Support NeoGAF

[Tschumi]

UPDATE: I've got my Wii U, I've got it playing English games - yay! I would really appreciate lists of favorite games, or recommended ones!

GAF,

I live in Japan, retail paradise, second hand stores here are packed with top condition legacy consoles dating back to the 80s.

I can't really avail myself of most of it because my Japanese isn't where it needs to be for me to play region locked GameCube or PS2 titles, and i can't justify repurchasing a PS3 just because i want to give MGS 4 another run-through. (I see a xbox one in my local HardOff but it's an og model so HA)

But what i can do is grab a Wii U for about a 5th the cost of a dock'able Switch.

Moreover, as i understand it there could well be some great old GameCube and Wii titles - MP, LOZWW - available to me.

UPDATE: I've got my Wii U, I've got it playing English games - yay! I would really appreciate lists of favorite games, or recommended ones!

What i want to know of Nintendo fans is this:
- I can in fact set my locally bought console to English and play games bought off a Japanese account in English, right?
- What're your top 10-20 titles?
- Any secret secrets you wanna share on getting the most out of it?

Disclaimer: i know it's aged and BOTW in particular is laggy, i don't care it's cheap.

----

UPDATE: I've got my Wii U, I've got it playing English games - yay! I would really appreciate lists of favorite games, or recommended ones!

 

[Lionel Richie]

Homebrew it and get access to every single Wii and Gamecube game natively. I can't stress how much that improves the Wii U experience.

 

[Trimesh]

You cannot change the system language on a Japanese (or Korean) WiiU - the language selection menu just isn't there. On top of that, I don't think I've ever seen a WiiU game that had a language selection option - they just play in whatever language the system is set to. Which you can't change.

 

[Hawks Eclipse]

I think you should be able to set the system language to English but the console is region-locked to JP games only. Edit: According to the post above, I thought wrong.

And not all JP games come with English as an added option (eg. Splatoon and Fatal Frame V). You can generally get a good idea by looking up the JP region games on Play-Asia.com to see what languages they support.

 

[Krappadizzle]

Homebrew it and get access to every single Wii and Gamecube game natively. I can't stress how much that improves the Wii U experience.

This. Can't speak for language options or anything, but a few months ago I dug the Wii U out and fixed a cracked screen on the tablet for $25 and Homebrewed the hell out of it. The Wii U is a great little emulation machine and it can play literally thousands of games.

I've got NES, SNES, Genesis, N64, Gamecube, Wii and Wii U games on mine and it makes for a great little party system when I have buddies over for a few drinks and some classic games or even just the native Wii/Wii U party games. Warioware and Wii U Sports Resort are still really fun games for a group of people.

It's very easy to homebrew as well and there are some really great guides you could YT or Google.

 

[Tschumi]

Homebrew it and get access to every single Wii and Gamecube game natively. I can't stress how much that improves the Wii U experience.

glad u said it, looks like it might be a way to get around language problems :/ i'll look into it

You cannot change the system language on a Japanese (or Korean) WiiU - the language selection menu just isn't there. On top of that, I don't think I've ever seen a WiiU game that had a language selection option - they just play in whatever language the system is set to. Which you can't change.

i might try to homebrew, play english games and just learn the requisite system language

 

[Mattyp]

Buy and pirate, cheap enough to be worth a crack.

Also go to all the 2nd hand markers once a month. Can pick N64 controllers up for 100 yen and alike and there’s no region or language barrier on accessories.

 

[Tschumi]

Buy and pirate, cheap enough to be worth a crack.

Also go to all the 2nd hand markers once a month. Can pick N64 controllers up for 100 yen and alike and there’s no region or language barrier on accessories.

atm i'm just dreaming of this thing being able to play Lucas Arts' Gladius

 

[Porcile]

Pretty sure the Wii U is region locked. Just learn Japanese and play games in Japanese. You live in Japan.

 

[Trimesh]

i might try to homebrew, play english games and just learn the requisite system language

The other thing to watch out for is that certain games (often the 1st party Nintendo ones) there is one single global game image that's deployed everywhere and only the region coding on the disc changes. So you can get a disc that's (say) region coded for the US and lists (say) English, Spanish and French as the language option - but when you run in on a region hacked JP WiiU it plays in Japanese anyway.

There are ways of hacking the image to get around this - you basically have to map the JP ja language code to some other set of files, say the ones tagged US en

 

[Tschumi]

Pretty sure the Wii U is region locked. Just learn Japanese and play games in Japanese. You live in Japan.

Ah yeah I'm going to sidetrack learning about whatever else to fully educate myself on fantasy terminology and louche man'chatter ぜええええ..

The other thing to watch out for is that certain games (often the 1st party Nintendo ones) there is one single global game image that's deployed everywhere and only the region coding on the disc changes. So you can get a disc that's (say) region coded for the US and lists (say) English, Spanish and French as the language option - but when you run in on a region hacked JP WiiU it plays in Japanese anyway.

There are ways of hacking the image to get around this - you basically have to map the JP ja language code to some other set of files, say the ones tagged US en

A bit of a search suggests that you can pretty well crack the whole thing open like a Vita wIth an sd card..

The sad thing is i kinda want to be legit and just buy wind waker and Metroid prime trilogy and, have at them.. but i can't lol

 

[Trimesh]

Ah yeah I'm going to sidetrack learning about whatever else to fully educate myself on fantasy terminology and louche man'chatter ぜええええ..


A bit of a search suggests that you can pretty well crack the whole thing open like a Vita wIth an sd card..

The sad thing is i kinda want to be legit and just buy wind waker and Metroid prime trilogy and, have at them.. but i can't lol

You can force the system to indicate a different region to software using this:

GitHub - marco-calautti/spiik: Region and Language changer for WiiU games

Region and Language changer for WiiU games. Contribute to marco-calautti/spiik development by creating an account on GitHub.

github.com

It works, but it limited by the capabilities of the system - so for example if you get a Japanese WiiU and force the region code to USen and then run US software it will correctly play in English. If you try to run Japanese software in this case, then what happens depends on the coding and resources on the disc.

For games without any internationalization support, it will just display native
For games with i18n support and support for the selected language, it will be used
For games with i18n support but without support for the selected language it will either crash or switch to some default language.

You can also get strange results - one game I was shown switched to what seemed to be an incomplete and unfinished English (well 和製英語) version when region forced to the US.

 

[Porcile]

Ah yeah I'm going to sidetrack learning about whatever else to fully educate myself on fantasy terminology and louche man'chatter ぜええええ..

You don't actually learn any fantasy terminology though. You just play the game and read whatever vocabulary appears in the game. Big difference between just playing something and using it as a means of studying.

 

[EverydayBeast]

Wii U’s thing is pushing the original Wii’s abilities and having an interesting controller that’s great for Zelda games and it’s items.

 

[eastcoastkody]

My Wii U is almost dead. I want to replace it, but as far as i can tell....i will lose all my game saves. So i been holding off.

Affordable Space Adventure
Wind Waker HD
NintendoLand
Super Mario 3D World
Splatoon
Mario Maker
Devils Third
ZombiU
Lego City Undercover
Splinter Cell Blacklist
Bayonetta 1 & 2
Shovel Knight
Rayman Legends
Mario Kart 8
Pikmin 3
New Super Mario Bros U
Wonderful 101
Art Academy

these r all the games i like for it

 

[Trimesh]

My Wii U is almost dead. I want to replace it, but as far as i can tell....i will lose all my game saves. So i been holding off.

Affordable Space Adventure
Wind Waker HD
NintendoLand
Super Mario 3D World
Splatoon
Mario Maker
Devils Third
ZombiU
Lego City Undercover
Splinter Cell Blacklist
Bayonetta 1 & 2
Shovel Knight
Rayman Legends
Mario Kart 8
Pikmin 3
New Super Mario Bros U
Wonderful 101
Art Academy

these r all the games i like for it

Short answer is that you have to install CFW on both the old and new WiiUs and use homebrew to back up the save files. Don't be fooled by the "move saves" option in data management - it will move the files to USB (and erase them from the console) - but you can only restore them to the same machine. And no, I have no idea what use that was supposed to be....

 

[Scotty W]

GAF,

I live in Japan, retail paradise, second hand stores here are packed with top condition legacy consoles dating back to the 80s.

I can't really avail myself of most of it because my Japanese isn't where it needs to be for me to play region locked GameCube or PS2 titles, and i can't justify repurchasing a PS3 just because i want to give MGS 4 another run-through. (I see a xbox one in my local HardOff but it's an og model so HA)

But what i can do is grab a Wii U for about a 5th the cost of a dock'able Switch.

Moreover, as i understand it there could well be some great old GameCube and Wii titles - MP, LOZWW - available to me.

What i want to know of Nintendo fans is this:
- I can in fact set my locally bought console to English and play games bought off a Japanese account in English, right?
- What're your top 10-20 titles?
- Any secret secrets you wanna share on getting the most out of it?

Disclaimer: i know it's aged and BOTW in particular is laggy, i don't care it's cheap.

If you live in Tokyo, you can buy mine.

 

[fart town usa]

Disclaimer: i know it's aged and BOTW in particular is laggy, i don't care it's cheap.

Don't believe the hate, BOTW plays just fine on it. I put probably 40+ hours playing in 480p on the gamepad, lol.

I thought the Wii U was region locked though? I guess if you softmod it you'll have access to everything but I'd look into that first before you get stuck with something that can only play Japan Region titles.

The Wii U is an awesome console, has it's issues but ignore the hate it gets, so unwarranted.

 

[Tschumi]

If you live in Tokyo, you can buy mine.

Nagoya bro san

 

[Tschumi]

I've bought the thing but I'm stressing out because they don't have Brain Age on the store in Japan, so a lot of tutorials don't seem like they'll work. Apparently if i want to play my old GameCube images I'll need to buy a separate hard drive.. i think I'll stick to wii u titles.. but I'll need to get them running in English

 

[Bryank75]

 

[teezzy]

Homebrew it and get access to every single Wii and Gamecube game natively. I can't stress how much that improves the Wii U experience.

My man Lionel always preaching the truth

 

[Trimesh]

I've bought the thing but I'm stressing out because they don't have Brain Age on the store in Japan, so a lot of tutorials don't seem like they'll work. Apparently if i want to play my old GameCube images I'll need to buy a separate hard drive.. i think I'll stick to wii u titles.. but I'll need to get them running in English

There are a whole bunch of titles that will work - Brain Age was just notable for being the cheapest. I think I used New Super Mario Bros, since I happened to already have it on the console.

 

[Craig of War]

How is Japan now days? i remember my grandpa who was in WW2 and fought against the Japanese always told me how ruthless and brutal and evil they are does Japan still have those kinds of mentality now days?

 

[cireza]

Wii U is an awesome console, but it is region locked as stated. You should softmod it, but I am not too sure how it goes with a Japanese console.

You can still access to so much stuff, you should think about getting a PAL or US one. Most games are very cheap.

 

[Tschumi]

There are a whole bunch of titles that will work - Brain Age was just notable for being the cheapest. I think I used New Super Mario Bros, since I happened to already have it on the console.

apparently any DS game will work, so i'm more optimistic now

How is Japan now days? i remember my grandpa who was in WW2 and fought against the Japanese always told me how ruthless and brutal and evil they are does Japan still have those kinds of mentality now days?

If you've got to the age of being able to use a computer and don't know any better than a 80 year old stereotype... I advise you to find some documentaries and films and educate yourself on their culture better. Akira Kurosawa's Ikiru might be a good starting point.

Wii U is an awesome console, but it is region locked as stated. You should softmod it, but I am not too sure how it goes with a Japanese console.

You can still access to so much stuff, you should think about getting a PAL or US one. Most games are very cheap.

Looking through the library I find that I'll only really want to get party games to play with my girl, who is Japanese, so I might be fine to just get a bunch of Mario stuff to play with her

 

[cireza]

Looking through the library I find that I'll only really want to get party games to play with my girl, who is Japanese, so I might be fine to just get a bunch of Mario stuff to play with her

The console is pretty much the perfect way to play GBA games, you can also play GC games. And of course, MegaDrive, SNES, Mega-CD, Neo Geo etc... everything is available through Retroarch, with integer scaling. This is the perfect console to play old games on HD TV, and once you tap in its potential, you will use this console a lot.

 

[Tschumi]

The console is pretty much the perfect way to play GBA games, you can also play GC games. And of course, MegaDrive, SNES, Mega-CD, Neo Geo etc... everything is available through Retroarch, with integer scaling. This is the perfect console to play old games on HD TV, and once you tap in its potential, you will use this console a lot.

I'm really anticipating that. Some of my most treasured GCN rips don't work well on dolphin - Gladius, LOTR:Return, Twin Snakes, MOH:Frontline, etc - I'm really psyched to play them on a genuinely related system. Do you know if retroarch or anything on the Wii U can boost the graphics, add antialiasing like with Dolphin?

 

[cireza]

I'm really anticipating that. Some of my most treasured GCN rips don't work well on dolphin - Gladius, LOTR:Return, Twin Snakes, MOH:Frontline, etc - I'm really psyched to play them on a genuinely related system. Do you know if retroarch or anything on the Wii U can boost the graphics, add antialiasing like with Dolphin?

Gamecube is played through backward compatibility, so you won't gain anything. Also, the console does not take the mini-discs, you will have to use ISOs for Gamecube.

You can play on TV or Gamepad though, and that's pretty nice. Gamepad has a 480p screen, which is exactly the resolution of the Gamecube.

 

[Tschumi]

Gamecube is played through backward compatibility, so you won't gain anything. Also, the console does not take the mini-discs, you will have to use ISOs for Gamecube.

You can play on TV or Gamepad though, and that's pretty nice. Gamepad has a 480p screen, which is exactly the resolution of the Gamecube.

Being able to play the games beats out Dolphin's instability, despite visual upgrades

 

[cireza]

Being able to play the games beats out Dolphin's instability, despite visual upgrades

You also get a way to display GC games through a clean HDMI signal, it helps a little bit, as the Wii for example only supported component.

GBA is definitely the strong point in my opinion. Integer Scaled x3, the games are absolutely gorgeous on the Gamepad, and fill the entire screen. No shimmering, perfectly square "native" pixels.

The 480p resolution of the Gamepad is the best value possible for old consoles.
You can do Integer Scaling x3 for handheld consoles (GB, GG, GBA), x2 for 16 bits consoles (SNES, MD, Neo Geo, Mega CD) and x1 for Wii/GC.

 

[Lionel Richie]

My man Lionel always preaching the truth

 

[teezzy]

Are Wii Us going up in price too?

I hate nerds

 

[Krappadizzle]

Are Wii Us going up in price too?

I hate nerds

The retro market has been butchered by covid. People sitting at home waxing nostalgia and all that has raised the prices across the board for just about everything.

 

[teezzy]

The retro market has been butchered by covid. People sitting at home waxing nostalgia and all that has raised the prices across the board for just about everything.

That's my theory too

"God, what did we used to do for fun? Oh yeah! Vidya games! Remember Halo, honey?!"

Lol

 

[MayauMiao]

What Japanese thinks about PS5.

 

[Tschumi]

Hey guys, sorry for bumping my own thread but things have progressed and I wanted some input from you guys.

I've managed to get my Wii U playing games in English! Fantastic I've also found a store here that sells import games, they've quite a range so I'd appreciate it you guys could give me lists of your favourite Wii U games? Nothing too obvious, perhaps?

I don't wanna miss out on a gem!

Thanks!

What Japanese thinks about PS5.

Ah as far as I know there's a frusrating lack of stock here just like everywhere else but it's always got big crowds around it in the stores

Are Wii Us going up in price too?

I hate nerds

They cost the same here atm that they've cost for ages, about $80 USD... they're always in mint condition...

You also get a way to display GC games through a clean HDMI signal, it helps a little bit, as the Wii for example only supported component.

GBA is definitely the strong point in my opinion. Integer Scaled x3, the games are absolutely gorgeous on the Gamepad, and fill the entire screen. No shimmering, perfectly square "native" pixels.

The 480p resolution of the Gamepad is the best value possible for old consoles.
You can do Integer Scaling x3 for handheld consoles (GB, GG, GBA), x2 for 16 bits consoles (SNES, MD, Neo Geo, Mega CD) and x1 for Wii/GC.

I'm really distraught by how awful CRT games look scaled up for HDMI They definitely look way better on the handheld device... I'm looking forward to when the bunch of imported titles I have ordered arrive later this week and I can play Wii U games... Definitely gonna spring for the HD remakes of Z:TWW and TP

Which one's that, you've uploaded a photo of there?

 

[cireza]

Which one's that, you've uploaded a photo of there?

I picked whatever GBA game picture I found on the internet. This is Zelda Minish Cap on GBA.

I really suggest that you try at least one GBA game, you will realize how awesome the Gamepad is for these games.

Otherwise, I have 36 games (all retail) on the console, here are some I highly recommend :

Zombi U
Truly a great game, it can feel a bit rough sometimes, but it is one of the best use of the Gamepad. The game is very immersive, a bit difficult, and a lot of fun.

Tokyo Mirage
This RPG is great. The atmosphere is light and a bit weird, but it really gives it a lot of charm. The Gamepad is well used again, serving to display maps and receive phone calls. Great dungeon design, great combat. Highly recommended.

Wonderful 101
This game originated on Wii U. It was perfectly playable, a lot of fun, and made some fun uses of the Gamepad.

Bayonetta 2
Again this game originated on the Wii U and it ran very well on the console, and was a great sequel to the first game. Nothing special with the Gamepad though.

Zelda Wind Waker HD
From both Zelda remakes, I recommend Wind Waker. I find that it is the game that has aged the less. The 1080p picture, with how much animation there is in the world, makes for a really up to date look. Compared to TP, which is also very sharp in 1080p, but feels very rigid and static. Wind Waker is a must have on the console, inventory management on the Gamepad, and a convenient item was added to sail in all directions easily.

Super Mario 3D World
My favorite entry in the 3D Mario series. Solid level-design, a lot of content.

New Super Mario Bros U
This is a solid 2D entry that I recommend as well.

Sonic Lost World
Great Sonic game with some very good platforming. 60fps as well. Clean design, good soundtrack.

Hyrule Warriors
I highly recommend this game. It is a lot of fun, a ton of content, great characters and animation.

Donkey Kong Tropical Freeze
Awesome platformer, you should definitely play it. Backgrounds are loaded with details, levels are fun and full of great ideas.

Project Zero
I really enjoyed this game. It makes a good use of the Gamepad as a camera. Visuals are pretty good, and the atmosphere very well done.

Xenoblade Chronicles X
Massive open world game, totally free to progress. It feels a bit overwhelming, but it is worth investing time. Gamepad is very well used once again, being used as a tablet to manage resources.

Ninja Gaiden Razor Edge
I love this Ninja Gaiden game. The Wii U version does have some slowdown, but otherwise, it is a very solid game. Very difficult.

Fast Racing Neo
Mind-blowing game. Superb visuals, 60fps, great sense of speed.

Need for Speed Most Wanted U
Great Need for Speed game, very well done on Wii U. It is only 30fps though.

Captain Toad
Nice puzzle game, fun, simple, well made.

Shovel Knight
The game is very convenient with the Gamepad to change items.

 

[Tschumi]

I picked whatever GBA game picture I found on the internet. This is Zelda Minish Cap on GBA.

I really suggest that you try at least one GBA game, you will realize how awesome the Gamepad is for these games.

Otherwise, I have 36 games (all retail) on the console, here are some I highly recommend :

Zombi U
Truly a great game, it can feel a bit rough sometimes, but it is one of the best use of the Gamepad. The game is very immersive, a bit difficult, and a lot of fun.

Tokyo Mirage
This RPG is great. The atmosphere is light and a bit weird, but it really gives it a lot of charm. The Gamepad is well used again, serving to display maps and receive phone calls. Great dungeon design, great combat. Highly recommended.

Wonderful 101
This game originated on Wii U. It was perfectly playable, a lot of fun, and made some fun uses of the Gamepad.

Bayonetta 2
Again this game originated on the Wii U and it ran very well on the console, and was a great sequel to the first game. Nothing special with the Gamepad though.

Zelda Wind Waker HD
From both Zelda remakes, I recommend Wind Waker. I find that it is the game that has aged the less. The 1080p picture, with how much animation there is in the world, makes for a really up to date look. Compared to TP, which is also very sharp in 1080p, but feels very rigid and static. Wind Waker is a must have on the console, inventory management on the Gamepad, and a convenient item was added to sail in all directions easily.

Super Mario 3D World
My favorite entry in the 3D Mario series. Solid level-design, a lot of content.

New Super Mario Bros U
This is a solid 2D entry that I recommend as well.

Sonic Lost World
Great Sonic game with some very good platforming. 60fps as well. Clean design, good soundtrack.

Hyrule Warriors
I highly recommend this game. It is a lot of fun, a ton of content, great characters and animation.

Donkey Kong Tropical Freeze
Awesome platformer, you should definitely play it. Backgrounds are loaded with details, levels are fun and full of great ideas.

Project Zero
I really enjoyed this game. It makes a good use of the Gamepad as a camera. Visuals are pretty good, and the atmosphere very well done.

Xenoblade Chronicles X
Massive open world game, totally free to progress. It feels a bit overwhelming, but it is worth investing time. Gamepad is very well used once again, being used as a tablet to manage resources.

Ninja Gaiden Razor Edge
I love this Ninja Gaiden game. The Wii U version does have some slowdown, but otherwise, it is a very solid game. Very difficult.

Fast Racing Neo
Mind-blowing game. Superb visuals, 60fps, great sense of speed.

Need for Speed Most Wanted U
Great Need for Speed game, very well done on Wii U. It is only 30fps though.

Captain Toad
Nice puzzle game, fun, simple, well made.

Shovel Knight
The game is very convenient with the Gamepad to change items.

Just what the doctor ordered

DEFINITELY some games in there i would have missed out on. Legend.

 

[Scotty W]

I don’t think it is region free.

 

[Tschumi]

I don’t think it is region free.

i was able to apply a fix to open mine up, happily

 

[Cutty Flam]

Is the VC still online for purchasing games?

 

[Kokoloko85]

Pikmin 3
Wind Waker
Twilight Princess
BOTW
Beyonetta 2
Loads of good games

 

[Scotty W]

i was able to apply a fix to open mine up, happily

Was it hard to do?

 

[Tschumi]

Was it hard to do?

Not really, though you need a SD card and a hard drive/ssd or two

 

[hybrid_birth]

How is Japan now days? i remember my grandpa who was in WW2 and fought against the Japanese always told me how ruthless and brutal and evil they are does Japan still have those kinds of mentality now days?

 

[Tschumi]

Is the VC still online for purchasing games?

"vc"? You can buy games from the Nintendo store yeah, if that's what you mean, as far as i can tell.. srry!

Waiting for hd Skyward sword, it looks super blurry on a modern tv

 

[teezzy]

Lol virtual console

 

[Tschumi]

Lol virtual console

It's funny, other wii titles like Metroid Prime trilogy look fine in vwii, but Skyward sword feels like the world is filled with a cloudy chicken broth

 

[Cutty Flam]

Let us not forget about the imperial GOAT of our time, and his game on the Wii U

Yoshi’s Wooly World

Skyward sword feels like the world is filled with a cloudy chicken broth

10/10 description. That’s pretty accurate lol