Previously, the “system transfer” feature offered by Nintendo was a way to clone your Wii console onto a shiny new Wii U, moving everything from save data, to Miis, to even your exact home screen layout. I used the tool myself and found it extremely useful, but it conspicuously lacked one function — cloning one Wii U to another.
According to its support page, Nintendo intends to solve this issue, but there’s a slight catch. Unlike the Wii to Wii U system transfer, the original Wii U, once copied, will be immediately formatted. Though that may seem odd, it makes sense; Nintendo can’t have people running around cloning purchased games and applications at will. For now the feature will cater to the niche group of players looking to upgrade from the basic Wii U to the deluxe set, or jump from a damaged machine to a new one. If the Wii U ever gets a makeover or “lite” treatment down the road, though, the tool will surely come in handy.
Does the release of Wii U to Wii U system transfer hint at such a device in the future? It’s difficult to say. If Nintendo were to offer a smaller, sleeker Wii U with a bit more internal storage and an optional GamePad (since many already have one from their current Wii U), it’d definitely be an option worth looking in to. That said, given Nintendo’s recent doubling down on GamePad support, it remains to be seen whether such an overhaul would ever really come to fruition.
