Difference between revisions of "Virtual Console"

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{{Infobox
+
{{Infobox emulator
|first = n/a
+
|title = Virtual Console
|second = Yes
+
|active = Yes
|third = Wii, 3DS, Wii U
+
|platform = [[Wii emulators|Wii]], [[Nintendo 3DS emulators|3DS]], [[Wii U emulators|Wii U]]
|fourth = Nintendo|image = 3ds_vc_logo.png
+
|target = [[#Supported Systems|Multiple]]
|fifth = [http://www.nintendo.com/games/gameGuide?term=virtual%20console&source=search eShop]
+
|developer = Nintendo
|sixth = [http://www.nintendo.co.jp/support/oss/ Nintendo OSS] (Partial)}}
+
|logo = 3ds_vc_logo.png
 +
|website = [http://www.nintendo.com/games/gameGuide?term=virtual%20console&source=search eShop]
 +
|source = [http://www.nintendo.co.jp/support/oss/ Nintendo OSS] <small>(Partial)</small>
 +
}}
 
'''Virtual Console''' is a service created by Nintendo that allows users to purchase and emulate games.
 
'''Virtual Console''' is a service created by Nintendo that allows users to purchase and emulate games.
 
 
  
 
==Overview==
 
==Overview==
 
Games played through Virtual Console are usually free of accuracy issues.
 
Games played through Virtual Console are usually free of accuracy issues.
  
In terms of functionality, the Virtual Console emulator is very bare-bones compared to unofficial emulators, but the 3DS version has restore points (save states) and screenshot saving. The Wii U version has both plus controller customization (Game Gear on 3DS also has it), Off TV Play, Pixel smoothing and scaling changing. Despite this, usually only the bare functionality is emulated: there is no way to save ghost data in ''Mario Kart 64'' due to a lack of a Memory Pak emulated.
+
In terms of functionality, the Virtual Console emulator is very bare-bones compared to unofficial emulators, but the 3DS version has restore points (save states) and screenshot saving. The Wii U version has both plus controller customization (Game Gear on 3DS also has it), Off-TV Play, Pixel smoothing and scaling changing. Despite this, usually only the bare functionality is emulated: there is no way to save ghost data in ''Mario Kart 64'' due to a lack of a Memory Pak emulated.
  
The different regions of Virtual Console (Japan, North America, Europe/Australia, and South Korea) have different games and update them to different schedules. At times, North America gets games that were exclusive to Japan while Europe/Australia gets games that were exclusive to the previous two regions. These imported games are priced a little higher than normal and tend to be straight ports with no translation. (Exceptions include ''Monster World IV'' and ''Sin & Punishment''.) Other games that can be priced higher than normal are games based on externally-licensed properties, one example being the ''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'' games.
+
The different regions of Virtual Console (Japan, North America, Europe/Australia, and South Korea) have different games and update them on different schedules. At times, North America gets games that were exclusive to Japan while Europe/Australia gets games that were exclusive to the previous two regions. These imported games are priced a little higher than normal and tend to be straight ports with no translation. (Exceptions include ''Monster World IV'' and ''Sin & Punishment''.) Other games that can be priced higher than normal are games based on externally-licensed properties, one example being the ''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'' games.
  
 
Virtual Console games can be retired from the shop, though purchased games can be redownloaded.
 
Virtual Console games can be retired from the shop, though purchased games can be redownloaded.
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! scope="col"|Wii U
 
! scope="col"|Wii U
 
! scope="col"|3DS
 
! scope="col"|3DS
 +
! scope="col"|Notes
 
|-
 
|-
 
|[[Nintendo Entertainment System emulators|Nintendo Entertainment System]] (Famicom)
 
|[[Nintendo Entertainment System emulators|Nintendo Entertainment System]] (Famicom)
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|✓
 
|✓
 
|✓
 
|✓
 +
|Supports the Famicom Disk System and the first-party Nintendo mappers.
 
|-
 
|-
 
|[[Super Nintendo emulators|Super Nintendo Entertainment System]] (Super Famicom)
 
|[[Super Nintendo emulators|Super Nintendo Entertainment System]] (Super Famicom)
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|✓
 
|✓
 
|✓*
 
|✓*
 +
|Supports normal cartridges up to 4MB, DSP-1, Cx4, and SA-1. Super-FX support is exclusive to the SNES Classic.
 
|-
 
|-
 
|[[Nintendo 64 emulators|Nintendo 64]]
 
|[[Nintendo 64 emulators|Nintendo 64]]
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|✓
 
|✓
 
|
 
|
 +
|Recommended. Wii U has input delay but later revisions are more compatible (Harvest Moon 64).
 
|-
 
|-
 
|[[Master System emulators|Sega Master System]]
 
|[[Master System emulators|Sega Master System]]
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|
 
|
 
|
 
|
 +
|Includes FM emulation.
 
|-
 
|-
 
|[[Sega Genesis emulators|Sega Mega Drive / Genesis]]
 
|[[Sega Genesis emulators|Sega Mega Drive / Genesis]]
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|
 
|
 
|
 
|
 +
|Regular Genesis/MD emulation. No Sega-CD or 32X. Also on 3DS as game compilations.
 
|-
 
|-
|[[PC Engine emulators|PC Engine]]
+
|[[PC Engine (TurboGrafx-16) emulators|PC Engine]]
 +
|✓
 
|✓
 
|✓
 
|
 
|
|
+
|HuCard cartridge emulation, and PCE-CD emulation with separate Audio CD tracks.
 
|-
 
|-
 
|[[Neo Geo emulators|Neo Geo]]
 
|[[Neo Geo emulators|Neo Geo]]
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|
 
|
 
|
 
|
 +
|Arcade mode. Also on the Switch.
 
|-
 
|-
 
|[[Commodore 64 emulators|Commodore 64]]
 
|[[Commodore 64 emulators|Commodore 64]]
 
|✓
 
|✓
 +
|
 
|
 
|
 
|
 
|
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|
 
|
 
|
 
|
 +
|Japan-only. Emulates a Japanese MSX2.
 
|-
 
|-
|[[Game Boy/Game Boy Color|Game Boy]]
+
|[[Game Boy/Game Boy Color emulators|Game Boy]]
 
|✗
 
|✗
 
|
 
|
 
|✓
 
|✓
 +
|No SGB borders or GBC palettes. Link emulation added with Pokemon VC releases. Only used on Wii in Kirby Collection.
 
|-
 
|-
|[[Game Boy/Game Boy Color|Game Boy Color]]
+
|[[Game Boy/Game Boy Color emulators|Game Boy Color]]
 
|✗
 
|✗
 
|
 
|
 
|✓
 
|✓
 +
|In addition to the above, no IR or GBA mode emulation.
 
|-
 
|-
|[[Game Boy Advance]]
+
|[[Game Boy Advance emulators|Game Boy Advance]]
 
|✗
 
|✗
 
|✓
 
|✓
 
|✓**
 
|✓**
 +
|Hardware emulation on 3DS. No link features. Some e-Reader or rumble features restored as game-specific hacks.
 
|-
 
|-
|[[Nintendo DS]]
+
|[[Nintendo DS emulators|Nintendo DS]]
 
|✗
 
|✗
 
|✓
 
|✓
 
|
 
|
 +
|No link, online, or DSi support.
 
|-
 
|-
|[[Game Gear emulators|Game Gear]]
+
|[[Master System emulators|Game Gear]]
 
|✓
 
|✓
 
|
 
|
 +
|✓
 
|
 
|
 
|-
 
|-
|[[Arcade]]
+
|[[Arcade emulators|Arcade]]
 
|✓
 
|✓
 
|
 
|
 
|
 
|
 +
|Various Namco, Capcom, Sega and Tecmo boards.
 
|}
 
|}
  
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===Wii U===
 
===Wii U===
* DS VC: The roms are stored in regular DS ROM format, in a zip folder. There's a config file with a brightness setting, and an option to change internal 3D resolution that Nintendo didn't use for some reason. Just change the line '''"RenderScale": 1''' to have the value 2 instead.
+
* DS VC: The roms are stored in regular DS ROM format (.nds), in a zip archive. There's also a config file with a brightness setting, and an option to change internal 3D resolution that Nintendo didn't use for some reason. Just change the line '''"RenderScale": 1''' to have the value 2 instead.
 
 
==Compatibility List (US combined)==
 
===Nintendo Entertainment System===
 
Appeared on the Wii, Wii U, 3DS, NES Classic and Switch (unhacked). Only a few mappers from the officially licensed are supported, in addition to the Family Disc System. Earlier, more rudimentary NES emulators exist for the GameCube (as part of Animal Crossing, and the Zelda Collector's Edition) and the GBA e-Reader (only supports mapper 0 games).
 
 
 
{|width="100%"
 
|- valign="top"
 
|
 
* A Boy and His Blob: Trouble on Blobolonia
 
* Adventure Island
 
* Adventure Island II
 
* Adventures of Lolo
 
* Adventures of Lolo 2
 
* Balloon Fight
 
* Baseball
 
* Bases Loaded
 
* Blades of Steel
 
* Blaster Master
 
* Bubble Bobble
 
* BurgerTime
 
* Castlevania
 
* Castlevania II: Simon's Quest
 
* Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse
 
* City Connection
 
* Clu Clu Land
 
* Crash 'N' The Boys: Street Challenge
 
* Dig Dug
 
* Donkey Kong
 
* Donkey Kong 3
 
* Donkey Kong Jr.
 
* Donkey Kong Jr. Math
 
* Double Dragon
 
* Double Dragon II: The Revenge
 
* Double Dribble
 
* Dr. Mario
 
* Duck Hunt
 
* EarthBound Beginnings (Mother 1 (JP), Earth Bound (US))
 
* Elevator Action
 
* Excitebike
 
* Faxanadu
 
* Final Fantasy
 
* Galaga
 
* Gargoyle's Quest II
 
* Ghosts 'n Goblins
 
* Golf
 
* Gradius
 
* Ice Climber
 
* Ice Hockey
 
|width="33%"|
 
* Kid Icarus
 
* King's Knight
 
* Kirby's Adventure
 
* Life Force
 
* Lode Runner
 
* Lunar Pool
 
* Mach Rider
 
* Mappy-Land
 
* Mario Bros.
 
* Mega Man
 
* Mega Man 2
 
* Mega Man 3
 
* Mega Man 4
 
* Mega Man 5
 
* Mega Man 6
 
* Metroid
 
* Mighty Bomb Jack
 
* Mighty Final Fight
 
* Milon's Secret Castle
 
* NES Open Tournament Golf
 
* NES Play Action Football
 
* Ninja Gaiden
 
* Ninja Gaiden II: The Dark Sword of Chaos
 
* Ninja Gaiden III: The Ancient Ship of Doom
 
* Ninja JaJaMaru-kun
 
* Operation Wolf
 
* Pac-Land
 
* Pac-Man
 
* Pinball
 
* Princess Tomato in the Salad Kingdom
 
* Punch-Out!!
 
* Renegade
 
* River City Ransom
 
* S.C.A.T.: Special Cybernetic Attack Team
 
* Shadow of the Ninja
 
* Sky Kid
 
* Soccer
 
* Solomon's Key
 
* Spelunker
 
* Star Soldier
 
|width="33%"|
 
* StarTropics
 
* Street Fighter 2010: The Final Fight
 
* Summer Carnival '92: Recca
 
* Super C
 
* Super Dodge Ball
 
* Super Mario Bros.
 
* Super Mario Bros. 2
 
* Super Mario Bros. 3
 
* Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels
 
* Tecmo Bowl
 
* Tennis
 
* The Legend of Kage
 
* The Legend of Zelda
 
* The Mysterious Murasame Castle (untranslated)
 
* Ufouria: The Saga
 
* Urban Champion
 
* Volleyball
 
* Wario's Woods
 
* Wrecking Crew
 
* Xevious
 
* Yoshi
 
* Zanac
 
* Zelda II: The Adventure of Link
 
* Zoda's Revenge: StarTropics II
 
|}
 
 
 
===Super Nintendo Entertainment System===
 
Appeared on the Wii, Wii U, 3DS (new3DS models exclusively), and the SNES Classic. Some compilations on the Wii (Dragon Quest 1+2+3, Super Mario 25th Anniversary, Kirby's Special Edition) and old3DS (Jump compilation including Super Butoden, Yu Yu Hakusho and Super Butoden, the latter also released standalone as a preorder bonus for another 3DS game even outside Japan) also included SNES emulation.
 
 
 
{|width="100%"
 
|- valign="top"
 
|
 
* ActRaiser
 
* Aero the Acro-Bat
 
* Aero the Acro-Bat 2
 
* Axelay
 
* Brawl Brothers
 
* Breath of Fire
 
* Breath of Fire II
 
* Castlevania: Dracula X
 
* Chrono Trigger
 
* Contra III: The Alien Wars
 
* Cybernator
 
* Darius Twin
 
* Demon's Crest
 
* Donkey Kong Country
 
* Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest
 
* Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble!
 
* EarthBound (Mother 2) (JP/US/PAL Wii U, Brawl JP version with cheats)
 
* F-Zero
 
* Final Fantasy II (Modified version of FF4 Easy Type in JP)
 
* Final Fantasy III (6 in JP)
 
* Final Fantasy Mystic Quest
 
* Final Fight
 
* Final Fight 2
 
* Final Fight 3
 
* Genghis Khan II: Clan of the Gray Wolf
 
* Ghoul Patrol
 
* Gradius III
 
* Harvest Moon
 
* Indiana Jones' Greatest Adventures
 
|width="33%"|
 
* Kirby Super Star
 
* Kirby's Avalanche
 
* Kirby's Dream Course
 
* Kirby's Dream Land 3
 
* Mega Man 7
 
* Mega Man X
 
* Mega Man X2
 
* Mega Man X3
 
* Metal Marines
 
* Natsume Championship Wrestling
 
* Nobunaga's Ambition
 
* Ogre Battle: The March of the Black Queen
 
* Pac-Attack
 
* Pilotwings
 
* Prince of Persia
 
* Rival Turf!
 
* Romance of the Three Kingdoms IV: Wall of Fire
 
* Secret of Mana
 
* Space Invaders: The Original Game
 
* Street Fighter Alpha 2
 
* Street Fighter II Turbo: Hyper Fighting
 
* Street Fighter II: The World Warrior
 
* Super Adventure Island
 
* Super Adventure Island II
 
* Super Bonk
 
* Super Castlevania IV
 
* Super E.D.F.: Earth Defense Force
 
|width="33%"|
 
* Super Ghouls 'n Ghosts
 
* Super Mario Kart
 
* Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (PAL VC version undid some NA changes like controller colors)
 
* Super Mario World
 
* Super Metroid
 
* Super Punch-Out!!
 
* Super Star Wars
 
* Super Star Wars: Return of the Jedi
 
* Super Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back
 
* Super Street Fighter II: The New Challengers
 
* Super Turrican
 
* The Combatribes
 
* The Ignition Factor
 
* The Legend of the Mystical Ninja
 
* The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
 
* Uncharted Waters: New Horizons
 
* Vegas Stakes
 
* Wild Guns
 
* Zombies Ate My Neighbors
 
|}
 
 
 
There are much more Japanese VC releases for SFC games than on the barren US VC. Notable releases include:
 
 
 
{|width="100%"
 
|- valign="top"
 
|
 
* Bahamut Lagoon
 
* Fire Emblem 3
 
* Ganbare Goemon 2
 
* Ganbare Goemon 3
 
* Ganbare Goemon 4
 
|width="33%"|
 
* Marvelous Mouhitotsu no Takarajima (Nintendo R&D, Wii U only)
 
* Romancing SaGa 2 (with substantial additional in-game content)
 
* Romancing SaGa 3
 
* Treasure Hunter G
 
|width="33%"|
 
* Fire Emblem Seisen no Keifu
 
* Fire Emblem Thracia 766
 
* Sutte Hakkun
 
* Wrecking Crew 98'
 
|}
 
 
 
Nintendo of America has however recently rejected many submissions for third-party SNES VC releases on the Wii U, so it's unlikely there will be more such releases on the US VC at least.
 
 
 
The SNES Classic emulator added support for the Super FX games, unlike all other SNES Virtual Console revisions. However, it still has some problems with injecting regular games due to heavily using per-game presets. The Super-FX games included and supported are:
 
 
 
* Yoshi's Island
 
* Star Fox
 
* Star Fox 2 (its first official release ever)
 
 
 
===Nintendo 64===
 
Appeared on the Wii and Wii U. Apparently has multiple revisions, the earlier ones not compatible with Harvest Moon 64 yet, but a later revision supported it eventually for its official VC release on the Wii U.
 
 
 
The GameCube had another early N64 emulator on the Zelda collection originally bundled with versions of OoT, Master Quest and Majora's Mask (with 60Hz European versions exclusive to this collection), that only supported injection of seven other games.
 
 
 
Games on the N64 Virtual Console include:
 
 
 
{|width="100%"
 
|- valign="top"
 
|
 
* 1080° Snowboarding
 
* Bomberman Hero
 
* Cruis'n USA
 
* Donkey Kong 64
 
* F-Zero X
 
* Harvest Moon 64
 
* Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards
 
* Mario Golf
 
* Mario Kart 64
 
* Mario Party 2
 
* Mario Tennis
 
|width="33%"|
 
* Ogre Battle 64: Person of Lordly Caliber
 
* Paper Mario
 
* Pokémon Puzzle League
 
* Pokémon Snap
 
* Sin & Punishment
 
* Star Fox 64
 
* Super Mario 64
 
* Super Smash Bros.
 
* The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask
 
* The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
 
|width="33%"|
 
* Wave Race 64
 
* Yoshi's Story
 
|}
 
 
 
===Sega Master System===
 
{|width="100%"
 
|- valign="top"
 
|
 
* Alex Kidd in Miracle World
 
* Alex Kidd in Shinobi World
 
* Alex Kidd: The Lost Stars
 
* Enduro Racer
 
* Fantasy Zone
 
|width="33%"|
 
* Fantasy Zone II: The Tears of Opa-Opa
 
* Phantasy Star
 
* Secret Command
 
* Sonic Chaos
 
* Sonic the Hedgehog
 
|width="33%"|
 
* Sonic the Hedgehog 2
 
* Space Harrier
 
* Wonder Boy
 
* Wonder Boy III: The Dragon's Trap
 
* Wonder Boy in Monster Land
 
|}
 
 
 
===Sega Genesis===
 
 
 
{|width="100%"
 
|- valign="top"
 
|
 
* Alex Kidd in the Enchanted Castle
 
* Alien Soldier
 
* Alien Storm
 
* Altered Beast
 
* Beyond Oasis
 
* Bio-Hazard Battle
 
* Bonanza Bros.
 
* Boogerman: A Pick and Flick Adventure
 
* ClayFighter
 
* Columns
 
* Columns III: Revenge of Columns
 
* Comix Zone
 
* Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine
 
* Dynamite Headdy
 
* Earthworm Jim
 
* Earthworm Jim 2
 
* Ecco Jr.
 
* Ecco the Dolphin
 
* Ecco: The Tides of Time
 
* Eternal Champions
 
|width="33%"|
 
* Forgotten Worlds
 
* Gain Ground
 
* Galaxy Force II
 
* Ghouls 'n Ghosts
 
* Gley Lancer
 
* Golden Axe
 
* Golden Axe II
 
* Golden Axe III
 
* Gunstar Heroes
 
* Kid Chameleon
 
* Landstalker: The Treasures of King Nole
 
* Light Crusader
 
* M.U.S.H.A.
 
* Mega Turrican
 
* Mercs
 
* Monster World IV (PAL/US VC release has a full English translation)
 
* Phantasy Star II
 
* Phantasy Star III: Generations of Doom
 
* Phantasy Star IV: The End of the Millennium
 
* Powerball
 
|width="33%"|
 
* Puyo Puyo 2
 
* Ristar
 
* Rolling Thunder 2
 
* Shadow Dancer: The Secret of Shinobi
 
* Shining Force
 
* Shining Force II: Ancient Sealing
 
* Shining in the Darkness
 
* Shinobi III: Return of the Ninja Master
 
* Sonic & Knuckles
 
* Sonic 3D Blast
 
* Sonic Spinball
 
* Sonic the Hedgehog
 
* Sonic the Hedgehog 2
 
* Sonic the Hedgehog 3
 
* Space Harrier II
 
* Splatterhouse 2
 
* Street Fighter II: Special Champion Edition
 
* Streets of Rage
 
* Streets of Rage 2
 
* Streets of Rage 3
 
* Strider
 
* Super Fantasy Zone
 
* Super Street Fighter II: The New Challengers
 
* Super Thunder Blade
 
* Sword of Vermilion
 
* The Revenge of Shinobi
 
* ToeJam & Earl
 
* ToeJam & Earl in Panic on Funkotron
 
* Vectorman
 
* Virtua Fighter 2
 
* Wonder Boy in Monster World
 
|}
 
 
 
===TurboGrafx-16/TurboGrafx-CD===
 
 
 
* Air Zonk
 
* Alien Crush
 
* Battle Lode Runner
 
* Blazing Lazers
 
* Bomberman '93
 
* Bonk 3: Bonk's Big Adventure
 
* Bonk's Adventure
 
* Bonk's Revenge
 
* Bravoman
 
* Chase H.Q.
 
* Chew Man Fu
 
* China Warrior
 
* Cratermaze
 
* Dead Moon
 
* Devil's Crush
 
* Double Dungeons
 
* Dragon Spirit
 
* Dragon's Curse
 
* Dungeon Explorer
 
* Fighting Street
 
* Galaga '90
 
* Gate of Thunder
 
* J.J. & Jeff
 
* Legend of Hero Tonma
 
* Lords of Thunder
 
* Military Madness
 
* Monster Lair
 
* Moto Roader
 
* Neutopia
 
* Neutopia II
 
* New Adventure Island
 
* Ninja Spirit
 
* Ordyne
 
* Power Golf
 
* Psychosis
 
* R-Type
 
* Riot Zone
 
* Samurai Ghost
 
* Shockman
 
* SimEarth: The Living Planet
 
* Soldier Blade
 
* Splatterhouse
 
* Super Air Zonk: Rockabilly-Paradise
 
* Super Star Soldier
 
* The Dynastic Hero
 
* Victory Run
 
* Vigilante
 
* World Class Baseball
 
* World Sports Competition
 
* Ys Book I & II
 
 
 
===Neo Geo===
 
  
* Art of Fighting
+
==Compatibility List==
* Art of Fighting 2
+
{{Main|Virtual Console/Compatibility List|Compatibility List (Virtual Console)}}
* Art of Fighting 3: The Path of the Warrior
 
* Baseball Stars 2
 
* Blue's Journey
 
* Burning Fight
 
* Fatal Fury 2
 
* Fatal Fury 3: Road to the Final Victory
 
* Fatal Fury Special
 
* Fatal Fury: King of Fighters
 
* Fighter's History Dynamite
 
* King of the Monsters
 
* Magical Drop II
 
* Magical Drop III
 
* Magician Lord
 
* Metal Slug
 
* Metal Slug 2
 
* Metal Slug 3
 
* Metal Slug 4
 
* Metal Slug X
 
* NAM-1975
 
* Neo Turf Masters
 
* Ninja Combat
 
* Ninja Commando
 
* Ninja Master's
 
* Real Bout Fatal Fury
 
* Real Bout Fatal Fury 2: The Newcomers
 
* Real Bout Fatal Fury Special
 
* Samurai Shodown
 
* Samurai Shodown II
 
* Samurai Shodown III
 
* Samurai Shodown IV: Amakusa's Revenge
 
* Sengoku
 
* Sengoku 2
 
* Sengoku 3
 
* Shock Troopers
 
* Shock Troopers 2nd Squad
 
* Spinmaster
 
* Street Slam
 
* Super Baseball 2020
 
* The King of Fighters '94
 
* The King of Fighters '95
 
* The King of Fighters '96
 
* The King of Fighters '97
 
* The King of Fighters '98
 
* The King of Fighters '99: Millennium Battle
 
* The Last Blade
 
* The Last Blade 2
 
* Top Hunter: Roddy & Cathy
 
* World Heroes
 
* World Heroes 2
 
* World Heroes 2 Jet
 
* World Heroes Perfect
 
 
 
===Arcade===
 
 
 
* 1942
 
* Altered Beast
 
* Black Tiger
 
* Commando
 
* Exed Exes
 
* Gaplus
 
* Ghosts 'n Goblins
 
* Golden Axe
 
* Mappy
 
* Ninja Gaiden
 
* Rygar
 
* Shinobi
 
* Solomon's Key
 
* SonSon
 
* Space Harrier
 
* Star Force
 
* Super Hang-On
 
* Tecmo Bowl
 
* The Tower of Druaga
 
* Wonder Boy in Monster Land
 
* Zaxxon
 
 
 
===Game Boy===
 
 
 
* Adventure Island
 
* Alleyway
 
* Avenging Spirit
 
* Balloon Kid
 
* Baseball
 
* Bionic Commando
 
* BurgerTime Deluxe
 
* Castlevania: The Adventure
 
* Catrap
 
* Donkey Kong
 
* Donkey Kong Land
 
* Donkey Kong Land 2
 
* Donkey Kong Land III
 
* Double Dragon
 
* Dr. Mario
 
* Fortified Zone
 
* Game & Watch Gallery
 
* Gargoyle's Quest
 
* Golf
 
* Kid Icarus: Of Myths and Monsters
 
* Kirby's Block Ball
 
* Kirby's Dream Land
 
* Kirby's Dream Land 2
 
* Kirby's Pinball Land
 
* Kirby's Star Stacker
 
* Lock 'n' Chase
 
* Mario's Picross
 
* Maru's Mission
 
* Mega Man II
 
* Mega Man III
 
* Mega Man IV
 
* Mega Man V
 
* Mega Man: Dr. Wily's Revenge
 
* Metroid II: Return of Samus
 
* Mole Mania
 
* Mystical Ninja Starring Goemon (1991 GB game)
 
* Pac-Man
 
* Qix
 
* Quarth
 
* Radar Mission
 
* Revenge of the 'Gator[b]
 
* Side Pocket
 
* Super Mario Land
 
* Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins
 
* Tennis
 
* The Sword of Hope II
 
* Tumblepop
 
* Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3
 
 
 
The Japanese side, much like with the SNES VC, has much more releases. Notable ones include:
 
 
 
* Ballon Fight GB
 
* Card Battle
 
* Card Hero GB
 
* For the Frog the Bell Tolls
 
* Heracles no Eiko GB
 
* Ikari no Yousai 2
 
* Last Bible
 
* Picross 2
 
* Pri Pri Primitive Princess
 
* Revelations the Demon Slayer
 
* Twinbee-Da!
 
* Zoids
 
* ネコジャラ物語
 
 
 
===Game Boy Color===
 
 
 
* Bionic Commando: Elite Forces
 
* Blaster Master: Enemy Below
 
* Game & Watch Gallery 2
 
* Game & Watch Gallery 3
 
* Harvest Moon
 
* Harvest Moon 2
 
* Harvest Moon 3
 
* Legend of the River King
 
* Legend of the River King 2
 
* Lufia: The Legend Returns
 
* Mario Golf
 
* Mario Tennis
 
* Mega Man Xtreme
 
* Mega Man Xtreme 2
 
* Pokémon Puzzle Challenge
 
* Pokémon Trading Card Game
 
* Prince of Persia
 
* Rayman
 
* Shantae
 
* Super Mario Bros. Deluxe
 
* The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX
 
* The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages
 
* The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons
 
* Toki Tori
 
* Wario Land 3
 
* Wario Land II
 
* Xtreme Sports
 
 
 
===Sega Game Gear===
 
 
 
* Columns
 
* Crystal Warriors
 
* Defenders of Oasis
 
* Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine
 
* Dragon Crystal
 
* G-LOC: Air Battle
 
* Shining Force: The Sword of Hajya
 
* Shinobi
 
* Sonic Blast
 
* Sonic Drift 2
 
* Sonic Labyrinth
 
* Sonic the Hedgehog
 
* Sonic the Hedgehog 2
 
* Sonic the Hedgehog: Triple Trouble
 
* Tails Adventure
 
* Vampire: Master of Darkness
 
 
 
===Nintendo Game Boy Advance===
 
 
 
* Advance Wars
 
* Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow
 
* Castlevania: Circle of the Moon
 
* Castlevania: Harmony of Dissonance
 
* DK: King of Swing
 
* F-Zero - GP Legend
 
* F-Zero Maximum Velocity
 
* Fire Emblem
 
* Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
 
* Golden Sun
 
* Harvest Moon: Friends of Mineral Town
 
* Kirby & the Amazing Mirror
 
* Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land
 
* Klonoa 2: Dream Champ Tournament
 
* Klonoa: Empire of Dreams
 
* Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga
 
* Mario Golf: Advance Tour
 
* Mario Kart: Super Circuit
 
* Mario Party Advance
 
* Mario Pinball Land
 
* Mario Tennis: Power Tour
 
* Mega Man & Bass
 
* Mega Man Battle Chip Challenge
 
* Mega Man Battle Network
 
* Mega Man Battle Network 2
 
* Mega Man Battle Network 3 Blue
 
* Mega Man Battle Network 3 White
 
* Mega Man Battle Network 4 Blue Moon
 
* Mega Man Battle Network 4 Red Sun
 
* Mega Man Zero
 
* Mega Man Zero 2
 
* Mega Man Zero 3
 
* Metroid Fusion
 
* Mr. Driller 2
 
* Namco Museum
 
* Pac-Man Collection
 
* Pokémon Pinball: Ruby & Sapphire
 
* Super Mario Advance
 
* Super Mario World: Super Mario Advance 2
 
* The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap
 
* Wario Land 4
 
* WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgames!
 
* Yoshi's Island: Super Mario Advance 3
 
 
 
===Nintendo DS===
 
 
 
* Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time
 
* Mario Kart DS
 
* New Super Mario Bros.
 
* Star Fox Command
 
* WarioWare: Touched!
 
* Yoshi Touch & Go
 
* Yoshi’s Island DS
 
  
 
==Input Key==
 
==Input Key==
Line 798: Line 143:
  
 
Wii games in the Virtual Console support the Classic Controllers (which were made with the purpose of the Virtual Console) and GameCube controllers. Some games also support the lone Wii Remote. PC Engine/TurboGrafx-16 games that support 5-player mode require that the users connect a combination of GameCube controllers and Wii Remotes (with or without Classic Controllers attached to the Wii Remotes).
 
Wii games in the Virtual Console support the Classic Controllers (which were made with the purpose of the Virtual Console) and GameCube controllers. Some games also support the lone Wii Remote. PC Engine/TurboGrafx-16 games that support 5-player mode require that the users connect a combination of GameCube controllers and Wii Remotes (with or without Classic Controllers attached to the Wii Remotes).
 
[[List of Wii Virtual Console button mappings]]
 
 
[[List of Wii U Virtual Console button mappings]]
 
 
[[List of 3DS Virtual Console button mappings]]
 
  
  

Revision as of 19:41, 12 February 2019

Virtual Console
3ds vc logo.png
Developer(s) Nintendo
Latest version N/A
Active Yes
Platform(s) Wii, 3DS, Wii U
Emulates Multiple
Website eShop
Source code Nintendo OSS (Partial)

Virtual Console is a service created by Nintendo that allows users to purchase and emulate games.

Overview

Games played through Virtual Console are usually free of accuracy issues.

In terms of functionality, the Virtual Console emulator is very bare-bones compared to unofficial emulators, but the 3DS version has restore points (save states) and screenshot saving. The Wii U version has both plus controller customization (Game Gear on 3DS also has it), Off-TV Play, Pixel smoothing and scaling changing. Despite this, usually only the bare functionality is emulated: there is no way to save ghost data in Mario Kart 64 due to a lack of a Memory Pak emulated.

The different regions of Virtual Console (Japan, North America, Europe/Australia, and South Korea) have different games and update them on different schedules. At times, North America gets games that were exclusive to Japan while Europe/Australia gets games that were exclusive to the previous two regions. These imported games are priced a little higher than normal and tend to be straight ports with no translation. (Exceptions include Monster World IV and Sin & Punishment.) Other games that can be priced higher than normal are games based on externally-licensed properties, one example being the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles games.

Virtual Console games can be retired from the shop, though purchased games can be redownloaded.

Some GameBoy Advance games from the 3DS Virtual Console were available to Ambassadors only, that is, buyers of the Nintendo 3DS before Nintendo announced a price drop.

Pricing of Virtual Console games can be ludicrous. If you don't want to pay for VC ROMs on your Wii, you can just install them as .wad files through WAD Manager. You can even install .wads from other regions, though you need to watch the PAL/NTSC divide.

Supported Systems

Console Wii Wii U 3DS Notes
Nintendo Entertainment System (Famicom) Supports the Famicom Disk System and the first-party Nintendo mappers.
Super Nintendo Entertainment System (Super Famicom) ✓* Supports normal cartridges up to 4MB, DSP-1, Cx4, and SA-1. Super-FX support is exclusive to the SNES Classic.
Nintendo 64 Recommended. Wii U has input delay but later revisions are more compatible (Harvest Moon 64).
Sega Master System Includes FM emulation.
Sega Mega Drive / Genesis Regular Genesis/MD emulation. No Sega-CD or 32X. Also on 3DS as game compilations.
PC Engine HuCard cartridge emulation, and PCE-CD emulation with separate Audio CD tracks.
Neo Geo Arcade mode. Also on the Switch.
Commodore 64
MSX Japan-only. Emulates a Japanese MSX2.
Game Boy No SGB borders or GBC palettes. Link emulation added with Pokemon VC releases. Only used on Wii in Kirby Collection.
Game Boy Color In addition to the above, no IR or GBA mode emulation.
Game Boy Advance ✓** Hardware emulation on 3DS. No link features. Some e-Reader or rumble features restored as game-specific hacks.
Nintendo DS No link, online, or DSi support.
Game Gear
Arcade Various Namco, Capcom, Sega and Tecmo boards.

*A *New* 3DS is necessary if you want to play SNES games through the 3DS Virtual Console. Technically, some have managed to get it to boot in normal 3DS mode, but its emulation suffers from huge slowdowns.

**Ten GBA games were released exclusively to 3DS "ambassadors", who bought the system before its price was dropped. They are unavailable to those who did not purchase the system before its price drop.

Game Injection

VC releases consist of the emulator and the included ROM image, but it's possible to replace that ROM image with another one and load it using various homebrew tools out there. Of course, compatibility isn't that high, especially for games with custom hardware, but it's a start.

Wii

  • ShowMiiWads

Wii U

  • DS VC: The roms are stored in regular DS ROM format (.nds), in a zip archive. There's also a config file with a brightness setting, and an option to change internal 3D resolution that Nintendo didn't use for some reason. Just change the line "RenderScale": 1 to have the value 2 instead.

Compatibility List

Main article: Virtual Console/Compatibility List

Input Key

Virtual Console games come from many different systems and have to be mapped to those on the supported console, sometimes having to be mapped to different controllers. Even then, at times (notably emulated Nintendo 64 games), mappings may not be consistent.

Wii games in the Virtual Console support the Classic Controllers (which were made with the purpose of the Virtual Console) and GameCube controllers. Some games also support the lone Wii Remote. PC Engine/TurboGrafx-16 games that support 5-player mode require that the users connect a combination of GameCube controllers and Wii Remotes (with or without Classic Controllers attached to the Wii Remotes).