So I'm really just wondering what everyone thinks of it. My breakdown is:

Single player gameplay:

Not as great as I was hoping. My eyes can only look at one screen at a time. What is the point of even having both? Only gimmicky approaches mesh both screens together so I'll simply say "no thank you" to that.

OS, menus, game control:

The second screen makes much more sense here due to the touch screen. Not too great, but it can be nice.

Multiplayer gameplay:

Finally the experience becomes magical. I find it ironic that the Wii U seems designed for a group, much more than even the Wii. Having one player with a unique vantage/experience can create a magical world of fun.

So those are my thoughts, what about you?

It's great at holding my plate and stop the spills.
It also would take a bullet for me.

I only have one gripe and it's the latency between what's displayed on the Pad and TV. It's incredibly noticeable in NSMB U, I tend to play only off the Pad as a result.

Other than that I enjoy being able to play lying down on my bed.

i agree with all your points.
Not many single player games take full advantage of the gamepad. ZombiU uses it really well, other than that all the other uses in average ways.
Multiplayer is where the gamepad really shines. Nintendo land especially chase mii and luigi ghost mansion are incredibly fun.
Hopefully the next wave of wii u games are more inspired.

Is there a way to shut off the screen? Silly question maybe, but I find it kinda annoying, especially if I'm playing in a darker room to have this bright light coming off the controller when I'm trying to pay attention to the TV (as when I'm playing NSMB U on the U tablet).

From a gameplay POV, to be honest I kinda find it underwhelming. You can really only pay attention to one screen at a time. Some of the asymmetric stuff in Nintendo Land is alright, some of it's kinda meh. The dual screen stuff that really seems to work well all seems to be based off the old Pac-Man VS. ideas (the Luigi's Mansion, Mario Chase games). 

My main use of the second screen is being able to use it to browse Youtube and then use the curtain effect to zap a video to the TV for friends. Honestly, I feel like that's hands down the most brilliant use of the controller.

I like being able to log into Youtube and watch a video walk through or go to a FAQ for the same game you're playing if you ever get stuck in a spot too.

It awkward looking back and forth. I get a little dizzy doing over an over again. Plus it take a second to adjust from the big screen to the little one. Maybe it's just me. I've never noticed any input lag tho, but I rather play mario on the 42 than look at the smaller screen, so maybe thats why.

off tv gameplay is amazing, i use it all the time
and, i dont get the first point

I find it really useful, parents can watch TV whilst I play Trine 2, or surf the web and if needs be display it on the TV.

I also disagree with the single player. ZombiU uses it most well, as does NintendoLand. Darksiders is useful for quick functions and off-play. But others, like Trine and Rayman, have few uses for both screens at the same time (fortunately, you can turn it off).

Panama said:
I only have one gripe and it's the latency between what's displayed on the Pad and TV. It's incredibly noticeable in NSMB U, I tend to play only off the Pad as a result.



Other than that I enjoy being able to play lying down on my bed.

Wtf!? I've played on the TV using the pad as the controller and I've played on the controller with no TV at all and I've never had a problem! Also, since the Wii U controller is getting its image from the console that's connected to the TV, you'd expect the controller image to lag, not the TV!

You TV settings, perhaps?

absolutely love using the gamepad for Arkham City & Assassins Creed. I beat both these games on PS3 before & the gamepad actually makes them quite a bit more fun..