I really want to play Xenoblade. That game looks absoultey fantastic and something I would love. However, I don't really want to just go out and buy a Wii U. Does anyone know of any place where one can rent a Wii U for say, a month? I've looked and they all seem to be rent to own, rather then just rent for X amount of time. Thanks in advance.

I remember back in the day renting consoles was more common, especially from stores like blockbuster. I remember on different occasions renting a n64, saturn and GBASP. I can't think of any services like that now though. If you live in a big place that has mom and pop game shops they may work out something like this if you call around. good luck OP

I am in Phoenix, Arizona USA! Sorry completely forgot to include that one! I remember renting them from blockbuster and the like years ago too. Sadly just can't seem to find anywhere now.

Wish I could rent one too :( Waiting for the NX announcement. A Wii U isn't worth the investment.

I mean, a couple weeks ago they were $250 and came with Super Smash Bros and Splatoon (roughly $130 worth of games). I would say that that price point it was worth the investment.

I'm waiting on the NX to come out, then I'll grab a Wii U super cheap on Craigslist. There is no way I can justify spending $250 plus tax on a Wii U with one or two games. Around $150-$200 with 6 or 8 games plus some extra controllers is worth waiting for, it's not like I don't have a backlog hundreds of games deep anyway.

Seriously. I don't get people who say it's not worth it. I got mine a few months ago for 300 dollars. It came with Mario Maker, Super Mario 3D World, and Nintendoland. All amazing fucking games that you definitely want to have. Unless you don't have any friends to play couch games with, then I guess Nintendoland is kind of meh, but if you do it's amazing. And with Splatoon (which I actually just bought last night on the e-shop and can't stop playing), Smash Bros, Pikmin 3, Bayonetta 2, The Wonderful 101, and now Xenoblade. Not to mention a new Zelda and Star Fox looming? Wii U is where it's fucking at right now as far as I'm concerned. Sure, it's not going to have a super long shelf life with the NX on the horizon, but it already kinda has more great stuff on it than the Wii did so idk why you wouldn't just get one...

I'm not getting a Wii U now because I can wait, and it's only going to get cheaper. It might be different if I didn't have any other games to play, but that just isn't the case. Plus, $250 plus tax and the cost of two or three more games tops that really interest me is extraordinarily expensive in my book. I feel more or less the same about all current consoles, by the way.

Even back in the day when Blockbuster would allow you to rent consoles, it only made sense if you were doing it for, like, a weekend. To rent one for a MONTH is nearly the cost of the unit itself

I'd agree, except the games hardly go down in price. Nintendo's games are just like that for some reason. I was looking on Amazon last night thinking about Splatoon and I can't even get it used for less than 50 something, so I said fuck it and bought it for 60 on the e-shop. I just don't foresee the console getting a price cut big enough to really make a difference, at least for me, and the Mario Maker zeitgeist is in full swing right now and I wanted to be a part of it. If the games were actually going to get significantly cheaper in any kind of reasonable timeframe maybe I would've waited too, but I just know they won't. Motherfucking Skyword Sword is still like 35 dollars used on Amazon, because Nintendo. Just seems like it kinda doesn't matter when you buy it, unless you're willing to wait like four more years.

@davidh219: Which is why I'll probably get one on Craigslist in about a year or two. I'll let someone else take the depreciation hit.

Oh, if you're wanting to get the console itself used (something I have never done and never will), then I've seen them for less than 200 on ebay. I guess we just look at things differently. I don't consider the cost of a console to be at all significant compared to how much a library of games for it costs. It's a lot of money upfront, sure, but over time it's whatever. Especially in a world where the games you want aren't going to get much cheaper. -shrug-

How much money are you realistically expecting to save by waiting 2 years? $100? $200? Even at minimum wage that's only half a weeks worth of working.

I guess we just look at it differently.

Probably a lot more than that. When the PS4 came out, I found a PS3 on Craigslist with over 20 exclusives, all on disc, and an extra DS3 controller, for $200.

There isn't a single thing on Wii U that I need to play right now. It can all wait until the right deal comes along.

@mike: So wait a second here. You literally waited until the PS4 was already out to get a PS3? I guess I have a better understanding of how you do things now. I've never been an early adopter of consoles, in fact I don't think I've ever bought one earlier than 2 years after release, but even to me that seems completely goddamned nuts. But hey, you do you.

@davidh219: I bought a 360 at launch, a Wii shortly after that, then about five years into that I moved to PC almost 100%. The PS3 is the one I waited on. I opted to skip this console generation entirely until I could get them super cheap, chiefly because I can get a better version of most games on PC anyway.

@mike:But the WIi U is the console that has games you can't get on PC right now! Your reasons for skipping this generation doesn't apply to the WIi U, so why wait? You got a Wii shortly after launch even though you'd already spent money on a 360. What's different this time? It's a much better system than the WIi was, and has better games so far imo. Shouldn't you be more free to just get a WIi U right now since you already decided not to get either of the other consoles for a long time and stick to PC? You make no sense to me =P

@davidh219: You don't work for Nintendo, do you?? :p

I know right. It was also good when the tech got too old and they would sell off all the rental cartridges and dics dirt cheap.

@edgekasey:Nope, just a guy who's having more fun with my Wii U right now than I have had with video games period in quite a while =P

I guess I just may have to pony up and buy a Wii U. Mario Maker and Xenoblade X should be 100% worth the money, but I would still love to rent a console for however long first!

There's still plenty of other games out there for you to enjoy, Bayo 2, W101, MK8, Smash, Hyrule Warriors. Don't think you'll be disappointed, specially if you like couch coop.

$65 a piece? A game that came out September last year and one that came out before the middle of this year? I mean, yeah, they're good games but come on, man, dat Nintendo inflation.

@sniper26: Just a FYI but if you do end up going down the route of buying a Wii U, check out the refurbished units sold through Nintendo. It's the cheapest option at $200 (Unless something pops up on Craigslist or something) if none of the games in bundles are something you would want. The mass majority of people who have gone refurbs say they look basically new.