Original Xenoblade Chronicles on Wii U (100% Gamepad support)

[BHvrd]

Quite a surprise to see this released with full Gamepad support, a true treat for Wii U owners. Btw... it looks really great on the Gamepad resolution wise.

[Leo_A]

That's standard for Classic Controller enabled Wii releases on the Wii U eShop.

Too bad that they haven't seen fit to enabling the feature for original media and Wii Virtual Console downloads.

[BHvrd]

That's standard for Classic Controller enabled Wii releases on the Wii U eShop.

Too bad that they haven't seen fit to enabling the feature for original media and Wii Virtual Console downloads.

The game also bypasses the Wii dashboard and launches directly from and to the Wii U dashboard, also displays in 1080p, I have compared the two "Wii" and "Wii U" version and the Wii U version is FAR superior. Controls also have been remapped in game to correspond to the Gamepad, also quite a few other remap tweaks.

Needless to say this game looks phenomenal on the Gamepad and could be considered a full revamped HD upgrade as it looks that much more crisp, clear and refined "on the Gamepad", it's just simply clear and more crisp on the bigger screen.

I understand that Wii games that support Classic Controller has been par the course but they went a bit further with this re-release and deserve some props imho, especially considering it's Nintendo and yes I agree they need to get their act together on Virtual Console as far as Wii is concerned.

[FoxNtd]

I've never heard of this so I'm a little confused. Does this apply only for games you buy digital versions of and download, or does this work for the original disc version too? Are there other Wii titles that run in "Wii U mode" i.e. not booting into the Wii menu to load a game with Wii U controller support? I like the Wii U Pro controller so if other games work this way that'd be great.

[Leo_A]

The game also bypasses the Wii dashboard and launches directly from and to the Wii U dashboard, also displays in 1080p, I have compared the two "Wii" and "Wii U" version and the Wii U version is FAR superior. Controls also have been remapped in game to correspond to the Gamepad, also quite a few other remap tweaks.

It's just the Wii code with a launcher that allows you to load it up directly from the Wii U's own dashboard and with the ability for the Wii U gamepad to function as a Classic Controller.

Both are capabilities that don't involve any change with the game code as proven by homebrewers that have extracted it and found that it was unchanged. And this feature could be opened up to retail games, WiiWare, and Virtual Console downloads if Nintendo was willing.

And the display is just being upscaled to 1080p, just like the Wii U always did for Wii mode by default when you've set your console to output at that resolution. Xenoblade Chronicles is not rendering in 1080p.

No control remapping is happening here, no graphics tweaks, no performance upgrades, etc.

[MetalFRO]

That's standard for Classic Controller enabled Wii releases on the Wii U eShop.

Too bad that they haven't seen fit to enabling the feature for original media and Wii Virtual Console downloads.

Yes. I have the original game disc, and would love to be able to play with the Game Pad instead of having to use the Wii controller. But then, Wii backwards compatibility would likely require more than just including a Wii in the Wii U hardware, so that would have required much more engineering on Nintendo's part.

[Leo_A]

It's native Wii code running in Wii mode just like the Wii disc is.

It's just the launcher that allows for the Wii U gamepad inputs to substitute for Classic Controller inputs. In essence, nothing at the Wii end is modified and it's the Latte chip's ARM9 processor that otherwise isn't used when running Wii code that is taking the gamepad's inputs and sending the Wiimote/Classic Controller equivalent inputs to the CPU.

Nintendo could easily open that up with a Wii disc launcher from the Wii U menu that allows you to boot directly to an inserted Wii disc and utilize the gamepad as a controller for Classic Controller enabled titles. And similarly, the ability to add direct shortcuts in the Wii U menu for WiiWare and Virtual Console titles.

But then not only would they lose a few sales for classic Wii downloads off the Wii U eShop, the major impetus for paying the $1-$2 upgrade fee for Wii Virtual Console downloads would be eliminated.

[SparTonberry]

But then not only would they lose a few sales for classic Wii downloads off the Wii U eShop, the major impetus for paying the $1-$2 upgrade fee for Wii Virtual Console downloads would be eliminated.

I thought was for savestates and button mapping (which really should've been on the Wii in the first place).

[Leo_A]

They're more important to me, but I suspect that it's gamepad support that many people are eyeing when they pay to upgrade a Wii VC download to the Wii U version.

Either way though, it's one of the driving factors behind upgrading a Virtual Console download.

[Satoshi_Matrix]

I've got a question for those who bought Xenoblade Chronicles for WiiU.

Can you play it with the WiiU Pro controller? I'd prefer not to use the tablet.

[RP2A03]

I've got a question for those who bought Xenoblade Chronicles for WiiU.

Can you play it with the WiiU Pro controller? I'd prefer not to use the tablet.

You can play with the pro controller, but you will want to keep the tablet handy since it has your map and you will need it for fast travel and managing probes.

[Satoshi_Matrix]

Can those actions only be done through the tablet? No way to do them with the Pro controller alone?

[RP2A03]

Can those actions only be done through the tablet?

Nope, but it's not really that big a deal since you won't be doing anything else while performing those actions anyway. Just keep the tablet beside you.

[Satoshi_Matrix]

Is the tablet Wii U Pro controller support only availble through the WiiU eshop version?

Like most of us, I'm a collector and would much rather own the physical Wii disc and plop that into my WiiU when I want to play, but I also want to play it using the WiiU Pro Controller.

Can I use the WiiU Pro controller on a WiiU with the Xenoblade Chronicles Wii disc?

[Leo_A]

Nope, it's limited to original Wii accessories only.

[Flojomojo]

I wish it had cross-play, so I could go between the big screen and the 3DS version. I barely have time to play it once, let alone twice!

[BlastProcessing402]

Is the tablet Wii U Pro controller support only availble through the WiiU eshop version?

Like most of us, I'm a collector and would much rather own the physical Wii disc and plop that into my WiiU when I want to play, but I also want to play it using the WiiU Pro Controller.

Can I use the WiiU Pro controller on a WiiU with the Xenoblade Chronicles Wii disc?

I really wish hackers would figure out a way to do things like that. At least you can use the Pro controller in Nintendon't for GC games.