Virtual Console Games Able to Be "Updated" [Archive]

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sixtyfps

11-23-2006, 09:26 AM

...via The Wiire (http://thewiire.com):

Do you (or someone you know) enjoy whining about how your newfound license(s) to play timeless classics will yield nothing more than merely games as you remember them? Well, in a move of which Sony fans-at-heart will no doubt approve, Nintendo has offered everyone the opportunity to also invest in "potential."

According to the console's Wii Shop Q&A document:

The "Update" button indicates there are enhancements for the game. If you have already downloaded the game, you may select "Update" to download the enhancements free of charge. Please note, downloading the update may impact the saved game data.

Read more here (http://www.thewiire.com/news/565/1/Virtual_Console_Game_Updates) or on your Wii.

Okay, SMK online? A texture facelift for Ocarina? More-authentic translations for RPGs? Sound off!

Savok

11-23-2006, 10:23 AM

Give the classic multis online play and you'd have solid gold.

Royal Fool

11-23-2006, 10:25 AM

Give the classic multis online play and you'd have solid gold.
Quoted for freaking truth.

gzsfrk

11-23-2006, 10:39 AM

Give the classic multis online play and you'd have solid gold.

Isn't that what XBLA has been doing for a year now?

But yes, I agree--SMK, Tecmo Super Bowl, SMB3, Double Dribble, Blades of Steel (wow... I forget that I used to LIKE sports games), Goldeneye... Nintendo has an incredible back-catalog of multiplayer goodness to draw from.

RUSKULL

11-23-2006, 10:42 AM

jeffbax

11-23-2006, 10:42 AM

tombofsoldier

11-23-2006, 10:44 AM

Original Smash Bros online please!

sixtyfps

11-23-2006, 11:00 AM

any updates may still only effect [sic] VC specific titles, and not classic ones

You may be right on this one. Maybe I'll try to forget about the 'potential' of updates to the perennials until I see a dyed-in-the-wool example.

Hell, I may have started a nasty and baseless rumor. Or! maybe Nintendo will now be more likely to actually do it. So! I owe everyone either apologies or no-probs—depending on your perspective.

DaXIthR

11-23-2006, 11:21 AM

Original Smash Bros online please!

Some cats looking to get Donkey punched old school.

If the only thing the Wii offered was online N64 Smash with cleaner textures, a higher resolution and improved framerate, it could still have a chance of being my favourite system.

I'd drop the $260 Nintendo's asking for it without question, and maybe even end up getting 3 more of them for each of my college friends who formed our smash crew.

Tyrant

11-23-2006, 11:24 AM

Wouldn't it make more sense to wait for Nintendo to actually release said updates before "investing"?

J Arcane

11-23-2006, 11:24 AM

XBLA needs to get more good classics. Sorry, Galaga etc did wonders for the past, but they can't hold up to modern games. Why are they porting Contra when Contra Hard Corps is soooooo much better?

Etc.
Goddamn Philistine.

mister_slim

11-23-2006, 11:29 AM

Okay, SMK online? A texture facelift for Ocarina? More-authentic translations for RPGs? Sound off!
SMK with four players online would be the greatest Mario Kart ever.

Talltale

11-23-2006, 11:35 AM

I'm giddy at the thought! Thats right. Giddy.

Harlan Hoyt

11-23-2006, 11:36 AM

I don't want any updates to the graphics -- I think the "updated" games on XBLA look like garbage, frankly. Why mess with success? However, multiplayer Mario Kart, Smash Bros and others would be amazing.

Oh my god. Two player Jackal or Ikari Warriors over the internets? I should be so lucky. C'mon, Konami and SNK -- I want to give you my money!

Bydo_Empire

11-23-2006, 11:39 AM

Bomberman '93 online, please! I don't expect online multiplayer for VC games any time soon, but it's nice to know it's a possibility.

By the way, I'm totally enjoying Bonk's Adventure. I only had a TG-16 for a brief time, and I don't remember having Bonk, so it's a lot of fun for me. I also didn't realize that if you exit the game and go back to the Wii menu, it will save your progress and you'll be able to pick up where you left off. Nice. Can't wait for next Monday to see what's new.

Harlan Hoyt

11-23-2006, 11:39 AM

I just thought of this. Double Dragon! River City Ransom! Bad Dudes! The Wii is worth $250 just for old school co-op multiplayer.

Returner

11-23-2006, 11:39 AM

Zombies at my neighbors over the internets FTW

Varsity

11-23-2006, 11:48 AM

That seems like a damn good website. It gets bonus points for hosting this image. :D

http://thewiiremedia.revolutionreport.net/games/79/512.jpg

But seriously, they've got a really good approach to reviewing.

LilEvilFish

11-23-2006, 12:01 PM

Micro Machines on the Genesis. With added online multiplayer. That is all.

Spigot

11-23-2006, 12:06 PM

What really amuses me about all of these Next-Gen consoles is that people are more excited about playing older games on them than the new stuff.

Just strikes me as funny, is all.

As for these updates on classic games, awesome. It would be really great if you could toggle whether you wanted to play the game in the original format or updated though. I believe the MegaMan collection that came out a couple years ago had this as an option. Play one way with tweaks on and remixed soundtracks or play it the way it originally was.

jadkins555

11-23-2006, 12:12 PM

Demo_Boy

11-23-2006, 12:43 PM

Hello, this is nothing more than a patch-now button.

Impressive spin for something that companies should be ashamed to need.

Whats more surprising is how badly EvAvers are falling for the spin.

Blade

11-23-2006, 12:57 PM

What Demo_Boy said.

I hate to admit it, but it's the first thing that came to mind.

Odyzen

11-23-2006, 01:02 PM

Aren't new 3rd party games going to be developed for the VC? If so, then any updates may still only effect VC specific titles, and not classic ones. Just a possibility, as it would seem too good to be true that Nintendo is actually spending time and money creating updates for these old games, no matter how much it all makes sense to us.WiiConnect24 is for new games, mulitplayer, the works. VirtualConsole is only for classic games; games found on old consoles. So thos is meant to affect some classic titles.

Hello, this is nothing more than a patch-now button.
Impressive spin for something that companies should be ashamed to need.
Whats more surprising is how badly EvAvers are falling for the spin.While updates may refer to as a patch nowadays, a patch is usually meant to fix a bug or problem with the software. The update button may used to do so, but this refers to as an "enhancement". Fixing a problem isn't an enhancement. So when you read this, it does indeed mean to update the game.

jeffool

11-23-2006, 01:03 PM

Patches fix problems and correct mistakes. If these actually 'add' things to the games that were not there initially, then it's not a patch. It's an 'expansion', or 'upgrade.'

I hate the word 'spin' almost as much as I do 'talking points'.

Kagger

11-23-2006, 03:18 PM

As for these updates on classic games, awesome. It would be really great if you could toggle whether you wanted to play the game in the original format or updated though. I believe the MegaMan collection that came out a couple years ago had this as an option. Play one way with tweaks on and remixed soundtracks or play it the way it originally was.

Indeed. On the Anniversary collection, you could make it easier (your health would be more or less enemies or something), or you could have a remixed soundtrack, maybe something else.

The change in difficulty was through the collection, not something in the original game (like Mega Man 2 which you could play Normal or Expert. In Mega Man 2, only the expert option is given).

Disgustipated

11-23-2006, 03:27 PM

I just thought of this. Double Dragon! River City Ransom! Bad Dudes! The Wii is worth $250 just for old school co-op multiplayer.

River City Ransom would be awesome.

But as I've cried for in other threads, give us Gunstar Heroes, Radiant Silvergun, and other awesome shooters. And if you put Wii controls on them, that would kick so much ass, ala Metal Slug Anthology.

Bydo_Empire

11-23-2006, 04:25 PM

Hello, this is nothing more than a patch-now button.

Impressive spin for something that companies should be ashamed to need.

Whats more surprising is how badly EvAvers are falling for the spin.
I don't think that's true. What is there to patch in an emulated game? Nintendo has had their emulators for years, and I'd be really surprised if they weren't completely rock solid.

Unrelated, a friend of mine downloaded Mario 64, and he said it looked sharper and ran smoother than he remembered from the N64, much like the n64 Zelda compilation for the Cube. Can anyone confirm this?

SynapseLapse

11-23-2006, 05:16 PM

Serapth

11-23-2006, 05:44 PM

Heretic Machine

11-23-2006, 06:31 PM

If they actually do something with this, it could give me a reason to buy Virtual Console games.

Kagger

11-23-2006, 06:40 PM

Why people bother with the Virtual console is beyond me. If you really want to retro game, pick up a Dreamcast and a couple CDRs, its a better experience. Atleast with Xbox live, new games and modified classics are released. Im saddened by the fact Nintendo is releasing the same ole un modified shit. :(

Perhaps people are doing it because they don't pirate, which is why I'm getting excited about it.

I'm glad they aren't updating graphics, that would seem weird (though Mario All Stars did a fantastic job), though I wish they were including online play.

Serapth

11-23-2006, 06:54 PM

Perhaps people are doing it because they don't pirate, which is why I'm getting excited about it.

I'm glad they aren't updating graphics, that would seem weird (though Mario All Stars did a fantastic job), though I wish they were including online play.

It aint piracy if you already own the game. And chances are, most people are playing retro games for nostaglia reasons, in other words, games they already own(ed) and want to play again.

Megalith

11-23-2006, 07:05 PM

All I ask for is 1080p and 5.1.

Of course they can't even do that.

Skyelan

11-23-2006, 07:18 PM

I had a Dreamcast and did all that. Not only could it not run anything beyond NES (and maybe Turbo Graphx, I could never be assed) but the controller just wasn't that great for retro games.

So... How is it that NES games on a completely wrong controller is better than NES, SNES, Genesis, N64, and Turbo-Graphx games on a controller that works for them?

And that's not true at all. Lots of people have only experienced some of the best older games through emulation because they don't want to shell out 60-100 dollars for Earthbound or Chrono Trigger. For that matter, how many average people do you know that have a Turbo Graphx? Batteries die, systems age, parents sell off our systems when we move out, we sell our rare stuff to pay bills... Very few of us actually have some uber collection of games we've played.

For that matter, I can't see how cheapy 10 and under games DOESN'T appeal to anyone buying the system? Sure some casuals are disturbingly 'BUT THAT GAME SUCKS IT'S OLD!', but I'm failing to see how it isn't an upside for people who never got a chance to play them the first time around and want something to compliment their small selection of games for the system because the deeper stuff looks confusing.

And then there are people like me, who only REALLY experienced most of the old systems through emulation, but still would prefer to legally own the titles. But we're just crazy like that. :D

Also, Megalith, yes, we get it. That has nothing to do with the Virtual Console. You'd be more relevant by just screaming "MEIN FUHRER, I CAN VALK!".

H1PO

11-23-2006, 07:27 PM

Original Smash Bros online please!
Have we even gotten confirmation that Brawl is gonna be online? I am most certainly hoping it will be.

Skyelan

11-23-2006, 07:31 PM

Have we even gotten confirmation that Brawl is gonna be online? I am most certainly hoping it will be.

Last I heard they're hard at work on that, but the director expressed worry about being able to make it four player online because of lag issues so.. That's worrisome. But hopefully we'll get it in the end.

OrangePulp

11-23-2006, 08:31 PM

God, if brawl isn't online... ugh. Goodbye ambitions for the Wii.

And as far as playing emulated games on a TV, it's easy: get a video card with tv out. Then go pick up a ps2-usb adaptor, or 360 controller, whatever, a decent pad for your computer.

I would definitely be more interested if they offered online multiplayer on some of the older games, though. You can find emulators with netplay, but it's much more of a hassle setting it up, compared to being able to see someone online and invite them for a game.

Not that I really think they're going to add online multiplayer to old games; a lot of people are still probably going to buy them, so from a buisness standpoint they'd probably just be wasting money.

Kagger

11-23-2006, 09:58 PM

It aint piracy if you already own the game. And chances are, most people are playing retro games for nostaglia reasons, in other words, games they already own(ed) and want to play again.

I'm plan on playing a bunch of N64 games I missed, and SNES games I that were to expensive to ebay.

Plus my NES is in awful condition

Savok

11-23-2006, 10:06 PM

I paid $300AU for Chrono Trigger.

Some of us like actually having games.

J Arcane

11-23-2006, 10:38 PM

I have, at present, thousands of ROMs on my machine. I have every NES game ever released in the United States, plus a few that weren't, and similarly near complete collections of SNES and Genesis games.

And I'm still excited about VC. And I shall enumerate why:

1. I like the piece of mind of legitimate software
2. Nintendo's emulation is inredibly accurate, and gives me games that run and look much more like the originals than I can achieve on my PC
3. Playing games designed for a console gamepad on a PC is crap. Keyboards suckass, and PC gampads have a widespread habit of sucking ass too
4. It's becoming one of the only places you can get Mario emulated, legit or no, because Ninty shuts down any site that hosts the Mario series
5. The Dreamcast mentioned is a garbage claim, because as pointed out, it'll only handle NES or lessers, and no, Bleemcast! doesn't count for anything because 1) it works differently from normal emulation, and 2) only two games were ever released for it.
6. I can play it on my TV with all the ease of any other console, no special hardware or funky shit required
7. Some of said funky shits being avoided are having to do shit like rewrite the firmware of my machine, risk modchipping, dealing with crappy open source software
8. There's something infinitely more satisfying about playing a game you actually paid for, than some throwaway download that didn't cost you a dime. I paid for it, I want to play the hell out of it.
9. It's cheaper than dirt, even compared ton Nintendo's previous re-release efforts, like the GBA NES Classics series.
10. It's goddamn cool, you bunch of whiny philistines.

the end.

Silmaril

11-24-2006, 12:50 AM

Amen, J Arcane

Megalith

11-24-2006, 12:56 AM

No one agrees.

mattcoz

11-24-2006, 01:30 AM

Why people bother with the Virtual console is beyond me. If you really want to retro game, pick up a Dreamcast and a couple CDRs, its a better experience. Atleast with Xbox live, new games and modified classics are released. Im saddened by the fact Nintendo is releasing the same ole un modified shit. :(Wii hasn't even been out for a week, they plan on having new games in addition to the classics.

But an update I would like to see is an English translation for Sin & Punishment.

HumpYourWay

11-24-2006, 01:52 AM

Okay, SMK online? A texture facelift for Ocarina? More-authentic translations for RPGs? Sound off!

Dream on. They will only release bugfixes.

JimmyDanger

11-24-2006, 01:53 AM

Really - the only things I need emulators for are arcade games.

Games I really never had the opportunity and finances to play at home.

And - no - Double Dragon on NES was nothing compared to arcade, ditto for me everything from ArchRivals to Ninja Spirit. Yes, I was one of those kids who was always picking up on dropped animations/resized sprites/altered music in home conversions. And it's what kept us going back to the arcades (well me anyways) to see the "true, original game, presented in its original nonscaled down glory".

It wasn't until PS1 that we started to get decent compilations of emulated arcade classics done perfect (those Japanese capcom comps were a blast for example).
The Taito/Capcom/Midway comps for lastgen wee also good value comps.

In that regard - I like XBLA's offerings of original arcade games (with SOTN being the first console port to my knwoledge - but what a game!) - eg. Contra, Smash TV, Time Pilot - but yes the offerings are few and far between. If MS were to really start to skim the top of the quality mid80's - late 90's arcade titles - they could really make their identity in the arcade felt - beyond their current offering of mainly "casual" games (a few of which I enjoy) And, not to nitpick, but I was always more of a MK2/SSF2T than MK3/SF2HF man myself.

It's important for Nintendo - with their identity in the download service (being mainly an 8/16 bit console games service atm) - that they keep releasing unique, innovative classics. I have to say Herzog Zwei again, and ActRaiser (though I'm still trying to remeber how good that game was - I was Mode7'd to heaven at the time and, in retrospect - maybe the gameplay won't hold up), and could name any number of my personal favourites, as many of you already have. My point again though - is Nintendo should be looking to original console titles - not inferior arcade ports (though there were many revised "ports" that were almost entirely new games - eg. UG&Ghosts (wtf - why can't I shoot down mid jump!), RType3 that should definitely be looked at)...

That said - most my PS1 - and before (SNES, MD, C64, XT/AT) original software has gone missing through various friends, flatmates and thieves over the years - and I've built an impressive 16bit collection back up via ebay (eg. SNES Jap DBZ1-3,PAL Harvest Moon - MD WB3Rpg - and plenty more of the "standards") - I understand may tastes may run a bit more "hotsauce" than the more vanilla offerings of XBLA and VC at the moment.

But if they keep me happy, and able to play some classics without worrying about PSU's frying, or Cart Save Batteries suddenly dying - I'm there.
Still - I love hard copies - and detest piracy - so it looks like I'll still be scanning ebay and garage sales for silicon and optical gems. Still retro is that for me - retro, and kids, it's pretty hard to relive the past - especially if you weren't there -
What I'd really like to see to fuse some of my past and present gaming passions is a SmashTV/Robotron style 4 person online camera/voice enabled gorefest - but in a party/round/SSB style ranked matchplay system like Uno, where say at random times a main color light may change - and suddenly there's a *3 bonus for wasting red enemies - and suddenly everyone's charging down the screen trying to waste each other.

Now what was this thread about again? VC game updates?
We don't really know much more than that at the moment?

Cool Beans.

Chameleo

11-24-2006, 02:59 AM

one of the first wii-videos released was of a woman moving mario in an original mario brothers title (you could tell by the sound) with the wii-remote.

i think these are the kind of updates they're talking about.

Bydo_Empire

11-24-2006, 06:50 AM

And I'm still excited about VC. And I shall enumerate why:
1...10I agree 110%. Very well said.

51|RandoM

11-24-2006, 08:58 AM

Buy a console for what it will do today, not for what it might do in the hazy future. This holds true for all consoles, not just the Wii, obviously.

51|RandoM

11-24-2006, 09:01 AM

3. Playing games designed for a console gamepad on a PC is crap. Keyboards suckass, and PC gampads have a widespread habit of sucking ass too

You're living in the past on this one. DirectInput cleared up that mess a long time ago. If you've got a gamepad issue with a PC game nowadays, it is the fault of the game, not the PC or its support of gamepads.

When it comes specifically to emulation, they typically have good gamepad support---assuming they're not in perpetual beta.

Tik-Tok

11-24-2006, 09:02 AM

That shit about Dreamcast only doing NES or less is bullshit. I've played many SNES and Genesis games on my Dreamcast.

sixtyfps

11-24-2006, 04:11 PM

Buy a console for what it will do today, not for what it might do in the hazy future. This holds true for all consoles, not just the Wii, obviously.

...hence my jab at the PS3. All I'm assuming is that games will be at least as good as they were when I first enjoyed them, and that's all I'll consider when I'm paying (albeit arguably redundantly) for the classics. That, and the fact that most of my favorite games of yore will be accessible with a couple of button presses, a nod, and a knowing wink to my family and friends.

*tear in eye* *open wallet*

(Yes, I know and love emulators, but I'm still going to $-vote for "Nintendo's DRM bullshit." It's just what I want to do.)

That shit about Dreamcast only doing NES or less is bullshit. I've played many SNES and Genesis games on my Dreamcast.

Y'know, I like being able to save my progress in most of the games I play, especially because we have kids now. That's a big selling point for me. Having said that, though: Dreamcast + CDRs = pretty good times for a while. ;)

J Arcane

11-24-2006, 05:55 PM

You're living in the past on this one. DirectInput cleared up that mess a long time ago. If you've got a gamepad issue with a PC game nowadays, it is the fault of the game, not the PC or its support of gamepads.

When it comes specifically to emulation, they typically have good gamepad support---assuming they're not in perpetual beta.
And guess what, my last PC gamepad related experience was on Win98, with DirectInput, using what was supposedly one of the best PC gamepads manufactured.

And it still sucked ass. PC companies don't know how to make good gamepads. Partly because they're lives don't depend on it like a console's does.

Montgomery_Python

11-25-2006, 04:03 PM

I have SNES copies of Chrono and Earthbound I might be willing to part with.

=D

Original boxes and everything. Maybe I should look into E-Bay.

Skyelan

11-25-2006, 05:58 PM

That shit about Dreamcast only doing NES or less is bullshit. I've played many SNES and Genesis games on my Dreamcast.

Only doing NES flawless, mate. I've also tried SNES and Gen, half the games don't work worth shit, nor do they run at full speed.

And again, the controller is shit for retro games.

Hell, I love my modded Xbox. Ever since I've gotten it, I've probably used it more than any other system. But it's still illegal, it still can't handle N64 games right, and the Wii still remains as the one system I've heard of that can emulate me some five player TurboGraphx badassery.

Fuck man, even just GBC games would start to make the Dreamcast stutter with sound glitches. When it comes to retail games, I love my Dreamcast head and shoulders above the others, but come on. You're basing an argument on technicality instead of flawless emulation.

sixtyfps

11-27-2006, 12:14 AM

And guess what, my last PC gamepad related experience was on Win98, with DirectInput, using what was supposedly one of the best PC gamepads manufactured.

And it still sucked ass. PC companies don't know how to make good gamepads. Partly because they're lives don't depend on it like a console's does.

It's called (generically) a gamepad-to-USB adapter. They're neither hard to find nor expensive. I have a couple that support my SNES controllers... in a box somewhere. ;p