Rumor: Project Café to Offer HD Virtual Console, Wii Download Transfer Service

Here’s a new Café rumor to chew on: apparently the upcoming Nintendo console will offer an HD version of the existing Wii Virtual Console system. You’ll be able to download old classics, updated with widescreen hi-def resolutions and improved aspect ratios. This service is reported to consist of selections from the same library as the Wii Virtual Console, but it won’t offer nearly as many games given the amount of effort that would have to go into such a process. The rumors also state that plans are in place to allow you to import your Wii’s Virtual Console games onto your Café, which could suggest that the original Virtual Console shop will remain in place.

Check out the rumors as they appeared at their source:

• A “select group” Virtual Console games will be made available in HD (High Definition) for Project Cafe.
• Not all VC games will be made available in high definition. This is due to the money, time, and effort that would be required to convert each game to high definition. Also, not all classic games convert to high definition perfectly. Each game must be individually re-done to take advantage of widescreen HD resolutions and aspect ratios. They will be re-done similarly to how classic games are being redone to take advantage of 3DS’s 3D capabilities.
• Some SNES/Genesis games won’t ever get a high definition widescreen treatment because they turn into a blurry or pixilated mess when converted to widescreen high definition. This is because they weren’t originally designed with widescreen high definition television’s in mind.
• Nintendo has found a sneaky way to get you to rebuy games that you already bought on virtual console.
• Virtual console games are transferrable to Project Café. But if you want the high definition (HD) version of a Wii 1 virtual console game instead of the standard version you own now, you will have to pay full price for the high definition version.
• You will NOT receive a free upgrade from standard definition virtual console game that you bought on Wii 1 to a HD version of the same game. If you want HD version, you have to rebuy the game.
• Sega is getting ready to port some of their “Xbox Live Arcade” Genesis HD games (like Sonic) on Project Cafe’s virtual console service.

While I think the gesture of making newer, updated versions of old Virtual Console titles that will look (theoretically) better on HD screens is excellent, I don’t know that I’d be especially willing to shell out more money for a bunch of games I already have, especially when a lot of them are re-buys anyway (Majora’s Mask). We’ll see if the price is right.

Source: Telewatcher, via a long string of sources traced back from GoNintendo