Which is the better video game system: 3DS or Wii U?

[WiiCube_2013]

First of all I'd like to say that I'm primarily a home console gamer and as such I have a Wii U to game on rather than a 3DS, however, it comes as no surprise that the platform which has the far superior library is the 3DS so it's really disappointing that Wii U owners don't get the same kind of treatment.

So, on one hand you have a console which outputs [sometimes] great HD visuals but then on the other there's the 3DS with a fantastic library.

[All games below will be in alphabetical order]

Wii U library that I consider worth owning (exclusives & multiplatforms) ~

Spoiler

1. Assassin's Creed: IV Black Flag
2. Bayonetta 2
3. Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker
4. Lego: City Undercover
5. Mario Kart 8
6. Monster Hunter 3: Ultimate
7. Need for Speed: Most Wanted
8. One Piece: Unlimited World Red
9. Pikmin 3
10. Rayman: Legends
11. Sonic: Lost World
12. Splatoon
13. Super Mario: 3D World
14. Super Smash Bros.
15. Tekken Tag Tournament 2
16. The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker HD
17. The Wonderful 101

3DS? While I'll list games I don't own, they're definitely worth playing.

Spoiler

1. Ace Combat: Assault Horizon Legacy
2. Animal Crossing: New Leaf
3. Asphalt 3D
4. Batman: Arkham Origins Blackgate
5. Bravely Default
6. Code Name: S.T.E.A.M
7. Dead or Alive: Dimensions
8. Disney Magical World
9. Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D
10. Dragon Ball Heroes: Ultimate Mission 1 (Japan Excl.)
11. Dragon Ball Heroes: Ultimate Mission 2 (Japan Excl.)
12. Dragon Ball Z: Extreme Butoden (Japan Excl.)
13. Fantasy Life
14. Fire Emblem: Awkwakening
15. Harvest Moon: A New Beginning
16. Kid Icarus: Uprising
17. Kingdom Hearts 3D [Dream Drop Distance]
18. Kirby: Triple Deluxe
19. Lego City Undercover: The Chase Begins
20. Luigi's Mansion 2: Dark Moon
21. Mario and Luigi: Dream Team Bros.
22. Mario Golf: World Tour
23. Mario Kart 7
24. Mario Tennis Open
25. Metal Gear Solid: Snake Eater 3D
26. Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate
27. Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate
28. New Super Mario Bros. 2
29. One Piece: Romance Dawn
30. One Piece: Unlimited World Red
31. Pac-Man and Galaga
32. Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth
33. Pokémon: Alpha Saphire
34. Pokémon: Omega Ruby
35. Pokémon: X
36. Pokémon: Y
37. Professor Layton and the Azran Legacy
38. Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask
39. Professor Layton Vs. Phoenix Wright: Ace Atorney
40. Project X Zone
41. Rayman Origins
42. Resident Evil: Revelations
43. Ridge Racer 3D
44. Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner - Soul Hackers
45. Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor Overclocked
46. Shinobi
47. Sonic Generations
48. Sonic Lost World
49. Splinter Cell 3D [Chaos Theory]
50. Star Fox 64: 3D Edition
51. Super Mario 3D Land
52. Super Smash Bros.
53. Super Street Fighter IV: 3D Edition
54. Tales of the Abyss
55. Tekken 3D: Prime Edition
56. The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask 3D
57. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
58. Theatrhythm: Final Fantasy
59. Ultimate NES Remix
60. World Rally Championship
61. Xenoblade Chronicles 3D (New 3DS Excl.)

I've to say that I'm displeased going with the Wii U than the 3DS but I was hopeful that the Wii U would've at some point catch up which it didn't. *sigh*

If I were to start from catch I'd go with the 3DS (specifically the New 3DS XL with that bigger screen and 2nd analogue thumb).

 

[endoverend]

I dunno. I've always thought the 3ds was executed rather poorly. The New 3DS was the console Nintendo should have released from the very start. I think the Wii U is actually a quite good console despite its library; its browser is great, the UI is pretty nice, and the games that are on the system are pretty great.

 

[WiiCube_2013]

I dunno. I've always thought the 3ds was executed rather poorly. The New 3DS was the console Nintendo should have released from the very start. I think the Wii U is actually a quite good console despite its library; its browser is great, the UI is pretty nice, and the games that are on the system are pretty great.

Those things are great but the library itself is very lacking.

 

[endoverend]

Those things are great but the library itself is very lacking.

True, but honestly the system isn't that expensive ($200 for a refurb unit that comes with 2 games). Plus it's really hard to compare a home console to a portable system for a lot of reasons.

 

[The Real Jdbye]

Definitely the 3DS, because a console is only as good as the exclusives that exist for it, and the Wii U doesn't have a whole lot of them. There are so many great games on the 3DS. I wish the Wii U had more games, and there are a couple I'm looking forward to that haven't been released yet, but it seems like we've seen most of what the Wii U has to offer already and that's pretty sad.
The Wii U has so much untapped potential, but no one willing to realize that potential. Hopefully Zelda U will be as good as I'm hoping.

 

[Nathan Drake]

I find both systems to be pretty lacking in terms of library. I'm bored with Nintendo first party titles (Zelda is the only real exception), and that butchers at least half of the selection of "good" 3DS titles. In the long run, I can only think of five or six 3DS games I actually want to own with none on the horizon that I'm looking forward to. On the other hand though, I can only think of one game I even sort of want on the Wii U with only Zelda coming in the future that I may actually want, so in terms of unappealing consoles for me, the 3DS is slightly less unappealing.

As far as the handhelds go, the DS and GBA were both superior by far to the 3DS.

 

[endoverend]

As far as the handhelds go, the DS and GBA were both superior by far to the 3DS.

I definitely agree. Their library was far superior and even though they lacked a real UI they didn't need it to be huge successes, with the DS becoming the best selling portable.

 

[Margen67]

PC.

 

[WiiCube_2013]

I definitely agree. Their library was far superior and even though they lacked a real UI they didn't need it to be huge successes, with the DS becoming the best selling portable.

Back then it was about the games and still is, because honestly, who actually watches YouTube on 3DS or use the browser? They're just so damn mediocre in terms of quality.

 

[Hells Malice]

They're completely different.
3DS is far and above better in terms of raw gaming. It has way more games, and the ones it has are better quality, except Smash Bros and mario kart.
So the answer is obviously

PC.

 

[ComeTurismO]

Honestly, they're both good things. 3DS is good if your travelling, whether in a road trip, trip to the grocery store, whatever! Wii U is good to relax at home with.

 

[Vipera]

They both suck, in terms of hardware. And I don't mean power, I mean the hardware quality and how it was used.

The first 3DS looked like a Sony console: hardware problems and inflated price. The Wii U has an insulting internal memory with no alternative other than getting an external hard drive. The 3D on the 3DS is rarely optimized. The only games that nailed it were Mario Kart 7, Super Smash Bros, VVVVVV and Monster Hunter 3. Games that could've been great with a better 3D, like SpeedX, didn't give a crap and kept being trash.
Then there is Nintendo deciding to not put a second circle pad, just to make people buy an add-on, just to have barely any game that supports it, just to have it in the New 3DS.

In terms of games, I don't know. The 3DS is pretty average. Not sure about the Wii U.

 

[lampdemon]

They're completely different.
3DS is far and above better in terms of raw gaming. It has way more games, and the ones it has are better quality, except Smash Bros and mario kart.
So the answer is obviously

Smash run > Smash tour, they should've added smash run online/multplayer for WiiU instead of the garbage that is smash tour.

 

[The Catboy]

I find myself playing my 3DS way more then I do my Wii U.
Although it's not so much the hardware I have an issue with, it's the games. There's just not enough games to keep me interested in the system. Several of the new games I've either beaten or just found myself underwhelmed by them and then the rest of the games on the system are lazy ports/remakes.

 

[Hells Malice]

Smash run > Smash tour, they should've added smash run online/multplayer for WiiU instead of the garbage that is smash tour.

They both kinda suck. Smash Run is kinda fun for a few attempts but no online Smash Run was retarded.

 

[VinsCool]

I own both cnsoles. I like playing them, but 3ds won for me:

3ds. It got much more games worth buying. Portable, usable everywhere.
WiiU has some good stuff too, but to be honnest, it lacks quality content. I mostly use it for vWii mode since the smash rage. Might play again eventually though

 

[Taleweaver]

Though it's obviously a personal choice, I go with the wiiu. I got the 3DS at launch day, and had to drag myself to do the ambassador thing (still haven't even opened all those 'presents' ninty gave me). I admit the thing is actually too small for my large hands (the buttons, mostly). And from the very limited time I've held on to a XL edition, it's hardly (if any?) improvement as to button sizes.

While my main gaming platform is the PC, the wiiu complements it nicely with
A) good exclusives that don't appear on other platforms
B) couch co-op games.

Especially the latter. I have people over who aren't avid gamers yet like to play games. And where most board games are competitively, I prefer something where you have to work together. And in that aspect, the wiiu works well.

 

[Sakitoshi]

If we talk about what system is better the Wii U is the winner. but if we talk about what system has better library then 3DS wins.
don't confuse both things, one thing is being a good system and another is having good games.

the gap between Wii U and PS4/XBone isn't as big as it was between Wii and PS3/X360 last generation. and the Wii U has demonstrated being able to do impressive things(Smash 4 1080p@60fps, Mario Kart 8 60fps, Wind Waker 1080p solid rock framerate, Splatoon 60fps) while 3DS hasn't done anything that noteworthy save Smash 4. even Xenoblade Chronicles 3D was a letdown with N64 tier textures on the New 3DS.

 

[Hungry Friend]

The 3DS has a stupid gimmick when it should have been given more juice(new 3DS should've been he original model as endoverend stated) but the game library is fantastic compared to anything else right now. I think the Wii U gamepad is another dumb gimmick that inflates the price of the Wii U, and while its library doesn't touch the 3DS', it still has more games I'm interested in than the PS4 or XB1. As far as home consoles go, this gen has been rather uneventful imo.

3DS.