Virtual Console
The Virtual Console (バーチャルコンソール, Virtual Console), sometimes abbreviated as VC, is a feature of the Wii, the Nintendo 3DS, and the Wii U that allows players to officially emulate games from older video game consoles. Supported by the Wii Shop Channel and Nintendo eShop, the different consoles have differing coverage as to what consoles they cover.
In the Super Smash Bros. series
Many of the Masterpieces featured in Brawl work on the Wii Virtual Console engine. Masterpieces are demos of existing Virtual Console games (at the time Brawl was released) and share many of the same attributes of games on the Virtual Console. Super Smash Bros. for Wii U includes Virtual Console games as its masterpieces, as well. Wii U masterpieces also include Game Boy Games only available on the 3DS. When time runs out or when the game is paused a message appears talking about the 3DS version instead of a link to the Nintendo eShop.
Super Smash Bros. was released to the Wii Virtual Console for Japan on January 20, 2009 to celebrate its tenth anniversary there since it was released for the Nintendo 64 on January 21, 1999 in Japan. It was later released in Europe and Australia on June 12, 2009, and North America on December 21, 2009. While not officially released for the Wii U's Virtual Console, Smash 64 can still be purchased and played on a Wii U running in Wii Mode.
While the Virtual Console version of Smash 64 can be used in tournaments, its use is generally discouraged compared to using emulators such as Project 64k, or using the actual Nintendo 64 console. This is due to the limited support of controllers for the Virtual Console compared to either of the two previous options; furthermore, the Virtual Console port can suffer from frame-skipping, which can potentially disrupt players' inputs.
External links
- Virtual Console - Official Virtual Console site
