I believe that is the intention, but I don't feel they've succeeded. Most of the games they've shown so far are very, very easily adaptable to the standard Wii Remote + Nunchuck control scheme, and in some cases require it. And even then, the GamePad gimmicks are hardly anything ground breaking. Welcome and I'm sure quite fun, but in most cases simply a perspective tracker, additional video feed, and use of the gyro (which could be done with the remote anyway).
As it stands, Nintendo Land comes across as a mini-game compilation aimed at hybridising Wii Remote and GamePad multiplayer gameplay. A nice bridging title that takes philosophy and design learned from the Wii, as well as literal functionality of the Wii remote and nunchuck, and couples them with some GamePad support for a new, multiplayer centric Wii U minigame compilation.
This is at odds with something like Wii Sports which, for all the shit it can get for waggling, was a hardware defining show piece that signified what motion controls could bring to gaming and the market, in a way that no standard controller could. Going back in time, games like Luigi's Mansion aimed to show off dual analogue sticks, and Mario 64 speaks for itself.
The Wii U doesn't have anything like that, nothing that defines the Wii U as a massive step forward for Nintendo. I don't necessarily believe Nintendo has nothing to show this, but they haven't shown us that title yet. They've played it pretty safe.