Am I totally missing something?

The source says nothing about not being able to play with friends, it was all about certain custom settings.

I feel this IP was never really gonna take off, like Nintendo's other big titles, anyway. It looks okay, but nothing that screams "Hey! I need to go buy a Wii-U right now to play this!". I can only a see a very specific audience playing this game religiously.

That was my feeling too. I'll wait until we get some clarification either from Nintendo or a test as the wording here is really ambigous

Doesn't impact me anyway, as none of my friends has a Wii U atm

This..

But funny to see "some"  just keep saying otherwise.. :)

For the Nintendo fans.. What do you think will be the next..?

I think we will see the "childish card" be played..  or they will turn back to "underpowered" "not next gen"

I have it pretty clear right now. If was only a confusion man. This is coming from gamnesia on a poorly written reference to this IGN comentary: 

The last thing that stood out to us was user customization. Splatoon doesn’t offer custom match types with friends like Smash Bros. Specific user settings for look sensitivity controls can only be adjusted before (or after) a match. So if you’ve set one too high (or too low) you’ll have to jump out in order to make adjustments. It feels slightly backwards for an action shooter released in 2015.

These still feel like small issues for a game capable of much grander ambition. Splatoon is fun to play. And it’s rewarding. Whether splattering foes with a roller brush or using it to claim a swath of territory, both actions come bundled with a thorough feeling of accomplishment. 

Yeah I mean it's a weird thing not to be able to custom your sensitivity in game but going from there to "you cant play with your friends" I dont know :P

Sounds to me like the game is being handled by rookies.

It was a confusion though. Nobody was expecting customization on matches anyways. It would be nice but not a big deal.

The more they say the less I want to try this one. Glad I only intend to Gamefly it.

The fuzz a misinterpretation can cause... lol

You can't customize matches with friends but it doesn't say you can't play matches with friends.