I've been thinking a lot about the Wii U lately, mainly thanks to it's Virtual Console listings, as well as having an absolute blast on some Pikmin 3 again, while I tide over for the hopeful release of Pikmin 4. Though, as I thought about it more and more, specifically to do with it's unfortunate failure as a product for Nintendo unlike it's predecessor and successor, I was trying to come up with what I thought were the defining games on the system.
They didn't have to necessarily be good or bad, but the ones that were most symbolic of it in it's lifetime, whether it be through brief glimmers of hope in increased sales at a new Mario Kart, or the unfortunate offerings of it's exclusive third-party entries.
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The shortlist I've come up with so far (without it being in a particular order of time) is:
Nintendo Land: The Wii Sports equivalent for the console that best deomnstrated one of it's main gimmicks: asymmetrical multiplayer. Though it isn't as synonymous as Wii Sports, I'd personally argue it's got far greater offering to it, and is one of my personal favourite games to play with friends, even only really playing 25% of the selection with them.
ZombiU: The only noteworthy exclusive offering from Ubisoft I can think of for the system (until Zombi was ported to other systems) - due it's poor reception and lack of sales, it led to a cancellation of the sequel, and also prompted Ubisoft to make Rayman Legends multi-platform instead of Nintendo-exclusive to garner better reception.
Mario Kart 8: During a brief period in May 2014, it lit a fire beneath it as a driving force for Wii U sales and remains to be the best selling game on the system, even if the momentum it carried was unfotunately short-lived.
Star Fox: Zero: Admittedly, I haven't ever played a Star Fox game, which is something I do need to catch up on with the virtual console, but I do remember that this game went hand-in-hand with the gamepad gimmick, to it's posible detriment.
Devil's Third: A more so miscellaneous title that went through development hell before Nintendo surprisingly picked it up as an exclusive, despite a less than favourable reception by the time it was eventually released.
Sonic Boom: Didn't go through development hell like Devil's Third, but was a third-party offering that was received more than poorly.
Splatoon: By my understanding, it was the first original Nintendo IP released since 2001, until it's release in 2015. Though the console was regarded as a great misstep already by that point, it also demonstrated the value of Nintendo's first party offerings and a potential metaphor for the pressures of the console creating diamonds - my favourite offering on the Switch, closely followed by Pikmin 3.
Animal Crossing: Amiibo Festival: Much like Star Fox, haven't played too much Animal Crossing either - that said, I know it's one of the worst received games Nintendo has put out for a variety of reasons, highlighting the duds among the pack of excellent Nintendo-developed games.
Shovel Knight: Perhaps a bit of a stretch, but I remember seeing it when it was first being kickstarted, advertising 3DS and Wii U keys. One of the best indie games and platformers of the 2010s, which didn't wait long until (while it was already on computers) it was on PS4, XB1 and Switch.
Breath of the Wild: Arguably the most symbolic game representing the console it was (simultaneously) released on, having hype for a new Zelda since before the console's release, yet technically also leapfrogging to the next system for it's proper release due to the failures of the console.
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Are there any other Wii U games I'm missing that you think go hand-in-hand with the console? Any other input would be greatly appreciated.
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