So I started cloning the Wii U gamepad [video]

6 comments

• hmm37 41 days ago
  This is great. A few years ago, I decided to buy a WII U, since I have basically every Nintendo console system since the NES. But the gamepad screen was broken and I couldn't sync the gamepad to the screen until I fixed it. And I tried to see if there was any alternative, but there wasn't until now. Hopefully that means more WII Us can be saved... You can sometimes find used Wii Us for $30 without the gamepad, while the gamepad itself costs around $100..
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  • lathiat 37 days ago
    Yeah. As noted in the video the only way to get a new one was via a support process with Nintendo and they ran out of stock in 2024.
• csb6 41 days ago
  Here is a link to the repository for the gamepad simulator: https://github.com/vanilla-wiiu/vanilla
• zoklet-enjoyer 37 days ago
  Oh wow. I never played my Wii U without the gamepad, so I didn't know this. Makes sense that the gamepads are still as expensive as they are.
• saagarjha 37 days ago
  I wonder if you could run this on the Steam Deck or similar hardware.
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  • homarp 37 days ago
    per the github repo:

    What devices are supported?

        Steam Deck
        Linux (check Wi-Fi hardware compatibility)
        Nintendo Switch (requires Broadcom firmware patch or external Wi-Fi adapter)
        Android (currently frontend only)
        Windows (currently frontend only)
        Raspberry Pi (requires external Wi-Fi adapter)
        iOS - Coming soon
  • chocochunks 36 days ago
    You can. It works really well, except for not supporting the Wii U power button and not yet allowing button reconfig. The latter is annoying because you are using Xbox bindings on Nintendo.
• kh_hk 36 days ago
  So I see the merit of a well produced video, don't get me wrong. But wasn't this a bit of a lot of bluff for not so much content?
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  • Someone1234 36 days ago
    My impression the video isn't designed for people "inside baseball," and tries to establish context for "What even is this thing that you're working on?" I guess the author could add a skip if viewers don't want 5-minutes~ of Wii U background/context.

    Here is a rough timestamped-link for skipping the context:

    https://youtu.be/jlbcKuDEBw8?si=X1S3g2npigtWf5bk&t=303