Topic: Wii Mode - What controllers can be used?

Hi there,

New member as I bought myself a wii u yesterday and I am eager to try the virtual console to play classic snes games and show my wife the games she missed out on as a kid.

But it says you need to use a wii remote (my wife and I hated the wii remotes) so I wondered if any other remote can work? Searching google gives me conflicting information as some places say you can play the virtual consoles with the wii u gamepad but then other places say you must use the old wii remote.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers.

Any game played in Wii mode can only be played with Wii controllers. All VC games support the Classic Controller however, so you coul buy one of those.

Noobish question then but how can I play snes classics etc on the gamepad? Or is this just not possible?

Hi Pahvi,

So basically, I need to go to the eshop on the wii u menu, buy the game, download it etc and then I can play on the gamepad?

What I have been told is that the only way I can play them is by going into the wii menu?! Which I can't do as I don't have a wii remote. Are you saying that there is one without going into wii mode? If so where as I can't see it anywhere?!

There is one 3rd party controller that the newest model has a switch for pro controller or classic controller pro modes. It is made by Gioteck (There is one that only works as a classic controller pro that is garbage).

Yes! VC games for the Wii U (such as Super Mario Kart for the SNES, for example) bought through the Wii U eShop will appear as regular Wii U downloaded games on your GamePad. You play it on the GamePad and you get the SNES game displayed both on the GamePad and the big screen.

While visiting the Wii U eShop, don't forget the indies and the other games on the eShop. In the past months, there has been quite a few great releases there.

Great thank you!

Can you recommend some must-try games?

Sorry, I meant only one Virtual console. But then someone else has stated that when you download the game it appears as a tile so nevermind, thank you all for your answers

Part of the confusion may come from the somewhat quirky way that you can use your GamePad as a screen for everything in Wii Mode _{i've heard, haven't tried} but you can't use it as a controller. So you still need your Wii Remote, Wii Classic Controller or Wii Classic Controller Pro then.
If you miss a certain game on the Wii U's Virtual Console it might be wort taking a look into the Wii Menu's shop or this list.
If the games you download on the the Wii U look or sound different from the way you remember them it's most likely because a lot of these are the US versions with 60 Hz. But that would be something to discuss in another post.

Regarding pricing and what you get for the money, I think the best deals right now are "Child of Light" (RPG) and "Toki Tori 2+" (puzzle platformer, which has a really low price now). Also, if you live in the US, I think you'll have the Ubisoft sale and then at least "Rayman Legends" (platformer) is a must for that low price.

My other top eShop recommendations based on the recent months would be:

• Scram Kitty and his Buddy on Rails (unique, difficult but fair platformer)
• Pushmo World in the US/Pullblox World in Europe (puzzler released by Nintendo)
• Shovel Knight - US only, not yet in Europe (retro-style platformer). I haven't played it myself yet (since it's not in Europe), but since no one seems to dislike this game I suggest it anyway.
• Stick it to the Man! (very fun and humorous platformer with a unique visual style)
• Swords and Soldiers HD (fun strategy game, supports 2 players if the player 2 has a Wiimote)
• Squids Odyssey (RPG)

Perhaps some of the 3 Wii U eShop titles arriving tomorrow (Armillo, Guacamelee! Super Turbo Championship Edition, Flowerworks HD: Follie's Adventure) will be a classic as well.

Just never enter Wii Mode......ever.

As long as you download Virtual Console games from the eShop, you can play them on the Gamepad.

But as soon as you enter Wii Mode, you can't play any Virtual Console games on the Gamepad and an alternate controller is then required.

_{just know that not every Virtual Console game is available on the eShop.}

There are too many on the Wii U that don't work the same as the real hardware.

i.e Mario World / Super Mario Bros 3 for definite.

Every Controller that's not the Game Pad.

/thread.

EDIT: But seriously, it depends on the game. You can use the Wii Remote (with or without Plus), Wii Remote Plus, Nunchuck, Classic Controller, and Classic Controller Pro.

I think other accessories like the Balance Board, Guitar Hero Guitars, and U Draw tablet should work, too.

If you're looking for SNES games, well you can't play those with the Wii remote alone anyway, you'd need a remote and a classic controller.

The Gamepad will work if you're playing SNES games outside of Wii mode, but if they're two-player then you're looking at a Remote/CC combo again or a Pro Controller. I have a number of Wii and WiiWare games so I use Wii Mode regularly and I've got a few Classic Controllers as well. I don't get the hate for the Remote, but everyone is different!

Basically what you need to understand is that with your Wii U, you have access to two different stores: The eShop, which is the new store available only for Wii U and the old, legacy Wii Shop with the content available on the classic Wii. On the eShop, you have a selection of NES, SNES and GBA games (growing every week) available to purchase and that can be played with the GamePad. The selection on the old Wii Shop however is much more complete and diverse, you have NES, SNES, N64, TG-16, Mega Drive, NEO-GEO, Master System and Arcade games available. If you want a game that is only available on the Wii Shop and you have at least a Wii Remote and possibly a Wii Classic Controler, you can access Wii mode and purchase it.