Wii update breaks Freeloader - no more import GC games
The latest Wii firmware upgrade, released yesterday, hides a dirty little secret. If you've been using Datel's handy Freeloader disc to play import GameCube games on your Wii the latest update is going to ruin all your fun.
If you've updated your Wii the Freeloader will no-longer work. It's unclear whether this was an intentional move by Nintendo to discourage importing, or just an unforeseen compatibility issue.
We spoke to Datel who is also unsure of the situation at this time. A spokesperson told CVG that talks are underway with regards to how to fix the problem although there's no guarantee that it will be resolved. Expect an official statement from Datel soon.
Nintendo, meanwhile, refused to comment at all on the matter.
If its an accidental hiccup, we'd speculate that the error will be fixed in a future Wii update and your disc will be back in action. If Nintendo, however, intentionally crashed the party, the only other option would be for Datel to release a new disc - and that's if its tech team can find a way around the problem.
This puts and unfortunate downer on what is otherwise a pretty good update, which gives the Wii Shop some much-needed improvements including a search engine for the Virtual Console and new publisher categories.
It also adds a clock to the front-end menu, and allows both the news and weather channels to display information within the thumbnails so you don't actually have to fire them up to see the latest reports.
USB keyboard support has also been quietly added although, strangely, it works with everything except the Internet channel at the moment. That's sure to change.