This can include games, utilities, emulators and much more! Running homebrew on your Nintendo Wii can be done for free by exploiting bugs in Wii’s software. The modifications installed by following this guide will give you easy and persistent access to Wii homebrew. Best Sellers Rank #137,027 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games) #51,676 in Legacy Systems: Pricing The strikethrough price is the List Price. Savings represents a discount off the List Price. Binding Video Game Is Discontinued By Manufacturer No Manufacturer Modded Nintendo Date First Available January 19, 2017.
Looking to begin unlocking the advanced capabilities of the Nintendo Wii? You’ve come to the right place!
There are loads of reasons I think the Wii is worth hacking. Among these reasons are affordability and easiness to modify. With any Wii and some easy hacking, this now outdated Nintendo console can run emulators, play games from backups and become your central system for playing all your favorite Nintendo classics!
Not to mention, you’ll be able to use services such as RiiConnect24 and Wiimfi, both of which replace previous online services for the Wii that are no longer available. That means you can use all its original capabilities, such as online play, the Wii message board, and more!
Follow this guide to learn how to make your Nintendo Wii do all this and more! I should note, as with modifying any console, there is a risk of bricking. The chance is very slim, but still possible. So, be warned.
Note: This article contains affiliate links to items that I recommend. This means I earn money when people click through these links. Note that I only recommend products I think are of quality and worth buying.
What you’ll need to go from stock to hacked
- Nintendo Wii Console
- Controllers
- Wii Classic Controller or GameCube controller recommended
- Video Cables
- I recommend you use component cables, specifically those produced by HD Retrovision
- Alternatively, Hyperkin makes a high-quality HDMI cable for the Wii
- SD card
- at least 2GB
- SD card reader for PC
- (Optional) External Hard Drive
- make sure you have enough space to store all your games
- or just put everything on your SD card if it’s big enough
Preparation/Downloads
Format SD card to FAT32 using GUI format
Download PriiLoader and extract to the SD Card apps folder
Download d2x cIOS Installer and extract to SD Card apps folder
Connect Wii to internet and update
Hacking the Wii
Note: this section of the article is adapted from https://wii.guide/. All credit goes to the Wii Guide team and their hard work, and be sure to check their guide if you’re confused at all here. If your Wii is already hacked, you can skip to the WiiFlow section.
The first step for building this DIY retro gaming console is hacking it, or softmodding it. This will enable it to run the various emulators we will use to play the classic games. There are many different methods of doing so, but the method we will cover here is known as LetterBomb. This is an exploit using the Wii Message Board on the home menu, which will enable you to run homebrew (including emulators!)
Head to https://please.hackmii.com/ and input your Wii MAC address (found in your Wii System Settings under Internet -> Console Information). Make sure you check mark the system menu for your specific region, and also check “Bundle the HackMii Installer for me!” Complete the captcha and cut the red or blue wire to download!
Extract the contents to your SD card, and then put it in your Wii. Go to the Wii Message Board from the Wii Menu and open the red letter with a bomb in it. From here we have several things to install.
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Installing the Homebrew Channel and BootMii
The HackMii installer should come up. Wait 30 seconds, then press 1 once it prompts you to do so. Continue to install the Homebrew Channel. Then, do the same for BootMii and install as boot2 if able. Otherwise, install it as IOS.
Backing Up the NAND
For whatever reason, BootMii can only be controlled by a GameCube controller or the start/reset buttons on the Wii console itself. It does not support any Wii remotes or classic controllers.
To access BootMii, you must launch it from the newly installed Homebrew Channel. To do so, press the Home button on a Wii remote and select “launch BootMii.” In BootMii, navigate to options and then backup to SD. Be prepared to wait several minutes for this to complete.
Installing Priiloader
If you haven’t already done so, download Priiloader and extract to the apps folder on the SD card. Then insert the SD card in your Wii and launch the installer from the Homebrew Channel. Press + or A to install!
To launch Prilloader, turn off your Wii, then turn it back on and hold reset until the Priiloader menu opens. Under system menu hacks, enable the ones you desire. I recommend the following options: “Region free everything,” “block disc updates,” and “block online updates.” Check https://wii.guide/priiloader for a further explanation on all the system menu hacks.
Installing cIOS
A custom IOS, or cIOS, is required for using a USB loader such as WiiFlow to load games off a hard drive or SD card.
To start, download d2x cIOS Installer and extract to the SD card apps folder, if you haven’t already. Like before, insert the SD Card in the Wii and run the program from the Homebrew Channel. You will be installing it 3 times; here’s the configuration for each one:
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Once finished with them all, exit once done.
If you return an error like I did, and the cIOS doesn’t install, here’s a helpful link that shows another method you can try, the offline method: https://sites.google.com/site/completesg/backup-launchers/installation
And ta-da! You have successfully hacked your Wii! Be sure to check the Wii Guide for any other useful info or hacks you can do.
Other Resources
Next step: Install WiiFlow to load games and emulators
Wii Console Mods
Further reading:The Ellis Workshop’s Wii Hacking Guide