Wii U's a Downgrade for Playing Wii Games

You ever noticed your Wii games looking less clear on Wii U than you remember? You're not imagining things
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[@NoonDragoon]

I think the most important thing I learned in this video is you can boot straight into Wii mode on a WiiU. I’ve had this console since 2014 and didn’t know that.

[@LandonEmma]

same

[@kevinkite3418]

Same

[@iMatterhorn7]

Hopefully you know now that the Gamepad can act as a Wii game screen and sensor bar when the TV is in use for something else 😎

[@NoonDragoon]

@@iMatterhorn7 that I actually did know! When I first moved into a dorm for college I didn’t have a tv or monitor for the first few months, so I played primarily on my WiiU using the game pad as a screen. It’s how I beat the MP Trilogy when it was digitally released.

[@pessoaanonima6345]

I actually knew that, I think it shows it to you at some point.

[@Supersayainpikmin]

Something for everyone to keep in mind: If your display itself is Limited Range, than this isn't an issue. Using Full Range on Limited Range displays actually results in a washed out image. Same with Vice Versa.

[@StormsparkPegasus]

This. I have a feeling this setting is why some people think the Wii U looks washed out.

[@GhabulousGhoti]

Can confirm that this isn't the case, on my Limited Range monitor and Limited Range capture card the Wii U still looks washed out when compared to Wii on Component and Dolphin running on the computer (also set to Limited Range at the time).

[@FurryMcMemes]

This, though I do own a TV that supports RGB Full Range so it does look washed out but it thankfully isn't that bad because it has a pretty good Color Gamut. Still of course the Wii U remains in Limited Range.

[@jaffaman99]

Came here to say that too, you just have to match the display to the device. Limited range is not a problem at all

[@PieStudios]

@@GhabulousGhoti you have your settings wrong then.

[@megahedgehog2039]

For 10 years. For 10 years I didn't know the gamepad was also a sensor bar.

[@mattrandall1808]

I just purchased two Wii U's and am kind of amazed I didn't buy one before

[@zed_2ed929]

I just found out you could do this because of your comment

[@ric1234510]

Whaaaaaaat?

[@mattiscool11118]

I remember having to use the game pad's sensor bar because my TV broke. Very helpful because I was really into Mario galaxy at the time

[@LeafRazorStorm]

I knew it as soon as the console asked if I wanted to play Wii Mode on “Gamepad Only” and I thought “Well, how the heck does that work?” And then I tried it and was like “Ohh…..”

[@ChristeriousNinja]

I did NOT know about holding B to boot straight into Wii mode, that's very useful

[@patrickmurphy9470]

I’m late to the Wii U party but this is good to know. Very handy indeed.

[@mrhelitosis7564]

I did this on accident once.

[@TonyNes64]

Now you know !

[@vvizard4994]

Jon mentioned that you can use the Wii U Gamepad only as a display for GC and Wii games, however some of the Wii games that you can download on the Wii U eShop actually have support for the Wii U Gamepad, it's not that many sadly, but some of them do (Xenoblade Chronicles for example can be played in its entirety with the Wii U Gamepad itself)

[@ssj99gohanisthebest48]

Only games that support Classic Controller, the gamepad can be used

[@SKmaric]

There are homebrew methods of installing Wii games as virtual console games on the Wii U menu, which allows not only using the gamepad as a classic controller but also sideways Wiimote when applicable. The downside is that it requires manually converting Wii backups to Wii U app format which can be a tedious process.

[@Puffypoo574]

A couple of days ago I bought RE4 on the eshop thinking that it had gamepad support since it was included under compatible accessories. Lmao that was such a lie. At least the motion controls are really good.

[@VictoryReviews]

I had no idea

[@LoliconSamalik]

Pandora's Tower

[@Snugboy]

Ok Jon I am sorry but I am watching this on the KZbin app on my Wii THROUGH my Wii U so what are you gonna do now??? Huh????? HUH??????

[@windy4566]

0:41 green shell jumpscare

[@alexeivelasquez4770]

Thank you for the warning. I could have had a heart attack, but thanks to you, I can live another hour 😊😊😊.

[@samuzamu]

HDMI limited range vs HDMI full range isn't really a question of picture quality. It's more a question of two different standards for color representation and just needs to be in sync between console/PC and monitor/TV. So the Wii U should not look worse just because it's only capable of limited HDMI, you just need to set your display to also use limited. There just seems to be some variance in colour reproduction between different consoles. Really appreciate your exploration of video options and quality otherwise!

[@NoonDragoon]

TV’s sometimes have the RGB range option labeled as “Black Level”. And if your TV gives the option for “Auto” for Black Level, this Auto doesn’t always work. Setting my Black Level to Low manually on my TV makes WiiU games look way better. Auto made my WiiU games look really washed out, probably because it was just defaulting my TV to the High option.

[@chromium5988]

Came here to say this. Set your display device and console to the the same RGB range and they will both good. The problems arise when you set one to limited and the other to full and vice versa :)

[@SianaGearz]

@@chromium5988 Many PC monitors take every source as full range, which is a bit of a problem.

[@chromium5988]

@@SianaGearz yeah that's an issue if you want to use a Wii U on a PC monitor. It's an oversight for sure and very Nintendo 😂

[@kevinfromsales9445]

The real question is, aren't all console games supposed to be played on limited range? Since TVs are mostly limited range only while monitors are full range. So for example if I'm playing a PS2, Wii or even WiiU game on my TV I should always keep it at limited range while if I'm playing WiiU on my monitor than I should switch it from full to limited.

[@Club_Weeg]

Wait I've owned a WiiU since 2014 and used Wii mode a decent amount AND DIDN'T KNOW THAT YOU COULD BOOT STRAIGHT INTO WII MODE BY HOLDING B ON THE GAMEPAD!? That's the most important lesson in this video today Jon.

[@bendovaplz5329]

No way. Awesome

[@LyokoWarrier1fan]

When you talked about the black border in Wii mode on Wii U, the Wii actually has that too it is just that some TVs by default have an overscan setting that crops the image so you don’t notice it. Turn off overscan on your TV while using the Wii and the black border is there. That said, I do think that Nintendo should have scaled the image to get rid of it like they did on the game pad. You do have the option to go in Wii U settings and shrink the display area, then turn on overscan on the TV to crop the black border Hopefully Homebrew one day can fix the issues. I only use my Wii U for Wii stuff because it is convenient for me to just have one system for everything + installed all of my Wii games as Wii U menu apps so I can boot in and out of Wii games much faster

[@skins4thewin]

Agreed, although I suppose these oversights & issues make the original systems relevant to the hardcore audience. For myself, I am not into these systems enough to really care that much. I just love having the all in one nature of the system. My retro consoles are the ones I am more hardcore about.

[@tomaspostorivo]

I fell the same

[@Piggieyt75]

I think the reason why this border exists is to improve game performance. On the GameCube, some games rendered in the full 640x480 window, like Wind Waker, but some rendered in lower resolutions, like Mario Sunshine at 640x448 or Twilight Princess at 608x448. They did this as a way to improve performance in ways that most users would not have noticed due to overscan. This was still a relevant concept with the Wii, since most TVs at the time had plenty of overscan by default.

[@skins4thewin]

@@Piggieyt75 If that was the case then the graphics would have to compensate and wouldn't simply be stretched or squeezed.

[@SirYodaJedi]

Most TVs I've seen only allow you to disable overscan on HD resolutions.

[@TheBlackKid3398]

I'll be honest...I never notice any of this stuff. And even when comparisons are shown, I have a hard time spotting any differences. I just play the game. So, videos like this just go right over my head. I did learn one thing, though. Simply holding the B button to go straight into Wii Mode is something I never knew was a thing until today.

[@godfatherpablo5569]

Absolutely based

[@mgj8649]

I don't own a Wii U so I didn't know this was a problem, but personally I don't know how you didn't notice the black bars on the sides of the screen. I likely wouldn't have noticed the resolution difference though.

[@TheBlackKid3398]

Well, that's what I meant. The resolution differences. My fault for not being more clear about it.

[@skins4thewin]

Most definitely isn't for you then. This stuff is for the tech nerds that care about the finer details. It's a niche topic but ya, I am most definitely one of those nerds lol. It's ok to be a casual non-nerd tho. It's also ok to be a nerd who cares bout this stuff.

[@curtispavlovec]

I agree totally. The joy is the games and nostalgia experience not sitting around nitpicking video quality or what have you. It’s good enough.

[@podracer35]

0:42 the timing on that cut though

[@BJsPool87]

I noticed the quality dip when I played Sonic Colors and while I was recording for my upcoming review of Kirby's RTD/Deluxe, something looked off when playing it on my friend's Wii U. Very informative video, Jon!

[@HistoryandReviews]

Wii U looks better

[@perpetualcollapse]

@@HistoryandReviews The 240p test suite would like to disagree. The color bleed is horrendous even on my professionally calibrated TV. Maybe it looks better than direct connection from component to a TV as TVs have terrible scalers, while the Wii U is doing everything digitally. Still bizarre that the colors are handled so poorly and bleed into each other.

[@clouds-rb9xt]

@@perpetualcollapseWould the Electron Shepherd be better than Wii U?

[@KhaoMortadios]

I'm mixed on this. I can definitely see the differences. Especially with the deflicker. But I don't get why we're talking as if it's an objective downgrade. It's clearly different, but both methods absolutely have their pros and cons. It's always a tradeoff between blurriness and more visible artifacts, and results definitely vary on different TVs. To tell the truth, almost all my experiences connecting SD consoles to HDTVs have been atrocioust, but I've only gotten good results with Wii U's Wii mode through HDMI. Especially on a monitor, which is how I mostly use modern consoles these days. And if you ask me, the best way to play Wii games is with a crt anyway. Neither of these methods is ideal. I can definitely see why others would rather use an HD TV though.

[@mattrandall1808]

The best option is a Panasonic EDTV Plasma imo. I have one and it looks really good on it.

[@Lucrei.]

​@@mattrandall1808we've got old Pana plasma we bought back in 2009. Easily my favourite display in the house even though it's only 1080p. Supports all kinds of inputs too, so flexible.

[@bellowingsilence]

Yeah, I think Wii U outputting 720p or 1080p is the most convenient, easy, decent option for pushing Wii games on native hardware, for modern displays. I mean, if your Wii U doesn’t brick itself out of nowhere, at least.

[@JazzemBros]

Great work as always Jon, I love these image quality videos 🙂 One thing though; I was under the impression that limited or full range didn't matter as both should look the same, the only caveat being your TV has to have matching settings (which is sometimes labelled as black level low or high). If a TV is set to RGB full for instance, a console giving it RGB limited will look terrible and washed out, but if the TV was also limited it should look the same as both devices at RGB full. Likewise, an RGB full console to an RGB limited TV will be overly saturated I may be wrong on this and apologies if so, it gets confusing easily 😅 maybe someone else in comments can confirm the RGB range situation

[@manuel0578]

You are correct.

[@lordeilluminati]

and you are not wrong, thing is, in theory full range allows more depth in contrast levels, in reality, since content on the living room like consoles use standards for TV broadcasting, full range is no better than limited, it just adjusts the black and white values from 16-235 in limited to 0-255 in full. The setting you are mentioning doesnt affect RGB levels per se, most TVs dont need to have matching black levels and RGB depth levels. The full and limited range recognition is mostly automatic. You can set full range RGB, low black level and have different results when you change the setting and when you RESTART the television with the settings already applied. Full and limited RGB do have greater effect in PC monitors and capture cards which tend to always expect that 0 is black no matter what, and when it receives a 16 value of a pitch black scene of movie, for example, it displays as grey.

[@armadeus8711]

Love seeing Jazzem being a tech nerd in the comments on one of my favourite channels (also you are correct on that, I think the only caveat is that it can effect Monitors and capture devices)

[@miniconbini]

Jon!! Love the Wii content. Would you consider doing a deep dive on Wii plus something like a retrotink 5x? I've always wanted to see some in depth look into Wii output with one of those, especially when homebrew is in the equation.

[@overwatch761]

I find it amusing that GameCube looks astounding through the Wii U via Nintendont in patched 16:9 with deflicker off and is a massive upgrade over existing hardware - GCN games look pin sharp almost HD in quality on my 60", Wii looks a generation behind GCN in comparison with it's hazy blur. Aroma is already starting to fix issues with vWii through plugins - the viewport cropping is fixed and Wii games can launch in 480p. I don't think it will be long before a plugin update allows for deflicker and dithering to be turned off while launching Wii games. When that happens the Wii U will easily be the definitive option for Wii.

[@clouds-rb9xt]

Like, true 480p? Does it fix the other issues then?

[@ZipplyZane]

I suspect those saying that 480p looks better have screens with better upscaling. Because, unless you're playing on a CRT, the graphics do have to be upscaled to the native resolution of the display.

[@chadwolf3840]

great stuff man! it's so hard to get good info discerning all these systems sometimes and you make it so crystal clear.

[@wausjackbauer128]

I haven't watched this video yet but I remember doing a side by side with Skyward Sword. On Wii U, the colours were slightly worse but the overall image was slightly cleaner. The image was slightly cleaner simply because it was running through HDMI which is a cleaner signal compared to component on Wii

[@theglassarrow_]

the biggest thing to keep in mind, is that modern TV's simply loos video quality for component cables. HDMI is near lossless for video quality. Endless you have the time and money to fork out the best video quality out of a wii, wii u will most likely look better. especially after homebrew video quality.

[@mega77]

Have a Wii and WiiU. The Wii is connected with a YUV cable to my TV (the best component cable available for unmodified Wii's). The WiiU is connected via HDMI. Let me tell you that the image quality is FAR better when playing on the WiiU. The analog signal of the Wii creates scan lines whennthe image is moving. Just the fact that the WiiU does not make this effect when playing on a flat screen makes it superior. Yes the Wii might be looking a bit better when HDMI modded, but if you own a WiiU I don't feel it's worth the effort.

[@clouds-rb9xt]

Could just be a weak signal on your end

[@diabeticman2194]

I've never been one for spotting visual differences, but learning you can get straight to Wii mode by holding b when booting the Wii U? Blown my mind!

[@PixelShade]

One thing to note about the WiiU is that if you set your TV to limited range (all TV-brands will have different name for this, My LG TV call it "Black Levels"). Contrasts and colors will look near identical to full range if the TV is setup correctly.

[@Piggieyt75]

The only difference would be that there is more color banding with limited range, but most users don't notice the difference.

[@el_primer_y_el_ultimo_caiman]

One advantage of HDMI is that the Wii U will output a digital audio signal. It might be slightly cleaner?

[@ChicagoBulls1984]

Also prevents the tv from having to upscale the image and possibly add input lag i would think

[@el_primer_y_el_ultimo_caiman]

@@ChicagoBulls1984 Even if you have a 1080p set, the difference is so negligible that I can't imagine any display being programmed to skip scaling under any circumstances, even for a 1:1 image that'll appear identical. More room for bugs...

[@JoSephGD]

Fun fact: the issue you note about the aspect ratio is exclusive to 1080p. The Wii U's "vWii" mode outputs at double the native resolution of the Wii. Given that the Wii was 480p, this means that vWii maxes out at 960p. I don't know if you realized this, but 960p is less than 1080p. I guess the borders were added to maintain the integer scale, but that's difficult to answer. (Even more interesting, if you play with the Wii U's aspect ratio set to 720p, the borders are gone. At 480p, the two basically match.)

[@smtek]

I just found out about the deflicker filter the other day, I am running the Wii with the Mclassic upscaler and I gotta say, it looks sooooo good on my 1080p projector.

[@Caolan114]

Thank you very much for these videos, I love the Wii and have been modding mine since 2012 and didn't know about framebuffer or aspect ratios, nor did I know which was better graphically

[@Ependyma]

Jon's voice

[@vacuumblink2300]

It makes me cream my pants

[@Latestmustace]

Probably one of the most soothing voices i have heard.

[@bregowine]

Always enjoyable. Needs more appearances in GVG

[@lukeshioshio]

This person knows what's up

[@Haymdahl]

True.

[@imaginitivity7853]

Really interesting analysis. It seems really surprising that within the WiiU/Wii homebrew there hasn't been a way to work around the RGB limited issue.

[@lordasaki]

My main beef is "widescreen only" games, like RE4 and Skyward Sword, they don't seem to look great in any setup. Last time I played SS, was WiiU via HDMI, and in 1080p mode, the stipple alpha can be a bit distracting (you can see it a few times in this video). It's a little bit better in 480p mode, but not an issue I remember having when I first played the game, (maybe on the WiiU?), using component video cables. (I don't currently have a working HDTV that accepts component input) I also tried switching between 16:9 and 4:3, but I don't remember what the verdict was. Any opinions? I might have to try playing with that deflicker filter, but I usually play the regular Wii on a CRT.

[@skins4thewin]

Hope the CFW crowd can figure out ways to fix these Wii U scaling issues one day... Would be AMAZING to have one perfect option!

[@apexanomaly]

I’m new to the Wii U Homebrew scene. Is it possible to use an app to get full range HDMI support?

[@PringoOrSomething]

Would something like an mclassic fix some of the picture issues?

[@Piggieyt75]

Not all of them, from my experience it even adds some artifacts, like white edges around objects. The effect is comparable to increasing the sharpness way high on any modern TV.

[@Skylancer727]

Before I watch, is it because of the bad upscaling? I have noticed in games like Skyward Sword that transparent objects and huds tend to have this odd wavy look to them cause by the upscaling.

[@seanpaul3954]

Really enjoyed this video. I'm currently playing Xenoblade Chronicles on Wii U virtual Wii and have found best results in terms of looks using the 4:3 aspect ratio with an Mclassic dongle,which seems to clean up jaggies a good bit and make colours pop a bit more.

[@akirafuudou2037]

Xenoblade Chronicles has no business being displayed in 4:3.

[@IceBlueLugia]

Who the fuck tryna play Xenoblade in 4:3

[@DrewTNaylor]

I found a post from 2019 on a forum recently that said that apparently you can trick the Wii U into displaying in full range if you use an HDMI cable and convert it to VGA then through HDMI again (such as by using the OSSC, as used in the post), but I haven't tried that. Can't remember if it worked for Wii games or not.

[@Mudslinger31]

Can anyone tell me why my Wii U is having trouble playing Wii games? It shows the icon and when I go to click on it, the screen goes black and the controller indicator light shuts off. Am I doing something wrong?

[@zebular]

Great video! I have to ask though, have you compared forced 240p with Swiss on a GameCube vs 240p GameCube through the Wii U? If forced 240p on the Wii U works well for GameCube via Nintendont, I think I might use my Wii U as my catch all on my CRT for GameCube, Wii and Wii U.

[@AustinTroth]

The Wii U can’t output 240p, only 480i as a minimum

[@zebular]

@@AustinTroth yeah I'm curious as to why that is. A software limitation or hardware.

[@AustinTroth]

@@zebular it is a hardware limitation

[@LHSMeleeClub]

At this point this channel has given enough knowledge about really cool things you can do with Nintendo's Legacy systems that I'm going to create a new KZbin playlist titled "GVG Knowledge"

[@kellokabana2399]

I’m confused by your comparison. You talked about using original cables straight out of the box, but that would mean using composite cable for the Wii vs HDMI cable for the Wii U. And keeping the original settings for both systems, the games should look much brighter on Wii U. This was especially noticeable on darker looking games like the Last Story. Every game I ever played looked brighter and more vibrant on Wii U.

[@milesfernando]

They're not using the stock cables They're both using the same component cable, which would still allow for an HD image in the case of the Wii U.

[@bendovaplz5329]

They def look better on the Wii U lol

[@Spacething7474]

the easiest way to fix this is to just use standard definition 4:3

[@Kevintendo]

Why does the footage look so dark at 8:22?? Is that just how this game is?

[@pokepress]

16:9 has an inherent problem with 480p, in that 480 isn’t a multiple of 9 like 720, 1080, etc. as such, digital 480p video often uses non-square pixels at a resolution of 720*480. 1080p video sometimes uses non-square pixels (1440*1080 for a 16:9 image), but 480p over HDMI pretty much always does this unless it’s a converted 640*480 VGA signal.

[@WilliamMcCarthyIII]

Never use 480p for Wii Mode on Wii U. It stretches the image 1% on both axis which adds even more blur.

[@Froge0]

I've been seeing Wii games exclusively on the Wii U for over a decade now so it cuts the mustard for me, but still quite an interesting video

[@trickz8183]

I have not known about the deflicker and framebuffer options! I feel like it's made such a big difference in image quality, thank you!

[@MoonlitChris]

I have a homebrewed Wii U still hooked up to my entertainment center to this day just because of all the systems it can run, and yeah I acknowledge that the HDMI isn't the best for some of the games let alone the NES and N64 VC being absolutely horrendous but it being the all in one system is what sells it for me and why it's still being used to this very day for me

[@PikangsFutaba]

Indeed, NES and N64 are kinda the worse in that regard, but neverless is still convenient and an OK alternative to the real deals or better emulators, I still use my WiiU from time to time playing some of it's classics or as a convenient (and lazy way) retro console monster, I sometimes play (either oficial Wii releases or via Retroarch) NeoGeo games, SNES, etc, plus, the gamepad for me is a great "controller?" for most of those retro games, not to mention that RetroArch does wonders with not WiiU controllers like the Ps3 to expand your options for the most part, however with N64 is were the issues come (but if you have your WiiU with the Tiramisu soft-mod... you can use Switch Pro controllers for WiiU games and WiiU Virtual Console games... in this case for N64 games really helps), so yeah, the WiiU is a retro monster machine.

[@HistoryandReviews]

2010 Mac Mini can play more and do more

[@bendovaplz5329]

Yes same. I love Wii consoles, but the Wii U is like a 9.5 vs an 8.8 with the Wii. Being able to play Wii U games, all the rest of the consoles below it, be hdmi, have the gamepad, larger storage, more powerful graphics, etc Wii U is an easy choice for me. But when it comes to modding nothing beats the Wii. Wii U and modding SUCKS. Having to individually install each game takes forever. Maybe we will be able to use a Wii backup manager with Wii U's someday.

[@MatticusFinch1820]

I have my Wii U hooked up to a widescreen 34 inch Sony wega CRT with HDMI (34XBR970) it looks incredible and the screen is filled when I play Wii games so I don't know if it's just dependent on what TV or using?

[@evansicaria]

I am confused. What is the best settings on USB loader GX for best image quality?

[@101Leafy]

Jon, I obsess over the tiny things when it comes to "properly" experiencing games. With so many options available, why SHOULDN'T we be more purposeful in what we choose to use? Thanks for covering this important information on such a commonly used Mode.

[@soywho9837]

Hi leafy, I like your videos.

[@IronGumby]

Does this deflicker affect the GamePad video? Because if so, I'm pretty remiss that I didn't mod my WiiU before playing Xenoblade Chronicles this past year entirely in the GamePad

[@robertwahlstrom]

I actually pushing 480 p from both my Wii (Wii HDMI cable with no upscaling) and Wii U (Wii mode) and then push that signal through an HDMI merger and then from that to an mClassic that then upscales it and that looks really sharp.

[@MightyWolve]

How do you get the gamecube controller to work on the Wii U besides smash brawl?

[@cristianjimenezhernandez6911]

I saw it's the switch version then you can connect it to the Wii u by Bluetooth

[@JohnLattanzio98]

0:39 how did he even manage to hit himself 😂

[@BrenX1]

This is cool, but I have a modded Wii u, and I download my wii games via an injector, so it boots from the Wii u menu, and not Wii mode. Is there any difference there?

[@comicalmushroom4790]

The Wii is the ultimate Zelda machine if you have all Zelda GameCube games you can play all Zelda games from nes to wii

[@MrAlternation]

facts

[@RunningDownMidAsTechies]

That would be PC since you can emulate everything from the original to TOTK. I mean PC is the only place where you can play BOTW/TOTK at 4k/60fps and what does the Switch run those at, 900p and sub 900p for TOTK with a wildly unstable 30fps?

[@KillingBytes]

bro your voice do you say "finish him" in mortal combat ? xD

[@mistergremm735]

been recommended this yesterday, glad something great came out of that tab Subbed

[@suspendedhatch]

The upside to Wii U is Breath of the Wild.

[@violator1017]

Sorry but from my perspective you're absolutely wrong. The Wii is clearly made to output 480i 60Hz or 480p 60Hz + 576i 50Hz Only in European version... The Wii U 1080p 60Hz, 1080i 60Hz, 720p 60Hz, 480p 60Hz, 480i 60Hz + 576i 50Hz Only in European version... Now, depends on what TV/Monitor you play AND what resolution you set your WiiU to. I can promise you that I have, here in Europe, a better image quality on my WiiU compared to my Wii but the settings needs to be in par with the type of screen that you used... On my CRTs with a SCART cable and the WiiU set with 480p, the image is amazing. On my plasma screen with a YUV or HDMI cable and the WiiU set with 720p output, the image is better thanwhat I get from my Wii plugged with YUV cable. On my OLED, I even don't have to describe how ffaaarrrrr better the image is with the WiiU compare to the Wii. The only "tiny" advantage that my Wii has compare to my WiiU is when I output 240p content with a SCART cable... in this case, my Wii can output the image slightly better than my WiiU (the WiiU double the scanlines to " transform " the 240 signal to a 480 one... kind of) Maybe it's different in the US but here in Europe, I have better results with my WiiU compare to my Wii.

[@lakitu6422]

One thing you can do with the wii as well is use prii loader to autoboot straight to usb loader gx. Makes it a 1 click start and super fast

[@mistercai9536]

Hi, did you try pairing with a Mclassic?

[@dragonwario1123]

Perhaps one day the HB community can tackle these scaling / color distortions. There's actually a thread on GBATemp with some people trying to figure it out, but it seemed that project never got off its feet unfortunately. Still, having the option to play Wii U/Wii/GC backups with HDMI on a single box is really really nice, and I still keep my Wii U hooked up for that reason.

[@Mr.Welbig]

The Wii U is my preferred way to play Wii/GCN purely for convenience. Sure the video output looks better on native Wii and GCN, but tbh without a side by side comparison I hardly notice a difference and don't think about it when I'm actually playing. Getting Wii and GCN games installed as VC Injected titles lets them be bootable from the Wii U menu like VC games which works so well from my experience. And to have all games playable on one console is worth the trade off of higher quality video.

[@kamikazilucas]

so is there not a way to remove the wii u blur even with deflicker disabled?

[@pokepress]

480p for Wii mode on Wii U is definitely better if you’re relying on some sort of upscaling device like the mClassic since those work best when they have access to the image at or near its native resolution. Similar if your TV itself has an advanced upscale algorithm.

[@AustinTroth]

In 480p virtual Wii mode on the Wii U there is significant sharpness and detail loss versus the other scaling modes, very visible if you open the check board tool in the 240p test suite. You should not set the Wii U output to 480p even with an mClassic

[@mattrandall1808]

​@@AustinTroth I'm going to test this later with my mCable

[@AustinTroth]

@@mattrandall1808 It will look incredibly soft and lock a significant amount of detail

[@matticolo]

Can you use the debuffer trick on the WiiU? ( on Wii mode obviously)

[@Snivy102]

Before watching this video: The Wii only supports analog out. The WiiU supports digital out (HDMI). Therefore, if you hook your Wii up to a flat screen TV that still has analog in, there will be input delay. Those HDMI adapters you can get for the Wii do not remove the input delay. The WiiU is better for playing Wii games on flat screen TVs for this very reason.

[@LandonEmma]

I never knew there was a GBA adapter for the Wii where can I get one?

[@Festivus_Miracle]

Theoretically, the scaling could be modded via an app or setting in existing apps right? So this isn't a permanent problem assumedly

[@afrolund80]

My motion plus wiimote lags whenever I use it for my new super Mario bros wii disc in my wii u. I tried playing the original super Mario bros on the wii u virtual console and it worked perfectly. Anyone else have this problem?

[@pulp2560]

I hope they will find a way to modify framebuffer resolution of wii and gc game on wiiu before rendering to apply 720 or 1080p.

[@joegoosebass3958]

Ahhhh you were always the best presenter at NL.. great to find your channel!

[@Heath_Rubbadubdub]

So is there no homebrew option for Wii u’s wii stuff to get it better looking?

[@AnonymousFreakYT]

Thanks for this video. My old Wii (bought during the initial launch scarcity scramble!) optical drive died, and I was debating just “upgrading” to a Wii-U for my Wii games. Now I think I’ll just replace the optical drive. (I use a 4x3 CRT HD TV, so component is my connection type anyway.)

[@jagkopp]

Wait, what? I’ve used the gamepad to play Wii games plenty of times, but didn’t know the thingie at the top functions as a sensor bar!

[@FurryMcMemes]

I actually found this out a couple years ago when I bought a Wii for GameCube games as I was buying the Hyperkin HDMI cable for it and a mClassic later on. I was curious because I though I was used playing Wii games on my Wii U I don't remember those same games looking so blurry and well all of the problems you mentioned in this video. So since finding all of this out I since then I do not play Wii games on Wii U anymore, only on my Wii.

[@Vincentius001]

don't you have to change the resolution within the wii u settings to get the same image quality the wii offers? I believe you have to switch it to 480 in order for the image not to be so blurry on wii u, at least for wii games.

[@magdlr00]

Jon are you gonna talk about jet set radio future multiplayer?

[@goldmemberpb]

The only big issue with playing games on my wiiU is the dark filter on some VC games. I never really had issue with the game ratio being stretched or even noticed that the game might be blurrier.

[@TheDeadjam421]

I’ve got a crappy 48 inch tv from 2011 I found at goodwill for $20 and it has serious issues, but it has an insane backlight and It kinda cancels out the dark filter

[@LyokoWarrier1fan]

That can be fixed with Homebrew but it’s time consuming and you have to read through forums to figure out how to get it working right

[@goldmemberpb]

@@LyokoWarrier1fan i can get rid of the dark filter with an injector for outside ganes but idk if it is possible for games i got on the eshop.

[@SK91NO]

I was never familiar with the Wii so when playing Wii games I found all of this normal, what I did notice was chroma bleeding on some games which really got annoying the more I noticed

[@markwebster4996]

It’s a preference but I don’t think the sharp pixels on Wii look better than a smoother edge. Sharp pixels from games on NES, SNES etc are one thing but Wii games you don’t really want a jaggy edge. The skyward sword example shown, Wii looks super jaggy edge and it’s shimmering. Both Wii and WiiU can look perfectly fine but it take some awareness and work for either. WiiU totally native with no Homebrew etc is an easier hookup for many. Not all TVs even have component connections anymore.

[@kamikazilucas]

2:35 isnt that fixed with deflicker turned off on wii tho i heard wii component now looks just as good as gamecube

[@RhythicManRhythm]

You still should buy a Wii U over Wii. Two libraries.

[@namelessking8527]

Whats the best hdmi wii solution then??

[@parski]

Loving these technical videos recently.

[@princessrescuermk3]

When I 100%ed Sukeban Shachou Rena on Wii U, I noticed this. The ironing out of the lag messed me up on several minigames because I couldn't buffer inputs anymore.

[@cheezyfriez12]

Something you guys should keep in mind is that with a modded wii, you can disable the deflicker filter at the system level now with priiloader.

[@bendovaplz5329]

Yes totally!

[@GenghisConnThr333]

"the Wii has better image quality than the Wii U if you mod it" So the Wii U is better...

[@bendovaplz5329]

So I believe disabling the deflicker filter would get rid of the blurriness in the Wii U. Have you disabled it?

[@Howwy191]

How did i not know about the boot to wii mode option.

[@lordeilluminati]

limited vs full range RGB is mainly an issue with PC monitors and capture cards. Having full range RGB on any common television on your living room will not make any difference in picture quality related to this topic. Nintendo chose limited range because it is more guaranteed to work on any television (because limited is made with TV broadcasting and movies in mind, full is expected to work on PC monitors), with full range if the display doesnt adapt well over this, the black levels get extremely crushed. For those who dont know, limited range is a range from 16 to 235, meaning that a color with the 16 value means black and 235 means white. Full range RGB works from 0 to 255, meaning that 0 is black and 255 is white. Most TV of the time and even today detect if you used limited or full and adapt to accomodate any system. On any TV that I had in around 10 years if I set any console as full RGB it does get crushed black levels but if I restart the television it adapts to the image sent by the device and it looks the exact same as if it was on limited.

[@Scyfeur]

Thanks for the info brother very glad i ran into this video God Bless

[@LOmarG]

I've been scouring the internet for years trying to find confirmation of this. I knew they looked blurrier but couldn't find anyone that would agree. Thank you!

[@natoriousthehopeful2786]

You know the weekend has started until Jon makes a video 😎

[@RickyPonPon]

What's the game at 4:55? I keep seeing it but can't put a title to it.

[@GenghisConnThr333]

Another Code R

[@nickk3077]

7:46 What? You can boot up the Wii menu immediately by holding down the B button!? That's kinda neat.

[@swavoxiii]

3:55 I personally see that as a pro. Something like skyward sword which has a lot of watercolor graphics, I don't want to tsee all the sharp pixels. This is why anti-aliasing exists. The visuals you've shown in this video just make me appreciate the wii u's output more. Why would I want a jaggy mess for 3D games? I'd get it for 2D, but old 3D can def. benefit from some blurred visuals.

[@mattrandall1808]

Get yourself an mCable Gaming edition. You'll be floored

[@GalaxiaSword]

I'll take the near instant load time on the Wii's main menu over the 20 seconds of load times on Wii U any day.