Wii, Nintendo DS Online Games Saved By Homebrew Community

Still in love with Nintendo's old Wii and Nintendo DS games? Still want to get in on all that multiplayer, online goodness? Still want to trudge through the gamut of friend codes and trying to remember if it was an 'I' or an 'L' that you wrote down when you came across that hottie playing Mario Kart Wii in the regional mode? Well, thankfully the homebrew community has a solution for you.

For those of you who don't know, Nintendo shutdown the online functionality for the Wii and Nintendo DS on May 20th; but there's still hope.

Over on the GitHub page, there's a detailed rundown on how to get your Wii or DS back up and running with its online functionality, as reported by Game Ranx.

The page also notes something very important before you get too excited: You'll have to get rid of your saves...

“Be sure to delete your WFC profile or save file before connecting to the server or else it will give you an error when you connect. For DS, only flashcards and emulators can be used at this time. For Wii, your console must be able to run homebrew. “

There are a few more prerequisites for getting your systems eligible to use the homebrew servers. Your Wii has to be homebrew-compatible. If you're unsure as to how the homebrew works or how to get your console to become homebrew-compatible, you can learn more about the process by visiting the official Wii brew website, which explains how to install the software and how to get your Wii running custom software apps and games.

They also mention that as of right now, only emulators and flashcards can be used at this time. They do mention that they may extend functionality soon to allow for more and better support.

At the moment, there is a public test server up and running at the moment, as detailed on the page...

“Public test server available at 75.127.5.215. This server is being actively developed, so it may go down or be restarted at times. “

You will need to erase all the Nintendo WFC configuration settings to receive a new friend code for the Nintendo DS, but once you get that new friend code it will apply to all games running on the server.

Things are a little bit more complicated for the Wii, but they have a detailed, step-by-step process to help Nintendo DS and Wii users re-activate the online modes for the games.

You can check out the detailed walkthrough for the homebrew online mode by paying a visit to GitHub.

While Mario Kart 8 and tons of Nintendo 3DS games definitely offer up plenty of fun and entertainment, some gamers probably still prefer to get their kicks from DS and Wii titles. It's nice to know that the homebrew community made an alternative for gamers to enjoy the online offerings following Nintendo's shutdown of the services.

Will Usher

Staff Writer at CinemaBlend.