Wii U eShop

Tank! Tank! Tank! (Namco Bandai, free) — Yes, you read that right, you'll be able to download this retail title — it hit stores on Wii U launch day in North America and Europe — for free. Of course it's not that simple, as Namco has adopted a free-to-play model that can then be significantly spruced up and enhanced with additional DLC (detailed below). This "Basic Pack" includes three modes — Monster Battle, Free-For-All, and Team Versus — that you can play up to three times a day for free. We felt that its high price tag was one of a few factors that held this one back in our Tank! Tank! Tank! review, though now you can have a regular taster at no cost.

Wii U Add-On Content

Tank! Tank! Tank! (Namco Bandai, €1.99 (normally €9.99) or £1.59 (normally £7.99) until 28th February) — So this is how you could eventually end up paying something close to the original retail price, with content broken up into a series of packs. Some packs will have 80% off until 28th February (My Kong, Monster Battle and Story Mission appear to be discounted), while it appears others will be full price from day one. Purchasing any additional content removes the daily play limit from the Basic Pack, and there will be a grand total of 12 add-on packs available with prices ranging from €1.99/£1.59 to €9.99/£7.99 in price. It's unclear whether all content is reduced in the first two weeks, but it looks like there could be a low cost of entry to enjoy elements of the full game.

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Although it's basically a demo, I'll check it out just to see what it's like...
...maybe even get one of those discounted DLCs to unlock the game's limit.

To anyone who owns the game, which modes are the best?

I know this game was panned, but I'm still interested in trying it. I'm such a sucker for co-op games.

^ Let's see how much all the DLCs add up to. The game was a budget one to begin with.

There are also some returning discounts going on the eShop and the first permanent price reduction applied to Trine!

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Wii U eShop Discount

Chasing Aurora (Broken Rules, €8.99 (was €11.99) / £7.99 (was £10.79) until 21st February) — This is the second discount promotion that we've seen for this visually appealing multiplayer-focused eShop launch title. It does have a single-player mode, but when played with friends on the same couch it can be a particularly enjoyable experience, as our Chasing Aurora review explains.

Wii U eShop Price Reduction

Trine 2: Director's Cut (Frozenbyte, €12.49 (was €16.99) / £9.99 (was £13.99) - permanent decrease) — Following the recent update to add voice chat, improve visuals and include Pro Controller support, Frozenbyte has now opted to permanently decrease the price of this title. Excellent news for those yet to take the plunge into this puzzle/platforming adventure, and it's a title certainly popular among the Nintendo Life staff — you can also check out our recommendation in the Trine 2: Director's Cut review if you want to know more.

Really looking forward to Trine 2 on Wii U. I still need to play the first one, though.

While we're talking eShop, I want to recommend Little Inferno to everyone. It's a very unusual, very funny game. Worth the price of admission.

Maybe I will download Tank Tank Tank and Trine 2.

I`m getting it!

Should have been on eShop from the start, IMO.

Also, this is definitely one of the good ways to handle the freemium model, as opposed to how EA has ruined Real Racing 3.

It might still be on sale too.  I picked it up for 9.99 I believe.  I've enjoyed it a lot so far.  I've only put about 3 hours into the "game" so far.  Fun figuring out the combos and setting things on fire.  I made a Beavis drawing that said (Fire! Fire!) on Little Inferno Miiverse that got decent yeahs.  Not as much as you're a towel! (Towelie from South Park) drawing though.

On topic: main complaint on NintendoLife review comments is that it lack online multiplayer.  If you have enough friends/family for local multiplayer then it should be fine but some were complaining about the lack of online multiplayer.  It got a 5/10 on NintendoLife.

No MP online? Hmmm. I just went to the eShop and saw it's already on there, ~ slowly downloading.

DLCs:

• 6x VS maps €2
• 2x Monster Battle €4
• My Kong €2
• Story Mission €10

I can't believe they made people pay for this. Free is good, though.

Worse, they make people pay for this and Nintendo Land in Japan.