Nintendo Already Anticipating Holiday Wii Shortages 246
As we approach the holiday season, Nintendo has already said that they don't expect to keep up with demand for the Wii console. In an interview with the LA Times, Nintendo president Reggie Fils-Aime said they're ramping up production by 33% already, with further increases planned. They're hoping to avoid the scarcity of Wii's that occurred last year, which cost them a great deal of money in potential sales. "We're now producing 2.4 million units a month worldwide. Last year, we made 1.6 million a month. So we've made a 33% increase. One of our competitors projects they will sell 10 million consoles worldwide this year. For us, that's three months of production. We're producing an unprecedented level of hardware to try to meet demand."
In other news... (Score:4, Insightful)
...water is wet, the sky is blue, and Macs and PCs use the same hardware. i.e. There is nothing surprising here. The demand for the Wii has been mercilessly out of whack with what is possible (or at least practical) to manufacture, since day one. I know a lot of people thought the shortage was over when Wiis temporarily became available during the summer. (Note that I said "available", not "abundant".) The problem is that console sales always cycle during the summer. The best sales are obviously around Christmas, both before and after. (After for all the folks who couldn't get one during the Christmas season.) Being at the opposite end of the year, summer is obviously going to be the low-point for sales. Consumers are spending their money on vacations and outdoor fun rather than game consoles.
What I find far more interesting is the extreme vitriol [computeran...ogames.com] expressed by those who commented on the ComputerAndVideoGames.com story. It seems the more successful the Wii becomes, the more the hardcore gamers hate it for its success.
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I used to live in WA state and was able to get a Wii after just a few weekends of calling retailers. However, I moved to MN state recently and you can't get a Wii here.
I asked the electronics dude at target and he said they get a couple units a week and they all sell out the same day they arrive. I really don't understand why they can't ramp up production even more. At this point, scarcity isn't doing them any favors so there is no reason to limit supply. They should simply make as many units as possible an
Re:In other news... (Score:5, Interesting)
I don't think you understand how many Wiis Nintendo is producing. Let me draw a comparison for you.
In the eight years that the PS2 has been available, it has sold about 140 million units. That's a lot by game console standards. In fact, it's a lot by the standards of pretty much any electronic device ever mass marketed. The PS2 is the most popular console in the history of video games.
To reach that lofty level of 140 million in 8 years, it would have taken a manufacturing capacity of ~1.5 million units per month. Nintendo is producing 2.4 million units per month. If Nintendo maintains that rate, they will produce 115.2 million consoles in the next 4 years. That's in addition to the 30 million consoles already on the market. That right there is over 145 million consoles in 6 years.
I will reiterate that the assumption is that production stays steady. However, Nintendo has already promised additional increases in production! Unless there is a massive and sudden drop-off in demand, Nintendo will not only be exceeding the record set by the PS2, they will shatter it to pieces.
I hope that clarifies the situation.
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"Unless there is a massive and sudden drop-off in demand, Nintendo will not only be exceeding the record set by the PS2, they will shatter it to pieces."
So far, they've sold 30m units in two years; and have yet to be able to keep them in stock.
And yet, the PS2 in eight years sold 140m. 140/4=35m units in the same window as the Wii. And the Wii is in its infancy and prime, when most attention will be focused on it.
And yet still, the PS2 was not difficult to find in-stores after roughly one year.
Not saying it
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Yeah, but you are talking about Nintendo after the Gamecube (LEAST successful previous gen console, by far)
"by far"? Are you serious? Xbox sold 24 million. Gamecube sold 22 million. I'd hardly call that 'least successful by far'. I'd call that pretty much tied for 2nd place. Especially as the Cube made Nintendo decent money while the Xbox lost Microsoft money hand over fist.
Saying the cube was least successful 'by far' is clearly overstating things 'by far'.
I imagine there would be some trepidation about bu
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Nintendo will not only be exceeding the record set by the PS2, they will shatter it to pieces.
Several reasons have been proposed for this:
Re:In other news... (Score:5, Funny)
$Wii > $PS*3* (Score:2)
You're currently modded "Funny", so maybe I'm just being dense, but methinks you're confused about what's being compared here. Sure, the Wii is cheaper than the PS3 -- priced now at Toys R Us online at $367.95 [toysrus.com] vs. $399.99 [toysrus.com] (ignoring for now that the Wii is bundled with an extra controller and a game, whereas the PS3 just comes with a single controller and no game) -- but the GP poster's comment compares the Wii with the PS2 -- which is $367.95 [toysrus.com] vs. $129.99 [toysrus.com] -- making the Wii over
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>>>To reach that lofty level of 140 million in 8 years, it would have taken a manufacturing capacity of ~1.5 million units per month.
Your statistical analysis doesn't hold-up, because the PS2 sold its first 100 million in just four years time. That's over 2 million per month. The Wii has sold "only" 30 million in two years; which would be 60 million in four years.... far short of what the PS2 did.
Even if the Wii continues its current rates it won't reach 100 million until the middle of year 6...
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That is odd.
I know vgchartz isn't the most accurate site, but according to this [vgchartz.com], the Wii is about a year ahead of the PS2.
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I imagine Nintendo is aware that this will all end... eventually... and don't want to be stuck with hundreds of millions of dollars worth of wasted manufacturing capability. Now, will it end after this Christmas, next Christmas, or will be be like the gameboy and dominate the market for ten years? Who knows.
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The best sales are obviously around Christmas, both before and after. (After for all the folks who couldn't get one during the Christmas season.) Being at the opposite end of the year, summer is obviously going to be the low-point for sales. Consumers are spending their money on vacations and outdoor fun rather than game consoles.
We celebrate summer Christmas you insensitive clod!
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I dunno, I think as more people get high def TV's, there's going to be less demand for the Wii.
Case in point:
A year ago, I *really* wanted a wii. Like, had to have. Couldn't find one.
Now, I have a high def TV, and find myself much more interested in something that doesn't just push 480p.
There's a lot good to say about the wii, but it's 2 years old now, and people are starting to see some issues with it, like:
* the lack of high-def output 2 years ago was not really that big a deal, and I'm the first to say
Re:In other news... (Score:4, Informative)
Regarding good games, you skipped over Super Mario Galaxy, but you have a decent point regarding the games - I want more non crappy games. Yes, I'm somewhat contradicting my first paragraph here, but there have been several good games for the console, enough to get me to buy it and enough to prove the point that the new controller is fun. Now, it just needs more of them.
Wii Fit (Score:2)
Graphics don't really matter for it. You have grandmas using it in nursing homes and I caught my four year-old doing yoga on it. It's just awesome.
I know it's not really a "game," more exercise guide plus a bunch of mini-games, but it goes to an odd selling point of the Wii. The other consoles break out of the console mold by being DVD players and media streamers, Wii does it with strange non-traditional games and activities that are oddly catching on. Still, I'll be getting GTA 5 for the PS3, not the Wii.
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I bought a Wii at launch but sold it to my brother in law a month and a half later. I had beaten Zelda, played the crap out of Wii Sports, but nothing else was on the horizon. The only games I've remotely been interested in in the last two years were Metroid, Mario Kart, and Smash Bros., I've gotten to play them all for a bit since then and actually feel like I got my full (this coming from someone who put 2000 hours into SSBM).
I'll probably get a 360 around Christmas, more games have come out for that i
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I think as more people get high def TV's, there's going to be less demand for the Wii.
Possibly true, but the economic slowdown means that the rate of HDTV adoption is going to start falling off. 'Standard' definition TV signals have been around for seventy years, many people aren't going to mind keeping them a few years more.
Re:In other news... (Score:5, Insightful)
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We have credit cards just for these kind of situations!
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360 is actually the cheapest of the 3 consoles now after the latest price cuts. 199 for the base model which plays all the games, and it can be had even cheaper after deals, I think around 170 from Dell. I've never seen a deal on a Wii I think.
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Hardcore gamers are in the minority.
Nintendo's master
Re:In other news... (Score:5, Informative)
(sigh)
Here we go again... slashdotters that appear to have no clue with math and/or real-world economics. I'll try to make this brief...
1) Using your numbers, the ps2 has been in production ~ 100 months now, for an avg. of 1 million/month. The SNES sold 50 million over over5 years, averaging ~ 1 million/per month. Wii production WAS 1.6 million/month last year, and is NOW at 2.4 million/month. Wii production started around 1 million/month and has only been increasing, thus Nintendo is already putting units out at an unprecedented rate compared to any system current or past.
2) Factories and production capability don't just appear out of thin air. They take time and money to build. A built factory with no demand is a bad investment, and Nintendo rarely makes bad investments. Building more manufacturing lines just for the holiday rush is bad business. Good business is to stockpile over the summer.
3) When people buy a product as fast as it is produced you can't build up a stockpile for holiday sales. Thus, more shortages when demand spikes. THERE IS NO DELIBERATE SHORTAGE. JUST STRONG SALES AND PREDICTABLE ECONOMICS.
Sorry for the yelling, but its a bit annoying that every Wii story that pops up is filled with people claiming conspiracy. When the demand is high and production is down, then you might have a point.
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For the record, it looks like [seekingalpha.com] the PS2s best selling year was when it sold about 22 million units in 2003. In 2004 it sold about 20 million. Notice that the console came out in 2000 and 2003 was it's third year out. The Nintendo Wii looks like it'll sell 20-24 million a year beginning with its second year. I think it could sell 100 million over five years thanks to the prohibitively high cost of the PS3 and the 360 providing enough competition this generation in the EU and US against the PS3 to keep one from
Re:In other news... (Score:5, Insightful)
Expanding manufacturing lines costs money and depending on the unit price and the expected sales volume that may not be profitable. Since the Wii was "available" during the year that suggests the non-christmas demand is about equal to the manufacturing capacity being used, increasing capacity for christmas only and having superfluous capacities afterwards can be pretty unprofitable.
I'll do the same thing I did last-gen. I'll buy whichever is the most-popular console when it hits $199. And I'll buy the Nintendo Wii if it's either $100 flat or $150 with a free game.
That's a contradiction, the Wii is the most popular console. The DS hasn't seen a price drop since release (maybe the old DS back when it was obsoleted by the DS lite), all signs point towards Nintendo using the same strategy for the Wii.
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Just so you know, Wii has about 145% of the sales that PS2 did at this point in its lifetime. That's an extra 10 million units in two years, or about 400,000 a month.
By the end of this year, the gap will be more like 15 million units.
So has Nintendo won the console war? (Score:4, Funny)
Is it official yet, or do the other contenders still have a shot at avoiding humiliation?
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Yes, no.
Everything went as expected, but atm Xbox360 in it's simplest form sells at a much lower price than the Wii so at the current prices I don't really know if the winner would had been so obvious.
Even though I wished Nintendo all well and they have new controllers one can't deny the 360 has benefits over Wii as well.
The PS3? Even better but cost twice as much as the cheapest 360 which is a factor. Also as long as it don't have a lot of games only for PS3 obviously less people will be interested.
Re:So has Nintendo won the console war? (Score:5, Insightful)
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I disagree with the meme that the 360 Arcade is mostly useless or missing a lot of capability. It comes with a 512MB memory card, plenty for saves, which means it plays all the retail games just fine, which is all a majority of owners want it for.
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Yes and no.
They have a similar units-sold lead to that which Sony established last cycle with the PS2. However, while Sony's lead in console sales was matched by a roughly equivalent lead in game sales (which is where the real profit is in this industry), Nintendo is actually significantly behind its competitors in this field this time around. So the huge installed base isn't actually equating into a "win" per se. A wii that is bought by a non-gamer, used for a month and then sits forgotten in a cupboard (w
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Bah, this is what I get for making posts first thing in the morning.
Last sentence of the first paragraph should read:
"In fact, looking at the September through December releases, I can't see a single game coming out on the Wii that most gamers (as in, the people who are likely to buy games beyond what comes with their initial bundle) are likely to get out of bed for."
And the first sentence of the last paragraph should read:
"Of course, this isn't to deny that Nintendo has done better than during the last cyc
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It was official on 20 November, 2006 [zogdog.com].
Who doesn't have a wii at this point? (Score:3, Interesting)
What, are they EATING wiis? They've been selling out for over a year now, by my calculations that's 3 wiis per everyone.
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Three Wiis? With twelve, I could set up a Beowulf Cluster and run Linux to calculate Pi to the 50 billionth decimal place!
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Three Wiis? With twelve, I could set up a Beowulf Cluster and run Linux to calculate Pi to the 50 billionth decimal place!
The 50 billionth decimal place of pi is 2. (Source: http://www.geocities.com/hjsmithh/Pi/Record51.html [geocities.com])
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With twelve, I could set up a Beowulf Cluster and run Linux to calculate Pi to the 50 billionth decimal place!
What you could do with twelve Wii consoles you could probably do with one Cell Broadband Engine in PS3 Linux, and you wouldn't even have to run anything like Twilight Hack.
Re:Who doesn't have a wii at this point? (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Who doesn't have a wii at this point? (Score:5, Informative)
Wiiagra? :D
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Children's toys get broken easily. There's probably a higher casualty rate for Wii's than for the systems made for mature people.
Hey, that's a bit far even for trolling. In fact, let's give a hand to nintendo for consistently making the most bullet proof consoles. Millions of years from now, after the nuclear apocalypse, alien scientists will come to earth and find nothing but slightly radioactive, still completely functional game boy advances.
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No news that Nintendo consoles live long and that the service is excellent. That many people have replaced their PS2 multiple times due to messed up laser, and the same for many people with their ring of death 360s as you mention.
Though I guess if one want to be evil one could say that's only because Nintendo update their (portable) consoles so you just "have" to buy the new version before the old one bites the dust so they get more sales that way instead :D
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Immaturity is when you seek out the things you were forbidden from as a child.
Maturity is when you're not afraid of what other people think. Especially when you base your choice of entertainment on such unpopular concepts as "fun", "uplifting", "social", and "family friendly".
They're actually making 50% more (Score:4, Informative)
1.5*1,600,000 = 2,400,000
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So I guess, the difference between the new number and old number is 33% of the new number is what they are saying, which is a pretty stupid and non-intuitive way to compare numbers. Most people, as above, would see 16 + 50% * 16 = 24 as a 50% increase.
Clone Machine (Score:2)
2.4 million units a month worldwide
Short of building a cloning machine, what more can Nintendo really do? 2.4 computers a months seems like no small amount to me, especially considering that Nintendo often has good quality.
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Ompa-Lompa-Dibidi-Doo
I am a wii owner so spare me condemnation.. but.. (Score:5, Interesting)
I've not checked many review sites so if I'm bringing up a biased, poor review site by all means, reject what I'm saying:
2 years in and according to Gamespot [gamespot.com] only 8 games have made a score over 8.5 - 12 if you count 8.5
This is woeful. You go to the Wii section in any store and the shelves are stocked with what I deem "exploitware". That is, poorly designed games attempting to sucker the Wii mass market into buying games based on advertised novel mechanics (that rarely work).
A year ago, you could forgive this type of situation on the industry having not caught up with the prolific popularity of the console. Now, I find myself losing faith in the Wii. With all the Mario lineup accounted for and Smash Bros done, a "not completely awesome" Metroid. What do we have to look forward to?
Url may or may not work for you (localised) http://au.gamespot.com/reviews.html?type=reviews&platform=1031&mode=all&sort=score&dlx_type=all&sortdir=asc&official=all [gamespot.com]
Re:I am a wii owner so spare me condemnation.. but (Score:5, Insightful)
One comment I'd like to make is that Gamespot is useless. They have no journalistic integrity, and their reviews are awful to boot. Check IGN or MetaCritic instead.
I do not disagree with this statement. However, I would caution you to think carefully about the PS2 before you derive too much from it. How much PS2 software was AAA stuff? How much of it was excellent stuff that didn't get the attention it deserved? How much of it was pure, unbridled crap? (Even worse, do you know how much of the last category has been ported to the Wii to "cash in"?)
The biggest issue with the Wii is that some of the best games fall into the category of "don't get enough attention". Gamers pay attention to Monkey Ball Wii when Mercury Meltdown Revolution is the superior title. Zach and Wiki bring back the point and click adventure genre, but no one can be bothered to buy it. Geometry Wars Galaxies is several dozen shmups in one, but hardcore gamers ignore it. Pinball Hall of Fame: Williams Collection is the most amazing pinball simulation EVER, but it goes directly to the bargain bin. Boom Blox... well... Boom Blox is just overpriced IMHO.
And then there's WiiWare. Awesome, great, terrific, incredible games like Defend Your Castle, Toki Tori, Strong Bad, World of Goo, Wild West Guns (if you like light-gun games), Mega Man 9, Bomberman Blast, and LostWinds, yet most of the Wii owners I see don't even bother to hook up their Wii's Wifi.
I don't know if this is a failure to market on Nintendo's part or what. Obviously Nintendo's stuff sells well enough, so one has to wonder what gives. In part, I have seen publishers take a defeatist attitude toward the Wii. (e.g. The only reason why anyone heard of Zach and Wiki was because IGN tried to jump-start a grass roots movement. Capcom spent diddly squat on advertising and promotion.) Which, unsurprisingly, becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. Still, you'd think that publishers would want to nail their support for this machine while the iron is hot.
I honestly don't think they "get" it. Until they do, a Wii owner has to be a discerning owner. Because that's the only way you're going to find the good games. And there are PLENTY. From Excite Truck to Wario Shake It, the games are there. They're just not getting much attention.
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Obviously Nintendo's stuff sells well enough, so one has to wonder what gives. In part, I have seen publishers take a defeatist attitude toward the Wii.
I think part of the problem is that many game makers bought big-time into the idea that the ps3 would inherit the ps2's title. When the wii ended up eating the ps3's lunch, it was kind of hard for many of them to adjust.
Even where they do end up releasing games for the wii, the games often seem rushed and to lack the full attention of the company. I get the impression that some companies view their wii games almost as a kind of stopgap until the ps3 "catches up" and they can get back to their original
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The press average on Meta Critic for the two games you mentioned isn't exactly outstanding:
If these are hopes for the Wii players, the hopes are thin.
About the same on Meta Critic [metacritic.com] according to their All-Time High Scores:
And for the record:
The trend is quite similar on GameStats [gamestats.com] too (which is to IGN what Meta
To compete with used (Score:2)
GameCube ports, which is becoming a well-loved trend among publishers, has to be one of the most obnoxious, shameful idea to ever hit game consoles; for Gumpei's sake, the console is compatible with GC games!
The old GameCube games are out of print. If publishers are going to spend money on putting games back into print in order to compete with used, they might as well add accelerometer support while they're at it.
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I respect the romance of unaltered games but I don't buy that people who want unfiltered snes graphics on their large televisions.
Let's use Metacritic (Score:3, Informative)
Ok, let's use Metacritic...
Wii
First available: November 19, 2006
Scores 80 and above: 36 games
Scores 85 and above: 13 games
Source: http://www.metacritic.com/games/wii/scores/ [metacritic.com]
Xbox 360
First available: November 22, 2005
Scores 80 and above: 122 games
Scores 85 and above: 47 games
Source: http://www.metacritic.com/games/xbox360/scores/ [metacritic.com]
PS3
First available: November 11, 2006
Scores 80 and above: 79 games
Scores 85 and above: 34 games
Source: http://www.metacritic.com/games/ps3/scores/ [metacritic.com]
PS2
First available: October-November,
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In the case of WiiWare, I was thinking about promoting the online capabilities of the console rather than the individual titles themselves. At least then users might hook up their consoles and Nintendo could realize better royalties across ALL WiiWare titles. Beyond that, I think that sites like WiiWare World [wiiware-world.com] already do an excellent job promoting the titles themselves.
Re:I am a wii owner so spare me condemnation.. but (Score:2)
Sadly enough most people are probably not to bothered with that since they end up buying all the same games anyway. (Mario galaxy, Zelda, maybe smash bros as you mention, metroid, mario kart, whatever more.)
Over here in Sweden the only games advertised for the DS is still Nintendogs and New super mario bros (and earlier mario kart). Sure there is a lot of games for the DS, sure there are better titles than those, sure there are newer titles than those, sure there are more interesting and fresh titles than t
Re:I am a wii owner so spare me condemnation.. but (Score:5, Informative)
Now, I find myself losing faith in the Wii. With all the Mario lineup accounted for and Smash Bros done, a "not completely awesome" Metroid. What do we have to look forward to?
One thing I am looking forward to is the MotionPlus wiimote attachment. You know those lightsaber games we where promised? All the great game ideas that turned out lackluster because the wiimote's motion detection isn't that great? This will make all that possible. The MotionPlus gives 6 degrees of freedom, registering motion and rotation.
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The motion detection is the much smaller problem. One-to-one motion simply isn't possible because there's nothing to stop you from swinging when your sword hits your opponent's.
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Given the tracking problems which Dragon Quest Swords: The Masked Queen and the Tower of Mirrors have, improving the accuracy of tracking would be a welcome improvement --- which isn't to say that I haven't enjoyed DQS a lot, but it would be more enjoyable if it wouldn't occasionally inexplicably register a thrust and break the hit chain, or if it would more accurately track diagonal slashes.
I'm sure that the developers invested a great deal of effort to get it to the point where it is --- making that easie
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not being trying to be nit-picky but without the motion sensing you only have like.. 4 buttons? Pretty sure every game uses motion sensing.
Ignoring motion-sensing, the core Wii remote has seven buttons (one of which is reserved for the Home menu by interface guidelines) and a 4-way D-pad.
Attaching the Nunchuk adds a digital thumbstick and two more buttons. That's just one button short of the dense and unweildy N64 controller.
Not that 'number of buttons' has any correlation with playability, anyway.
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Now, I find myself losing faith in the Wii. With all the Mario lineup accounted for and Smash Bros done, a "not completely awesome" Metroid. What do we have to look forward to?
One thing I am looking forward to is the MotionPlus wiimote attachment. You know those lightsaber games we where promised? All the great game ideas that turned out lackluster because the wiimote's motion detection isn't that great? This will make all that possible. The MotionPlus gives 6 degrees of freedom, registering motion and rotation.
Quite honestly that sounds like another avenue for ultra exploitware. As novel as the Wii's mechanics are, it is exactly the novelty that is driving the wave of poor games to actually "do okay".
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One thing I am looking forward to is the MotionPlus wiimote attachment.
So far I've been loving every iteration of Tiger Woods on the Wii (despite some glaring faults). If all I get for Tiger 10 is a repackaged Tiger 09 with good Wiimotion Plus and WiiSpeak support, I'd gladdly buy it.
Re:I am a wii owner so spare me condemnation.. but (Score:4, Insightful)
Remember how long it took the PS2 to build up a solid library of titles?
Sure, there were dozens of titles at launch, but it took ages for it to build up its now-formidable library, while Microsoft rested on its laurels with Halo.
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That being said, I think the fact that the majority of people who are buying Wii's are not atypical discerning gamers has contributed to very difference response from gaming houses. Most of the good games are going to the xbox/ps3 with Wii an afterthought.
The strange thing is, I'm hardly a gamer but I read a review or two before
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The Wii's problem is that it isn't getting any "epic" games on a regular schedule, which are what are getting all the hype and praise right now.
Gears of War 2
LBP
Rock Band and GHWT
Fallout 3
Dead Space
These are the games that get magazine covers, breathless previews, dedicated forums, etc. They have big budgets, huge graphics, and online features out the wazoo. They pop up every couple of months on the 360 and PS3, and there are a ton right now because the holiday season is approaching. How many Wii games get
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I'm invariably standing next to a family who are buying games on cover alone.
They are the ones in the majority. Not the discerning distinguished gentleman such as myself.
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The Wii problem is much, much simpler:
It's not a console for gamers, and thus games for gamers don't come out on it.
Even the low budget PS2 RPG market won't port their games to the Wii, presumably because they don't think they'll sell well to the "non-gamer" people who bought the Wii. The worst thing is, they're probably right.
On again, off again (Score:2)
Most of the rest of the titles I see in stores are gimmick/exploitware games that aren't even worth $10, let alone $49.
Much of the WiiWare games seem like mediocre crap that look like ports of flash games -- I've only picked up Mega Man 9 from the crop for its retro appeal (though I think they went a little too heavy on the difficulty.. the olde
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Well, beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
I own Super Smash Bros Brawl, and I got really disappointed with the game in spite of all the very enthusiastic reviews. It's just... well... childish. I guess it would be better if I had gamer buddies aplenty and half a pound of Mary Jane at home all the time. Then I own No More Heroes. Which looks butt-fucking ugly and held my attention for a while, but was widely advertised as THE hardcore game to own. While a fun game, I really have issues with how bad it looks
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> a "not completely awesome" Metroid
Are you joking ?
I'm not, but in that particular case I'm only going off a review as it is one of the games I have not played. If I'm wrong, no stress.
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I think it's really excellent. It especially makes great use of the power of the wiimote and nunchuck, which is (was ?) rare. I had stopped playing for twenty years until I found this game, then I couldn't stop until I had finished it...
Oh.. ahah.
You see the reviews I read and the comment of "not completely awesome" largely refer to the fact that the gamecube versions were the case. With people being a little disappointed with the lack of evolution of the game onto the next generation.
At the risk of getting beaten up.... (Score:2)
I walked into a store a few weeks ago and bought one.
Ok, yeah. I was shocked as hell that they actually had them in stock.
what?! (Score:2, Insightful)
Seriously? People are still into this fad system?
Don't get me wrong, there were few people who were stronger supporters of the Wii when it was first coming out with it's new motion control setup. Unfortunately, it seems like all that developers have been able to do with it is create a bunch of crappy mini games where the only point seems to be to flail ones limbs around. The only thing the system does well is shooters (given that every other system has given up on the light gun) while they have been unable
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Super Paper Mario was supposed to come for Gamecube, evil Nintendo releasing it for Wii only. I want my super paper mario damnit! ;/
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fad: n, A phenomenon that becomes popular for a very short time.
Average Span between nintendo consoles: ~5 years
So I ask you this: when a system is still scarce for half of its shelf-life, can we please stop calling it a fad?
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I have a number of friends who own the system and while it was massively popular for a while no one touches their systems any more (meanwhile their PC's and 360's get plenty of use). I've heard of this happening for quite a few people outside my social circle as well.
Re:what?! (Score:5, Insightful)
Unfortunately, it seems like all that developers have been able to do with the PS3 is create a bunch of crappy first person shooters where the only point seems to be to fire guns in random directions and hope you hit something.
I don't know how up to date you've been keeping with the Wii, but the age of mini-games is over. Save for Rayman Raving Rabbids 3, I can't think of a single title in recent memory that's based on mini-games. If any exist, it is probably a shovelware title that you should avoid. Spend your money on Boom Blox, Wario Shake It, Zack and Wiki, or one of the many excellent WiiWare titles instead.
Re:what?! (Score:5, Insightful)
To a lot of people complaining, those games you list *are* mini-games. As in, not beefy games - the blockbuster ones that really drive things. In this context, the definition of mini-game has changed, and has glommed together with portions of "casual game," "low budget game, "shallow game" and "simple game."
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The Wii has changed the definition of what makes a good game. Nintendo proved that there was a huge market waiting for games that are relatively easy to produce, fun to play, and very profitable (and unfortunately, a lot of business players have forgotten how to make and sell those).
Metal Gear Solid 4 and Metroid Prime 3 are great. Those kinds of games aren't going anywhere. But myself, and a lot of other people, are glad that games based on fun gameplay concepts have a home again.
I love Heavenly Sword,
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(and unfortunately, a lot of business players have forgotten how to make and sell those).
I was going to say that this isn't true at all, but I thought about it for a minute and realized that it is true, unless you're Nintendo. I feel like the third parties rely solely on cover appeal, but there's a reason. Games that aren't big-budget don't get big-budget advertising either - it's one of those business things where they shoot themselves in the foot trying to get the dollar figures to line up appropriately, even though it makes zero sense. In their eyes, it's too risky to create a larger budget
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Unfortunately, it seems like all that developers have been able to do with the PS3 is create a bunch of crappy first person shooters where the only point seems to be to fire guns in random directions and hope you hit something.
I don't understand why you drag the PS3 into the discussion when the parent poster was only talking about the Wii. Also, the Wii has as many first-person shooters as the PS3, so again, I fail to see your point.
I have a Wii and a PS3. Guess which one I play more? Yup, you guessed correctly. The PC. :-)
Re:what?! (Score:4, Insightful)
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While they have been unable to come up with anything compelling in terms of sequels for their major franchises.
Everytime I look, I see good things being said about LoZ Twilight Princess and SM Galaxy.
That's also my own experience: Z:TP sucked me in like a vacuum, playing it every spare moment, loving it all the way. The puzzles are just hard enough to push me without leaving me stomped for too long [nice graphics, well-composed music, same old story but with a nice twist; slightly less fun second time you play it, though].
The graphics, sound, level and boss design for SM Galaxy: awesome [I love(!!) the daredevil ru
It's Christmas (Score:2, Informative)
Stop pussyfooting around with the phrase "holiday season". If you mean Christmas, say Christmas!
Re:It's Christmas (Score:4, Interesting)
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Stop pussyfooting around with the phrase "holiday season". If you mean Christmas, say Christmas!
Your persecution complex is showing.
Kwanzaa is a made-up thing, and Hanukkah is a more minor Jewish holiday than most gentiles recognize, but gifts are purchased and given by people in celebration of both of those holidays, and then some.
'Christmas season' is the misnomer, not 'holiday season'.
Comment removed (Score:3, Insightful)
Will we ever see a price decrease? (Score:2)
However, we all know that hardware prices tend to fall over time. Unless I am mistaken, the Wii of this year is identical to the Wii of 2006 in terms of hardware. So why hasn't the console price fallen? Will we see it fall before Nintendo r
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So this is the third year of the Wii being available, but it is still at the same (retail) price as when it was originally released. Granted, sales are still outpacing supplies so we can assume that demand has at least remained roughly static over these three years.
However, we all know that hardware prices tend to fall over time. Unless I am mistaken, the Wii of this year is identical to the Wii of 2006 in terms of hardware. So why hasn't the console price fallen? Will we see it fall before Nintendo releases their next system (whenever that will be)?
An earlier post said that console life cycles average about 5 years. If we are therefore over half-way into this cycle, wouldn't we expect to have seen a price drop by now?
I bolded the part where you answered your own question.
Odd... (Score:2)
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In an interview with the LA Times, Nintendo president Reggie Fils-Aime said they're ramping up production by 33% already, with further increases planned
Reggie Fils-Aime said they're ramping up production by 33% already, with further increases planned
they're ramping up production by 33% already, with further increases planned
33% already, with further increases planned
further increases planned
Re:Must be ramping down production (Score:5, Funny)
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Why do you say that? They're still in demand and hard to find.
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Linux users have the big dicks, voluminous brains, razor wits, and they get to fuck all of the female instances of all of the above.
So they claim unverifiably on the internet.
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Small Vito Corleone face appears on the screen, with a speech balloon:
I'm de man around these parts. It looks like you're trying to reconfigure the Barzinis. I'mna make you an offer you can't refuse:
If you neednything, just come tode man.