How will the Wii be remembered?

[RegularGuyGamer | 2,013]

I was talking to a couple guys about how the Nintendo consoles in that era (DS, 3DS, Wii & Wii U) will be remembered and wondered what VGS thought about the topic. Considering it's almost 20 years old, it should have a nostalgia factor going forward.

For me, the topic breaks down into 3 categories: casuals, collectors and gamers. I think so most people who participate in the conversations are gamers by trade, they are the nost unfavorable towards the Wii. Even though a lot not games support the GCN and Pro controller, if a game requires you to shake the controller once the gang cries waggle and knocks points off.

Casuals on the other hand want the waggle since the waggle was the draw in the first place. I don't think waggle controls have been reproduced in any meaningful way outside of the Wii either. If you want to waggle a controller, your boxed into the Wii. 

I don't know how collectors will remember the Wii going forward. The one thing it has going for it was that there is a bunch of cardboard since there were a ton of pack in games. The downside is most of those pack in games were shit shooters or other low budget cash grabs. 

What do you all think? 

[fox | 1,667]

The same way that people remember POGs or Beanie Babies.  Everyone was crazy it for a year or two, and then moved on and it will be endlessly be the butt of jokes.

Everyone was acting like motion controls were the next big thing, when they barely worked.  Setup the sensor and calibrate the remotes and they still only work like 80% of the time. They were implemented so poorly and for some reason mandatory, they really were just shoehorned into everything no mater if it made sense or not.  That shallow gimmick got tired fast.

Where are all the motion games now?  We got gyro aiming on a handful of titles and that is mostly it.  Funny enough modern controllers have motion controls baked in without needed any extra sensor and they are much more accurate, but those features are hardly used.  Motion controls hit a dead end.  Nobody wants it.

Nintendo put out some good software, no doubt, but if it wasn't by them, the quality went off a cliff.  It was  really lacking in big third party games.  Wanna play Red Dead Redemption, Skyrim, Dark Souls, Bio Shock, Mass Effect, or any other games that really defined that generation?  Not on Wii.  But don't worry there is piles and piles of low quality shovelware sitting in a landfill somewhere.

If Wii should be remembered for anything it should be the Virtual Console, which really sparked an interest in a lot of people in getting into or back into old school games.  And WiiWare which helped grow the indie scene to what it is today.

The Wii also lacked HD and had terrible online, so your experience was always going to be less than ideal.  Everyone had a Wii, but after the fad, they just ended up collecting dust under the tv or in the closet.

Edited August 21, 2023 by fox

[Ferris Bueller | 495]

3 hours ago, fox said:

The same way that people remember POGs or Beanie Babies.  Everyone was crazy it for a year or two, and then moved on and it will be endlessly be the butt of jokes.

When's the last time you checked Wii prices or tried to buy a Wii? I think you are wrong post quarantine. It had a resurgence.

[spacepup | 2,405]

From a historical standpoint, the Wii was wildly successful for Nintendo, which I'm sure was quite welcome as Nintendo most definitely wasn't really king of the console wars during the GameCube era.  It certainly made Nintendo a lot of money which undoubtedly helped their future.

The other thing it did was brought a lot of mainstream people into gaming.  It's hard to really evaluate or analyze where all those people went from there, but it definitely had a big impact to the broader gaming market, in ways we can't fully quantify now.

I know there are a lot of people in modding communities who are *still* super into the Wii, because it is so versatile for modding, homebrew, and all sorts of other things.  Coupled with the fact that it is super easy to get a console, it brings a lot of value for them.

I don't find myself going back and playing Wii games often, but I think it had a very big impact to the industry, in a few different ways.

 

[MegaMan52 | 2,450]

I'll remember it as the first Nintendo console that disappointed me somewhat, despite having a handful of good games (Mario Galaxy, Metroid Prime 3). It's full of shovelware, more than a lot of other Nintendo systems. I was very disappointed by the lack of a Star Fox, F-Zero, and all-new Pikmin game on the console. I didn't care for the flipped environments in the Wii version of Twilight Princess, and got (and still have) the GameCube version. The console was so underpowered compared to PS3 and Xbox 360 that it either got completely different or heavily watered down games, or missed out on certain games entirely. The Pac-Man World games on GameCube are pretty good, and I was hoping for something similar on the Wii. But nope. A whopping four years after the console was released, the Wii got Pac-Man Party (as if it didn't have enough of those kinds of games already). Sonic 4 Episode 2 and Sonic Generations were planned for the Wii, but the Wii versions were canceled. Disappointing, since Sonic was a huge deal on the GameCube.

Like the Wii U, many of the Wii's better games are on the Switch or 3DS with added content. Super Mario Galaxy, Zelda: Skyward Sword, Sonic Colors, Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz, Kirby's Return to Dream Land, Okami, Mega Man 9, and Mega Man 10 are all on the Switch. Heck even some of the Wii's more gimmicky games were ported to the Switch and remastered in HD, like Pac 'n Roll Remix and Pac-Motos (from Namco Museum Remix) which are included in Pac-Man Museum +. The 3DS got Donkey Kong Country Returns with more levels. It also got Kirby's Epic Yarn.

I beat Super Paper Mario last year in the Spring, and haven't played the Wii since. It's one of the least played consoles I have.

I'll always prefer the NES, SNES, N64, and GameCube, and despite some flaws I believe the Switch is also a far superior system than both the Wii and Wii U. I liked the Wii enough that I eventually bought one in 2012 and don't hate it, but I don't go back to it as much as most other Nintendo consoles.

Edited August 22, 2023 by MegaMan52

[Reed Rothchild | 9,544]

As the system Zoomers and/or your grandmother loved, where the best games were all (eventually, hopefully) ported to the 3DS/Switch/Switch 2 because no one wants to collect a system that's 97% shovelware and had a bunch of wires and sensors and waggling and shit.

[Ankos | 442]

5 hours ago, fox said:

Everyone was acting like motion controls were the next big thing, when they barely worked.  Setup the sensor and calibrate the remotes and they still only work like 80% of the time. They were implemented so poorly and for some reason mandatory, they really were just shoehorned into everything no mater if it made sense or not.  That shallow gimmick got tired fast.

Fun fact: The sensor is not actually the sensor, the real sensor is in the Wiimote, the bar you plug in is what gives off the IR. I never had trouble getting it to work, though that may be due to how my room was laid out

[captmorgandrinker | 1,649]

2 hours ago, Ferris Bueller said:

When's the last time you checked Wii prices or tried to buy a Wii? I think you are wrong post quarantine. It had a resurgence.

Especially during quarantine.   Helped make up for the shitburger I had to eat on my pay at work at the time.

[RegularGuyGamer | 2,013]

10 hours ago, fox said:

They were implemented so poorly and for some reason mandatory, they really were just shoehorned into everything no mater if it made sense or not. 

I gotta say, I've never had an issue with Wii controls outside of skyward sword. That game was ruined by the waggle. However, every AAA title I played outside of that, I thought the Wii remote added to the experience. 

Most shovelware games had it thrown in as an after thought but there are plenty that did it well.

10 hours ago, fox said:

Wii should be remembered for anything it should be the Virtual Console, which really sparked an interest in a lot of people in getting into or back into old school games.  And WiiWare which helped grow the indie scene to what it is today.

I agree here. I think that is the basis for the homebrew scene exploding into what it is today. Handheld Wii is a hell of sight to behold too.

[nrslam | 476]

Personally, I liked the motion controllers and never had any trouble using them. Our local community center still has regular Wii Sports tournaments, great for getting the old folk moving, and I know some titles are used by physical therapists wotking with patients that have coordination and balance issues.

These are niche uses, I realize, but valuable in ways systems using conventional controls aren't.

From a gaming or collecting standpoint,  the library is too big and too full of shovelware, but it makes a dandy emulator for older stuff.

 

[Bearcat-Doug | 5,105]

I remember it as the thing I used to play Wii Sports on.

[Hammerfestus | 3,852]

It was a post-college console to me.  It reminds me of wasted nights at my buddies old apartment mostly playing Wii Sports.  Also that one dancing game.  I absolutely dominated that dancing game to the point they would accuse me of cheating.  I simply could not get them to accept that they just have no rhythm.  

[Renmauzo | 1,201]

Objective Answer:

I think the Wii's legacy will be one of breathing life back into Nintendo after 3 commercial failures, stopping the bleeding and restoring confidence in the company while proving that they could still march to the beat of their own drum and be successful doing so in an industry that was skewing in a different direction.

Me Answer:

I remember the Wii as being the Nintendo system that frustrated me the most. I hated being forced to use motion control - whether it be to control a game proper, or little gimmicky things tacked on - and so I wanted to enjoy the handful of games that spoke to me but always had the problem where I'd get discouraged from playing before even popping in a disc because I just didn't want to deal with the controls.

I know I'm oversimplifying it, but I quickly came to have a negative association when thinking of playing anything on the Wii, so I mostly played other things. Flash forward a decade + later, and the 56 games I have just sit there - half of which are still sealed - and I find myself thinking more and more about selling them all and being done with it. I'm currently caught in that 'rock and a hard place' spot of wanting to keep the games as most are trapped on that console (thinking I may come around), and saying to myself, 'Who are you kidding? You could be playing Saturn, or SNES, or Switch..." etc.

So I guess - in the end - the Wii's legacy is, for me, one of 'Couldn't be bothered'.

[Tyree_Cooper | 755]

It will be remembered for having Metroid Prime 3 on it, and not porting it to the GameCube. Thanks Wiintendo!

[CMR | 520]

It's an awesome console that many people ignored because the controls.

[twiztor | 851]

13 hours ago, Renmauzo said:

I think the Wii's legacy will be one of breathing life back into Nintendo after 3 commercial failures [...] while proving that they could still march to the beat of their own drum and be successful doing so in an industry that was skewing in a different direction.

i think, to me, this is the answer. While the GC started the trend, the Wii really solidified that Nintendo wasn't trying to compete with Sony/Microsoft from a 'powerful console' standard. They wanted to innovate, create new ways for consumers to enjoy their games, and experiment. Whether that was by choice or by necessity i don't know, but i do know that it helped me enjoy different play styles. 

14 hours ago, RegularGuyGamer said:

I gotta say, I've never had an issue with Wii controls outside of skyward sword. That game was ruined by the waggle.

14 hours ago, nrslam said:

Personally, I liked the motion controllers and never had any trouble using them.

pretty much the same here. Skyward Sword was my only overtly negative experience with the motion controls. Not sure if the game just required precision that i couldn't meet, or if the sensors couldn't handle what i was doing, but it led to a decent amount of frustration.

Mario Kart Wii is my favorite of the franchise, and using the Wiimotes + wheel is the preferred way to play in my household. It just adds an extra level of fun, especially for less serious gamers. it had the bonus effect of leveling the playing field somewhat, as any hardcore gamers that would come by to play would get frustrated by using the wheel and just wanted to use a GC controller. 

[nrslam | 476]

1 hour ago, twiztor said:

Mario Kart Wii is my favorite of the franchise, and using the Wiimotes + wheel is the preferred way to play in my household. It just adds an extra level of fun, especially for less serious gamers. it had the bonus effect of leveling the playing field somewhat, as any hardcore gamers that would come by to play would get frustrated by using the wheel and just wanted to use a GC controller. 

A great point. The wife and I play a lot of racing games on various systems and she always wants to twist the controller like a steering wheel. The Wiimote w/ wheel (and the Atari 2600) are the only systems on which this works the way she wants it to, without getting out one the big honking steering wheel/pedal systems.

Edited August 22, 2023 by nrslam

[Ankos | 442]

I will remember the Wii as something I had a lot of fun with in the past. It had some great games, and it had a lot of duds. Every system has a ton of mediocre games and a decent chunk of bad games on them, so just don't play those. Backwards compatible Wiis are also not that expensive, so it can be a nice option to play some Gamecube games. I don't think I've heard as much about diodes in Wiis wearing out as I have for Gamecubes. I guess in a nutshell I will remember the Wii as great, but I don't think I'd ever try and go back to dig into its library

[spacepup | 2,405]

The other thing I forgot to mention - and this is more anecdotal and personalized, but still - back when the wii was popular, my nephew was at a great young age for enjoying video games.  I have very very fond memories of playing wii games with him - mario kart, tennis, bowling, a bunch of the lego games, and many more.  Hours of quality time with my nephew, which are more important and memorable for me than most other gaming experiences.  The Wii was extremely accessible for him, and allowed us both to enjoy content together in a new way.  

For that, I'll always be grateful to the wii and the many hours of great fun and bonding time.

Sure there are tons of shovelware games, but there were also some really good games that I enjoyed a lot, like Super Mario Galaxy, Metroid Prime trilogy, Xenoblade, and several others.  I particularly enjoyed Okami and Trauma Center, which I felt used the motion controls pretty well, among some others.

All in all, it isn't my favorite system of all time (that is hands down PS2   ), but, I had lots of fun with it and don't seem to have *near* the negative emotion toward it as a system like many others.

 

[Code Monkey | 2,011]

It'll be remembered as that console with all of the great shop games we'll never see released anywhere else.

• Arkanoid Plus!
• Blaster Master: Overdrive
• Bubble Bobble Plus!
• Castlevania: The Adventure ReBirth
• Contra ReBirth
• Doc Louis's Punch-Out!!
• Gradius ReBirth
• Sonic The Hedgehog 4: Episode I

I bet many people reading this right now don't realize they're missing out on Contra and Bubble Bobble games we'll never see get another release. There were also Final Fantasy, Harvest Moon and Pokemon games in there.

[Link | 2,714]

I will remember it fondly. I had a lot of really good times with it. Could have had a lot more with local co-op if my social situation was different in its heyday. It's a library I will keep in my rotation.

Personally I never had a problem with the controls. I'd even say the motion stuff is really easy to use. With most games, you can make gestures as broadly or subtle as you want. 

I don't understand the complaints about shovelware, except from a full set collecting angle. That could suck (but why do it if you don't want a challenge?) Sure there's some shit games. Every console has them. I will just stick to the good ones. Of which there are plenty for Wii. That's not even getting into Virtual Console and Wii Shop stuff, which I never did because I only bought physical.

[Reed Rothchild | 9,544]

I think the complaint is that for a library of that size and the success of the console, there should be hundreds of releases that are potentially worth owning.

But the actual number is maybe 50.  At most.  And I say that as someone who likes a much broader spectrum of games than most (if not all) people.

And what are the cream of the crop?  The killer apps. Two Mario games and a Metroid?  That's pretty weak.

[Kguillemette | 1,544]

I will always enjoy looking back at the wii. Sure most of the hits have been ported, remade, or remastered, but that's the case with almost any game ever from the mid to late 2000s, so I cant fault it for that. And while the motion controls are okay at best, the system makes for some great arcade rail shooters. House of the Dead? Sin and Punishment? Gimme Gimme! Another thing I will remember the wii for is reviving the 2d platformer as a genre. Donkey Kong Country Returns and NSMB sparked that retro revival and reminded us that such experiences are great when played on the big screen and not just the handhelds.

Edited August 22, 2023 by Kguillemette

[Splain | 2,571]

I have happy memories of the Wii. In college I played lots of Rock Band, Smash, etc with buddies. And yeah, you can emulate anything that came before it, or play GC natively on it. So it's a great "portablizing" system. I'm working on a portable Wii in a Game Gear shell in my garage, I've been at it for years, maybe I'll finish it someday. (I'm still smoothing out those rough areas, I know it looks bad )

But when I tell people I'm making a portable Wii, I always get a confused look, like am I gonna hold it with one hand and swing the Wii remote with the other? So I'd definitely say it's not being remembered for ALL of its accomplishments or games, in my experience it's being remembered only for TENNIS.

[wongojack | 215]

I come at this as more of a gaming afficionado of many generations.  I've never been a completionist collector, so the word "collector" doesn't really fit for me, but I want to experience as much gaming variety and history as I can. 

I went on a collecting binge for the Wii about 5 or 6 years ago when Gamestop was still roaring and was closing out their supply of most Wii games.  I found that there were more games on the system that appealed to me than I thought.  To this day, I probably have the biggest collection of physical games from that generation on Wii than any other - partly because the Wii also has the "advantage" of not requiring an online connection for various software updates etc.  In that way the Wii is sort of the last turn on and play console that was ever released.

Overall, I really like the Wii and have enjoyed exploring the library of what most people seem to categorize as shovelware.  There's a lot of games that were skipped over in there for no good reason.  Sure - many have been re-released, but that's now true for almost every console.

I suppose I should also add that I'm not really a Nintendo-guy.  I've had plenty of amazing experiences playing games by Nintendo, but I don't make it a goal to play or own all the first party titles.  I mostly am looking at Nintendo for what they can provide in terms of overall enjoyment as opposed to where I can find Mario, Zelda, and Metroid.

Edited August 23, 2023 by wongojack