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Over 30 great emulators you can run on your Nintendo Wii

The Nintendo Wii was released in 2006, bringing a revolutionary new console to the market. While its standout feature was motion control, the Wii also touted the capabilities of retro gaming.

Using Virtual Console, users can download retro video games for a variety of past consoles, such as the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), the Nintendo 64 (N64), the Sega Master System , the Sega Mega. Driving, and more.

However, the Nintendo Wii Virtual Console was limited to a small group of games. But don't despair, because thanks to emulation software, you can play virtually any retro video game on the Nintendo Wii!

Note:We do not condone downloading illegal ROMs from the web. Only use it for games that you have legally purchased and own.

Running emulators on your Nintendo Wii

Between disc-based games and downloadable titles, the Nintendo Wii boasts a comprehensive library of software. However, emulators offer even more options for gamers.

By installing emulator software on your Nintendo Wii, you can run loads of retro video game ROMs from consoles ranging from Atari 2600 and NES to PlayStation 1 and N64. Plus, there's a ton of homebrew software for home games on the Wii.

Before downloading retro video game emulators for your Nintendo Wii, you will first need to softmod your Wii console How to Set Up Your Wii for Homebrew Using Letterbomb How to Set Up Your Wii for Homebrew Using Letterbomb In the olden days, it was necessary to have Homebrew software for a game. target and corrupt its save data to run an exploit. It was complicated. The most recent hack, which has been working for a year,... Read More Simply follow the steps outlined in the linked article.

Play Atari games on the Wii

Because it's an older console, Atari 2600 titles are easy to emulate on almost any hardware. As such, the Nintendo Wii can handle any Atari 2600 ROM you throw at it. StellaWii provides the functionality to play Atari 2600 games on the Nintendo Wii. For Atari 7800 games on the Wii, check out the so-called Wii7800.

For Atari Lynx handheld games, there's WiiHandy. Atari ST emulation on the Wii comes via Hatari Wii, Hatari and AtaWii. Additionally, WiiXL handles the Atari 800, XL, 5200, and XE titles. Overall, the Wii is a thriving landscape for Atari emulation.

Play old Nintendo games on your Wii

Despite the abundance of NES, SNES, and N64 games on the Virtual Console, the addition of Nintendo emulators for the Wii further adds to the opportunity to play retro games on the Wii. FCE Ultra GX is a Wii NES emulator. With FCE Ultra GX, you can revisit the likes of The Legend of Zelda, Final Fantasy III, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

While the NES is a solid console, the Super Nintendo features a bevy of revered classics. There's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles IV:Turtles in Time, and one of my all-time favorites, Super Mario World 2:Yoshi's Island. For an awesome Wii SNES emulator, please install Snes9x GX.

As its name implies, Wii64 allows you to play Nintendo 64 games on the Wii. Just download this Wii N64 emulator to play through The Legend of Zelda:Ocarina of Time. As expected, Nintendo Wii emulators for NES, SNES, and N64 games work fine on Wii hardware. Between official Virtual Console downloads and third-party Wii emulators, there's a huge library of retro gaming content.

Play Gameboy and DS games on your Wii

The Wii also works with Nintendo handheld ROMs with no problem. Visual Boy Advance GX handles the Gameboy, Gameboy Color, and Gameboy Advance titles. Gnuboy GX and RIN Wii play with Gameboy and Gameboy Color ROMs. For Nintendo DS emulation on the Wii, there's DeSmuMe Wii. With a wide variety of Wii emulators for Nintendo consoles and handhelds, the Wii offers complete retro gaming with a Nintendo flavor.

Play PlayStation games on your Wii

Although it is a Nintendo device, the Wii is more than capable of running ROMs from other consoles. WiiSX and PCSX-Revolution allow PS1 games on the Nintendo Wii. Install WiiSX or PSCX-Revolution to play classics like Metal Gear Solid and Final Fantasy VII on your Nintendo Wii.

Play Sega games on your Wii

Similarly, Nintendo Wii Sega emulators run ROMs from a variety of consoles. Genesis Plus plays Genesis, Mega Drive, Master System, Game Gear, Sega CD and SG-1000 titles. Yabause Wii tackles Sega Saturn emulation on the Nintendo Wii. For emulation of the Sega Game Gear and Sega Master System on the Wii, there's SMSPlus.

Other retro game emulators for Wii

While the NES, SNES, N64, and PS1 Wii emulators may be the most popular options, you can also play plenty of ROMs from other, less popular systems on the Nintendo Wii.

For arcade games, SDL MAME and SDL MAME Wii emulate MAME ROMs. GxGeo plays Neo Geo games, while NeoCD-Wii supports Neo Geo CD games. Neo Geo Pocket emulation arrives with Neopop Wii. And you can play MSX games with MiiSX, uMSX and BlueMSX-Wii.

If you're like me and love point and click TellTale titles, visit ScummVM for Wii Play point and click adventure classics on your Wii with ScummVM [MUO Gaming] Play Point and Click Adventure Classics and Click On Your Wii with ScummVM [MUO Games] Play classic point-and-click adventures on your Wii. Maybe you have old copies of classics like Monkey Island or Day of The Tentacle collecting dust? Or maybe you want to try classic games that… Read More .

Arguably the most complete Nintendo Wii emulator is WiiMednahen. This amazing option is compatible with consoles including GameBoy, GameBoy Color, GameBoy Advance, Neo Geo Pocket, WonderSwan, Genesis, Lynx and more. Check out the full list of Wii homebrew emulators via WiiBrew.

Emulating the Nintendo Wii

It is also possible to run Wii games using emulators. However, this requires quite a bit of computing power. Yet Dolphin emulator Play Wii and Gamecube games in HD on your PC with Dolphin Emulator [Windows and Mac] Play Wii and Gamecube games in HD on your PC with Dolphin Emulator [Windows and Mac] In addition to being an accessible console and fun On the system, the Nintendo Wii has amassed a plethora of games over its lifetime and now, thanks to the wonders of emulation and Dolphin, it's… Read More capable of running ROMs for Wii titles and GameCube.

You will need a decent CPU and GPU for proper Wii emulation with the Dolphin emulator. For example, the Raspberry Pi running RetroPie has problems with N64 emulation. Even the most powerful Odroid XU4 The ODROID Model Comparison Guide:Which is Right for You? The ODROID Model Comparison Guide:Which is Right for You? Perhaps you have decided that you prefer the ODROID over the Raspberry Pi for your next project. But which ODROID model should you choose? Read More

However, with a rugged device, you can run Android Wii emulator software such as Dolphin. If you plan to run a Nintendo Wii emulator for Android, you'll need a powerful device like the Nvidia Shield TV or the Galaxy S8.

Turn your Wii into a retro game console

While Nintendo's Wii features an incredible lineup of disc-based games and downloadable content, the emulator software further enhances the gaming experience. I like to use homebrew Wii emulators to replay retro games that I've bookmarked, such as my extensive PS1 collection.

Between that and its vast library of Wii games plus support for GameCube titles, my Wii gets used regularly. Although it's an old console, the Nintendo Wii is still worth using as a retro arcade, and the Wii is easy to connect to any kind of TV.

Despite Wii's competition in running retroactive ROMs, you may want to consider building a Raspberry Pi game console How to Play Almost Any Video Game on a Raspberry Pi How to Play Almost Any Video Game on a Raspberry Pi --- Past and present --- using a Raspberry Pi? Here's everything you need to know about it. Read more . Also, you can find more Wii homebrew apps Looking for Wii Homebrew apps? Are these the places to go for Wii Homebrew apps? These are the places to go. At this point, you've probably played most of the games for the console you were interested in, but if you want to find another use for the biggest console of the last decade, homebrew just… Read More