Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Like most people I was hesitant to pick this up because of all the mediocre reviews. I'm a 28 year old married working professional (pediatrics resident) and like many adults I don't have time to spend playing hours and hours of video games. I wanted something I could pick up recreationally and just have fun with (although i do look for a deep meaningful gaming experience, as well). I also wanted something I could use for party games with other people. I strongly considered xbox one. But a couple things really turned me off to that. For one I think its stupid (and genius) that you have to pay a subscription fee for any online service. I already paid $500 and now I have to pay $60/year more! That's ridiculous! Then I also realized that no game in the xbox one or xbox 360 lineup sounded as fun as nintendo games I had spent hundreds of hours playing (wii sports first, then mario, donkey kong, mario kart!!!, the 'trauma' series, just dance). I could pull out mario kart and EVERYONE loved playing it. The wii u piqued my interest for many reasons but mostly the price seemed right. The deluxe bundle with two games (mario and luigi) was $299. I also picked up nintendo land at gamestop for $13.50 and two wii motion plus add-ons for like $15 each. This has been the best gaming decision I could have possibly made!!! Reason #1: backwards compatible I can play all my old wii games that I know and love!!! And I don't have to invest in all new controllers and stuff. ALSO, I just found out that a recent update now allows you to do a one time transfer from your wii!!! That means I don't have to re-purchase super mario 3, super mario world, street fighter, or the other games I had bought. No one seems to know about this (even thr nintendo reps I had asked!) But for previous wii owners this is a huge plus!!! Reason #2: the second screen is a God send to every married man or person in similar situation I'm with friends and they want to watch football, I wanted to mess around with the wii. No problem!!! my wife has certain shows that I like to avoid (ie real housewives).. this offers a perfect way to do it. You can even use the wii remotes with the screen to make it like a miniature tv. Reason #3: the FUN FACTOR Remember the first time you played wii and it was cool because anyone could just pick it up and play. All of a sudden everyone wanted to try bowling. my mom, sisters.. people who previously hated how video games stole the tv. I never thought that would be replicated on the wii u. To be fair, I had doubts because the interface is less intuitive (although sometimes more intuitive with the ease of touching the gamepad).. there also have been a lot of updates which take time and could make the most casual gamers lose interest. But don't let that dissuade you! Nintendo land is literally the most fun I've had on a game system with family since those first days of owning a wii. My wife, who's never been into games (even the wii) has been asking to play nintendo land! The games are simple but just SO MUCH FUN!!! The smiles on her face and our laughs as we play these games more than cover the cost of the system. The asymetric gaming is something revolutionary. It allows people to have different roles in the same game. The uses for the second screen seem to be endless. The other fun part is creating your mii. They actually resemble you. And when you see yourself in the game it just adds something to the experience. Reason#5 - the future I don't know what will happen with wii u. It may be too late to be successful. But I do know there are new games on the horizon that make it even more worth having (mario kart!!!). And best of all the games look GREAT! They are in true 1080 hd. There comes a point where better graphics only add so much. If you want that I've heard people say a gaming pc is better than xbox or PlayStation. but if you want fun invest in the wii u. Your kids will not be disappointed, and neither will you. Ps.. one additional hypothetical app that would make this system even cooler is Skype. If wii u was able to get this app (it already has netflix, amazon video, and hulu plus.. which work GREAT btw it even shows extra imdb content on the gamepad as you watch!!!). You could leave your wii u on and the second screen could recieve skype calls while you watch tv. How cool would that be!!! Xbox one has gotten a lot of attention for being a total entertainment system but wii u could be comparable. So what if you can control channels with xbox? You can do that with the nintendo gamepad. You can't control dvr or ondemand content so I think xbox is going to be less seamless than people think. Bottom line: LONG LIVE NINTENDO!!!