Wii-U thoughts so far

[FerretGamer]

I found a basic Wii U with SMash Bros and a Pikachu Amiibo for 240 euro which is a great price. What do you guys think I should do? Buy it and buy an HD to connect to it? Is there a big difference between the premium and basic pack?

Besides the storage capacity? I don't think so.

[vatermuzik]

^^^ It was my understanding that the only differences between the basic and deluxe systems was the color, storage capacity and included game.

[ejamer]

^^^ It was my understanding that the only differences between the basic and deluxe systems was the color, storage capacity and included game.

Mostly true.

I own the basic model. Pretty sure that the Deluxe also comes with a stand for the console and a charging cradle for the gamepad. Seems like a minor difference but the charging cradle is really useful given how short the battery life is.

If you download any meaningful amount of content then the additional hard drive space included with deluxe model doesn't matter - it's not sufficient for more than a couple of full games. So chances are high that you'll want an external hard drive down the road no matter which version you pick. (Exception: if you buy all games physically when the option exists, and only download virtual console titles then it might be a better deal to get the deluxe.)

There was also the "digital deluxe" program that offered eShop credit for digital purchases if you own a deluxe console... but that promotion ends in a couple of weeks anyway so probably isn't worth talking about?

My take: the difference between basic and deluxe bundles probably isn't meaningful for most people.

[vatermuzik]

^^^ It was my understanding that the only differences between the basic and deluxe systems was the color, storage capacity and included game.

Mostly true.

I own the basic model. Pretty sure that the Deluxe also comes with a stand for the console and a charging cradle for the gamepad. Seems like a minor difference but the charging cradle is really useful given how short the battery life is.

If you download any meaningful amount of content then the additional hard drive space included with deluxe model doesn't matter - it's not sufficient for more than a couple of full games. So chances are high that you'll want an external hard drive down the road no matter which version you pick. (Exception: if you buy all games physically when the option exists, and only download virtual console titles then it might be a better deal to get the deluxe.)

There was also the "digital deluxe" program that offered eShop credit for digital purchases if you own a deluxe console... but that promotion ends in a couple of weeks anyway so probably isn't worth talking about?

My take: the difference between basic and deluxe bundles probably isn't meaningful for most people.

Ah yes, the charging cradle. I had forgotten that this was not in the basic pack. It is a MUST have accessory for that game pad, to be sure.

[FerretGamer]

Ah yes, the charging cradle. I had forgotten that this was not in the basic pack. It is a MUST have accessory for that game pad, to be sure.

Agreed, but the cradle is sold separately as well. I'm not sure how good of a deal that Wii U set is since I'm only really familiar with the prices in the US. However, if the savings are good enough it may still be beneficial to buy the cradle separately since it is so cheap.

I know Zero is in Greece but you can see how cheap the cradle is in the US. A quick glance and it seemed pretty cheap on Amazon UK as well.

http://www.amazon.com/Wii-GamePad-Stand ... i+u+cradle

[Ziggy]

Be careful with the 8GB model, you'll almost certainly need to get a HDD for it. Even if you don't download ANY games (retail or VC) you still need to make sure you have enough room for system menu updates, game updates, game DLC, games saves, etc. Consider that 8GB actually isn't 8GB. The actually memory will always be less than 8GB, and then minus whatever comes preinstalled in that memory.


Agreed, the charging cradle is a MUST have. If a Basic set is cheap enough even with the addition purchase of the charging cradle, then it doesn't matter. But a decent external HDD will be around $50 too.

edit: I think the Deluxe also comes with a Gamepad stand, and the Basic set does not. The stand is just a stand, and not a charging cradle. Pretty useless since you could always (and easily) unplug the charging cradle to use as a stand. The stand was advertised as being able to set the Gamepad up some where next to your TV and use it as a second screen. I haven't yet played a game (not that I've played many U games) that made use of that though. And again, you could just use the charging cradle as such.

The Deluxe Digital Promotion is worth considering, if you're planning on using the eShop. Is it even still offered with the Deluxe set anymore?

[Tanooki]

The deluxe stock launch system came with NintendoLand, charging cradle, 2 black system feet with rubber bottoms to stand it vertically, a smaller v shaped piece of plastic for a stand for whatever else (I had the wiimote on it with the cabling under the fold.) You had the 2 year program where you got bonus point for buying which just expired last month. And then you get 32GB instead of 8GB of space.

The 8GB as was said isn't really 8. 8GB is total so the total stock OS uses it, and also all the added built in apps do along with any firmware upgrade/patches eat away at it as well. I think someone I read somewhere said you're closer to 6GB than 8 after all that.

If you're going to stick to it, definitely get a drive, even a cheap 500GB usb portable drive would serve you very well.

[Ziggy]

I got this drive for my Wii (not U) and am very fond of it:

Also, prices at the time of this posting, for $5 more you can get the 1TB version.

Reviewers on Amazon say it works fine with the U so long as you get a Y cable. The following two would work:

[alienjesus]

You had the 2 year program where you got bonus point for buying which just expired last month. And then you get 32GB instead of 8GB of space.

Just to clarify, I'm pretty sure this ends at the end of this month. Doesn't make much odds for Zero, but worth noting for anyone else who wants to make use of it now whilst they can.

[Tanooki]

Ahh thought it was like 2 months from release, not end of the year so that's good for the last couple of weeks.