We’ve covered the PS4 and the Xbox One in our “Why we got…” series on The Top 5 the past few weeks and this time, it’s Nintendo’s turn. In case you’ve never been to our site, Sean won’t be participating in this list but, as we’ve done before with Ari, he’ll be properly represented. Also, you’re probably wondering whether or not we’ll be continuing this series to both the 3DS and the Vita and we’re happy to announce that we will be doing a “Why we got…” for both of those platforms as well.

If you haven’t yet, we’d recommend checking out the other “Why we got…” Top 5s for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One to get an idea of what this is all about. But if you’re not interested in that, go ahead and checkout our Top 5 reasons why we got a Wii U!

Alex

Caveat: I did sell my Wii U, but I did purchase the console and that still counts! That being said, here’s all the reasons why I originally got a Wii U to begin with.

5. Backwards compatibility with Wii

Most people think of backwards compatibility as just another bullet point, but I actually found it interesting that Nintendo’s supporting a previous platform on a home console. And while they’ve done so in portables before, they took the time to even build out a cute animatic for porting over old Wii Virtual Console and saves onto the Wii U. I mean who wouldn’t want to play old Wii games in 1080p?

4. First party software

Let’s face it: You wouldn’t be buying a Wii U if you weren’t at least interested in at least one Nintendo game that’s been announced or has the potential to come out. When fans these days talk about the Wii U, they always talk about the eventual release of a Zelda title, or the upcoming release of a Nintendo series that we’re sure that’ll come out (e.g. Mario Kart, Smash Bros). It’s Nintendo’s undying commitment to their brands and franchises that makes their fans keep coming back for more, and there’s nothing wrong with that.

3. Previous Nintendo platforms’ “performance”

While many hardcore gamers reviled the Wii, it still had a bunch of fantastic third party support. In addition to a strong first party lineup, the platform had games like No More Heroes 1 and 2, Xenoblade Chronicles, House of the Dead Overkill, Dead Space Extraction, and Just Dance. The GameCube had even more third party exclusives and first party titles that were experimental in nature, but were iterated upon in future platforms. It’s this prior knowledge that I went in and got a Wii U. Sooner or later, Nintendo would turn this platform around.

2. I could afford it

I was at Best Buy and saw stacks and stacks of Wii Us and, having gotten my tax returns last year, I snapped one of these bad boys up on impulse.

1.  Zombi U

The biggest system seller for the Wii U for me was not any first party Nintendo game, no. It was a third party title developed by Ubisoft that actually used the Gamepad’s functionality in brilliant and exciting ways. When Ted showed this game to me at his place, I marveled at the potential future of the platform and what kinds of immersive experiences we can have because of the Gamepad’s many functions.

While there’s a plethora of first party titles on the Wii U, Zombi U was THE game that got me to buy Nintendo’s new platform.

Ari

5. The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker HD Limited Edition Bundle

It’s hard to resist a good deal, and when I saw The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker HD Limited Edition Bundle on sale for less than the MSRP of an unbundled Wii U, I jumped. Thank you Black Friday! Also, limited edition controllers are nifty.

4. I’m a consumer whore. And how!

I suppose there’s no denying that if I had my way I’d own every console in existence. I missed the 3DO back in the day, but I still have an Atari Jaguar sitting in a box in my closet. That said, it was never a matter of if, but when I’d own a Wii U, and there is almost certainly an Xbox One in my future as well.

3. The “Pikmin” noise

This might sound a little ridiculous, but I first started to want a Wii U as I was playing Animal Crossing: New Leaf on 3DS. I had acquired a piece of Pikmin furniture that made the singsong “Pikmin!” sound whenever I interacted with it. That planted the seed (if you’ll forgive the pun) for what would later be an overwhelming desire to own Nintendo’s latest console.

2. Nintendo’s Exclusive Franchises

As a kid growing up in the 80s, it was all about Super Mario Bros., Metroid and The Legend of Zelda. Nintendo’s exclusive franchises have always been an important part of my life as a gamer, and even if every single 3^rd party abandoned Nintendo completely, I’d still happily purchase their products just for these games.  Now, with Pikmin, Smash Bros., Mario Kart, Wario Ware, Animal Crossing, Pokémon and others added to their list of exclusives, it’s even easier for me to stand behind Nintendo, regardless of how the rest of the world seems to be turning their back on the Wii U.

1. Super Mario 3D World

When the reviews started pouring in for Super Mario 3D World, an irresistible urge to buy a Wii U came over me. If the reviews were to be believed, then I would have been quite the fool to miss out on this latest Mario adventure, and so I made it my mission to get a Wii U over the holidays. Now that I have one, I can say that I have very much enjoyed the latest Mario game, and I also enjoyed New Super Mario Bros. U much more than I was lead to believe that I would (based on the lukewarm reception it had throughout the gaming community over the last year). Unfortunately, since reviewing Pikmin 3, I haven’t had much else to play on the Wii U, but I suppose that was to be expected. I don’t regret the purchase, however! I know I have more Nintendo first party titles to look forward to in the future.

Ari and cats. Who’d have thunk it?

Sean

Because of obvious reasons that are apparent to long time readers of our site, Sean won’t be participating in this list. But I bet you he’s not at all regretful of that either since he’ll be checking out the girls of Burlesque Bingo at Viva Las Vegas this week! Hope you’re having fun Sean!

Ted

5. Miiverse

I thought the way Miiverse would be implemented would be a step above traditional social networks like Facebook because it could integrate more closely with games. And it does, with Miiverse being used in games like Resident Evil Revelations and Wii Sports Club. However, the world shifted towards smaller and smaller microblogging services. Facebook has fallen out of favor, and even with Miiverse being added to the 3DS as a regular feature, it doesn’t feel like the next generation of gaming. Yet the possibility seemed like a really really cool idea. Oh well.

4. Nintendo’s games

Nintendo makes games like nobody else. They have their own methodologies that don’t seem to jive with the rest of the universe. However, with free-to-play games getting larger and larger, and game design wholly compromised by the desire for microtransactions, Nintendo has it right: They don’t call it “free to play”, they call it “free to start”, which is a far more accurate description of that style. With many full priced games offering microtransactions as well, it’s good to see Nintendo fight back against this with good, traditional design.

3. Off-TV play

I can take my Wii U gamepad a decent distance from my console, and have lag-free gameplay. If I really want to play something, well I just totally can. The audio quality that comes through the Wii U Gamepad is really only limited by the quality of your headphones. It arguably works better than the PS4/Vita remote play, and you already have the companion device. With a recent patch, original Wii games can now be played Off-TV, which is facilitated by the fact that the Wii U Gamepad has a Sensor Bar built into it. The dream is real, you can play Xenoblade in bed.

2. Smash Brothers

We all knew there was a new Smash Brothers coming, and I had a lot of hope that it would end up being better than the maligned Super Smash Brothers Brawl. Judging from the latest Nintendo Direct, Nintendo has discovered that maybe they should listen to their fans for once, rather than try and guess what they would like. As a result, tournament-style rules involving no items, Final Destination, etc, are being brought in as a standard gametype. Even better, most levels will have Final Destination modes so we won’t have to listen to the same music over and over. Everything about this game seems like it is more tournament-friendly than Brawl, and I am super excited for it.

1. It was there

If you read my Top 5 reasons why I bought an Xbox One, I guess it was just the fact that the store happened to have one that made me want to get it. Weird, I know. Well, there were Wii U’s in stock about a month after they came out, and I thought they were going to be super hard to find like the Wii, so I jumped on a Deluxe Set. Well, we all know how the supply issue ended up, but I liked NintendoLand to a point, and I still like ZombiU. I guess the problem is that I don’t quite like them enough, and I have played less than half of the Wii U titles that I own. But yeah, there it was, and I bought it.

If Google Glasses were “just there,” I bet you that Ted would’ve bought one as well.

We’re curious as to how many of you have a Wii U and what your reasons are for getting the system. If you’ve got any that we didn’t list here, be sure to comment below and tell us what games you’re looking forward to on the Wii U! Next week: Reasons why we got a Vita!