The Wii U takes content confinement a step further with its support for legacy software, providing a near-perfect example of the folly of Nintendo's content ownership philosophy: the isolated sandbox of its backwards-compatible Wii Menu.

ENGADGET

Traditional Wii remotes work just fine (for both single and multiplayer), and the tablet-controller's screen can be disabled through the regular Wii U menu.

ENGADGET: Wii U Virtual Console Trial Campaign hands-on Hands-on

Tapping the gamepad's screen or pressing the ZR button brings up the Virtual Console menu, laying bare the Wii U enhanced features Iwata told us about: restore points and controller settings. 3DS owners should be familiar with the former -- restore points allow you to save your game at any moment and restore it without penalty.

ENGADGET: Wii U Virtual Console Trial Campaign hands-on Hands-on