It isn’t very often that a review from another website is newsworthy, but it happens. Today was one of those days! Kotaku is a website that covers video games for the “core gamer” audience. They published an updated review of the Wii U today.
The update itself is significant because they changed their rating of the Wii U console to “Yes” meaning that they now feel that the Wii U is a “must own” console.
Now… I’m sure you are asking why I would be posting this. Who cares what they say?
We normally wouldn’t, but this is a special case. The Wii U has been beaten up in the mainstream press for the last two years. There were very few sites that recommended that their readers buy one. Kotaku themselves weren’t big fans either.
Their review is posted here. Reading over the review led the staff at Engaged Family Gaming to reflect on the WiiU and why this might end up being a turning point in the console’s future.
This site is obviously focused on family gaming so it is only natural that we would favor consoles that favor family friendly games. The Nintendo Wii U has been that and more since its launch. But, that hasn’t been enough for the rest of the world. Kotaku may be the first to publish it, but “core gamers” everywhere are starting to look at the WiiU and realize that the game lineup is big enough (and good enough) to justify a purchase.
If this results in higher sales numbers for the console, then it will obviously result in a stronger Nintendo brand. Frankly, a stronger Nintendo brand can only mean good things for families down the line. More consoles sold will mean more support from third parties (non-Nintendo game developers). This will mean more games to choose from (which is NEVER a bad thing).
We obviously don’t know yet whether one website’s review will have a long term impact on the Wii U’s sales. The entirety of this article is based on hopeful speculation. But, we would be lying if we didn’t see success in Nintendo’s future!