Important takeaways
- Restart your Wii U to prevent memory corruption issues, according to user reports.
- Some Wii U consoles may experience memory errors due to lack of power.
- The Wii U community is working on fixes for memory errors, but it's not an easy fix.
Nintendo Wii U owners may have to start rebooting their consoles due to possible system death. The Wii U has been around since 2012, so understandably there may be some lingering concerns about its longevity.
Some consider the system a general failure compared to its successful predecessor, the Wii, due to the extreme disparity in sales between the two consoles. Not to mention, the platform also had a smaller list of available games than its contemporaries, with a majority of them now available on other systems as well. With many now thinking that Wii U games should be ported to the Switch 2, there may be even less reason for owners to naturally boot up their consoles. However, a new report may force Wii U owners to check their system one more time.
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A tweet by Patrick B from Retro Blast has encouraged users to plug in their Wii U immediately. Based on their experience, the system experienced memory corruption because it had no power for a long time. Although it stated that other error codes varied for some users, the codes all indicated that there was a system memory problem. The Wii U's memory chips were manufactured by Toshiba, Samsung and Hynix, with the latter allegedly being the most prone to failure. With Nintendo previously declaring that the Wii U was out of spare parts, gamers experiencing memory errors on their system may be in luck. However, it is important to note that Nintendo has not commented on this situation. There is still a possibility that other factors may induce these errors.
How can Wii U owners fix this issue?
Retro Blast advised owners to play the games and load the apps at system startup, as the effects can sometimes be delayed. The user also shared a possible solution called NAND-AID made by Twitter user vaultar. NAND-AID is a physical ENIG interface that replaces the failed eNAND and acts as a replacement. It seems that the platform may have a chance to survive as the Wii U community can come up with many creative solutions to solve the problem. However, the solution is still not as simple as plug-and-play at the moment, as it involves internal control circuits.
Still, this seems to be a valid concern for many console owners in the modern era. Retro Blast questioned why consoles like the N64 from 1996 are more durable than the Wii U, which was released over a decade ago. With modern features that come with newer systems, the potential for more issues to worry about can also grow. Those who collect older consoles like the Wii U may need to check their systems and take them out of their cases from time to time.
Nintendo Wii U
The Nintendo Wii U was the original successor to the Nintendo Wii and featured upgraded motion controls as well as a new controller that had a touch screen interface for tablets. It was part of the eighth generation of the console wars and went toe to toe with the Xbox One and PS4.
- Stamp
- Nintendo
- Original release date
- November 18, 2012
- Original MSRP (USD)
- $299 Deluxe Set: $349
- Weight
- 3.3 lbs
