Topic: Retrospective opinions on GamePad

@Banjos_Backpack
I'd argue the gamepad is more comfortable than the Switch and 3DS. And of course it's less ergonomic than the pro controllers, it has a screen.

@Iconorobin
Yes, I've heard these things before. But why are they all negatives? The one about the placement of the second stick for example. Is that so horrible? If so why do people love the Gamecube with its second stick that's completely useless and the super unconventional face buttons? Why rate it bellow the Wii that lacked a second stick and half those buttons?

There's a reason almost every developer of controllers puts the right analog stick underneath the face buttons: it's easier to handle, plain and simple.
The GameCube controller sure is an oddity. The main reason why it's so beloved is because of Super Smash Bros. There simply is no better controller to play that game with. But every other game works perfectly fine with it too. I personally never encountered any problems with it, not even with 3D shooters like Metroid Prime.
The Wii's lack of a second stick is mitigated by its motion controls but it definitely is my second least favorite packed-in controller Nintendo has ever done. The reason why I put it above the WiiU gamepad is its ergonomics. For most games its a joy to hold, unlike the GamePad, which has always felt like a hassle to me.

If I'd rank them, it would go like this:
1. Switch
2. GameCube
3. SNES
4. NES
5. N64
6. Wii
7. WiiU

I liked the Wii U Gamepad but locking so much behind it was a bad idea because when it breaks you're left with the whole console being a brick. My rankings of the controllers:
1. Switch Pro controller
2. GC controller
3. Wii U Gamepad
4. Wii U Pro controller
5. Switch Joy-Con
6. Wii Classic controller
7. Wii Remote (+ Nunchuk)
8. SNES
9. NES
10. N64

I disagree, and if we're ranking them on usability alone I'd rank them...

1. Switch Pro (everything the Wii U Pro did but with more features)
2. Wii U Pro (I still use it for PC games)
3. WiiMote + Nunchuck (very ergonomic but too unconventional to be very versatile)
4. SNES (useless for modern games but I'd rank it high as it's the best controller for 2D)
5. Wii U GamePad (only marginally heavier than the Switch but without the hard edges)
6. Gamecube (super average D-Pad, wimpy little stick but otherwise still fairly modern)
7. Classic Controller (lots of compromises but not to the point where it's uncomfortable)
8. Switch Joycon (the best controller Nintendo has made... for a portable)
9. N64 (legitimately pretty bad, pretty much everything since has done better)
10. 3DS/DS (we put up with it because they're portables. Better than a smartphone)
11. NES (timeless... but controllers shouldn't have pointy corners)

IMO most of the complaints people have about the GamePad are people just listing differences. The whine about the positioning of the sticks in particular I just don't understand. Yes, the Wii U is the only mainstream console to ever have both sticks up the top. But what's actually horrible about it? I actually preferred it personally. I'd wager that the Switch would've probably done the same again and been better for it if it wasn't for the 2 player aspect to the JoyCon design.

Honestly, I think that the interactive map on the second screen is alone one of the greatest achievements of the GamePad. I mean, you have an interactive map that you can access at any time by simply looking down for a split second, without pausing the game or waiting for it to load. If you people played Grand Theft Auto V on Playstation, you know what a miserable experience a map can be.

When I played Pikmin 3 (with nunchuck + WiiMote) I kept the GamePad on its stand next to the TV. It functioned like the radar in FIFA. If other games had the option of showing the map on a second screen (be it a GamePad or a smartphone) I would be on cloud nine because to me it's a huge improvement over the way we used to play.

If we can drive a car and look at a map in real life, or play a football game and look at a radar, I don't see why we can't play an action-adventure game and look for a split instant at a second screen. The funny thing is, when I go out I see people do a million things at once - walking while drinking coffee while texting while listening to music while chatting etc, but apparently gamers can't handle a map on a separate screen.

@skywake Tbh I don't find the position of the sticks to be overly problematic on any controller... But my main issue with the Wii U pro controller is that the face buttons are too far in and down. This was not an issue on the gamepad.

Off-TV Play in a nearby room could be nice, and the universal TV remote button was a nice little feature. The controller was somewhat comfortable too. Its potential was never realized though, and I don't like how a lot of games shoehorned it in for almost no reason.

Tbh, to this day I have no idea why any adult would want a 3DS over a Wii U. Just playing a 3DS, like a normal game with normal button presses that is otherwise the same quality as any other good game, is more awkward and not as fun than most. maybe all, of the Nintendo systems I grew up with in the past 20. Like I feel I'm gonna somehow hurt my hands if I press a button too hard, and I have this problem with no other system I've ever owned. And it's just awkward to play a lot of games that require quicker movements.

So by that comparison alone, Wii U's Gamepad was super underrated. But the big problem is that Nintendo was too scared to try to do anything actually interesting with the interesting controller gimmicks that they themselves thought of for Wii U. It was like most self-defeating thing Nintendo has ever done. MAN WHY CAN'T MARIO KART SAVE THE WII U they say as they ruin battle mode and do nothing to justify the gimmick the entire console is built around and then pretend the Wii U has a reason to exist. No wonder it did better as a Switch game, it doesn't exist to prove critics right about the console it is on. (half-serious rant)

Like there were many reasons people were frustrated with Nintendo at this time, but for me, it's usually been Nintendo half-***ing their own new gimmick-y ideas. Wii U gimmicks ignored for reasons that in hindsight were a mistake, or at least made no positive difference to anything outside of maybe making some games easier to port (and Splatoon 2's existence makes that arguable). And don't even bring up Star Fox Zero, that was gonna make no difference, and people in reviews would've found other reasons to hate the game regardless, because of what Star Fox inherently is. Controls just gave them a good excuse. Meanwhile 3DS was focused on 3D instead of actual gameplay related things that actually matter that was difficult to consistently enjoy properly unless you waited 4 years for a new version. By contrast Switch's main gimmick makes an interesting difference to every single game on it, even if it's not itself gameplay. And even then Nintendo feels more inventive half the time, what with Wii 2.0 Joycons and cardboard construction simulator 2018.

But back on point, I feel like when the Gamepad was actually used properly, it genuinely enhanced games. Objectively, any game with a 2nd screen being a map or inventory system instead of having to pause all the time is an improvement, and between Nintendo Land, Rayman Legends, Splatoon and Mario Maker, there was so much potential that we'll never see properly utilized and that makes me so sad. Rayman Legends alone should've sold people on it, it's genuinely a masterpiece and showcased Wii U's potential perfectly.

From my experience the Wii U GamePad was Nintendo's best controller.

Especially when used for

• games that use both screens together to make an immersive or fresh experience
  (Xenoblade Chronicles X, Project Zero, Starfox Zero, Super Mario Maker, Game&Wario, Wii Sports Club Golf)
• games that use both screens together to have easier access to maps and/or inventory and/or special move lists
  (The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD, Twilight Princess HD, Assassin's Creed III & IV, Tekken Tag Tournament 2, etc.)
• asymetrical multiplayer (Nintendo Land, Rayman Legends, Affordable Space Adventures)
• two-screen versus / co-op games (Hyrule Warriors, Kirby, TANK! TANK! TANK!)
• Wii backwards compatibility (all Wii controllers work and all Wii games look great on the GamePad, there's even a Wiimote sensor bar integrated)
• web browsing (while even watching a video on the tv)

It also had the benefits of in-built voice-chat and camera, and playing touchscreen games while still having them running in full HD (1080p) on the TV. The touchscreen is also great for typing.

Also, from my personal view, it had a great grip in my hands and was a real tank of a controller.
It had everything you could want except for out-of-home portability.

Can't argue about inventory, but personally I find the better thing to do with maps is to asign them to a shoulder button - hold the button, and the map overlays your game without pausing it (several games do this, can't remember which off the top of my head). That why you can simultaneously navigate a map while keeping checks on where your character is actually moving.

That said, teleporting in the original Splatoon did feel slightly more intuitive than in Splatoon 2.

The gamepad isn't bad, just limited by the technology available at the time and a poor marketing campaign. About the only time I am frustrated with it is when playing BotW Off-TV and they want me to flip the controller all around. Mostly it was a console that failed to take full advantage of the possibilities it had.

There are much worse controllers out there. Atari Jaguar and Intellivision come to mind.

I still love the gamepad. It is hands down my favorite controller and it is the only controller where symmetrical thumbsticks were comfortable for me. Dual Shocks can fall down a well. My only issue was the battery life...and I had a couch with an outlet so that wasn't an issue. I loved the dual screen concept and for games like XCX I can't go back...I love the switch but yeah XC2 was annoying after X.

For me, the wiiu was nearly a perfect system. (I know I'll get roasted for this) However it is the only system that I can say that I enjoyed the vast majority of its library hands down.

Is there anything else you don't like about it beside its looks, its shape, its weight and size, its battery life, its concept, its two screens, the fact that it shows a map and that you have to look down at it, the way it's integrated into games, its cable and the way it connects to your TV?! Do you have something against the way it smells or is it okay?

I fear if people keep saying what they liked about the GamePad, you'll eventually spiral into a dark schizophrenia and start saying that the GamePad killed your father and ravished your mother.

How come you make a list of essentially good traits and then claim to dislike the pad?

@Banjos_Backpack Off TV was the main reason I purchased it. I wanted a console experience but didn't want to tie up the only TV in the house. Plus, there was something nice about relaxing on the couch playing Super Metroid, Earthbound, or any of the many games that could be played Off-TV. The issue was when you came across the title that required the TV (main reason I haven't finished TMS#FE).

I love the Wii U and the GamePad. I bought the extended battery as soon as it was available, and it makes a huge difference. I can have marathon Breath of the Wild sessions on the Wii U.

yeah, but we're still comparing old technology with new technology. In 5 years we went from Nokia 3310 to mobile micro-computers. With consoles is (or should be) pretty much the same - a new console has to improve on everything the old console did, otherwise we have a problem.
So while I'm sure the Switch improves on nearly everything its predecessor did, I don't see much of a point in dissing the GamePad. The Switch came from that experience after all, it didn't fall from the sky in its complete form.

I'd say the WiiU was a partially successful experiment, only marred by a series of factors. Most of it I believe had to do with Nintendo losing a lot of credibility and alienating a lot of gamers during the Wii era, which was reason enough for most people not to buy a WiiU despite the good games that were coming out. Then Nintendo spinning out of control when they realised even Mario Kart 8 and Super Smash Bros 4 couldn't sell the thing, which led them to cannibalise their own fanbase and literally to abandon the ship while it was sinking (something that, personally, made me want NOT to have a Switch).

At some point during the Wii era, people simply got tired of way Nintendo did things. Now they are doing well, but that I think is just natural because they hit rock bottom a few years ago and it would have been hard to do worse than how they did in 2011-2016. Unlike most other companies, Nintendo is subject to ups and downs in popularity that don't seem to be entirely related to the actual quality of the products they put out.

I believe nowadays Nintendo might even release a crack cocaine smoking Labo kit and it would still score an 8 on Nintendolife and get at the top of the Amazon pre-order chart. Back in 2014-2015 they released some of their best games ever and people hardly noticed.

My biggest issue with the gamepad and one of my biggest issues with the Wii U, was the range. Especially now that I have gotten used to being able to just pick up my Switch and walk to another room and keep playing. If there is nothing between the pad and Wii U, I can get, maybe 4 or 5 meters. Go around a corner and nope, lost connection. Another issue I have with it is the small screen. The gamepad is basically nothing be screen battery and controller - so they could have gone with a modern higher quality screen at a slightly higher resolution and bigger overall. There is a lot of seemingly wasted space on the pad.

But, I still think, had the pad been designed better, the idea was sound. Imagine if you could link the Wii U to your router and run games anywhere in your home where you have wi-fi? With a better quality screen, more battery life, and better range away from the console, it could have been a lot more successful.

The gamepad for better or worse was a selling point of the system. However, even Nintendo struggled to figure out how to utilize it properly. Just off the top of my head, I think games like Cities: Skylines (built on Unity), Fire Emblem or Advance Wars (RTS Style using gamepad), Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles HD, Fortune Street, Endless Space, The World Ends with You (Unity Port), and probably a dozen other Unity games that could have showcased the gamepad better.

The other thing that they could/should have done is pushed harder for sports games. PES 2018 is still published on Xbox 360/PS3 and Football Manager runs on phones There is no reason one couldn't have been on the Wii U if Nintendo pushed like they did for the Gamecube. While North America is not a huge Football/Soccer place, the rest of the world is. Not to mention all the Nintendo made sports franchises that were vaporware for the system.

I actually really like the GamePad, it's one of my favourite controllers of all time (probably second favourite). I thought it was used in some interesting ways, especially in games like NintendoLand and Captain Toad. There were probably others but I have probably forgotten...

I actually really appreciated the games where it added some easier ways to play games instead of the ones that focused purely on GamePad play. Wind Waker HD, Pikmin 3 and Xenoblade Chronicles X really benefitted from the GamePad but weren't needed most of the time or at all. Off TV play was nice too, but you lose most of the Wii U's features when you do that

The only thing I won't miss is the terrible battery life! It didn't last very long and mine even lost charge when it wasn't in use
I think the Switch really builds on the concept but I still enjoy the awkward middle phase that was the Wii U.