Nintendo Wii U

Developer	Nintendo
Type	Home video game console
Generation	Eighth generation
Release date	2012
Discontinued	2017
Predecessor	Wii
Successor	Nintendo Switch
Emulated	✓

For software that emulates the Wii U, see Wii U emulators.

Emulators via vWii

Most emulators available for the Wii will also work on vWii (virtual Wii) mode on the Wii U, and some of them even support the Wii U Pro Controller or the Wii U Gamepad. However, due to sandboxing, there won't be any performance gains compared to running those emulators bare-metal on a Wii.

The most interesting emulator, really hypervisor, is Nintendont, for GameCube gaming. You can run it directly in vwii HBC, or through a wii usb loader like ulgx or wiiflow as a frontend.

Multi-system

Name	Version	FLOSS	Active	Recommended
RetroArch	1.18.0	✓	✓	✓
Virtual Console	N/A	✗	✗	✓

Please notice that Retroarch isn't currently compatible with the Aroma custom firmware. In order to run Retroarch, you will have to boot a legacy cfw like tiramisu, haxchi or mocha.

Multi

RetroArch cores

81_libretro

2048_libretro

arduous_libretro

atari800_libretro

bk_libretro

bluemsx_libretro

cannonball_libretro

cap32_libretro

crocods_libretro

dosbox_svn_libretro

ecwolf_libretro

fbalpha2012_cps1_libretro

fbalpha2012_cps2_libretro

fbalpha2012_cps3_libretro

fbalpha2012_libretro

fbalpha2012_neogeo_libretro

fbalpha_libretro

fbneo_libretro

fceumm_libretro

fixgb_libretro

fixnes_libretro

fmsx_libretro

freechaf_libretro

freeintv_libretro

frodo_libretro

fuse_libretro

gambatte_libretro

gearboy_libretro

gearcoleco_libretro

gearsystem_libretro

genesis_plus_gx_libretro

genesis_plus_gx_wide_libretro

gme_libretro

gong_libretro

gpsp_libretro

gw_libretro

handy_libretro

hatari_libretro

jaxe_libretro

jumpnbump_libretro

lowresnx_libretro

lutro_libretro

mame2000_libretro

mame2003_libretro

mame2003_midway_libretro

mame2003_plus_libretro

mednafen_lynx_libretro

mednafen_ngp_libretro

mednafen_pce_fast_libretro

mednafen_pce_libretro

mednafen_supergrafx_libretro

mednafen_vb_libretro

mednafen_wswan_libretro

mgba_libretro

minivmac_libretro

mrboom_libretro

mu_libretro

nekop2_libretro

neocd_libretro

nestopia_libretro

np2kai_libretro

numero_libretro

nxengine_libretro

o2em_libretro

oberon_libretro

pcsx_rearmed_libretro

picodrive_libretro

pocketcdg_libretro

pokemini_libretro

prboom_libretro

prosystem_libretro

puae2021_libretro

puae_libretro

quasi88_libretro

quicknes_libretro

race_libretro

reminiscence_libretro

retro8_libretro

sameboy_libretro

scummvm_libretro

snes9x2002_libretro

snes9x2005_libretro

snes9x2005_plus_libretro

snes9x2010_libretro

snes9x_libretro

squirreljme_libretro

stella2014_libretro

superbroswar_libretro

tgbdual_libretro

theodore_libretro

tic80_libretro

tyrquake_libretro

uw8_libretro

uzem_libretro

vaporspec_libretro

vba_next_libretro

vecx_libretro

vice_x64_libretro

vice_x64sc_libretro

vice_x128_libretro

vice_xcbm2_libretro

vice_xcbm5x0_libretro

vice_xpet_libretro

vice_xplus4_libretro

vice_xscpu64_libretro

vice_xvic_libretro

vitaquake2-rogue_libretro

vitaquake2-xatrix_libretro

vitaquake2-zaero_libretro

vitaquake2_libretro

wasm4_libretro

x1_libretro

xrick_libretro

Nintendo

NES

Name	Version	FLOSS	Active	Recommended
Heritage	HeriC	✗	✗	✓
LiteNESU	0.0.0-preR2	✓	✗	✗

Game Boy

Name	Version	FLOSS	Active	Recommended
gacubeboy	1337 9000	?	✗	~
GBiine	0.2b	?	✗	~

Pokémon Mini

Name	Version	FLOSS	Active	Recommended
PokeMiniU	0.01	✓	✗	✓

Sony

PSP

Name	Version	FLOSS	Active	Recommended
PPSSPP	1.5.x	?	✗	✓

Commodore

Commodore 64

Name	Version	FLOSS	Active	Recommended
YAPE 4 U	0.70.2	✓	✗	✓

Source ports

Name	Version	FLOSS	Active	Recommended	Supported games
Cave Story Engine 2	git archive	✗^[1]	✗^{[N 1]}	✓	Cave Story
Crispy Doom U	git	?	✗	✓	Doom I–II, Final Doom
Ship of Harkinian	8.0.4^{[N 2]} Nightly build	✓	✓	✓	The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (specific PAL versions)^{[N 3]}
Sonic Mania Wii U	git	✓	?	✓^{[N 4]}	Sonic Mania (Plus)
SpaceCadetPinball	git	✓	✗	✓	3D Pinball for Windows – Space Cadet
Super Mario 64 Port	git	✓	✗	✓	Super Mario 64

↑ Cave Story Engine 2, or CSE2 for short, received a DMCA cease and desist notice from Nicalis, the current IP owner of Cave Story, despite the original Cave Story being a freeware developed by Daisuke "Pixel" Amaya.
↑ Since the Wii U version of Ship of Harkinian is ported by a different developer (Wii U port developed by GaryOderNichts), it may not always be updated alongside the mainstream ports (Windows, macOS, Linux/Steam Deck, Switch) of Ship of Harkinian, may be due to incompatibility issues in certain updates. Since v6.1.2, the Wii U port was absent for v7.0.0, v7.0.1, and v7.0.2 releases, but returned in v7.1.0 after various fixes were made.
↑ Ship of Harkinian requires either the GameCube's PAL Debug ROM (recommended), PAL Master Quest Debug ROM (for Master Quest mode's dungeons; supported as of v5.0.0), PAL Nintendo 64 v1.1 ROM (as of v7.1.0), or the regular PAL GameCube ROM (not recommended) of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time to generate an oot.otr file from OTRGui (from the PC download) to play it. For every major release (vX.O.O), a new oot.otr must be generated from the latest version of OTRGui.
↑ This unofficial Wii U port of the Sonia Mania Decompilation project plays and loads great. Some frames will drop during giant ring special stages when too many 3D assets appear on the screen but performance is arguably bearable. Missing features as of v1.0.3 include screen filters, the 'DLC' option in the main menu doesn't do anything (but 'Encore Mode' works when dlcEnabled is set to y in Settings.ini) and limited mod support.

Other

CHIP-8

Name	Version	FLOSS	Active	Recommended
CHIP8 Emulator	2.2	✓	✗	✓

PICO-8

Name	Version	FLOSS	Active	Recommended
fake-8	git	✓	✗	✓

Centipede Arcade

Name	Version	FLOSS	Active	Recommended
Centipede Wii U	20160128	✓	✗	✓

[1] Cave Story Engine 2, or CSE2 for short, received a DMCA cease and desist notice from Nicalis, the current IP owner of Cave Story, despite the original Cave Story being a freeware developed by Daisuke "Pixel" Amaya.

[2] Since the Wii U version of Ship of Harkinian is ported by a different developer (Wii U port developed by GaryOderNichts), it may not always be updated alongside the mainstream ports (Windows, macOS, Linux/Steam Deck, Switch) of Ship of Harkinian, may be due to incompatibility issues in certain updates. Since v6.1.2, the Wii U port was absent for v7.0.0, v7.0.1, and v7.0.2 releases, but returned in v7.1.0 after various fixes were made.

[3] Ship of Harkinian requires either the GameCube's PAL Debug ROM (recommended), PAL Master Quest Debug ROM (for Master Quest mode's dungeons; supported as of v5.0.0), PAL Nintendo 64 v1.1 ROM (as of v7.1.0), or the regular PAL GameCube ROM (not recommended) of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time to generate an oot.otr file from OTRGui (from the PC download) to play it. For every major release (vX.O.O), a new oot.otr must be generated from the latest version of OTRGui.

[4] This unofficial Wii U port of the Sonia Mania Decompilation project plays and loads great. Some frames will drop during giant ring special stages when too many 3D assets appear on the screen but performance is arguably bearable. Missing features as of v1.0.3 include screen filters, the 'DLC' option in the main menu doesn't do anything (but 'Encore Mode' works when dlcEnabled is set to y in Settings.ini) and limited mod support.

[N 1]

[N 2]

[N 3]

[N 4]

Emulators on Wii U

Contents

Emulators via vWii

Multi-system

Multi

RetroArch cores

Nintendo

NES

Game Boy

Pokémon Mini

Sony

PSP

Commodore

Commodore 64

Source ports

Other

CHIP-8

PICO-8

Centipede Arcade

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