There’s a lot on the line for Nintendo as the company gets ready to launch the next generation of Wii console. The Wii was a huge hit but that was quite a while ago. Now, Nintendo hopes that Wii U, which lets players move from handheld console to big screen console will be just as huge.

The thing about Wii is that it has always thrived on being more fun for families, kids, and casual gamers than the Xbox is and that has historically made up for the technology not being as slick.

One of the ways to get Wii U started is the newly revealed Miiverse.

The idea is that you see the “Mii” representation of lots of friends and fellow gamers and can connect with them to share tips and strategies.

The Verge says:

When you turn on the Wii U, what pops up is a huge crowd of Mii characters from your system, from your friends’ systems, and reportedly from people in the same country (or who speak the same language) playing similar games.
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The Mii characters gather around the games they are playing, and related messages will pop up on the screen. Messages can be typed out or even sketched à la Draw Something or similar apps.

The presentation at E3, says the Post, was “cheesy”, which means it didn’t impress the gamers in attendance. Will it impress Mom and Dad Middle American? We shall see. But we are left to wonder what kind of last name is Middle American in the first place.