wii Us first REALLY good game came in the middle of 2013, with Pikmin 3. and it didnt get another one until late in that same year with Super Mario 3D World.

You know what's funny, having the Switch kinda makes me interested in getting a Wii U but only if it's less that $99 dollars. The thing that turned me off about the Wii U is that big clunky touch pad controller. Is that controller really necessary or could you skip it all together and just get a Pro Controller? Do most of their games revolve around looking into that screen instead of your TV, if so I may pass again. But just like other consoles, every console may take awhile to really take off. Hopefully the Switch adds more features and options and games. I really wish Switch adds Wii U BC for digital games or offer them through their upcoming subscription.

I thought the friend code was optional for the Switch, and that you can also use your account like a modern human being. Also - it's weird that you are complaining about a bunch of issues you go on to say you haven't experienced... how many of these issues are common / prevalent?

obviously but the other two came out a million years ago.

Not really, no. Seriously,what recent console did the Wii-U surpass in terms of games? Wii? Nope. PS3? Nope. 360? Nope. PS4 has now passed it by all accounts, and by the end of it's run obliterates Wii-U. Even Xbox One, with it's lack of exclusives, is debatable. But what is not debatable is that the Xbox One is far more successful in every other measure except 1st party exclusives. By the end of it's run, even the Xbox One exclusive library will probably be stronger than WIi-U was.

At best, the Wii-U had 1 or 2 years where it had the best exclusives when the other consoles were between gens. Unfortunately exclusives were *all* it had.

Basically Wii-U was the worst console since 3DO or Atari Jaguar. Was it as bad as those? Of course not, but it is the worst since then. If we look at Switch as a home console it is right there, but considering Nintendo is putting all eggs in one basket (handheld + console) I can't imagine they let it fail at the level the Wii-U failed.

Switch as a handheld makes it better for me. As a home console both are sub par.

Agree 100%. I was hoping for a cheap Wii-U revision or clearance (like how I picked my Gamecube for $99). Seeing what the Switch is, I would have much preferred a WIi-U hardware revision. Hell, even if it was $199. They could have beefed up the OS speed (stronger CPU and more RAM) and maybe given a higher quality screen and it would have been more appealing than the Switch.

I hope they ultimately make a "Switch TV" that is more akin to Apple TV. Of course that might be a tough sell with it being so lacking in features and apps. I have no interest at all in the Switch hardware as a tablet form. Literally all it is is a barrier to play Nintendo games. It is not a device I would otherwise want or have any use for. With Switch it seems Nintendo didn't even pretend it wanted to make a useful device.

@2Chalupas: I disagree.

Ps3 had some greats but most of them are play once only games, like the Last of Us (I don't like that game anyway).. But seriously, I've been getting rid of a lot of my ps3 games purely because they have no replay value. What's left is the Ninja Gaiden games, Metal Gear games, God of War Games, and only a few others. 360 I can't be bothered to even talk about as I got screwed over by Microsoft and my last 360 ended up in a skip. Yet wii u.. This is the reason why I don't have a new console., no need for one because the games have replay value and I can play my wii games on it. Games like Sin and Punishment, the Galaxy games etc. Wii now gets used as a gamecube.. Wii u might be dead but my games collection is still increasing for it.. Plus, I got to make my own Mario levels with the Wii U.. That's pretty special. Also Bayonetta 2 became my favourite game of all time and Zelda is looking to be possibly the best game I've ever played. No console has delivered this kind of gaming experience before and I've been gaming since the Atari 2600

PS4.. Urgh, I agree the line up is quite strong but most those games are just not my cup of tea. And if I want to blow my load over some graphics then I'll turn on my PC.

@silversix_: "obviously but the other two came out a million years ago."

There about 5-10 years apart from each other.

Or can i say N64 is not that younger than GC?

@LegatoSkyheart: Basically "Blah blah, I read wayyyy too much into internet faults to the point where I believe this happens to more than 5% of the devices".

The problem of the Wii u was its tablet, that thing made the system more expensive that it should and was too late for the tablet hype; now the price will be the problem of the switch once again, the technology behind the joy cons makes them expensive and they will be used just in a handful of games; at that price it will be difficult to sell them after the Zelda hypes die, at least until Mario arrives, but definitively launching it along Zelda was the best idea Nintendo could have.

@silversix_: Forgetting the fact that the Gamecube was widely mocked for being a "lunchbox" due to its carrying handle.

You;re right about not hearing about as much hardware damage reports as the Switch(although I could be forgetting something). Nintendo Land is also a cooler game than 1 2 Switch (not that Nintendo Land was particularly amazing itself though)

That said

The Wii U's Launch date games weren't exactly exciting either and a good amount of the games were games that were already on the PS3 and 360. What I care about more if launch Window/launch year and the Switch is looking more impressive than the Wii U in that regard.

And I'd rather wait and see how the Switch is looking years down the line before saying whether it or the Wii U is better. I did like the Wii U alot, thanks to Nintendo's first party offerings and indie stuff. The Switch could be pretty beastly though if Nintendo does end up focusing more of their first party into the Switch (if Nintendo really does consolidate their handheld and console efforts into one system). We already see some strong indie for the Switch after the last Nindies direct.

Switch only has a better 1st year lineup because of Wii U ports

I think Nintendo has a hit on their hands with the Switch. People understand it and it is appealing to both casual and core gamers. The Wii U was not something that people wanted. There also weren't many games that appealed to core gamers on the Wii U and those are the people that you have to get excited. They can't rely on a gimmick/pop culture phenomenon like the original Wii and its motion controls. With Switch, they are starting off strong with Zelda and they have a core Mario coming by the end of the year. That shit gets me excited as a core gamer and made me buy a Switch. The last Nintendo system I owned was the GameCube. They are getting core gamers back and generating interest with casuals at the same time. Uniting portable and console users on one platform will lead to a strong user base as well. Now it is up to them to continue pumping out good titles to keep people happy.

Wii u was a concept that fell short ... the switch is a combination of all the missteps the Wii u was ... Switch is the more fully thought out system from nintendo in a long time

@Jshoelace: the wii and 360 had one time play through games. The only games that aren't would be the multiplayer based games. Only wii game I played more than once was fire emblem radiant dawn

I look forward to ten years down the line when the Nintendo cycle goes full circle like it did for the Gamecube, and the Wii U was an ahead of its time, amazing device that was never used to its potential.

It's not really a cycle, due to this medium doing it's best to actually get worse, especially Nintendo. They make stuff they used to make that wasn't all that good, look better than it is. Because the Gamecube was a joke in comparison to its competition, but it smells like roses when stacked up against the library of the Wii, WiiU, and soon the Switch.

thankfully, I play mine in portable mode as was always my intention, haven't had any issues with screen scratching, wonder if this is with poor dock design or people putting it in backwards, I do want to pick up screen protectors nonetheless but I was fine without them on my Wii U

the only disappointing thing though right now is the left Joy-Con issues and I was really looking forward to the latest Just Dance game for the Switch and wanted to pick that up, but held back on account of the Joy-Con issues, word is though that the problem was identified in the poor placement of the wireless communicator in the left Joy-Con and hopefully that gets remedied in future Joy-Con design... I hope Nintendo is willing to replace these down the line when this happens, or offers a substantial discount to launch Switch owners

so far I haven't had any issues with it, maybe my only gripe is there's no ability to pair the Switch with a wireless Bluetooth speaker, would be nice to have my wireless Bose speaker paired with it

Most of the Switch's problems are actually just design hiccups that were created as a byproduct of the system being rushed to market. Nearly all of them can be fixed pretty easily post-launch in the future. By comparison, the Wii U had severe problems regarding it's fundamental hardware, concept, and strategy. No matter what you do to it, it was never going to be a success. The Switch's concept, execution, and overall strategy are much better than the Wii U's, Nintendo just needs to fix the few serious issues like the Joy-Con syncing issue and dock, both of which can be fixed in future shipments.

How was it a joke? It had better hardware than the PS2, and way more games than the Xbox. Without Halo, the Xbox would have died a very miserable death.

The PS2 sold largely due to the DVD player. Once the install base was in, third parties flocked to it. Because at the time, the Dreamcast had great hardware, and a fantastic library of games already. That DVD player was killer - especially at a time when DVD players cost more than the PS2 entirely, and the PS2 was a nice DVD player.

Gamecube is fondly remembered because it was the last traditional home console Nintendo made, and did have a great library. The Wii, Wii U and Switch all have non-traditional concepts in their respective hardware designs.

That said, I liked the Wii's library - and arguably liked the Wii's first party offerings more than Gamcube, Wii U was a let down but I'm managing to get enough out of it, the Switch is still early.

I agree, the Wii U will likely be heralded as ahead of its time later on when everyone starts implementing screens on controllers in some capacity.

Yeah I saw the vid on reddit too. Most of the hardware probems are likely defective units and i'm sure its less than 1% of all consoles sold that had that problem. That includes freezes, card read problems, and GPU artifacting.

As for the screen, kind of sucks but a screen protector costs like nothing so not a big deal. They didn't use gorilla glass since it can shatter when dropped.

Joycon sync issue seems to be an antenna problem but i bet they just boost the bluetooth TX strength and fix it with a software patch.

The only major flaw i see are those little black things that attach to the joycons. Put them on backwards and good luck getting them off. A simple taper of the rails would have prevented that. That being said, switch is more powerful than a wiiu, and feels better in your hands. The game lineup will come with switch.

I give points to the Wii U because it had one full year of being on par with the other consoles. Switch is a gen behind from the get-go.

So? The original Xbox was also mocked as being heavier than a brick. Still a great system.

Nintendo hardware is just sub-par. Home to handheld to hybrid systems, they all suck. Bad controllers especially. Zelda saved this system from having a bad start.