The Perfect Christmas Present: Wii U

By about this time, I am certain that most people would have already finished their Christmas shopping. Unless you’re like me in which case you waited until the absolute last minute to do your shopping. In which case shame on you. Or shame on us rather. Anyway, if you’re thinking about getting into video games well then about a month ago saw the releases of two brand-spanking new next-generation consoles, Sony’s Playstation 4 and Microsoft’s Xbox One. Both of them utilize advanced state of the art the technology in video games beyond anything that has been seen. And I am going to tell you right now that neither one of them are worth it as purchases for Christmas and won’t be for about six months to a year from now. For Christmas of 2013, there is one gaming console that stands out as the superior Christmas gift over the other two: Nintendo’s Wii U.

The Wii U is not a Wii. I cannot stress this enough. It is not an upgraded Wii, it is a new console altogether released last year. OK, it is capable of playing of playing Wii games but it has its own growing library of HD games unique to the system which you won’t get on any other console. Nintendo admittedly dropped the ball in their advertising in failing to explain that the Wii U wasn’t a Wii which is one of the biggest reasons why their sales have started out on a slow foot. They’re getting a little better at it but I’m under the impression that there are still a lot of people who don’t quite understand this yet.

So now that that’s out of the way, why am I stressing that the Wii U is a much better Christmas present than the Playstation 4 or the Xbox One? Easy, software. Since the PS4 and the Xbox One are brand new consoles they really do not have any games that are worth the console’s price. Well OK, the Xbox One has Dead Rising 3 but is that one game really worth the $500 price tag of the One? The PS4 is cheaper at $400 but there is absolutely nothing, I repeat, nothing worth buying for that console at this time. This will no doubt change within a year but as of now, nothing.

Now compare that to the Wii U. Its $300 price tag is certainly appealing but far more than that the Wii U has the absolutely greatest next-generation game on the market right now: Super Mario 3D World. This game is phenomenal and is an absolute must own if you have or are planning on getting a Wii U. Aside from this must-own game, the Wii U has slowly but surely been building up its library of the past few months: Pikmin 3, Wonderful 101, New Super Luigi U, Mario & Sonic Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games, The Legend of Zelda Wind Waker HD, and despite its mixed reviews Sonic Lost World is worth considering. This is only going expand further next year with Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze, Super Smash Bros. WiiU, Mario Kart 8, Yarn Yoshi, Bayonetta 2, and Shin Megami Tensei vs. Fire Emblem all scheduled for release next year among others.

Will the PS4 and the One eventually be worth it? Oh, undeniably. But this is Christmas of 2013, not Christmas 2014. No matter which way you put it, the Wii U is simply the better option at this time. At present, there are two bundles of the Wii U available on the market: one that comes with New Super Mario Bros. U/New Super Luigi U and one that comes with The Legend of Zelda Wind Waker HD. I fully endorse the Wii U as the must get videogame console for Christmas of 2013. Besides, at this point it’s probably going to be next to impossible to find a PS4 or One at retail anyway.