Ripping files from WiiWare [WAD files]

[John2k4]

A tutorial for extracting files from WiiWare games (*.wad files).

Note: Only WiiWare games will work with this method; VC games will not work.

Programs Needed
ShowMiiWads (Wiki)

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Step 1: Grab a Wad.
Find a WiiWare game you want to rip, and acquire the Wad for it. I'm not linking anything; you'll need to obtain them yourself.

Step 2: ShowMiiWads First Time Usage
With your newly acquired Wad file on hand, start up ShowMiiWads. You will be greeted by a message box.


This message warns that using/installing modified Wad files onto a Wii can cause bricking, so use with caution. Click the Accept radio button, and continue.
*Note* - If you do not change the selection, and just press OK, most of the program's tools will be disabled. To fix this, delete the "ShowMiiWads.cfg" file, which is in the same directory as the program.

You should now see this:

Main Window

Step 3: Generate the key
This step is necessary to extract the game(s), and is a one-time step. Navigate to the "Tools" menu, and click on "Create Common-Key".



Type in the code that is displayed, and hit OK. You will now be able to extract the games.


Step 4: Adding Games
Navigate to "File", and choose "Open Folder". Select the folder where your Wad file(s) reside. Upon clicking OK, you should now see the game(s) you have.

Games are visible

Step 5: Extract the Game
To extract the files of a game, right click on it. Select "Extract -> To Folder".


Choose a folder, and hit OK. There will now be a new folder created, with the title being that of the game that was extracted.

Folder Contents

As you can see, all we have are a lot of .app files, and some other files. Let's extract the app files now.

Step 6: Extract the .app files
*Note* Some of the .app files are in a different format, and therefore will not extract. This is okay.
Back in the ShowMiiWads program, bring up the "Tools" menu again, and select "Unpack U8 Archive".


The .app file that you will want will, in most cases, be the largest one. Find the largest file, and start by extracting it first. If it contains what looks like game files (models, sounds, etc.), then you should not need to extract the other .app files.


If the file extracted successfully, a message will pop up telling you so. Extracted files will be placed in a folder titled " *filename.app*_app_OUT "


Open the folder, and you will see the contents of the extracted app file.
Congratulations, if you can see files, you have successfully extracted the WiiWare game's files!


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Other Notes
Some files inside the .app archive may be compressed, and will require further decompression to be used.