Wii U interface - What would U improve?

[HULK]

There are a number of minor things that irk me about the interface and I'm curious to get others' impressions.
It could be as simple as moving a button to be more accessible, or a discussion of a complete overhaul of layout.


I think drawing posts on miiverse would be a lot more fun is if one of the buttons could be a "hotkey" to switch between drawing and erasing. This would make sketching quicker and fluid.

[J0RdAnN]

I which the system would tell you who is online instead of have a blue LED flash. It gets annoying having to pause then press the home button just to see who is online.

[Mirr0rR3flection]

I'd like them to allow us to put our favorite game beside our Mii like on the 3DS.

[Blazing Warwolf]

I'd like them to allow us to put our favorite game beside our Mii like on the 3DS.

And also to make it easier to see if someone changed their status. On the 3DS, if someone changed their status, there will be an orange circle above them. On Wii U, you need to check each Mii individually to see if their status changed. The lack of the favorite game thing and to see if someone changed their status are not really that big of a deal, but it would make the Wii U friend list more like the 3DS friend list, which wouldn't be a bad thing. Maybe it's like this because Nintendo thought it's not as important for those features to be on a console than on a handheld? Does it make sense? Maybe. But still.

[J0RdAnN]

Now that I think about it the eShop layout is bland too... 3DS's eShop is far from perfect but it does have a lot more life and color then the Wii U's eShop.

[Blazing Warwolf]

Now that I think about it the eShop layout is bland too... 3DS's eShop is far from perfect but it does have a lot more life and color then the Wii U's eShop.

Yeah, I don't like the Wii U eShop as much as the 3DS one (since it doesn't look as nice), so I don't really like to use it as much either. :/ I was hoping it would be more like the 3DS one. It may not be much of a big deal, but I don't like how the WIi U eShop doesn't have a "scrolling thing" that lets you know if a page is scrollable. Heck, without it, you wouldn't know if a page is scrollable or not unless you bother to check yourself. The 1st time I used the Wii U eShop's settings, I didn't know there were more options at the bottom until I actually scrolled down to check (due to the lack of the "scrolling thing"). I was like, "Oh, there are more options." The 3DS eShop lets you know if the page's scrollable, at the main menu or anywhere else.

[FadedAreWii]

I can't really think of much, it's pretty damn awesome the way it is. I guess I'd like it to be a little more aggressive about notifying you when you get a message from someone. Unlike the Wii message board, messages are instant, but they are much easier to miss or not notice right away. Should be some kind of pop-up on the screen for a certain amount of seconds and/or the home button should stay lit up like the blue light on the Wii did.

[bomblord]

The only thing I would change would be to have more information available from the home menu, I don't want to launch a separate app for miiverse friends list eshop web browser etc etc. I would like a few things available straight from the home menu (like current friends online and maybe a means to message them) without launching anything.

[Blazing Warwolf]

The only thing I would change would be to have more information available from the home menu, I don't want to launch a separate app for miiverse friends list eshop web browser etc etc. I would like a few things available straight from the home menu (like current friends online and maybe a means to message them) without launching anything.

Sorta like the PS3, huh? Yeah, I was thinking that too.

[HULK]

@JORdAnN - I definitely think the flashing blue LED is too subtle. I also think there should be a persistent indicator on the gamepad at all times of how many people are online, as well as maybe a very subtle indicator on both the gamepad and tv screen when someone comes online.

Also it is annoying that when you press the home button you see who is online, but then it goes away. A simple swipedown menu on the gamepad could solve this. a swipedown for messages would be cool too and would address what FadedAreWii, Blazing Warwolf & Bomblord were talking about.

On wii u eshop, I think you should be able to see all the demos that are currently available. Right now I think it just showcases 3 or 4...Searching doesn't seem very effective either.

Zoom when drawing would be useful for more pixel precise art. I know they try to keep the interface extremley stripped down, which I commend. Adding too much makes it inaccessible for more casual users. I actually like that they've limited the drawing to just black/white.

[krzysio87]

I'd add a way to launch TVii directly from the TV Remote for when the Wii U is off, and for it to immediately load TVii bypassing MiiVerse/the main screen and anything not needed for TVii to boot up. If they're serious about TVii being a big feature, then it needs to start as fast as possible; otherwise it'd no longer be convenient and people will use something else even if it's worse.

[HULK]

I'd add a way to launch TVii directly from the TV Remote for when the Wii U is off, and for it to immediately load TVii bypassing MiiVerse/the main screen and anything not needed for TVii to boot up. If they're serious about TVii being a big feature, then it needs to start as fast as possible; otherwise it'd no longer be convenient and people will use something else even if it's worse.

Yeah, I don't even use TVii because of how long it takes to boot up. If it were instant, I could see using it, especially for the guide feature. Speaking of which, i always seem to accidentally click when I am only trying to scroll when using the guide. Anyone else have that problem?

[DonnyDarko420]

I really like the idea of TVii being launchable from the TV Remote function.

Also, The drop down/swipe down idea is good too. I'd like it to not only house your friend list, but also MiiVerse messages and Activity.

[Felipe Mac Knight]

I would change the following:

-add pop-up notifications on top of the screen for online friends, chat requests and new Miiverse replies or messages
-add the download manager and friend list icons to the main menu as well, not just the home menu
-give the option to display either the menu or WaraWara plaza on both screens at the same time
-add a message counter next to the Miiverse icon for users to see the amount of unread messages before starting the app
-reduce loading times overall
-add Wii Remote compatibility to all system native apps, because it's a chore to keep changing controllers, and the browser would benefit from pointing and clicking, which worked well on Wii
-add folders like the 3DS
-add general topic and off- topic communities to Miiverse and divide the existing communities in sub-forums for topics like in-game help, general comments, drawings, etc.

That's what I can think of right now. I hope the OS evolves a lot during this year, because right now it still feels somewhat clunky and primitive.

[HULK]

I'm not sure about dividing the communities into subforums. I like how mario & nintendoland do it, where you get feedback on specific levels, but the main forum is an overall depository for all comments.
A general drawing forum might be nice. If I want to sketch something, I usually just post it in the tvii channel.
I agree on the load times and primitive interface. I'm sure they'll speed it up. The second update sped things up a little.

[FadedAreWii]

Searching for demos on eShop is pretty easy, not that it couldn't be more convenient, but just hit minus/search and select only wii u retail only and wii u retail only and then just scroll through the games to see what has a demo icon next to it.

TVii is convenient for me in that I usually only use it when I'm done playing a game or doing whatever, so I don't have to mess with anything to see if anything is on worth it or just switch it to Netflix. I rarely use it before I use the system for something else unless it's a football game or something I know will be using t.v. tag. Probably also helps I only have broadcast t.v., so I rarely watch t.v. anyways. It's convenient to use as a guide for broadcast, but I imagine that doesn't matter as much for cable and satellite customers.

As for dividing the communities, that doesn't much to me, but, along the same lines as general drawing, I'd actually like a general gaming section where we can talk about games upcoming and wishlists, etc. If I want to talk about Monster Hunter 3 right now, I have to try and guess which dedicated game community would be best to post in about it.

[Sammet]

Do you not have this demo button on your eShop? Here's a photo of mine:



I'd like to see improved load speeds as well as an off topic drawing section and maybe merge the friends list and miiverse into one seeing as any invites I do are through miiverse anyway. Also the notifications for Miiverse would be good if they appeared on the plaza.

[Olinad]

I never thought I'd say it, but I miss the good ol' WiiConnect24. I'd love notifications and wiiu chat calls to be notified even with the console in stand-by...

[wiiarebrothers]

A lot of great ideas in this thread

To continue with WiiConnect24: I wish we could download game with the console in sleep mode (like the 3DS).
Also, I've only seen the Tank Tank Tank video from Nintendaan, so I don't know for games like Assassin's Creed 3, but the DLC download process is terrible for TTT. It takes you to the WiiU menu, opens the shop, then after you download the content you have to install it, and restart the game... the 3DS experience is way more streamlined. Just put a eShop page in the game.

[gtt]

notification pop-ups instead of random blue blinking.

no way to actually multi-task. you give a whole gig of ram to your OS, and you can't let us multi-task in it even a little bit?

The shop interface is like... a well designed website from 2001. yea, it works, but it feels old and clunky.

FOLDERS. AGAIN. seriously. channels suuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck.

[HULK]

Do you not have this demo button on your eShop?

Suprisingly enough, no. There is no demo button on my eShop. Are you in the US?

[Mirr0rR3flection]

Do you not have this demo button on your eShop?

Suprisingly enough, no. There is no demo button on my eShop. Are you in the US?

His profile says hes from England.

[HULK]

Do you not have this demo button on your eShop?

Suprisingly enough, no. There is no demo button on my eShop. Are you in the US?

His profile says hes from England.

I'm jealous the Brits get a better eShop than us. Wonder if Nintendo beta tests things in certain regions.

Does anyone in the US see the demo button on the interface? I checked and my wii U is up-to-date, but my eShop doesn't look like the image Sammet posted. Also curious about the "personal recommendations" button.
That gets me thinking- it would be cool to have a "what your friends have bought" type button on the eShop

[Sammet]

Yep I'm in the UK - it's odd that you guys don't have it, but I guess it's something they can easily implement if they see enough people asking for it. Maybe they're waiting for more demos to be available or something.

[HULK]

Yep I'm in the UK - it's odd that you guys don't have it, but I guess it's something they can easily implement if they see enough people asking for it. Maybe they're waiting for more demos to be available or something.

I think there are already more demos than fit on the front page, which means you have to search in order to find demos. But yeah, there's no reason thy couldn't implement it if they wanted to.