Konami released the TurboGrafx-16 games Necromancer and Battle Chopper for Wii U today. In an effort that may come off as bizarre to console users, Konami has been releasing Virtual Console games on Wii U for several months now. The Nintendo Switch was released March of last year, and has already sold more units than the entire Wii U run, giving Konami’s interest in the dated console a perplexing touch.
The two games that Konami has released today have their own set of milestones, given that this is their first time being officially released within the United States. Battle Chopper was otherwise known as Mr. Heli in Japan, and is an Irem shooter. Necromancer is horror RPG that has still not been translated into another language, so Wii U users must play the fully untranslated Japanese edition. Interestingly, Nintendo and their third-party partners have largely stopped releasing Virtual Console games after the launch of the Switch, yet the majority of TurboGarfx-16 games have been released after the Switch release.
The Wii U seems to be a magnet for Virtual Console games. Games such as Bomberman Panic Bomber and Salamander never had an original Wii release, and have only graced United States release through the Wii U. Many Virtual Console games that arrived to Wii U were beloved at the time, and undervalued now. It is fascinating and beneficial that these Japanese games are experiencing their first official international releases, but also bizarre that their reach is only as far as dated console. It is clear that Konami is releasing these games very slowly, and the question of how far they will extend brings a looming curiosity. These niche releases certainly have their fanbase, especially as Nintendo has just announced that Switch Online will bring their own sector of classic game releases to a wider audience.
Necromancer and Battle Chopper, in accordance with every TurboGrafx-16 game available on the Wii U store, are available for $5.99 each.