Gifts for gamers
November was the month of major game title sequels: Halo, Call of Duty and Assassins Creed all saw new installments. These titles got the major media push, but Nintendo’s new WiiU system was the most exciting November release.
The WiiU, features a new tablet controlled system and has arguably the most interactive online communities, called the ‘Wiiverse’. With the holidays coming up quickly, Nintendo is also releasing the Wii Mini, a basic gaming system with no Internet compatibility that will be out December 7th.
If you try and get the WiiU now, you will either be on a long wait list or have to go with the basic version instead of the deluxe.
“People are coming into the store now are looking for the WiiU Deluxe but there’s none in stock pretty much anywhere,” said EB Games employee Leanne Bull. “People are buying the basic model still just so that they can have that ‘wow’ gift for Christmas.”
The difference between the deluxe and the basic model is the memory capacity and cables. The basic model comes with 8gb of memory storage and no charging cables for the tablet controller, while the deluxe comes with 32gb of storage and all the cables you will need.
“It connects to the Internet, [and] there’s a great community online … if you have any questions about your games you can go on the community, pick your game, and they’ll help you out,” Bull explains. “And with the tablet you can actually draw to people and show your creativity.”
The Wii Mini will be released next week and does not have any of these features and will only be able to play a certain amount of games. However, it does have some special components. Nintendo collector Ainsley Palmer says that she will still purchase the smaller system.
“The Wii Mini will be a Canadian exclusive, it’s not coming out anywhere else in the world. It comes with a limited edition red controller and nunchuck,” Palmer says. “It doesn’t connect to the Internet, you’ll only be able to play about 1,300 games and it is only adaptable with some controllers. But it’s still a major collector’s item since it’s an exclusive.”
Bull also explains that it is good for people just getting into gaming, the elderly, as well as young children. However not many people have come into the store asking about the Wii Mini.