I think Mario Kart 8 and Splatoon may have helped most people realize the Wii U exists, but do people know it's an actualy system now? The general consumer at a local Target could see these games but the console still looks like a modified Wii and the pad still looks like an accessory for it.

I think this make the hybrid rumour much more believable because for most people, this latest gen only had XboxOne, PS4, and 3DS. Making a new console after Wii U will be quite shocking and seem like blackberry adverising a new smartphone (an old company trying to be relevant again in a new market).

What do you guys think? Do people know the Wii U console exists now?

I think so. They are probably just happy enough with their Wii.

No. I still have to tell people to this day what the hell a Wii U is. From the casual to the slightly more informed when it comes to tech, the Wii U never truly took off. Much the same way the Vita isn't well known. They're both in the shadow of the system before them.

Actually just a few weeks ago a friend of mine came over (he likes games but isn't super into gaming like a lot of us are) and I had to explain to him what the hell the system was.

Nintendo's biggest failure this gen was not making it clear to the public what the Wii U was. First impressions are important, and for many, the Wii U never even had one.

I really hope Nintendo doesn't fuck up with whatever the NX is.

Just the other day i was talking to a coworker about games and brought up Wii U, he had no idea what it was.

They seem to be in no hurry to show it off, so I guess whatever it is, it will be crystal clear the moment we see it.

I sincerely hope so

I've told my girlfriend several times that Wii and Wii U are two different systems. I'm not sure she still gets it, and she's a little big of a gamer. If she doesn't get it despite me telling her several times, I wouldn't count on the general public getting it.

Well thats good news for Nintendo at least.

The answer to this question is unfortunately no. If the NX does become a hit, do not be surprised to hear people refer to it as the "Wii successor," since most people will not even know that the Wii U ever existed.

Not at all, I still find people that thinks I talk about the Wii when I talk about the WiiU, the fact that people don't really know about it is one of the biggest reasons of its fail, fortunately I don't think they are gonna fall in the same mistake with NX.