I'm about to sell my WiiU, am I in the right to continue playing the games I own?

[SweetVermouth]

I figured I don't really need my WiiU anymore and so I'm about to sell it soon. I did a factory reset yesterday to remove all my accounts and whatnot and now the console indeed is "brand new" in the sense that it starts going through the whole process of picking your language, creating an account and whatever.

That said before I did the factory reset it warned me that all my games and accounts would be removed but since I have an NNID, they're still linked to that. Which means I still own the games and Nintendo specifically said I can link my NNID to a new WiiU console if I ever feel the need to purchase it again. Well if I still own the games, then great because I ripped a backup copy from all of them to my PC using homebrew.

The games I ripped from my WiiU are:
Zelda Wind Waker HD, Zelda Twilight Princess HD, Yoshi's Woolly World, Mega Man X, X2 and X3, Super Metroid, The Legend of Zelda, Kirby's Adventure, F-Zero, F-Zero Maximum Velocity and Bomberman 64.

And these games are from the virtual Wii of my WiiU:
Zelda Ocarina of Time, Zelda Majora's Mask, Cruis'n USA, F-Zero X, Star Fox 64, Sonic the Hedgehog, Zelda a Link to the Past, Super Castlevania, Street Fighter II, Super Street Fighter II The New Challengers, Super Mario World and Super Mario 64.

I logged into my MyNintendo account to see what games I own because there might be two or three I'm missing but I can't find any option for that. It just says "NNID linked" and I recognize my NNID account but there is no way to see the purchases I made???

The way I see it I still own the license to all these games and because I made a private copy from them I can legally play them on emulators on my PC right?

 

[Deleted member 18161]

As long as you own a physical copy of the game then you can play them on PC emulators as far as I know as they're considered 'back ups'.

Who knows what the deal is if you own a game digitally in terms of the legality of playing that game on an emulator.

I steer clear of all emulation personally. Something just feels wrong about playing Nintendo games on a PC haha.

 

[Ninhead]

I don't think it really works like that. You bought a license to play it on their hardware.

 

[JG_Lionheart]

I don't think it really works like that. You bought a license to play it on their hardware.

Click to shrink...

this.

 

[Lilalaunebaer]

Sell it.
Who gives a shit, really.
I made backups of my WiiU games years ago and sold my WiiU shortly after the Switch came out. And i´ll play those backups on my pc with cemu.

 

[JoJoBae]

Sell it.
Who gives a shit, really.
I made backups of my WiiU games years ago and sold my WiiU shortly after the Switch came out. And i´ll play those backups on my pc with cemu.

Click to shrink...

This.

 

[matrix-cat]

Legally it's probably piracy. Like, your purchase on the Wii U eShop entitles you to play exactly that regional SKU of that particular game on exactly that kind of machine until such time as the platform holder deems it suitable to take away your licence for any reason of their choosing. Or whatever. Nintendo definitely wouldn't want you to do it.

In reality, fuck'em. You bought the game fair and square, you should be able to play it however you choose.

 

[canonj]

It's probably illegal, but I personally think it's ethically fine to do that. It's not like you're selling the Wii U with all those games included. You wiped the system, and you still own the licenses to those games.

 

[reminiscingLemon]

Who knows anymore with licensing and such, i know if you rip a ROM straight from the cartridge you own then legally your in the clear, as emulation itself isnt piracy.

In my mind, the fact you ripped them from your own hardware means your in the clear, but as others have pointed out thats merely a license to play it on your wii u.

Legally, not sure tbh I think you should be fine. Ethically your 100% in the clear, you bought those games and your gonna use those specific roms that you purchased for emulation.

tbh i wouldnt lose any sleep over this, nintendo arent gonna send the ninjas after you for playing roms that you legally bought. i think if nintendo tried to sue every person thats ever played an illegitimate ROM, well resetEra would be 10 users strong and Nintendo would have no audience as 99% of them would likely be in jail lol

 

[nsilvias]

you gave them money already. do what you please as long as you arent distributing

 

[StraySheep]

Why not just keep the WiiU? How much are you really going to get in return for it?

 

[bionic77]

Legally I don't know but ethically if you paid for the games I personally don't care where or how you play them.

 

[NuclearCake]

You paid for the games. It's fine.

 

[Iztok]

I'm wondering what the thinking is behind using the exact same roms ripped from your own physical games, when bit for bit identical files can be downloaded and are indistinguishable in every way.

 

[IamFlying]

In reality, fuck'em. You bought the game fair and square, you

Click to shrink...

That's not how it works. The prices of games are calculated based on several facts. If they would calculate "ripping a game and playing it on other platforms" in the mix, the price would probably increase. Who knows, perhaps they do now, game prices on Nintendo increased a bit since WiiU.

I don't say OP should not play these games on his emulator (even so playing on emulators like Cemu always make game worse in many ways) but there is no "rightful" way to do it.

 

[Tavernade]

So long as you don't share them you're not doing anything ethically wrong but there's no way Nintendo meant it this way. They mean 'on another Wii U.'

 

[Tatsu91]

I figured I don't really need my WiiU anymore and so I'm about to sell it soon. I did a factory reset yesterday to remove all my accounts and whatnot and now the console indeed is "brand new" in the sense that it starts going through the whole process of picking your language, creating an account and whatever.

That said before I did the factory reset it warned me that all my games and accounts would be removed but since I have an NNID, they're still linked to that. Which means I still own the games and Nintendo specifically said I can link my NNID to a new WiiU console if I ever feel the need to purchase it again. Well if I still own the games, then great because I ripped a backup copy from all of them to my PC using homebrew.

The games I ripped from my WiiU are:
Zelda Wind Waker HD, Zelda Twilight Princess HD, Yoshi's Woolly World, Mega Man X, X2 and X3, Super Metroid, The Legend of Zelda, Kirby's Adventure, F-Zero, F-Zero Maximum Velocity and Bomberman 64.

And these games are from the virtual Wii of my WiiU:
Zelda Ocarina of Time, Zelda Majora's Mask, Cruis'n USA, F-Zero X, Star Fox 64, Sonic the Hedgehog, Zelda a Link to the Past, Super Castlevania, Street Fighter II, Super Street Fighter II The New Challengers, Super Mario World and Super Mario 64.

I logged into my MyNintendo account to see what games I own because there might be two or three I'm missing but I can't find any option for that. It just says "NNID linked" and I recognize my NNID account but there is no way to see the purchases I made???

The way I see it I still own the license to all these games and because I made a private copy from them I can legally play them on emulators on my PC right?

Click to shrink...

If you own the physical copies yes otherwise it's theft if it was digital copies

 

[Alvis]

Who cares. Play the games.

 

[IamFlying]

I'm wondering what the thinking is behind using the exact same roms ripped from your own physical games, when bit for bit identical files can be downloaded and are indistinguishable in every way.

Click to shrink...

Depends on were you download the "ROMS", often there are some unpatched or beta versions as downloads, and you never know how the roms have been tampered with, you don't want to execute games that has been injected with exploits to get data from your PC/Console. Some just don't want to give shitty ROM sites clicks that life by stealing work from other. So ripping your own games is always better

 

[sora87]

You paid for em so you should be able to play em how you want. Sounds fine to me.

 

[reminiscingLemon]

I don't say OP should not play these games on his emulator (even so playing on emulators like Cemu always make game worse in many ways) but there is no "rightful" way to do it.

Click to shrink...

Playing BOTW with a keyboard & mouse at 4K is worse? okay whatever you say pal.

Also there is a 'rightful' way of doing it, we know legally that ripping your ISO's or ROM and emulating them with no stolen assets (i.e. a stolen bios, youd have to rip your own too) is perfectly legal. What we're wondering is how that effects digitally downloaded content, for as much as Nintendo probably has a clause somewhere forbidding it, that doesnt necessarily mean its legally binding.

Nintendo's law doesnt trump american or EU law, OP has done everything by the book so far if we were talking about emulating any pre internet consoles & games.

although this entire hypothetical is ridiculous because lets be honest, has anyone ever gone to court for playing on an emulator with stolen roms? not as far as im aware, OP hasnt even stolen these roms can you imagine Nintendo taking any single user to courtover emulating legally obtained roms?

 

[Rosebud]

Just do it, you paid for the games.

 

[Mendrox]

Why not just keep the WiiU? How much are you really going to get in return for it?

Click to shrink...

WiiU is worth a lot more nowadays.

 

[lactatingduck]

I figured I don't really need my WiiU anymore and so I'm about to sell it soon. I did a factory reset yesterday to remove all my accounts and whatnot and now the console indeed is "brand new" in the sense that it starts going through the whole process of picking your language, creating an account and whatever.

That said before I did the factory reset it warned me that all my games and accounts would be removed but since I have an NNID, they're still linked to that. Which means I still own the games and Nintendo specifically said I can link my NNID to a new WiiU console if I ever feel the need to purchase it again. Well if I still own the games, then great because I ripped a backup copy from all of them to my PC using homebrew.

The games I ripped from my WiiU are:
Zelda Wind Waker HD, Zelda Twilight Princess HD, Yoshi's Woolly World, Mega Man X, X2 and X3, Super Metroid, The Legend of Zelda, Kirby's Adventure, F-Zero, F-Zero Maximum Velocity and Bomberman 64.

And these games are from the virtual Wii of my WiiU:
Zelda Ocarina of Time, Zelda Majora's Mask, Cruis'n USA, F-Zero X, Star Fox 64, Sonic the Hedgehog, Zelda a Link to the Past, Super Castlevania, Street Fighter II, Super Street Fighter II The New Challengers, Super Mario World and Super Mario 64.

I logged into my MyNintendo account to see what games I own because there might be two or three I'm missing but I can't find any option for that. It just says "NNID linked" and I recognize my NNID account but there is no way to see the purchases I made???

The way I see it I still own the license to all these games and because I made a private copy from them I can legally play them on emulators on my PC right?

Click to shrink...

I hope you examine all your life's decisions with this level of unnecessary scrutiny.

 

[Aniki]

Maybe not legally but in my book there's no problem since you own the games.

 

[saenima]

Yes you are. And ignore anyone saying otherwise.

 

[Pimienta]

Just play them nobody cares tbh. 💁🏻‍♂️

 

[fick]

you paid the creators for their work. I wouldn't lose sleep

 

[Bomblord]

Format shifting and backing up legally owned content is protected by multiple court cases in the U.S. although recent laws do prevent "circumventing DRM" it has yet to have have any compelling court cases that I'm aware of attempt to see how far that goes and in what specific scenarios it applies.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sony_Corp._of_America_v._Universal_City_Studios,_Inc

.

Sony Corp. of America v. Universal City Studios, Inc. 464 U.S. 417 (1984), also known as the "Betamax case", is a decision by the Supreme Court of the United States which ruled that the making of individual copies of complete television shows for purposes of time shifting does not constitute copyright infringement, but is fair use. The Court also ruled that the manufacturers of home video recording devices, such as Betamax or other VCRs (referred to as VTRs in the case), cannot be liable for infringement. The case was a boon to the home video market, as it created a legal safe haven for the technology.

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sony_Computer_Entertainment,_Inc._v._Connectix_Corp

While the Ninth District Court did acknowledge that software code does deserve copyright protection, the court, following the precedent of Sega vs. Accolade, deemed that the PlayStation firmware fell under a lowered degree of copyright protection because it contained unprotected parts (functional elements) that could not be examined without copying. The court also rejected the semantic distinction between "studying" and "use" made by the district court, finding it to be artificial. The court case states, "[T]hey disassembled Sony's code not just to study the concepts. They actually used that code in the development of [their] product."

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sega_v._Accolade

The case was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, which ruled in favor of Sega and issued an injunction against Accolade preventing them from publishing any more games for the Genesis and requiring them to recall all the existing Genesis games they had for sale. Accolade appealed the decision to the Ninth Circuit on the grounds that their reverse engineering of the Genesis was protected under fair use. The Ninth Circuit reversed the district court's order and ruled that Accolade's use of reverse engineering to publish Genesis titles was protected under fair use, and that its alleged violation of Sega trademarks was the fault of Sega. The case is frequently cited in matters involving reverse engineering and fair use under copyright law.

Click to shrink...

There are more than these but using your personally made backup is protected under fair use and unless a new court case adds a new wrinkle to the interpretation of the law this remains true in the U.S.

 

[Lant_War]

If the games are digital and you're selling the console, yes as they're linked to the hardware.

If it's physical games, lol no. You paid for them, and as long as you haven't sold them it's fine.

 

[Gotdatmoney]

The legal implications could be anything. I dont think it has ever gone far enough to truly know.

Morally? Fucking whatever man. You bought it, you have a copy sitting right there, who cares?

 

[Expy]

If you sell your WiiU with digital games on the device, then you are transferring the license to the buyer. You no longer own those games and have no right to play them.

 

[cw_sasuke]

Do what you want, you have to live with the consequences.

 

[Kittens McMittens]

Morally I would say you are in the right. If you paid for something, then I think you should enjoy the right to continue playing it on whatever device you please. Just because their license terms prohibit emulation doesn't make those terms right; in fact I would argue they are unfair contractual terms.

In some countries it's unlawful, but whatever. If you paid for it, continue to play it.

 

[Rickenslacker]

Yes, you can legally play games that you own that you have ripped. There's no moral or legal quandary with that. Emulation is perfectly legal and you're playing your own purchased software on it.

 

[Deleted member 4262]

Lol, play your games however you like. Life's too short to care about this stuff.

 

[SweetVermouth]

If you sell your WiiU with digital games on the device, then you are transferring the license to the buyer. You no longer own those games and have no right to play them.

Click to shrink...

As I said I don't do this. This is what I did:

It's not like you're selling the Wii U with all those games included. You wiped the system, and you still own the licenses to those games.

Click to shrink...

This is what I did. I did a factory reset which removes all the games and everything, but the games are still linked to my NNID and I could link it to another WiiU if I ever purchase one.

Why not just keep the WiiU? How much are you really going to get in return for it?

Click to shrink...

It is taking up space and I am annoyed by having to charge the gamepad again every time I want to play on it because it needs to be on even when I just want to play with the Pro Controller. Try starting a game without the gamepad, it simply doesn't work.

ike, your purchase on the Wii U eShop entitles you to play exactly that regional SKU of that particular game on exactly that kind of machine until such time as the platform holder deems it suitable to take away your licence for any reason of their choosing.

Click to shrink...

How can this be true when Nintendo allows you to transfer your NNID to another WiiU? As far as I understand the games are linked to my NNID which was linked to my WiiU but since I did a factory reset my NNID is now linked to no console at all. Before doing the factory reset it outright stated that I would be able to get all my games back if I get a new WiiU as long as I have my NNID which means I still must own all the licenses.

 

[nomemorial]

Not to sound terribly dismissive, but people have been emulating games they don't own for decades now. You're at least doing one step better than that. At this point most of the worthwhile library is/will be ported to Switch anyway, might as well emulate what you own and free up the space in your entertainment center.

 

[mute]

If you have to ask it is probably illegal.

Morality is a separate question though.

 

[Strings]

1000%. I import PS1 and PS2 games and just play them on an emulator. What's the difference?

 

[captainzombie]

WiiU is worth a lot more nowadays.

Click to shrink...

Actually it isn't, you can get one from GameStop for $80-90. I was looking into getting one again to play through Wind Waker, TWP, 3D World and a few other games. I keep hoping these would come to the Switch but nothing yet.

 

[Mullet2000]

Really the only question is do you personally have any moral qualms about doing it.

Personally I would have no issue continuing to play the games.

 

[unicornKnight]

Since you aren't selling the games along with the console, you are in the right to play them imo. If you were selling the nnid that would be a different story.

 

[Hamchan]

Zero moral issues here. Go for it.

 

[VonGreckler]

It is taking up space and I am annoyed by having to charge the gamepad again every time I want to play on it because it needs to be on even when I just want to play with the Pro Controller. Try starting a game without the gamepad, it simply doesn't work.

Click to shrink...

I know you're still selling, but you actually don't need the gamepad to start games.
My gamepad charger got lost in my last move and I haven't replaced it yet. You can start games with the pro controller 100%
Just swap the tiles to the TV screen instead of the gamepad screen. (I think its the X button that swaps)

 

[SweetVermouth]

If you were selling the nnid that would be a different story.

Click to shrink...

I'm not for obvious privacy reasons. That would be too much of a risk for me.

You can start games with the pro controller 100%
Just swap the tiles to the TV screen instead of the gamepad screen. (I think its the X button that swaps)

Click to shrink...

I know you can swap the tiles. Still when I wanted to play Zelda Wind Waker HD it said: Connect the Gamepad. It simply refuses to start the game without the gamepad. Try it yourself.

 

[Angst]

Legally, you're not in the right.

Ethically, its all good.

 

[Chixdiggit]

If the games are digital and you're selling the console, yes as they're linked to the hardware.

Click to shrink...

Hmmmm so is it also illegal to buy Oculus exclusive games from the Oculus store and play on a Vive through added software?

 

[Deleted member 16908]

As long as you aren't distributing the ripped games I don't think you should feel bad about it.

 

[alexbull_uk]

A legal grey area I'm sure, but at the end of the day you paid for those games and you aren't reselling them/passing them on, so if you want to keep playing them I don't see why you shouldn't be able to.