alt.hn

12/27/2025 at 3:43:53 PM

So I started cloning the Wii U gamepad [video]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jlbcKuDEBw8

by ingve

12/28/2025 at 4:16:55 AM

This is great. A few years ago, I decided to buy a WII U, since I have basically every Nintendo console system since the NES. But the gamepad screen was broken and I couldn't sync the gamepad to the screen until I fixed it. And I tried to see if there was any alternative, but there wasn't until now. Hopefully that means more WII Us can be saved... You can sometimes find used Wii Us for $30 without the gamepad, while the gamepad itself costs around $100..

by hmm37

1/1/2026 at 8:38:25 AM

Yeah. As noted in the video the only way to get a new one was via a support process with Nintendo and they ran out of stock in 2024.

by lathiat

12/27/2025 at 4:58:49 PM

Here is a link to the repository for the gamepad simulator: https://github.com/vanilla-wiiu/vanilla

by csb6

1/1/2026 at 8:26:15 AM

I wonder if you could run this on the Steam Deck or similar hardware.

by saagarjha

1/1/2026 at 8:34:02 AM

per the github repo:

What devices are supported?

    Steam Deck
    Linux (check Wi-Fi hardware compatibility)
    Nintendo Switch (requires Broadcom firmware patch or external Wi-Fi adapter)
    Android (currently frontend only)
    Windows (currently frontend only)
    Raspberry Pi (requires external Wi-Fi adapter)
    iOS - Coming soon

by homarp

1/1/2026 at 10:59:13 AM

You can. It works really well, except for not supporting the Wii U power button and not yet allowing button reconfig. The latter is annoying because you are using Xbox bindings on Nintendo.

by chocochunks

1/1/2026 at 7:58:28 AM

Oh wow. I never played my Wii U without the gamepad, so I didn't know this. Makes sense that the gamepads are still as expensive as they are.

by zoklet-enjoyer

1/1/2026 at 1:19:13 PM

So I see the merit of a well produced video, don't get me wrong. But wasn't this a bit of a lot of bluff for not so much content?

by kh_hk

1/1/2026 at 1:29:20 PM

My impression the video isn't designed for people "inside baseball," and tries to establish context for "What even is this thing that you're working on?" I guess the author could add a skip if viewers don't want 5-minutes~ of Wii U background/context.

Here is a rough timestamped-link for skipping the context:

https://youtu.be/jlbcKuDEBw8?si=X1S3g2npigtWf5bk&t=303

by Someone1234