The problem is, if you reboot your Wii U, you’ll have to redo the browser exploit. After that’s done, you can go in and out of homebrew apps without any issues. From there, you can install a custom firmware package called Mocha CFW, which removes code signing and lets you install the homebrew channel as an app on your Wii U. The first uses a browser exploit to run arbitrary code and load the homebrew launcher. There are two paths you can take with the homebrew process. If your computer doesn’t have one, you can get an adapter on Amazon for less than $10.

To do that, you’ll need an SD card reader. You’ll need to get the homebrew files onto your Nintendo Wii U. There’s far too much content to show everything in detail here, but we’ll outline how to get your console homebrewed and to a point where you can begin installing whatever you’d like.

Modding games: There’s an active scene for Smash 4 mods, including one called Melee HD which completely changes the gameplay.

You can turn it back on and make full use of your console. The functionality is still there but disabled from within Wii mode.

GameCube games: Nintendo simply flipped a switch to disable running GameCube games on your Wii U.

Cemu: Homebrewing your Wii U is the only way to legally play Wii U games on PC, and with Breath of The Wild now running much better on Cemu than it does on the Wii U and Nintendo Switch, there’s plenty of reason to.

This does enable piracy, but that’s not the primary focus. Homebrew enables loading hundreds of games from USB storage, which you can dump yourself from the disc.

USB game loading: You only have a measly 16-32 GB of space on your Wii U, which is only enough to install a few games to the fast internal storage.

Emulators: Want to run Nintendo 64 games on your Wii U? With emulators, the Wii U can play almost any Nintendo game that isn’t a 3DS or Switch exclusive.

There’s plenty of cool things you can do with a modded console. Homebrew is a great way to breath new life into an old console. You don’t run any risk of damaging or bricking your console with normal homebrew, so it’s entirely safe.

This process is long, but isn’t overly complicated and can be completed by the average user. You can even install backup copies of your games on a hard drive and run them from there. This includes emulators, custom games, and mods. Homebrew allows your Wii U to run apps Nintendo didn’t intend for you to run.

Emulator wii u mac