Or at least a similar architecture to PS4/Xbone, to allow (MAYBE) more third-party support?

Just curious. How much would it have pissed you off if Nintendo abandoned BC and made an entirely new (and entirely standard) chipset for the Wii U? Was their decision the right one? How much have you used it to this point?

Honestly, BC is pretty important to me. I'm not even sure why. It just irritates me when it's missing. That's why it took me so long to pick up a PS3.

In a heartbeat.

I've got a Wii already, so if I want to play my Wii Games, I can do that. Backwards compatibility only ever feels like a big deal when I'm buying into the successor to a console I didn't buy - so I get a 2 for 1 deal. Or portables, but that's a different kettle of fish.

Yes. I buy a new system to play new games. I haven't used the Wii functions at all in the Wii U, and I likely never will. Conversely, I never used a Wii to play GameCube software (though I might get another Wii to use as a GameCube player since I already have a Wii component cable and a Wii system is cheaper than a GameCube component cable).

That said, backwards compatibility does matter to me on the handheld front. It was awesome that the GBA could play all Game Boy games, and I would have waited a long time to buy a 3DS without DS capabilities. I don't own a DS, and so I've spent more time playing DS software.

@Mop it up

High five!

@Mop it up

Sums up what I think too.

I've been using the Wii to play Gamecube stuff recently. Mostly multiplayer games. It IS pretty handy to not have to exhume an old system just to play some Double Dash. But it doesn't play import games like my self-modded Gamecube, which has a switch and tiny, hand-drawn American and Japanese flags!!

@kriswright
I agree with most of that. BC is pretty great when I didn't own the predecessor (even the limited BC of the Xbox 360). But I usually keep my old consoles, so I don't necessarily need it on Nintendo platforms. That said, it's still oddly important to me!

Handhelds are a bit different, though. The games are often tied to the hardware in such a way that playing them on the original version is usually the best experience. For example, I HATE the way that the GBA button layout translates to the DS. Actually, I just hate the DS button layout...

Having access to the previously inaccessible Game Boy library with the GBA was great (though the lack of Super Game Boy emulation bugged me). I still have to grab a GBA SP+. I should just live at Half-Price Books until a unit in good condition rolls in for $10, or whatever.

You know, that sentence didn't even need a qualifier. I should just live at Half-Price Books, full stop.

Kettles of fish are almost always backwards compatible.

Meh. The Wii U's power is fine, and I use the backwards compatibility enough to say that I care to have it. So....nah. Would not trade.

If the Wii's hardware wasn't a terrifying mess that wouldn't have lasted me another year, sure.

Yes, absolutely. BC is nice but in reality pretty useless for me. I think I played GCN on my Wii maybe 2 or 3 times? I've never played a DS game on my 3DS. So yeah, considering I play new games on new hardware about 99.99% of the time I would happily trade a more modern architecture for BC.

Honestly though, given the current panorama of Wii U's competitors, I don't think the Wii U is underpowered. Better graphics would have been nice but I think Wii U's real problem would be that is quite different from x86-machines. Both the PS4/ Xbox one use a similar architecture where the GPU does most of the heavy lifting like in the Wii U (heterogeneous architecture.) While I'm on the subject, at least 4 Gigs of GDDR3 RAM would have been nice.

Although to humor you, I would have traded backwards compatibility for more power. With that said, I think that the practice of systematically erasing backwards compatibility from generation to generation should stop. Hopefully starting next gen Nintendo can device a road-map for this sort of thing.

Imagine not being able to play your old music on a new ipod/iphone. That is a bit extreme but it is not far off the mark. What prevents one game from being played on another is software compatibility.

Yes, since I don't really have much use for backwards compatibility, but I doubt removing the Wii stuff would lead to much of a bump in power. And as Tranquilo says, the bigger problem is the architecture.

@Tranquilo
I have to imagine now that MS and Sony have both settled on X86 architecture it will be easier for them to include BC next generation, but I guess time will tell, there might not even be a next generation or maybe by then everyone will be using mobile chips.

I guess?

I still have my Wii, and its still hooked up.
I would've traded Backwards Compatibility in the Wii, too, for GameCube reasons.


I've said it before; the thing that gets me is these other companies talk about how important something is....until they aren't doing it. "Oh, its GOT to have backwards compatibility, what would we do without it?!" And then theres a big stink about not being able to play PS3 games or whatever, and then the Wii U is like "dudes, you can still play Wii games here, rock it," and those guys are like "...w-well....SO??" And everyone is like "..YEAH, SO WHAT. WHY AREN'T YOU MORE POWERFUL?! *SCOFF*"

I wouldn't be surprised if the "can't play used games" thing fell through either and nobody cared.


Basically, Nintendo is always the oil pan.

Generally, I really like backwards compatibility. But I've already played all the Wii games I wanted to, and I don't revisit games that often anymore. So it wouldn't have mattered much on Wii U for me.

I dunno, I think Nintendo is also guilty of touting something as the next big thing and then either abandoning it completely or not mentioning it much anymore. All companies do this. I'm sure at some point they'll abandon BC as well. Are people going to be that upset if the next console isn't BC with Wii U?

I also don't really think Sony or MS really touted BC as a selling point. They were afterthoughts, and in Sony's case, abandoned after a short while. I think they quickly realized that people just don't care all that much. Most people don't go back to playing 10 year old games like we do I imagine. Are we going to really want to play Mario Kart Wii after MK8 comes out? Many of these games just get replaced by sequels.

@deathly_hallows

Yea, but at this point I honestly have no faith in these companies. I would personally go the PC route. Or rather, buy my games from Steam. Except for the Nintendo exclusives obviously.

I'm still debating whether I will buy most of my games from Steam. It depends how well the PS4/Vita combo works.

Yeah, I think I would do that trade. As long as I could still upgrade my Wii VC games...

Initially I would have been upset, but in practice, I don't use my Wii U as a Wii. I use my Wii for that. I would easily have made that trade, especially with the invention of download titles these days.

@PogueSquadron

It's not always so much that people want to re-play an old favorite. Some people value BC so they can play something they missed out on when it first was released, and they no longer have the original hardware the game came out on.

Heck, I value BC on the mere fact that it saves me shelf space on my entertainment unit. There can be many positives for having BC in a system. And IMO, precious few reasons NOT to have it.

Yes. It's a nice bonus, but it's not worth making other sacrifices IMO. It's not that difficult to keep old systems around and it's not like Wiis were worth much anymore anyway.

GameDadGrant said:

@PogueSquadron

It's not always so much that people want to re-play an old favorite. Some people value BC so they can play something they missed out on when it first was released, and they no longer have the original hardware the game came out on.

Heck, I value BC on the mere fact that it saves me shelf space on my entertainment unit. There can be many positives for having BC in a system. And IMO, precious few reasons NOT to have it.

This exactly. I see no reason to still having my Wii hooked up unless I was forced to and I prefer it that way.