Although the company is often criticized for "taking advantage" of it, Nintendo elicits a lot of nostalgia from gaming enthusiasts, as its consoles and games are often where many people picked up a controller for the first time. The company clearly knows this, as it frequently releases products that capitalize on players' memories: Games like the Super Mario 3D All-Stars collection, the virtual consoles that come bundled with Nintendo Switch Online services, and its physical re-releases of retro consoles branded under the "Classic Edition" umbrella.
The Classic Edition consoles have proven to be huge successes, with the NES and Super Nintendo frequently selling out as retailers restocked them. While Nintendo hasn't said much about its plans for future releases, it seems likely that more are to come on the horizon. If the company is continuing hardware releases in chronological order, then a Nintendo 64 Classic Edition should be next. However, it should consider skipping straight to the Wii instead. While there are countless classics on both the N64 and Gamecube that precede it, the Wii's library is in dire need of preservation in a way that can't be done outside of releasing hardware once more.
The Wii's Library Is Locked On The Hardware
When the Switch was first released, it seemed to be full of promise as a way of preserving Nintendo's rich history, including titles that were on the Wii. Its Joy-Cons, when removed from the console, function as updated versions of the Wii remote, and the Switch itself could do everything that the Wii did and more. As a result, fans were hopeful that Nintendo would be publishing more Wii titles to the Switch. However, that never ended up happening in the way that fans had hoped, as a result of the corner that the company has seemed to back itself into with the release of the Switch Lite.
Now, all games need to work in handheld mode and not require any sort of motion controls, meaning that unless studios were willing to put the work into revamping their motion control-based titles to allow controller support like with the Skyward Sword remaster, then Wii fans are out of luck when it comes to potential re-releases on the Switch. With so much of the Wii's library locked on the hardware, it makes sense for Nintendo to bite the bullet and release a Classic Edition Wii for fans to enjoy.
People Love the Wii
Fans have been calling for classic console editions of all of Nintendo's hardware since it re-released the NES, but the Wii seems to make the most sense as a re-release for the company given the sheer popularity of the system. Currently, it seems like Nintendo is side-stepping a Classic Edition release of the N64 with its emulated titles that are bundled with the Nintendo Switch Online Plus Expansion and, while the Gamecube certainly has its fair share of popular classic titles, the console doesn't hold a candle to the sales numbers of the Wii.
If released, a Wii Classic Edition would likely sell extremely well given how popular the Wii was when it was in its prime. A re-release of the console would likely be incredibly popular, just as the Wii was back in the day. The console could easily break back into mainstream popularity as fans of the motion control-based console, who weren't gamers outside of the time they spent playing its approachable titles, would likely dip back in for nostalgia's sake.
At the end of the day, Nintendo is still a company that's looking to make a profit, and a Wii Classic Edition would be mutually beneficial to consumers who are missing the Wii and its library of hits.