Wii U is an underrated console

[RebeL9]

A while ago I bought a cheap Wii U and bought component cables with it. My intention was to hook it up to my Sony BVM D24 and BVM 20F1E.
It's a surprisingly good console for retro games since its powerful enough to emulate most retro consoles. But best of all it also allows you to play the vast majority of the Nintendo DS library and by using the Wii U gamepad as the touch screen of the DS works surprisingly well. Here's a compatibility list of games that's been tested to work: https://wiki.gbatemp.net/wiki/WiiU_VC_NDS_injection
Wii U supports both 4:3 and 16:9 and resolutions from 480i all the way up to 1080p. The homebrew community is fairly active, although not as active as on the PS Vita. Even though Nintendo recently closed down their E-shop for Wii U the homebrew community have set up an alternative homebrew shop which allows you to download the entire Wii U catalogue. The download speeds are not great though and not at all as fast as PKGJ on the Vita (which I also have experience from).
One bummer is that DS never got many good shmups. The two Nanostray games have graphical issues and aren't that great to begin with. But Ketsui Death Label works fine and thats a really cool one. It's also been patched to English.
I've also noticed that Wii U have started to climb in prices in recent time as more and more people discover that its a great retro emulation console. Grab one before they become the new Vita TV which went from $20 brand new to costing $200 when people found out that its a great emulation beast with lots of homebrews.

[fernan1234]

Always use original hardware. Accept no compromises.

But seriously though, the WiiU is indeed pretty neat. No one should use it to play Wii/GC though as the video output for it is crap. Same with official VC titles. But it does do very well for DS games, that's its biggest strength after its own library (which is much more decent than most people used to say). Time will tell if more and better homebrew comes to this console.

[RebeL9]

Always use original hardware. Accept no compromises.

But seriously though, the WiiU is indeed pretty neat. No one should use it to play Wii/GC though as the video output for it is crap. Same with official VC titles. But it does do very well for DS games, that's its biggest strength after its own library (which is much more decent than most people used to say). Time will tell if more and better homebrew comes to this console.

I agree with you regarding GC and Wii. I wouldnt recommend anyone to replace their Wii and GC with a Wii U.
But the cool thing with Wii U is apart from the DS compatability that its the last console from Nintendo that supported SD resolutions during the HD era. Heck you can even use a pair of composite on it

[Arino]

Always use original hardware. Accept no compromises.

But seriously though, the WiiU is indeed pretty neat. No one should use it to play Wii/GC though as the video output for it is crap.

What about using a Wii to play GC games?

[fernan1234]

What about using a Wii to play GC games?

A perfect solution. Any disadvantages that used to concern people (for 480p in particular) can all be fixed via simple homebrew settings now.

[Gara]

Wii U is pretty neat. I doubt it's ever going to get a significant resurgence in popularity or price though. Most of the good exclusives are already ported. It's not all that great at Wii or Gamecube games and the Wii seems like the better emulation machine if you want to go that route. DS game support is pretty cool though. Who knows though. I think the Wii is about due for a nostalgia hit and that surge could end up dragging the Wii U out of its grave.

[Sumez]

I wouldn't say WiiU is "underrated" as much as it inexplicably receives a lot of completely undeserved hate.

I loved it when it was still current and tons of fun stuff came out on it. With nearly all of the best games now ported to Switch (Colour Splash and Woolly World are probably the biggest remaining omissions), there is little reason to pull out the WiiU - but it's still cool.

[spmbx]

Personally i tihnk it's rated correctly. Like mentioned before basically everything worthwhile has been ported. The gamepad screen itself is pretty underwhelming, it's also pretty clunky/dated and the range (at least here in the house) is pretty bad. Classic emulation (official bought) was also bad. When it was current i did have fun with it but i don't see any reason to use a wiiu in 2024. Just my 2c, if you think a wiiu is the bomb i'd say go for it

[Austin]

If you're new to the Wii U, the "most of its first-party games are on Switch" is a boon. Some Switch versions are improved, sure, but you'll be paying and arm and a leg for the luxury of playing them on that platform. With the Wii U on the other hand, its versions of Switch releases have completely tanked in price as a result of Switch availability. Super Mario 3D World for $12? Um.. yes please! Plus there's still some other quality games not ported yet, like Windwaker and Twilight Princess HD (I am surprised about those), Xenoblade Chronicles X, Star Fox Zero, Nintendo Land and the original Splatoon.

[Konsolkongen]

NintendoLand is seriously one of the best Nintendo games ever made.

Gamepad and TV offered some truly ingenious ideas and many Switch followups just doesn’t compare. Mario Maker 2 is fine and all but the editor is cumbersome to use compared to the stylus on Wii U.
Splatoon 1 also played much better as the gamepad offered instant overview of the battlefield.

The Wii U was great

[fernan1234]

Plus the Switch ports are not necessarily better. Pikmin 3 is definitely better played as intended on the Wii U. There's also that weird Fire Emblem crossover game that apparently got nerfed of some content in the Switch port. In general I mistrust ports.

[BuckoA51]

If you can get a couple of adults over for a gaming night try "Affordable Space Adventures". Wii U exclusive and hands down one of the best couch coop experiences I've ever had.

Likewise Rayman Legends is sill best on Wii u too for the Murphy levels. The WIi U was a great system for playing with friends.

[Atariboy]

Wii U upscaling for Wii isn't horrible. It does an acceptable job at it. People rag on it since it's Nintendo and there was no excuse for it to not do a top notch job at upscaling a 480p source, so it's rightfully been criticized since Nintendo underdelivered.

[StrzxgvNuvWvfld]

Wii U upscaling for Wii isn't horrible. It does an acceptable job at it. People rag on it since it's Nintendo and there was no excuse for it to not do a top notch job at upscaling a 480p source, so it's rightfully been criticized since Nintendo underdelivered.

Mine has what I believe is chroma shift, where the colours don't align quite right horizontally. It does look pretty horrible and definitely shouldn't have been like that. Whilst there is some mention of this online, a lot of people seem obvlivious to it. I'm not sure if that means they don't all do it, or a lot of people just don't notice.

[Austin]

Wii U upscaling for Wii isn't horrible. It does an acceptable job at it. People rag on it since it's Nintendo and there was no excuse for it to not do a top notch job at upscaling a 480p source, so it's rightfully been criticized since Nintendo underdelivered.

Got to remember that with this community, if something’s not flawless, it is then deemed horrible.

While I understand the faults with its scaling, I never had an issue with it personally. It was good enough for me and the Wii U basically replaced my Wii due to the convenience factor.

[XoPachi]

Wii U had a good core library and a ton of personality. I just didn't like the actual physical hardware. I just found it a pain in the ass.
Mario 3D World was probably the thing I expected the least to like as much as I did but it became my favorite Mario game.

I wonder if I could use my Huion as at least the touch interface for Wii U emulation.

[RebeL9]

Wii U upscaling for Wii isn't horrible. It does an acceptable job at it. People rag on it since it's Nintendo and there was no excuse for it to not do a top notch job at upscaling a 480p source, so it's rightfully been criticized since Nintendo underdelivered.

Not only that but they also messed vWii on PAL Wii Us. It cant do progressive scan when using component cable. Layz FUCKERS