Wii

The **Wii** (or the **Nintendo Wii**) is a home video game console created by Nintendo. Released in 2006 at the start of the seventh-generation of video games consoles, the Wii competed with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Microsoft's Xbox 360. The Wii excelled over its competitors, and sold a whopping 101 million consoles as of 2019, compared to the PS3 and X360's sales of 87 million and 84 million, respectively. Consequently, the Wii is Nintendo's 2nd best-selling product (beaten by the Nintendo DS), and is the sixth best-selling console of all time.

The Wii differed from any other system during its time. Rather than promoting the traditional "sit down and relax" style, as with the GameCube, Nintendo decided to make the Wii motion-based and encouraged its users to be physically engaged. The controller, the Wii Remote, looked nothing like the standard controller at the time; rather, it resembled a TV Remote. The Wii Remote used a sensor on its front to connect to the Sensor Bar, a peripheral attached to the Wii itself to allow the Remote to detect positioning on the screen.

The Wii was immensely popular throughout its life. It was officially discontinued in 2013 after its successor, the Wii U, was released. However, the Wii remained popular throughout the 2010s, even beyond the release of 2017's Nintendo Switch. Internet services had been discontinued by 2013, but some functions (including the built-in shop) remained functional until 2019. The final title for the Wii, *Shakedown: Hawaii*, was released in July 2020.

## Setup

The Wii is designed to be connected to a TV's component cables to display on screen. An infrared peripheral known as the Sensor Bar is connected to the Wii and placed above or below the screen to let the Wii Remote know its position on the screen. The Wii Menu contains a multitude of different applications, known as "Channels", which were used for various purposes. The main channel, the Disc Channel, would open upon insertion of a valid Wii or GameCube disc.

The Wii can display a picture in standard 4:3 or widescreen 16:9. Using the packaged AV cables, it will display in 480i (interlaced) resolution, which looks relatively blurry on modern TVs and also creates motion artifacts. Using a set of official component cables, the picture will display at 480p (progressive), which looks much more sharp and allows the Wii to properly render motion. Its resolution cannot physically go above this mark, even though there are off-brand upscalers which claim to do so.

### Controller

The Wii Remote serves as the primary way to use the console. The Remote resembles a TV Remote, and contains less buttons than its competitors. The Remote has a power button on the front which could be used to directly turn on/off the console. A four-way directional pad laid at the top of the remote, and directly underneath it was a large circular "A" Button. Underneath the A Button are three smaller buttons - a "-" Button, a "+" Button, and a Home Button. Beneath these were a set of small holes which served as a speaker, which would emit various sounds from the remote itself. At the bottom of the remote are the "1" and "2" buttons, and directly underneath that are four lights which represent the player' designation.

The Wii Remote was notable not for its ability to move on the screen, but also how it functioned. Inside of the Wii Remote is a 3-axis accelerometer which measures how fast the Wii Remote is being moved. Furthermore, this device is used to determine how the Wii Remote is being tilted, jerked, or rolled. This enables the Wii Remote to function even if it isn’t facing the Sensor Bar.

The bottom of the Wii Remote contained a port for a secondary controller - most commonly, the Nunchuck. It contains the main analog stick, a small "C" button and a larger "Z" button. The Nunchuck has its own accelerometer inside which detects its own movement in relation to the Sensor Bar. The Nunchuck is required to play *Epic Mickey*.

Other Control peripherals included the Classic Controller, which resembled a traditional controller.

### Channels

#### Disc Channel

The Disc Channel is the primary channel, which utilizes Wii or GameCube Discs to operate.

#### Mii Channel

The Mii Channel is a tool used for creating "Miis", which are digital avatars used in a multitude of games. The Mii Channel can hold up to 100 Miis, and has the ability to transfer Miis to a friend's console, to a Wii U, or to a DS/3DS. There is also the ability to save up to 10 Miis inside a Wii Remote.

It is still operational.

Miis are not used in any Epic Mickey title.

#### Photo Channel

The Photo Channel can be used to edit images stored in the SD card, or on the Wii Message Board. It can physically change the filter on the photo, as well as drawing and adding items to them. There is also the ability to turn the photo into a puzzle which can be solved by the user.

It is still operational.

#### Wii Shop Channel

The Wii Shop Channel was the Wii's store. Users could redeem "Wii Points" which could be used to purchase titles (100 Wii Points was $1). The Shop featured exclusive games, called "WiiWare", special channels, and "Virtual Console", which allowed NES, SNES, and N64 games to be played.

It was discontinued on January 30, 2019. The ability to redeem Wii Points was removed a year prior.

#### Forecast Channel

The Forecast Channel was connected to the Japanese weather company WNI Weather News, which would allow the user to input their location and let the Wii determine the forecast for the week.

It was discontinued on June 27, 2013 along with other internet services.

#### News Channel

The News Channel was the Wii's own "news" source, courtesy of the Associated Press. It had a globe view that allowed users to explore worldwide news.

It was discontinued on June 27, 2013 along with the Forecast Channel.

#### Internet Channel

The Internet Channel is the Wii’s Internet service — it was originally free upon release, then later required for purchase by 2007, and then made free again in 2009. It is powered by Opera.

It is still operational, but very sluggish regardless of the user’s internet speed, and many webpages will not load.

#### Other Channels

The Wii had several secondary channels, such as:

* Nintendo Channel, which allowed users to read Nintendo news and play DS demos
* Everybody Votes Channel, which allowed users to vote on user-suggested questions
* Check Mii Out Channel, which allowed users to vote for Mii avatars
* Game Channels, which create a channel for each individual Virtual Console or WiiWare game

## Models

There were three models of the Wii released before its discontinuation in 2013.

### Original

The original Wii released in 2006, codenamed *RVL-001*, is the most known version of the console. It is a white rectangular box, which can be sit on top of a gray stand. It is designed to sit vertically, but it can lie horizontally as well. The back of the console contains two USB ports, the AC Adapter port, the Composite port, and the port for the Sensor Bar. The front of the console contains the Power button, Reset button, and Eject button. Optical Discs are inserted into the disc drive, which automatically feeds it into the system. There is a small door under the reset button, which contains a Sync button and a slot for the SD card. This console is most commonly seen in white, but there were models made in other colors.

The top of this model also has two doors — one of them contains four GameCube controller ports, and the other contains two slots for the GameCube's memory cards. This version of the Wii runs GameCube games, albeit at native resolution.

### Family Edition

Around the time of *Epic Mickey's* release in 2010, Nintendo introduced a new model of the Wii, codenamed *RVL-101* and referred to as the *Family Edition*. This version of the Wii looked nearly identical to the original, but with some notable changes. This Wii was designed to sit horizontally, and its stand was no longer bundled. The GameCube ports and memory slots were removed, and this version of the console removes all compatibility with the GameCube. This console was originally released in white, but it is more commonly seen in black.

### Wii Mini

At the end of the Wii's lifespan, Nintendo released the Wii Mini, codenamed *RVL-201*, in 2012 or 2013. This Wii barely resembled the original — it was no longer the long rectangle that the Wii was known for, but now a small, red and black square. The Wii Mini had a top-loading Disc Drive similar to the GameCube, and a manual eject button that would open the cover. The back had the necessary ports, though once again there are no GameCube ports. Furthermore, since this model came upon the discontinuation of Wii internet services, the console had no built-in WiFi whatsoever, so games that still had functioning online systems (namely *Mario Kart Wii*) could not be used for their full potential. This Wii was exclusively red and black, and its controllers were also red.

## Epic Mickey

*Epic Mickey* was developed exclusively for the Wii and released on November 25, 2010. The game utilizes the Wii Remote and the Nunchuck.

### Controls

A Wii port of Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two was released on November 18, 2012.