Here’s a piece of advice. When you pick up the Wii U this winter, protect your GamePad with your heart and soul, because you won’t be able to get another one any time soon. According to Nintendo, Wii U GamePads will not be sold separately at launch. Instead, they will hit the market sometime in 2013.
Reggie Fils-Aime has clarified that none of the Wii U launch games will support more than one Wii U GamePad at launch. It is likely that we won’t see any Wii U games featuring multiple GamePad usage until they are available for separate purchase. That being said, Wiimote+’s are still available, and the Wii U pro controller, the controller without a screen, will also be available for $49.99. A final price for the Wii U GamePad has not yet been announced.
Of course, if you do happen to run across a game that requires two Wii U GamePads, you can always just convince one of your Wii U-owning friends to come over and donate his.