The Nintendo Wii had an extensive game library and many titles became locked behind the console. Some games that were once locked later were rescued by their developers and Nintendo over a decade later. Dokapon Kingdom has a Switch and Steam remaster. Xenoblade Chronicles HD now has an extended story relating to the plot of Xenoblade 2 & 3.
Even The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword has been rescued for the upgraded motion controls and can switch to a regular controller. However, not every great Wii game got the same treatment making them rare. Let’s talk about why the titles we want to see return become rare.
Wii’s Lack of Game Preservation
For over 20 years, Nintendo has been known to be the culprit for not having preserved their games from their previous consoles. This is why many gamers turn to emulation when their previous console library is available to play. In recent years, the Big N has been hunting for any emulation site to request for shutdown or removal of their ROM library. Now, the developers behind those rare Wii titles are reviving them one by one to optimize for the Nintendo Switch. Here are three titles fans to see make a return.
3. Fire Emblem Radiant Dawn
The Fire Emblem series was starting to be translated into other languages worldwide after Super Smash Bros. Melee introduced beloved swordsmen Marth and Roy to international gamers. In 2007, Fire Emblem Radiant Dawn became the fourth Fire Emblem game to be translated into English and the second 3D Fire Emblem.
Radiant Dawn is a direct sequel to Path of Radiance, both featuring the next Fire Emblem swordsman for Smash Bros. Brawl, Ike. Now as a Greil Mercenary, his new mission is to support the silver-haired maiden, Macaiah in the war of Daein. Thanks to Wii’s capabilities, Radiant Dawn’s 3D cinematics look stunning. The story unfortunately has fallen flat from its previous title due to most of the main cast writing and stat unbalance.
The gameplay is still classic Fire Emblem and has bond ranks to give your units stat boosts as long as they are 3 feet away. There are even combo units that can be used during battles. Radiant Dawn is a conflicting title whether it’s deserved to be ported or not. For now, it remains console-locked, unsure if the Ike duology will get a remaster or an entire remake in the future.
2. Metroid Prime Trilogy
The Metroid series has had a long-lasting impact on the game industry with its sidescroll dungeon crawling. In 2002, Metroid Prime became Nintendo’s original first-person shooter with Samus coming into 3D on the Nintendo Gamecube. Then expanded into the Prime Trilogy with Metroid Prime: Echoes and Metroid Prime: Corruption. Metroid Prime Corruption’s motion controls on Wiimote and Nunchuck convinced their developer, Retro Studios, to remaster Prime and Echoes.
Soon, the Wii was graced with the Metroid Prime Trilogy. Metroid fans could finally experience all of Metroid Prime without the need to swap between Wii and Gamecube game discs. It was somewhat of a loss for Nintendo when they released Metroid Prime Remastered for the Nintendo Switch in 2023. Instead of releasing the entire Prime trilogy, they only released the first game. Metroid fans continue to pray for Echoes and Corrruption remasters soon along with the release of Metroid Prime 4.
1. The Last Story
Throughout the 2010s, three JRPGs were getting asked to be localized with the help of Operation Rainfall. Operation Rainfall’s mission was to convince developers of Monolith Soft and XSeed Games’ to a North American and European release of Xenoblade Chronicles, The Last Story, and Pandora’s Tower.
Monolith Soft’s Xenoblade Chronicles became the successor of the three. XSeed Games’ The Last Story and Pandora’s Tower were seen as not as valuable. The main reasons Operation Rainfall wanted The Last Story to be localized is because of its compelling story and stealth-combat strategy. If you take one look at this game, you may mistake it for a Square Enix game. This is because The Last Story is directed by ex-Square Enix designer, Hironobu Sakaguchi, the director behind Lost Odyssey and Blue Dragon.
The Last Story focused heavily on stealth combat because enemies will grow larger and certain battle areas will be too narrow to fight in. Your task is to guide your party to safety as you progress through dungeons. The battles are free-range meaning you will fight in the area you traveling in instead of a set arena.
Its competitive and co-op multiplayer modes share the same concept. Only this time, you fight each other in teams of 3 or have a 6-player free-for-all in a dungeon. Using the WiiConnect24, players can compete online. The Last Story gained a phenomenal fanbase and they are trying to create a wiki around the game after a decade. They soon hope to experience the game on Switch.
A Hopeful Future
There are many other games that I haven’t mentioned that are console-locked behind the Wii. As far as we know, the Wii contained shovelware that is unsalvagable throughout its lifespan. Titles like Radiant Dawn were seen to be better left alone as Intelligent Systems sought to improve Fire Emblem’s gameplay on their next title, Fire Emblem Awakening with Pair Attacks. The Metroid Prime series reviving slowly with refined graphics and Switch control optimization. What’s a game you would love to see return from the Wii era? Leave your comment and reasoning down below!
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