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[efyu_lemonardo]

I don't know about that one. I honestly only think a few people really care about it. It's nice to have, but it's not like a phone where you need your old numbers to work with the new device. Most people didn't buy a Wii so they could play GameCube games, and I think this will be the case here as well.
I think.

Your phone analogy is actually really good. Say I upgraded my phone, I'd still have all my old numbers but they'd be stored in a separate directory within the main contact list of the new phone. It's a usability nightmare because searching for contacts would no longer mean simply scrolling and typing...
Nintendo are usually big on usability and accessing games quickly and effortlessly with minimal time wasted on loading, etc. This goes against this idea, and also seemingly tucks away one of the biggest advantages a Nintendo console has over the competition, namely Nintendo's own back catalog...

 

[AndyMoogle]

I bet they sandboxed off the wii sections because the wii was hacked so badly, meaning that what you describe will never happen.

It could still happen. While the Wii U part of the console most likely won't ever be in direct contact with the Wii part, they could use the same system number or something like that. There are definitely ways to make it work.

 

[DDayton]

I dunno, SEEMS clearcut in the topic. I suppose we can hope that we can purchase the games on the Wii U shop, then be told to open the Wii channel in order to download the games. Ridiculous, roundabout, but if it lets me pay in exact amounts then screw it, I'll deal with it.

No, I was referring to your statement of having to buy the games again. There's no evidence of that at all, and it's mere speculation to assume that you'd have to buy a Wii U version of a VC title after owning a Wii version on the same system.

Two storefronts on the same system, both linked to Nintendo servers and with NOA/NCL having a complete record of your purchases on either.

 

[freddy]

No, no. What I mean is that iirc, if you select the piracy option, it kicks you out and blocks you.

If you select the other option like you did, you can still pirate games. Its just a way for the homebrew channel guys to say fuck you to pirates.

Aha I see. That's awesome.

 

[Foxix Von]

No upscaling, by which I mean the signal leaving the box is 480p = I can't play Wii games on my WiiU, because my TV's upscaler makes them look legitimately offensive. Essentially, it means that for me WiiU does not have backwards compatibility. YMMV. On the other other hand, I have Dolphin and an old CRT (for the games that don't emulate well), so I can't complain too much.

Will wait for confirmation though, I haven't seen anything definitive about the display resolution yet. Just various rephrasings of "the WiiU doesn't have upscaling like dolphin!"

Yuck. Not only does my TV have a bad scaler it also doesn't support 1:1 pixel mapping on resolutions below 720p. I'd still have to deal with overscan =/ this is like the shittiest possible way to handle BC on a system.

 

[fabricated backlash]

They could still make it so that everything is in the eShop, but to play the games you'd have to enter Wii mode. That would at least be better than to have two different stores on one console.

Do you honestly expect the Wii shop to even matter? Like seriously?

They'll bring the VC stuff to the eshop in time, and I think we'll see sequels or ports of Wiiware games in the future, but the Wii Shop is just a disgrace. No need to bring it to the e-shop.

Now if Nintendo would allow to download updated VC versions through the eshop in WiiU mode... hahahahaha who am I kidding, they're going to charge full price again.

 

[Aquamarine]

Perhaps, although it's worth noting that even with hacking, Nintendo has a record of what was actually purchased. They could easily allow for Wii U native versions of VC titles if you'd purchased the Wii version.

That's true.

It's important to note that Wii .wad files (VC games) need to be rewritten to support the Wii U architecture.

"Wii U native versions" must be re-released UNLESS they are emulated in the Wii environment.

So having two shops makes sense, in theory at least.

 

[Diablos54]

I'd still have to deal with overscan =/ this is like the shittiest possible way to handle BC on a system.

You mean only way to ensure 100% BC, thus the best way.

 

[kitsuneyo]

Don't even joke about that! D:

Seriously, not even supporting Virtual Console on Wii U's gamepad (or even the pro pad) is pretty bad. In fact, this whole setup looks really, well, shit.

I seriously hope this is just a temporary thing, and that a system update 6-12 months from now merges the two together.

Give Nintendo a chance to launch VC on WiiU properly. Right now they probably want the new eShop to have the spotlight. We'll be playing (newly bought) VC games on the GamePad before long. Meantime, you can play Wii-bought VC games on WiiU in exactly the same way you could on Wii, so why complain?

 

[Rich!]

Aha I see. That's awesome.

And at one point the Homebrew Channel was coded so if it detected piracy, it would literally flip the image onscreen vertically for the channel and apps to make it unusable. It only righted once that offending cios was uninstalled.

 

[Neff]

What about future VC games for WiiU (there will be a Virtual Console for WiiU, won't there?)? Will they work differently (as in natively on the WiiU interface)? And can I then "upgrade" my old VC games like with the NES ambassador games on 3DS?

I hope so, because I want to spend hundreds of pounds re-buying all the NES, SNES and N64 classics that are packed away in my cupboard for sexy Wii U controller use, but I certainly won't be doing so if NoE in its infinite wisdom again saddles Europe with 50 fucking hz games.

Which I think is a reasonable demand what with it being 2012 after all.

 

[hardcastlemccormick]

Perhaps, although it's worth noting that even with hacking, Nintendo has a record of what was actually purchased. They could easily allow for Wii U native versions of VC titles if you'd purchased the Wii version.

Which is all organized under, not an account system, but a per-console system. Unless Nintendo decides to apply their EShop accounts to the wii as well, I don't see any of that data being usable and reliable for Nintendo.

Your phone analogy is actually really good. Say I upgraded my phone, I'd still have all my old numbers but they'd be stored in a separate directory within the main contact list of the new phone. It's a usability nightmare because searching for contacts would no longer mean simply scrolling and typing...
Nintendo are usually big on usability and accessing games quickly and effortlessly with minimal time wasted on loading, etc. This goes against this idea, and also seemingly tucks away one of the biggest advantages a Nintendo console has over the competition, namely Nintendo's own back catalog...

I wonder, just purely internally, how much weight Nintendo gives to backwards compatibility. Especially for the wii in particular.

 

[DDayton]

Wii .wad files (VC games) need to be rewritten to support the Wii U architecture.

"Wii U native versions" must be re-released UNLESS they are emulated in the Wii environment.

Yes, I know. I never said they wouldn't need to be rereleased. I merely said that expecting Nintendo to charge the consumer again was merely speculation, as opposed to allowing a Wii U download of the VC title if the Wii VC title was already purchased on that system.

Which is all organized under, not an account system, but a per-console system. Unless Nintendo decides to apply their EShop accounts to the wii as well, I don't see any of that data being usable and reliable for Nintendo.

1) We don't know how the Wii content is actually linked/used on the Wii U system yet, given that the option isn't available. Given that you'll need to create a Wii U account to use the system, it's logical to assume the Wii -> Wii U transfer will link some aspect of the digital downloads to one of the user profiles on the Wii. (Perhaps!)
2) We don't even know how Wii U downloads are "linked" to an account. We know you create an account. We don't know if that account's software is accessible on another system.

How are Wii purchase records not "reliable" nor "usable" for Nintendo? They can't be hacked. The only question would be which "Nintendo Network eShop Account" to link them to... unless, of course, CN accounts tie into all this.

My point, again, is that it seems a bit premature to assume that anything we currently know means Wii U users would need to repurchase Wii U VC titles if they already own a Wii VC version of the same title.

 

[Blades64]

Meh.

I'll be playing my Wii games on the PC I build next year in glorious 1080p. Doesn't matter to me if the Wii U doesn't support.

Even so, once people have something, if even a small quip, to complain about Nintendo, it seems like it's milked to death. I wonder how it'll be when more than likely PS4720 don't even have BC at all.

I hope Sony and Microsoft get the same amount of flack Nintendo gets.

 

[H_Prestige]

For all the Nintendo Being Nintendo remarks, does anyone consider technical barriers due to the fact that Wii software was never designed for a console that didn't exist yet?

It's not like everybody else does it better on consoles, not with solid BC/quality emulation. 360 BC is a mess with inconsistent emulation, and the emulator more or less takes over the console. Play a PS1 or PS2 game on PS3, and it also locks out the normal XMB functions and capabilities, I thought.

Play a DS game on a 3DS and it goes into DS mode, turns off 3DS specific network functions like spotpass.

The biggest objective problem here is the controller limitation as observed above. Seems they should have been able to find a way for the U game pad to emulate a classic controller plugged into a wiimote. Only requiring a wii remote for games that need one.

But otherwise, it's disappointing but no real surprise. Unlike the PC where direct x and operating systems have had continuity engineered in for a while now, consoles are still far behind that.

Correct, although background downloads still continue when running ps1 games, so it's not like it literally becomes a ps1, and ps1/ps2 upscaling exists.

Sony's BC is more seamless. You put in a ps1 or ps2 disc, the disc icon shows up and you just hit play. You don't launch the "playstation 1 app" or something which boots you into the original ps1 menu and select the game from there. You don't use the original console's controllers and memory cards. You buy ps1/ps2 classics right from the PSN store.

Nintendo is doing this in a really clunky way. I refuse to believe there is any technical reason to have to boot into Wii mode to run a Wii game on Wii U.

 

[test_account]

There's a chance that with the Wii OS still being intact that the Homebrew Channel may be able to be installed...without enabling Wii U piracy of any kind.

Now THAT is awesome.

Yeah, that was actually one of the first thing i was wondering about when Nintendo said that you could transfer things from the Wii to the WiiU. It seems that Nintendo have made an own app for it, but concidering how hacked the Wii is, maybe it wont be hard to get around this (if that app has some security in place that is). Having access to the Wii OS on WiiU makes it look like homebrew will be a lot easier at least

 

[FoneBone]

Do you honestly expect the Wii shop to even matter? Like seriously?

They'll bring the VC stuff to the eshop in time, and I think we'll see sequels or ports of Wiiware games in the future, but the Wii Shop is just a disgrace. No need to bring it to the e-shop.

Now if Nintendo would allow to download updated VC versions through the eshop in WiiU mode... hahahahaha who am I kidding, they're going to charge full price again.

I'm not going to defend the overall state of the Wii Shop, but there are good games amidst all the crap that could benefit from renewed visibility on Wii U. If you can't buy them at all outside of Wii mode, that's a missed opportunity.

 

[Qurupeke]

A Wii in U.

 

[Mileena]

I guess this is the right place to ask: do we know what control inputs are accepted for Wii games? U padlet, CC, Wiimote (ugh)?

 

[Man God]

Wii Remote, Nunchuck, Classic Controller/anything that works like one.

 

[Linkhero1]

We have to go deeper. Onto the Gamecube layer.

 

[blu]

I'm more curious about one thing... do 480i and 480p via HDMI allow for aspect ratio settings?

No, but your TV does it.

 

[Aquamarine]

Correct, although background downloads still continue when running ps1 games, so it's not like it literally becomes a ps1, and ps1/ps2 upscaling exists.

Sony's BC is more seamless. You put in a ps1 or ps2 disc, the disc icon shows up and you just hit play. You don't launch the "playstation 1 app" or something which boots you into the original ps1 menu and select the game from there. You don't use the original console's controllers and memory cards. You buy ps1/ps2 classics right from the PSN store.

Nintendo is doing this in a really clunky way. I refuse to believe there is any technical reason to have to boot into Wii mode to run a Wii game on Wii U.

More accurate emulation, I would assume. Once you take a game away from its native environment, you start having to do more and more emulating...which can translate into inaccuracies within the game.

 

[DDayton]

No, but your TV does it.

Ah. I was just curious as to whether that would be automated or not, in any way. Heh.

 

[AndyMoogle]

Do you honestly expect the Wii shop to even matter? Like seriously?

They'll bring the VC stuff to the eshop in time, and I think we'll see sequels or ports of Wiiware games in the future, but the Wii Shop is just a disgrace. No need to bring it to the e-shop.

Now if Nintendo would allow to download updated VC versions through the eshop in WiiU mode... hahahahaha who am I kidding, they're going to charge full price again.

That's my point. The Wii Shop is terrible. They should move all the Wiiware and VC titles to the eShop instead.

They put all DSiware games on the 3DS eShop, so I don't see why they can't do the same for Wii games on Wii U.

 

[Sophia]

I guess this is the right place to ask: do we know what control inputs are accepted for Wii games? U padlet, CC, Wiimote (ugh)?

Given the way it works and Nintendo's past history, probably only stuff that worked with the Wii itself.

 

[H_Prestige]

More accurate emulation, I would assume. Once you take a game away from its native environment, you start having to do more and more emulating...which can translate into inaccuracies within the game.

PS3's BC is pretty damn accurate. I think it's worth settling with 99% accuracy for a more seamless approach.

 

[onQ123]

Don't PS3 and 360 upscale PS2 and OG Xbox games? (I have no idea)

Yeah & from the few times that I tested it out I seen that upscale PS2 Games on a 720P TV look good , GameDay 2004 demo played on a PS3 with BC ( ignore the rest of the video I was just being a asshole to the people who couldn't play PS2 games on the PS3 lol )


just tried that same demo on my 27" 1080P monitor & had to step back away from the monitor like it was a 50" TV. but once you step back it look good


I could try out some Xbox games on the 360 to see what they look like upscale to 1080P but my nephew is playing the 360 & I'm not sure if the old xbox games that I still have laying around are on the BC list for the xbox 360. never tried any of them on the 360.


I was actually looking forward to seeing what Wii/ Gamecube games would look like upscale to 1080P on the Wii U but hopefully Nintendo release some HD collections.

 

[Mileena]

Wii Remote, Nunchuck, Classic Controller/anything that works like one.

Does it have to be the Wii CC? The Wii U one looks so much better.

 

[Diablos54]

PS3's BC is pretty damn accurate.

Well, the one's which offer BC are, at least.

At least the Wii U HAS BC, I doubt the PS4 will, and I don't see MS going through all the effort they did this gen, so I guess that's something.

 

[Man God]

Does it have to be the Wii CC? The Wii U one looks so much better.

Unless they worked some magic I really doubt it'll be supported. The Wii portion of it would have to detect it as a Wii CC controller.

They could have set it up that way but I doubt it.

 

[jonno394]

My Vita wasn't BC with my PSP UMD games.
My PS3 wasn't backward compatible with my PS2 games.
My Wii U will be backwards compatible with my Wii Games.

I don't see what the problem is here or why it's a "nintendo messing up again" sort of vibe.

 

[blu]

Ah. I was just curious as to whether that would be automated or not, in any way. Heh.

Unlikely. Also, you will still need to tell the virtual Wii that its output will have its aspect ratio changed by the TV (the 16:9 setting in the setup menu).

That said, I'd be surprised it we did not see some sort of pre-scaling happening on the console before long, i.e. 480 Wii titles coming out in 'automagic' aspect ratio at HD resolutions.

 

[Mileena]

Unless they worked some magic I really doubt it'll be supported. The Wii portion of it would have to detect it as a Wii CC controller.

They could have set it up that way but I doubt it.

eh oh well, Xenoblade is worth getting one of those controllers for I guess.

 

[Macho Madness]

I'm hoping that when they start releasing VC on the e-Shop that we can play those on the Gamepad.

 

[liger05]

I'll be paying again anyway as my wii VC games are Japanese so gonna have to get them again.

 

[Man God]

eh oh well, Xenoblade is worth getting one of those controllers for I guess.

CC Pros are a very reasonable price used. I just got my fourth one for 7 bucks.

 

[Aquamarine]

I'm hoping that when they start releasing VC on the e-Shop that we can play those on the Gamepad.

There is absolutely no reason why Nintendo wouldn't allow that. All VC games have low, sub-480p native resolutions. That's perfect for the 854x480 resolution of the gamepad.

Furthermore, it costs next to nothing to implement, and it would be a good selling point for the system.

It's almost a given at this point.

 

[AndyMoogle]

There is absolutely no reason why Nintendo wouldn't allow that. All VC games have low, sub-480p native resolutions. That's perfect for the 854x480 resolution of the gamepad.

Furthermore, it costs next to nothing to implement, and it would be a good selling point for the system.

It's almost a given at this point.

They would have to actually release VC games on Wii U first, and we don't know if they will do that. They've hinted towards GC titles, but other than that they haven't said anything.

 

[Eusis]

There is absolutely no reason why Nintendo wouldn't allow that. All VC games have low, sub-480p native resolutions. That's perfect for the 854x480 resolution of the gamepad.

Furthermore, it costs next to nothing to implement, and it would be a good selling point for the system.

It's almost a given at this point.

This IS Nintendo though. More importantly however, like I noted it seems that each game came with its own custom emulator rather than, say, plugging certain values into a general purpose emulator stored in the system software. I imagine they'll have to go over each of those games again for supporting, I just hope they can manage to do it quickly with few to no omissions, and absolutely NOT force us to rebuy.

 

[liger05]

So what is going to be on the eshop on release day? SNES goodies or not?

 

[Revven]

Hahaa, you know what this means, right? Unless there's some updates made specifically for the Wii mode (highly doubt it but maybe Nintendo is super srs about it) all the old homebrew exploits (like Brawl's stage builder exploit) will still work. Glorious!

Maybe not for installing Homebrew itself, but being able to access homebrew applications would still be possible. Hilarious.

 

[Macho Madness]

So what is going to be on the eshop on release day? SNES goodies or not?

I think there will be a few new titles but other than that we don't know.

Hahaa, you know what this means, right? Unless there's some updates made specifically for the Wii mode (highly doubt it but maybe Nintendo is super srs about it) all the old homebrew exploits (like Brawl's stage builder exploit) will still work. Glorious!

Maybe not for installing Homebrew itself, but being able to access homebrew applications would still be possible. Hilarious.

That's assuming they didn't fix the exploits during the port. We also don't know how limited Wii mode is.

 

[Medalion]

My Vita wasn't BC with my PSP UMD games.
My PS3 wasn't backward compatible with my PS2 games.
My Wii U will be backwards compatible with my Wii Games.

I don't see what the problem is here or why it's a "nintendo messing up again" sort of vibe.

It's about amplifying self-entitlement complaints to make the overall product unattractive because some others don't like Wii-U and want others to feel the same way too

 

[Man God]

Has anyone in the press tried to pin Nintendo down on what they are doing with the VC on the eshop?

There has been absolutely no word on it.

 

[Macho Madness]

Has anyone in the press tried to pin Nintendo down on what they are doing with the VC on the eshop?

There has been absolutely no word on it.

They're being very hush-hush. I've asked around with no response.

 

[jetjevons]

No Gamepad support (for non-waggle titles)?

No HD?

I know it's been said before a million times but how fucking disappointing.

And this from someone who pre-ordered the Wii U the day I could btw.

 

[ChosenPredator]

Has anyone in the press tried to pin Nintendo down on what they are doing with the VC on the eshop?

There has been absolutely no word on it.

they should someone should dig into it

 

[bobbychalkers]

It would've been nice to see all the Wii ware and VC games in Wii U's Eshop and to have VC games playable on the gamepad but I can't complain too much. All of my old digital games are playable in some form on the system.

 

[hardcastlemccormick]

1) We don't know how the Wii content is actually linked/used on the Wii U system yet, given that the option isn't available. Given that you'll need to create a Wii U account to use the system, it's logical to assume the Wii -> Wii U transfer will link some aspect of the digital downloads to one of the user profiles on the Wii. (Perhaps!)

It's logical to think its a possibility or could be done, but it's not logical to jump to conclusions and assume that Nintendo will do it.

2) We don't even know how Wii U downloads are "linked" to an account. We know you create an account. We don't know if that account's software is accessible on another system.

Nintendo has said they'll be having a web browser version of the store at some point, indicating that it's an account system like Steam. Accessible on other consoles? Who knows. Probably only one console per account at a time. But it doesn't matter; that's not the point I'm making.

How are Wii purchase records not "reliable" nor "usable" for Nintendo? They can't be hacked. The only question would be which "Nintendo Network eShop Account" to link them to... unless, of course, CN accounts tie into all this.

Assuming they saved all of the data and its in some sort of database that is easily accessible, and their unique per-system identifiers they're using for the Wii are not capable of being hacked on the client side like everything else on the Wii, then what you say is plausible. However, I see those as major problems that Nintendo will probably just avoid.

My point, again, is that it seems a bit premature to assume that anything we currently know means Wii U users would need to repurchase Wii U VC titles if they already own a Wii VC version of the same title.

I would say the very opposite. It seems not only premature to think Nintendo will even bother with VC on the WiiU, but also premature to think they'll even care that you've previously bought the games. I like Nintendo, but I tend to assume they will go the simplest route - in this case, just tell you to play the Wii mode VC version and go off doing something else.