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EA - Wii Caught Us By Surprise

Posted by Zonk on from the they're-getting-better dept.

A Next Generation story details comments by EA's CEO John Riccitiello about the surprise hit that is the Wii. The exec as much as admitted that they 'bet on the wrong horse' by focusing on the PS3 and 360 during the console transistion, and now are turning the mighty corporate ship as fast as they can to stay with Nintendo's success. "Nevertheless, Riccetello said that EA had the second-largest market share on Wii as of March with 19 percent, thanks mainly to Tiger Woods PGA Tour. Only Nintendo had a larger share. The firm shipped six new Wii titles in fiscal 2007. EA also shipped eight titles on Nintendo DS. The emergence of online, wireless and geographical differences in the console realm also made things complicated in fiscal '07."

4 of 185 comments (clear)

  1. On Simpson's Movie Opening Day... by Bullfish · · Score: 2, Interesting

    EA exec says "D'oh!"

    Seriously, even Nintendo didn't plan for the Wii's level of sell-through

  2. Madden? by AKAImBatman · · Score: 4, Interesting

    EA had the second-largest market share on Wii as of March with 19 percent, thanks mainly to Tiger Woods PGA Tour.

    How odd. I would have thought that Madden was the EA leading title. While the graphics aren't as nice as the 360 and PS3 versions, players often report how cool it is to play the game with actual football movements rather than overly complex controller commands. I know a lot of non-sports gamers actually picked up the game just for the innovative controls. (I have to admit that I was also tempted. But I'm too much of a miserly scrooge to spend the money. :P)

    Then again, one of the things I really wanted when I got a Wii was a true Mario Golf type of game. Perhaps the serious golfers all played the Wii Sports version and fell in love with the idea? A relative of mine told his wife on no uncertain terms that they were getting a Wii, after he played a few holes on the Wii Sports Golf course. So I suppose it's possible that the Golfers like the idea even more than the football fans. (That's a shocking thought.)
    --
    Javascript + Nintendo DSi = DSiCade
    1. Re:Madden? by CopaceticOpus · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Of course, the nice thing about Madden is how quickly it depreciates. Just buy it in a year or two. I'm not much of a Madden fan, but it was hard to pass up when I saw Madden 2004 for my PS2 on sale for 83 cents. Yes, that was really the price!

  3. Re:You weren't the only one, EA... by AKAImBatman · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Yet, the trends didn't necessarily point out just who would replace Sony (if anyone).

    The trends clearly showed that the PS3 and XBox 360 were too technologically advanced to be the winners of this generation. That left Nintendo and a possible newcomer. Since no newcomer arrived, Nintendo got to take the crown.

    It's an interesting thought experiment to think what might have happened if, say, Sega introduced a new console with a competitive price but more traditional controls. Would the Wii still be selling like hotcakes, or would it be playing a more modest role in the market?

    The stiffest competition in history was between the Genesis and SNES. The two were similar enough technologically that their respective superiorities didn't much matter. They were both affordable consoles with strong game libraries. I have a sneaky suspicion that if such a competitor were available, Nintendo's magic Wii Remote would not have been as successful of a draw as it ended up being.
    --
    Javascript + Nintendo DSi = DSiCade