Find out where you can try out Nintendo’s upcoming console at a major retailer near you.
It’s pretty amazing that in less than two weeks the Wii U will be arriving on North American storefronts. Excuse me for being a tad sentimental – it’s what I do best – but it feels like the time in between from the insider whispers we heard in 2010 to now have gone in a blink.
Now, on November 18, the public will decide for themselves the fate of Nintendo’s latest home console endeavor, but you don’t have to wait till then to get a test drive of the Wii U, as 5,000 Wii U demo stations will be present at retailers over the nation.
Major chains like Target, Best Buy, Toys R Us, GameStop, and Walmart will reportedly have these demo units in store, letting fence-sitters try out the Wii U’s new whizz-bang Gamepad plus preview the system’s features and batch of launch games – New Super Mario Bros. U, ZombiU, Nintendo Land, etc.
As it so happens, over the weekend I got try out one of these demo units at a local Best Buy. Unlike my journalistic peers who are easily swayed by Doritos and Mountain Dew and have already tried out the console at events – say the Electronic Entertainment Expo – months in advance, this is the first time I’ve seen it in person.
My first impressions, like many who held the touch-screen imbedded controller before me, was to how light the the Wii U Gamepad is. I mean it, that thing feels like you’re holding nothing at all (nothing at all!) In that regard, I think Nintendo achieved in making something feel might good to the touch.
Ah, and while we’re on the same subject, I was a bit disappointed at the smoothness of the touch-screen. It didn’t feel as sharp as my iPhone, that’s for sure. But it did get the job done when needed when I was navigating the UI or tapping along to Rayman Legends, so honestly, it didn’t affect my overall impressions of the console which I happily liked.
You should certainly run down to any of the retailers I mentioned above and try out the Wii U. You might not be able to reserve one, what with pre-orders already snatched up well and tight, but at least you’ll have a better understanding of what makes the system so darn special.
As for a better understanding of the geeky world, we here at Walyou have you covered with Back to the Future homages starring cute babies and a Superhero Supply Shop in Brooklyn, New York.
