Is the Nintendo Wii still worth buying in 2023?

[inpurpleshadows]

For most of my life, I have used computers for gaming. With a few exceptions I've barely played video games on home consoles or handhelds because I just prefer playing them on PC's. I'm not one of those "PC Master Race" idiots who rants about how computers are the definitive way to play video games, but I have always preferred playing games on PC's because of its massive library of games, impressive specs and general convenience. However, I have recently been thinking of buying a home console, specifically the Nintendo Wii because I have formed a lot of nostalgic memories with it during my early childhood. However, it was around 2014 when I stopped playing on my Wii because I got a laptop which could only play low-end games like Minecraft and Team Fortress 2. Since I found my laptop more enjoyable, I sold my Wii as well as my DS and Xbox 360. I now have a full-on gaming PC which I have been using ever since my laptop stopped working 2 years ago.

Even though modern consoles like the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S are objectively more advanced in terms of audio, graphics and gameplay, I still feel like getting a Nintendo Wii due to the nostalgic memories I formed with it during childhood and the large amount of quality titles. However, I still have my doubts because a lot of people in the gaming community, especially hardcore gamers have shunned the Wii for its low-end specs, inferior graphics and focus on casual audiences. Though, despite all these flaws I still want to buy a Wii but I wonder if it is still actually worth buying in the modern era of gaming and if it is, what are some of the best games for the system?

[Boblin the Goblin]

Get a Wii U.

It can play every Wii game(because it has the native hardware) and if you hack it, every GameCube game natively.

[inpurpleshadows]

Ursprungligen skrivet av SlowMango:

Get a Wii U.

It can play every Wii game(because it has the native hardware) and if you hack it, every GameCube game natively.

A Wii U sounds great... however I compared the prices between the two consoles and a regular Wii costs about $60 while a Wii U costs $150. The fact that you can play Wii games on a Wii U is cool but it's a bit out of my prince range for now.

[Boblin the Goblin]

Ursprungligen skrivet av inpurpleshadows:

Ursprungligen skrivet av SlowMango:

Get a Wii U.

It can play every Wii game(because it has the native hardware) and if you hack it, every GameCube game natively.

A Wii U sounds great... however I compared the prices between the two consoles and a regular Wii costs about $60 while a Wii U costs $150. The fact that you can play Wii games on a Wii U is cool but it's a bit out of my prince range for now.

You're getting 3 consoles in one with a Wii U.

[inpurpleshadows]

Ursprungligen skrivet av SlowMango:

Ursprungligen skrivet av inpurpleshadows:

A Wii U sounds great... however I compared the prices between the two consoles and a regular Wii costs about $60 while a Wii U costs $150. The fact that you can play Wii games on a Wii U is cool but it's a bit out of my prince range for now.

You're getting 3 consoles in one with a Wii U.

Now that I think about it, that does sound like a pretty cool deal.

[Azure Fang]

If you pre-curate the games you want to play, no, the Wii is absolutely not worth it. Every Wii and GameCube game can be emulated flawlessly, presuming you legally purchase your games, though a rare few have clunky controls without native hardware (Elebits immediately comes to mind). It's also worth noting that the Wii Shop (and I believe WiiU) was shut down, so you'll have no access to a large segment of the Wii library.

Don't give Nintendo more money than you have to. They don't deserve it.

[Boblin the Goblin]

Ursprungligen skrivet av Azure Fang:

If you pre-curate the games you want to play, no, the Wii is absolutely not worth it. Every Wii and GameCube game can be emulated flawlessly, presuming you legally purchase your games, though a rare few have clunky controls without native hardware (Elebits immediately comes to mind). It's also worth noting that the Wii Shop (and I believe WiiU) was shut down, so you'll have no access to a large segment of the Wii library.

Don't give Nintendo more money than you have to. They don't deserve it.

They don't make Wii systems anymore. You literally cannot buy one that isn't second hand.

[Azure Fang]

Ursprungligen skrivet av SlowMango:

Ursprungligen skrivet av Azure Fang:

If you pre-curate the games you want to play, no, the Wii is absolutely not worth it. Every Wii and GameCube game can be emulated flawlessly, presuming you legally purchase your games, though a rare few have clunky controls without native hardware (Elebits immediately comes to mind). It's also worth noting that the Wii Shop (and I believe WiiU) was shut down, so you'll have no access to a large segment of the Wii library.

Don't give Nintendo more money than you have to. They don't deserve it.

They don't make Wii systems anymore. You literally cannot buy one that isn't second hand.

Don't make =/= Not In Stock

There are still sources of new Wiis thanks to Nintendo's market flood and they still track those sales figures as a metric for scheduling re-releases. That said, they don't even deserve the optics of purchasing used hardware at this point (none of the console manufacturers do, but that's a whole 'nother argument).

There's no reason to have the extra hardware clutter when the games run perfectly through emulation. Hell, most Wii and GC games run better on PC that on native hardware and benefit from upscaling (among other modernizations). Yes, I'm biased against Nintendo due to their worse-than-most anti-consumer practices, but with the huge strides that have been made in emulation in the past decade there's little reason to buy original hardware aside from personal collection.

[ARGH!!]

Ursprungligen skrivet av Azure Fang:

If you pre-curate the games you want to play, no, the Wii is absolutely not worth it. Every Wii and GameCube game can be emulated flawlessly, presuming you legally purchase your games, though a rare few have clunky controls without native hardware (Elebits immediately comes to mind). It's also worth noting that the Wii Shop (and I believe WiiU) was shut down, so you'll have no access to a large segment of the Wii library.

Don't give Nintendo more money than you have to. They don't deserve it.

Do we have proper drivers to get the Wii motion plus remotes and the Wii balance board working fully because it's not the same experience without the real stuff.

[Azure Fang]

Ursprungligen skrivet av ARGH!!:

Ursprungligen skrivet av Azure Fang:

If you pre-curate the games you want to play, no, the Wii is absolutely not worth it. Every Wii and GameCube game can be emulated flawlessly, presuming you legally purchase your games, though a rare few have clunky controls without native hardware (Elebits immediately comes to mind). It's also worth noting that the Wii Shop (and I believe WiiU) was shut down, so you'll have no access to a large segment of the Wii library.

Don't give Nintendo more money than you have to. They don't deserve it.

Do we have proper drivers to get the Wii motion plus remotes and the Wii balance board working fully because it's not the same experience without the real stuff.

Standalone Dolphin does, yeah.

[inpurpleshadows]

Ursprungligen skrivet av Azure Fang:

If you pre-curate the games you want to play, no, the Wii is absolutely not worth it. Every Wii and GameCube game can be emulated flawlessly, presuming you legally purchase your games, though a rare few have clunky controls without native hardware (Elebits immediately comes to mind). It's also worth noting that the Wii Shop (and I believe WiiU) was shut down, so you'll have no access to a large segment of the Wii library.

Don't give Nintendo more money than you have to. They don't deserve it.

I would emulate Wii games if I wanted to, however the whole motion control scheme seems pretty difficult to emulate. I guess that some of the Wii games that don't require motion controls would be easy to emulate, but not so much for the ones that do.

[Boblin the Goblin]

Ursprungligen skrivet av Azure Fang:

Ursprungligen skrivet av SlowMango:

They don't make Wii systems anymore. You literally cannot buy one that isn't second hand.

Don't make =/= Not In Stock

There are still sources of new Wiis thanks to Nintendo's market flood and they still track those sales figures as a metric for scheduling re-releases. That said, they don't even deserve the optics of purchasing used hardware at this point (none of the console manufacturers do, but that's a whole 'nother argument).

There's no reason to have the extra hardware clutter when the games run perfectly through emulation. Hell, most Wii and GC games run better on PC that on native hardware and benefit from upscaling (among other modernizations). Yes, I'm biased against Nintendo due to their worse-than-most anti-consumer practices, but with the huge strides that have been made in emulation in the past decade there's little reason to buy original hardware aside from personal collection.

Literally no one is selling new Wii systems that aren't second hand.

[Boblin the Goblin]

Ursprungligen skrivet av inpurpleshadows:

Ursprungligen skrivet av Azure Fang:

If you pre-curate the games you want to play, no, the Wii is absolutely not worth it. Every Wii and GameCube game can be emulated flawlessly, presuming you legally purchase your games, though a rare few have clunky controls without native hardware (Elebits immediately comes to mind). It's also worth noting that the Wii Shop (and I believe WiiU) was shut down, so you'll have no access to a large segment of the Wii library.

Don't give Nintendo more money than you have to. They don't deserve it.

I would emulate Wii games if I wanted to, however the whole motion control scheme seems pretty difficult to emulate. I guess that some of the Wii games that don't require motion controls would be easy to emulate, but not so much for the ones that do.

You need a dedicated Bluetooth dongle to properly use a Wiimote. It's a little weird to setup but Dolphin has a dedicated guide.

[inpurpleshadows]

Ursprungligen skrivet av SlowMango:

Ursprungligen skrivet av inpurpleshadows:

I would emulate Wii games if I wanted to, however the whole motion control scheme seems pretty difficult to emulate. I guess that some of the Wii games that don't require motion controls would be easy to emulate, but not so much for the ones that do.

You need a dedicated Bluetooth dongle to properly use a Wiimote. It's a little weird to setup but Dolphin has a dedicated guide.

Hold on, before I emulate Wii games, I wonder if Wii U games can also properly be emulated. You mentioned how buying a used Wii U is a pretty good deal because of how it can run games from three different platforms, those being Wii U (duh), Wii and GameCube. Is it more preferable to buy a real, authentic Wii U or just simply emulate the games released for said console?

[Boblin the Goblin]

Ursprungligen skrivet av inpurpleshadows:

Ursprungligen skrivet av SlowMango:

You need a dedicated Bluetooth dongle to properly use a Wiimote. It's a little weird to setup but Dolphin has a dedicated guide.

Hold on, before I emulate Wii games, I wonder if Wii U games can also properly be emulated. You mentioned how buying a used Wii U is a pretty good deal because of how it can run games from three different platforms, those being Wii U (duh), Wii and GameCube. Is it more preferable to buy a real, authentic Wii U or just simply emulate the games released for said console?

All depends on your hardware.

[inpurpleshadows]

Ursprungligen skrivet av SlowMango:

Ursprungligen skrivet av inpurpleshadows:

Hold on, before I emulate Wii games, I wonder if Wii U games can also properly be emulated. You mentioned how buying a used Wii U is a pretty good deal because of how it can run games from three different platforms, those being Wii U (duh), Wii and GameCube. Is it more preferable to buy a real, authentic Wii U or just simply emulate the games released for said console?

All depends on your hardware.

Here are my specs:
AMD Ryzen 7 5800X 8-Core Processor @ 3.80 GHz
16.0 GB of installed RAM
64-bit operating system, x64-based processor
No pen or touch input is available for my display