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Upcoming Wii U Exclusives That Could Save The Console

The Wii U may be against the ropes in the console market, but Nintendo’s innovative machine is set to fight back this year with some killer exclusives.

Published

9 years ago

June 9, 2015

Jeremy Proome

The Wii U is in a pretty strange place right now. Nintendo is on the verge of announcing a new gaming platform, leaving its mid-generation console in a funny spot. So, what’s to come for the unappreciated stepchild of the console market? Well, there are still a few games heading our way that may just help revive the Wii U.

Splatoon

The most recently-released Wii U exclusive is that of Splatoon – a surprising third-person multiplayer shooter that the console was in desperate need of. In keeping with Nintendo’s family-friendly vibe, you shoot ink in Splatoon – not bullets – and try to coat the ground in your team’s color of ink. Naturally, the other team is trying to do the same, and they can paint over your ink to reclaim your territory. There are no frags here; instead, the team with the most ink on the ground at the end of the round wins.

Yoshi’s Woolly World

26 June

One of the most unique-looking games this month is Yoshi’s Woolly World on the Wii U. As the name suggests, the game is a new textile-themed game starring Mario’s dinosaur companion, Yoshi. Nintendo’s green buddy and his world are transformed into objects made of yarn, wool and more. Yoshi’s tongue interacts with the world, grabbing and unfurling the world’s fabric as he explores the landscape. Yoshi, who is made of yarn, will be able to transform into different things. The game will also include a two-player mode.

Mario Maker

September 2015

The PC has Minecraft, PS4 has LittleBigPlanet and Xbox One has Project Spark, but the Wii U has lacked a game that lets you build things, until now. Enter Mario Maker, a Wii U exclusive that lets you design your very own side-scrolling Mario levels. You can place platforms, pits, pipes, and piranha plants anywhere on the screen, and then play your level to see if you can make it to the flagpole. At any time, you can switch between old-school NES graphics and modern Wii U graphics on the fly. Naturally, you’ll also be able to share your level creations with other people, and download the best levels made by other gamers.

Star Fox Wii U

2015

The original Star Fox on Super Nintendo was one of the earliest home console games to feature polygon graphics. Sure it looks rough now, but the gameplay was so smooth for its time that its easy to forget the pointy shapes flying around. That’s why a new instalment in high-definition is exactly what this series needs. No real details about Star Fox Wii U have been released yet, but one thing is for sure: it’ll let us navigate treacherous interstellar environments and shoot down enemy ships with a team of animal pilots, so that’s always a good thing.

Xenoblade Chronicles X

2015

The original Xenoblade Chronicles was an open-world RPG that came out exclusively for Wii a few years ago, and it found a cult following among RPG fans who had adopted Nintendo’s console. Xenoblade Chronicles X is a spiritual successor to that game, featuring many of the same elements that made the original a hit. The plot kicks off as an alien war in 2054 makes Earth unlivable, the so surviving humans strike out among the stars to settle on a planet called Mira. The only problem is that the aliens have followed. RPG fans will definitely want to keep an eye on this one.

The Legend of Zelda Wii U

TBA

If there’s one franchise that could make the Wii U relevant again, it’s the Legend of Zelda, so gamers were delighted when Nintendo announced an epic-sized new instalment is in the works for the console. From the demonstrations released by Nintendo, the game looks fantastic so far – hopefully we see some more of Link in HD come E3.