SRanked! : 4 Action Titles The WiiU Was Made For

Note: This guest article was written by our friend Gregory Myers over at Sranked.com!

Nintendo has made it their longstanding mantra to innovate on the hardware front: The DS introduced two screens in one portable package, the Wii put motion control on the forefront and now the Wii U has presented players with a controller that puts most Swiss army knives to shame. Love it or hate it, Nintendo remains one of the strongest competitors in the console ring. And now with 3rd party developers pledging to develop for Nintendo’s new wonder boy, what does this mean for the action junkie collective?

The Wii didn’t have the support of core developers. If one wanted to develop for the Wii, it would be a singular venture. It didn’t make any fiscal sense to not instead develop for more practical formats that supported a wider range of visuals. The few times a developer stuck his neck out to make something original for the Wii, we were left with an unforgettable experience. No More Heroes should jump immediately to mind. While the story is fun in it’s own merit (and NMH: Paradise looks promising) the parts of No More Heroes that will stick with me only the Wii can offer; taking phone calls from Sylvia via Wii Remote, decisively flicking your wrist to deliver slashes that eviscerate enemies. What the Wii provided, though seldom, was an experience previously never available.

So then let’s do a little math. When we take the fresh experience that the Wii provided, subtract the divide that separated the core audience and add the now academic functionality that any system should provide (HD graphics, an intuitive online interface, a ‘two thumbstick,/four trigger’ control archetype) what are we left with? In my eyes, it’s the Wii U and a perfect storm for those seeking a fresh experience without the technological quirks of yesteryear. The last piece of the puzzle is the right software, so listen up devs.

Metal Gear Solid

The Metal Gear Solid series has always been right alongside the technological curve, but with a hardware successor to the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 being nowhere in sight, the pair up between MGS and Wii U seems like a natural one. I like the idea of this pairing if not just for the condensing that could happen in terms of menus. Not only could you make browsing through your weapons and items a more seamless task, but it also could be performed at a pace that would allow it to be done in real-time. Same goes for making and taking codec calls. Nothing quite spells immersion like having the effect of an in-game gadget right at your fingertips. It also wouldn’t hurt to use those shiny new Wii U controller speakers to give us the nice alert/stinger noise that happens when you’ve been spotted. As if it wasn’t heart attack inducing already. Hell, I’m sure the next Psycho Mantis-esq Boss could do quite a number on you with that front facing camera. Scary.



Functionality: Reducing the on-screen hub by having information like camo index and codec calls appear on hand coupled with a precipitated menu browsing interface could craft a more engrossing experience.

No More Heroes

Having No More Heroes on the Wii U is just like taking the first two games original Wii Functionality and turning it up to eleven. Phone conversations with Sylvia turning to video calls are a no brainer, but personally? A new installment of NMH would be the perfect time to put players back in the free roam control of Travis Touchdown’s beastly ride: The Shpeltiger. Using the already cumbersome might-as-well-be-a-motorcycle-handlebar Wii U controller as a steering wheel might turn out to feel pretty natural. Same color too! Another notable trait of the No More Heroes series is it’s willingness to let the player customize the look of Travis. I can’t think of a better way to bring that to the next level than letting players themselves make the t-shirts they want. And what better time to do it then when players have access to the freedom of a touch panel and a stylus-- just saying!



Functionality: Handling the Shpeltiger like a man. T-Shirt creation mode with the stylus as your conduit. Whatever the hell Suda thinks of.

Dead Rising

In the Wii U’s E3 reveal reel, we got to see a lot of interesting ways the unique controller might be put to use. One of those being a sort of magnification mode wherein the player can hold up the controller at eye level and see the TV screen magnified. Sounds like a good set up for an in-game camera. And who better to take use of this new functionality then everyone’s favorite photojournalist, Frank West? Aside from the fairly practical camera applications, taking existing gameplay features and reworking them with Wii U pizazz might bring a new flavor to the zombie killing grind. Though Dead Rising 2 is already having it’s own directors cut style remastering (see DR2: Off the Record) the next entry in the Dead Rising series might find a perfect home on the Wii U.



Functionality: Wii U controller acting as an in-game camera. 6” display perfect for having your time, missions, stats and skills all in one place.

Zone of the Enders

If there’s any core IP that could be the serious proving ground for the Wii U as a core gamers console, it’s Zone of the Enders. Not only that, but it also stands to gain a lot, as most fast paced action titles would. Anything that breaks up the action and causes the player to lose their momentum is detrimental to the action game experience. Case in point, pausing to cycle through ones weapons. Some games have attempted to expedite this process (see: Bayonetta, Devil May Cry 4) by mapping shoulder buttons to cycle through your arsenal. It’s a pretty useful fix, but it isn’t perfect. If you have anymore than three weapons on-hand, you’ll have to double tap, triple tap or more just to reach your respective tool. Not particularly ideal. Especially in certain games with time-sensitive combos or in a game like ZOE where you may have a dozen weapons to choose from.

The fix? The Wii U’s 6” touch panel display. Weapons could be displayed in a grid-like fashion for quick thumb gesture selections, so long as the layout isn’t unwieldy. Weapon optimization aside, you’d be kidding yourself if you didn’t think it would be awesome to have the ADA A.I cockpit display in the palm of your hands.



Functionality: Touch panel display promotes decisive combat with the ability to quickly change your weapon by a touch of the screen. More immersive experience.

This article is courtesy of our friends at Sranked.com, the premier destination for action adventure gaming. Check them out!