Commodore 64 joins the Wii Virtual Console lineup

Commodore 64 home computer
It was revealed today that Commodore 64 home computer games will be offered on the European Wii Virtual Console soon in 2008, with other territories no doubt to follow. Games will each be priced at 500 Wii Points (that’s €5 / £3.75) on the Shop Channel and the first classic 8-bit games set to appear are: International Karate and Uridium.

The Commodore 64 was originally released back in 1982 and went on to become the best-selling home computer of all-time, with 22 million units sold worldwide (I said computer, not console). Hugely popular across Europe and the United States, the C64 built up a huge line-up of software, with over 4,000 titles produced during its production lifetime (1982-1994).

Bala Keilman, CEO of Commodore Gaming: “The massive impact the Commodore 64 had on video-gaming is still evident today with many gamers remembering the computer and its games with great fondness. By working with Nintendo of Europe, we are ensuring that future generations of gamers can play some of the best and most popular titles that kick-started the computer games revolution and so keep the C64 legacy in gamers hearts.”

Laurent Fischer, Managing Director of European Marketing & PR of Nintendo Europe: “We are extremely pleased to be working with Commodore Gaming to provide even more retro hits for Wii owners to choose from on Virtual Console. With over 184 classic titles now available to enjoy, Virtual Console on Wii is a great way for users to access a breadth of classic retro games. We hope that this great choice of games will bring nostalgia to our gaming fans, while an entirely new generation of video game players can experience a host of classic games for the very first time.” — Via VCreviews, from Nintendo.fi

If you’re a retro gamer, the Nintendo Wii seems to be a safe haven this generation. Remember, no less than a month ago the Sega Master System joined the Wii Virtual Console lineup of loads of other classic systems like the NES (Famicom), TurboGrafx-16 (PC Engine), Sega Genesis (Mega Drive), SNES (Super Famicom), N64, NEOGEO (and MSX & PC).