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Wii Virtual Console Lineup Unveiled

1up.com — Retro fans, prepare for Zelda, Sonic and... Solomon?

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skennedy 2 years 31 days ago, made popular 2 years 31 days ago

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Who Dugg It?

DonArmageddon, on 10/12/2007, -2/+15OMG hotness...

but but teh Mario World?
- justinjacobs, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7Looks like the Japanese will be getting Super Mario World:
  
  http://gonintendo.com/?p=7673
- ButtholeSurfer, on 10/12/2007, -0/+13i love their description of Mario Bros... "Mario and Luigi punch turtles."
- EvolvedAnt, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5If you were to buy every single VC game on that list, you'd have to spend 196,00 points, or roughly $196, give or take depending on if the Wii points you buy would land evenly on 196,00 or not.
  
  I wonder if everyone of those could fit on a single SD card. You'd better not lose that little card!
  
  Now I did at first believe that 500 points for a NES title was a bit much at the consumer level, but then at the business level I can see the need as that would help motivate other 3rd partys that made NES titles to work on getting their titles to the VC as well. $2.50 per download would offer little incentive for most 3rd partys to bother, I firmly believe that $5.00 is the sweet spot. The prices choosen for each other class of system is a sweet spot as well in my opinion.
- heysuburbia, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5"Retro fans, prepare for Zelda, Sonic and... Solomon?"
  
  Solomon's Key is an AMAZING game, it's definitely the most underrated NES title.
  
  It's a great puzzle game, like Lolo.
  
  You can play a pc version online here:
  http://www.bitshifter.net.nz/games/solomons/
  
  Or with an online emulator here:
  http://everyvideogame.com/play-nes-Solomon%5C's_Key_(E)_%5B!%5D.htm
- techlinks, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1@ heysuburbia
  
  I have the Gameboy port of Solomon, HELLO fun!
  
  I'll probably buy the NES version just for the big screen-ed-nes.
fourinjuly4ij, on 10/12/2007, -1/+24Where's Mario Bros 3???
- Zippo, on 10/12/2007, -1/+8Where's Super Mario Bros. 1 for that matter? By the sounds of it, we'll only get the NES port of the arcade Mario Bros. I also demand Duck Hunt, LoZ Link to the Past, and Kirby Super Star!
- texpundit, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7I can't BELIEVE not a single person on this page mentioned the lack of Metroid, Super Metroid, etc.
  
  WTF?!? I *want* my Metroids!!!
- adamsorkin, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2@texpundit - Super Metroid is one of my favorite games ever...While that probably won't affect my purchase all that much, I'm very disappointed not to see it there.
- ccanni1028, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Duck hunt has been confirmed as coming, and most likely the others you mentioned will be too. These games listed are just the ones that will be out at or near launch (before the end of 2006).
dabomb, on 10/12/2007, -1/+11They are missing some of the games they displayed at E3 Super Mario World and Super Mario Bros 3. I assume they will be available later but we know there coming so why not release them at launch.
Ignignokt01, on 10/12/2007, -1/+233rd party support!?!?!?!? WHERE'S CONTRA AND MIKE TYSON'S PUNCH-OUT?
- Everman, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Contra III is being released in Japan as well as some others. They aren't planning on releasing everything they can all at once. I bet we'll see a lot of the biggest hits throughout next year.
Inthearmor, on 10/12/2007, -1/+32I'm still holding out for Chrono Trigger!
- theRobot, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Hell yea!
- Klarth, on 10/12/2007, -0/+11Terranigma, Illusion of Gaia, Final Fantasies IV through VI, A Link To The Past, Chrono Trigger... Wii won't be an RPG haven on its own, but with potential titles like these, it's going to mull over any seasoned fan.
- themadhatter444, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6That would be worth the full price of the Wii. $250 for Chrono Trigger np! That would be such a good release.
- ShoGinn, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Chrono Trigger FTW!
  I can remember hours of playing that game.
drlha, on 10/12/2007, -4/+64Where's [GAME I LOVE]? Damn Nintendo!!!
- Gundabad, on 10/12/2007, -3/+6Yeah I do agree. I know I have gotten many people to jump on board and decide to buy a Wii with the ability to play all the games from childhood as a selling point, so these people might have a bit of a letdown coming up. Hopefully production on these VC games goes into high gear in '07. Me, I could probably care less. All I needed was Toejam & Earl!!!
- sych0, on 10/12/2007, -1/+10If nintendo hopes to make the service a success, they really need to get the hit titles. Who the hell is going to pay $5 for pinball?
- happyfundave, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6That is what roped me into getting the system, i appreciate that they will be trying to add 10 more games every month but i feel that I have a long wait till i get to play Earthworm Jim
- Rayonic, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Shiny Entertainment was recently bought out, but the rights to Earthworm Jim didn't go with them. That means we may never see Earthworm Jim re-released on any platform ever again.
- joehobbes, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6Read the bottom of this post for some good insight on why Nintendo is holding back.
  http://www.racketboy.com/retro/2006/11/wii-virtual-console-launch-lineup.html
  
  Bottom Line:
  Watch the success with XBLA
  Don't Flood The Market Right Away
  Let Third Parties Flourish
- kingfelix, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3they're going to have to change their pricing structure. this has the potential to happen for them, and big time, but not at these prices. they're just not hitting the sweet spot at $5 for an nes title. as insanely fun as some of those game are, they need to be realistic and realize that they ARE competing with emulation and free roms online, just like the itunes store competes incredibly successfully with music filesharing. how does apple do that? they picked the perfect price, $1, which is psychologically a very easy amount of money to spend and still feels like a pretty good deal, and also makes you feel good for "doing the right thing."
  
  how many wii owners will buy super mario brothers again for $5 when they could just dig out their old console or go online to one of these java nes sites and play it for free? people do want to play the game on their big screen, but two or three years from now everyone's got their computer hooked up to the tv anyway, so where's nintendo's business model at that point? i'll tell you where: one dollar. that's the price. at $5, they will sell a million copies, max. for one dollar virtually EVERY single person who buys the console will drop the buck. if we're looking at an installed base of 20 million (who knows how many, that's twenty. million. dollars. pure profit, no physical product, no costs, no overhead. times however many games they can do that with... zeldas, metroids, etc.... this will be insane for them and for anyone else who gets in on it. but NOT at $5. at that price it's a non-starter, and emulation wins.
  
  here are the sweet spots--
  nes: 1-2 dollars
  snes 2-3 dollars
  n64 no more than 5 dollars.
  
  why no more than $5 for an n64 game? because that's what they cost on ebay. because you don't want your potential customers to sit there uncomfortably contemplating a purchase while their friend emails them a quick way to get it for free. you can find most great gamecube games for $10 or less these days. if nintendo really wants to do this, they've got some more thinking to do.
- Gurubanks, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1Oh my god they included [game I could never beat]. NINTENDO SUCKS!
chazuk, on 10/12/2007, -2/+5There's plenty there to keep me busy.
Bondage007, on 10/12/2007, -9/+3http://www.duggmirror.com
SpamDog, on 10/12/2007, -2/+3Does anyone know how much one point is going to cost?
- Peterh, on 10/12/2007, -2/+5about 1 cent, I think.... so NES = $5, SNES = $8, etc.
- opnickc, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5100 points = $1
- ccanni1028, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Both above posts are correct for the basis, but I am pretty sure there are going to be bulk discounts (1250 points for $10, things like that) along with specific downloads like getting Duck Hunt 1 for free when you buy Duck Hunt 2.
joel8x, on 10/12/2007, -1/+8MIke Tyson's Punch Out is still one of my favorite games of all time. Oh well, its not like I can't just play it on my computer.
Mininday, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4Here are some rumored titles and confirmed publishers.

http://www.listikal.com/nintendo-wii-virtual-console-game-release-confirmation
- opnickc, on 10/12/2007, -10/+3Woops. Bury.
Microdot, on 10/12/2007, -27/+2massively disappointing list. and if they hold true to previous statements about only releasing a few titles every quarter... it becomes almost pointless.

congratulations wii..... you havent even been released yet, and you've already become mediocre.
- Misanthrope, on 10/12/2007, -2/+14A few titles every quarter? Where the hell did you hear that?
  
  They said they would release like 10 games a month, so I guess about 40 games a quarter...so more than a few. Nice try though, really.
- ArmchairAthlete, on 10/12/2007, -16/+5emulators for the win
- opnickc, on 10/12/2007, -0/+12"Fils-Aime also discussed the Virtual Console. The Virtual Console is a feature that allows users to download classic games to play on Wii. 30 games will be available to download by the end of the year, with 10 additional titles to be released each month starting in January 2007."
  
  http://www.thewiire.com/news/473/1/FilsAime_Talks_American_Launch_and_More
  
  10 a month, not a few every quarter,
farther, on 10/12/2007, -5/+19Come on now: you knew this was going to happen. They're having to emulate all of these systems, and reformat the original code to work with the Wiimulators (Wii emulators). Of course, when they've got a system launch to deal with, they can't go around and do this to every game. I'm certain that once the Wii comes out, you'll find a lot more games released each month.

It's not a sign of mediocrity, it's a sign of reality. And I, for one, welcome our new Virtual Console overlords.
- darryl242, on 10/12/2007, -12/+8"It's not a sign of mediocrity, it's a sign of reality. And I, for one, welcome our new Virtual Cnsole overlords."
  
  I suppose there are new overlords, but I'll stick with my existing MAME modded coin-op machine. At 2000+ ROMs, it's all there, no waiting, no fees, just... good 8/16/32-bit times.
- ExSlashdotter, on 10/12/2007, -2/+19Since when did anyone have to edit the source of a game's ROM to be able to play it on an emulator?
  
  Never. You tweak the emulator to be as to be as close to the original platform as possible. The game's themselves should still be straight images of the original cart/disc/whatever.
  
  They don't have to go back through the source of each game. They're just fully testing ROMs with the wii's emulators before they release it to the mainstream. When you download ROMs for MAME or Nesticles or whatever, you're not getting ROMs that have been optimized for your emulator of choice. That file is nothing but a 1:1 image of the compiled game as it was back in the day.
- coolmos, on 10/12/2007, -15/+1Exslashdotter:
  
  You should read more. Especially about CPS2 games. Since the encryption hasn't been figured out, the only way to play them is through special tables to be ex-ored with the original ROM images.
  
  Dunno if other examples exist, but ROM-hacking is necessary sometimes.
- Sirocco, on 10/12/2007, -0/+19Somehow I don't think Nintendo is going to have to hack any ROMS because they can't figure out their own encryption routines ;)
- InternetUser, on 10/12/2007, -0/+8coolmos:
  
  You should think more. Just because the ROMs are encrypted doesn't mean they need to be modified before being released. The emulator can decode them using these decryption tables as they're loaded. Maybe like the original hardware did?
- coolmos, on 10/12/2007, -6/+1Internetuser, i would agree if the emulator used a decryption algorythm, but decryption tables? That's a ROM-hack.
- Darrelc, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5Im my phone can play NES/SMD games on a 40kb application Im pretty sure it should be easier for nintendo to it.
- ExSlashdotter, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5@coolmos
  
  Maybe I should read more, but maybe you should try a computer science degree with a dash of common sense.
  
  The original systems were obviously able to hash out the compiled code for whatever game media you put in. Thats because each of those games were fully tested to run that piece of hardware. You buy a game for console at the store, bring it home and stick it in said console. It just works. The emulator is just a direct replacement for that console.
  
  In the computer science realm, we call this "abstraction". Maybe you should do some reading on that.
  
  There's no change to what I said before. The ROMs won't have to be recompiled. Its just that the emulator needs to be as close to the target architecture as possible. If the target architecture has to hash some tables to get to the compiled code, then so will the emulator.
  
  GET THIS:
  The big difference is that Nintendo is re-releasing games that were originally licensed to play on its own machines. Its not some basement h4x0r reverse-engineering anything.
- coolmos, on 10/12/2007, -4/+1exslashdotter,
  
  if the tables were included in the emulator, you are right. But every CPS2 rom needs its own tables. So the emulator does not emulate the exact architecture, but lacks the decryption.
  
  But you see it differently.
  
  *Shrug*.
- joehobbes, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3It probably doesn't have to do with the emulator at all.
  More of a business strategy.
  I mentioned this link above, but the bottom of this post applies to this topic as well:
  http://www.racketboy.com/retro/2006/11/wii-virtual-console-launch-lineup.html
- ExSlashdotter, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3The CPS2 stuff you're talking about was for capcom arcade games. In the case of an arcade, you can design a very specialized architecture for a specific game/cabinet because you know they're always going to be paired together.
  
  You either have a standard hardware architecture or not. This is a case of 'not'. Comparing modular emulators like for an NES with a specialized emulator for a specific arcade cabinet is literally comparing apples and oranges.
  
  If you want an emulator for a given platform, then get an emulator for said platform.
  NES = one platform.
  N64 = one platform.
  Genesis = one platform.
  Arcade cabinets != one platform.
- shanesemler, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3@ExSlashdotter
  
  Yeah, my "unoptimized" 8 and 16 bit 2d game ROMs run TERRIBLE on my modern Athlon XP and 6 series Nvidia card. Those optimized ROMs for the Wii will make all the difference!
MercurysPhoenix, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5Hey, people. There's enough there to last you a while. I'm sure you would have been more annoyed in a few months time if they'd shot all their bullets at once. There's so much to look forward to.
The games from the NES' birth and people's childhood are all there for the launch of a new era in gaming. The big daddy of N64 games sits in it's rightful place as well as some titles which are new to you.
As time goes on and the console grows, there'll be so many more available to us. It'll make your wallet a bit happier too.
There are good points and bad points to everything and, in my opinion, the good outweighs the bad. Just wish you all looked at it the same way instead of being pessimists.
LeeDoyle, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5They will add more as the months roll on. I bet they will have hundreds if not thousands on there within a year. It is just the starts.

Will the controls match? I remember owning Zelda and it came with a N64 version but the controls in game were the old N64... will they change it so everything matches up?

It looks good... and for what? £170 thats a bargin!
Waffledog, on 10/12/2007, -0/+11Baffles me why they'd include Mario Bros but not SUPER Mario Bros... big difference between the two.
- Sandwiches_Time, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Couldn't agree with you more. That was the ONE game I was sure was going to be on this thing. Seriously, what the *****.
- iluvatar, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Maybe they don't want to interfere with the sales of the GBA versions?
- ccanni1028, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Just wait, it will most likely come soon.
TheBritishGuy1, on 10/12/2007, -1/+8no... *whimper* ...ocarina of time?... majora's mask?... jet force gemini?... I'm sad.
- Feanor, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6Disappointment in the N64 category...
- scratched, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7That's why I'm proud to own the Gamcube version of OoT and MM
  
  :D
- NiX0n, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1I'm sure there will be more to come. I'd like to get down on some Golden Eye too :)
  
  but yeah, there is always the gamecube port of Z:OoT
gumby05, on 10/12/2007, -1/+10gunstar heroes space harrier 2 and ristar?! holy cow! good job nintendo on the genesis games!
- nstern2, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Yeah I agree the genesis support is nice. I wonder if they will give us Sonic & Knuckles with the sonic 3 cart attached. That game ruled!
Matrix_Prime, on 10/12/2007, -3/+5I would like to see them add the Virtual Boy to the Virtual Console. YES, there were a few (ok, VERY few) good games for it.
mecole21, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6Wario's Woods... a very underrated puzzle game... and the last game made for the NES...
- drsnacks, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Yeah, but the SNES version was way better - enough to ignore the NES version completely.
chronosoft, on 10/12/2007, -10/+0Will these games have have re-amped/higher res textures/sprites/graphics? If they're just going to be pure ports, they're going to look absolutely horrible on my LCD screen (even worse on those large plasma screens out nowadays...)
m00dy, on 10/12/2007, -9/+2this is why you dont pre order, and you wait till everything becomes clear
- MercurysPhoenix, on 10/12/2007, -5/+2So are the majority of you guys and gals just buying it for the Virtual Console?
digitalrift, on 10/12/2007, -11/+3Mischief Makers for the N64 /rock on

but seriously, haven't any of you people heard of an emulator? of course, there is the legality factor of it all..
- kevin45, on 10/12/2007, -3/+8I don't know of a single emulator that gets every game 100% right. At least with the Wii, it will ensure that.
- digitalrift, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4right and backwards compability systems such as the xbox 360 have full emulation/backwards compatibility that works 100% time right out of the box. uh-huh. digg me down, but don't deny the truth. emulators work on the vast majority of games. all the nes and snes games I've seen listed here all run on emulators. only games emulators really have trouble running are n64 games and snes games that did the fx chip (aka: flying polygons)
  
  reguardless of the existence of the virtual console or no, my policy on new generation consoles still stands: let the sucke^H^H fans buy the first release and experience the bugs and kinks, THEN I will buy it.
- kevin45, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Microsoft never claimed the 360 was fully 100% backwards compatible. Thats what they get for switching graphics chip makers.
kevin45, on 10/12/2007, -2/+7Its not a "THE LIST" type list you idiots. Its the initial offering and I'm sure there are lots more coming. You know Mario 3 is coming so why bitch? If you were smart you would wait for Mario All Stars on the SNES because its in 16 bit.

And I don't care what the digg tagline says, Solomon's Key ***** rocked.
- Cinder6, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2There are definite differences between SMAS (All-Stars) and the original 8-bit versions. While these don't affect normal gameplay, most (if not all) of the fun glitching you can do on the originals no longer work.
hvatsun, on 10/12/2007, -8/+2UUUGGHHH JUST GIVE ME SUPER METROID AND EARTHBOUND NOW UUUGGHHH
PhantomRogue, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5The only thing im concerned about is the 10 games a month thing.

I love the old NES/SNES/Genesis games, but how long am I going to have to wait for them to release the onse I want to buy all over again. If they release some of the ones for Launch... which are super niche games (Ecco, Soccer [why], Urban Champion), how long is it before the Shining Forces, Final Fantasys, Marios come out if its on a pace of 10 per month...

I love the Virtual Console, but the Virtual Console may turn out to be a Virtual WaitingList for me.
- camsoft2000, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I think 10 games a month is fair.
- Buelldozer, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2I'm sure they'll up the pace at some point. They've also gotta save some classic "good" games for when there isn't anything new being released.
camsoft2000, on 10/12/2007, -11/+1Im I the only person that want's Golden Eye?
- uppedbyhiggins, on 10/12/2007, -1/+13I think you're the only person that doesn't realize we won't get it.
- Darrelc, on 10/12/2007, -4/+1Why?
- djSyndrome, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7Because Rare owns the rights, and Microsoft now owns Rare.
  
  [/obvious]
- camsoft2000, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1Sorry but why is that obvious, we're not all as sad as you.
- Rayonic, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1And Rare doesn't even own the James Bond license anymore, so even if they wanted to it'd be kinda tough.
Supernova36, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7Golden Axe! Yes!
OdinsFury, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3My friend is buying a Wii just so he can play old games on the virtual console. I'm buying it for everything it has to offer, but it's possible that the Wii has something for everyone.
Sirocco, on 10/12/2007, -0/+8Plop FF4 or 6 on the list and watch the sales skyrocket.
- djSyndrome, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5I'm guessing this won't happen in the forseeable future, given that Nintendo is still publishing FFVI next year (and just released FFIV last fall). They'd rather people pay $30 for those versions than eight dollars for VC ones.
  
  That said, I'm also pissed we won't be getting some of the *other* good Square 16-bit games, like Seiken Densetsu 3 and Bahamut Lagoon. Bah.
- Klarth, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Unless they choose to localise decade-old Japan only titles this late in the game, I'm sure you'll be able to bear playing obscurities like Tales of Phantasia and the rest on your PC.
BassJunkie, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5Looks good atm! It's gonna be fun playing the older games with my own kids! I dusted off my N64 a few weeks back and my eldest (5 1/2) had fun playing Mario 64 :-) I think I'll be getting most of the big-hit games (Zelda on the SNES, Mario's etc.) plus any that I have fond memories of, I can alreay imagine 4 player Bomberman - hopefully it might be a chance for us gamers in the UK to get some games we didn't see originally to!
OverThere, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Bonk’s Adventure on there as definite release, and a rumored release?
evolent, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Oooo... Solomon's Club! Solomon's key on the gameboy was almost a perfect little action puzzler type dealie. I remember being pretty adrenalined up trying to get Dana to avoid neverending streams of spinny head things. It was a great mix of lateral thinking and split-second, and pixel, precision.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solomon's_Key
jreno3, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7I thought Duck Hunt would make perfect sense.
- ccanni1028, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1They aren't going to release DuckHunt until they finish making DuckHunt 2. They will probably be released at the same time (most likely in a package deal).
- imbiginjapan, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0A Light Gun game like Duck Hunt could very well need some fairly extensive re-engineering since the Wiimote and the Light Gun don't really work on the same technology. Gameplay-wise it makes a lot of sense, but not so much in terms of the initial effort needed to make it work.
Push2Flush, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3nice... im gettin mario bros, sonic, and bomberman '93 with my first wii points card.
- mecole21, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Donkey Kong too... maybe i should just put batteries in my gameboy and play Donkey Kong '94...
Coffeedemon, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4No "A Boy and His Blob"? I am terribly vexed.

Seriously ... they'll release more classics as time goes on - no need to blow the whole load right now when they can guarantee a practically unlimited revenue stream.
- Clemson, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I agree - they'll probably treat the releases somewhat like Disney does with their 'Vault', creating hype and lasting appeal.
SpenceMasta, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1awesome gunstar heroes, im satisfied with this launch line =]
The0cho, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1Am i the only one stoked about Toe Jam and Earl? that was one of the best games ever. I played that thing for hours
deepmenace, on 10/12/2007, -7/+1you'd all do well to remember that nostalgia isn't as good as it used to be....

unless it's portable - GP2X FTW!
- conman16x, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2nostalgia isn't as good as it used to be? that doesn't make any kind of sense at all.
mikesherov, on 10/12/2007, -3/+6$8 for Sonic 1? $5 for Donkey Kong? Geez, I can buy a used copy of GTA3 for that price.
- mecole21, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1a Ms. Pac Man Plug and Play goes for like 15 bucks and thats got like 3 games... so its about similiar to what DK would be...
- kingfelix, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2stop burying valid comments. this isn't a silly complaint, it's a fact. prices may be higher for rare games, but that's it. most old games can be had insanely cheap.
Mykal73, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2I played the hell out of Solomon's Key on the NES. It alone could keep someone busy for a month or so.
zerofocus, on 10/12/2007, -6/+3I don't understand. I thought these games were suppose to be free, right? I don't get the point system. Are you going to have to pay for points or work for the points in order to get the game?
- Clemson, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Where'd you get the impression the points would be free?
- Durvivor, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4When the Nintendo Wii was young Nintendo spoke of free virtual console games. I remember reading of the free games. And, being a miser I tend to hang on to the past when a company says something along the lines of "in order to convince you to buy our next generation console it will include the old retro games for free!" Then, a year later as the console actually gets close to sale... now I have to pay for the games.
  
  Its OK that I have to pay for the games, but its NOT OK for the company to say one thing last year and another thing this year.
  
  That said, I realize this is MY problem... not Nintendos.
- Durvivor, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5You know what, my bad. Nintendo stated the "Free Virtual Console" games was a rumor over a year ago now. I should have realized that the "free" was a rumor.
  
  http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=59561
cnmsales, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1A lot of the third party titles are owned by Warner for there Gametap subscription service.
qu1ckz, on 10/12/2007, -1/+0I hope you guys know that this isn't all the games. It's just the first games of this year, and every month Nintendo will be adding 10 more games. Don't freak out just because of this list. Our favorite games will be on there, don't worry!
Nomad83, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I was hoping my first VC purchases were going to be Blazing Lasers and Devil's Crush! Those were some good times with my TG16
Wireddd, on 10/12/2007, -3/+4these games are too expensive, they should be 99 cents
- Rayonic, on 10/12/2007, -4/+1On the other hand, "Nintendo is making a profit, hooray!"
swoopdog, on 10/12/2007, -8/+3its called emulators and roms maybe you have heard of them?
m00nstone, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I've pre-ordered my Wii. This looks cool... but I gotta go with my modded xbox1 emulating all of this stuff. I'm already playing chrono trigger and SMB3.

I am interested in buying the N64 games (the don't emulate all that well on the PC/xbox, and I will be picking up the best Gamecube games just before LAUNCH!
- swoopdog, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5thats right forget the wii spend a couple hundred buy an xbox mod it and backup all the NES AWESOMENESS!
egarcia79, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1bonx adventure on turbo graphics 16 rocks. one of my favorite games back in the day. my system broke years ago. i can't wait to get that again. that and altered beast will be the first ones i get.
Topher06, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Dissapointing iniitial lineup. I mean, sports games on the NES were not very good, except for the boxing game Punch Out which I hope they re-release. Of the thousands of NES titles released, this is what they picked for release?

SimCity? Honestly. FZero ruled on the SNES, but the only other SNES title is SimCity? Ever play a Sim game on a console, painful as hell!

Of the games in the VC lineup that I am most interested in are the Sega Genesis and Turbo-Grafix games. I wanted to get these systems as a kid but my parents wouldn't allow me to have more then one game console at a time, so I had to pass over these games and only played them a friend's house. It was smart for Nintendo to add 3rd party console support, but I had hopped that Nintendo would release a few more of their A+ gems on release rather then a bunch of crappy titles nobody wanted the first time.
- drsnacks, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2But the SNES SimCity had great original music! Remember the Dr. Wright theme?
- imbiginjapan, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0I pretty much expect the list to expand quickly. I think a few things could be at work here. First, it looks like they were trying to run the gamut of genres and play styles in the initial offerings.
  Second, Nintendo may only be offering a few "big-name" titles until they can get the system working smoothly. After all, we're talking the launching of an entirely new online distribution system. I expect Nintendo would want to keep volume fairly restrained until the kinks have been worked out.
  Finally (and this is more speculative), my guess is that these games may have just happened to be easier to get working on the emulator than some other titles. A lot of the titles are early releases for their respective systems which generally means smaller file sizes and less complex programming. Of course there are a few exceptions like Zelda, but I figure Nintendo couldn't release without a few big titles.
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Wii Virtual Console Lineup Unveiled

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