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How Wii Is Creaming the Competition
CNN has a report on the Wii's success in the games marketplace right now, referring to their sales dominance as 'creaming the competition'. The article tries to break down exactly why Nintendo's console has sold so successfully, discussing the system's marketing, engineering, and philosophy. "Next, engineers settled on a new approach for the Wii's looks. Just as the DS shunned the Game Boy name to appeal to a broader audience, the Wii would adopt a sleek white exterior instead of the toylike loud colors used on the GameCube. Even CEO Iwata got involved in the design process; at one point he handed engineers a stack of DVD jewel cases and told them the console should not be much bigger. Why so small? To work with the motion-sensitive wireless controller Nintendo planned, Iwata reasoned, the console would have to sit directly beside the TV. Make it any larger and customers would hesitate to leave it there. " Their sales strategy is working in spades. CVG reports that at least one analyst thinks that Wii demand won't be met until 2009. This past weekend Chris Kohler had an interesting comment on the 'ambassador programs' Nintendo ran in advance of the Wii's launch, and how that might tie in to the system's financial success.
I'd have to say it's quite obvious. Nintendo is creaming the competition by selling more units then them...
The PS3 really bungled their launch, and they didn't provide any competion at all.
The Xbox360 marketed itself to "hardcore" gamers who spend all day playing, and has little appeal to casual gamers and the general public at large.
This left 80% of the market open for the Wii to sell to, and they effectively had no competition.
...but I will buy an xbox 360 once Halo comes out. I'm pretty much still having fun with my OG xbox and could care less about cross-grading.
Yeah, right.
The Wii also has the advantage of being hit with supply problems. Nothing makes the average consumer want something more than knowing they can't have it. It's affordable, has some pretty good games out there at release, and is in short supply. It's a trifecta!
"It is a miracle that curiosity survives formal education." -Albert Einstein
Personally, I own both a 360 and a Wii, and while I've had tremendous fun with my Wii - especially over the holidays - I've recently found myself playing my 360 again. The lack of integrated multiplayer as well as the poor selection for Wii titles is making me start to regret my purchase, which is the last thing I want to do. Really, I've enjoy the Wii a lot so far, and I'm excited to see what developers will do to utilize this unique system, but if they don't start coming out with titles that aren't lousy ports from the other systems, I may find myself selling the poor thing. I could probably get double what I paid for it, too.
Blerg.
A few months ago, I would have said the challenge was getting new games for the Wii into the market. We're still in a bit of a drought (depending on your taste in games), but there's a lot in the pipeline. Game makers are switching over to support the Wii given it's new found popularity and growing market share.
Nintendo's challenge will be to produce enough units to meet demand without sacrificing quality. They were clearly surprised by the demand, and have been slowly ramping up production. They are at a production volume of 1 million a month, and ramping to 1.5 million / month.
[Insert pithy quote here]
Their sales strategy is working in spades. At least one analyst thinks that Wii demand won't be met until 2009.
And that analyst should be fired. I think it is much more likely that the Wii will be able to catch up to demand in 3 to 4 months. Right now there are 1000s of Wii consoles up on Ebay. So I feel some of the demand is a bit artificial due to people trying to make a quick buck.
What I find interesting is that the PS2 is outselling the Wii (of course, we don't know if the Wii would outsell the PS2 if it could increase its supply enough..it probably would). I mean, it makes sense because it has the largest library and still has great games coming out for it...but still...I don't remember this happening in the previous previous generation.
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The Wii is not a threat to the 360 because the only market segment that overlaps between the two is also the market segment that would not think twice at buying both. Nintendo and Microsoft strategically position their products to harm Sony, which tries to have (almost) as broad an appeal as the Wii and fails largely because of the price point, and tries to be as hardcore as the 360 and fails largely because of the lack of games. Both companies working together strengthens both their positions and damages their mutual competitor.
Rex is 09 F9 11 02 9D 74 E3 5B D8 41 56 C5 63 56 88 C0
This reminds me of how Palm succeeded where Newton failed. I liked the Newton, but Newton design was driven by a futuristic vision. Palm design was built around simple practical aspects of the user's experience, such as the utility of carrying the device around in a shirt pocket comfortably.
You'd think human centered product design would be a no-brainer, but clearly its harder to do than it sounds. It isn't just getting the details right, its being bold in choosing not to do things. Making shrewd decisions not to do things conventionally thought necesssary characterize the breakthrough designs of the Wii and Palm.
I think the reason that we see so few excellent product designs is that its hard to let go of preconceptions. So much of business runs on swagger.
Post may contain irony: discontinue use if experiencing mood swings, nausea or elevated blood pressure.
Well, I still think there are many problems with Nintendo Wii, but still I would like to use the Wiimote on my computer (if I could get the bluetooth to work on my computer!)
simple, fun games. The biggest names for the PS3 still arnt out, and people wont buy a consol on the expectaion of getting something worth playing later. The 360, while it does have some great games, is a bit of a one trick pony... playing to the hardcore, collage aged gamer with tones of time to play.
fun, quick games, reasonable price point, and finally doing something NEW has put the Wii on top.
the preceding post was not spell checked... suck it.
Console sales are all very nice and all BUT what counts is the sale of software for that console.
I personally think that it says an awfull lot about the game industry that the top scorer for march was God of War 2 for the PS2.
What then does this tell us? That an ancient console beats EVERY SINGLE current console, handheld and regular, in sales?
Oh and number 2 and 3 in software sales (console) went to the 360.
So where is the success of the Wii?
Granted the Wii ain't subsidised, so Nintendo doesn't need to sell X titles per console just to get their money back but still, if the Wii ends up un-used then Nintendo could still end up with a loser. Lots of hardware sales but no software sales.
In a way, its success could even make this more likely. Exactly how many of the games now being rushed to the Wii are going to be piss poor cynical cash-ins? Genuine Wii games will take time to emerge but if Nintendo can't proof it can get games sold they won't be developed especially if the cheap quickie attempts die the death they deserve.
None of this means that the Wii is going to fail, just that pure console sale figures so far don't mean much.
The only one who should really worry at the moment is Sony, the PS3 isn't scoring with the either hardware or software sales. Pity I suppose but with the PS2 still doing well, perhaps they can afford the wait.
MMO Quests are like orgasms:
You may solo them, I prefer them in a group.
I'm curious about the Wii's software sales. Every non-gamer I know has 2-3 games...
1. Wii Sports
2. Wii Play
3. MAYBE one other game (usually Trauma Center)
The only reason they get Wii Play is it comes with the controller and you need to have at least 2 controllers for the Wii.
I also don't know any one that's bought more than 2 controllers.
So far the 360 seems to have great software sales - with a high number of games sold for every console out there.
The PS3 can't seem to sell consoles or software - but that's mostly because they have no real killer games out there driving sales for the system.
It'll be interesting in a year when the Wii has been out there and the non gamers either continue to play or get sick of Wii Sports/Wii Play and get rid of their Wii or if they'll actually end up buying more games and keeping their consoles. The 360 should continue with a step ahead in the number of 'great' games for a while, and once the PS3 starts getting more killer gamers, it'll be interesting if those sales go up or stay stale and behind that of the 360.
... the rule that says all games have to be big budget extravaganzas which fail if they're not mega-blockbusters. Take a look at Wii Sports, Hazimete no Wii (sorry, don't know what the English version was called), or even the Wario game. These are not games with $20 million development budgets which have to sell hundreds of thousands of copies just to break even. Thus, they don't have to get bought by EVERYONE who owns the console -- even a slice of a slice of the gaming pie works for them. And if you look at the games-per-Wii attach rate rather than the sales-per-megahit rate, Wii is kicking some serious booty (probably has something to do with the fact that Wii + half dozen games is still cheaper than some of the other options). If there are five fun party games and everybody buys one to three, then each game individually sells a heck of a lot less than a system-making killer app like FFVII or Halo, but Nintendo still laughs their way to the bank.
Help poke pirates in the eyepatch, arr.
...that most of the Wii's killer apps have been slated for a second half 2007 release or later. That includes Super Mario Galaxy, Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, and Super Smash Bros. Brawl, among other titles. Also, don't forget that Virtual Console games don't make it into the top ten chart but make up a good amount of sales for Nintendo, and that keeps users happy when a drought in genuine Wii titles occurs. As for the PS2's game earning the number 1 spot on the top ten list, it's more of a coincidence because development on it started before PS3 dev kits could be properly research and implemented, and yet its released after the PS3 hits the streets. Don't worry, this kind of thing won't be happening too often. It would've been the same situation with Final Fantasy XII if the PS3 and Wii were released in October.
For the short time anyways, but then that is at least half the war this generation around. The other half will be to continue to provide great content to keep up with the superior horsepower of its two competitors a year or two down the road. They've got a good start as developers like EA are shifting more resources to develop games for it and everyone inside and out of the industry is taking note. Wherever we see cross platform games, the wii is going to suffer among those gamers that are gamers and own multiple systems. But like the article says, the wii is marketed to those people that aren't necessarily gamers or don't care about the best graphics or hottest games. Very smart decision from the getgo by Nintendo, they took risks and the rewards are now plain to see and Sony has had the rug pulled out from under them. I t will be interesting to see thing as they are towards the end of '07. But for now, Nintendo and their wii console are the golden boy,...again.
Gaming for over 25 years
http://boardsus.playstation.com/playstation/board/ message?board.id=psx2&thread.id=656
Sony did many things wrong with the PS2, there's no way it will be #1... it'll probably be #2 or even #3. The reason the PSX is so cool and successful is that it appeals to EVERYONE, not just a select crowd of people. PlayStation2 will be stuck in the middle between Dreamcast and Dolphin... the only thing that it won't have between DC and Dolphin is the price... PS2 will be the most expensive of the three.
God Fucking Damnit
I still can't help thinking of the machine as the Nintendo Piss.
Don't worry, when you get older you'll find that urge subsides.
Nintendo has an unusual sales strategy with the Wii. They put together a system and games that lots of people want to play, they price it within reach of the bulk of the market, and they make a profit on every unit sold (consoles as well as games). They have a similar strategy with the DS. This stands in sharp contrast to the industry standard of selling high priced consoles at a loss to a small segment of the gamer market and attempting to make up the difference through game sales and production cost reductions.
Shockingly, Nintendo is making money hand over fist while the gaming divisions of Microsoft and Sony are still looking at several years of losses before they reach profitability with the newest generation of gaming systems.
Being over 40 and not a gamer, I have zero interest in mastering one of those fancy pants controllers like the Xbox has. But I'd like to play games with my kids. It's no fun for you kid to race cArs with you if your continually driving it to the wall on level one, which is my forte. having tried it once I can see that while I'm still disoriented a bit, the wii controller gets you to a high and competitive level fast. I'd consider getting one so we could both enjoy it.
Some drink at the fountain of knowledge. Others just gargle.
The only thing I've ever seen in televised sports is shooting the ball into the hoop[1]. How is that fun? How is that interesting? How is that a puzzle? Where's the plot? It's mindless repetition. I don't get it.
[1] "Hoop" can include the fair quadrant of the audience seating (baseball), the goal (hockey or soccer), the perimeter of the end zone (gridiron football), or the other side's half of the court (lawn tennis).
Agreed. As far as the games themselves, I enjoyed the on-rails shooting the best in Rayman. The game was fun, and funny, but I kept going back to that part. I honestly think Red Steel would have worked better as an Arcade Style on rails shooter than a FPS. Had they gone that route instead I'm sure it would have played alot better.
On a side note... Where are the gun games for the VC? Duck Hunt, and Hogan's Alley were rated by the ESRB since January... Where are they at?
people like new things... and since the other "new things" require other "new things" (ie - HDTV's), and with the wii being quite a bit cheaper, it makes sense. Nintendo strikes gold again.
I haven't seen a Wii for sale in any store for months.
Some mornings it's hardly worth chewing through the restraints to get out of bed.
"Cream" is a vernacular term for semen, which comes out of the same male human body part as wee.
The name could be "American Creaming" or somesuch.
Man, am I in a mood for juvenile bad humour today. And not even doing it AC.
I want to play Free Market with a drowning Libertarian.
Yea, if i did buy a wii, i would spend the first day attempting to remove from it all references to its unfortunate name.
What the hell were they thinking? They shouldve just gone ahead & named it "little baby pee pee goo goo gaa"
ugh
There is one obvious fact that Sony seemed to have forgotten is price point. While there are people who want a gaming console with all the bells and whistles for $$$$$, most prefer a cost around $200 with games around $25. You go too high, and the problem results in why buy a console instead of a PC, why should I pay so much for my kid's game machine, etc.
Every time the Wii is discussed, someone cracks a joke about "playing with his Wii", and there's much giggling. Combined with the hand gestures that arise from the new controllers, it's all one big phallic joke. And now it's "creaming" the competition. Lol. That's why.
The "cue the foo posts in 3, 2, 1..." posts will commence with no subsequent foo posts in 3, 2, 1...
Which has me baffled. The 360 is much LESS 'casual player' friendly than the Wii, Yet XBLA has much more Casual friendly titles than the VC. I have a Wii60 myself, and While the 360 has networked Hearts, Uno, Poker... Even Pac Man!... come on Nintendo where is the Sudoku game, or Dr. Mario, or Poker, or a 'Crossword Puzzle game' something, anything even universal staples like pacman / frogger would be great.
Personally, I love the classics on the VC, and I'm one of the few people I know who thinks they are fairly priced (IF you don't think Zelda: lttp, Donkey Kong Country or Gunstar heroes are worth $8 each you're crazy.), but what about say, my retired parents?
Nintendo has tapped a broader demographic of casual gamers, but what can they buy? Most of the games out now (at retail, and VC) are still catering to the hardcore...
At work we have all the major gaming consoles that have been released. So lately we have gotten a Xbox 360, Wii and also a Playstation 3. For some strange reason, people are just always playing the Wii, and they are having a lot of fun.
I guess the differences in their natures are even more apparent when there are a lot of people around, and everyone will only play a short session. Maby the Playstation would be more fun at home alone sitting for hours in front of it?
Anyway, I claim the advertising is correct, and the Wii is just loads more fun then the others. Or from my (non gamer) point of view "far less boring".
Do any of those non-gamers buy VC games, though? I know if I had a Wii, that's where most of my game dollars would go until I could get the real Wii games for a little cheaper. $50/game might look good next to the other consoles, but "non-gamers" probably still see it as steep - $5-10 for a VC game, though, is just what they're looking for, with nostalgia to boot.
Warning: Apple/Nintendo fangirl. Likes her electronics cute & cuddly. May be rabid.
Nintendo still gets paid, but it's harder to establish a new line if sales are being lost to another platform (even your own).
Welcome to Sony's dilema. The PS2 needs to stick around because it's the only thing making them money right now, but its' longevity doesn't help the PS3 get adopted as a platform.
This is an example of what creativity and hard work get you:
Money, Power, and Respect.
Multiplayer Gaming (defined): Sitting around, discussing single-player games with my friends, at the bar.
OMG!!! The data set of analysts' predictions has an outlier??? We should definitely pay the most attention to that estimate and not even mention the average predicted date for demand being met.
The success of the Wii isn't some esoteric nonsense. It's very simple: Nintendo built something that people actually want. Instead of listening to the very small demographic of the hardcore gamers and hardcore developers whose world revolves around frames per second, polygon count, pixel shaders and rendering pipelines, they asked themselves (and probably lots of other people) what Joe and Jane want in a gaming console.
So what do Joe and Jane want? Fun, something to play together and with friends, something that's easy. Gameplay first, killer graphics second.
And the thing is: Most of what Joe and Jane want also appears to Harald Hardcore. A fun game simply is a fun game, and even if you could code better graphics yourself on your overclocked PC, it still is a fun game.
And that's the hard part: Coding is the easy part of game design. Making a good game is the hard part. Always has been. Maybe that's why so many PC and Xbox and PS3 titles try to sell on their graphics alone.
Assorted stuff I do sometimes: Lemuria.org
I have figured out the secret to the success of the Wii. Women like it. People have been talking about the elusive "woman gamer" for some time. Nintendo finally found them. Last weekend some guys from my office went to a party that featured a Wii. They played various Wii games with a group of woman until past midnight. One guy even scored. That would not have happened with an Xbox 360 party.
First the ability to download classic titles which grows everyday. This help to negate the fact that Wii doeesn't have many new titles. I downloaded altered beast and pretended I was 12 years old again. Im 25 now for reference purposes. Second the classic controller, people seem to think you must use a wiimote for everyday its quite the contrary the classic games usually require a classic remote. The wii isn't limited by its choice of controller its enhanced by it.
You said God of War 2 was #1 in sales recently. (It is a fantastic game by the way.... money well spent). You gotta realize that all those people who are still enjoying their PS2's (like myself right now), are just gonna get a PS3 when their PS2 konks out because they already have an incredible library of games that'll still play for them. PS2 easily has the strongest game library out there right now, and that's a LOT of momentum when people know that they can keep playing their favorite games. I know that I haven't scratched the surface of good games for the PS2, and I'm buying up all the "Greatest Hits" up now at $20/each.
Currently playing: Burnout Revenge! on my PS2
I don't respond to AC's.
The PS3 is starting to heal now that some first party titles (i.e. Motorstorm) are coming into existence and a lot of stuff is just around the corner. At launch, there weren't many games for the PS3. Now there are quite a few, which is helping sales tremendously. I of all people thought it was going to fall flat on its face but can definitely see the appeal now.
How you can call the 360 a system for "hardcore gamers only" is beyond me. Xbox Live Arcade alone disproves that argument in my mind. There is a huge library of games for the 360 at this point appealing to both hardcore and casual alike.
Hats off to the Wii for being a great system despite early predictions of its failure (remember when the name "Wii" was announced and we all had a good laugh? Who's laughing now?) Bottom line is that any of the 3 next gen systems is a good buy at this point so it's going to come down to personal preference. Fanboys suck.
Sorry, the Wii invented its market and it is completely separate from that shared by the next-gen consoles. The Wii's market is the cheap family - especially any parent who thinks the Wii is going to be an exercise machine. Sony and Microsoft's strategies have very, very little focus on families.
Saying the Wii is blowing away the "competition" is sort of like suggesting that the Honda Accord is dominating Corvette and Porsche.
Duuuuuh, no idea. Let's see who I am.
:)
I want to play games, but I can't play 10 hours a day anymore, my boss won't like that idea. So, I need something for "casual" gamers. I need something fun and exciting, and preferably something that looks good at parties too, 'cause a lot of my friends tend to play, too. But we don't want to play games that take long to learn and master, since that's usually no good at parties, unless everyone played that game already to master it. No fun to get your ass handed constantly at SSBM.
So we need something neat, something enjoyable and preferably not something where I first of all have to sink a month's spending money into. And it should be portable so I can take it to my friends without lugging more crap around than the average soldier carries into battle. It should also work with "normal" TV sets 'cause not everyone who happens to have a party has HDTV.
Look at the available current consoles and you end up almost automatically at the Wii.
It has a fun and exciting way of playing that even intrigues those that usually shun consoles 'cause they don't like sitting around and staring at a screen at parties. It also doesn't require that you learn some controller movements and have itchy thumbs, 'cause the movements you make are the same that you would make at "normal" tennis or bowling. No console junkie has the ultimate advantage over you "normal" guy, even if you never played it you can at least play with the long time players sensibly, you don't have to memorize strange button combinations to pull off some magical moves.
It is the ultimate party console, it is very portable and most of all, it's cheap, not only the console itself but also the games aren't as horribly overpriced as many others. Wii games are usually cheaper than anything comparable at the PS3 (at least here, ymmv).
Now, it may not be the console for the hardcore, badass gamer who digs into games, relentlessly running against that boss for hours and hours until it falls. Gamers with this attitude will most likely not enjoy a Wii, most games are fairly "easy". But it does definitly fit into the casual market.
And the casual market is actually also the one that's able (not willing, the hardcore gamers are certainly more willing, but able) to spend the most money on games. We casual gamers tend to have a job.
We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
I can't believe I'm replying to this, but that's exactly what he was saying... you see, he turned the tense and the subject around. Instead of saying the Wii is creaming its competition, he said the PS3 is getting creamed by its own competition. His point was that the PS3 is getting creamed by XBox/Wii more than Wii is creaming XBox/PS3.
At least, that's how I read it.
how Wii ARE Creaming the Competition?
there's nothing that makes me happier than to see early adopters of any console complain about the games selection.
I have no really desire for any of those games you mentioned. If I did I would have gotten them for my PS2. :)
If they did a game like Thief for the Wii I might sign up. I don't know if ports of "mature" aka lots of blood and killing will help the Wii. There is very little that the Wii can bring to one of those games that you can not get with a 360 or PS3.
Maybe a Greenarrow game would be interesting or the dreamed for Starwars light saber game. Just imagine the number of YouTube uploads that will cause
Need what people like to call mature games. We need fun games and yes maybe some very different games.
Vice City, no thanks.
See my blog http://ilovecookes.blogspot.com/ for light hearted technical information.
Nintendo does not inspire consumer hatred like Microsoft and Sony. The console is also cheaper.
It's very simple, actually.
If they did a game like Thief for the Wii I might sign up. I don't know if ports of "mature" aka lots of blood and killing will help the Wii.
I disagree with the use of the term 'Mature' myself, but the common use of a 'Mature game' in video games implies something along the lines of Grand Theft Auto which is rated 'Mature'; rather than a game like 'Hotel Dusk' which is targeting a demographic that I would deam 'Mature'. To clarify for the sake of this discussion 'Mature' is in reference to games that include excessive violence, explosions, blood, gore and tits (not the birds).
Need what people like to call mature games. We need fun games and yes maybe some very different games. Vice City, no thanks.
Honestly, I would like a GTA on Wii. Not for me personally, but there is a long list of games I don't play (Final Fantasy, Pokemon, Metal Gear Solid) that have huge followings and if they are on a platform it can only help promote it. If there is a Manhunt, or Bully, on the platform (that I won't buy), then maybe someday there will be a game like Max Payne 3 (that I will buy), because the developer has brought their audiance over to that platform.
There is very little that the Wii can bring to one of those games that you can not get with a 360 or PS3.
Of that I can only disagree. Play the Godfather on the PS2 or PS3, then play it on the Wii. You can physically grab someone, and slam them to a wall, punch them, or smash them with a baseball bat all with motion controls, as well as aiming your gun with the remote's IR function. These aren't just afterthoughts tacked on. These elements pull you into the game and involve you in a new way. The Wii offers an 'experiance' you cannot duplicate on any other system.
12 years ago, gaming was about ENTERTAINMENT. every game, be rts or adventure or any other thing, was first built up to ENTERTAIN the player so that they would sell.
later, gaming was industrialized, and big buck shareholder-run boards have decided that surefire/tried formats, clones of earlier successful games with better graphics and sound was a more surefire way to make more cash.
then gaming took a loooooong slumber. every game out, was repetition of some earlier game, only with better graphics.
ive been playing games since i was 7 at 1982. i am a hardcore gamer. my pastime is gaming. i have seen it all. i got FED up, grew WEARY of more graphics, less entertainment.
it was inevitable that someone would see it, and go back to basics. nintendo did.
and lo, this is the result. i have never played a console, im a hardcore pcer, but im thinking of acquiring a wii sometime.
Read radical news here
If you are referring to things like:
Value
Desirability
Affordability
Fun
Innovation
The Wii is a next-gen console, and their sales have indicated that not just "cheap families" want these boxes. What gamers are doing with their dollars is saying that they want a new experience, not just some more expensive hardware. They're saying that they respect the innovation that Nintendo brought to the table. They're saying they need more fun, not more pixel resolution.
But those comparisons are absolutely apt.
And if you can afford to own a car, you can afford to own a PS3.
Ummm... you *are* joking, right? You can't possibly believe that. No one could believe something that inane. Or, so I would hope...
That "small demographic" had been buying 99% of the game consoles.
Ermmm. No. That small demographic assemble their own PCs and overclock their CPUs. They don't buy consoles. So as it turns out, this small demographic that MS and Sony were targeting never bought their stuff in the first place.
If the major problem with the Wii is the fact that it is last-gen graphics...
WiiToo: 2-3 years down the road, same controller system, backward compatibility, serious graphics/sound upgrades, and this is very important... SAME PRICE POINT.
I am writing this from the point of view of somebody who does not own a vehicle that can be driven to a store on Saturday night in order to catch the unveiling of a new shipment at 0001 hours on a Sunday morning. The price of even car insurance is still more than the $70 scalper surcharge that I still see on eBay.
> But Nintendo's most effective marketing trick was to give away its killer app, Wii Sports, with every $250 console.
... the Wii explains itself better.
In other words, every single Wii has the sports games, they are part of the personality of the Wii. This reminds me of iLife on the Mac. People see Wii bowling and want a Wii in the same way they see iMovie or iPhoto and want a Mac. It explains the whole box in a way that everybody can understand. Then if you are a football fan you are obviously going to get a football game to add on to your Wii, if you are into music and audio you are going to replace GarageBand with something bigger. But you still have the core set of things that every Wii or Mac can do.
The personality that a device can get when it is well designed and does a lot of things out of the box is what makes people understand what-the-hell-is-that-thing? If you know what the components are and you're familiar with a wide range of technology it is obvious that a Wii is not an Xbox but most people just see two boxes, basically identical. They are going to compare what Day 1 with each box is like
I saw on the news where somebody just showed up at a senior's center in their town with a Wii and installed it in the movie room and now there are bowling nights. They didn't have to get a Wii plus the sports game plus 10 other add-on accessories to make it work. It isn't a razor blade handle.
So much technology lacks design, they don't do enough thinking first. Then at the other end, most stuff is also terribly unfinished. You have to put it together yourself or add things to it just to do anything useful with it. The Wii is refreshingly finished.
thats why you have backwards compatibility.
its the games thats the money maker, not the console itself...
comment first, facts later. http://chem.tufts.edu/AnswersInScience/RelativityofWrong.htm
but the distribution seems a bit uneven. i called in a one game last week that has a 6 week waiting list and another that had one on the shelf... on a side note it seems /.'s new moderation system screws with the wii's browser
"Success is based on knowing how far to go in going too far"
and I actually don't see the point of single-player games. It's like masturbation. If a game doesn't come with a multiplayer mode, it simply means I am being anti-social. Rather than having a shared experience with my wife and/or friends, I can be antisocial and go masturbate in the corner. F that. I only get 2- and 4-player games. There are few exceptions (I got 12% through Vice City). Games should bring people together, not pull them apart. It's a way for a group of people to... GASP.... PLAY A GAME without having to find a card table, choose a board game, learn rules, roll dice, manually count pieces, etc., etc. If you can't see that, you are just a different kind of person.. but surprise - not everyone is like you. Use some imagination.
-Clio
Karma: Bad (mostly from not giving a fuck)
Blog: http://clintjcl.wordpress.com
From what I understand of the book "Blue Ocean Strategy", this is what Nintendo did to position themselves back on top of the gaming market. Instead of playing in the same "Red Ocean" as the PS3 and Xbox360, they decided to create a different market niche which hadn't been developed (i.e. older gamers, less hard core gamers, even people who hadn't gamed before). They realized they could target this niche with a lower price point and could give up the fancy graphics if they concentrated on simple fun games. The Wii is the result. It means that they have little, if any, competition in their target market, which means they don't really have to compete on price - they can charge enough to make the product profitable, and the customers will pay because there's nothing quite the same to compare it against.
That's why the Wii is beating Sony and Microsoft.
"I have never let my schooling interfere with my education." - Mark Twain
Halo fucking sucks. I've never played a more overrated first-person shooter. It seems that's all the Xbox is good for, endless shooters and sports games that need patches all the time. Fuck that, I'm getting a Wii that will give me something different for a change.
People mock Nintendo for catering to kids, yet it's the Xbox that has all 14-year-old Halo gamers while Nintendo has all the adults. Turns out it's the XBox that is for kids.
Enjoy playing your shooters with your little joysticks. I'll play Metroid Prime 3 with a REAL controller.
Are you kidding? Wii Sports, Wii Play, Wario Ware, Sonic, etc.
"Sufferin' succotash."
Yes, but some people live where public transportation isn't viable at all and therefore a car is a necessity and part of their regular bills. People who don't have a lot of spending money, but live a ways from where public transportation goes (and where it is *cheaper* to live, too).
A playstation 3 is most certainly not a necessity. Neither is a Wii, but it's more in their price range for entertainment.
cheaper than PS3 & Xbox360, more fun! no wonder Nintendo have done so well with it
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The parent post wins the thread.
Godless heathen.
I believe you meant to say "How Wii Are Creaming the Competition"
I started off absolutely drooling for the Wii, then it came out and the basic consensus on the majority of games for it was that they were kinda average...
Now there is a game coming out that has me salivating all over again, Resident Evil 4 Wii Edition. Finally what I always thought would just be sensational on the Wii, an excellent FPS (sorta, fine... it's 3rd person). Red Steel was apparently a horrendous game, so it looks like the Wii is now finally starting to get into games that use its hardware properly.
I can't wait for more FPSs on it, the ability to move around with an analogue control while using a proper gun like pointing device... heaven for immersion.
Be that as it may... the seeming proliferation of social games is really just the technology catching up. Even back in the Atari 2600 days, two of the most popular games were Combat and Warlords, and playing videogames against your friends was the main appeal. Hell, it came with Combat which pretty much requires two people to play. People have always wanted to game together; that's why sports are more popular than videogames (for now). But it hasn't always been possible in every situation. PC's had clunky input device issues. But I hear ya... I did grow up playing single-player games most of the time, simply because I was usually alone back then. But now, I'm one of those freaks who LIKES being around my wife, and it's simply not worth it to play [m]any single player games.
-Clio
Karma: Bad (mostly from not giving a fuck)
Blog: http://clintjcl.wordpress.com
i know sony very well from star wars galaxies.
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Wow, so you have some special circumstances that limit your ability to buy a Wii, and you extrapolate that to "No one can buy a Wii at retail"?
Pretty big leap there.
I can walk, yes walk, to the local Target or Walmart and buy a Wii. My anecdote trumps your anecdote.
Wow. I have read a lot of weird car analogies on slashdot, but nothing quite like this.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got some idea balls to remove from a manatee tank.
You keep using that . I do not think it means what you think it means.
(Try <blockquote>.)
The United States of America: We do what we must because we can.
Really, couldn't you pick a better name so it would be less obvious you're pushing propaganda, or at least, a personal agenda?
OK you guys, out of the Wii discussion. If you know what a "rails shooter" is, and I sure don't, you definitely aren't in the Wii target market.
It is amusing that when someone sees the NPD for March of 259k systems sold for Wii, some people try to create weird explanations...
-Sudden production problems!
-Nintendo artificially holding them to drive up demand!
-Nintendo artificially holding them because of the end of the fiscal quarter!
And so on.
But instead of focusing on the NPD numbers, take a step back and examine the GLOBAL sales for the Wii. While shipments of Wii DROPPED in North America during March, is that true for the entire world? No. In fact, an INCREASE of Wii systems were shipped to Europe (who has been severely undersupplied so far).
Why on Earth would Nintendo allocate more Wii systems for Europe? And why would Nintendo choose March of all months to do this?
It was because the Playstation 3 was launching in Europe in March.
More Wii systems were sent to Europe to, obviously, not lose any Wii buyers to the PS3 launch craze. Now that the PS3 launch is over, the unit allocation will probably return back to what it has been.
BTW, the Wii sales rate is faster than any other console made. Ever. Why do people keep saying Nintendo is "holding back" or "not producing" them?
What should be looked at is global sales rather than just sales in America (what is next? Are we just going to examine sales in a single state?). Xbox 360 is bombing hard in Japan and in most of Europe (outside the UK). PS3 got outsold by the GBA this month in America, is consistently selling around 14,000 a week in Japan at the same level the six year old PS2 is, and is already four million behind the Wii. It is obvious that the PS3 will probably never catch up to the Wii and that the Wii will overcome Xbox 360 worldwide sales in a matter of months, not years.
Some say that GTA 4, Halo, and Final Fantasy 13s (plural) will rocket the PS3 and Xbox 360 to heights unknown. Halo 1 and Halo 2 managed to get the original Xbox to barely outsell the Gamecube. Two GTA games didn't resurrect the PSP. And Final Fantasy isn't as big as it used to be as sales peaked around 8 and have been steadily declining.
Old franchises (unless they are totally re-invented) are never killer apps to future generations. The killer apps of this generation will be new games that come out of nowhere. It was Nintendogs, not Mario Kart, Brain Age, not Tetris, that shot the DS to the stratosphere. And the reason why the Wii is popular now is not Zelda but Wii Sports.
Anyway, a candid examination of global sales will reveal only a change in allocation of units, not a decrease in shipping or production.
It is more likely the PS3 and Xbox 360 can co-exist. Both have similiar philosophies with the systems and both place emphasis on graphics. Both share multi-platform games.
The Wii is a classic use of 'disruption' technology. A disruption occurs when a cheaper product introduces new technology to make doing the current job (of what the industrys' products are supposed to do) easier and/or better. The 'disrupted' products end up shriveling up in the marketplace. (Did the DS disrupt the handheld market? Is the PSP co-existing nicely with the DS? Rather, PSP got a price drop and is fighting for its life. How is this happening if DS was no threat to it?)
If the Wii continues to sell and sell, then the Wii-mote becomes the standard controller for video games. If the Wii keeps on selling, then the Wii will be seen as THE defacto standard video game system and the Xbox 360 and PS3 will be seen as ancient systems. A disruptive technology can be very nasty and literally change the landscape of the market.
Why did the PS3 get so much flak when it was launched? Probably because the PS3 launched at the same time as the Wii so the mainstream press and the market compared the two (and they slammed the PS3). Even now, the Xbox 360 is coming under increasing scrutiny. Microsoft is lowering shipping forecasts (360 sales did drop).
If the Wii is massively successful, then the PS3 and Xbox 360 will be hurt and the future of the console-as-meda-top-box will be essentially dead. The Wii is exactly in the position where the NES was twenty years ago. The NES disrupted the marketplace on such a scale that game centric computers got cut off at the knees. The NES pad replaced the joystick and gaming returned to the TV and away from keyboards and monitors.
Here's an example: do you think most people will want to play tennis games on the Xbox 360, PS3, or Wii? The answer is Wii because Wii Tennis re-defined video-game tennis. What about bowling? What about golf? Etc. etc. Soon, the Wii will 'alter' most game types and it will appear that Wii is the superior system for them (such as with tennis games). Most of the Wii stuff has, so far, been early launch or filler stuff, but the big stuff will come. What happens if Wii disrupts the FPS? What happens to Xbox 360 then? What if Wii disrupts all sports games and many action games?
Wii will become a massive problem to Sony and Microsoft, but I don't think they realize it yet.
At this point in time BC is a bone they throw to early adopters. If someone wanted to buy a PS2 game (and don't own a PS2 or PS3), the PS3 is hardly a consideration due to the massive price differential. $130 new vs. $600 new? That's a no brainer. BC only helps drive sales of the new platform (to play old games) when the prices are closer. Say if you wanted to play a PS1 game right now (and don't own a PS1 or PS2), you could buy a $50 PS1 or a $130 PS2 either might be considered.
Perhaps we have a differnent definition of 'Casual', so let me clarify mine. Think AARP . Sonic, doesn't come under the radar at all. Wario Ware may get played, but would have to be introduced. It's nothing that they would pick up on their own (Same with Rayman). Here's my real life example. I'm a gamer, and I love the Wii (got one at launch). My (retired) parents saw a commercial for it and my mom (who loved tennis, but now has bad knees) said 'I'd like to try tennis' and I brought it over to their house for Thanksgiving. They loved it. They are as non-gamer as can be, (the hardly even play solitaire, or anything on the computer) but they really enjoyed Tennis, Bowling and Golf. They enjoyed it so much that I got them one for Christmas.
So far they have 3 games WiiSports, WiiPlay, and of all the games that have been released in the last 6 months, the only one that really interested either one of them was Tiger Woods. My dad golfs, so he picked that up. It's a game he knows, with a Brand he's familiar with. What's next? Dunno. WiiMusic?, WiiFitness? Both Q4. Big Brain Academy MAY work, but Brain Age (IMHO) would be better. Ironically, the VC's selection is worse.
A quick glace at all the VC games available , The most 'Casual friendly' game on the list (Pacman) isn't even out in the US yet. Where is SuDoKu? or Crossword Puzzle games? Of the Afore mentioned VC list, what games would you recommend? Keep in mind they don't have (and likely will never have) Gamecube, or 'Classic' controllers.
I have a pretty good idea of what a "rails shooter" is. Virtua Cop, House of the Dead, Area 51, etc. are all "on rails" shooters. Duck hunt isn't, and Hogan's alley is a very early one, but let's be realistic here: They are all essentially the same, screen is presented, you shoot at targets. RE:UC is different, as it appears that you have spatial control over your character.
As for me not being in the Wii target market, you can be sure that I am. I might not be the perfect consumer, as I carefully choose what game I buy, but I most definitely fit into a gaming demographic, especially Nintendo's.
different people see it different ways...
comment first, facts later. http://chem.tufts.edu/AnswersInScience/RelativityofWrong.htm
Currently that is only possible on the GameCube with the Gameboy player. The 'Zelda Collection' Disk for the GC has both NES games, and both N64 Games. Lttp, was released for GBA, There is another 'Celda' (Minish cap) for the GBA, as well as 3 Gameboy Color games, and obviously the 2 GC games. So in 1 hearty machine you can buy / play all zelda games available right now.
The VC is currently sporting (in America) the Original Zelda, lttp, and OoT. Of course you can still play all the GC ones natively (including the collection) so you would only be missing the portable ones.
Don't get me started on the CD-i Zeldas... They Never happened...
My guess is they are tweaking the emulator on a game by game basis. They aren't recompiled, but there is an electronic manual included in each one, and various tweaks that may or may not be in the original (such as Mario 64 now running in progressive scan). It is more involved than dropping a ROM into a computer emulator, but a lot less involved than recompiling each game.
Yeah, a lot of people keep forgetting about that. Gold supplies you with Online multiplayer, voice communication, and 'early access' to new content (like the C&C3 Demo. Gold members get first crack at it) People keep forgetting that 'Silver' even exists. MS made that level (if nothing else) so users would have access to their on-line store.
And games aren't inherintly 'gimped' without paying for Gold. Guitar Hero II, or Oblivion play just as well if you have Gold or Silver with all the features intact.
Let me guess, you thought it was too easy right? I had the same feeling playing the first few games of Tennis (alone), then on a whim I picked it up again and played some more. The Computer AI does ramp up, so you will hit a level of competitiveness where spin, and ball control really matter a lot more.
Also WiiSports (Like Mario Kart) is fun single player, but gets exponentially more fun with every controler / person you add to the game. If you only put 20 minutes into say Wii tennis and single player I can understand your feelings. If you played longer, or with a few people then I think you would feel differently.
That's 259,000 sold in AMERICA ALONE.
Exactly how many 360's and PS3's sold in Japan again? Go on.. Tell me.. I dare you.
Exactly how well did the 360 sell during its first few months and how quick did it get into other regions other than America and Japan?
I don't remember it doing so hot in the first 2 or 3 months and didn't have nearly the world wide impact that the Wii is having.
Also the PS3 is just now getting around to selling in Europe and regions other than the US and Japan.
The Wii launched in those regions MUCH quicker than the PS3 and has been selling quite well there too.
Sure you can point out the Wii didn't sell that hot in one region for one month but that sure is a narrow minded point of view. Try looking at the big picture.
The 360's been out for what.. 18 months? It's sold about 9 million? The Wii has sold about 6 million in already.
Put that in your pipe and smoke it.
Oh and sure.. The Wii's software isn't selling so hot yet. It's still early. The 360 didn't sell games so hot at first either. How long did it take the 360 to get it's first million seller or two? The Wii's has had 2 in Japan alone for a few weeks.
But yeah you guys are right.. I suppose it's not doing so well in the software category when compared to a system that is WELL INTO its 2nd generation of games and has been out 3 times longer.
(don't get me wrong I am not a fan of Sony but I do like the 360. These arguments are just crap that's all).