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NSMB.U + No Online Pass = EPIC WIN

It’s becoming harder now to continue this “Online Pass Watch” blog series. Not because of the partial victory of EA doing away with their Online Pass system, but because it’s getting harder and harder to find out if any of the games I chose for this Watch List have an Online Pass System or not.  The media has not been the best in covering this and searching the web can only go so far when you’re looking for Online Pass specifics. Wii U games have been the worst in this category. Despite my efforts to read the game box of these select Wii U titles I am unable to find anything that helps confirm or deny the existence of Online Pass within these games. It comes to the point that having no info on the game box does not mean the game doesn’t have online pass. After seeing what KoeiTecmo did with Dead or Alive 5 has left me leery on making assumptions when no mention of Online Pass is made on the game’s packaging.

So where does that leave me? In a bind is what! Unless I buy myself a Wii U, to see on the Nintendo Network if any of the games offered have an Online Pass marketplace download, I’m pretty much left with spending more time surfing the net to get confirmation evidence if any of the Wii U games I chose for this “Online Pass Watch” indeed has it or not. The best I’ve been able to find are some forum posts on why this game should/should not be added and the standard user generated reviews that may or may not mention anything about an Online Pass. And when I do get something that says the game has Online Pass, it doesn’t go into detail on what exactly you’ll be missing out on if you perform the sin on buying this game used. So please forgive me if the Wii U “Online Pass Watch” titles slow in coming. But I want to get this done before E3 comes around given that I started this blog series way back during last year’s E3 aftermath.

Where does the time go!

At least I’m able to do a write up on New Super Mario Bros. U on the Wii U. If you haven’t guess already (or learned about it from personal experience) it appears that New Super Mario Bros. U is completely Online Pass Free!  Again the same fears I had for New Super Mario Bros. 2 on the 3DS mirror the same I had for New Super Mario Bros. U on the Wii U. Word was spreading that online components might make their way into the new version of Mario on the Wii U and instantly I was assuming the worst. But much like the NSMB2 those fears were unjustified. It was the same offering of DLC that was being made for NSMB2 that was to follow suit in NSMBU, the DLC in question being the new campaign entitled “New Super Luigi U”.  The online aspects was nothing more than a special social system that utilizes Miiverse from the Nintendo Network that other gamers could partake in if only to help give clues on what to do next in the game, along with the option to actually buy this game digitally off the Nintendo Network for download to one’s Wii U.

 

So no fears of a “Mario Pass” or having content locked out if you happened to buy this game used. Thank goodness! It would seem that Nintendo is standing its ground by not allowing Online Pass in their franchises. Though DLC in a Mario game might seem disheartening I’ll say what I said when that issue was brought up for NSMB2: I’d rather have the DLC offering than Online Pass any day. So thank you Nintendo for holding true to your gaming roots. It’s good to see you making baby steps into the fold of online connectivity. Sure you were slow in adopting on the Gamecube, and to an extent on the Wii, but at least you’re trying to use the positives that are offered with digital offers and doing your best to avoid the negatives that can be associated with the new digital gaming frontier. Hats off to you Nintendo! The Wii U is looking all the sweeter to own this console gaming generation.

Ta-ta
“N”

Online Pass Game Count

Games w/out Online Pass: 7

Games w/Online Pass: 1