The current incarnation of the unit does not play PS2 games. Unfortunately the facility in question already has a library of over 100 PS2 titles. I originally recommended the current model to them (less power equals less costs...) but once they found out the current games would be unplayable, they forced us to use the original model.
I may have exaggerated the sound generated by the units, but the whirring fan easily carries throughout the living area of the suites. It's by far the loudest thing in the cabinet, and due to the design of the power button it is very hard for guests to figure out how to turn it all the way off.
There is also a big problem with the software library of the PS3. As a "hard core" gamers machine, there are very few family friendly titles. Most of our clients want games that are easy to pick up and learn, and unoffensive to general family audiences.
I am certainly keeping my fingers crossed that Sony will use the reduced manufacturing costs to roll out a low power, low heat unit, that brings back the original PS2 backwards compatibility.
Good idea... that's the one I recommended to the owners who were so keen to get the latest and greatest video game system in their units. It's even cheaper per unit than the original. Unfortunately they found out that it does not play PS2 games.
Unfortunately the units all had existing entertainment centers, and in most cases the only way to locate the PS3 units were alongside the TVs. (These were the original model PS3s, much too large to fit into the normal shelves!)
In the end we had to rework the shelves in some cases, and in others modify the TV cabinets. In almost all cases we drilled out exhaust ports into the back of the cabinets, and wired in silent 120 mm computer fans. Extreme carpentry casemod...
A 40% drop in heat will make a huge difference in the suitability for business application of the PS3. (Before you say that business use of a PS3 is contradictory, please consider the accommodation industry.)
The instant they can get a PS3 (or an Xbox) that does not spew heat and use fans akin to a Boeing, it will have a place in the entertainment centers in luxury accommodation suites around the world. The region free PS3 game discs will seal the deal. Surfing internet on the TV and being able to show photos straight from your memory card is also a plus.
Late last year, we tried rolling the current model of PS3s into some guest suites. In the end there was no way to accomplish this without a major retooling of the entertainment centers, costing hundreds of dollars extra per unit. In one case the excess heat generated by the PS3 caused the TV to overheat!!
The drop in power bills will also be a big plus, as guests will generally never be bothered to switch off an appliance. I had thought that the PS3s were supposed to automatically regulate the amount of processor power needed. But they seem to run as many fans even when idling at the top menu.
For business use the maintainability and operation costs are a much bigger factor than the original cost per unit. If they can actually get the heat under control, Sony will break into a huge new market of corporate clients.
I thought the whole point of the Wii technology was to develop a strongly symbolic connection between the player and their avatar via controls. I suppose I might be expecting too much sophistication from a relatively new technology.
I had really expected that when you hold the sword (remote) in your right hand, Link would be right-handed. Switching the controllers (as a left-handed person might do) would cause Link to become left-handed. In fact, I had taken it for granted that the twin controllers would give you control of Link's left and right hands in almost every situation.
I understand that this is a rushed solution to a last-minute feature. Still, I have to ask, why is sword interactivity with the Wii controller being kludged on, last minute, on Nintendo's flagship title? I really wanted to believe in the Wii, but all of the little things are really starting to add up against it. It is starting to seem to be more and more of a gimmick as the release draws closer.
This issue does raise an interesting point -- what happens to character, when the player and their avatar are this closely connected? In according to Zelda canon, Link should be a southpaw. If the Wii provided a perfect interface, we would lose this, forcing Link to share the same traits as the player.
People buying the DS to play Brain Training, and Nintendogs are probably not even aware of Metroid or Advance Wars which kind of suggests this might be a one-way street -- the hardcore aren't likely to buy these 'ultra casual' titles in great numbers, because they're fairly simplistic, and don't offer a great deal of depth for a hardcore player
I don't know about Nintendogs, but as a hardcore gamer, I found Brain Training really appealing. I don't know if I would even really consider it a "game" in a hardcore sense, but there's no reason that a "hardcore" gamer can't enjoy a simplistic diversion now and then. Especially one that's supposed to be good for your brain. After all, a true hardcore gamer wants to keep skills in shape.
In Japan, even ignoring the piles of educational titles, the DS has also has a lot of decent utility software. The ever-growing lineup includes a fully-featured electronic dictionary (which also includes quizzes), interactive travel phrasebooks (which make really clever use of the dual screens between two users of one DS) and even cookbooks.
As a hardcore gamer and a Japanophile, I would still lust for this machine even if I didn't care about any of the game titles. (After all, it's cheaper than an electronic dictionary, and you can easily look up kanji that you can't read with the stylus.) Combined with the small form factor and style of the Lite, this software library is rapidly making the DS a "take-everywhere" tool, almost to the level of an iPod or a cell phone. How can this concept not catch on in the west? Can we really keep ignoring the fact that demographically speaking, game machines aren't for kids?
First of all, a few comments about the article itself... The article mentions that the $720 rig is "sufficient for non-gamers". I think they're considering it more for high-end video editing... this also explains the choice of RAID 0. I'm somewhat puzzled with their choice of using 3G/s discs on a 1.5 G/s SATA board, however. I suppose this could be for economic reasons -- those Samsungs could be about the cheapest disc on the market at the moment.
Moreover, since when is Dual Core really a gaming solution to begin with? Sure, if you want to make big downloads or burn CDs in the background while gaming, there might be some benefit. Other than that, we have a handful of games that actually support dual core. I guess it makes sense to include dual core for the sake of future releases, but what's the point of installing something that's basically bleeding edge (as far as gaming is concerned) on a budget system? It seems to me that your other components are going to be horribly dated well before most game releases are really supporting dual cores.
Am I wrong here? Have games started secretly taking advantage of two physical cores while I wasn't looking? Are we in the future yet?
Like what was the point (other than the shortage of lites they had in Japan) of not releasing them all over?
As someone who lives in Japan, what puzzles me is how they have managed to release them around the world, despite the fact that there is STILL a shortage in Japan. The DS Lite has only occasionally managed to remain on store shelves overnight ever since its release here. If you can somehow locate one, it will still cost you about 20,000 yen, which is considerably more than their MSRP (16,800 yen) -- in many cases for a used system.
For those of you who say that Nintendo only cares about Japan, here's some evidence to the contrary. Well, it also makes cruel business sense. They are going to sell the units in Japan no matter what, but it's more critical to get a few out in other countries to cause people to consider upgrading their normal DSes. Seeing is believing and all.
You can play a number of titles that are right now some of the hotest in the PC market on the Mac....Unreal Tournament 2004, Battlefield 2, World of Warcraft (You can't get any bigger tban tbat)
Yes, but the article is about the speculation that Apple will be actively, internally developing new games, not just making an OS which other companies shoddily port popular PC games to, hoping to cash in on another market segment with little development work.
A long, LONG time ago, the Mac versions of certain games (the original "SimCity" and Sid Meier's "Pirates" come to mind) were often superior to their PC counterparts -- higher resolution, better interface, actual music and sound. Now it's the other way around -- World of Warcraft, for example, barely squeezes out frames on a dual core MacBook, but boot in Windows XP, and it soars. Mac ports are no longer particularly attractive.
"I want to buy a Mac so that I can get that game which isn't available on the PC." Malarkey? or Effective Way?
Reportedly, this isn't an official trailer, but rather a set of clips released to the press. The evening news will go through it and pick the bits they like, and add a voiceover based on the information in the press kit. The official trailer will almost certainly be saved for a big unveiling at E3.
In terms of titilation, it would be better to watch the gameplay preview (including Will Wright's voiceover, explaining what the heck is going on), or just wait for the E3 clips which will invariably hit the net not far from now.
Still, Japan is among the healthiest and longest-lived countries in the world.
Yet they have a word for people who die in their early twenties from too much work.
I believe you're thinking of "karoushi" -- "death from overwork". That word certainly got a lot of American media attention. However, the existence of a word doesn't necessarily imply a social trend.
Due to the way the language works, Japanese also has single words for "to die of illness", "to be killed by being struck by lightning", "to die of poison", "to be killed in the line of work", "to die while in another country", "to be crushed to death", "to die suddenly", "to die in an explosion"... they just don't happen to be newsworthy.
[The Japanese] don't cough and sneeze on each other, those hygienic lil' devils.
Most people who wear the white masks on the street and trains are doing it to prevent themselves from getting sick. If you've ever ridden a Japanese train during flu season, you will start to see the appeal of them.
In fact, in a lot of Japanese art and literature, suicide is idealised.
Moreso, Japanese suicide is idealised by the American media. The probably goes back to the images of the kamikaze that were burned into the American mentality during the War. When a Japanese person sees The Last Samurai, they know that the context is historical and far removed from modern society. But for some reason watching movies like that seems to remind Americans, "That's right, Japanese people tend to kill themselves." Why do Japanese suicides always seem to make American headlines? Well, people like to be reassured that what they already "know" is correct.
Modern Japanese suicides aren't the ritualized, honor-driven acts of past generations. Moreover, if you actually compare the numbers, the modern US and Japanese rates aren't much different. (Japan has about 5 in 100,000 cases more.) Russia has almost three times as many suicides as Japan, but you never see anything about it in American newspapers.
US's work culture of long working days, unpaid overtime & too few holidays is killing you.
Japan has the same minimum leave policy (10 days + stats), but on top of that, the leave policies are rarely enforced. It would normally be seen as selfish and inconsiderate of one's coworkers to actually use all of your leave, anyway. In many cases, company employees work completely unpaid "service overtime" out of obligation. Still, Japan is among the healthiest and longest-lived countries in the world.
I'd say there must be more to the picture. Like any complex system, the health of a nation probably can't be pinned on one single factor.
I'd be really interested to see a link to any evidence of this. Most Japanese who don't read much old literature don't even know how to write the hiragana for "wi," I don't someone would be crazy enough to name their kid something that starts with a sound no longer used.
Well, a recent example would be Katoh (W)Ikuko, the nutritionist / author. (OK, she is super old, so maybe not the most "recent" example...)
There is no legal problem using the classical "wi" hiragana (or katakana for that matter) in a Japanese name. (See here for an explanation of the law, in Japanese.) However, it would still be pronounced "i". It could be romanized as "Wi", though, and might even appear in the passport written that way. For example, "Kaoru" is classically written with the "wo" kana (now mostly used as an object marker and pronounced "o"), and in some cases, the name is legally romanized as "Kaworu".
I don't think anyone would name their kid "Iku" or "Ikuyo", but a number of other combinations are reasonable. Legally, you can assign any kana pronunciation you want to your kid's kanji, it will just make life difficult for them. Even English katakana readings are sometimes assigned to kanji, such as the boy's name "Raito" (Light) being written with the kanji for light (hikaru). If it's legally possible, someone will do it.
And yes, no question about it, Nintendo is not using the classic "wi" character in their name. That would be an interesting anachronism though!
plus, they'll have an easier prononuncing 'wii' than 'revolution', which has an 'l' and an 'r' that are supposed to sound differently. _that_ would be a challenge for them.
Not really. The "r" and "l" sounds just both map to the same Japanese letter / pronunciation. For example, "load" and "road" are both written and pronounced exactly the same in Japanese. The same thing happens with certain vowel sounds - "hat" and "hut" (from "Pizza Hut") both have the same Japanese writing and pronunciation.
It's not like people shift gears completely out of their native language just to say an English loanword.
"Wi" is not a phoneme in modern Japanese. The reason the hiragana for it is no longer used is that "wi" became "i" in all positions in Japanese. Although "ui" can be phonetically realized as a diphthong, phonemically it is still two morae.
Actually, the single phoneme "wi" has been recognized again in modern Japanese, although it's now used for loanwords as opposed to the original "wi" sound seen in classical Japanese. This is handled in exactly the same way as the "ti" phoneme.
It's now written with a large katakana U and a small katakana i. A good example is "Golden Week" (go-ruden wi-ku, where "wi" represents the big U + little i combo). Which is this week by the way. Ironically, I'd say that it's likely that this is the very phrase that really cemented the "wi" phoneme in modern spoken Japanese.
This is actually fairly recent, to the point that some dictionaries don't recognize it, and still write words like "Golden Week" with the i as a full-sized katakana. But it certainly isn't true that the phoneme does not exist. In fact, all of my junior high school textbooks have the words for foreign cities (like Winnipeg) written with the single phoneme version, and that's the pronunciation that's taught in school.
It's true that the very older generations will still pronounce "wi" as the dipthong "ui" (my grandmother calls a "T shirt" a "tay shirt" / tei syatu) but there will be little problem with the recognition of the sound.
And to dispel random speculation: JAPANESE PEOPLE HAVE NO PROBLEM SAYING "Wii"!
If you want to pick on a product, how about the Hitachi Wooo. Despite the written W, there is no phoneme in Japanese for that sound (or sounds like Woman, Worchestershire, etc.) So it's actually pronounced "uu" in Japanese (sounds like "Ooh" in English.) Now that is a product name that the Japanese can't "really" pronounce.
"Revolution" just sold among the geeks & gamers. Geeks and gamers aren't the market nintendo wants to create...
You're probably right. As the Japanese website suggests, they want to create a concept that "can be enjoyed by any member of the family". (The official English version, meanwhile, says that the name indicates that the system is destined for the whole world. Completely different marketing spin!)
This would go right along with the enormous success Nintendo of Japan has seen in the casual gaming market with the DS. Meanwhile, Western markets will get a watered-down version of the explanation and are reassured that the system won't be any less awesome, they just want to make sure that the whole world can understand one name.
The Japanese can't even pronounce it? Sorry, but that is bullshit.
Today is May 1. That means that this week is "Golden Week" in Japan. Guess what! The pronunciation of "Wii" is the same as the "wee" part from "Golden Week". The word may be taken from English, but there is no problem representing the sound in Japanese.
If anything, the Japanese will have an easier time pronouncing it, because the "ii" in romanized Japanese actually sounds like "ee" in English. In fact, if you type "wii" (using the English-letter input system) on a Japanese keyboard, any standard setup will give you the correct pronunciation in Japanese. I would say that this word very Japanese-friendly. English speakers, on the other hand, would have to guess at the pronunciation from reading it. Who can't pronounce it now?
For those without Japanese skills, it says pretty much the same as the English side (albeit condensed), so I'll spare a full translation, but here's the important part: "In the image of the English 'we' word , [...] we believe the concept of the unique controller [yadda yadda]"
There is one major difference. The English (and French and other European sites) all say that the name "Wii" reflects that the system is intended "for the whole world". The Japanese site says that it "can be enjoyed by all members of the family".
This reflects NOJ's huge lead in the "casual gaming" market in Japan. The difference in reasoning also kind of makes you think that the naming decision wasn't quite as global as otherwise reported, it almost seems like the "intended for the whole world" thing is a rationalization for having a strange name, where the primary intention was to appeal to the Japanese market.
Re:A long historical tradition of dumb names
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Final name mirrors a number of terrible Japanese names. In particular, I'm reminded if Vaio and Wega from Sony. In particular, I'm reminded if Vaio and Wega from Sony. Wega, in particular, is actually supposed to be pronounced "vega".
I was immediately reminded of the Hitachi Woo. The logo is strikingly similar, too. Considering that they're both gray on white verbal logos, how could it not be? At any rate, "Wii" isn't going to stand out as bizzarre or particularly mockable in Japan, where most every new product has a pseudo-occidental names.
(By the way, I think the Wega "V" sound is because it was originally a German company. A common misconception is that all Japanese things written in the roman alphabet are supposed to be English. Or semi-English. Or whatever the heck you can call them.)
I can't help but think that since Nintendo is ultimately a Japanese company, any opposition to the name in world markets (especially English-speaking countries) was probably largely ignored by the mother company. And who are we to say that they're wrong? Being wacky and cute and Japanese has been Nintendo's model of success in the world market up until now.
According to the flash at Nintendo Japan, here is the rationale for naming the machine. Interestingly, there's a significant difference between the English and European language versions.
The codename which we have used for development, "Revolution", has come to express our objective [of the project]. This name, "Wii", is the answer.
Based on the English word "We", "Wii" expresses the concept that anyone in the family can enjoy it. Also, the double "i" in "Wii" symbolizes both the unique controller and the likeness of people gathering together to play.
Interestingly, the Japanese version isn't nearly as verbose as the English one. I guess they probably didn't feel much need to justify the oddball faux-English to the reader, since most Japanese products (and all of Nintendo's game consoles) use English-derived names.
There's none of the cockamamy rationale that "the whole world will understand the name" which is present in the English or French versions. However, there is a focus on the "family gaming" concept (and by association casual gaming -- games that even your mom or grandpa would play) which is missing from the English version. With Nintendo's recent incredible success in casual gaming with the DS, this marketing angle shouldn't come as much of a surprise. One could say that the Wii is basically the extension of the DS's pen-like interface into 3-d space: the living room.
One other interesting cultural reference is the way that the "ii" bows to the viewer at the end of the animation. That would be the standard body language to use in Japan, after introducing yourself to an audience.
Slashdot Mirror
Proposed soundtrack for this article. http://frontalot.com/media.php/325/MC_Frontalot_SFTF_(01)_Secrets_From_The_Future.mp3
The current incarnation of the unit does not play PS2 games. Unfortunately the facility in question already has a library of over 100 PS2 titles. I originally recommended the current model to them (less power equals less costs...) but once they found out the current games would be unplayable, they forced us to use the original model.
I may have exaggerated the sound generated by the units, but the whirring fan easily carries throughout the living area of the suites. It's by far the loudest thing in the cabinet, and due to the design of the power button it is very hard for guests to figure out how to turn it all the way off.
There is also a big problem with the software library of the PS3. As a "hard core" gamers machine, there are very few family friendly titles. Most of our clients want games that are easy to pick up and learn, and unoffensive to general family audiences.
I am certainly keeping my fingers crossed that Sony will use the reduced manufacturing costs to roll out a low power, low heat unit, that brings back the original PS2 backwards compatibility.
Good idea ... that's the one I recommended to the owners who were so keen to get the latest and greatest video game system in their units. It's even cheaper per unit than the original. Unfortunately they found out that it does not play PS2 games.
Unfortunately the units all had existing entertainment centers, and in most cases the only way to locate the PS3 units were alongside the TVs. (These were the original model PS3s, much too large to fit into the normal shelves!)
In the end we had to rework the shelves in some cases, and in others modify the TV cabinets. In almost all cases we drilled out exhaust ports into the back of the cabinets, and wired in silent 120 mm computer fans. Extreme carpentry casemod...
A 40% drop in heat will make a huge difference in the suitability for business application of the PS3. (Before you say that business use of a PS3 is contradictory, please consider the accommodation industry.)
The instant they can get a PS3 (or an Xbox) that does not spew heat and use fans akin to a Boeing, it will have a place in the entertainment centers in luxury accommodation suites around the world. The region free PS3 game discs will seal the deal. Surfing internet on the TV and being able to show photos straight from your memory card is also a plus.
Late last year, we tried rolling the current model of PS3s into some guest suites. In the end there was no way to accomplish this without a major retooling of the entertainment centers, costing hundreds of dollars extra per unit. In one case the excess heat generated by the PS3 caused the TV to overheat!!
The drop in power bills will also be a big plus, as guests will generally never be bothered to switch off an appliance. I had thought that the PS3s were supposed to automatically regulate the amount of processor power needed. But they seem to run as many fans even when idling at the top menu.
For business use the maintainability and operation costs are a much bigger factor than the original cost per unit. If they can actually get the heat under control, Sony will break into a huge new market of corporate clients.
I thought the whole point of the Wii technology was to develop a strongly symbolic connection between the player and their avatar via controls. I suppose I might be expecting too much sophistication from a relatively new technology.
I had really expected that when you hold the sword (remote) in your right hand, Link would be right-handed. Switching the controllers (as a left-handed person might do) would cause Link to become left-handed. In fact, I had taken it for granted that the twin controllers would give you control of Link's left and right hands in almost every situation.
I understand that this is a rushed solution to a last-minute feature. Still, I have to ask, why is sword interactivity with the Wii controller being kludged on, last minute, on Nintendo's flagship title? I really wanted to believe in the Wii, but all of the little things are really starting to add up against it. It is starting to seem to be more and more of a gimmick as the release draws closer.
This issue does raise an interesting point -- what happens to character, when the player and their avatar are this closely connected? In according to Zelda canon, Link should be a southpaw. If the Wii provided a perfect interface, we would lose this, forcing Link to share the same traits as the player.
Although I've never seen Nintendogs, I have heard that it's pretty hard(core?)...
From the article:
I don't know about Nintendogs, but as a hardcore gamer, I found Brain Training really appealing. I don't know if I would even really consider it a "game" in a hardcore sense, but there's no reason that a "hardcore" gamer can't enjoy a simplistic diversion now and then. Especially one that's supposed to be good for your brain. After all, a true hardcore gamer wants to keep skills in shape.
In Japan, even ignoring the piles of educational titles, the DS has also has a lot of decent utility software. The ever-growing lineup includes a fully-featured electronic dictionary (which also includes quizzes), interactive travel phrasebooks (which make really clever use of the dual screens between two users of one DS) and even cookbooks.
As a hardcore gamer and a Japanophile, I would still lust for this machine even if I didn't care about any of the game titles. (After all, it's cheaper than an electronic dictionary, and you can easily look up kanji that you can't read with the stylus.) Combined with the small form factor and style of the Lite, this software library is rapidly making the DS a "take-everywhere" tool, almost to the level of an iPod or a cell phone. How can this concept not catch on in the west? Can we really keep ignoring the fact that demographically speaking, game machines aren't for kids?
First of all, a few comments about the article itself... The article mentions that the $720 rig is "sufficient for non-gamers". I think they're considering it more for high-end video editing... this also explains the choice of RAID 0. I'm somewhat puzzled with their choice of using 3G/s discs on a 1.5 G/s SATA board, however. I suppose this could be for economic reasons -- those Samsungs could be about the cheapest disc on the market at the moment.
Moreover, since when is Dual Core really a gaming solution to begin with? Sure, if you want to make big downloads or burn CDs in the background while gaming, there might be some benefit. Other than that, we have a handful of games that actually support dual core. I guess it makes sense to include dual core for the sake of future releases, but what's the point of installing something that's basically bleeding edge (as far as gaming is concerned) on a budget system? It seems to me that your other components are going to be horribly dated well before most game releases are really supporting dual cores.
Am I wrong here? Have games started secretly taking advantage of two physical cores while I wasn't looking? Are we in the future yet?
Can a discussion of game gods really be complete without Bill Budge? Old testament!!
As someone who lives in Japan, what puzzles me is how they have managed to release them around the world, despite the fact that there is STILL a shortage in Japan. The DS Lite has only occasionally managed to remain on store shelves overnight ever since its release here. If you can somehow locate one, it will still cost you about 20,000 yen, which is considerably more than their MSRP (16,800 yen) -- in many cases for a used system.
For those of you who say that Nintendo only cares about Japan, here's some evidence to the contrary. Well, it also makes cruel business sense. They are going to sell the units in Japan no matter what, but it's more critical to get a few out in other countries to cause people to consider upgrading their normal DSes. Seeing is believing and all.
Yes, but the article is about the speculation that Apple will be actively, internally developing new games, not just making an OS which other companies shoddily port popular PC games to, hoping to cash in on another market segment with little development work.
A long, LONG time ago, the Mac versions of certain games (the original "SimCity" and Sid Meier's "Pirates" come to mind) were often superior to their PC counterparts -- higher resolution, better interface, actual music and sound. Now it's the other way around -- World of Warcraft, for example, barely squeezes out frames on a dual core MacBook, but boot in Windows XP, and it soars. Mac ports are no longer particularly attractive.
"I want to buy a Mac so that I can get that game which isn't available on the PC." Malarkey? or Effective Way?
Reportedly, this isn't an official trailer, but rather a set of clips released to the press. The evening news will go through it and pick the bits they like, and add a voiceover based on the information in the press kit. The official trailer will almost certainly be saved for a big unveiling at E3.
In terms of titilation, it would be better to watch the gameplay preview (including Will Wright's voiceover, explaining what the heck is going on), or just wait for the E3 clips which will invariably hit the net not far from now.
I believe you're thinking of "karoushi" -- "death from overwork". That word certainly got a lot of American media attention. However, the existence of a word doesn't necessarily imply a social trend.
Due to the way the language works, Japanese also has single words for "to die of illness", "to be killed by being struck by lightning", "to die of poison", "to be killed in the line of work", "to die while in another country", "to be crushed to death", "to die suddenly", "to die in an explosion" ... they just don't happen to be newsworthy.
Most people who wear the white masks on the street and trains are doing it to prevent themselves from getting sick. If you've ever ridden a Japanese train during flu season, you will start to see the appeal of them.
Moreso, Japanese suicide is idealised by the American media. The probably goes back to the images of the kamikaze that were burned into the American mentality during the War. When a Japanese person sees The Last Samurai, they know that the context is historical and far removed from modern society. But for some reason watching movies like that seems to remind Americans, "That's right, Japanese people tend to kill themselves." Why do Japanese suicides always seem to make American headlines? Well, people like to be reassured that what they already "know" is correct.
Modern Japanese suicides aren't the ritualized, honor-driven acts of past generations. Moreover, if you actually compare the numbers, the modern US and Japanese rates aren't much different. (Japan has about 5 in 100,000 cases more.) Russia has almost three times as many suicides as Japan, but you never see anything about it in American newspapers.
Sure. But even with 5 in 100,000 more people taking their own lives, the Japanese are living a lot longer than Americans.
Japan has the same minimum leave policy (10 days + stats), but on top of that, the leave policies are rarely enforced. It would normally be seen as selfish and inconsiderate of one's coworkers to actually use all of your leave, anyway. In many cases, company employees work completely unpaid "service overtime" out of obligation. Still, Japan is among the healthiest and longest-lived countries in the world.
I'd say there must be more to the picture. Like any complex system, the health of a nation probably can't be pinned on one single factor.
Well, a recent example would be Katoh (W)Ikuko, the nutritionist / author. (OK, she is super old, so maybe not the most "recent" example...) There is no legal problem using the classical "wi" hiragana (or katakana for that matter) in a Japanese name. (See here for an explanation of the law, in Japanese.) However, it would still be pronounced "i". It could be romanized as "Wi", though, and might even appear in the passport written that way. For example, "Kaoru" is classically written with the "wo" kana (now mostly used as an object marker and pronounced "o"), and in some cases, the name is legally romanized as "Kaworu".
I don't think anyone would name their kid "Iku" or "Ikuyo", but a number of other combinations are reasonable. Legally, you can assign any kana pronunciation you want to your kid's kanji, it will just make life difficult for them. Even English katakana readings are sometimes assigned to kanji, such as the boy's name "Raito" (Light) being written with the kanji for light (hikaru). If it's legally possible, someone will do it.
And yes, no question about it, Nintendo is not using the classic "wi" character in their name. That would be an interesting anachronism though!
Not really. The "r" and "l" sounds just both map to the same Japanese letter / pronunciation. For example, "load" and "road" are both written and pronounced exactly the same in Japanese. The same thing happens with certain vowel sounds - "hat" and "hut" (from "Pizza Hut") both have the same Japanese writing and pronunciation.
It's not like people shift gears completely out of their native language just to say an English loanword.
Actually, the single phoneme "wi" has been recognized again in modern Japanese, although it's now used for loanwords as opposed to the original "wi" sound seen in classical Japanese. This is handled in exactly the same way as the "ti" phoneme.
It's now written with a large katakana U and a small katakana i. A good example is "Golden Week" (go-ruden wi-ku, where "wi" represents the big U + little i combo). Which is this week by the way. Ironically, I'd say that it's likely that this is the very phrase that really cemented the "wi" phoneme in modern spoken Japanese.
This is actually fairly recent, to the point that some dictionaries don't recognize it, and still write words like "Golden Week" with the i as a full-sized katakana. But it certainly isn't true that the phoneme does not exist. In fact, all of my junior high school textbooks have the words for foreign cities (like Winnipeg) written with the single phoneme version, and that's the pronunciation that's taught in school.
It's true that the very older generations will still pronounce "wi" as the dipthong "ui" (my grandmother calls a "T shirt" a "tay shirt" / tei syatu) but there will be little problem with the recognition of the sound.
And to dispel random speculation: JAPANESE PEOPLE HAVE NO PROBLEM SAYING "Wii"!
If you want to pick on a product, how about the Hitachi Wooo. Despite the written W, there is no phoneme in Japanese for that sound (or sounds like Woman, Worchestershire, etc.) So it's actually pronounced "uu" in Japanese (sounds like "Ooh" in English.) Now that is a product name that the Japanese can't "really" pronounce.
You're probably right. As the Japanese website suggests, they want to create a concept that "can be enjoyed by any member of the family". (The official English version, meanwhile, says that the name indicates that the system is destined for the whole world. Completely different marketing spin!)
This would go right along with the enormous success Nintendo of Japan has seen in the casual gaming market with the DS. Meanwhile, Western markets will get a watered-down version of the explanation and are reassured that the system won't be any less awesome, they just want to make sure that the whole world can understand one name.
The Japanese can't even pronounce it? Sorry, but that is bullshit.
Today is May 1. That means that this week is "Golden Week" in Japan. Guess what! The pronunciation of "Wii" is the same as the "wee" part from "Golden Week". The word may be taken from English, but there is no problem representing the sound in Japanese.
If anything, the Japanese will have an easier time pronouncing it, because the "ii" in romanized Japanese actually sounds like "ee" in English. In fact, if you type "wii" (using the English-letter input system) on a Japanese keyboard, any standard setup will give you the correct pronunciation in Japanese. I would say that this word very Japanese-friendly. English speakers, on the other hand, would have to guess at the pronunciation from reading it. Who can't pronounce it now?
There is one major difference. The English (and French and other European sites) all say that the name "Wii" reflects that the system is intended "for the whole world". The Japanese site says that it "can be enjoyed by all members of the family".
This reflects NOJ's huge lead in the "casual gaming" market in Japan. The difference in reasoning also kind of makes you think that the naming decision wasn't quite as global as otherwise reported, it almost seems like the "intended for the whole world" thing is a rationalization for having a strange name, where the primary intention was to appeal to the Japanese market.
I was immediately reminded of the Hitachi Woo. The logo is strikingly similar, too. Considering that they're both gray on white verbal logos, how could it not be? At any rate, "Wii" isn't going to stand out as bizzarre or particularly mockable in Japan, where most every new product has a pseudo-occidental names.
(By the way, I think the Wega "V" sound is because it was originally a German company. A common misconception is that all Japanese things written in the roman alphabet are supposed to be English. Or semi-English. Or whatever the heck you can call them.)
I can't help but think that since Nintendo is ultimately a Japanese company, any opposition to the name in world markets (especially English-speaking countries) was probably largely ignored by the mother company. And who are we to say that they're wrong? Being wacky and cute and Japanese has been Nintendo's model of success in the world market up until now.
Interestingly, the Japanese version isn't nearly as verbose as the English one. I guess they probably didn't feel much need to justify the oddball faux-English to the reader, since most Japanese products (and all of Nintendo's game consoles) use English-derived names.
There's none of the cockamamy rationale that "the whole world will understand the name" which is present in the English or French versions. However, there is a focus on the "family gaming" concept (and by association casual gaming -- games that even your mom or grandpa would play) which is missing from the English version. With Nintendo's recent incredible success in casual gaming with the DS, this marketing angle shouldn't come as much of a surprise. One could say that the Wii is basically the extension of the DS's pen-like interface into 3-d space: the living room.
One other interesting cultural reference is the way that the "ii" bows to the viewer at the end of the animation. That would be the standard body language to use in Japan, after introducing yourself to an audience.