With the Nintendo Switch launching next Friday and games like Horizon Zero Dawn for PS4 which many are predicting will be one of the year’s top sellers releasing next week, the stalwart Wii U that was home to some legitimately engaging games in spite of largely lacklustre sales will be sailing off into the distance to be remembered as an odd step in Nintendo’s unique console history. In honour of our comrade of the last few years, Game Usagi presents a list of our top 5 exclusive Wii U titles that deserve to be played and remembered not for their sales, but for the joy they can still bring even as other fancier Nintendo hardware is shortly set to take the stage.

#5 – Splatoon



While Game Usagi is not a huge fan of Splatoon, largely due to the industry-standard quality of life features of third person shooters it lacked (like being able to change weapons mid-match, chat with teammates or vote for a variety of stages before a match), the positive impact that Splatoon had on the Nintendo community cannot be ignored. Whether you were totally taken in by the clever level-painting mechanics or turned off by the strangely sparse online features, Splatoon came out of left field from Nintendo and was so different from their usual awkward relationship with online gaming that it was instrumental to evolving Nintendo’s views on the value of online community and gaming. Splatoon represents the kind of gameplay innovation that Nintendo has been known for throughout the years and was undoubtedly a gem in any gamer’s Wii U library.

#4 – Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD/Twilight Princess HD



I cried when I first booted up Wind Waker HD — it wasn’t just the memories of playing the game on the GameCube, but the game just looked gorgeous, refreshed, and alive like I could never have imagined. When Nintendo made the HD versions of Wind Waker and Twilight Princess they didn’t just port their ROMs over to the Wii U, they invested time, money, effort and love to reinvigorate the games and update them with modern design sensibilities to streamline their mechanics while maintaining the soul and wonder of the originals. I hope these are ported as a two-pack for the Nintendo Switch as soon as possible because I’d happily triple dip on them both to be able to bring them around with me like Breath of the Wild.

#3 – Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker



Easily the best puzzle game on the Wii U and among the best that Nintendo has ever made, Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker was overall light on content, but gorgeous, engaging and good fun from top to bottom. As with most games, Captain Toad had its share of odd design choices, but the core concept of taking the excellent puzzle levels from Super Mario 3D World and expanding them into a full-fledged game paid off quite well. I hope this isn’t the last we see of 3D exploration puzzlers from Nintendo, as this concept would probably shine on the Switch.

#2 – Super Mario Maker



We’re counting Super Mario Maker as a Wii U exclusive since the 3DS version omits the online features which are in many ways where the real content of the game resides. Fulfilling the dreams of a great many Mario rom hackers, Nintendo at long last put out and then continually expanded and refined an excellent toolset for anyone to make and play the 2D Mario stages of their dreams. Being able to mimic the visual style of NES, SNES or New Super Mario games and having hundreds of fun Mario costumes in the NES style fleshed out the game’s almost limitless potential for fans of classic Mario platforming, or fans of just playing the most punishing or bizarre levels people can imagine. Another game that would also shine on the Switch, Super Mario Maker did an excellent job of legitimizing the Wii U’s two screen setup, which is a feature we’ll miss in any possible future incarnations of the concept.

#1 – Super Smash Bros for Wii U



Bringing together everyone from Mario to Zelda to Mega Man to Sonic to Ryu to Cloud to Bayonetta, there is no denying that Super Smash Bros for Wii U is the ultimate video game all-star fighting game. While I’ll always be the first one to complain that there are far too many Fire Emblem characters, and even though Super Smash Bros for 3DS is very similar, Smash Bros for Wii U brought the fast, 60fps fighting action that we have been craving for years into the realm of HD with excellent results. Fine-tuned for balance and supplemented by tons of DLC maps, Mii costumes and characters, Smash Bros for Wii U is far and away the best and most lastingly excellent gaming experience that we had on the Wii U. While it’s decently likely that it will see a port to the Switch at some point (hopefully maintaining GameCube controller support somehow), for now it is the best exclusive Wii U game there is and a tour-de-force for the dozens of companies and composers that were involved to form the final product. The Wii U won’t be missed by everyone, but Game Usagi would like to thank ours for its hundreds of hours of service in letting us play our favourite fighting game. RIP in peace old pal.

Honourable Mentions:

Other games we very much enjoyed on the Wii U, but didn’t fit our exclusivity requirements or fit on the list include:

Mario Kart 8 , whose Deluxe edition launches for the Nintendo Switch on April 28th

, whose Deluxe edition launches for the Nintendo Switch on April 28th Call of Duty: Black Ops II , whose Wii U version is my favourite ever CoD game

, whose Wii U version is my favourite ever CoD game LEGO City Undercover , which is coming to Switch, PC, PS4, and Xbox One later this year

, which is coming to Switch, PC, PS4, and Xbox One later this year Yoshi’s Woolly World , which just had a largely superior port launch for 3DS

, which just had a largely superior port launch for 3DS Bayonetta 2 , would probably have been #6 had we done a top 10

, would probably have been #6 had we done a top 10 Pikmin 3, would probably have been #7

Are there any Wii U exclusive titles you loved that you think we missed? Let us know in the comments.