The Wii (pronounced as the pronoun wee) is the fifth home video game console released by Nintendo. The console is the direct successor to the Nintendo GameCube. Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic than that of Microsoft’s Xbox 360 and Sony’s PlayStation 3, but it competes with both as part of the seventh generation of gaming systems.A distinguishing feature of the console is its wireless controller, the Wii Remote, which can be used as a handheld pointing device and can detect motion and rotation in three dimensions. Another is WiiConnect24, which enables it to receive messages and updates over the Internet while in standby mode.
Hardware
The Wii console is Nintendo’s smallest home unit to date; it measures 44 mm (1.73″) wide, 157 mm (6.18″) tall, and 215.4 mm (8.48″) deep in its vertical orientation, the near-equivalent of three DVD cases stacked together. The included stand measures 55.4 mm (2.18″) wide, 44 mm (1.73″) tall, and 225.6 mm (8.88″) deep, The system weighs 1.2 kg (2.7 lb), which makes it the lightest of the three major seventh generation consoles. The console can be placed either horizontally or vertically. The prefix for the numbering scheme of the system and its parts and accessories is “RVL-” after its project code name of “Revolution”.
The front of the console features an illuminated slot-loading optical media drive that accepts both 12 cm Wii Optical Discs and Nintendo GameCube Game Discs. The blue light in the disc slot illuminates briefly when the console is turned on, and pulsates when new data is received through WiiConnect24. When there is no WiiConnect24 information, the light is off. The disc slot light remains off during game play or when using other features. Two USB ports are located at its rear, and an SD card slot hides behind the cover on the front of the console. The SD card can be used for uploading photos as well as backing up saved game data and downloaded Virtual Console games. As a presently impenetrable system of digital rights management, Virtual Console data cannot be restored to any system except the unit of origin. To use the SD slot for game save transferring, a software update must be downloaded, so a system that has not been connected to the Internet cannot utilize this feature. The SD card can also be used to create customized in-game music from stored MP3 files, as shown in Excite Truck.
Nintendo has shown the console and the Wii Remote in white, black, silver, lime green, and red, but has initially been available only in white. At E3 2006, the Wii Remote was shown in light blue. Shigeru Miyamoto stated that other colors would be available after the easing of supply limitations, which were stated to continue until (northern) spring. Numerous minor changes were made to the design between its original unveiling and launch, including the Nintendo branding used and button placements.
The Wii launch package includes the console, a stand to allow the console to be placed vertically, a circular clear stabilizer for the main stand, one Wii Remote, one Nunchuk attachment, one Sensor Bar, a removable stand for the bar, one external main power adapter, two AA batteries, one composite AV cable with RCA connectors (component video and other types of cables are available separately), operation documentation, and (in all regions excluding Japan) a copy of Wii Sports.
Wii Remote
The Wii Remote is a one-handed controller that uses a combination of accelerometers and infrared detection (from an array of LEDs inside the Sensor Bar) to sense its position in 3D space. This design allows users to control the game using physical gestures as well as traditional button presses. The controller connects to the console using Bluetooth and features rumble, and an internal speaker. The Wii Remote can connect to other devices through a proprietary port at the base of the controller. The device bundled with the Wii retail package is the Nunchuk unit, which features an accelerometer and a traditional analog stick with two trigger buttons. In addition, an attachable wrist strap can be used to prevent the player from unintentionally dropping or throwing the Wii Remote. In response to incidences of strap failures, Nintendo is offering a free stronger replacement for all straps.
Technical Specifications
Nintendo has released few technical details regarding the Wii system, but some key facts have leaked from the press. Though none of these reports has been officially confirmed, they point to the console as being an extension or advancement of the previous Nintendo GameCube architecture. More specifically, the reported analyses state that the Wii is roughly 1.5 to two times as powerful as its predecessor. Here is the exhaustive list of the technical specifications.
Nintendo Wii Vs. Microsoft Xbox 360 Vs. Sony Playstation
The review of the three seventh generation gaming consoles can be found out on many websites, including www.reviews.cnet.com, www.roughlydrafted.com, Matt Pace, theschwartz, www.engadget.com, etc. If these are not enough, we always have Google search.
As the motto of this article is not the comparative study of gaming consoles, but the market performance of Wii, I shall carry on with it. As per The Financial Express, Wii was positioned on the first spot with 259000 consoles sold in March, Xbox 360 took second position with 199000 units sold and PlayStation 3 was struggling with just 130000 consoles sold. With 6.60+ millions units sold worldwide, Nintendo Wii stands clear ahead of Sony Playstation with 3.25 million+ units but still a long distance lagging from current leader of the board, Microsoft Xbox 360 with an estimated selling of 12 million by June, 2007.
Wii-Looking good
As per The BrandIntel report, titled Top Gaming Consoles Report, that people sentiments were with Nintendo Wii mainly because of its low price and uniquely comfortable wireless controller. A report-analysis can be seen here [.pdf].
Nintendo blew the lid off financial expectations, with earnings up 77 percent for the fiscal year. Group net profits clocked in $1.47 billion, rising dramatically over last year’s $829 million, and sales soared 90 percent to $8.13 billion, up from $4.3 billion the year prior. This also increased their Q4 profits eight times the last fiscal year according to Reuters.
What to do Next
With rubber-green going Wii side, they need to tackle some with problems. The first one being the expected shortage of console units by 2009. I assume that Nintendo analysts did not expect the bumper reaction for their gaming console from the gaming community and hence did not plan accordingly. The second being the caution of tackling the problems related to Wii Elbow, an elbow inflammation that occurs due to playing long hours on Wii without warming up. I seriously have no idea what Nintendo officials will do if Sony or Microsoft start publicizing this fact.
Some good things are also happening in Wii’s favor. The Sony Computer Entertainment CEO Mr. Ken Kutaragi, better known as “The father of the PlayStation” is retiring from his post on June 19th, 2007. Mr. Kutaragi has been the instrumental force for the success Sony gaming consoles. With him out of the way, Wii and Xbox 360 can perform the killing move on the ailing PlayStation 3 to have the competition and the market share among them alone. A though job; still I agree, but at least easier than with him having in the way.
About the author:
Mohit has recently completed his bachelors degree from Vellore Institute of Technology,Vellore.He is passionate about blogging and is widely known as a freelancer. Recently an admission in an high iq society www.highiqsociety.org has got him interested in becoming a mensa
Good to see Nintendo adding again the word “fun” to gaming consoles.
I’ve played with the Wii before and have recently bought a DS and I can tell you I am having loads of fun, in a way I never had before, with games like Brain Age, Project Rub, Magnetica, etc.
Like the Wii, the DS introduces a totally different way of playing… and I’m loving it.
…and the price for both consoles is just right! Well done Nintendo! They seem to be on the good track
Edited 2007-05-02 11:17
I fully concur with Governa as I’m a DS owner. For me personally it’s the best gaming platform outside of the PC arena. The touch screen, quirky games and decent battery life all make for fun handheld.
DS games are just so much fun and a breath of fresh air from when compared to all the killing and car writing off I do on my PC! I am loving Animal Crossing 🙂
I suspect I may get a Wii further down the line too.
I got bored of PC gaming when the anal retention set in too much. The same has become of the PS3. So much focus has come upon specs and HD this and that, that no thought has gone into having fun at all. It’s become a “mine’s bigger” contest.
This loss of focus reminds me of 1983, when so much shite was shipped that the industry collapsed. Guess who revived it? Nintendo, in 1987, with the NES, a system that actually had fun games.
I know a lot of people whose only exercise is playing on the wii.
They might fat slobs, but at least with games like wii sports they are getting a little cardio-vascular exercise….. might be just enough to keep them alive some day.
…run Linux?
No, seriously, I’m just wondering what the point(s) of this article is/are that makes it interesting for OSNews readers including myself. Where’s the analysis?
What do you as author think that Nintendo should do to keep gamers interested in the console when it is basically impossible to find in stores, for years to come? Not being able to deliver according to demand sounds like a failed opportunity to me.
Are there any killer apps/games around the corner? How does the Opera browser work with for instance Flash games?
Is there a modding community out there that is working on putting some other OS on the machine? Or have people come up with creative uses of the Wii remote using some open source programming?
Why not give us more of your own thoughts and scout around for some behind-the-scenes or underground info in a second article?
Edit: minor language stuff
Edited 2007-05-02 11:19
Maybe people are just enjoying a differing way to play video games in the home, rather than looking to trick up their Wii? Maybe people are over Sony and their arrogance?
Also, Eugenia will tell you this site is not just about operating systems, it’s about technology in general.
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Indeed. Pity to see Sega loose out though. The Dreamcast was, imo, a fantastic console
You know it, I’ve got a Dreamcast too and Virtua Tennis 2K2 still rocks! 🙂
Dreamcasts are my all time favourite console.
South Park Rally was excellent
SPR? Pish posh. Shenmue was the game the Dreamcast was made for, and Sonic Adventure 1 was then only decent 3D Sonic game before they destroyed the franchise (by adding Shadow) in SA2.
No, Soul Calibur, for the DreamCast was THE game to own! 🙂
Too true, though Dead or Alive 2 LE came a close second in gameplay and definitely first place for fighting game graphics.
I will also recommend to get European Shenmue 2 (US version was cancelled due to Microsoft deal) if you have chance. It is a worthwhile sequel since the game can get the saved data from Shenmue. It is amazing that game still shine despite its age (almost seven years).
It’s ‘lose’, damnit.
Anyways, yeah, I LOVE my Dreamcast. My all time favorite console. I play it every day!
Yeah, the Dreamcast is still a console which I’d be very happy to have. It’s very much a console that had a great deal of opportunity but just didn’t get there.
RIP DC.
…run Linux?
Not quite yet, but soon:
http://www.wiili.org/index.php?title=Main_Page
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wii_homebrew#Linux_on_the_Wii
Super Paper Mario just came out, and it looks to be a winner.
As far as the actual console goes, the Photo Channel and the Everybody Votes Channel are cool little applications.
I haven’t tried it yet, but the YouTube Flash player works very well, even in full screen mode. It’s actually cool to be able to watch YouTube on the television set.
An interesting article here about the importance of making web sites “Wii-ready”…
http://www.praized.com/blog/video/is-your-site-wii-ready/
http://www.wiicade.com is a site that has flash games playable on the Wii Opera browser. Some cool stuff over there.
super mario galaxy is coming, and it’s the “super mario 128” that’s been rumored about since the n64 days.
I’m a gaming enthusiast, but I’m a computer gaming enthusiast, and I always invest in upgrading my computer as opposed buying a new console, my rationale being why buy a console for high definition gaming when I already have a pc that can do what the consoles do already and then some.
The wii was a fundamentally different approach that couldn’t be duplicated on my PC, and was cheap enough, and my PC fulfills my high definition gaming needs, so I bought the wii for the new experience, as opposed to the same experience on a new machine.
my Wii. Decided to go with it over the other 2 consoles, mainly because of the “fun factor” which I thought the Wii had over the other two, and I must say it was the right decision. A few weeks ago (and on other ocasions) there were 10 or so of us playing Wii Sports (tennis), 2 at a time, and it was a blast.
And it’s very easy for people who never played video games in their lives (my dad, friend’s dad) to pick it up and start playing. Nintendo took a chance and it’s definitely paying of.
Why was I scored down?
OK i wasn’t talking directly about the Wii, but it was still on topic, it wasn’t insulting and nor was it spam. So whoever -1 me is breaking OSNews rules.
I sware sometimes people just mod posts down for the fun of it
It is a good system and it runs linux.
And games like Liar will show its potential. The PS3 offers everything the XBox offers and more .. so its just a price issue atm.
When it becomes cheaper the Xbox will have a hard time.
Just my .02 €
The PS3 offers everything the XBox offers and more .. so its just a price issue atm.
When it becomes cheaper the Xbox will have a hard time.
IMO, Sony made a big strategic mistake when they decided to put a Blu-Ray drive in the PS3. They should have made Blu-Ray an optional component, and they could have reduced the price substantially. Sony was apparently more interested in promoting Blu-Ray adoption than they were in kick-starting the PS3 market — and they’re paying for it right now with the PS3 lagging behind both Wii and Xbox360 in sales. Now, Sony may be able to catch up, but it would require them to either take a BIG loss on each console sold, or do some kind of bundle that reduces the severity of their loss. Sony is going to have a tough time msaking that choice and, even while they’re mulling over their options, the cost of the commodity hardware in the Xbox 360 is only going down; so Microsoft will likely respond to any price cuts from Sony with their own.
Sony is already taking a *big loss*. If you believe the $850 per unit manufacturing cost that’s been tossed around.
Sony did risk too much by utterly tying the PS3 to the blu-ray.
Only because of the blu-ray was the PS3 delayed for one year.
That’s really bad considering how much cpu’s and gpu’s “age” in one year. Sony deserves to get punished for this and I hope they understand their really big mistake.
Sony can get back up on their feet, the cost of the blu-ray diode has hugely crashed. They just need to cut the PS3 price accordingly and they can be price competitive with the xbox360.
Price competitive to me means “within $50” of a comparable model. With the 20GB version gone that means the current sony low end model is $600 and the current microsoft low end model is $300. That’s not seriously competing at any level. They must release a product at $350 if they want to have any hope of starting a repeat of the success of the Playstation 2.
Now back on topic…
The Wii is interesting. It made the magic $250 price point. I’m honestly VERY surprised it’s done as well as it has. I for one thought the hardware in the Wii was only worth perhaps $150 for a purchase, but the perceived value of the unit makes it selll very well at $250. I personally still think it’s grossly underpowered.
I personally have a GameCube which I still play. I’m a bit upset at new Wii users for buying up all the good used GameCube games, they’re becoming really hard to find.
Edited 2007-05-02 16:26 UTC
The Wii is interesting. It made the magic $250 price point. I’m honestly VERY surprised it’s done as well as it has. I for one thought the hardware in the Wii was only worth perhaps $150 for a purchase, but the perceived value of the unit makes it selll very well at $250. I personally still think it’s grossly underpowered.
Agree. The computing power and the graphics are downright awful for anything but kiddy games. But that’s Nintendo’s primary market. So, go figure.
Kiddy games you say? Resident Evil 4 was one of the best games graphically for the GameCube, as was the Twilight Princess – neither pushed the the GameCube to it’s limits.
Perhaps you’re simply an idiot with an ax to grind against Nintendo.
The Xbox has a heck of a lot going for it beyond PS3.
It has great digital media capabilities, such as the ability to connect to your PC to stream photos, music, and video (including protected content). It also acts as a media center extender if you have a Media Center PC or a Vista PC. And it upscales DVDs.
It has a +lot+ more next-gen games, including some great exclusives like Gears of War.
In a few days (the May update) it will also support Live Messenger, so that PCs can use voice and video to chat with you while you’re in a game. Imagine watching a DVD in your home theatre and getting a “toast” popup when a friend is looking for you.
The fact is that the digital hub of the home theatre, your console, should have great software capabilities including interoperability with Windows and the web. Can Sony deliver great software and go beyond mere appliance-building? As a frustrated former MiniDisc user, I say +no+.
I’d hate that actually
and it features an outrageously expensive blue ray drive, hehe 😛
The pronoun (which sounds exactly the same) is “we”. “Wee” isn’t a pronoun, but a verb, as in “I gotta go wee”. Usually this word exits someone’s vocabulary a little after age 6.
Curiously, the author doesn’t mention “whee”, an exclamation indicating excitement, no small part of the Wii’s philosophy. I’m not sure they named it for that though, but it would be a shame if not.
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It was named Wii to mean ‘we’ as in several people can play together. The i’s were used to signify two people – i (me) and i (me).
I have a Wii and absolutely love it – Wii Fitness is a daily visit, I’ve maxxed out on Wii Tennis (my score of over 2300 points is into the L of Level), plus Excite Truck is a great game when you get the hang of it. I’m currently pondering the purchase of Tiger Woods golf.
What I do find amusing is the FCC’s code for the approval of the Wiimotes includes the word POO
http://www.the1qwerty.com/poo-remote/
I’ll take Wii Elbow over Nintendo Thumb any day.
JCooper,
I thought the FCC’s code for the approval of Wiimotes was 09_f9_11_02_9d_74_e3_5b_d8_41_56_c5_63_56_88_c0_4
Wee can also be an adjective, as in the wee amount of information in this article.
Also the noun (and verb) is “wee”, the pronoun is “we”.
That said don’t “wii” on the guy’s effort, it’s bad form 😉
Sorry, I was left wanting more. I think it should have been a longer article. To me it was just getting going and then it ended. Maybe there was a size limit. I would like to hear the author go further and deeper with the issue. I like the writing style. To the author: Well-written, just needs more meat. Go deeper.
Yours Truly,
Armchair Quarterback
How come there is so much FUD concealed in this article?
First, it says Wii is pronounced like “wee” instead of like “we”, which is what is used even on Nintendo sites to describe how to pronounce the name. It’s even more strange when he says it’s a pronoun, so that we believe he made a mistake. I bet he never make the mistake when writing “we”.
Why talk about the “relative” power to Gamecube, which is only supposition, as it’s not really known what it can do?
And saying a system with twice the memory is twice as powerful as another is plain stupid. Keep in mind that’s part of the measures they take to tell you it’s 1.5 to twice as powerful as its predecessor (whatever that means).
Why talk about only March performance? There were January and February before, why not add all that and give us performance of all three since start of 2007, Q1 performance to be more precise?
Then, there’s the stupid comparison of sales! Why does he take the PS3 and Wii LTD sales to consumers, and compare that to MS XBox 360 GOAL of SHIPMENTS or SALES to RETAIL in the future (end June 2007)? The same (as those of PS3 and Wii) estimations of sales to consumers give the XBox 360 as having sold 9+M consoles in March, 16 months after its initial launch. What is this “long distance lagging” thing, when the Wii has sold 6+ M consoles in 5 months? Just making the comparison of 6+ M in 5 months against 9+M in 16 months puts a very different perspective from “long distance lagging”.
But it doesn’t end here. There’s now the “problem” of shortages. Is this really so big a problem to Nintendo, when they outsell the competition despite these shortages? The Wii is catching up the XBox 360 lead to the rate of 500k+ consoles a month, despite shortage, to put in perspective to the “long distance” (which is actually less than 3.5M). If what this analyst says happens to be true, that means the Wii will leave the other consoles behind pretty fast (before end of this year), which is not a problem at all.
Then the Wii Elbow. This one is actually pretty interesting, as it shows how efficient the strategy from Nintendo is. In every country where people lack “picture culture”, they included Wii Sports with the console. And guess what? People, lacking this “picture culture”, assimilate Wii Sports (a Wii game) with the Wii. For them, it’s the same thing. You can see that in the interview linked, where people believe Wii Sports is the Wii. Wii Sports is the only current game containing elements (tennis and baseball games) that can make elbow pain. Beside, you can play these games without making tiring movements, and so have no problem.
So the Wii has no problem at all, and if there was a problem, only Wii Sports has it, not the Wii. Even funnier, is the stupid FUD that Sony or Microsoft could exploit this. Let me give you an example : “People have inflammations while playing the Wii for hours”. Nothing like making advertisements for your competitors : “The Wii is so fun that people can’t help playing it for hours, are so involved and immersed that they throw the wiimote in their TV”, yeah, way to go. Why is this a problem exactly?
As for K. Kutaragi being a good thing for the Wii, that’s even more stupid. Ken Kutaragi never had any influence on Wii. He merely had a bad PR value for Sony at best. It’s actually a good thing for Sony that they did that, not a win for the Wii, at all.
Can you explain why so much “mistakes”?
You are right on the mark. This was a kind of suggestive article. Although it contained some positive information about the Wii (Trying to gain the readres trust). It leaves you felling that you should go out and buy a XBox 360 because all other consols are on the way out. Wii was there last best effort and XBox 360 is taking over anyway. When the number show just the opposite. Psychology is a powerfull tool.
Let me know if anyone has any further doubts..
Edited 2007-05-03 15:17
“Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic than that of Microsoft’s Xbox 360 and Sony’s PlayStation 3, but it competes with both as part of the seventh generation of gaming systems.”
I would have thought it competed with both since it covered a wider spectrum, a spectrum supposedly including both the Xbox360 and PS3 markets.
How did we arrive at this being a *7th* generation console anyway.
“The second being the caution of tackling the problems related to Wii Elbow, an elbow inflammation that occurs due to playing long hours on Wii without warming up”
If you behave like an idiot you may get hurt. Now there’s news for you.
“I seriously have no idea what Nintendo officials will do if Sony or Microsoft start publicizing this fact.”
Call their bluff? What are they gonna say anyway? “Don’t buy the WII, its too much fun. Buy our more boring consoles instead”?
“With him out of the way, Wii and Xbox 360 can perform the killing move on the ailing PlayStation 3 to have the competition and the market share among them alone.”
What? Does the PS3 sales suddenly collapse because Mr Kutagari resigns? I doubt Joe Average even know how he is and cares even less about it when deciding what to buy.
“Recently an admission in an high iq society http://www.highiqsociety.org has got him interested in becoming a mensa”
Enough with the chest-pounding already. Sheeesh.
An “article” very short on actual analysis and long on generic information on the WII (and what reads like cut-n-paste from press releases).
Edited 2007-05-02 14:47
How did we arrive at this being a *7th* generation console anyway
Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_video_game_consoles
hehe… wikipedia is pretty awesome [citation needed]
/sarcasm
I wish all the doubts must have been clarified,by my previous post.
Edited 2007-05-03 15:12
he second being the caution of tackling the problems related to Wii Elbow, an elbow inflammation that occurs due to playing long hours on Wii without warming up”
“I seriously have no idea what Nintendo officials will do if Sony or Microsoft start publicizing this fact.”
I know what I would do: TV AD –
Boy shown being lead to a doctor by his father.
Doctor: “Johnny! Have you been playing with you Nintendo Wii again. I already told you to stop till you get better.”
Johnny: “But he plays it all the time.”, looks up at his dad.
Dad: “Well, I did buy all the other game consoles – but it’s the only one that improves my golf handicap.”, while rubbing his elbow.
Doctor: “Handicap, eh!”.
New shoot – show doctor play with his new Nintendo Wii.
Superb Idea….
Nobody linked that comparison yet
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-9136575504838642038
I know it’s kind of fashionable to make doom’n’gloom predictions about the PS3, and certainly its launch was not as successful as Sony hoped, but I wouldn’t write it off yet. The fact is that it was released too early, with developers not having enough time to get used to it. The cost is also too high…however, 1st-generation PS3 games look as good as 2nd-generation Xbox360 games, which means we’ll have some nice-looking 2nd-generation PS3 games before next Christmas. They probably won’t be market leaders, but that doesn’t mean they’ll fail. After all, Xbox and GameCube were quite behind the PS2, yet they were still “successful” consoles…
That said, I love my Wii. I’ve got a best score of -9 for Wii Golf, and that has actually interested me in trying real Golf at some point this summer.
It’s fun to play, but the controls seem a little borked. On Wii sports bowling, the ball has a wide left arc to it when I throw it, unless I intentionally aim as far left as I can, then it goes straight? In boxing, the controls rarely ever do what I want them to. I’m literally punching towards the ceiling, and it’s swinging at the other guy’s body. And sometimes, the pointer disappears completely off the screen and I gotta wave the controller around like s schmuck for several seconds before it comes back on screen. I’ve tried tweaking the sensor bar settings in the options, but it made no difference. Seems like this console could’ve used a few more months in the lab to work out the kinks.
Check the location of your sensor bar. Apparently this is the key to getting the bar to work properly.
Also make sure there’s not so much direct sunlight in the area.
I guess you could also go home grown and make your own sensor bar with brighter diodes, but the thing should really work out of the box.
For bowling, most people have a tendency to give a left-leading spin when they throw (I know I do). This is actually part of the game – you’ve got to learn how to put the correct spin on it.
For boxin, I agree that it’s probably got the weakest control accuracy of all the Wii Sports game. However, I was told not to hold the Wiimote back too much, and instead have it pointing more towards the screen.
Neither of these use the sensor bar, however. The latter is only used when you need to directly point at the screen. Maybe it’s not correctly placed, as others have suggested. Note that you really have to aim the tip of the Wiimote at the screen to see the pointer.
It made me laugh looking at the ‘Exhaustive list’ of the details on the hardware…..
it’s not the graphics which makes a game make fun,
it’s the gameplay, and in my opinion, the wii has one of the best gameplay compared with the other two.
Only if you are into minigames. There is not a lot else. The word ‘fun’ is just used to gloss over any shortcomings Nintendo have these days and it’s getting quite tired. I see the response ‘but Nintendo games are fun’ used way too much. Personally I have seen just as many people have ‘fun’ on Motorstorm on the PS3 or Gears of War on the 360. Wii is selling on price and hype right now.
“Wii is selling on price and hype right now.”
I’ve been hearing that line since before the Wii even launched, people claiming it’s just hype or a gimmick. Isn’t about time to get over those sour grapes? The Wii won this generation, may as well accept it and move on.
That’s incorrect, the PS2 is winning this generation. And to proclaim a victor (‘won’) at this point is sheer stupidity and fanboyism. Even if you wanted to move the goal posts around (we’ll get to that more later) the XBOX 360 is winning as it has the bigger userbase.
Back to the goalposts, I am sure you will try to say ‘but the PS2 isn’t next gen so you can’t compare’ to which I will say the Wii is not next gen like the PS3 and 360 are, and thus not in the price range. I am only saying that to remove your instinct to discard the PS2 as though it doesn’t exist. 110million *supported* (ie. something the GameCube already isn’t) consoles won’t go away overnight.
Edited 2007-05-02 18:43
Watch it with the insults there. I respect your right to disagree but keep the name calling and other disparaging remarks out of it. If you can’t disagree without putting down others go somewhere else.
Edited 2007-05-02 18:50
“And to proclaim…” is not the same as “And for YOU to proclaim…”. It is not pointing to any one individual, even if it may be “inferring” it.
Besides “stupidity” and “fanboyism” don’t seem like very big “name calling” or “insults”.
My goodness… have we all grown so thin-skinned, we are irreparably scarred for life at the terms “stupid” and “fanboy”? Pah!
You want to talk about STUPID… talk about the bunch of people who shot and stabbed individuals for a STUPID game system (the PS3). Gee… it will just NEVER go down in price… and there will NEVER be ANY more made EVER again. And your life is UTTERLY dependant on getting one on OPENING DAY! Sheesh!
With behavior like this, I think mankind, as a whole, is the STUPIDEST SPECIES ON THIS PLANET!!!
… I wonder how long it will be before you or someone else reprimands me for calling the entire human race “stupid”. 😀
yeah, but nintendo makes “fun” for everybody not just a select few. Personally I can’t play games anymore, especially the next gen stuff. It doesn’t look fun, it looks pretty, but it doesn’t look fun.
Yeah, but alot of Nintendo users seem to think that EVERYBODY should absolutely love the likes of Super Mario this, Zelda that and Nintendogs. Some even consider themselves the “real” gamers because of it. Sorry, but different strokes for different folks. It’s true graphics don’t make a game entirely, but not everybody’s into games made for adolescents, even if there are alot of gamers who prefer that kind. One of my friends bought Zelda for the Wii, and I thought what a waste. Here’s an opportunity to make a really hack’n’slash for people who are into that sort of thing but they go back to the cartoonish stuff for the kids, a cartoonish elf with a cartoonish sword killing cartoonish beasties. Likewise with the next generation of Mario games. I just really don’t see what the big excitement is about, even though the controller a nice bit of engineering.
Same with the DS really. Yeah, you can pet your Nintendog for 18 hours of straight if you like, but I can not only do more games on my PSP, but go over to Panera’s and surf the Net or watch movies on it as well.
Here’s a childish kiddy game for you
http://wiinintendo.net/2007/05/01/new-manhunt-2-wii-screens/
I just have to disagree..Consoles are primarily meant for gaming and having fun, they don’t need to double as a home PC. And from what I’ve seen, Wii games aren’t bad looking. I have no need for a $600 console when I can get a cheaper one with a lot better controller and have just as much fun with. It’s just so wrong that people seem to think extra-super-duper-brilliant graphics makes a game good. Wii has a lot of potential, and I just don’t see PS3 or Xbox controllers beating Wii Remote.
I have all three consoles and a Sony PSP and experience learns that the Wii is the most loved one as most friends of family chose to play the Wii for a day of the evening (a lot of fun indeed), after having glanced at 1080P movies and games on the PS3. Yes, very impressive indeed, but overly exciting to play: no.
Friends and family ending up buying or ordering a Wii after an evening of fun: >15. Xbox and PS3: 1 (PS3). And if price (250) was the real killer, then the PSP would have seen more customers.
And no: I don’t sell ‘m.
…and am enjoying it very much, altho’ I did overdo it the first day and hurt my shoulder.
Anyway, one thing I don’t like is all the people snapping them up in quantity then reselling them on ebay. :/ I had to go to ebay to get one, could not find one at any of the usual electronic stores.
I hate its DRM stuff units should me made to make it easier to copy stuff share with friends etc , imagine Copyme supported Wii =) then i just could load over my roms
You’re complaining because Nintendo doesn’t make it easy to steal their games? Seriously?
i think the wii is doing well because it is innovative.
but also i think it’s doing well because sony thoroughly dropped the ball. in my opinion the ps3 flopped as soon as they announced the price, and the 2 versions thing.
Hi,
I am the author of this article and in few comments, I saw some critiques,some valid and some not so valid.I will try to make some clarifications for the reader.
Writing Style
“An “article” very short on actual analysis and long on generic information on the WII (and what reads like cut-n-paste from press releases). “
Unfortunately its my choice and not the reader’s.I can not help,if some one reads the article assuming it to be the same writing flavour of his choice.
Wii Pronounciation
It was a typo.The Pronounciation should have been written we and not wee.
Comparative Power from Gamecube
“Why talk about the “relative” power to Gamecube, which is only supposition, as it’s not really known ”
one can refer http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gamecube#Central_Processing_Unit
and
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wii#Technical_specifications
One can see the clocked CPU speeds and decide by himself.
Comparision of Sales
“Why talk about only March performance?”.
If one reads the article carefully,not only March(latest available month),Total sales have also been compared.
Shortage of sales
Yes, Its correct and here is the link.
http://www.news.com.au/entertainment/story/0,23663,21663954-7486,00…
This is important to Nintendo because of its long-term impact(potebtially, till 2009)
Potential capitalization by Microsoft and Sony
Wii Elbow,is a potential threat to Nintendo PR.
http://news.cnet.co.uk/gamesgear/0,39029682,49285617,00.htm
“People have inflammations while playing the Wii for hours”. Nothing like making advertisements for your competitors : “The Wii is so fun that people can’t help playing it for hours, are so involved and immersed that they throw the wiimote in their TV”, yeah, way to go. Why is this a problem exactly?
The problem is,both Microsoft and Sony are Smart enough to know how to move the market.That’s why they are gaint organizations and you are not.
K. kutaragi
“As for K. Kutaragi being a good thing for the Wii, that’s even more stupid. Ken Kutaragi never had any influence on Wii. He merely had a bad PR value for Sony at best.”
Read this and you will know about his conribution for Sony.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ken_Kutaragi#Role_in_the_gaming_indust…
He is called The father of playstation for some reason.
Nintendo Wii is a 7th generation gaming console
Here is the link to the reference
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_video_game_consoles_%28…
I do my research before writing,please do yours before posting.
Personal Comments
“Recently an admission in an high iq society http://www.highiqsociety.org has got him interested in becoming a mensa”
Enough with the chest-pounding already. Sheeesh.
.
Yes,Thats correct.I do flaunt because I can.As a matter of fact,this I believe is a place for Technical information gathering and not for personal comments.
I plan on getting my hands on a Wii, but apparently there is a newer version coming out soon with the ability to play DVD’s. The funny thing is the wii already has a dvdrom in it, but it just lacks the software to play movies… so im assuming that if they do it that it’ll probably just be a fireware update that you purchase through the wii… but i dont want to take any chances and have decided to wait until they offer their newer version with the update already installed.
Ah well.
Prettier graphics do not make a better console. Nintendo has reinvented the way we play and I love it!
Running Linux is not the measure of a device’s value! I don’t buy a game console to dink around with Linux. That is bordering on idiotic.