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00:09The Wii U may have been a financial disaster, but that doesn't mean it didn't have a lot of great
00:15games.
00:16Welcome to MojoPlays, and today we're looking back at the best games on Nintendo's Wii U.
00:29Before we dive in, we publish new content all week long, so be sure to subscribe and ring the bell
00:35to get notified about our latest videos.
00:38LEGO City Undercover
00:40I got a message from Rex. He wants you to get a crane from this place. Gotta go!
00:46Well, that was to the point.
00:47We'll try our best to stick to exclusives with a few exceptions, this being the first.
00:53Although it came to other platforms in 2017, LEGO City Undercover did originally offer an experience you could only find
01:01on Wii U, and it was a pretty good one.
01:04Instead of relying on an existing franchise, it puts you in the role of a big city detective going undercover
01:09to take down a crime boss.
01:11Despite not having recognizable characters, the story is a lot of fun, and the key mechanic of swapping disguises to
01:18use different abilities and access new areas brings something fresh.
01:22Not for nothing, this version also made good use of the gamepad, letting you do things like eavesdrop on people
01:28or take pictures of clues.
01:31Is it true you prefer cats to dogs?
01:33Gentlemen, please, give Mr. Blackwell some privacy. He merely wishes to go somewhere mysterious for secretive reasons he doesn't want
01:42you to know about.
01:42Pokken Tournament
01:54Pokémon spinoffs are usually a bit of a gamble in terms of quality, but clearly Pokken Tournament is one of
02:00the better ones.
02:01The premise is, admittedly, odd, blending the world of Pokémon with the mechanics of Tekken.
02:06Yet, Bandai Namco made sure it worked quite well.
02:10Though the roster is obviously smaller than the main series, it gave players the technical freedom to go all out
02:16with the Pokémon's offensive abilities.
02:18And still, it lets you play out some wild matchups, with characters like Lucario, Chandelure, Swaycoon, Gengar, and, of course,
02:27Pikachu.
02:28The Switch version is arguably better, with extra characters and modes, but like several other games on the list that
02:35would eventually make that jump, the original incarnation deserves respect.
02:46Nintendo Land
02:55Although it wasn't the system-selling Juggernaut Nintendo needed it to be, like Wii Sports before it, there was still
03:02a lot to enjoy about Nintendo Land.
03:05With a hub modeled after a theme park where you could venture into various minigames designed around Nintendo's franchises, it
03:12was a celebration of the company's history.
03:14Was every minigame fun? No, but most of them were.
03:19Ones based on Donkey Kong, Metroid, Zelda, and Luigi's Mansion were particularly easy to sink time into.
03:26And since it was designed as a pack-in game, there were plenty of clever uses for the gamepad across
03:31the game, which also offered variety in the number of players and their roles.
03:42Captain Toad Treasure Tracker
03:52Unironically, Captain Toad is one of the best things to come out of Super Mario 3D World.
03:57His spin-off, released just a year later, features that same charming gameplay hook as his segments in that game,
04:04but on a much wider scale.
04:06It follows Toad and Toadette, swapping between Rescuer and Damsel as they deal with the giant crow Wingo.
04:12The game puts you through a series of puzzle-filled obstacle courses with the hindrance that you can't jump.
04:18This way, it places the puzzles front and center, with clever brain teasers and lovely little aha moments.
04:25And though it never really gets too difficult, it still triggers that signature delight found in Nintendo's core experiences.
04:38Hyrule Warriors
04:51Who would have thought that The Legend of Zelda and Dynasty Warriors would be such a good match?
04:57While later entries would prove to be a bit better, there's still a lot of enjoyment to be found in
05:02the absurdity and over-the-top action of the first.
05:06Link and Co.'s departure into the hack-and-slash genre not only mixed satisfying gameplay for those who wanted to
05:13play God battling hordes of peons,
05:15but it provided more than enough fan service.
05:18Its original narrative brings characters from multiple timelines together,
05:22so you can play as iconic characters like Midna, Ghirahim, Sheik, or one of the many other fan favorites in
05:29the base roster or DLC,
05:31and decimate entire armies.
05:34It may not be that deep, but it's plenty entertaining.
05:45Yoshi's Woolly World
05:53Many of the Yoshi games are known for their handmade, crafted aesthetics.
05:59For the Wii U, Yoshi's Woolly World looks like everything is made of some type of fabric,
06:03and unless you can't see your screen right now, it is clearly delightful.
06:08And it isn't just a visual hook.
06:11It plays into Yoshi's mechanics.
06:13Eating an enemy produces a ball of yarn instead of an egg,
06:16which can fill in certain missing pieces in a level, or tie up enemies.
06:20Like most of Yoshi's Adventures, the biggest criticism you could have is that outside of a few final hidden challenges,
06:27the game is pretty easy.
06:29But when it still has this much charm, and its levels and mechanics are still fun,
06:33and it gives you the option of co-op, does it really matter?
06:42The Wonderful 101
06:52Although it isn't quite as good as another Platinum Games exclusive on Wii U that we'll get to later,
06:57the Wonderful 101 had plenty of bombastic superhero action.
07:02The game focuses on a group of 101 heroes fighting against an alien threat.
07:07The main leaders have key abilities, each based on a different weapon,
07:11with the overall group literally banding together for powerful attacks.
07:15It's a pretty unique concept for an action game, and despite a few technical hiccups, it works fairly well.
07:22Most who played it consider the Wonderful 101 an underrated gem of the Wii U's library, as it didn't sell
07:29too well.
07:29Still, more got the chance to try it when it was remastered for other platforms in 2020.
07:45Tokyo Mirage Sessions
07:55Developed by Atlus, and bringing together the worlds of Fire Emblem and Shin Megami Tensei,
08:01if you haven't played Tokyo Mirage Sessions, well, you're in luck,
08:05because it's another game that was given an enhanced port for the Switch.
08:08The main plot follows a group of teens fighting evil beings called Mirages,
08:13who kidnap people in modern-day Tokyo.
08:16Very core Atlus.
08:17But the heroes are able to fight them with the help of friendly Mirages,
08:21heroes from the first Fire Emblem, as well as some from 2012's Fire Emblem Awakening.
08:26While it is admittedly a little lighter on Fire Emblem elements,
08:30the unique battle system is a lot of fun,
08:33and the story itself is more than entertaining enough to carry you through the playtime.
08:44New Super Mario Bros. U
08:55New Super Mario Bros.
08:55Did Nintendo oversaturate with too many New Super Mario Bros. games?
09:00Yes, which is why it took a while to get another 2D Mario.
09:04But does that make this a bad game?
09:07Clearly, we don't think so.
09:08While there was definitely a feeling of more of the same,
09:12that same is still a solid side-scrolling Mario game, especially in multiplayer.
09:18The acorn power-up was a nice new addition to the series,
09:21and as the first HD Mario, it did look pretty nice at the time,
09:26despite some uninteresting level and environment designs.
09:29Plus, for a challenge, the Luigi-centric expansion,
09:32which made the levels shorter but much harder and with a 100 second time limit,
09:37is also worth a play.
09:49Rayman Legends
10:00Here we have the biggest exception to the Nintendo-exclusive rule.
10:04But in our defense, it was initially built as a Wii U exclusive before the console started performing poorly.
10:11And the Wii U version has the highest ratings on Metacritic.
10:15Plus, any chance I get to talk about Rayman Legends, I will take.
10:26Ubisoft took the foundation of 2011's Origins and expanded on it in incredible ways.
10:32The HD visuals make the fantastically wacky art-style pop,
10:36the silly sense of humor consistently lands,
10:39and the levels are ridiculously fun, especially the special musical ones.
10:44And, important for this list, there were other special levels
10:48with interactable environments that used the gamepad extremely well.
10:53It truly is a phenomenal 2D platformer.
11:01Xenoblade Chronicles X
11:11The spiritual successor to the original Xenoblade Chronicles,
11:15X was long lamented by fans to be stuck on the Wii U.
11:20That's no longer the case, thankfully,
11:22yet we still must talk about why it's one of the best RPGs on the system.
11:27Some may have had issues on the direction the story went,
11:30but the scale, scope, and beauty of Planet Mira, along with improved mechanics,
11:35more than make it worth playing.
11:37Through the guise of their customizable avatar, players must navigate their new home,
11:41while at the same time taking on both extraterrestrial and domestic threats.
11:47Throw in the fact you get to do this aboard your personal giant mech suit,
11:51and go toe-to-toe with monstrous lifeforms,
11:54and you have a game truly worthy of bearing the Xenoblade name.
12:05Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze
12:15Following its tremendous DKC revival on the Wii,
12:19Retro Studios delivered another incredible platformer in Tropical Freeze.
12:23It follows the Kong crew taking on a group of Arctic Viking animals known as the Snowmads,
12:29who have invaded their home.
12:30Dixie Kong and her hover ability were welcome returns to the series,
12:34and Cranky Kong was a fun new addition with his Scrooge McDuck-like pogo ability.
12:39Most importantly, the game holds some of the most fun and most challenging levels in Donkey Kong history,
12:45gloriously displayed in high definition for the first time.
12:48Along with the return of original DKC composer David Weiss,
12:53Tropical Freeze reminded everyone why the series is considered 2D platforming royalty.
13:07Super Mario 3D World
13:18Following in the footsteps of the 3DS's Super Mario 3D Land, albeit on a much larger scale,
13:24Mario's side-scrolling adventures have never looked more pristine.
13:28Blending 2D and 3D to a fine polish,
13:31it sees Mario, Luigi, Peach, Toad, and an unlockable Rosalina set off to save a new kingdom under the threat
13:38of Bowser.
13:39Supporting 4-player co-op and characters with different playstyles,
13:43levels are filled with the developer's signature creativity,
13:46paying homage to the old while happily showing off the new.
13:49And let's not forget it gave us one of the franchise's all-time best power-ups, letting us turn into
13:56cats.
13:56We're grateful this is another one that got ported to Switch since it came with Bowser's Fury,
14:01but also because it meant more people could play such a phenomenal game.
14:13Pikmin 3
14:23Almost a decade after our last encounter with these bizarre yet adorable little creatures,
14:29we were once again propelled to PNF-404 for a brand new encounter.
14:34In order to prevent mass famine from consuming their home,
14:38three explorers have to take advantage of a horde of Pikmin in order to gather food,
14:42overcome obstacles, and eventually find a way off of the planet.
14:46With new types of Pikmin and landscapes to provide a much more engrossing single-player campaign,
14:52as well as bundles of cooperative multiplayer modes,
14:55there was more than enough content to satisfy longtime fans of the series.
14:59Plus, with the tech of an HD platform, the planet's environments were stunning.
15:20The concept of giving players the tools to build their own 2D Mario levels is such a novel and genius
15:28idea,
15:28which is why Super Mario Maker finds itself sitting comfortably on our list.
15:33What was originally conceived as a tool for the Nintendo development team soon became a platform for players around the
15:39world
15:39to make their own personal levels without any kind of restriction.
15:43With assets from a variety of 2D Mario's, ranging from the original Super Mario Bros. all the way to New
15:49Super Mario Bros. U,
15:50players could let loose their inner designer and submit them online for others to play through.
15:56Of course, if crafting courses wasn't your thing,
15:59you could dive right in with various challenges and try to conquer as many levels as possible.
16:11Splatoon
16:20With as long a history as Nintendo has, it isn't too often we get a brand new first-party IP.
16:27For the Wii U, we got Splatoon.
16:31And despite a zany premise completely unlike any other shooter, and the Wii U's poor sales,
16:36this game was so good that it persisted.
16:40While there was an entertaining single-player campaign, the real meat of the game came from its online multiplayer.
16:46Players waged ink-based war against each other in unique game modes like Turf War and Splat Zones,
16:53which required players to paint the stage to win, modes that would not be possible in any other online shooter.
17:06Mario Kart 8
17:16The best-selling game on the Wii U, and the Switch for that matter,
17:20when it comes to Mario Kart 8, it's safe to believe the hype.
17:24Boasting the dynamic level design that made every entry in the franchise such a phenomenal hit,
17:29this installment is the peak of the franchise's evolution.
17:32Nothing beats taking your favorite Mario character in burning rubber and stunning high-definition
17:39across some of the craziest racetracks ever devised for the series.
17:43The visuals are gorgeous, the music is toe-tappingly fantastic, and the controls are as smooth as silk.
17:50It is the damn near perfect Mario Kart experience.
17:54While it would be perfected on Switch with a better battle mode and an absolute ton of DLC,
18:01this was one of the biggest reasons to own a Wii U.
18:13Bayonetta 2
18:24Some fans may have been unhappy initially, but we're grateful that Nintendo rescued Bayonetta from death.
18:31Although that meant the sequel was exclusive to a console most people didn't have, it's without a doubt the Umbra
18:37which is very best.
18:39With a stylish and hot as hell new look, Bayonetta finds herself once again tussling with the forces of Paradiso
18:46and Inferno,
18:48this time taking on the mysterious masked Lumen and the villainous God of Chaos.
18:53Thanks to the incredibly deep combat system, special Nintendo costumes that change up the gameplay,
18:58and some of the most epic boss battles gaming has ever seen,
19:02Bayonetta 2 makes a very strong case as one of the best hack and slash games ever made.
19:16Super Smash Brothers for Wii U
19:28Like every entry in Nintendo's flagship crossover slugfest, the Wii U edition brought some awesome new fighters.
19:36Characters across Nintendo's history like Greninja, Little Mac, Bowser Jr, and even the dog and duck from Duck Hunt
19:44could now clash with third party legends like Cloud Strife and Mega Man.
19:49And while that was all very exciting, it was also understandably an excellent fighter.
19:55Noticeable improvements were made to character builds and overall mechanics,
19:58and even though there was nothing like Subspace Emissary, there was a lot to do.
20:04Everything from tournament-style battles, eight-player on-screen mayhem, specific event-oriented fights,
20:11and even the ability to customize each character.
20:14It might have been destined to live in the shadow of the Switch's ultimate,
20:17but I know people who bought the Wii U just to play this game.
20:21And that should tell you all you need to know.
20:30The Legend of Zelda Breath of the Wild
20:33What if, one day, you realized that you just weren't meant to be a fighter?
20:43It should go without saying that the majority of us played Breath of the Wild on Switch.
20:48But when looking at everything the Wii U had to offer, if this is on the table, then it absolutely
20:54has to go here.
20:55It was a completely groundbreaking take on the open world formula.
21:00A gigantic toy box that gave you the tools to bend its physics to your will,
21:04with secrets and mysteries packed into every corner.
21:08And it looks gorgeous, with the level of quality between Wii U and Switch being almost unrecognizable.
21:15Breath of the Wild revitalized Zelda, while being yet another entry in the long-running series to influence an entire
21:22genre.
21:23And it was as strong a note to go out on as the Wii U could have hoped for.
21:29So then I shall go, and make my way up the mountain.
21:33What were some of your favorite games on the Wii U? Are there any gems we left off?
21:38Be sure to share your thoughts in the comments, and we will see you next time.
21:42Episode 6
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