Homebrew The Future of the Wii U - A Rallying Cry for Homebrew Enthusiasts

86houdini

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The Wii U has faced some challenges over the years, but it is not dead yet. In fact, some exciting developments have occurred that we should all be aware of. For instance, solutions have been found for NAND failures by using a Raspberry Pi, which allows us to restore our beloved console to its former glory.

Moreover, the recent eShop shutdown has led to a boost in Wii U homebrew interest. The shutdown has created an opportunity for us to explore our creativity and create our own games, apps, and tools. We've seen how much love the Vita, another "failed" console, has gotten lately with homebrew. So, we should not give up on the Wii U just yet, as it still has untapped potential for homebrew.

To truly realize the Wii U's potential, we need native homebrew that can use the Wii U's unique features. Imagine having a weather app that utilizes the console's touch screen. Or, a music player app that allows you to create playlists using the GamePad's touch screen. Additionally, a photo display app would be fantastic to have on the Wii U gamepad. These native homebrew options can truly showcase what this console is capable of. If you're like me, and you bought a Wii U nearly 10 years ago, it can sometimes feel like we never truly saw the best this hardware concept could offer.

As a community, we have the power to bring the Wii U back to life. Let's join forces and make it the best it can be. To encourage homebrew development, I'm excited to announce a contest. In one month, on 4/20, I'll be giving away $100 in Steam gift cards to the top 5 applications/games/ports as voted on by the community. So, let's get creative and make the Wii U shine!

Contest Overview
Prize: $100 in Steam gift cards for the top 5 applications/games/ports as voted on by the community.

Rules:

  • The contest will run for one month, from March 20th to April 20th.
  • Participants must submit their homebrew applications/games/ports to this thread by April 15th. Voting will begin on the 15th, and end on the 20th.
  • The submission should include a description of the application/game/port, instructions on how to install and run it, and any additional notes or features.
  • Participants can submit multiple entries, but each entry should be a unique application/game/port.
Criteria:

  • The community will vote for their favorite entries based on creativity, functionality, and overall quality.
  • The top 5 entries with the most votes will receive the prize - a $20 Steam Gift Card
  • The homebrew must run on the Wii U natively, and utilize the gamepad in some way.
  • Originality: Entries that offer a fresh and unique take on a particular concept or genre may be favored over those that are more derivative or imitative.
  • Stability: Entries that are reliable and free of bugs and glitches may be preferred over those that are prone to crashing or malfunctioning.
  • Accessibility: Entries that are user-friendly and easy to navigate may be more appealing to voters than those that are overly complicated or confusing.
  • Aesthetic appeal: Entries that have attractive visuals, sound design, or overall presentation may stand out from those that are more visually or aurally unremarkable.
  • Ports of existing games/engines are allowed as long as follow the above criteria.
 

rcpd

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A month to build a homebrew application or port isn’t that long. Most homebrew takes months to complete and be “bug free” if they even ever are.

I appreciate the sentiment, but without allowing existing homebrew, I fear this won’t get much further than… We’ll, where we are at right now.
 
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A month to build a homebrew application or port isn’t that long. Most homebrew takes months to complete and be “bug free” if they even ever are.

I appreciate the sentiment, but without allowing existing homebrew, I fear this won’t get much further than… We’ll, where we are at right now.
I agree. A month isn’t long at all, especially for homebrew development which usually takes place during modder’s free time. I think perhaps 6-12 months would be more fair to devs and would allow them to create larger, more impressive results.
 

Ettino

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Aren't most of the Criteria things have already been done anyway? I mean at this point, the console is pretty much a niche even for the modding community. Sure, it would be cool if it's even half way as popular as the vita modding sceen. Realistically though, even my phone can do a much better job emulating stuff than the wii u but that's not the point I guess.

But hey, kudos for trying. Maybe add another 0 to the prize just to make it more attractive.
 
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duwen

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Even without this 'rallying cry' I'm pretty sure that the Wii U will still receive new homebrew for quite a while. It may not be as prevalent as the Vita, but we're still yet to receive a RC version of Aroma along with all the potential that may bring.
There are other platforms dead decades longer than the Wii U that still have active homebrew communities, so I remain hopeful that we'll see homebrew innovations and solutions for the system for many years to come.
 
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Ewpb

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An audio visualiser using the mic on the gamepad would get my vote.

Play music from the sound system - Wii U pumps the audio into the system via the mic at low latency.

Spectrum analyser a go-go. Make it compatible with Winamp visualiser plugins. Job done.
 
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86houdini

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I agree. A month isn’t long at all, especially for homebrew development which usually takes place during modder’s free time. I think perhaps 6-12 months would be more fair to devs and would allow them to create larger, more impressive results.
We can deff change the timeline based on feedback given.
What does this mean? I mean all homebrews utilize the gamepad as a controller.

What about the existing ports from @GaryOderNichts like Zelda OoT, for example?
I would say it's the difference between BotW on Wii U and Twilight Princess on Wii U, BotW really just uses the gamepad as a controller and doesn't take advantage of the screen to remain in parity with the switch. TP has more uses of the touch screen, ie the map, inventory, etc.
 
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Lostbhoy

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So you want what Nintendo failed to do during it's whole life and you want "enthusiasts" to break that mould within a month for 100 bucks? Who's fronting the money lol

I get your enthusiasm and new angle but this is just another "I want new shit on my console (that's notoriously hard to develop for) but I'm not willing to put the effort in myself" post.

Sorry if that seems harsh but I certainly can't see anything worth while being done in any timescale, reward or not. People will do what they do if and when they feel like it and can viably get it tested before it sees the light of day. That can't be emphasised enough.

So the end result of your request is basically the environment we currently exist in but your willing to pay someone for it! Should maybe up the fee.
 

The Catboy

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As someone who has been part of the homebrew scene for most of my life, I can tell you one thing is true. Homebrew will be made when it's made and will take however long the devs feel like taking. It's nice to want to motivate the community but if the Virtualboy has a homebrew community, then I think the WiiU will be fine.
 

Quincy

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I agree. A month isn’t long at all, especially for homebrew development which usually takes place during modder’s free time. I think perhaps 6-12 months would be more fair to devs and would allow them to create larger, more impressive results.
Entire (indie) games have been made in 1 and 2 week codejams, so a month for homebrew isn't completely outside the realm of possibilities :P
 
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jeffyTheHomebrewer

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Anything that just does something interesting with the Bluetooth would be nice. Sure, bloopair is cool, but what about using the gamepad to control a Sphero? (or ollie/droid/so on)
Post automatically merged:

I realize that'd take a ton of work, and might not even be fully possible, but still. It would just be nice to get SOMETHING interesting that uses bluetooth. Even if it's just audio or something.
 

V10lator

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Entire (indie) games have been made in 1 and 2 week codejams
...with dedicated full time developers and the results where alpha quality. So not compareable with homebrew devs working in their free time and the requirement that the result is bug free.
 
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eyeliner

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Hmmpf, I would like to help, but I'm in the library hell.

WHY DO THEY ALL HAVE TO BE COMPILED FROM SOURCE?

This is something that frustrates me to no end.
 

eyeliner

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They don't? https://devkitpro.org/wiki/Getting_Started
Also lot of project have Docker files, doing all the dependency magic for you.
Sorry, should have been more clear. I was talking about libsmb, for instance.

I'd like to make an app to access a fileshare to install games from there, but I'm dumb with library use in C.

Then I'd adapt an existing homebrew to use that. If at all possible or performant.

But it's too damn hard.
 

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