Editing Wii emulators

{{for|emulators that run on the Wii|Emulators on Wii}}  

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! scope="col"|[[#Hardware_features_and peripherals|Hardware features<br/>and peripherals]]

| [https://dolphin-emu.org/download/#download-dev Dev]<ref group=N name=dolphinstable>The stable versions are years out-of-date and missing countless features and bug fixes. '''Beta or development versions are a better choice for almost all users'''; the stable versions should only be used if you have a specific need for them.</ref><br/>[https://dolphin-emu.org/download/#download-beta Beta]<ref group=N name=dolphinstable></ref><br/>[https://buildbot.libretro.com/nightly/ ''libretro core'']<ref group=N name=DolphinRA>Dolphin libretro core is currently at Alpha release and has bugs that are not present on standalone Dolphin. Similar to PPSSPP, Citra and melonDS libretro cores, the standalone version of Dolphin is highly recommended over the libretro core as the libretro core version is outdated and can be slow and unstable.</ref><br/>[https://forums.dolphin-emu.org/Thread-unofficial-ishiiruka-dolphin-custom-version Dev] ([[Ishiiruka-Dolphin]]) (いし海豚)

|[[Dolphin MMJR]]^&Dagger;

|align=left|{{Icon|Android}}

|<strike>[https://github.com/Bankaimaster999/Dolphin-MMJR git]</strike>^&Dagger;

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;Emulators

:;[[Dolphin]]: The only option for Wii emulation. This is probably due to the project going open-source, allowing more developers to pursue it early in the console's lifespan. It's updated on a near-daily basis and is very compatible, barring some noticeable issues with GameCube games. In addition, it is recommended to sync a Wii remote to play games, mainly because it can be difficult mapping the motion controls to a controller.

::;[[Ishiiruka-Dolphin]]: A fork of Dolphin optimized towards performance at the cost of accuracy and stability in the process.

:;Hagi: An [[Official emulators|official]] GameCube/Wii emulator developed by Nintendo European Research & Development (NERD). Hagi has been used primarily for re-releases [[Emulators on Switch|on the Switch]], such as ''Super Mario Sunshine'', ''Super Mario Galaxy'', ''Pikmin'', and ''Pikmin 2''.

:;vWii (Virtual Wii): vWii is the part of the Wii U's system for Wii mode[https://wiibrew.org/wiki/VWii]. Similar to [[PlayStation_5_emulators#Hardware_features_and_peripherals|PlayStation 5 backwards compatibility for PlayStation 4 (Pro)]] or [[Xbox_Series_X_and_Series_S#Hardware_features_and_peripherals|Xbox Series X|S backwards compatibility for Xbox One]].

==Hardware features and peripherals==

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;vertical-align:middle;width:100%"

| rowspan=3 | [[Wikipedia:Wii_system_software|Wii system software]]

| rowspan=3 | [[#Connectivity|Connectivity]]

|[[Nintendo_Wi-Fi_Connection|Wi-Fi & WFC]]

|[[Nintendo_Wi-Fi_Connection|WiiConnect24]]

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|[[List_of_games_that_support_tracked_motion_controllers#Wii_Emulation|Wii MotionPlus]]

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===Backwards Compatibility===

*Dolphin emulator is ... placeholder text (needs testing)

*Virtual Wii is supports GameCube games but due to incompatibility with Wii U's optical drive with GameCube discs, you need to use [[homebrew]] solutions. See [https://old.reddit.com/r/wiiu/comments/vd9el0/if_a_wii_u_can_simulate_a_wii_and_a_wii_can_play/ this reddit thread] for more information.

The Wii Optical Disc (RVL-006) is the physical game medium for the Wii, created by Panasonic. Nintendo extended its proprietary technology to use a full size 12 cm, 4.7/8.54 GB DVD-based disc, retaining the benefits of the GameCube Game Disc, and adding the standard capacity of a double-layer DVD-ROM. Wii Discs always include a partition with files to update the Wii system software, which are installed before starting the game if needed. This ensures that systems that cannot connect to the Internet are still updated. For the same reasons as the GameCube, the Wii cannot play DVD-Videos or CDs. However, earlier Wiis can play DVD-Video using [[Homebrew_and_hack_Roms|homebrew]] such as WiiMC.[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nintendo_optical_discs#Wii_Optical_Disc]

*Dolphin has support for Wii Optical Disc dumps/[[Save_disk_space_for_ISOs#GameCube_.2F_Wii|images]]. But unfortunately most regular optical drives for PCs are unable to read Gamecube & Wii discs, so you need to rip your discs. However you can use some out-of-print models of DVD drives which may read GC and Wii discs but even then you'll need a compatible software tool to dump it. See [[Ripping_games]] page for more information. Other than that, there is no support for DVD-Video if you plan to use Dolphin with WiiMC [[Homebrew_and_hack_Roms|homebrew]] software for DVD-Video.

*Virtual Wii has support for Wii Optical Disc ([https://youtu.be/4iaq_mKn7mE demonstration]). It cannot play DVD-Videos though, but we don't know if it's possible to play DVD-Videos using Virtual Wii and [[Homebrew_and_hack_Roms|homebrew]] software (similar to earlier Wii models as mentioned above). According to some user reports it's possible with using external optical drive[https://gbatemp.net/threads/full-dvd-playback-on-wiiu-vwii-wiimc-lg-drive.500189/].

*See [[Home_Media_Player#Emulators|this dedicated page]] for more information about home media playback support for emulation softwares.

 

==Enhancements==

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! colspan=2 | Name

| rowspan=8 | Graphics

| [[Resolution|Resizable Internal Resolution]]

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| [[Wikipedia:24-bit_color#True_color_(24-bit)|True Color]] Rendering<br/><small>This is an enhancement that reduces banding by forcing the emulated hardware to the highest bitdepth possible. [https://dolphin-emu.org/blog/2024/02/10/dolphin-progress-report-november-and-december-2023-january-2024/#50-20849-videocommon-apply-force-24-bit-color-to-efb-copies-by-flacs Read this] for more information. It is useful especially on non-CRT [[Displays|displays]], producing nicer looking gradients.</small>

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| [[Widescreen_hacks#GameCube.2FWii|Widescreen and ultrawide hack]]<br/><small>To get full native widescreen, try [[Homebrew_and_hack_Roms|Swiss]].<br/>This can even run on a real GameCube/Wii if you wish.

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| [[Texture packs]]

| {{✓}}<ref group=N2>Dolphin lets you dump game textures and also replace game textures with new custom ones.{{Main|Texture packs#GameCube/Wii}}</ref>

| Ray-tracing<br/><small>([https://devblogs.microsoft.com/directx/announcing-microsoft-directx-raytracing/ DXR], [https://www.khronos.org/blog/ray-tracing-in-vulkan VRT] and [https://developer.apple.com/documentation/metal/metal_sample_code_library/accelerating_ray_tracing_using_metal MRT])</small>

| <small>Implementing ray-tracing in an emulator is unfortunately quite challenging and unlikely to be feasible in the near future.<br/>However you can try "[[Shaders_and_filters#Notable_ReShade_shaders|Screen-Space Ray Traced Global Illumination]]" shader using ReShade.[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9IlqfrJwKr4][https://reshade.me/forum/general-discussion/5442-release-misc-emulators-with-depth-buffer-access#35113]</small>

| Pre-rendering AA<br/><small>(MSAA, SSAA)</small>

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| Super-resolution techniques<br/><small>([https://github.com/NVIDIA/DLSS/blob/main/doc/DLSS_Programming_Guide_Release.pdf DLSS], [https://github.com/intel/xess/?tab=readme-ov-file XeSS] and [[Wikipedia:GPUOpen#FidelityFX_Super_Resolution|FSR 2+]])</small>

| <small>Requires access to the depth buffer and temporal data like motion-vectors so it's quite challenging and unlikely to be feasible in the near future.<br/>Besides any GPU that can use DLSS can run Dolphin at 8k native with ease anyway.</small>

| [https://github.com/NVIDIAGameWorks/rtx-remix/wiki RTX Remix]

| colspan=2 | <small>Implementing RTX Remix technology in an emulator is unfortunately quite challenging and unlikely to be feasible in the near future.<br/>Besides, Dolphin already supports most of RTX Remix features such as access to assets, texture replacement and post-processing effects etc.[https://www.reddit.com/r/DolphinEmulator/comments/xn6p21/is_it_possible_to_use_rtx_remix_on_emulated/]<br/>On top of that you can use ReShade.</small>

| rowspan=5 | Performance

| [[Overclocking|Overclock]]

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| [[30/60_FPS_cheat_codes#GameCube.2FWii|Internal Framerate Hack]]

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| [https://blurbusters.com/frame-generation-essentials-interpolation-extrapolation-and-reprojection/ Frame generation technologies]<br/><small>([https://store.steampowered.com/app/993090/Lossless_Scaling/ LSFG], [https://github.com/NVIDIAGameWorks/Streamline/blob/main/docs/ProgrammingGuideDLSS_G.md DLSS-G], [https://www.techpowerup.com/316835/extrass-framework-paper-details-intels-take-on-frame-generation ExtraSS] and [https://community.amd.com/t5/gaming/amd-fluid-motion-frames-is-out-now-on-amd-radeon-rx-7000-series/ba-p/634372 AFMF])</small>

| colspan=3 | <small>Implementing frame generation technology in an emulator is unfortunately quite challenging and unlikely to be feasible in the near future, however post-processing techniques such as [[Wikipedia:Motion_interpolation|motion interpolation]] is quite possible. [[Input_lag|Input latency]] will be a crucial factor, but its impact likely varies depending on the specific technique employed, it's recommended to use '''after applying the "Internal Framerate Hack" and "skip presenting duplicate frames option"'''.<br/>While '''[https://youtu.be/5mbUTfCRIF0 AFMF]''' or '''LSFG''' can be used with Dolphin, please be aware that some visual glitches and artifacts may occur at this time.

| Preload [[Wikipedia:Template:Disk_images|optical disc image]] to RAM<br/><small>For users with sluggish multi-platter HDDs or plagued by horrible seek times, this enhancement '''might''' offer smoother experience, potentially reduced power consumption; it also shines when disc images reside on a network drive.<br/>Although keep in mind that preloading image would take some time, and it will require additional amount of RAM capacity.</small>

| {{✗}}[https://bugs.dolphin-emu.org/issues/11876 *]

| Rendering latency reduction technologies<br/><small>([https://github.com/ishitatsuyuki/LatencyFleX LatencyFleX], [https://developer.nvidia.com/performance-rendering-tools/reflex Reflex] and [https://www.amd.com/en/products/software/adrenalin/radeon-software-anti-lag.html Anti-Lag'''+'''])

| colspan=4 | <small>While most emulators offer frame pacing or framebuffer latency control options, implementing rendering latency reduction technologies isn't currently feasible. This is '''likely''' doesn't offer enough benefit to justify the development effort.</small>

| rowspan=6 | Post-Processing

| [[Wikipedia:Category:Anti-aliasing_algorithms|Post-rendering AA]]<br/><small>(FXAA, TXAA and MLAA/SMAA)</small>

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| [[Wikipedia:Comparison_gallery_of_image_scaling_algorithms|Post-rendering scaling]]<br/><small>(Sharp bilinear, Lanczos and [[Wikipedia:GPUOpen#FidelityFX_Super_Resolution|FSR 1]])</small>

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| rowspan=5 | [https://tasvideos.org/Emulatorresources/Features TAS features]

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| [[Wikipedia:Variable_refresh_rate|Variable Refresh Rate compatible]]

| {{✗}}[https://forums.dolphin-emu.org/Thread-question-about-gsync-vrr *]

| [[Frontends#Graphical_User_Interfaces_.28GUIs.29|Big Picture Mode]]

| [https://forums.dolphin-emu.org/Thread-possible-to-add-a-big-picture-menu-screen-like-pcsx2-has WIP]

| rowspan=5 | Misc

| [https://retroachievements.org/gameList.php?c=19 RetroAchievements]

| [https://github.com/dolphin-emu/dolphin/pulls?q=is%3Apr+is%3Aopen%2Bclosed+retroachievements+ WIP]

| colspan=2 |  Exclusive to [https://www.emuvr.net/wiki/Installation_Guide#Downloads libretro cores] at the moment.

| [[Wikipedia:Category:Debugging|Debug Features]]

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Twitter user @dev_console claims to be [https://twitter.com/dev_console/status/1564739781740957696 working] on dumping this board NAND and keys, which could result in this hardware being emulated.