Haven't gotten my Wii U yet.  I'll have it as soon as Gamestop opens in the morning, though.  Anyway, I've been looking online at reviews, videos, impressions, and threads all day.  One thing that keeps recurring is that some guy will always say, "It's just current gen with a gimmick" or "It's just a slight improvement over 7 year old consoles". 

So, why is the Wii U next gen?  Is it akin to the Wii--a system with comparable power to last gen but with a flashy controller?

I say, no.  Why?  Look at your Xbox 360.  When it launched, most of the games were just higher res versions of Xbox games.  There were even a few occassions where the original Xbox game ran better than the 360 version (according to reviews of the day).  That's why, when we saw video of Fight Night and other titles on the PS3, we were blown away.  We just didn't believe that this kind of stuff was possible on the 360.  Then, we found out that the game WAS coming to the 360 with absolutely no loss in quality.  When titles like Gears of War finally shipped, the 360 had our respect.  We stopped calling it "Xbox 1.5".

I think the same thing applies to the Wii U.  We see games like Mass Effect, Assassins Creed, Batman Arkham City, etc. running on the Wii U and we think, "It's not a big step above the 360/PS3" or "The PS3/360 can do it better".  What people seem to be forgetting is that these titles represent the culmination of six or seven years of learning to optimize the current gen consoles.  In many regards, these are the pinnacle of the gen.  The best of the best.  The absolute best of this gen is just the Wii U's starting point.  The true potential has yet to be revealed.

That's how I see it, anyway.

*Edit* had to edit the thread because people seem to just be reading the title and not the OP. 

Once again, I'll say that I know generations are defined by the time period and not graphical power. It goes without saying.

Companies were releasing hardware that was several times more powerful than the Gameboy color years before the GBC was released. The GBC was still from a later gen. I get that. I'm the guy that's posted several times about what goes with which gen!

I guess I should have been clearer in the OP. I am specifically talking asking if you think the Wii U is 7th gen technology released in an 8th gen time frame or if it is a satisfying leap, technologically, over what is already available.

I agree, hopefully Retro Studios and EAD Tokyo's games will prove this.

Because it can double as a TV remote

Revel in its awesome power!

Because snotty fanboys on the net don't define what is and what is not next gen. Like that? :D

There is nothing the Wii U can't do!

The Wii U cured my cancer...

Before it even released...

and before I was even got cancer!

You can't tell me this machine is current gen.

Yes, because it has been 7 years and there is a new generation of kids ready to become gamers.

Yeah in time we´ll see games that do a much better job.

But there´s one small peculiarity here, at least if I remember correctly...everytime a new console was released, there was at least one launch game that was clearly above what its last gen counterparts were able to produce.It´s not the case with the Wii U, there isn´t a single launch game that isn´t possible for the 360/PS3, so that´s probably distorting some views.

In my opinion, a next gen system is NOT necesseraly a big graphic leap. It is more of what it can do that the past system COULDN'T do. I am pretty sure 7 years ago, even if microsoft or sony would of had the same idea of the wii U, it wouldn't have been possible to make a wii u consoles 7 years ago.

Man wait till you play it you shall see its nice.

In your mind you are overestimating what the next gen will be.

Look at Star wars 1313 PC footage. Thats what next-gen is. I'm pretty sure the Wii U can handle it, even if in a lesser degree.

Reasons why:
1. Graphics are reaching the maximum detail that can be perceived by the human eye and brain.
2. Theres a global crisis, buying power has declined, consumers are not willing to pay as much for gaming systems (high-end parts are expensive).
3. In an atempt to gather more sales, companies are tapping into a more casual gamer with devices as kinect, move, Wii gamepad, etc. These will come bundled to ensure the user base has great acess to them and stimulate development with them in mind. This raises the cost of the overall product.
4. Development costs would skyrocket with very powerful machines. The games would be few and alot more expensive than current ones. This is not good for the market because of 2.

For these reasons, next gen wont be the kind of leap we have grown used to, and i still believe Nintendo made a genius decision and has jumped ahead of the competition. We will know for sure when we see the new games for the Xbox720/PS4 and the Wii U.