Hacking Wii Shop Channel: The Future

[Notshane]

I was originally going to post this in a general discussion, but felt the significance of backing up WAD files deserved it a spot here.

Anyway, the Wii Shop Channel. How many of you know it is shutting down on March 26, 2018, I wonder. Well, specifically, being able to purchase Wii Points shuts down on this day. The actual shop will remain open until January 2019. And after that, well, all of those digital games will be gone for good. NA, EU, JP.

Why I have made a thread about it here is to discuss backing up the games. Given the Wii was the easiest console to hack of its generation, I want to assume that a dedicated group of users have begun trying to backup the games. Virtual Console, WiiWare, etc. Games that were never re-released on the Wii U eShop should be the primary focus. Many of these games are real treasures, so it would be sad if they are just gone forever. And as such, I feel that backing them up into WAD files should be a top priority. That means for all of the shops. And I know we have the power to change the region of the Wii, so we should try to cover as many shops as we can. I also assume we have the power to download them for free, provided we begin doing so after we can not buy Wii Points anymore. Because these games should not be as lost as the likes of MvC2 or Scott Pilgrim where many can watch them be played, but never have the opportunity to experience them.

 

[TechModder]

Backing up wad files, I don't think would exactly be necessary*snip* there are a collection of, I am pretty sure, almost every wad, and on the site, they have wads for older consoles as well. However, if the site does go down, then we would not have them, so I think it may be a good idea to be backing them up.

 

[Codemastershock]

As I wrote on another topic, you dont need to worry about backing up Virtual Console and Wiiware WADs because at the time, it is very easy to find a fullset on torrent trackers, you should worry only about DLC and some demos.

The only game that you cant find properly (as far as I know) is a remake of Pokémon Mystery Dungeon available only in Japan. Someone patched to make it work in a non-japanese console and with updated Wii, it doesnt work anymore. This patch is completely useless nowadays with sneek and emuNAND capabilities and a untouched version is impossible to find. I tried this patched version on two Wii consoles that I have and all dont work, on Wii U i didnt try because I find it too risky.

 

[CatmanFan]

F**k.

What about vWii users though?

 

[Notshane]

F**k.

What about vWii users though?

The Wii Shop Channel was extended well beyond the end of the Wii simply because the Wii U also had it, alongside Nintendo "promising" that the Virtual Console titles on the Wii Shop Channel would eventually make their way to the Wii U eShop. Needless to say, this did not happen at all. And now the games will be gone forever unless they are backed up sooner than later, alongside the memorable WiiWare titles. Japan in particular has some of the funnest WiiWare titles ever made, which will be a sad shame to say goodbye to if nobody backs them up.

I am actually glad the Wii Shop Channel lasted for over a decade. I always hated digital gaming in general because it means your digital goods will inevitably be gone at some point, even if you paid for them. Retail is always the way to go for any game. MvC2 and Scott Pilgrim, the most memorable video games ever released, are gone forever because they were delisted. The former of those two being an HD remake that also has online play, even to this day for those that bought and kept it. However, unlike the latter, MvC2 actually can't be re-downloaded at all, regardless of purchase, due to a special agreement made by the two companies that negotiated the game's presence on the stores it was released on.