The console was a weird hodgepodge of new gimmicks, DS-esque interface w/the multiple screens, hardcore games (for pretty much exclusively hardcore Nintendo fans) with some vague Wii marketing and themes. It's like Nintendo just didn't know what to do with the thing, while slapping some Wii branding on it in the wrong assumption that this is what sold the Wii when it was the more accessible games and simple motion controls.
I think the console just confused people, and the whole clunky gamepad controller and having to go through the Miiverse or whatever to play games was just cumbersome and turned people off, myself included. Thankfully Nintendo rectified this with the Switch, where you just flip on the console and jump into your game in seconds. It also helped that you can play Switch anywhere, whereas Wii U you'd have to be in the vicinity of the console - which even for a decade ago (can't believe it's been that long) wasn't all that impressive tech-wise. Its third-party support outside of Ubisoft was also awful, and the indie thing, which has become a haven on Switch, hadn't quite taken off yet. Though I did play a few on that console like Steamworld Dig and Unepic.
During this time I was full-on with the late 360 library (Borderlands 2, Call of Duty, Titanfall, South Park Stick of Truth), and had just gotten a new gaming PC and really into Far Cry 3. Didn't really have a need for it and sold it off after just a couple years.
Was pretty much my least favorite Nintendo console. I did enjoy NES Remix, Xenoblade X, Mario Maker, and aspects of Nintendoland, but that's about it.
"We hold these truths to be self-evident - all men and women created by the, go-you know.. you know the thing!" - Joe Biden
