Hackers don't just steal confidential government documents or inject ransomware onto your system, sometimes they make games work on platforms there were never intended for. Like Zelda: Breath of the Wild, the Nintendo Switch's big launch title. Thanks to its Wii U port, hackers have managed to get the game working on the PC through a Wii U emulator called Cemu.
Emulation is a side of gaming that has been around for a long time, but it normally takes years for their creation following a console's release, as it often requires a very hefty CPU to run all of the code that is typically reserved for GPUs and other hardware on a console. In the case of Cemu however, a Wii U emulator that is still being developed, it's meant that the very new Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, is now playable on PC, just two days after its release.
It's not perfect of course, as this is very much an in-progress hack of the game, but it's coming along well. Players can run around the world and explore its expanse using Link, on a PC. The protagonist does sink into the floor occasionally and the framerate is not great - that's what a lack of hardware acceleration will give you - but it's a good proof of concept that shows it may not be long until we can play the new Zelda on powerful PCs.
Other ongoing issues include runes not working properly, no object selection, water collision and the physics engine isn't functional. But they're working on all of it and we can expect updates over the next few weeks as progress is made. As commenters on Reddit say though, it could take up to a year to see the game made into a playable state on PC.
Are you willing to wait for that? Or will you be playing Zelda on the Switch or Wii U in the near future?
