Including last October’s release of Just Dance 2017, 1,262 games have been released in North America for the Nintendo Wii since its late 2006 launch. NintendoAge forum user NintendoTwizer has collected all of them.
Along with the 1,262 games (plus some double packs and variants), NintendoTwizer has also collected all four Wii colors and all 12 official Nintendo Wii remote colors. Here’s a shot of the whole shebang.
In a lengthy post on the NintendoAge forums (via Destructoid), the collector explains how his collection came together and why he decided to gather a complete set of games and hardware for a system infamously plagued by shovelware.
The Wii is a fascinating system. It sold over 100 million units. It was an insane success for Nintendo. No other Nintendo home system including the original Nintendo could touch it in sales. Think about that. Everyone had one (including my grandma). For me, I felt it would be an interesting challenge. The Wii was unexplored territory. Not many people have gone for a complete set. Yes, I can hear it now… so much shovel ware. To that I say sure, there’s a ton of great games and a ton of shovelware, but that’s cool. The crappy games tell an interesting story as well. I don’t know how many times I came across a random Wii game and said to myself… “what the hell, they made this for the system?”. That was part of the fun.
It’s almost enough to make me want to remember where it was my Nintendo Wii wound up after I boxed it up for the last time.
What makes the collection even more impressive is NintendoTwizer has only been putting it together since late 2015, having sold his first modest collection of more than 100 games earlier that year to help build a new house.
Check out NintendoTwizer’s post at NintendoAge for more background on the collection, including a list of the top 40 rarest games. For more pictures, check out his extensive gallery on Imgur.
DISCUSSION
I love the Wii and I don’t care who knows it. Granted, there was a lot of crap and the Wiimote never quite lived up to its potential, but it was the first Nintendo console I owned and gave me access to five generations of games. Including Super Mario Galaxy, which I still consider the high watermark of the Mario series, and a lot of other great titles. It was, against the odds, my main console for a while and I say that without a hint of irony.
Basically, even if I wouldn’t use most of this stuff, it still warms the cockles of my heart to see the Wii remembered and celebrated like this.