Hobbies And Interests
How It Works
Wii games can be purchased -- or downloaded -- from the Wii Shop Channel. You must have your Wii connected to the Internet through the Opera browser to use the Wii Channel. Games from the Wii Channel can be downloaded with Wii Points. You may obtain Wii Points directly from the Wii Shop Channel, or by purchasing a Nintendo Points Card. The Wii Points Card can be purchased from retailers, including video game shops. The amount of points on the card depends on the price you pay. Think of it like buying minutes for a prepaid mobile phone.
Virtual Games
The games you download from the Wii Channel are known as virtual games since they are not contained on an actual hard disk. The Wii Shop Channel contains numerous games for download, including games first released on the 8-bit Nintendo, the Super Nintendo, and the Nintendo 64. You can even download games originally released on rival consoles. For example, you can download games that were released on the Turbo Grafx 16 and the Sega Genesis. Once you select a game -- using your Wii Points -- the data for the game will automatically begin to download to your system.
Browsing
The Wii Shop Channel is located on the Wii Menu page. You have a variety of ways to browse the games you wish to download, or might want to download. For example, you can browse games by genre, by title, or by publisher. The Wii Shop Channel will also alert you to recent releases. Some available games include Mario Kart 64, Super Mario Bros. 3, and Punch Out. More modern releases include Super Bonk, Bomberman Hero, and Faxanadu.
Parental Limitations
You have the ability to limit your child's accessibility to the Wii Shop Channel, and the games they can download. You can locate the Parental Control settings from the Wii Channel menu. Once located, you will be asked to create a four digit PIN number. If Parental Control settings are activated, you can only download games by entering the PIN number. However, the Nintendo Wii is sold with the Parental Control setting deactivated by default, which means children can utilize the Wii Shop Channel freely--if they have Wii Points--until it is activated.