Wii Launch Guide - Backwards Compatibility
By: Andrew Joy & Jared BlackWhile the Wii controller seems designed to attract non-gamers, and the next wave of classic franchises like Zelda and Mario will hold on to those of who have been gaming for years, Nintendo is also planning to recapture those who used to game, with backwards compatibility (“second verse, same as the first!”) being key to that plan. Not only will games from classic Nintendo systems like the NES, SNES and N64 be available, but the Big N has also partnered with the makers of other past consoles to offer titles from the Genesis and TurboGrafx-16, and possibly more in the future (the Commodore 64, for one, has already been announced). Also, the Wii can play GameCube games right out of the box (assuming players have the proper controllers, that is) – no need to download patches and no memory card adaptor needed (zing!). So, with that in mind, we’ve compiled a list of what we think everybody should be playing when they’re not playing Wii games. Welcome to the nex--er, um, last generation...
Virtual Console
By purchasing Wii Points at retailers for a penny a point (meaning 2000 Wii Points will cost you twenty bucks), gamers can buy their favorite games off of Nintendo’s Wii Shop Channel and save them either to SD cards (though they cannot be used on another person’s system) or the system’s 512MB of built-in memory – and if you run out of space, you can delete a title and download it again at any time for free. Though it may vary from system to system and from developer to developer, the basic pricing structure sits as thus: NES games for 500 Wii Points ($5 USD), TurboGrafx-16 for 600 ($6), SNES and SEGA Genesis for 800 ($8), and N64 for 1000 ($10). Let’s not forget the specially designed Classic Controller for $20, which is designed for the more complex button schemes found on the SNES and up (though Nintendo has stated that your old GCN controllers will also work). Apart from the lack of rumble support for N64 games, each title will be presented in its original format, with no graphical enhancements, online play, or motion-sensitive functionality. To help you decide what to spend your money on, we’ve made a list of the top game for each system at launch to help the rest of you get the most bang for you buck:
NES: The Legend of Zelda – This is the game that started it all. It was the first time Link donned his green tunic. It was the first time he picked up the Master Sword. It was the first time he saved Princess Zelda and Hyrule Kingdom. Of course, he does it again on every system, but this one is the NES original.
SNES: F-Zero – Remarkable for its time, the futuristic racer F-Zero made a lot of fans back on the SNES with its pseudo-3D graphics and ultra-fast gameplay. Nowadays, these games are a dime a dozen and fairly cookie cutter in design – so pay your respects (in the form of $8) to their progenitor!
N64: Super Mario 64 – Apart from being the only N64 title available on the VC at launch (and one of only two during the original system’s launch), Super Mario 64 represents an impressive landmark for the series. Not only was it the first 3D Super Mario game, but also the innovative analog control truly revolutionized the industry. And, in that moment, you can really see the birth of the Wii...even if it took Nintendo some five years and a complete failure of a console to realize it. Truly, no Mario title since has lived up to that game yet.
SEGA Genesis: Sonic the Hedgehog – Sonic is truly a character that needs no introduction, having appeared on a wide variety of systems since he first debuted on the SEGA Genesis back in 1991. And though Sonic appears to be returning to his roots with his upcoming Wii title, few games have captured the feel of the original Sonic the Hedgehog, so be sure you don’t miss it.
TurboGrafx-16: Bonk’s Adventure – Though never as popular as, say, Mario or Sonic, Bonk was intended as the system’s mascot character, and the little caveman with the big cranium does have a bit of a following. Your traditional platformer, but where as Mario eats mushrooms and stomps on, um, mushrooms, Bonk eats meat for power-ups and skull bashes his dinosaur foes. We’ll just consider him a very distant relative to everyone’s favorite plumber.
GameCube
Farewell, GameCube, we knew thee well. It seems at long last, the days of the little purple box have come to an end, but it shall not be forgotten – just as you can relive the classics via the Virtual Console, any GameCube game can be slipped into and played on the Wii, and it even has ports for four controllers (Wavebird compatible) and two memory cards. The system may have lacked the third-party support it needed to be a success, but it had its fare share of excellent games that every gamer should pick up and play while they still have a chance. So, in as much as this is a list of what we feel are the ten greatest video games on the GameCube, we also consider it a list of backwards compatibility must-haves.
Animal Crossing – A landmark series for Nintendo, Animal Crossing was proof that the company could still create a viable new franchise (with a DS version also out and a Wii version in the works) and not just ride on the coattails of its past successes. While it wasn’t epic by any stretch of the imagination, millions of gamers wasted months, even years, living a carefree life in an animal-inhabited town that flowed in real-time. Plus, it also made the case for GCN-to-GBA connectivity, with an exclusive island getaway that couldn’t be accessed any other way.
Resident Evil 4 – As one of the best-looking GameCube games and one of the best games in the series, Resident Evil 4 is something of a benchmark now. It was also something of a departure for the series, with its over-the-shoulder camera and a storyline that wasn’t filled with a bunch of brain-eating zombies, but the gamble paid off. Really, this could have been the title that would turn thousands of people into GameCube owners...if only Capcom hadn’t turned around and made it available on other systems.
The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker – Though the startling cel-shaded graphics might have come as a shock to some people (get used to it, though, you’ll be seeing them again when Link hits the DS next year in Phantom Hourglass), the game had a lot going for it. Sure, you may have spent countless hours drifting around in the ocean, but with dozens of locations hidden all over, the game personified the exploration and sense of adventure that the series is all about. And, without spoiling anything, some of the revelations made in the game were quite shocking. At the very least, you’ll have another solid entry in the series to fall back on once you’ve finally finished Twilight Princess, and who could ask for more?
Super Smash Bros. Melee – Until Super Smash Bros. Brawl arrives sometime next year, future Wii owners may want to have this fan-favorite series at the ready. Sure, the Wii has a couple of fighting games at launch, including the Super Smash Bros.-like The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy, but this game hasn’t been continually one of the top selling GameCube games ever since it came out for nothing. That has to mean something, right?
Metroid Prime – Metroid Prime 3: Corruption will see the close of the Prime saga when it hits the Wii early next year, so before you see how it ends, see how it began with the original Metroid Prime. Typically a side-scrolling series, Retro Studios brought Samus Aran into a whole new dimension (literally) when they made the game into a FPS shooter, introducing a variety of new gameplay elements. Since then, the game has spawned a GameCube sequel (Metroid Prime 2: Echoes) and a DS game (Metroid Prime: Hunters) - it’s time you found out why.
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door – Mario’s third RPG outing was one of the best RPGs on the system, mixing traditional Mario action with a strong (and wacky) storyline and more stylish paper-thin graphics. While a little on the easy side, the game provides hours of entertainment that make it an easy recommendation.
Pikmin 2 – Just about anyone who played the original Pikmin will tell you that it’s a great game...but, really, what else do you expect from Shigeru Miyamoto, the mind that brought us Mario and The Legend of Zelda? However, as good as the first one, its sequel, the aptly named Pikmin 2, improves upon it in at least a couple of ways, including getting rid of the 30 in-game days time limit and adding a multiplayer aspect.
Eternal Darkness: Sanity’s Requiem – This excellent game really blends genres, eras, and your perception of reality (in the game, at least). Jumping back and forth between the present day and various characters in other times, you must use a variety of weapons and magical spells to unravel the sordid history behind the Tome of Eternal Darkness. One of the major gameplay elements was your characters sanity, which, as they encountered monsters, would weaken, distorting their perception with a variety of visual effects, like bleeding walls, that sometimes went so far as to involve the player, like popping up a message telling them the controller had been disconnected. And it all ends with a showdown of the ancient gods. Good times, good times.
Star Wars: Rogue Leader II – A significant improvement over the N64 original, Star Wars: Rogue Leader II for the GameCube even topped its sequel (Rogue Leader III), which tossed in clunky on-foot missions. For a launch title, the game’s graphics were amazing, and the game kept pumping out the awe with dozens of enemy fighters on screen at once, the ability to issue commands to the other pilots, and famous locations and characters from the original trilogy. Factor 5 has since gone on to work on the Dragon-riding game Lair for the PS3, but you can clearly see that game’s roots in this GameCube classic.
Mario Kart: Double Dash!! – While this may not have been the best entry in the series, Double Dash!! is still a Mario Kart game. Until the old versions start coming out on the Virtual Console or the inevitable Wii version is announced, which ever comes first, you’ll want to have a copy of the seminal series on hand, just in case some of the already announced titles don’t cut it.
Posted: 11/15/2006