Homebrew Is It (Still) Worth Buying a Nintendo Wii in 2018 to Softmod?

[Maeson]

The second plug is for rumble power only, a bit like an Y cable, and the WiiU has 2 more ports on the front
(not that it solves all disadvantages, like lack of support in commercial Wii software)
Not all Wiis have GC ports out of the box either (look for those with the text on buttons the right way up when the console is vertical - which ironically is what you wouldn't want for GC controller use)

Perhaps the biggest argument I personally have against the WiiU is that in 'most every WiiU software, 4:3 is letterboxed
(and that, while you don't need an external display for most software, you need one for the initial setup: wtf?)

You're completely right!

Tee_, if you look for a Wii, make sure that, besides the color, the "Wii" logo and buttons are aligned so they are readable with the system being vertical. one of the revisions before the Wii Mini took out certain parts of GC support (theorically they could be soldered back in, but it's really not worth it when you have the entire system already), and you can distinguish them because they were designed for those things to be seen horizontally.

I had no idea that the second USB only did rumble for the adapter, nice detail there, thanks.

The letterboxed matter wasn't in my mind either, good addittion too.

EDIT: Yeah, like YOUCANTSTOPME says, I bought my Wii back in 2010, and since then it has been always plugged because how much stuff you can play comfortably with it. No other system in my house has had so much use, it's ridiculous.

 

[YOUCANTSTOPME]

I've gotten so much use out of a modded Wii over the years. The Wii has a huge library of Gamecube and Wii games. Then of course you can use it for emulators too. It really depends on your usage, but to keep it short, I'd say "yes".

Edit: Also, the fact that it's 2018 and the Wii is old means that they're cheap and plentiful!

 

[Tee_]

You're completely right!

Tee_, if you look for a Wii, make sure that, besides the color, the "Wii" logo and buttons are aligned so they are readable with the system being vertical. one of the revisions before the Wii Mini took out certain parts of GC support (theorically they could be soldered back in, but it's really not worth it when you have the entire system already), and you can distinguish them because they were designed for those things to be seen horizontally.

I had no idea that the second USB only did rumble for the adapter, nice detail there, thanks.

The letterboxed matter wasn't in my mind either, good addittion too.

So, not this Wii? http://tinyimg.io/i/OhtmFah.png

Also, do you still have to have 4.3(E/U/etc) to do the softmod? We had a modded Wii years ago and I remember you had to be on 4.3 to use LEGO Indiana Jones as an entrypoint. Does this still stand or have there been updated methods since? Has there even been a system update since 4.3?

 

[Maeson]

Exactly, not the ones that are made for the "Wii" logo be seen like that. Avoid those.

It must look like this.

Spoiler

About softmodding, you have much better methods for installing the Homebrew Channel nowadays, LetterBomb being one of them and the one I used back in the day.

I would wait for others to chime in and comment about softmodding methods, but it seems that LetterBomb is as good of an option as it was when I did it. Here's a tutorial. Wii is still 4.3, and will never get an update again, I imagine.

Which reminds me, not too long ago, Wii U had an update out of the blue. I wonder if that affected homebrew.

 

[Tee_]

Exactly, not the ones that are made for the "Wii" logo be seen like that. Avoid those.

It must look like this.

Spoiler

About softmodding, you have much better methods for installing the Homebrew Channel nowadays, LetterBomb being one of them and the one I used back in the day.

I would wait for others to chime in and comment about softmodding methods, but it seems that LetterBomb is as good of an option as it was when I did it. Here's a tutorial.

Very familiar with LetterBomb, thanks for bringing it up as a reminder. I'm thinking of buying a GameCube as well as the Wii console since I'm an original hardware type person. In this case, would I still be okay to buy this Wii and softmod it as desired, if GC functionality isn't going to matter too much? Or would you recommend to avoid it like the plague? And I answered my own question. The last update was indeed 4.3, seven years ago. I'm getting old!

 

[Maeson]

Hmmm... First of all, I would still point to you to a GC-compatible Wii. Even if you don't play GC games on it, you still could use GC controllers for Wii, Wiiware, Virtual Console and Homebrews applications like emulators; and you still had the possibility to run GC games with it in case you wanted in the future, not to mention that being able to use Memory Cards on it can be handy, even if it's just for making backups of your save files. It's better than not having the option at all, and at least here there's no price difference between the two revisions. And it would be easier to making backups of your discs too through CleanRip.

Many Wii retail games support GC controller and play better with it for a lot of people. Games like Smash, Sonic Unleashed/Colors, DBZ games, Mario Kart Wii, Muramasa, several Arcade collections, etc.

Second, we could compare what a GC does than a Wii can't and viceversa. I have a GC (I adore its design), but I haven't modified it at all, so I don't know much about it. Swiss seems to be the "go to" application for softmodding a Cube, and seems to be pretty cool on the surface.

But what I can say is that through Nintendont the Wii can force Progressive Scan to many GC games that don't support it, alongside Widescreen. You can use different controllers with a Wii + Nintendont, which can be a nice option. You can use cheat codes, although they are Ocarina cheats as the GC games are played in Wii Mode, and it has other perks. And the Wii has USB ports, which the GC does not, that will help too.

I guess it depends on what features each one can offer... But again, if you are aiming to get both why not have both working?
If you get both set up and running you can only be in a better position because you have more options.

 

[Tee_]

Hmmm... First of all, I would still point to you to a GC-compatible Wii. Even if you don't play GC games on it, you still could use GC controllers for Wii, Wiiware, Virtual Console and Homebrews applications like emulators; and you still had the possibility to run GC games with it in case you wanted in the future, not to mention that being able to use Memory Cards on it can be handy, even if it's just for making backups of your save files. It's better than not having the option at all, and at least here there's no price difference between the two revisions. And it would be easier to making backups of your discs too through CleanRip.

Many Wii retail games support GC controller and play better with it for a lot of people. Games like Smash, Sonic Unleashed/Colors, DBZ games, Mario Kart Wii, Muramasa, several Arcade collections, etc.

Second, we could compare what a GC does than a Wii can't and viceversa. I have a GC (I adore its design), but I haven't modified it at all, so I don't know much about it. Swiss seems to be the "go to" application for softmodding a Cube, and seems to be pretty cool on the surface.

But what I can say is that through Nintendont the Wii can force Progressive Scan to many GC games that don't support it, alongside Widescreen. You can use different controllers with a Wii + Nintendont, which can be a nice option. You can use cheat codes, although they are Ocarina cheats as the GC games are played in Wii Mode, and it has other perks. And the Wii has USB ports, which the GC does not, that will help too.

I guess it depends on what features each one can offer... But again, if you are aiming to get both why not have both working?
If you get both set up and running you can only be in a better position because you have more options.

Again thank you so much for taking the time to help out. I prefer of the revised Wii so much better than the vertical standing one but I am looking for functionality over design for sure. And same here. I want a cube purely for its design, not to mention the mahoosive game library. I live in the UK and vertical standing Wii’s are a bomb cheaper than the revised versions! Just a case of weighing out my personal preferences against the pros and cons now. Thanks!

 

[RattletraPM]

Exactly, not the ones that are made for the "Wii" logo be seen like that. Avoid those.
About softmodding, you have much better methods for installing the Homebrew Channel nowadays, LetterBomb being one of them and the one I used back in the day.

I would wait for others to chime in and comment about softmodding methods, but it seems that LetterBomb is as good of an option as it was when I did it. Here's a tutorial. Wii is still 4.3, and will never get an update again, I imagine.

Which reminds me, not too long ago, Wii U had an update out of the blue. I wonder if that affected homebrew.

LetterBomb is still the preferred method, it was never patched and it's extremely easy to use.
A little advice that could save you a lot of time and headaches: if you get a second hand Wii and parental control won't allow you to view the console's MAC address, use this to get the unlock code to disable it.

Also I don't have a Wii U but from what I've read the latest update only changed the EULA as well as some other stuff for SEPA compliance. Homebrew and CFW seem to be untouched.

Very familiar with LetterBomb, thanks for bringing it up as a reminder. I'm thinking of buying a GameCube as well as the Wii console since I'm an original hardware type person. In this case, would I still be okay to buy this Wii and softmod it as desired, if GC functionality isn't going to matter too much? Or would you recommend to avoid it like the plague? And I answered my own question. The last update was indeed 4.3, seven years ago. I'm getting old!

I'd still recommend a GC compatible Wii, the ones without GC retrocompatibility are 100% sure to have a patched DVD drive. So I wouldn't say to avoid it 100% but you'll get much more features for roughly the same price.
The only model I'd avoid at all costs is the Wii Mini.

 

[mightymuffy]

Which reminds me, not too long ago, Wii U had an update out of the blue. I wonder if that affected homebrew.

It didn't ...but it could've done, and maybe a future one - out of the blue - might do. Updates can of course be blocked, but your point is still a good one.
Your opinions on Wii over Wii U are also good, but in the grand scheme of things, a little on the minor side for what appears to be less of a retro enthusiast than many of us (no offence OP!)
OP if you have the money I'd go for the Wii U: it does most of what the Wii can do, then a whole lot extra on top.... and if you're considering a GC too then that's a good combo! CeX will get you a Wii U for about £70-£100, Wiis are less than half that of course - so if money is a bit tighter, and you're not that arsed about what the Wii U can do exclusively, then the [right model!] Wii is a good middle ground.
All that's just my opinion of course

 

[Tee_]

It didn't ...but it could've done, and maybe a future one - out of the blue - might do. Updates can of course be blocked, but your point is still a good one.
Your opinions on Wii over Wii U are also good, but in the grand scheme of things, a little on the minor side for what appears to be less of a retro enthusiast than many of us (no offence OP!)
OP if you have the money I'd go for the Wii U: it does most of what the Wii can do, then a whole lot extra on top.... and if you're considering a GC too then that's a good combo! CeX will get you a Wii U for about £70-£100, Wiis are less than half that of course - so if money is a bit tighter, and you're not that arsed about what the Wii U can do exclusively, then the [right model!] Wii is a good middle ground.
All that's just my opinion of course

It’s hard because as a collector, I want both the Wii and the WiiU. Sure I’ll probably have both eventually but also as somone who loves to find bargains and great prices on my games, I’m torn to decide which one is more worth the money.

I'd still recommend a GC compatible Wii, the ones without GC retrocompatibility are 100% sure to have a patched DVD drive. So I wouldn't say to avoid it 100% but you'll get much more features for roughly the same price.
The only model I'd avoid at all costs is the Wii Mini.

Absolutely. I completely ruled out any possibly of a Wii Mini. Never seen the point, useless console in my opinion but hey ho, someone out there will love it.

 

[Maeson]

Again thank you so much for taking the time to help out. I prefer of the revised Wii so much better than the vertical standing one but I am looking for functionality over design for sure. And same here. I want a cube purely for its design, not to mention the mahoosive game library. I live in the UK and vertical standing Wii’s are a bomb cheaper than the revised versions! Just a case of weighing out my personal preferences against the pros and cons now. Thanks!

Well, think that the "Vertical" Wii can still be used horizontally, it has the little rubber "feet" and everything and the stand can be removed (the system is just inserted into the stand), I had it horizontally since the beginning. The only difference is that the Wii logo will be rotated.

You can even remove the covers of the Memory Card and GC controller inputs if you want.

It didn't ...but it could've done, and maybe a future one - out of the blue - might do. Updates can of course be blocked, but your point is still a good one.
Your opinions on Wii over Wii U are also good, but in the grand scheme of things, a little on the minor side for what appears to be less of a retro enthusiast than many of us (no offence OP!)
All that's just my opinion of course

That's the thing, it depends on what each individual person want to do, and as I said, the Wii U can be a great thing too, but if in this case GameCube stuff has more importance, Wii has some things over the Wii U, specially if you wanted to take advantage fully of the library and features some games have.

Let's hope Wii U updates don't screw up people over too.

LetterBomb is still the preferred method, it was never patched and it's extremely easy to use.
A little advice that could save you a lot of time and headaches: if you get a second hand Wii and parental control won't allow you to view the console's MAC address, use this to get the unlock code to disable it.

Also I don't have a Wii U but from what I've read the latest update only changed the EULA as well as some other stuff for SEPA compliance. Homebrew and CFW seem to be untouched.

I'd still recommend a GC compatible Wii, the ones without GC retrocompatibility are 100% sure to have a patched DVD drive. So I wouldn't say to avoid it 100% but you'll get much more features for roughly the same price.
The only model I'd avoid at all costs is the Wii Mini.

Nice to know LetterBomb is still good!

I guess those changes on the EULA and SEPA offer that much treasured stability.

 

[Song of storms]

I'd get it only for Gamecube.

 

[BORTZ]

I would suggest getting a Wii with Gamecube ports. Then you get the best of all worlds! If you want to go even farther you could remove the disk tray and stuff a harddrive in there, route the USB cable out that back (you would have to cut a hole in the housing) and plug it in!

 

[Larsenv]

To be completely honest, there weren't many games that had decent online multiplayer on the Wii with very few exceptions (namely Mario Kart Wii and SSBB. It was never the Wii's stronger suit so I wouldn't care about it too much, but if you REALLY want to play them online there's always RiiConnect24.

That aside, Wii consoles are dirt cheap nowadays and extremely easy to mod, plus even really small hard drives will be able to hold a plethora of games, for example a 250 GB one might still be more than enough for most people.

So, as I see it, it's pretty much down to two things:

1. If you have a PC powerful enough to emulate a Wii and don't care about playing the games on their original hardware, then don't buy a Wii. Use Dolphin instead.
   
2. On the other hand if you prefer playing them on their original hardware or simply want to add a console to your own collection, get out there and buy one. You can find really good deals from time to time and if you don't care about the DVD drive you can find Wii consoles with all cables and accessories with broken drives for literally dirt cheap.

I think you mean Wiimmfi to play games online again, Wiimmfi is for playing games online, RiiConnect24 is for bringing back the Channels and Wii Mail (which isn't compatible with Wii U yet).

 

[DinohScene]

I would suggest getting a Wii with Gamecube ports. Then you get the best of all worlds! If you want to go even farther you could remove the disk tray and stuff a harddrive in there, route the USB cable out that back (you would have to cut a hole in the housing) and plug it in!

I'd then go for a Sundriver.
Ditch the USB loading and go for an internal solution!

 

[RattletraPM]

Absolutely. I completely ruled out any possibly of a Wii Mini. Never seen the point, useless console in my opinion but hey ho, someone out there will love it.

There never was one, it was just a last ditch effort by Nintendo to kill homebrew and piracy. Too bad that it was a little too late, anyone who wanted a Wii already bought one by then.
...Basically the only ones who love it are obscure hardware collectors

I think you mean Wiimmfi to play games online again, Wiimmfi is for playing games online, RiiConnect24 is for bringing back the Channels and Wii Mail (which isn't compatible with Wii U yet).

Yeah, I got the two mixed up
I'll edit my post, thanks for pointing that out!

 

[Maeson]

Making cheaper versions of systems to try to push a few more sales is something common all around.
Losing video outputs, having worse quality audio, or removing certain features to lower the costs is the usual price.

The NES had the Top Loader, the Sega Mega Drive / Genesis had version 3, PS1 had several versions with less and less features, as PS2 & PS3 did too, 3DS comes to mind... Wii Mini is just another thing to add to the list.

Makes sense as a business move, I suppose, but some revisions certainly become rather pointless for people interested in the medium. Besides being curiosities, I mean. Other times we got close to total improvements, like de DS Lite or GB Pocket.

 

[RattletraPM]

Making cheaper versions of systems to try to push a few more sales is something common all around.
Losing video outputs, having worse quality audio, or removing certain features to lower the costs is the usual price.

The NES had the Top Loader, the Sega Mega Drive / Genesis had version 3, PS1 had several versions with less and less features, as PS2 & PS3 did too, 3DS comes to mind... Wii Mini is just another thing to add to the list.

Makes sense as a business move, I suppose, but some revisions certainly become rather pointless for people interested in the medium. Besides being curiosities, I mean. Other times we got close to total improvements, like de DS Lite or GB Pocket.

I get what you're saying and in fact more often than not that's very sensible, especially if a console is doing particularly well approaching its EOL. In fact, if you think about it, this is true with every single console you mentioned... except for the Wii.
Let's do a quick recap: PS1 & 2 (as well as the NES and Gensis) were both hugely successful consoles that were continued to be both sold and maintained for several years, the PS3 started off slow and got a lot of pace during its later days due do price cuts and more game releases, the 3DS is still racking up a lot of money for Nintendo even after the Switch's introduction... You get the point.

The Wii was a ginormous success, don't get me wrong. The problem here is that it sold a never sen before amount of units during its first years (up until 2008-2009), then sales started decline and stagnate completely. Of course it's to be expected that sales will decrease as time goes on but if you look at the PS3 and X360 sales charts they all sold very well up until 2012 and only started to fade away from 2013 onwards. Blame it whatever you want - be it shovelware, Nintendo's negligence or the gimmick of motion controls fading away but I personally remember very few people actually wanting a Wii after 2010 or so and virtually no one post 2013. Not to mention that well, let's be honest, one of the Wii's "unofficial selling points" was its ease to hack and, well... It didn't really help that Nintendo took that away in the Mini's case.

So yeah, console rereleases do indeed serve a purpose most of the time but I still think that the Wii Mini was released a tad too little, too late.

EDIT: Also I agree with you, the DS Lite was goddamn awesome. Anyone who says otherwise, fite me.

 

[Maeson]

Actually, by 2010 Wii sold around 70 Million Units. It sold another 30 Million from 2010 to 2013, which is not bad at all, specially when the competition started trying to ape Wii's success with the Kinect and the Move, which also helped to some extent to lower the opinion of the public towards motion controls, and of course the gap in hardware started to become more noticeable. While it's true that the interest for the system started to drop, it maintained good sales up until that point. Beyond 2013 sales went down hard, but by then a new generation was coming, or already there, with Wii U appearing in 2012.

Besides, there's a point where sales start to drop because you stop having people to sell things to. Unless your system breaks easily, like, let's say, Xbox 360 or PS2's usual lens problems, to add up units sold to replace broken ones, most families will have enough with one system (unless we're talking handhelds, of course).

But with that said, the effects of the Mini are probably negligible when you stop and look at the total sales; I'm with you on that. Only very, very casual consumers (and I mean this as a "I want a Just Dance/WiiSports machine to use a few times a year when family reunites") would gravitate towards that revision because it let them do that cheaply, any other type of consumer would look at it and go "no, I rather get a normal one" or even another system. I wouldn't be surprised if it's one of the least liked revisions of a console out there, and for good reason. It's not an appealing version of the hardware.

Stripping down the backwards compatibility is too big on its own, because it not only affected GC games but also Wii games with support for GC features, so when you add the other cuts, it just becomes worse and worse. Imagine if the PS2 Slim lost the PS1 compatibility... Ugh. The only other revision to compete for me is the Sega Genesis 3, for example, and I'd also like to know how much it sold. That thing was so cheap and light that with two controllers connected it could lose it's balance very easily.

And the best part: By that point, anyone that wanted a "Just Dance/WiiSports" machine most probably had it already or would go for the second had market, making the offer less interesting, even.

Funny thing about this, though, is that Wii software is still making Nintendo money. I remember reading not too long ago in the companies' info they release to shareholders and such that stuff like Mario Kart Wii and New Super Mario Bros Wii still make a profit, with 37 and 30 millions unit each.

That's insane.

 

[RattletraPM]

-snip-

You're absolutely right about hardware problems, I really didn't take that into account. I've seen many Wii consoles with DVD problems, sure, but it's nowhere near RROD territory. I got a 360 JTAG die on me years ago, yet my Wii is still kicking... Nintendium at its finest

That aside, I might've expressed myself wrongly in the other post. I didn't mean to say that the Wii didn't sell anymore starting from 2010, I just meant that the overall sales declined more rapidly than the other consoles at the time, just as you said that, by the time the Wii Mini came around there were many more people wanting a 360 or PS3 rather than a Wii. Afterall the Wii might have sold 30 more milion units between 2010 and 2013 but the PS3 managed to surpass that figure (41,2 milion circa) between 2010 and 2012 alone.

About Wii games still turning a profit for Nintendo, I actually didn't know that and it's genuinely amazing! But still, how does that work? I'm guessing it's mostly from the recently released chinese Tegra ports, but I'm still legitimately curious!

 

[Maeson]

Yeah, the early Wii units weren't prepared for double-layered DVDs, which wore down lenses left and right until they changed them. After that it went pretty smooth, thankfully. About 360... I passed through three different systems with several repairs each one for multiple causes, Red Ring of Dead included. Probably the worst piece of hardware I've ever had, talking purely about performance and durability. After the third died (for the last time) we couldn't be more soured about Microsoft in general, lol.

And I get you. X360 and PS3 picked up pace in the second half of the gen and started to sold quite better, probably when prices became more reasonable, specially for the PS3, and software releases also happened faster, making them shine more. Hell, PS3 had a terrible beginning, now that I remember, so it's good it picked up in the end and sold around 80M (very close to 360's 84M). I miss the days of Giant Enemy Crabs and 599 U.S. Dollars (I feel old!).

I'm not entirely sure about how they still make money out of Wii games, probably they produced so many units that there are still sealed games being shipped somewhere? The two games I mentioned are known from data showed back in March of this year, so it happened before the Wii-Tegra ports. and I would assume they see those versions as separate products. It's quite intriguing.

...Oh boy, I think I derailed this post entirely. Sorry about that!