Wii's Longevity, Competition Questioned 277
Gamasutra reports that, despite the Wii's breakaway sales success, some analysts are skeptical of the Wii's staying power. Other analysts are, of course, pointing out that many of the 'hardcore' titles are expected later this year. "[They] not[ed] that 31% of Wii owners surveyed in March said they expected to play the Wii more often a year from now, compared to 21% of Xbox 360 owners." At the same time, Nintendo of America's George Harrison is questioning the staying power of Sony and Microsoft. According to Harrison, the two larger companies 'lack the DNA' to move with the industry, and keep with the the demand for casual, more family-friendly titles. "'They're really good at reaching a certain customer, and have a real difficulty understanding how we succeed with the customers that we have,' said the senior vice president of marketing and communications. With the sales of Wii and DS hardware crushing the competition in the US, Harrison is confident that Nintendo could take up to as much as 50 per cent of the market for this latest 'next-gen' cycle."
Talking just for my personal experience... (Score:5, Insightful)
I got bored of my Wii... I am still waiting for a good game, the problem with consoles like this with so few games is that sometimes it is impossible to get a game you like if your "tastes" are not standard... Also, I do not have the £40 to spend on some wannabe game without testing... how am I suppose to see if I like that game? considering that these days, online reviews are less worthless...
Re:Talking just for my personal experience... (Score:5, Insightful)
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This is the reason I download most of my games via some 'illegal' channel first, I play most of them for less than 1 hour. :).
I usually end up buying the ones I really love sooner or later (but not always
OTOH online demo system like the one built for PS3 and Xbox360 could make this kind of pirating pointless.
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Quite honestly between wiiplay and wiisports I spend at least an hour a day playing. With Super Mario Paper and Trauma Center it's time for sleep before i even get a chance to watch some TV.
To me I play the wii more often then my 360 , I got bored of the constant fps and sports games constantly being released. They need to get me more in
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When I first started playing the Wii, I thought, 'amazing...' Then I started to look for something deeper, more challenging. I didn't find it.
My 360 is the console I expect to be playing far into the future, while the Wii will be relegated to being the console that non-gamers have fun with at parties.
Re:Talking just for my personal experience... (Score:5, Insightful)
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From wii sale date
XBOX360 5 million
Currently 5 million
Ps3 Currently 3 Million
Wii 7.8 Million
So from launch date You are correct.
Using the last month though
http://www.vgchartz.com/japweekly.php [vgchartz.com]
http://www.vgchartz.com/aweekly.php [vgchartz.com]
http://vgchartz.com/eweekly.php [vgchartz.com]
Europe Wii 63,235 XBOX360 23,818 PS3 18,789 Ps3 + XBOX360 42,607
Wii 53,627 XBOX360 25,387 PS3 20,816 Ps3 + XBOX
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BUT, I did think that the general audience on Slashdot would know that my use of the word 'gamer' means 'a videogame enthusiast: someone who frequently plays videogames.'
My point was that people who do not play videogames frequently (non-gamers) enjoy playing the Wii. While *I* prefer the 360.
As a generality, I only praised the Wii by pointing out that many non-gamers like it. As far as any negative points made, I only menti
Re:Talking just for my personal experience... (Score:4, Insightful)
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Your logic is poisoned by your obvious emotional ties to the issue.
Re:Talking just for my personal experience... (Score:5, Interesting)
I also picked up Warioware because I always liked the end-game endless modes and how they condition me to recognize what I have to do in a fraction of a second. If you don't like minigames, that's probably torture.
As I recall, no system has ever had a platform-exclusive RPG come out until many months after launch. (and I'm of the tribe where Zelda doesn't count as an RPG.) It's unfortunate that the unexpected success of the Wii has brought with it a whole bunch of shovelware from 3rd parties. Once the growing pains quit I think it'll do fine.
And, yes, same argument could be made about the PS3 right now anyway.
Re:Talking just for my personal experience... (Score:5, Insightful)
I have to disagree. Why? The fun of Wii Sports/Wii Play is playing with friends/family. I had my hair cut this weekend, and the stylist was complaining about sore arms because she went to a friend's house "and they showed us their Wii and I played Tennis".
Online play might work for gamers, and maybe it would have been a nice addition, but I don't think it as "required". Look at your own example - you're still playing it because you're competing with someone you know. Grandma Pearl and Grandpa Fogie wouldn't care about "Wii Tennis" ladders online - these are people they don't know, but they do care about their war buddy Jim who comes over to play (and yes, I'm being serious - I have some older coworkers who aren't tech guys who were talking about playing Wii Sports and getting competitive about their scores).
Re:Talking just for my personal experience... (Score:5, Insightful)
The main problem I see is that, I must arrange a "party", "meeting" or whatever with whatever friends I've got here in the UK (I am originally from Mexico) in the not much *spare* time I've got (doing my PhD) in order to play those games, whereas if they had on-line play I would be able to get into my flat (after a 12 hour office day), log in and have fun playing 1 (or 2) games of Bowling/Tennis/etc... against other players.
Also, my rank in tennis is between 2100 and 2200 (dont remember the exact number now) and I can beat any of my friends very easly... I would really enjoy playing against other people in the world which are equally good.
So, for me, the lack of online playing on the Wii *is* very bad. They should have added online play on the VC games too, that way I would have bought SF2 or some other SNES game just to play with my girlfriend (who is in Mexico now)... as I said in another post, this is 2007 !!?? , the hardware is there, these are NINTENDO games... WTF happened?
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If more people knew Spanish (especially Linux fanboys) - your Karma or moderation won't be that high.
Be an adult and change that sig.
From a Spanish speaking dude to another.
Re:Talking just for my personal experience... (Score:5, Interesting)
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Now that the Wii looks like it will have a strong portion of the market, they'll be jumping on board and I expect to see a swell of games coming up for the Wii in the future when they are completed.
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If your tastes are not "Standard", then I would think that the wii should be right up your alley; the gamer "standard" these days seems to be Halo 3.
Re:Talking just for my personal experience... (Score:4, Interesting)
As for internet play, I truly do not care. Video games to me are about disconnecting from the "real world", I don't want to be social when I'm playing them.
Re:Talking just for my personal experience... (Score:5, Insightful)
I understand what you're getting at, but I feel just the opposite. I've been a Nintendo fan ever since my mind was blown as a kid when I played Super Mario Bros, Zelda, and Metroid for the first time. As Nintendo grew as a company and managed to somehow obscure themselves during the N64 and Gamecube era, I started realizing that while Sony and now Microsoft changed to conform to the flavor of the month, I was constantly surprised with the ingenuity and how much many of my favorite Nintendo games strayed from the norm. Looking at my game library...sure, it's full of RPG's (which, believe it or not, are fairly mainstream and have a decently large market over here these days...they're not the black sheep games they were during the NES/SNES era), obscure rhythm games, and just plain old genre breakers such as Katamari and the like on my PSX/PS2. But then I look at my Nintendo consoles and I have equally odd games...games such as Blast Corps, Donkey Kong Jungle Beat, Cubivore, Goemon (Mystical Ninja) games, Mischeif Makers, etc. In fact, I'd have to say the ratio of relatively obscure games (or financial flop but terrific game) vs. mainstream games is much higher on my Nintendo consoles than on my Sony systems.
It may be that you prefer the type of non-standard games that the Playstation invites vs. the type of obscure game that Nintendo consoles invite, but to say Nintendo consoles don't cater to non-standard tastes is slightly confusing as their consoles attract some of the most non-standard games I've ever seen.
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There will be more online games as time goes by but I'm not convinced that its even desirable to have online play on all games... I've got it on quite a few DS games and don't use it that often at all.
If I could actually get one.. (Score:5, Insightful)
Alot, the game? (Score:2)
I hope to play ALOT a year from now, too. Does anyone know who the developer and publisher are?
[/SARCASM]
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Re:If I could actually get one.. (Score:5, Funny)
Aaaahhhh.... but all the Beatles conspiracy theorists will point out that it's Harrison's death that is actually the hoax. Mystical Harrison had uber-1337 prediction skills and foresaw the rise of the Wii in 1967 (he wanted to get John Lennon to change his song lyrics from "You say you want a Revolution" to "You say you want a Wii" because he knew they'd change the name *even then*).
As its launch draw nearer, Harrison needed all his strength and needed to avoid Beatles obsessives, so he faked his own death. Some had suspicions, and the stress was getting to Harrison, so he had plastic surgery, letting him appear in public again. Of course, no-one would expect him to keep the same name, so in a masterful stroke, that's exactly what he did!!!
Meanwhile, Harrison is no longer on speaking terms with John Lennon after he worked on the rival Playstation 3. Paul McCartney is, as we all know, dead (for real), and Ringo Starr has retired on his "Thomas the Tank Engine" royalties.
Wii isn't going anywhere (Score:3, Insightful)
The Wii is here to stay and dominate. Especially once they start doing some cool DS to Wii integration. It's base is huge, is constantly growing and still a huge demand which outpaces the supply.
I have no interest in one but may be buying one once Animal Crossing 2 comes out (its like crack for my fiancé). Unless Nintendo comes out and says they kick puppies, love Nazis, and wipe their ass with every nations flag in the world they are not likely to drop the ball.
Re:Wii isn't going anywhere (Score:5, Funny)
Is that a preview of the next Nintendogs game? Sounds like things have gotten much more exciting.
Re: New Nintendogs.... (Score:2)
The new version of Nintendogs will include pitbulls and have Michael Vick [deadspin.com] as a trainer.
Re:Wii isn't going anywhere (Score:4, Insightful)
I wouldn't know (Score:2)
Maybe (*maybe*) when Mario finally comes out I'll take another look at store shelves to see if there are any available at that point, but until then, my interest has disappeared.
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And frankly, that we keep having threads about "The wii is dying" kinda makes me think that the others are just scared of the competition so they spread this fud around. The wii is a fine console, both capable of decent graphics and immersive gaming. The only really shitty thing about it [other than the small game l
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What I don't understand is that here in Australia, there is no waiting list.
None.
I walked into a store the other day, and asked how long the waiting list was. The reply? About 30 seconds for the credit card to run through.
Reading the comments around here I'm thinking that eBay is looking real good (although I'd need to send a PAL TV with it).
Re:I wouldn't know (Score:5, Insightful)
I just checked every time I walked through Wal-Mart or Target (once or twice a week) and after a couple of trips I picked one up. There were 3 or 4 in the case. I haven't looked as much since then, but I think anyone who takes the trouble to just look around a bit ought to be able to get one. Then again, maybe I just got really, really lucky.
In any case, I am not super-impressed with the titles so far. The Wii Sports game is a lot of fun (tried it out on my non-video gaming parents last weekend, they were hooked) and Super Paper Mario is also a lot of fun. But I'm still not extremely psyched about the titles coming out. (For comparison, I own a 360 as well and my favorite game so far is Call of Duty 2 and I have the legendary edition of Halo 3 (yes - the $125 one) on reserve).
I will say that there's one point to consider: Nintendo is in a much better position to come out with a new system before MS or Sony can. I think we're talking what 5 years? 7? until we see Xbox 720 and PS4. I would be shocked if Nintendo doesn't come out with their own hi-def capable system in 3 or 4.
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Personally, I loved Super Paper Mario. Wii Sports is okay, but does get a little old after a while. I do still pick it up occasionally to play tennis though. Once you figure out how to hit home runs consistently, Baseball is really boring though. We'll be picking up Mario Party 8 today, so we'll see how we like that.
To us, t
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Mine works fine with WPA2 and wireless G.
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I could see a DVD player if they could fit it in while keeping the form factor as small as it is. I love that the Wii is so small and unobtrusive...I don't know if I'd like it nearly as much if it were as big and bulky as my XBox.
For HD, I think you're right that they'll probably
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It's sort of like a camera on a phone - Even if you did have one, you wouldn't use one unless it was an extreme condition because it's a piece of shit and not what the company/product does best. No, save me the $20 shitty dvd player and cut the cost or increase the quality of the product.
Re:I wouldn't know (Score:4, Insightful)
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If you're unwilling to even look at a couple of stores (I hit 6 in my quest to help a friend get a certain old XBox game, Circuit City had them, Best Buy had them, Gamedaze had them, I t
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Of course, within a couple miles of me there's one Walmart. The closest Target is 100 miles away, as is the closest Best Buy, Circuit City, and EBGames/Gamestop.
But, I'm not whining about it -- I'll pick up a Wii and PS3 eventually, but I'm in no hurry to. I don't even have a 360 yet since the only place nearby (the Walmart) can only keep the "core" version on the shelves. None of the consoles are worth driving around trying to find one.
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I have friends in Austin, that like you, are _still_ trying to find one... hippies must be loving this thing to keep it so scarce there
Friedmud
No News here move along (Score:3, Insightful)
The comments that Sony and Microsoft don't get the casual gamer market are laughable, Sixaxis was an attempt to steal the WiiMotes thunder. Buzz, Singstar, Guitar Hero and Eye Toy are all products on the PS2 for the casual gamer and they sell really well. What Sony/Microsoft lack are mini games, to think they won't see that they need is to expand their casual game base of course they don't know that (*cough* XboX360 has Guitar Hero *cough* Singstar downloads for PS3 *cough.)
Re:No News here move along (Score:5, Funny)
Only non-innovators push their GPU strength as the main selling point. Let me guess, the PS4 will consume twice the energy, require it's own air conditioning unit, and be able to render 2600x1400 images at 200fps? OMG CRAZIES!
Tom
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People's expectations increase, games are advertised on TV and some of them are looking extremely good. PS3 and Xbox360 have the potential to offer photorealistic looking games. If you think it won't matter why is there a Gameboy Advanced or Gameboy Advanced SP? Why is there DS? While the DS gives an interesting input, the advanced releases were merely updated forms of the Gameboy Colour in different packaging.
What I think will happen over the next three or four years the PS3/Xbox360 p
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Microsoft and Sony showed lip service to casual games prior to launch. Assuming they started development of oodles of casual games 3 months post-Wii, we're still a good year or two away from seeing the fruits of that labor.
The people whom these games are aimed at already know "Wii". These are the same people who, given a management position in charge of a database, will stick to the same obsolete technology because that's what they're familiar with. They aren't going to be dropping thei
Casual games are 1 thing. Mindshare is another... (Score:4, Insightful)
Ironically no. XBLA has a MUCH better selection of games for casual gamers than Nintendo's VC, or main library. This is despite the VC already having more titles available. Nintendo needs more casual titles in the mix, and they simply aren't there yet, despite the console being MUCH more casual friendly than the PS3 or 360.
To say there isn't 'mental room' for more than 1 console, is rather demeaning, but I do agree that people tend to stick with what is 'familiar'. This is the Wii's #1 issue with the gaming press, Nintendo is challenging what they are confortable with. If the Wii becomes the dominant player in the market (like the PS2 did) then the market will shift in ways they don't like.
This I doubt. XBLA has Solitare, Bejeweled, Online Poker, Online Uno, Online Hearts... The issue isn't that they don't exist it's that it does not exist to them. It's like having the food they enjoy served at the wrong resteraunt where (for whatever reason) they simply won't go to eat.
To summarize my point, it doesn't matter if the PS360 adds a ton of casual games, and marginalizes the price difference AND even bolts on their own Wiimote like controller... These systems will not gain the Mindshare back from Nintendo. Nintendo is bringing people in with a fun, intuitive system that they are confortable to use. Once that mindset gets established brand loyalty strengthens and the other systems effectively don't exist.
People shop for a Wii, not a 'Video game system' much in the same way people shop for an iPod and not an 'MP3 player'.
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People's expectations increase, games are advertised on TV and some of them are looking extremely good
Sorry to tell you that games are not sold by how good they look alone. Seems to be a common misconception nowadays.
To this date, the console that won each generation was the less powerful in graphics, so your point is shattered already.
PS3 and Xbox360 have the potential to offer photorealistic looking games
OK, now the Wii sells faster and doesn't offer photorealistic looking games. The PS2 doesn't either and sells faster too BTW.
If you think it won't matter why is there a Gameboy Advanced or Gameboy Advanced SP? Why is there DS?
Huh? You actually believe the only improvements in GBA and DS was graphics?
Do you even understand games?
What I think will happen over the next three or four years the PS3/Xbox360 price will drop, as the gap between the Wii, PS3 and Xbox360 decreases the reason for a Wii decrease and the differences will as well
While the library of Wii games will grow in
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I think one thing that you're missing is that the Wii controller is central to its casual gaming experience and expanded market. When you take a person who has never played a video game in their life (or maybe not since the Atari 2600 at parties
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I don't think it'd be too much of a longshot to expect an updated Wii when chips that push 1080 lines become low power and low cost rather than bleeding edge and 3-4 years sounds about right for that.
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Not only that, it will only be able to be afforded by the richest kings of Europe.
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Sony does better, on the PS2. The PS3 is way too expensive to even be considered as something a casual gamer might buy.
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The PC doesn't have the casual games that are released for consoles. In fact it barely has any games at all these days. I don't see wii-sport being released for the PC, never mind t
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Yeah, but early PS2 games looked like shit compared the Dreamcast, late PS2 games looked weak compared to the Xbox or Cube, and PS2 games were always blown away by the PC. The DS has laughable graphics compared to a PSP. The Wii and PS2 look seriously outdated right now compared to the 360 or PS3 yet are still selling very well. Graphics mean very little as far as popularity is concerned.
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Re:No News here move along (Score:4, Interesting)
The Wii's graphics are currently good enough. They will be good enough for a good number of years.
The Wii's strengths are that it is fun and it is cheap. I have a feeling Mario Party is going to be at the top of the sales charts. I have my Wii hooked up to my HDTV and guess what? The graphics are just fine for me.
I still have a sneaking feeling that there will be a WiiSP or a super by 2010 or 2011. It will play all the Wii and GC Games and support HD graphics. It will cost about $250 an probably have more CPU and GPU power than the 360 or PS3. Sure Microsoft and Sony will be working on their next gen by then but just like the Gameboy the Wii will just keep selling and selling because it is the right solution at the right price. I think Nintendo wants to keep the price of a console around $200. To do that it shorten the cycle but keep compatibility.
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Yeah, if you only read the title, maybe you would come to the conclusion...but titles on here are and have been horrible.
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5 years from now people are going to look at Halo3 and say, it looks pretty good for the time, but its dated now. They couldn't get the physics quite right, and see here how the shadows aren't perfect. And the face still looks plastic... but it was the best they could do.
Super Paper Mario on the other hand, like 'the Simpsons' TV show looks exactly the way the authors wanted it too.
The Wii isn't going to be able to keep up with
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parallel phrasing != interesting news (Score:3, Insightful)
C'mon, guys, all that we accomplish by publishing non-news like this is giving both parties exactly what they're looking for in free publicity. Adding together two non-stories doesn't create a story unless there's some really interesting counterpoint, and here all we have is a parallel phrase structure in "questions staying power".
I'm not trying to flame here or anything, I'm just saying that I think we could at least do a little better than this. Analysts and senior figures are always going to try and get themselves into headlines by saying controversial things; is it to much to ask that we don't actively facilitate this behavior?
Analysts are fortune tellers (Score:5, Insightful)
Funny how you don't see them making a statement of "Oops, sorry we had no clue what the hell we were talking about."
These analysts are as good at predicting the future as any random person off the street, they just get paid a lot more.
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That's quite an ironic statement really considering that the predictions are based on polls, so the predictions are in fact the (collective) ones of "random people off the street".
The problem imho is that - with the exception of a small subset of people - most don't realistically know whether they will actually be playing x system in a year's time, There are also many possible ulterior re
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The problem with asking Slashdotters about this is that the vast majority (at least 79% according to that poll) are the hardcare gamers that everybody (including/especially Nintendo) acknowledges Sony and Microsoft as gearing their products toward. Even today, there are more than a few modded-up posts in this discussion thread about people who continue to discount the Wii for its graphics and its "mini games," in spite of the fact that the Wii continues to sell a
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Nintendo's warchest is peanuts compared to Sony and MS. That's what allows Sony and MS to hemorrhage at the seams; their game division is but one of many. They won't leave this game simply because that one division isn't turning a profit this quarter or year. Nintendo lives or dies by
Comment removed (Score:4, Insightful)
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No problem then. If it took Sony 3 years to profit from the PS2, they can just say that to their shareholders. Wouldn't you feel stupid if you decided to scrap the PS2 project after 6 months knowing it's now the best selling console of all time?
It's an old axiom that you have to
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Longevity from a different crowd (Score:5, Insightful)
Regardless of the AAA "hardcore" titles that come out later, the Wii has all the possibiilty of being the casual gamers ultimate game center.
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Brain Age sales are still pretty high, and has sustainability - people play it for a loooong time (my wife still pulls it out from time to time now to play Soduku). But for one game, it has sales that just keep on going.
Kind of reminds me of your family and mine. My children (ages 8, 5 and 2) discovered Mario 64 when I picked it upon a whim, and they want to play it nearly every day. For Nintendo, then, making a pr
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One of these days, I'm going to have to get one of those things. We've got a PS2 and a N64. My kids spend more time on the N64 playing the two versions of L
Don't underestimate "casual" gamers... (Score:5, Insightful)
That in mind, I wanted a Wii from when I first saw it, looked to be a very fun system that would give a chance to be more "social".
I would casually look for one from time to time - then last month, one showed up at my local Walmart (very small store, not one of the new big ones), and I picked it up along with Zelda TP.
Immediately, I began to see the way the console changed the way people around me thought of video games... My wife is absolutely hooked on Wii sports, and the neighbors come by at least a couple nights a week for some tennis or bowling. Most interesting however, was the interest of my parents. Both nearly 60, they never liked video games in the past. Could never even get them to try one out. The Wii was different. They watched my wife and I play a game of tennis, and wanted to try for themselves. Now, every time they stop by there will be quite a few games of bowling played.
You shouldn't underestimate the attention span of the casual gamer, look how long SOL.EXE has been around.
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Not? Not. (Score:2)
not?
What could the actual unredacted quote have been, in context?
Absurdity (Score:3, Insightful)
In this age, however, things are different. Want to play with your friends in one spot? You want a Wii. Want to play with friends across the country? Get an XBox360. Want, um, well, uh, a huge selection of very good titles? Get a PS2. Want to [hmm, I'm trying here!] almost successfully buy your estranged step children's love? Get them a PS3.
My point being that there is certainly room for more than one console--yes, maybe even three as sad as that would be for those of us who aren't quite as affluent. This is a different ballgame from the 90's. Stop the bickering & just enjoy the games.
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Market share indicates the relative market sizes that can potentially be hit by a release on a given platform. Higher market share = more consoles in the hands of consumers = more consumers who can potentially buy your game.
A more complex analysis can be done, certainly - but it s
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True, but one factor that people often tend to forget is that PS3, XBox360 and to a lesser degree the PC really are one market while Nintendo with the Wii is the other market. A quick look at the coming games shows that when they go multiplatform, which many do, they go XBox360, PS3
Sony lack the ability to provide casual games? (Score:2)
No, wait...
Okay, let's say staying power is half (Score:2)
The real question is how much fun do you have with it? The games are coming, e
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I won't dispute that the price differential isn't Vast, but it must be noted that the Wiimote is the only controller nessessary. The 360's wired controller is the same cost as the Wiimote, and the Nunchcuck is an optional accessory for most games (IE: not required to play).
We still have to wait for the 3rd parties (Score:4, Insightful)
Nintendo has set its self up to be able to ration out what it considers strong releases, but has history has proven, what it considers to be strong is often not what traditional gamers will go for (Warioware, Mario Strikers Charged). And of course, its monster hits have not materialized yet (Metroid, Mario Galaxies, Smash Brothers Brawl).
On the flip side of it, the 3rd parties are rushing to step up. But they did so a bit too late, so we are getting alot of ports of PS2 and Xbox games. The 3rd parties are going to try their hand at the casual games, of course, but it may yet be a while before they start showing up with the kind of games that the traditional gamers want.
Demand has been quite strong though, so I have no doubts that we will see the kinds of games we want. The real question is whether the publishers will be able to make any money at it. There is a very real danger of all the more traditional games only showing up on the 360 or PS3.
There are a great many Wii's being sold, but until everyone figures out who the hell is buying them, there will be a lull. Are they being bought by Core gamers who also own a XBox 360, or Casual gamers who are only ever going to play Wii Sports? Either of those does not help the Wii in the long term.
END COMMUNICATION
Longevity + 3rd Party Supprt = Dominance (Score:2)
Their handheld systems have clearly shown the demand for retro games, and their Virtual Console fits that bill perfectly. However, playing the L
Hmm, will Sony ultimately triumph? (Score:2, Insightful)
But I will predict, in 2009, when HDTV becomes mainstream (e.g. market share of more than 50 percent in US), that if Nintendo doesn't have a new console utilizing HDTV, then they should start worrying.
But for now, I'm just raking in the stock growth.
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