[Disclosure: Amazon links are paid affiliate links. Learn more here]
With Black Friday ready to get underway, there are already some pre-Black Friday deals that have been leaked out onto the web. So it only makes sense to a do a brief holiday gift guide about some of the items worth purchasing for the Wii U this holiday season.
So one of the hot deals revealed ahead of Black Friday on November 27th is a Meijer bundle for the Wii U that comes with pre-installed digital renditions of Super Smash Bros and Splatoon for only $249.99 and it comes with a $30 shopping coupon. You can check the Meijer website and add it to your bookmarks to cash in on the deal when November 27th rolls around.
Nintendo World Report caught wind of the above Meijer deal and a deal from GameStop that sees the Wii U Splatoon and Super Smash Bros bundle discounted down to $279.99. That deal will also only go live on November 27th, at the end of the month.
GameStop’s price is actually outmatched by Amazon, who offers a 32GB deluxe Wii U bundle that comes with New Super Mario Bros. U and New Super Luigi U, along with a GamePad, all for $270.00 on the dot. That’s a pretty good deal but it certainly doesn’t top Meijer’s amazing $249.99 bundle. Two games and a $30 coupon? That’s gold right there.
There’s also a Wii U <i>Skylanders SWAP Force</i> bundle pack available for only $268. This is also marked down for the holidays and can also be picked up used for only $222.99. Amazon has a limited supply of this particular bundle in stock, so if you want to get in on this particular deal you’ll have to move fast.
Getting a console is one thing but getting accessories is another. Sometimes you might have friends or family over to play your local multiplayer games and you may either want to kick their butt get their help in kicking butt. The Wii U’s Pro Controller is a decent choice for fleshing out your accessories library. Amazon has the controller available for as low as $29.99. If you’re looking for something brand new and just as cheap, MiniInTheBox has a Wii U Pro Controller for as low as $31.30.
If you prefer the old Wiimote Plus from the Wii, those are also available as well and discounted down to $33 on Amazon. The controller used is also available for . The Wiimotes do work with the Wii U and can be played in many of the games on the Wii U as a cross-over device. Unfortunately they’re still pretty expensive despite being fairly old. It’s probably better to get a Pro Controller over a Wiimote at this stage in the game.
New controllers are great but you’re also going to need a way to charge them. Don’t worry, I’ve got you covered. Tomee has a charging cable available for the Wii U that’s only $6.62, marked down 17% off the original price. You can also get a used version of the cable to recharge the GamePad for as low as $1.99. The Tomee charge cable is for keeping the GamePad charged for those long gaming sessions.
Alternatively, Nyko has a power-stand available for the GamePad that also stores and charges the Wii U’s wireless peripheral. It’s a bit more expensive than Tomee’s little charging cable, and it will run you $12.99 brand new. Alternatively, if you’re looking for something to charge your Wii U Pro Controllers, Frys.com has a dual charger available for $19.99, which will recharge and power two Pro Controllers at once.
Moving on to games, there’s Mario Kart 8… this was a definitive outing in 2014 for the Wii U and helped push the console back into the competitive market races. It features local split-screen modes for up to four players as well as online multiplayer modes; HD graphics and a track selection that fuses everything from the SNES all the way up to brand new tracks made specifically for the Wii U, Mario Kart 8 is the must-have killer-app for just about any Wii U owner. The game can be acquired on Amazon brand new for $49.99, down from the standard $59.99 price. You can also get it used for as low as $36.99. If you want a cheap price but don’t want to give up the quality, you can also pick up a physical copy of the game from Civilization Today for $41.99.
Up next is Super Smash Bros. This is another definitive killer-app for the Wii U, and a game that many owners really feel helps flesh out the replayability of Nintendo’s eighth-gen home console. The title has received rave reviews for its depth, content, multiplayer modes – once again, both local and online – as well as the smorgasbord of characters that are afforded to players for all different types of play-styles. The game is popular amongst the fighting game community and continues to make waves in the e-sports scene. The title is available on Amazon for $54.99, but expect a markdown during Black Friday. You can also get it used for as cheap as $46. Once again, Civilization Today shows up the retail competition with a price $33.29 price advantage.
If you’re looking for something a bit less intense and more laid back and full of adventure, there’s The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD for the Wii U. Amazon’s standard price starts at $51.75 but you can pick up a used copy for as cheap as $34.61. The next cheapest would be Overstock.com, which has The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD for as low as $47.65 brand new.
If you’ve been in the mood for something a bit more low-fi and retro, there’s also the NES Remix Pack. It’s available from Amazon for only $25, which is a few dollars cheaper than its nearest competitor, GameStop. If you don’t like Amazon for whatever reason, you can pick up a physical copy of the NES Remix Pack from GameStop for $29.99 brand new, or $25.99 used. Another noteworthy game to check out during the holiday rush is the criminally overlooked Nintendo Land. This game is available from Amazon for $29.49 but you can get it used for as cheap as $1.99. You can also grab a copy from eStarland for $27.95 or $12.50 used. I used to get a lot of Nintendo games from eStarland because they’re pretty legit. They also have a brand new copy of Game Party Champions for only $12.95, so if you’re looking for a casual party game that may not be a bad way to go. Still, Nintendo Land would probably be the better option, though.
And last but not least is Xenoblade Chronicles X. This game will miss the Black Friday blowout and release about a week after on December 4th. Yeah, it’s crappy as all get-out but that’s just the way the dice fall in this case. The game will be available brand new, exclusively on the Wii U for $59.99. Nintendo seems to have moved it into a death slot for sales because most of the big money makers release just before November 25th. Anyway, this is another killer app for the Wii U, but more niche than mainstream. The game has been receiving a lot of rave reviews for being a massive open-world JRPG, and it showcases just how much attention to detail and expanse that Monolith Soft paid to this entry in the Xenoblade saga.
Hopefully a few of these games have managed to stand out and give you an idea of what a friend, loved one or family member might want when it comes to the Wii U this holiday season. You can check out a few more gaming gift ideas for the Wii U below.