Wii U console

Wii U is officially dead as Nintendo runs out of parts for repairs

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GameCentralPublished July 4, 2024, 11:33 AM|Updated July 4, 2024, 11:34 AM
The Wii U died so the Switch could live (Nintendo)

Nintendo is running out of parts to repair broken Wii U consoles, as the failed format takes its final steps toward demise.

The Wii U was such a failure that it broke the whole concept of console generations. Released in 2012 as the successor to the hugely successful Wii, it was a complete disaster from the start, with a poor line-up of games and a shocking lack of marketing.

Despite the Wii’s success, most people didn’t even know the console existed. The original model was discontinued in 2015, and production ended in 2016.

In 2017, it was replaced by the Switch, Nintendo’s second console of that generation. Aside from a steady stream of ports and a small selection of Wii U exclusives, the console was quickly forgotten – until Nintendo announced that it was ending all hardware support for the format.

Nintendo closed the Wii U eShop back in March, but was still offering free repairs in Japan. That was until they announced they would no longer be able to supply spare parts.

Last May it was already warned that support would only last as long as spare parts were available. Repairs in the West had already been halted due to lack of demand.

While few will mourn the Wii U’s passing, it did bring with it some very good exclusives. For reasons that remain unclear, the excellent Xenoblade Chronicles X still hasn’t been ported to Switch. Some have assumed it was being held back to fill the current window before the Switch 2 launches, but it still hasn’t been announced.

Xenoblade Chronicles X doesn’t specifically use the Wii U GamePad, which makes its lack of a port all the more confusing. Most other games that didn’t make the trip do, however.

Star Fox Zero could perhaps be modified to use normal controls, but the poor reception of the original (while we did like it) makes that unlikely. Which means the bundled tower defense game Star Fox Guard is also a thing of the past.

Then again, nobody likes Paper Mario: Color Splash or the awful Animal Crossing: Amiibo Festival , so they’re no loss. There have been rumors that Kirby And The Rainbow Paintbrush will make the jump to Switch , but given how intrinsic the Wii U GamePad was to it, it seems impossible that Game & Wario will ever be ported.

Again, Game & Wario isn’t that good, so few will be sad to see it go. The biggest loss, however, may be the launch title Nintendo Land.

A compilation of asymmetrical multiplayer games like Mario Chase, Animal Crossing: Sweet Day, and Luigi’s Ghost Mansion were a lot of fun, but without the Wii U’s very specific hardware setup, they couldn’t work on any other format – or at least not with just one console.

YouTube poster

The Nintendo Land games didn’t last long, but they were great party games, and it’s sad to know that they will no longer be playable on a modern format, or on a console once worldwide supplies of Wii Us run out.

However, it’s not impossible that a few of these games, most notably Xenoblade, could end up on Switch before the next console’s release, or even after. The Wii U remasters of Zelda: The Wind Waker and Twilight Princess would be relatively easy for Nintendo to port, and thus seem relatively likely.

In terms of hardware, the Wii U is now officially a dead model, and while its early demise led to a much better console, it’s still sad to see so many unique games disappear with it.

Xenoblade Chronicles X
Why wasn’t Xenoblade Chronicles X ported to Switch? (Nintendo)

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