Virtual Console
From Zeldapedia, The Legend of Zelda wiki
Virtual Console (バーチャルコンソール, Bācharu Konsōru?), sometimes abbreviated as VC, is a feature of the Wii that allows players to purchase and download games and other software for the Wii gaming console. The Virtual Console lineup consists of titles originally released on now defunct past consoles. These titles are run in their original forms through software emulation. The library of past games currently consists of titles originating from the Nintendo Entertainment System, Super Nintendo Entertainment System, and Nintendo 64, as well as Sega's Mega Drive/Genesis, NEC's TurboGrafx-16 and TurboGrafx-CD, and SNK's Neo Geo AES. Upcoming support for MSX has been announced for Japan. The Virtual Console service has generated approximately $33 million in sales and over 7.8 million downloads.
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[edit] Library history
While the gameplay remains unchanged for all of the classic titles offered for the Virtual Console, Nintendo has stated that some games may be improved with sharper graphics or better frame rates. As with disc-based games, the Virtual Console service is region-locked - that is, different versions of games are provided to different regions, and game availability may vary from region to region.
Satoru Iwata stated in a speech on March 23, 2006, that Nintendo, Sega, and Hudson Soft are working in collaboration to bring a "best of" series of games to the Wii. At E3, Hudson also declared it would bring upwards of 100 titles to the Wii's Virtual Console. Additionally, Hudson mentioned that its lawyers are working on acquiring the licenses to games from now defunct companies. Nintendo announced MSX compatibility on September 19, 2006, announcing on February 23, 2007 that the MSX titles Eggy and Aleste will be released in Japan. In February 2007, a heading for Neo Geo games was added to the Japanese Virtual Console page, and in September of that same year games for that system appeared on the list of future releases, priced at 900 points each. Also in September Hudson announced that games made for the TurboGrafx-CD format would also join the Virtual Console beginning in October 2007, with five titles to be released for the remainder of 2007 and ten titles for 2008. They will be priced at 800 points.
On June 1, 2007, Nintendo of America issued a press release to announce the upcoming release of its 100th Virtual Console title, which was Zelda II: The Adventure of Link. Within this press release, Nintendo stated that more than 4.7 million Virtual Console games had been downloaded, at a rate of more than 1,000 titles an hour
On October 9, 2007, Nintendo announced that 7.8 million VC titles had been downloaded
[edit] Third party support
Unnamed Nintendo employees have reportedly speculated that licensing issues will be a predominant factor in determining whether a game is available for Virtual Console, giving the examples of GoldenEye 007 and Tetris as games that might be too expensive to license for the Virtual Console. Tecmo has announced it plans to "aggressively" support Virtual Console by re-releasing classic games such as Ninja Gaiden, Rygar, and Tecmo Bowl. Tecmo was the first third-party game developer to release a game on the Virtual Console: Solomon's Key from the NES. Since then, Capcom and Konami, among others, have also released titles.
Matt Casamassina of IGN reported that Rare titles absent of Nintendo-owned characters would be unavailable for purchase due to Microsoft's acquisition of Rare, but none of the three companies has announced this. SNK Playmore has recently announced intentions to help support the Virtual Console by releasing the Samurai Showdown series and a few other games to the Virtual Console. Midway also plans to bring classic Mortal Kombat games to the Virtual Console.
Confirmed third-party companies supporting Virtual Console include: Atlus, Namco Bandai, Banpresto, Capcom, Chunsoft, D4 Enterprise, Enterbrain, G-mode, Irem, Jaleco, KEMCO, Koei, Midway Games, Natsume, NCS Masaya, Netfarm, Paon, Rocket Company, Konami, Spike, Square Enix, Sunsoft, SNK Playmore, Taito, Tecmo, Takara, and TOMY.
[edit] Pricing
On September 14, 2006, Nintendo revealed that Virtual Console games in Japan would be priced starting at JP¥500 for NES titles, JP¥800 for Super NES titles, and JP¥1000 for Nintendo 64 titles, with points purchasable via credit card or a "Wii Points" card. In the United States, Wii Points are priced at one cent per point (with the ability to buy in denominations of $10, $20, $30 and $50), with game prices of US$5, US$8, and US$10, respectively.
| Country | NES | SNES | N64 | Mega Drive /Genesis | TurboGrafx-16 | TurboGrafx-CD | Neo Geo (console)|Neo Geo | MSX |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wii Points | 500+ | 800+ | 1000+ | 800+ (600+ in Japan) | 600+ | 800+ | 900+ | 700+ |
| Australia | $7.50 | $12 | $15 | $12 | $9 | $12 | $13.50 | - |
| Canada | $6.25 | $10 | $12.50 | $10 | $7.50 | $10 | $11.25 | - |
| Eurozone | €5 | €8 | €10 | €8 | €6 | €8 | €9 | - |
| Japan | ¥500 | ¥800 | ¥1000 | ¥600 | ¥600 | ¥800 | ¥900 | ¥700 |
| Mexico (only available online) | $50MXN | $80MXN | $100MXN | $80MXN | $60MXN | $80MXN | $90MXN | - |
| New Zealand | $9 | $14.40 | $18 | $14.40 | $10.80 | $14.40 | - | - |
| Saudi Arabia (with points bought on point cards) | $8.4 | $13.4 | $17 | $13.4 | $10 | $13.4 | - | - |
| Singapore (with points bought on point cards) | $9.50 | $15.20 | $19 | $15.20 | $11.40 | $15.20 | - | - |
| Sweden(approximately) | 46 SEK | 74 SEK | 92 SEK | 74 SEK | 55 SEK | 74 SEK | 83 SEK | - |
| United Kingdom (with points bought on either point cards or online) | £3.75/ £3.50 | £6.00/ £5.60 | £7.50/ £7.00 | £6.00/ £5.60 | £4.50/ £4.20 | £6.00/ £5.60 | £6.75/ £6.30 | - |
| United States | $5 | $8 | $10 | $8 | $6 | $8 | $9 | - |
Nintendo president Satoru Iwata has indicated that new small-scale titles could be developed and sold through the Wii Shop Channel at a price of between JP¥500 and ¥1000 (approximately US$4-$9, GB£2-£5), and that free downloads may be offered as a bonus with the purchase of specific Wii titles, similar to Nintendo Europe's VIP 24:7 incentives.
The Wii Shop Channel has functionality to allow games to be updated. This has been used three times so far to update Military Madness and Star Fox 64/Lylat Wars (in North America and Europe) and Mario Kart 64 (in Europe and Australia). The Legend of Zelda, The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, Super Mario Bros., Donkey Kong Country, and Super Castlevania IV have also been given updates in Europe and Australia to fix previous problems with the Wii Component Cables. These updates are free of charge to those who have downloaded a previous version of the game.
[edit] Storage
Games downloaded from the Virtual Console library are stored in the Wii's built-in 512 MB flash memory. Games can be transferred to a removable SD card for backup purposes only – they cannot be played from this external memory. If the internal memory is filled, Virtual Console games can be deleted to create more room, and the games can be downloaded again at a later date at no additional cost, or can be copied back over from an SD Card. Virtual Console games are locked to the Wii on which they were purchased — they cannot be transferred to another Wii via an SD card, though as of December 10, 2007, it is possible for Wii owners in North America, Europe and Australia to purchase games in the Wii Shop Channel and send them as gifts to people on their Wii Friends list. In the event that a Wii is damaged and the Virtual Console games can no longer be played, Nintendo will provide support.
[edit] Control
Virtual Console games can be played using three different controllers. The Wii Remote itself (turned on its side) can be used for the NES, TurboGrafx-16, and some Sega Mega Drive/Genesis games, and the Classic Controller can be used for all Virtual Console games. The controllers from the Nintendo GameCube can also be used, causing the WaveBird increased popularity. The Nintendo Gamecube controller can be used for all Nintendo systems' games, however Nintendo's site claims that it cannot be used with some TurboGrafx-16 and Genesis/Mega Drive titles.
All Virtual Console games have their buttons mapped to the respective buttons on the controllers, however, in certain circumstances users can use X and Y instead of A and B, if the original controller does not have X and Y buttons, such as the NES. In certain titles, such as Nintendo 64 games, there may be specific control tailored to the Classic Controller or GameCube Controller. So far, none of the Nintendo 64 titles released have been able to support the Rumble Pak feature of the N64 controller.
With the release of Bomberman '93, it was revealed that TurboGrafx-16 games can support full 5 player games. Since a single Wii can only have four Wii Remotes and four GameCube Controllers connected at the same time, a combination of the two is needed for 5 player games. At least one player has to use a Wii Remote or Classic controller, and at least one player has to use a GameCube Controller. The other three can use either one.
| Platform | Wii Remote | Classic Controller | GameCube Controller |
|---|---|---|---|
| NES |  | |
|
| SNES |  | | Some* |
| N64 | | |
|
| Mega Drive/Genesis | Some* | |
|
| TurboGrafx-16 | | | Some* |
| TurboGrafx-CD | | | Some* |
| Neo Geo | Some* | |
|
*In some cases, not all buttons are mapped to the Wii Remote or GameCube controller. The game is still playable, but may not allow the player to utilize all of the controls originally provided on the original system's controller.
[edit] The Legend of Zelda series
[edit] The Legend of Zelda
The Legend of Zelda was one of the original titles available for the Virtual Console in all regions. It was available in North America on November 19, 2006; Japan on December 2, 2006; Australia on December 7, 2006; and Europe on December, 8, 2006.
[edit] A Link to the Past
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past was the next Zelda game available on the Virtual Console following The Legend of Zelda. It was available in Japan on December 2, 2006; North America on January 22, 2007; and Australia and Europe on March 23, 2007.
[edit] Zelda II
Zelda II: The Adventure of Link was the next Zelda game available on the Virtual Console following A Link to the Past. It was available in Japan on January 23, 2007; Australia and Europe on February 9, 2007; and North America on June 4, 2007.
[edit] Ocarina of Time
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time was the next Zelda game available on the Virtual Console following Zelda II and is one of the most-downloaded Virtual Console titles. It was available in Australia and Europe on February 23, 2007; North America on February 26, 2007; and Japan on February 27, 2007.
[edit] Criticism
Chris Kohler of the magazine Wired has criticized the overall release strategy of games on the Virtual Console as a handful of games were relased at the launch of the Wii, though now only two or three games are released each week. Kohler also took issue with the Virtual Console's aspect ratio which stretches the 4:3 games when the Wii's system settings are set for a 16:9 television. The prices for the games have been criticized as too high, especially for the NES games, given the prices of many of the games on eBay and the near-zero costs of manufacture and distribution.
[edit] External links
- Virtual Console - Official Virtual Console site
