I have one copy for my Wii, but now my girlfriend would like to play co-op with me on our Wii U. I dont really want to go out and buy a second copy if we can't play over LAN together now that WiiConnect24 is no longer on service.
Also, please don't recommend buying New Leaf. We already own it but want something we can play on the big screen.
Best Answer
There is no local play. The only way to do this over LAN or Wifi is to hack your Wii. It's relatively simple and the only way to get continued support for this discontinued product.
1. Hack your Wii with LetterBomb
https://please.hackmii.com/
2. Patch your game with Wiimmfi
https://wiiki.wii-homebrew.com/Wiimmfi_(en)/Patcher
You will need to check that link to get additional links and files. Here's a simplified version of what you'll be doing.
Follow the directions and you'll be good to go. Make sure you follow all the steps. If you mess up the part with custom IOS you're going to brick your Wii. As long as you're paying attention and following the steps you'll be fine. It's literally one of the easiest consoles to hack.