Slashdot Mirror
Both Sides of Wii
Yesterday Nintendo released the official name for their next console. Formerly the Revolution, and now simply called Wii, reaction has been strong among gaming fans. A Brian Crecente article in the Rocky Mountain News looks at why Wii is bad, from a marketing perspective. Chris Kohler, over at Game|Life, looks at why Wii is good because of its iconoclastic nature. And, always happy to help with the irreverent, Games.net examines why Wii is weird. From that article: "We don't think Nintendo Wii is a truly terrible console name, but it's an uncharacteristically risky choice, even for Nintendo. We admire its simplicity and its playfulness (the two i's represent multiplayer action, you see). But on the flip side, parents will have a hard time pronouncing it ("Nintendo...why?") and hardcore gamers will slam it ..."
Also to note about Wii is that the logo looks very
All these jokes have been made about the name but on the manufacturer's site, you'll find this little blurb: So you see, even they are aware of the puns that come with a name like Wii. Personally, I'm glad they chose something other than an old name coupled with a high number (Nintendo 64, Xbox 360, Sega 32, etc.) because that makes it sound like something where bitrate and technical specs are the only things that concern a gamer. And they're not. The thing that concerns me the most is if there's going to be games that I enjoy, Tetris did that with 16 bits so I welcome anything at any bit rate that provides me with entertainment.
My work here is dung.
Anyway, the only really thoughtful paragraph in any of the articles was from the Gamelife blog - and it was a quote from the comments to an earlier article:That's as good an explanation as any I've heard (in fact all the good speculation I've read about on not just this story, but just about anything recent, has come from random members of the public rather then the pundits)
There are shills on slashdot. Apparently, I'm one of them.
Not only is it worse than Xbox 360, it will confuse the French and also everyone will keep making piss-poor jokes about it.
See what I did there?
Summation 2
Although they'd have to name is Nintendo Shitcock for that to be true.
They changed the name of the Playstation 3 back to that marketing term from the PS2. The "Playstation Emotion Engine", or PEE.
Nintendo should hire Threebrain for their marketing program.
____
~ |rip/\/\aster /\/\onkey
(link contains embedded sound)
"Wii! That's what you say when you're having fun: you refer to yourself and some other people." -- Mitch Hedberg
For more information, click here.
...tarded been used yet?
Obligatory penny arcade reference...
I wonder if they'll start calling the new controller a Wii-Wii.
?
Sigs are for Terrorists.
Does anyone really care what it's called? Don't judge a console by it's cover... no wait... if you are a game journalist and you have column inches to fill to get your salary, why not write up a load of bitchy boring drivel and hope someone links to it from slashdot.
This is why writing on a journalistic (journal - time) basis is always corrupted by the need to fill space. It just plays into politicians and PR people's hands.
I have found I have become so desensitized to it now I am just not clicking links and ignoring things from their sensationalist headlines more and more. Abandoning articles that re-hash topics more and more after the first paragraph. And I feel liberated and content when I do so.
The next time you see something talking about linux on the desktop, an article by Dvorak, or some other flamebait the slashdot editors slip you (in the hopes of keeping the discussions lively) ignore it. Move on. You will feel better for it.
Thank you for your time.
This name could either be good or bad, depending on the ads.
If the ads seem goofy and childish, it will resonate against those qualities already represented by the name itself.
However, if the ads are sleek and classy, and the logo is clean and simple (which looks to be the case), then the "Wii" thing could be spun off as "it's cool to be a kid again."
I expect the latter case, of course, and I imagine an ad campaign similar to the DS. At the end of each commericial, if a child's voice whispered "wee" in sort of a mystical way, it would do wonders in changing the perception of the name.
random underscore blankspace at ya know hoo dot comedy.
I thought it was just a mixed-up Intel VIIV, developed by the same school of marketting.
Next up, AMD's AvA chip, and Sony's PIIIS gaming console.
I think that the second slashdot story in two days on the name of an unreleased console is evidence enough that the marketing folks over at Nintendo have made a sensible decision.
/. nerds won't give a damn what it's called, they'll just want the specs and the reviews. Casual consumers won't remember what it's called, they'll just want to look at the pretty colours.
Why oh why do people care? Hardcore
But on the flip side, parents will have a hard time pronouncing it ("Nintendo...why?") My parents used to complain i spent too much time playing 'that sega', not playing 'the megadrive' ;-)
this just opens the door to soooo many bad puns.
Although Michelle Wie would be a natural celebrity endorser.
Wonder if they'll have a normal version and a deluxe version. You know, the "royal" Wii.
"Waste not one watt!" - CZ
3 different angles of the story would not really be 'Both sides of Wii', would it?
I seem to remember another device that had a name which everyone chastised in the begnning. Give it time people.
Is it Why like "Why the heck did they name it that?" ... or is it "weeeeeeeeee" like the Gonads and Strife squirrel flash thing?
Either way, someone is cracking some smoke.
FLR
Feel free to add your own
They should have stuck with 'Revolution'. Or alternatively, given that the names of most new consoles these days are variations on their predecessors, why not GameCube 2? Or GameCube Revolution?
http://amishthrasher.blogspot.com/
"parents will have a hard time pronouncing it ("Nintendo...why?") ...""
That didn't seem to stop Pokemon.
Aside from the obvious, its a bad name, wii was it changed from Revolution to the now painful Wii? I used to use a tool called Revolution (software engine based on a crossplatform MultiMedia tool from MetaCard, now Revolution.com), and was thinking did they ever get into a fray with Nintendo and won?
Nintendo has announced the new song for marketing Wii.
I've had enough abrasive sigs. Kittens are cute and fuzzy.
All good points, especially from Kohler's Wired article. We're kind of irrelevant to Nintendo's thinking here. I caught an interesting article called No, Seriously, It's Called wii thet deals with the 5 stages of grief and how it relates to this situation. From the article: ''Acceptance: Guess what, no amount of protesting at E3 will do the trick. It's not going to change. The people who sign online petitions are exactly the people Nintendo are avoiding with all this. Tomorrow you're going to wake up and it being called wii won't be so bad. Maybe it'll start to grow on you, like mixing medication and bourbon. It's not so bad once you get used to it..." Hmm, Bourbon. I think I'm still in stage 3, Depression.
When I was your age, the model name wasn't the most interesting thing about new game consoles. No siree, wii were getting real improvements, like more pixels and stuff, and after a long day carrying my brother to school on my back through six feet of snow, uphill both ways, I was *happy* to play video football with players modeled after stacks of Legos...
Pi Ran Out
So, because of the name everyone's talking about Nintendo's console.
Two stories in two days on Slashdot about the name alone - first one got almost 1000 replies.
Blog articles are popping up left and right about it.
Even months from now, when you hear the name you'll smile or chuckle - because you think the name is funny, because you think it's refreshing, because you think it's colossally stupid and find it amusing that a company can make a mistake this big. In the meanwhile, the names "PlayStation" or "XBox" will just elicit a shrug.
Already - in one single day - Nintendo has managed to set itself apart from its competitors, and generate a huge amount of buzz about its console - without a massive ad campaign or billions in R&D. Just by releasing three letters to the public.
So, remind me again... why is this name bad?
ClutterMe.com - easiest site creation on the Net. Just click and type.
Thats it Nintendo
You Win the Prize!!!
Cheesy Movie Night
I just had a thought. Nintendo could have had this name released at E3 with all their other stuff, but they didn't. We should probably suppose that
:D
1) having Revolution plastered all over their booth and then changing the name mid-show would be a bit of a marketing idiocy/expensive gesture
2) it would completely overshadow EVERYTHING else they had to announce even though it is a fairly minor thing compared to real games, new controller quirks, playable systems
3) they know it sounds stupid, but they want you to get it out of your system before E3 so that you concentrate on the above (real games, new controller quirks)
This is smart. I like the name but I think it works as a logo, and as a product name, and a trademark, but it's just not something I am going to vocalise. I am going to pronounce it wrong.. Why Wi Way whatever. Or just say Nintendo like I always did for every other Nintendo console.
Negativity:
4) regarding 2, this could mean that besides Zelda and some spurious announcements and a playable system they have sweet FA to show at E3 besides officially confirming a lot of stuff we already read on rumor sites.
They secreted a mentioning the DVD attachment, I wonder if they will show it.. E3 should be the place where, now that we know the name, and we have gotten bored of how Zelda looks (and plays with the Wii controller maybe) we see exactly all the crap that is going to be launched this holiday season..
Oh! It just came to me. This console is gonna fucking ROLL off the shelves in Scotland. It's small, it's cute, it's Wii like a bairn
Lots of people are talking about it, and we should not forget that there's no such thing as "bad publicity"
-Eric
SJW: Someone who has run out of real oppression, and has to fake it.
whereas the full quote from TFA reads as:
That's quote some selective ellipsing/ellipsissing/ellipsiation going on there.
Slashdot social media options: AIM, ICQ, Yahoo, Jabber and Mobile Text. Why no MySpace?
"Wii... not-so-Wii... and FRIGGIN HUGE!"
(Old SNL reference for those who didn't get it)
"I'm a leaf on the wind. Watch how I soar."
-Hoban Washburn
(Recycled from a blog post of mine. Cause I'm lazy. But it fit.)
;) ), and I just don't have the time to play every really cool game I want to.
There was an interesting idea brought up in a forum post somewhere else, and I don't recall where, yet the headline went like this:
"Hard core gamers: Do we matter anymore?"
And the second I saw it, I knew the answer:
No.
Gaming, to use an idea that would make Mr. Rogers cringe, is becoming more and more like the movie industry every day. Not in scale or stars, yet in history. The industry was first introduced with small players, making games out of their basement - like initial movie makers with their "moving cameras". Then came an era of competition and explosion - then the conglomerates came into being, and they started to get movie making down to a science.
People complain that movies are all "the same", yet the fact is this: movies sell. Yes, they're going into a slight downslide right now, yet I'd argue that's an issue with technology (home theaters more comfortable and convienient than movie theaters - look at how studios make more money from DVD rental sales than blockbuster sales). yet movies, as bland as they are, make money. They make a shitload of money. They make so much fracking money it's not funny, because they have the formula down.
Was "Momento" a better movie than "The Matrix"? I'd argue it was - yet it didn't follow the rules. It was harder to think through. It didn't challenge. People could watch the Matrix with it's biblical allusions and get the surface story - kick ass people in leather, yeah! Or get the subtext. In "Momento", you had to think the whole fracking movie, and work to understand it.
Nintendo gets this. Look at the games they've been releasing. Is "Pikmen" a good game? I liked it. yet it's not selling nearly as well as "Tetris" or "Brain Age" or "Nintendogs" - the latter are games that you don't have to think about (insert irony about "Brain Age" here). yet these are games that a) did not cost a lot to make, and b) could be played by anybody with more than 5 brain cells. Are they fun? Sure - Nintendo gets it: the hardcore gamers don't make them money. Armies of teenage schoolgirls and their parents do.
What does this have to do with Wii? I think Nintendo, in a way, is making a statement. To hard core gamers, they're saying "This is not your world. There will be things for you, for those who look past the name. yet we are establishing here and now - this system is not for the 'hard core'. This is for all of the girls and grown ups out there who don't get 40 button controls, who will look at the word 'Wii' and go 'Oh, that's interesting.'"
Look at their plans for porting: almost none. EA had an interview where they said they were all yet forced to rewrite games from scratch for the Revolution/Wii because of the difference of power and controller. Which is what Nintendo wants. Let Sony and Microsoft fight over almost exactly the same games and who's cock is bigger in the "HD-DVD versus Blue-Ray" fight. Nintendo will do what Sony did - offer a DVD player that also plays a ton of games that people can pick up and go "Oh, Mario. OK - I move this way and jump. I can do that", while the "hard core" will either look at the name and say "Wii is lame", or will look at the game lineup and go "Turbo Graphix? Sweet - hey, Phoenix Wright Wii version! Neat!"
I don't know if it will work. Or, it will probably work in Japan the way the DS all yet killed PSP sales. (As Tim once said, every time someone finds out how to do something fun with the PSP, Sony releases a patch to break it. Or, something like that.) It probably won't hurt the Xbox 360 sales, since for all the money it's losing it's supported by a monopoly that hopes for more, and PS3 sales probably won't matter because of the Wii.
Yet I think that Nintendo did the name on purpose, knowing it would piss off the "hard core". I'll probably get one, because I've got 3 kids and a wife who only plays "Tetris" and "Brain Age" (I leave the DS at home for her to play while I'm out working - which will be my excuse for why we need to buy a DS Lite when it comes out
(Shrug.) Guess we'll see more at E3.
52 Weeks, 52 Religions with John Hummel
...Wii Wii.
Doesn't it make you feel good to know that our freedoms are protected by politicans, lawyers and journalists.
First Wii, then Wiii, Wiv, Wv, Wvi, Wvii, Wviii, Wix, Wx, Wxi...
That won't be confusing at all! I think I'll wait for the "Wix".
It's a little old (circa 1999), but Salon's article "The name game" -- a look inside the "identity firms" that come up with so many of the weird names that are floating around these days -- is worth bringing up because it's just so freaking funny.
Read the whole thing, it's worth it.
Read my blog.
After my initial fanboy seething hatred subsided yesterday (I was probably more pissed then I should have been, but the name change was contrary to everything I was expecting, I suppose) I thought a bit more about the name.
Despite the penis and urination jokes and the inevitable puns, the name could work. I would still prefer that Nintendo choose something else (or just switch back to "Revolution"), but something that others stated yesterday made sense: Nintendo could call it "ShitInABox" and it would still have great games, which is the entire reason you buy any console.
I'm still worried about public reaction, though. The foreign-sounding name, combined with the various jokes and sound-alike meanings, could be enough to throw off the non-gaming public, the parents and adults and girls that Nintendo is supposedly trying to reach with this console.
The overall reaction to this will likely turn out just like Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker. People will initially hate, hate, hate it. ("This isn't what they gave us at E3 2000!" "Revolution was so much cooler!") Then we'll look at some screens and play reviews in magazines and soften up a bit. ("Well, the art does look good..." "Well, it does have some awesome looking games...") Then we'll actually get one and wonder why we ever doubted Nintendo. Of course, there will be those who will refuse to accept it, but that's common to everything (just look at the Amish).
I still plan to buy one, but I don't think I can go on calling it "Wii". Talking to friends about your "Wii" is just too unnerving. I'll do my own little personal arrogant "refuse to change" thing and continue to call it "Revolution", because that's frankly what it is, in my opinion.
Wii mean nothing. But, at the very least, I can say "A WIINER IS YOU" at the end of matches on this console.
"Hello. Do you have any Wiis..." (trails off)
"Any what, sir?
"Wiis" (quietly)
"I'm sorry, sir, I can't hear you."
"Wiis! I wanna Wii" (loudly)
"Washroom's at the back of the store."
Modern copyright is theft of culture from everyone and it retards the progress of the useful arts and sciences.
I hearby refer to the new Wii Nintendo as the WiiNi. Has a nice ring to it!
For the last 1/2 year Nintendo has been intent on following Apple's style, gravitating toward a shiny white revolution as their official display model and unveiling the ipod-esque Nintendo DS Lite. Now they seem to be copying Apple's new naming strategy, which is simply: Take a popular product with a sexy name and make it as strange as possible. I think Nintendo has set a new standard with the Wii.
Does anybody else think this is very Japanese? LIke they are going with a very Hello-Kitty cutesy little name - and its weird like those little robot toys you get in a Japanese toy store. This sounds like a name straight out of a Katamari game.
Sound waves should be free!
it will confuse the French
Probably not.
Marketing will probably pronounce it the english way.
But people probably not. W in French is pronounced like v.
I can't think of a word with two consecutive 'i'.
It could be pronounced like vie (life), or maybe a long i.
Probably a long i. Be it pronounced the english or the french way.
Therefore no confusion with yesss or lifffe.
And there are lots of homonyms in every language anyway, people don't get confused, it's just useful for puns...
I have discovered a truly marvelous proof of killer sig, which this margin is too narrow to contain.
Pee Ess Pee?
Pee Ess Three?
No problem.
Wii?
Piss! HAHA OMFG you said P!SS, ROFLMAO?
Strange, isn't it?
I cannot believe there is anybody out there nay-saying this move. Nintendo, by changing the name to something “controversial” has just drummed up more buzz than the “coolest-name-evar” could possibly generate. Every so-called analyst and commentator who is weighing in on this misses the point: it has nothing to do with being a good or bad name but everything to do with forcing it into our collective consciousness. Wii will always be with you now.
Join Tor today!
It's certainly true that many slashdotters are diehard nintento fans, and of course they'll buy the console and enjoy good games and support their alma mater... but that doesn't mean naming the newest iteration in the Nintendo legacy something tremendously stupid like "Wii" doesn't really, really get to us.
For example, imagine the feeling you get when you get the latest in a great RPG series or other gaming franchise that you've watched grow for years and years (like Final Fantasy). Now imagine getting your hands on the game, and it's everything you want it to be... but the main character is Paris Hilton or equally annoying.
Ex nihilo nihil fit.
"We don't think Nintendo Wii is a truly terrible console name, but it's an uncharacteristically risky choice, even for Nintendo. We admire its simplicity and its playfulness (the two i's represent multiplayer action, you see). But on the flip side, parents will have a hard time pronouncing it ("Nintendo...why?") and hardcore gamers will slam it ..."
I think the biggest issue is that the name is not easily read or pronounced; many will likely read it out as "why". The fact that they have to tell you that its pronoucned "We" is a bad sign, product names should be straight-forward and to the point.
I agree the two "i"s and people playing together, as in "we" is clever, but that gimmik is quickly going to fade. The concept is very akin to Intel's Viiv (which I'm still not exactly sure how its pronounced), however good solid names that are easy to remember are far better then gimmicky names that are hard to read.
Also, "we" has too many conotations in different languages that are going to be much stronger than a game console, "we" as "oui/yes" in French, "we" as in pee, "we" as in small, etc. By far one of the worst product names in recent history, but they sure have gotten quite a bit of press from it.
So if you connect too Wii's together do you have a wiiwii?
Now we're going to confuse people using poor grammar! Let's lake a plural, first person pronoun, "we," and make it into a singular, proper noun for an object! Sentences such as "Wii is good" or "Wii is bad" would make anyone saying them sound like an utter moron.
What will companies do next to destroy our already fragile grammar? The Sony Yu? Microsoft's next venture, the Ai (Pronounced as "I")? The Mi?
it's a great name. monosyllabic, pronouncable for everyone - how can they go wrong?
also, that graphic will scale well, and could be shortened to just the w anyway.
i'm sold.
how many of the people bitching here will be standing in line like good little consumer sheep when the system hits the streets.
Because even if I think the name is kinda awkward, I KNOW I want one.
-- No Sig is a Good Sig
Think about this for a second, how many people here thought the name iPod was a good name for an MP3 player? Fast forward to today and look what Apple has done. I think the big N is trying for the same effect.
A few key points where the name Wii makes sense:
+Nintendo have been saying for ages that they are not competing directly against Sony and Microsoft. They certainly don't compare on tech specs, control scheme, so why should they compete with a name as well? If they were competing directly it would be called NS 5 or somthing like that.
+By having a console that is different in price, gameplay and the branding/name they have seperated themselves well.
+Wii I am sure will have some great marketing, the whole selling of the brand/concept and not the product. I can already see Wii adds that don't even mention or show the console, just conveying that Wii is fun and hip! Remember the early iPod adds? Same idea here.
+Having lived over-seas for most my life I can tell you that Wii will be easy to pronounce anywhere you go, any other console name in the last ten years however isn't.
So in summary, this may be a brilliant move, or it could just be a very bad idea. I guess time will tell, however as for me I still plan on buying a Wii because of what it is, not its name.
--jake
1) The name is simple, easy to remember, and sticks out like a sore thumb (which for marketing is good).
2) The fact that it's as weird as it is/initial reaction is "wtf" means LOTS of FREE publicity for Nintendo. Before this, NOBODY was talking about the system--there were a few small blurbs about it here and there, but even when the new controller was announced it was ignored by everybody but the gaming press. This new name though generates controversy and EVERYBODY is talking about it. Controversy sells: BIG TIME. Just look at GTA...
3) After awhile, the name DOES grow on you and instead of thinking of it as urine you start thinking of it as "whee" (i.e. fun). It's a nice, silly name. Maybe not "mature" or "hip", but I want my games to be FUN, not necessarily hip.
4) After watching the video and reading the reasoning behind the name, it opens up some great potential marketing ideas and makes sense why they chose this name.
5) People who don't like saying it will just call it the Nintendo. I mean, who ACTUALLY called the Nintendo Entertainment System by it's full name? Or even really NES (now that's used, but while it was their only system, I don't know ANYBODY who called it the NES). I don't see anything wrong with just calling the Wii the Nintendo again... As it pretty much is THE Nintendo (it can play games from ALL of their past systems after all...)
That's my 2 cents any way...Read my blog posts on usability.
You can see what Nintendo's thinking, anyway: "We" recast with a double-whammy of the "i" thing -- iMac, iPod -- on the other end of the name. This is a name Nintendo would have chosen in order to play up the networked, multiplayer side of the new console.
If they had thought the controller needed to be emphasized, you'd maybe have something about "motion" or "kinetic" in the name. Seems like they didn't need to accomplish that, though, because basically anyone who's at all interested in consoles knows that about their new machine. So, use the name to play up the thing that's not gotten so much attention yet.
(Compare it with Microsoft's leaden touch: "X-Box Live." Implying that when you're not in multiplayer, the games are, what, dead? Nice.)
The other thing to say is that this industry is one of the few that could stand to run ads laughing at itself -- and the other consoles don't do that good a job of that. Both the XBox and the Playstation go with pretty macho adverts. I think of the 360 release and all the reviews were about how awe-inspiring King Kong's graphics supposedly were. Roar! If Nintendo makes some fun with its own name, suddenly people are laughing with them instead of at them. Don't believe me? Think of beer commercials. If any industry can do that, it would be one that makes games, right?
"Fundamentalism" isn't about divine morality. It's about human authority.
It is distinctive and easy to recognize again among its rivals even if you've only seen it once or twice before.
The most horrible example to the opposite is currently among DSLR camera makers. Here are a hew model names:
d30, d200, 350d 30d, d70, d50, 1d, d1.
Two manufacturers: Canon and Nikon, with incompatible lens systems.
Now, based on names, try to pair which model is for which system - and ficure out which is the high- respectively low-end models for each system. Good luck.
Trust the Computer. The Computer is your friend.
It's just that I got used to calling it the "Nintendo Revolution". I probably still will because 'wii' or 'we' makes me think of "Nintendo Wheeeeee".
AutoMcCarthyism!
You would think a Japanese company would want to avoid any connection to WWII.
Support Right To Repair Legislation.
Will there be two controlers included in the box?
Nintendo is obviously on this 'Wii play together' vibe, it would make sense to enable more than one person to play with the standard retail package. Also if the 'i' is supposed to resembile the controler, surely there should be two bundled given the two 'i' characters in the name.
thats exactly what i thought. i called NES, SNES, N64, GC, all just "Nintendo"
Wii is OK, but it's not as cool as Vi.
"Seven years of college down the drain. Might as well join the f-ing Peace Corps." - John 'Bluto' Blutarsky
I think we can now say that hardcore gamers really aren't that importat, based on the "hardcore"-only adoption of the 360, and its simultaneous, spectacular flop.
Actually, Laputa is the name of the advanced civilization in Gulliver's Travels. It's debatable whether or not Smith actually new this meaning and intended it as a double entendre. The Japense aparently have no idea about this because the movie Castle in the Sky was named Laputa: Castle in the Sky in Japan. This obviously had to be changed in some markets.
Ooo man the floppy drive is broken. No wait. The computer is just upside down.
The Famicom/NES was also the first major player to come from Japan and make any sort of serious dent on the American gaming scene. Actually, it very much *created* the American gaming scene. (Yes, I'm aware of Atari, ColecoVision, Intellivision, etc, stop fooling yourselves, the NES started the real gaming craze.) They managed to do it again with the SNES/Super Famicom, but shortly after it's debut, Americans started to realize that if they watched what was going on in Japan, they'd get the heads-up early news about what might be headed their way. It was about this time that you stopped seeing different names, as a single name helps to build brand identity and loyalty. Ever since, the names have been the same. Even "Wonderswan" made it to the US (very, very, VERY briefly) with it's original (retarded) Japanese name intact. Imagine renaming the iPod for a different country. Just doesn't really work that way anymore.
On the other hand, I pray that you're right.
A heated discussion on the name of a console is quite a bit meta, don't you think? :)
Rebel Without A Pause
So they chose a strange name that everyone is now talking and arguing about. How's that for advertising? No one's talking about the Xbox360 or PS3 right now, they're talking about the Wii. This will continue. People will see it in stores and wonder what it is. It's an instant attraction, even if it's only because it's weird. That, plus who really is going to not buy a console they want because the name is stupid? Seriously, the name gets attention, but no matter what the name is the console will live and die by fun factor.
>>Introducing ... Wii.
... and each other. But you're probably asking: What does the name mean?
>>As in "we."
So the first thing you have to do is explain how your new product name is pronounced? Dud.
>>While the code-name "Revolution" expressed our direction, Wii represents the answer.
Um, you "answer" a question. You don't "answer" a "direction". This doesn't make sense.
>>Wii will break down that wall that separates video game players from everybody else.
No it won't. Humans are tribal. The thing that separates gamers from others is GAMERS. We like it that way.
>>Wii will put people more in touch with their games
No, I wasn't. And saying "thanks for asking" is a sure-fire way to notify everyone under 30 that you're full of shit and trying to sell something.
>>Wii sounds like "we," which emphasizes this console is for everyone.
Only in English, where it also sounds like "small" or "urinate".
>>Wii can easily be remembered by people around the world, no matter what language they speak. No confusion. No need to abbreviate. Just Wii.
Bullshit. Many languages make no distinction between the "w" sound and the "v" sound. Chinese, spoken by 20% of the people on the planet, doesn't have a "we" sound.
>>Wii has a distinctive "ii" spelling that symbolizes both the unique controllers and the image of people gathering to play.
Distinctive?? "ii" means "2" in almost every table of contents I've ever seen. It's as unique as that slightly dissapointed feeling which follows every concrete announcement by Nintendo.
>>>And Wii, as a name and console, *snip marketing bullshit*
This will be the event that finally proves that all publicity is NOT good publicity.
But maybe it's just me.. a lot of people seem to think that 'hard core gamers' will respond better to a name like "TEH SUPAR XTREME GAMING FRAMEWORK" or something.. I find that annoying, maybe I'm out of touch..
--
Stay tuned for some shock and awe coming right up after this messages!
Why anyone did not post a link to this is something that I can not explain.
Come on, Internet people! Where's your love for Threebrain!
The Rapture is NOT an exit strategy.
I wouldn't worry too much about parents being able to pronounce it. I've known parents who called the company "Nine-tendo", and it still seems to be doing well.
Okay... That name does NOT excite me when I'm about to purchase a new gaming console. What kind of brainstorming was that?
[%] Cingular Ringtones
Mike Myers, playing the sarcastic angry Scottish charachter Stuart Mackenzie from "So I Married an Axe Murderer".
"The queen. The vatican. The Getty's. The Rothschilds. AND Colonel Sanders before he went heads up! Oh, I hated the Colonel with his wee BEADY eyes! and that smug look on his face, 'Oh! You're gonna buy my chicken, OHHH. Aye Laddie - and look at the Wii Nintendo with it's Wii game disc. And look at the kid playin it - That kid's head's like Sputnik. Spherical but quite pointy in parts. Oh, that was a harsh one, wasn't it? He'll be cryin himself to sleep tonite on his huge pilla'."
"Now go and kiss your mother before I kick your teeth in!"
I, for one, appreciate the carte blanche for making childish pee jokes. It's fun to be immature sometimes... and isn't that what most video games are about? Being childish and carefree?
Even in games like Halo 2, you can kneel down and keep punching your dead opponent. Heck, the entire concept of GTA is like this. How many people play GTA for more than an hour before just going on virtual rampages, trying to get as many stars as possible? Your masculinity may hide it, but deep inside, you're crying out "Wiiiii!"
IWARS.
People, in general, disappoint me. Politicians even more so.
Gulliver went to four places, two of which were Lilliput and Laputa.
Patrick Doyle
I mod down every jackass who puts his moderation policy in his sig. Oh, wait a sec....
They took it directly from English. 99% of Japanese under 50 probably know the meaning of the word.
Aren't you pronouncing wagon like vallée ?
;)
:)
:)
And what about words from other languages like wisigoths, or the game of awalé ?
Now I checked because the w is quite uncommon in french, and I agree most words are from english and kept their english pronounciation. W really isn't a french letter
Here are scrabble accepted words with w, english people will probably understand most of them...
Now, I think that w should be pronounced v, like we're spelling it "double vé", but it's maybe because I'm native of Alsace, near the German border (and German people are pronouncing w like our v while their v is more like our f)
Also found that discussion.
Conclusion : it's up to the french people to choose if it will be ouiiii or viiiie
I have discovered a truly marvelous proof of killer sig, which this margin is too narrow to contain.
Nintendo Wheeeee!
This is just something bizarre from another game....
& name=News&file=article&sid=58
& name=News&file=article&sid=40&mode=thread&order=0& thold=0
:)
The Wi Flag was a peculiar problem in the early Asheron's Call codebase that seemingly afflicted one paticular player, named Wi. Basically mobs zeroed in on him no matter when he showed up in an area and no matter who else was there.
A little history about the flag is here,
http://www.vitaerising.com/modules.php?op=modload
and then the fix for it came along here..
http://www.vitaerising.com/modules.php?op=modload
So I guess Nintendo is not worried about turning off all of Asheron's Call current and former players
* Winners compare their achievements to their goals, losers compare theirs to that of others.
I'm going to have to say that it's barely been 24 hours and I'm already thoroughly sick of the word "Wii". It's obnoxious. It's embarrasing. I wouldn't feel comfortable telling my mother that I wanted this for Xmas... especially as I'm 28! I previously wanted to buy a Revolution on launch day. I'd wait in line. Now I have to deal with the social embarassment of not only being an adult wanting to buy what's perceived as a child's toy, now I also have to negotiate the social stigma that comes with the word "Wii" That's embarrasing.
I'd rather get caught with my wang out
http://liquidben.com - Aspiring to an 'under construction' gif
Here's my super accurate and sophisticated analysis: we've no fucking clue what'll happen, so stop trying to guess.
You may hate or like the name but this means nothing for the rest of the people who may, somehow, have their own opinion which is not driven by your rants or blessings.
Bringing other, often popular and worn out examples from the industry is extremely naive as the cases are familiar on very a superficial level and causes for one's demise or success may have nothing to do with the bad/good choice of name we're discussing here.
While we're analysing if the ability to kid with the name means good or bad sales, we forget how important are all other variables in the equation: content, availability, quality, features, offers, advertisement, recognition and so on to name just a few, and probably thousands more that even modern marketing can't detect and make sense of.
Nintendo Wii continues a strong tradition of incredibly moronic brand names out of Nintendo -- which is a shame because their games are incredible.
* Super Nintendo Entertainment System - Ok, I understand the need to maintain "a strong brand identity". But this is really just a copout versus coming up with a more creative name. Their ads were even worse: "Now you're playing with power... super power." Was it any wonder that the Sega Genesis (which had some great games of it own and I consider the best console name ever) had more "cool factor" going into the early 90s?
* Super Scope 6 - If you're wondering, this was the software that came with the bazooka-version of the lightgun for the SNES. Never mind the fact the gun itself was completely unwieldly -- the decision to make the name of the software roll off the tongue (Super Scope 6) made everyone forget that the Super Scope was supossed to support a bunch of games. Since everyone associated the gun with the 6 relatively crappy minigames it came with, no one thought to look for 3rd-party software that supported it. I think a total of 3 "full games" supported the thing.
* Game Boy - Immediately shot down as being "sexist", Nintendo Power held a contest to design your own and half the entries used the words "Game Girl". To this day they're still trying to get Game Boy moniker out of peoples' heads (to your non-gaming buddies, do you call your DS a "Nintendo DS" or "like a Gameboy")?
* Virtual Boy - Ditto. And add the fact it wasn't really virtual. All it was doing was drawing red lines a few inches in front of your eyes and giving headaches.
* Nintendo 64 - This began a line of consoles with relatively good codenames but terrible console names. Ultra 64, while derivative of Super Nes, at least had a "cool" element to it. Killer Insinct for the arcades even touted "Coming soon to the Ultra 64!" Nintendo instead decided to go with the incredibly bland Nintendo 64 and a gave it a suitably stupid Escher-like logo (which Rare's Conker amusing destroyed in Conker's Bad Fur Day). Again, wonderful games -- terrible name.
* Gamecube - Original codename: Dolphin. Exudes intelligence, the ability to swiftly get around competitors. Final name: a plastic block. The ads picture a bunch of gang-like teenagers walking the streets and then cut to a cartoon Advance Wars-like game. Huh? Although it could've been worse -- one of the final designs called for a star-shaped plastic fins and the name "Starcube". Picture the Disney PC for 4-year olds but in your living room. Again, incredible games -- dumb system name.
* Nintendo Wii - Original codename: Revolution. Gives off the vibes of doing completely new things (the controller) and harkens nostalgia for when Nintendo turned a hobby into a multibillion dollar industry in the 80s (NES, SNES, etc. emulation). Final name mirrors a number of terrible Japanese names. In particular, I'm reminded if Vaio and Wega from Sony. Wega, in particular, is actually supposed to be pronounced "vega". Why they didn't just stick the V in there is anyone's guess. Revolution would've been a brutally cool name but instead they decided to wreck it.
Again, I'm not saying anything against the games themselves -- they're incredible. Bottom line is Nintendo should fire their marketing department and hire the guys from Sega, Microsoft or even Sony.
but were worried about possible legal issues.
The controller is going to be called the Wii-mote[tm].
Actually, there is already an awesome product on the market called the Weemote. It is the only remote I've found which is simple, and can control a digital box.
Although it was originally made for children, they made a less garishly coloured model called the Weemote Sr. which has been a godsend in our house with my father-in-law (afflicted with Alzheimer's Disease). It's an excellent and durable remote that has allowed him to control the TV again.
(The problem is that the remote that comes with any digital box is far too complicated for him to comprehend. Most importantly, the Weemote doesn't allow him to do anything that he can't undo. With the box's standard remote, he would press "guide" or "info" or "DVD", then not be able to figure out how to get back to his standard operations, that being Channel up/down & volume up/down. He would then invariably throw the remote in frustration and stomp off, and be sullen for hours afterward.)
Sorry for gushing all over this product, but it and the company behind it (Fobis) are really first-rate, and I like to give them props when I can.
Look at the tomato! Isn't it sad? He can't dance! Poor tomato!
"If the truth were known about the origin of the word 'Jazz' it would never be mentioned in polite society."
To spare you clicking the link, it's said to be derived from Creole patois "jass" for sexual intercourse and tightly related to "jism".
Nintendo why-aye!
I guess today is a passable day to die.
You're right about "wagon", and "wisigoth". I don't know about "awalé".
:)
But the most commonly used words with W in french are pronounced roughly like in english: sandwich, wifi, clown, interview, watt, etc.
"wagon" and "wisigoth" are not employed very often (unless your work is related to trains, you're not going to talk about wagons very often)
When we see a W randomly put in a made-up word, we're intuitively going to pronounce it like in english, not v in any case
and German people are pronouncing w like our v
Now there's an idea: we avoid embarrassment by using German accents when purchasing games.
Though no great Nintendo adherent myself (I tend to prefer a somewhat more durable experience than their titles offer), I have to admire the approach they've taken, especially in recent years, in reopening and reniventing interactive media as a mode of entertainment. Nintendo really was one of the first great innovators in the field, and they have been working hard--both on the technology and marketing ends of the spectrum--to counter what they view as a trend towards gaming being pigeonholed as a niche market, targeting only a wealthy, hardcore elite with a limited range of highly technical genres (FPS, RPGs, etc.)
The DS is one good example. Though not a DS owner, I stand up and take notice when I hear titles like Brain Training being discussed in the media. Nintendo has shown a willingess to gamble to gamble against cost-prohibitive high-end tenchnology (no high-def for the Wii) in favor of--fascinating notion indeed!--fun and universality. Nintendo was one of the first companies to give electronic entertainment a really ecumenical appeal, and they seem to be continuing the trend. The company seems to have a very healthy preoccupation with reducing the number of technical details interposing themselves between the user and the experience; the new controllers are just one example which, if successful, would make for a more intuitive and less intimidating interface.
"Wii" is, I think, just one more whimsical step in this same direction. Its announcement has already generated tremendous discussion in public and private media--when was the last time a single syllable had so many people talking? Granted, much of it has been highly critical commentary in the "what were they THINKING?" vein, but really, given that we're talking about a product that has yet to launch, is there any such thing as negative publicity? One interesting comment I read emphasized how easy Wii is to pronounce, write and remember in any language. Though it does sound fanciful (not to say outright strange) in English, the iconic multicultural appeal of it is hard to dispute. And it's not as if companies thinking up names in their own language have never embarrassed themselves--anyone remember the "Reebok Incubus?"
Whether you love to hate it or hate to love it, the "wii" is generating some wicked buzz on the internet. Here is a list of combined comment counts since the name was announced yesterday:
Slashdot 1146
Joystiq 731
Fark 540
1up 458
Kotaku 113
The name is so ludicrous, people can't help themselves from talking about it. For the short term, everyone will make fun of the name. And by the time the jokes get old, everyone will have heard of the Wii, or the Wii Wii, or the Wiid Nintendo was smoking when they thought up that name. Brilliant.
the cosmos in 20 words or less: thumbuki.com
naming i tricky for multinational markets
Oriental gamers may have troublen with the 'Revorution' but spare a thought for the German difficulties with 'Vii' or the french 'oui'
We had a leading brand of detergent in the UK called 'Jif' which was also pronounced 'Yif', 'Hif' and 'Chif' depending where you go. They changed their brand to 'Cif' the phonetic of which means Sypholis in Polish.
This perpetual motion machine Lisa made is a joke, it just keeps getting faster and faster. - Homer
I liked it. yet it's not selling nearly as well as "Tetris" or "Brain Age" or "Nintendogs" - the latter are games that you don't have to think about (insert irony about "Brain Age" here). yet these are games that a) did not cost a lot to make, and b) could be played by anybody with more than 5 brain cells. Are they fun? Sure - Nintendo gets it: the hardcore gamers don't make them money. Armies of teenage schoolgirls and their parents do.
I dunno.
I consider myself a "hard core gamer" at least that I like PC FPS games. I don't go much for the consoles except for the Xbox, but I find myself playing either computer FPS, MMORPGs, orrr...
The Nintendo DS.
Why?
The Nintendo DS is just fun. Sure I like to play Red Orchestra or Unreal2k4, but I've found myself just picking up Tetris, Yugi-Oh, or Mario Kart and having fun on the DS most of the time these days.
I really dig the Wifi too.
It is the same with other hard core gamers I know... I know a guy who owns every console known to man (maybe not the PC-FX though) and he spends a great deal of time on his DS.
The DS is just fun. It isn't the same old crap the consoles keep throwing at us.
I think its not that the hard core gamers like the consoles, it is just that they put up with a lot more than the average Joe would in attempts to get entertained.
"I am the king of the Romans, and am superior to rules of grammar!"
-Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor (1368-1437)
I know it's been said already, but why do Wii care so much that Wii have to have two articles in as many days about how Wii don't like the new name of the next-generation Nintendo console, or that Wii love it, or that people think it's Wii-rd, or Wii-lly stupid, or Wii-lly smart, or Wii-lly funny? Do Wii really have to have conversations about people envisioning French ads running, "Dit 'oui' a 'Wii'," and links to (hilarious) punk videos because the song is comprised mostly of people shouting something that sounds like "Wii?" The answer: Yes, Wii do, because this is Slashdot. What would Wii do without them?
"Graphically, the distinctive 'ii' spelling symbolizes both the two unique controllers and the human form. An unusual name sets us apart from the crowd, just as our distinctive machine is completely different from what our competitors are offering."
And somebody actually spouted this bullshit with a straight face? God knows how much time and money was spent coming up with 'Wii'. If that was the winner, think of all the options that were considered worse.It's just pretentious marketing crap, and in this case it's so far up its own arse that not only does the name have to be explained, but even the pronunciation. You'd think that having these things be self-explanatory would be good from a marketing perspective. After all, what's the totally unforgettable name of the film coming out later this year that everybody's talking about? Snakes On A Plane.
You must think in Russian.
They didn't rename it from the Revolution, they just changed the spelling to match how the Japanese said it!
"Wii" is just short for "Wii-wo-wution"!
I was at some show last night and I ran into a good friend of mine - by far the biggest Nintendo fan I know. He evidently hadn't been reading the news yesterday, and when I and another guy started talking to him about this whole retarded "Wii" business, he literally got PISSED OFF about it.
Seriously, this name is PISSING OFF Nintendo's fans. I'm sorry, but there is NO WAY to spin that kind of thing in a positive direction.
Wee "Wii"?
Bicause "Woo" is taken and wouldn't fit the family nature of Nentindo.
--- What?
Here's another one.. the Toyota MR2 in France.
M R 2 = French pronunciation = "emm ehr douh" (sort of)
Anyway, it sounds somewhat like the word "merde", which means "shit" in French.
Does anyone find it weird that upon googling Nintendo and Wii, you don't get much at all, and googling wii by itself returns almost nothing? I wonder if Nintendo is keeping it on a low profile for a reason. Adding even more mystery to their 3 letter 'masterpiece'.
je suis parce que j'aime
I see it is spelled Wii, which is pronounced like "Weee" since the Japanese i is an e sound, like the e in key. I guess there best strategy will be to incorporate the sound into the logo, and start advertising early so people get it right. Although perhaps it won't be a problem, and my Japanese has led me to loosing a sense of American pronounciations of new words.
In undeveloped countries, the consumer controls the market. In capitalist America, the market controls you.
I guess two i's are better than one. Must be a matter of perception.
The first thing I did after reading the article was to Google for Jamcracker.
Guess what the first link was?
Hmmm. Since 1999, huh? I wonder if they know that their name was passed on by several companies and widely ridiculed within the so-calling naming industry before they got it?
If it's for-profit but free, you're not the customer -- you're the product (e.g., the Slashdot Beta's "audience").
unless your work is related to trains, you're not going to talk about wagons very often
:P
:)
Except those people usually are talking of voitures
Well it's the good ol' french for Wagen/wagon, after all...
When we see a W randomly put in a made-up word
Who's that we ? We are French too, my precious !
I have discovered a truly marvelous proof of killer sig, which this margin is too narrow to contain.
On the latest episode of VGM Daily we talked with Pierre Paul Trepanier, of Nintendo Canada about the naming...
He gives his response here:
http://www.vgmfusion.com/index.php?id=70
It may be simple to say and easier to learn, but the name won't make a difference. If the Gamecube and N64 are any indication, only the hardcore Nintendo fans will eat it up, and there will be a miniscule library of games (in comparison to the other consoles), practically none of which will be multiplatform. Again, Nintendo is going to have to focus all its energy into creating first-party games that take full advantage of the hardware in order for any third party developer to even think they could be successful in selling Wii games.
With Sony and Microsoft, the user base is there, and it's massive. With Nintendo, the userbase is mostly just fans, with some people buying the console for the one or two good games that may be on it (the only real blockbuster hits Nintendo has produced for the Gamecube, for example, are the Metroid Prime series, Wind Waker, Super Smash Bros: Melee, and Resident Evil 4 (which was ported off to the PS2 anyway). Aside from that, the volume of games for the gamecube were relatively low, and mostly consisted either of another Mario knockoff, or a cross-platform game).
Of course, the developers don't only have to take Nintendo's lead, they also have to contend with the controller, which has only three distinctive buttons total (four if you count the nunchaku attachment's trigger). Not only that, but the limitations of the standard DVD-5 format that developers use with current-gen systems (360 notwithstanding) also place a toll on the game. With so few buttons, and so little space in comparison (companies usually have to compress game data on DVD-5 discs to allow for the size constraints, and that costs processing time and increases load time) you wouldn't see a Grand Theft Auto, or an Ace Combat anywhere on the system (assuming they were ever ported). You wouldn't see any strategy games on there, and RPG's would be weird, when all that's really required there is the D-pad and buttons. You wouldn't see a Soul Calibur game, or any other fighting game for that matter. The platform just doesn't offer up to many kinds of games like the others do.
Now, of course, you can just plug a Gamecube controller into the control ports included on the Wii, but what's the point of the Wii controller then?
Anyway, I predict massive failure. I might be wrong, and for Nintendo's sake, I hope I am. But I do know one thing - My money's on the console with the games, not the most original hardware. Good games the hardware does not make, after all. If the Wii offers up the best assortment of good games, then that's where my money will fall. But as of right now, I don't see it happening. If I'm wrong, I'm wrong, but I wasn't wrong about the Gamecube.
Screw the rules, I have green hair!
The We network is doing just fine. Why? Because generally, their viewers aren't immature dolts.
My 2 cents.
In the book, the origin of the name is discussed:
In other words, the scientists of Laputa interpret the name of the island as meaning that they are the governors on high. Gulliver thinks that's a bit much, and that they are merely flying on wings in the sun. Prodded in that direction, the reader is left to derive the satirical barb, that in reality it's worse than that, and scientists are not the noble rulers of mankind, but mere whores to political and other interests.
GCHQ Quantum Insert installed. If only our tongues were made of glass, how much more careful we would be when we speak
... its interesting and recognisable. That's why it got on slashdot now, and why it will create a buzz once lanuched. If the console is cheap, oh yea...
Although there have been allusions, reading through the comments, I'm not sure most Americans realise that "wee" means "piss" in British English. As in "I'm just going for a wee" or "Oh my god, there's wee all over the floor".
... and there are forums full of "I play Wii games with my girlfriend every night!" type comments.
The British games/tech media is having a right laugh.
The Register's headline: "Nintendo splashes Revolution with 'Wii' "
Computer and Video Games: "All we've left to say really is that we're looking forward to waving our Wii wands around at this year's E3."
To me -- "no such thing as bad publicity" notwithstanding -- that doesn't sound like the makings of a great brand.
OK now for a very likely to be redundant comment: WHY IS IT COMMON FOR COMPANIES COME UP WITH SUCH EXCELLENT CODE NAMES AND SUCH STUPID PRODUCT NAMES?!!?! OK, I can only think of two right now. Nintendo Revolution is an excellent name. Wii is quite stupid. Opteron is just passable while Athlon 64 is fairly lame. The origional code names were Sledgehammer and Clawhammer. Very cool names. I think there would be a number of people who would argue that Revolution, Sledgehammer and Clawhammer are not as marketable as the final product names. To this I say Saturn, Xbox, DirectX, Cingular, Weta, Matrix, Segway, Alien Ware, Area 51 (computer name from Alienware), Ipod, Ipod Nano, etc... All kinds of product names and company names can be interesting and sellable. In fact the truth tends to be that the more interesting the name the more effective from a marketing perspective. Unfortunately companies get much too conservative with names when the truth is anything can be used and still be effective (even Wii). However the more memorable and easy to tie into an add campaign the better the name. Who here can, with a clear concience, say that Wii is easier to market than Revolution??? I can think of a number of decent add campaigns surrounding Revolution (and its other language translations) where as Wii I can think of none. Additionally Revolution is fitting because of the new controller interface is, well revelotionary. Thoughts?
http://www.threebrain.com/weeeeee.shtml
I'm sure the negative buzz about the new name will die down over time, but I can still picture my Playstation obsessed cousin's reaction when I try to tell him how much I "love my Wii" and how he should "play with it and get a feel for how it handles".
I think it's really going to be hard for a lot of younger Americans to seriously consider this console now. Image is more important here than it should be, and I think a lot of kids still in school won't get one of these simply to avoid being beaten up for "playing with their Wii all night".
The "mature" jr. high and high schoolers are all going to get an Xbox because Xbox already has a reputation as the "mature" console. The new name "Wii" is only going to further cement this misconception and cut into Nintendo's sales.
As soon as I saw the name I immediately considered how thoughtless it is for a Japanese company to think of releasing a product that could even remotely remind anyone of World War II.
They've decided to symbolize the multitude of online community of gamers in the name for their free online service:
i iiiiiiiiiiiiii
Wiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii
They are hoping you will buy two, so that they can be number one (wii-wii).
Who would win this election: Andrew Weiner vs Andrew Weiner's weiner.
What color is your Wii?
The jokes aren't going away. There's an endless stream. You may be prepared to drink in the Wii, but the thing is going to be mocked endlessly.
GCHQ Quantum Insert installed. If only our tongues were made of glass, how much more careful we would be when we speak
I've seen the logo the first time today. Somehow it really reminds me of the Sony Vaio logo..
Georg
With Revolution, everyone knew how to pronounce it. With WII, you can do "we", "Why" and some other colorful pronounces. Imagine parents going to a store to buy this new system for the kids with the "why" pronounciation. It'll become a Abbot and Costello skit:
Parent: I'm looking for the New Nintendo system
Sales Guy: the Nintendo WII?
P: because my kid wants it.
SG: Right, ok so you want the Nintendo WII?
P: I heard it was new and revolutionary
SG: WII is revolutionary, it has a great controler, and cool features, I'll get you 1 Nintendo WII
P: Because i want to buy it
SG: I know you want to buy the Nintendo WII
P: forget it get me the Xbox
It was going to be called poo, but then they decided they'd rather be number one.
Who would win this election: Andrew Weiner vs Andrew Weiner's weiner.
"You haven't heard the last of Adam Wii!"
Keeper of the Wang
"Why is it that what you just said strikes me as a massive rationalization?"
... I don't know anyone who could get through the day without two or three juicy rationalizations. They're more important than sex."
"Don't knock rationalization
"Ah, come on. Nothing's more important than sex."
"Oh yeah? Ever gone a week without a rationalization?"
I remember in 1985 when Nintendo announced their game machine. I believe I said something sarcastic like, "Huh... 'Nintendo'... That just ROLLS off the tongue, doesn't it?" One quick year later and it was all but a household name with Christmas shoppers looking for those 'intendo tapes'. Since then, I haven't doubted the power of Nintendo to change the face of video gaming. They haven't been #1 for some time, but perhaps they don't need to be.
'Wii' is a strange choice for a name, but I bet you and I won't forget it for a while. Maybe we've all gotten hung up with numbers. Xbox/360, PS2/3, etc. Look at the gfx card wars - what the hell do those numbers mean? 1900 XTX, 7900 GTO, etc. Maybe ATI or Nvidia could learn from this and go back to real names for their cards.
"...Well, there's egg and bacon; egg sausage and bacon; egg and spam; egg bacon and spam; egg bacon sausage and spam..."
I can only imagine that this name was dreamt up in Japan; it certainly has that feel. The logotype is similar to what many other Japanese companies use, moreso in Japan than here. Japanese companies also have a bad habit of coming up with some horrendous english-inspired names.
You can find some particular good examples in the Japanese domestic automotive market. The Mitsubishi Galant is called the Grunder there. They have a van like car called the Freeca. Honda has a car called the Vamos Hobio and another one called the Thats. It's even worse for other products but we rarely see the problem here because things tend to be localized.
Either Nintendo of America was forced to go with the name or they actually liked it, we really have no way of knowing. Nintendo sometimes seems to make decisions based solely on the Japanese consumer.
Regardless of how ridiculous Wii may sound I think it poses some serious issues for Nintendo. It's a short, simple word something I could easily see associated with a children's product. More serious gamers and adults might have a very hard time taking something called the Wii seriously. Imagine a game like Grand Theft Auto played on a console with this name; it just doesnt seem to fit.
The Gamecube already suffered from the perception that it was a kid's console, so I don't really see how the Wii is going to help. Given the fact that the PS3 seems like it wont be nearly as expensive as people were predicting I think Nintendo is going to have a lot of competition. It's looking like this generation will play itself out much in the same way as the previous one.
...Remember years ago when Nintendo WASN'T a household name? I was beside myself that a Japanese company would have the temerity to release a console with such a foreign sounding name. At least 'Atari' didn't seem as clumsy. BUT... In the end, 'intendo' won out ('intendo' is the way most people pronounced the name initially).
This move doesn't surprise me and in fact, I think it's a gutsy thing to do. I say go for it big N!
"...Well, there's egg and bacon; egg sausage and bacon; egg and spam; egg bacon and spam; egg bacon sausage and spam..."
...Hardcore fans said it was going to suck - BIG TIME. Hell, we were even told by the new Commander Adama himself that if we were fans of the old one, we'd hate the new one.
But look what happened. It won over everyone who gave it a chance through its sheer brilliance. Now we don't know yet what Wii will hold for gamers, but I suspect there are far more surprises in store.
Nintendo truly threw the book away and started over with this thing and I for one welcome it.
"...Well, there's egg and bacon; egg sausage and bacon; egg and spam; egg bacon and spam; egg bacon sausage and spam..."
Will it run Wiinux?
and will it start a Wii vs Emacs war?
It's different. And the best part is watching people get so upset over the name of a game console.
Just like they called the NES, snes, n64, ps1, ps2, genesis, gamecube and almost every other console.
You see "Nintendo" means "home console" for MANY people who are not very familiar with videogames, which is who nintendo is targetting. They will call this "that new nintendo."
And hardcore gamers? Well, they know enough not to base a purchase on something like a silly name. They would buy it if it were called "the nintendo stinky brown mass."
no
You know, who gives a shit what the name of the product is? I mean AMD 3800+ means about as much to me as "Wii". If you are that insecure that you fear that your friends might mock your console name, you've got some problems.
If someone is really going to make a console buying decision based on the name, that says more about them than it does about the console.
If it has good games and is fun I don't give a shit if they call it "The Hitler-Stalin Glorification of Fucking Yeast Infected Nuns in the Ass and Eating Babies and Anyone Who Buys One is a Homo StationCube 360"
Since I can't tell them apart, I treat all ACs as the same person.
I think Wii is an incredible name, but it doesn't matter what I think. I could cite many pointless references to many different examples for both sides of the arguement. All I have to say is we will see when the time comes. I just do not really see the name of this console effecting my decision to buy it.
The Mitsubishi Pajero in Argentina has been rebranded as 'Montero'.
Since 'Pajero' roughly means "a guy that masturbates very often / is horny all the time ".
The choice of name for an international product is quite hard (name collisions are the worst part), and cultural differences can cause a disaster for a product.
I'm glad I don't have your taste buds. Neither New Coke, nor Coke II tasted like Pepsi. New Coke came out first, was pulled, then Coke II came out. I liked both of them, but I don't know how much they tasted like each other because I have to taste things right after each other to compare them.
Whe I first read the Wii name in a syndication feed, I thought it was the name of a WiFi service Nintendo was providing. Then there's the similarity between Wii and Wee, making it seem like a more suitable name for a portable game system or something else of the like.
My first reaction was that it reminded me of Viiv. Since the "feel" of the name Wii... the branding, the "x-factor" of that name... seems a lot like what Intel may have also been going for. Which would have been OK if Viiv had been successful. But it's not. No one really knows what the hell is so special about Viiv, and aren't likely to be manipulated into it by the nifty new name. So... gosh... if the only think Nintendo had going for it in the console was was the Revolution name, I'm sad for them that they switched to Wii. Honestly, this is something only an old-fashioned Japanese company would do. Every other highly sucessful modern Japanese company knows that although they have the very best technology, people still want to see it slathered in American culture. The sleek PS3, the cars, the consumer electronics, mostly have a nice style to them. Wii won't settle for something that gets lost in translation here.
"Whee!" Been a l-o-n-g time since something was fun enough to revert that far into childhood - I'm looking forward to owning one.
Take the 90-Day Challenge! http://rwmurker.bodybyvi.com/
It *created* the American gaming scene? Other than saying that those who would disagree are just 'fooling ourselves', how would you defend this position?
The Atari 2600 sold roughly the same number of units as Ford's Model T did a couple generations previously. Would you deny the T's place in history since later cars outsold it? The VW bug *created* the American driving scene? How about the Corolla?
Have you considered the golden age of arcade gaming? Billions of dollars. Arcade games sprouting in every store in the country. Songs. Newspaper articles. Books. Television shows. This culture is directly responsible for the desire to plug a game system into the home television. Here are the true roots of gaming. Historically notable and wildly popular.
The NES was big. It increased the market. It was not the progenitor of the gaming line, only a rung on the evolutionary ladder.
VVii
Wii
How long do you think it'll be until Nintendo allows you to buy a version of the controller for a Viiv?
No, I will not work for your startup
So, because of the name everyone's talking about Nintendo's console.
You are wrong.
Before this, a large portion of the internet, including both gaming and non-gaming sites, was talking about Nintendo's console. They were talking about the new Madden. They were talking about Red Steel. They were talking about the console.
Now, no one is talking about Nintendo's console.
Now, everyone is talking about the name of the console.
The more time people spend thinking about the superficial elements like the name, the less time they spend thinking about important things like the actual product itself and the philosophy it represents. This will not bring attention to Nintendo's new system. All it will do is distract from it.
Before this, Nintendo had momentum. They had buzz. They had controversy. They had an ongoing public debate about their console which was drawing attention to the console and setting it apart from the crowd of other, unambitious consoles which it competes against and which have gone before.
Now, all Nintendo has is an internet flamewar.
This is not success. Nintendo has failed. Nintendo has failed in the most extreme way imaginable. This is the worst name that they could have possibly come up with; is an embarrassment, not a triumph; and nothing is so embarrassing as the attempts we are seeing by PR flacks and blogs to desperately spin a name that means "urine" and will never mean anything but "urine".
The emperor has walked out on stage at E3 naked, and now a whole bunch of people on the internet are trying to convince us all that nudism is really a liberating and progressive philosophy and we should really see the benefits of having a naked emperor. The problem is, the emperor simply just doesn't look good naked. If the emperor were really attractive, like if the emperor were Viggo Mortensen or something, people would shrug and come to live with this situation. But that's not the case; it's just unsettling and unpleasant. Everyone would be happier if he'd just put some clothes on.
I'm really surprised I haven't seen anyone calling it the Wi^2 yet, just to be different.
NINTENDO WRYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY
twentynine.us
"Try to bomb the harbor!" --Chinpoko Mon, South Park
This naming for the Revolution is akin to the genius behind American Idols Ace
/yes i watch AI. *cries*
singing Queen's rock anthem WWRY in a falsetto.
"Have you seen my Wii controller?"
"Are you up for Wii tonight?"
"I'm a big fan of Wii games."
"We have a problem. Someone took a Wii in the display case."
"I know hard-core gamers prefer the other systems, but my taste runs more towards Wii."
"I can't make it tonight. My Wii is down."
"You know I can't help you with that, Ms. Bobbit. Hacking your husband's Wii will void the warranty."
-BbT
Atari: A whole bunch of numbers, and a Jaguar. The latter was cool, but that didnt seem to help.
Sega: Master System, CD, 32x - unoriginal and uninteresting. Genesis and Saturn were cool, but they didnt seem to have too great an effect on whether the system failed/succeeded. Dreamcast! Does anyone remember how people felt after hearing this? A gaming console where I can "cast" my "dreams" into? Today, it doesnt even register as odd. If this system had an amazing name, it still would have had the same fate.
Sony: I remember back to the days where this urNOT"e" marketting campaign was trying to sell me some "station" that I could "play" on, right next to the other "multimedia" consoles at the time. Today, a great name, but before it settled on our ears, this name had the same effect as maybe "funbox" or "happytimesmachine"... "playstation".
Microsoft: XBox (360) - boring sequel name (It spun around and came out exactly where it started?), differing opinions on the original name.
Colecovision / Intellivision - boo
Odyssey - interesting
The point is that how you percieve a console name at first is completely different to how you percieve it after a few years, or only a few months even. Great consoles have their names reflected back unto them in greatness. I know that without a doubt, a few months after we are all playing with the wii, we will think back to April 2006 and say "Remember how we all thought wii was an odd name?" Marketers want a name that can be remembered and distinguished. Wii won.
the Poo add-on?
We may, indeed, share 98% of our genes with chimpanzees, but then, we share 47% with cabbages.
NES - Nintendo Entertainment System - Does what it says on the box.
SNES - Super Nintendo Entertainment System - Same as NES, but 'super..er'
N64 - Nintendo 64 - It's made my Nintendo and it's got 64bits.
Gamecube - It plays games and it's an erm Cube shape.
Wii - WTF!!
Nintendo have quite clearly taken leave of their senses with this one. I mean.. look I can't really talk about this any more, it's making me upset, alright?
I heard this one from someone who alleges he was involved in naming the 4Runner. I'm not sure I believe him--he is somewhat of a liar--but it's a fun story anyway. I don't know if it's true.
Originally, the 4Runner was to be called the 4Play. After all, it's a Sport Utility Vehicle. So it's for play, versus being for work. Supposedly, this is also somewhat akin to what it is called in Japan.
And, yes, they had to explain that they couldn't really call it that. Which is why it is the 4Runner.
Again, I can't speak for the veracity of the story. But it is amusing.
That's exactly what I was trying to say! But I was modded out of the conversation.
Oh well, and I thought my post was pretty funny. *toot toot*
Since we are both being modded away here, why do you think the NES ruined gaming? (Really, no flaming or whatever, it's a viewpoint that's alien to me - I've never heard anyone argue/defend it).
On some GameFAQs boards I frequent, I couldn't see a topic about Wii on the first page; this compared to the controller where every third topic was about it.
On the RPGDL forums it was linked briefly, and commented on, but by today the discussion had already changed to whether a hacker from brittain should be extradited to the United States.
On my company email at Shaba (an Activision studio) the name change was mentioned and a few jokes were passed around, but today the email distractions were all about LARPers (and to a lesser extend X360's decent jump in Japanese sales last week).
All in all, more buzz than the namechange from Xenon to X360, but when I have to actively search for discussion about it, it's not much buzz.
How many kids did I know who played the 'VCS'? At the time? None. All of us played ATARI. Very few knew the system as the 'Video Computer System'. I suspect that mindset transferred over to Nintendo when they took over the market. No one but hardcore hackers even knew the 2600 name for the VCS before 1984.
"...Well, there's egg and bacon; egg sausage and bacon; egg and spam; egg bacon and spam; egg bacon sausage and spam..."
I hear the scottish version of this console is shipping with a Wii DRM.
"Nine times out of ten, starting a fire is not the best way to solve the problem." - my wife
During the SNES days, Ninendo named its cd-addon calling it the 'playstation'. Sony took that name to market with Nintendo suing them. Nintendo was unsuccessful. Playstation is a Nintendo name as well. Aside from Sega and the Xbox, Nintendo has name practically every console we know.
Tetris did it with 8 bits! :P
Multiplayer Gaming (defined): Sitting around, discussing single-player games with my friends, at the bar.
What not to name a system with a dildo-shaped controller:
Something that rhymes with 'wee'.
Their focus groups must not have any American males, really.
Tell me something...it's still "We, the people"... right?
Uh... you do realize they are going to be marketed as 'i' controllers. i agianst i.
Two controllers making the name Wii. People are going to know the name and that the controllers are different.
If you end up by yourself with a dead end console, you might revise that opinion.
Since we are both being modded away here, why do you think the NES ruined gaming?
Nintendo Entertainment System was the first time that a console with a lockout chip had a near monopoly on the North American electronic gaming market. Nintendo of America shut out smaller companies from being able to develop or publish for the NES. The company also heavily censored games; for example it forced crosses to be replaced with hearts or "RIP" and outright rejected titles such as The King of Kings that dealt with religious scenes (which was eventually published through an "unlicensed" company).
You are right.
The day or two before the release of the new name, there were at least 3 new games announced and there was renewed speculation on what the other hidden feature could be. Now I just think about wanting the silly name to go away.
I think the Wii logo/animation is cute... but they could have used the same animation to promote wi-fi.
Umm... check the first Wii article?
vii is more like a VVi then a wee i think...
Woefully idiotic insignia.
Tepples has perfectly valid points as well, but I never really thought of it that way.
Nintendo and the NES brought us the Gamepad controller. Gamepads are just absolutely awful controllers. And ever since, all we've had is the same crappy gamepad, just larger and larger, till the Xbox monstrosity.
"Champagne for my real friends - and real pain for my sham friends!" http://ericblade.postalboard.com/
"I know I sure as hell am NOT going to say to the store clerk 'Hi, I'd like to buy that Wii you have there.'"
Me neither.
I'm probably going to buy mine online.
This is my sig. It's prescription, I swear. I need it for reading things... on the other side of things
Can I have a +4 funny now? ...
No?
Ah well. Congrats on your good fortune you funny dog you.
This is my sig. It's prescription, I swear. I need it for reading things... on the other side of things
However, with a name that seems to be so bad, they are going to have to deliver an amazing console now. Something where people don't feel any embarassment telling their friends.
Does anyone think that the PokeMon name helped to generate buzz for the game in America? It seemed like for years "PokeMon" was unpronouncable for adults and yet it became the biggest thing ever. If the semi-gibberish PokeMon name was responsible somehow for generating interest for the game in the English-speaking world, perhaps Nintendo is wise to replicate the "What's that mean?" factor with the Wii.
You kind of wonder why they didn't continue down this line that they started. NES, Super NES, Super Terrific NES (N64), Ultra NES (GameCube), and finally Uber Super Teriffic Fancy NES.
Oddly enough, the N64 was originally going to be called the Ultra 64.
but because of that, the their approximation comes out too "long" sounding. This happens with most of their katakana English, which is why then then cut the words short (conbini, depaato, etc) I forget the reason that Japanese does not have wi, we, and wu (wo is quite rare, only wa is a common sound).
Get this. That stupid name threw me so much it has taken me a fortnight to realise we are talking about a Nintendo machine and not the PS3. 1/- That's a relief. 2/- duh...