How the Wii has survived.

Part 3 of a three part series. GameRevolver.com looks at the first year of life on the Nintendo Wii and gives their opinion. Not for the faint.

"Their latest console, the Nintendo Wii, now harnesses a full DVD disc drive, allowing for larger games such as 'The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess' and Metroid Prime. However, with Nintendo's arrogance and obsession with being different, they have made one major change to differentiate themselves from the competition. This time, the change came on the controller. The Wii system sports the Wii-mote, resembling a fat, vertical version of the original NES controller from the 80's. The new control scheme incorporates and infrared sensor at the top of the controller, allowing you to point at the screen in light gun fashion and interact with games on the platform."

[IzKyD1331]

i have to admit, i thought the wii was gonna be a failure like the gamecube but i was wrong, it opened a door to new gamers and expanded teh casual games market a hell of alot

[steriotyp]

the wii will fail. It is hot right now, but for the wrong reasons. Consumers will realize this I think and Nintendo will need to make additional offerings, such as use of the classic controller to compensate.

[unsunghero28]

Maybe you're right in the long run, but there honestly isn't a single gamer that I know that isn't totally psyched for that little "Super Smash" game that comes out in a week. Nintendo may have turned their back on the hardcore gamer to some degree, but I think Mr. Sakurai will have fixed all that. At least for a while.

(And nobody show up and say "HEY I DON'T LIKE SUPER SMASH," because I meant a single gamer in my day-to-day life)

[RecSpec]

Successful for the wrong reason...I'm confused then, what is the right reason?

[ChickeyCantor]

"It is hot right now,"

this is said every month...." its hot right now but it will fail you just wait and see"

HAHAAH it actually reminds me of those boring squirrels from Eek the CAT

"such as use of the classic controller to compensate."

have you been sleeping under a rock?

[name]

What constitutes a failure? IMO once a console sells over 20 million in it's lifespan it's a success. Something has to outsell SOMETHING, everyone isn't gonna sell the same ammount of consoles. I say 20 million because that's just enough amount of an install base for games to sell reasonably. And this is coming from me and my last 2 consoles sold over 100 million ^_^

[steriotyp]

and who would me be? just curious. I agree it is successful, but it is so for the wrong reasons

[ChickeyCantor]

how is it the wrong reason?
there is something called MARKETING
MS screwed it up with their Failure rate, and Sony still promotes the PS3 like its something only for "HARDCORE" GAMERs.( at least thats how the commercials are here in the netherlands)

there is no wrong, thats just saying you cant stand it because its outselling the 2 stronger brothers.

[Le-mo]

No offence, but I think the Wii will seriously die out in the long run. Besides from the occassional Mario and Zelda games what else does Nintendo have?

[RecSpec]

Every system will die out in the long run though...

[KeiZka]

Why yhes, let's state the inevitable. Did you know, PS3 is to die also in the long run? As is X0?

Duh.

[phonyforceslayer]

mario 45: brick laying.

[snoopgg]

there are alot of cheap lower and middle class people buying it for their kids. They have to have the worst software lineup of all the 3 consoles out right now, both graphically and genre types. Mario didn't sell the wi, the price tag did, but I still didn't buy one and am greatful. I do however own the other 2 next gen machines.

[Axelay]

Thanks for the middle and lower class people mister elitist.
Why you fail to see (probably don't want to see), it's that game don't have to be like Gear of war, halo, Zelda, Ico, or others big games to be fun.
We are a bunch of eletist who are gaming for so long that we forget that in ancient time we add fun with games like Popeye, Tetris, Pacman or Alex Kidd and others simple games.
What you call "worse games" are fun for others people. So you should respect the choice of others people.
There is no such thing as good or bad games, everything is a matter of taste.

[forum_crawler]

I own a wii, and I am pretty happy with the games lineup. I can't play Zelda on an XBox, or a PSX so there, so what is weak is in the eye of the beholder...

I also own a Blu-Ray player (read: more expensive than a PS3) and I don't regret not getting the PS3 instead. The actual player looks better, and actually fits better with the rest of my home theatre...

As for the best graphics (or next gen...), well, you can only find them on the PC, and that is why I will never have the need to get a Sony or MS machine, because my PC will play the same games, but with better graphics, and more user friendly interface (read: mouse and keyboard).

Now, when it comes to games that are lots of fun and don't need all the eye candy (ie. Mario, Zelda, GH3, etc) the wii is perfect. So please don't assume that the only reason people buy a wii is because they can't afford one of the other consoles. I mean, my video card alone is worth more than a PS3 and XBox put together, yet I chose the wii...

Moral is:
People have choice, and 20+ Million people have chosen Nintendo (and still counting). Don't call us (wii owners) cheap, uninformed, soon-to-be-disappointed, or lied-to-by-Nintendo because we didn't make the same choice as you. This is a free country and we can all make the choices we want, whether you like it or not.

[forum_crawler]

"However, with Nintendo’s arrogance and obsession with being different, they have made one major change to differentiate themselves from the competition..."

So, innovation (when coming from Nintendo) is called arrogance?

...right...

[Slayer OP]

No purposely making a console with weaker hardware and graphics then its competitors is arrogance.

[FelicityOldGamer]

Bubbles for you my friend... I loved your comment @5.2

I have a Wii and a very good pc too, so... at this moment.. why do I need a "next-gen" super graphics in a console if I have a good pc?

Of there are some games only for the xbox360 and Ps3 but... I prefer Wii & Pc games instead!

PS: Sorry for my terrible English, I am from Brazil and I Studied a long time ago.

[Slayer OP]

It's dirt cheap thats how.

[Axelay]

Price has always been important only an idiot do think the contrary.
to think you can sell a toy 600 or 450$ was probably arrogant.
In fact people who are complaining about nintendo, are the same who didn't bought the gamecube altough it was more powerful than the ps2.
If nintendo made a console as powerful as the xbox360, probably the same people wouldn't bought it.
When you don't love something, it's easy to find excuses to justify your choice even the more biased.

[ChickeyCantor]

lets look back ...last gen...Xbox dropped in price GCN dropped in price but guess what no-one was buying them.....
you are full of it outspoken.

@axely
i agreeon some points, Nintendo could make a power house but all those people who claim its such a " sh*tty " console with "sh*tty" hardware, would never buy a nintendo anyway.....then it would be : ITS DAMN KIDDY, MARIO !!!, a fairy " fa**ot" in a dress SO ON AND ONNNNNNNNNNNNNN.

no matter what changes "gamers" will always be douchebags.

[TheMART]

Its a succes in sales because it got to sell to new 'gamers'

Its a loss for real gamers, because besides Mario, Zelda and Metroid Prime 3 there ain't so much to do besides a bunch of stupid mini games.

Overall: the 360 is worth its money a lot more. Heck, am I saying this, yes even the PS3 would be a more wise choice then the Wii

[ChickeyCantor]

anyone who claims there is nothing beside those firstparty games lacks knowledge about the lineup.

[djt23]

you are right

[KeiZka]

Let's get philosophical here. Who, and what, denotes a real gamer? Is it once again you, or is it me? Or is it a mantle of some sorts people may take up when they feel to be better than others when they are not? How, exactly, one may determine whether he's a real gamer? Isn't it subjective to one's views at best?

[bootsielon]

And novelty. That's it. Well, maybe brand name, for nintards.

[wiizy]

survive? the wii has been killing everything.... cause nintendo know how to make games, and created an innovative system that entertains everyone.

[hitthegspot]

Saying something is cool does not make it cool and saying something sucks does not make it suck. Right now the Wii is cool and it's not because someone said it is. All that gamerevolver did is say that the Wii sucks, but it doesn't. The games may not be the best, but a big handful of them are fun. If you have a Wii, play a game of baseball with your friend who doesn't have one. It's a powerful system for changing the way we play games. No one can take that away from them, especially if all the haters can only say it sucks.

[sumfood4u]

I personally enjoy my Wii, an all it offers! I wish the classic controller had a rumble in it tho! i enjoy replaying all the old school games i grew up to & look forwards to more it offers! like SSBB which comes out in a week from Today! I'll be on that an my psp FF7 til FFXIII hits my White PS3!

[jinn]

SSBB will only help it for awhile after that ppl will sell their wiis

[OJ_juice]

but get old fast and nintendo is forced to bring out a new console. So instead of being another "ps2" console. It won't have a long lifespan and games for it at the end of the generation will just plain suck. Don't get me wrong. There's Zelda: TP, Mario galaxt, SSBB. But that's only first party develepors really pumping out the games. I know it's a casual gamer console but consumers are buying it for all the "wrong reasons". Like they get really attracted to the wiimote. Then the next week the owner/family is just bored of it. Wii just needs games that's in the "ps2" league, to make it last and sell as long as the ps2 did.

[Voiceofreason]

The people who complain about Wii being kiddie are also looking forward to LBP as their big game for 08. Funny how they dont mind kiddie games when its on PS3, but cant stand them on Wii. PS2 had the biggest amount of crap games to ever be seen on a console. It had some great games yes but the majority were crap and that was ok because it was Sony. Now that its the Wii however it is suddenly a big issue. Limited graphics were ok on the PS2, but now that its Wii is not ok. Notice a pattern here? No matter what the Wii offered it wouldnt be good enough for them. Switch the names on the consoles and you would see a complete reverse in their thinking. If it were the Sony Wii, half the people trashing it would also be calling it the greatest console ever.

[steriotyp]

The Wii is plenty capable of holding its own. The point here is that the games are net up to par other than nintendo releases and less than a handful of third party games. You do not here people saying, I want a Wii so I can play 'Game Party' or 'Carnival'. No, you hear I want 'Mario', 'Zelda', 'Animal Crossing'. But there are only so many of those titles to be had. Nintendo has launched nearly all of their major titles in the first year, bar a few. Unless Nintendo cranks out Mario games like crack, third parties are going to need to step up and make some fun, innovative and down right addicting games to play which we are frankly not seeing.
You are righ VoiceofReason, the PS2 does have a lot of crap. But the console also has literally hundreds of great games (god of War, Ratchet & Clank, Okami, Tekken, Crash Bandicoot, Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy, need I go on?). Sure these things take time, but look at it this way, in fact, I will quote it for you;

"a total game collection just shy of 250 games, which only a handful of which (quite literally) are of any value to gamers. The rest is filled with molten hops and bong resin from under appreciating developers who think they can throw out crap on a system and be successful."

your defense for the console always resorts to Mario and Zelda IP's. These games are great, and I am more than pround of Nintendo for giving us those games as they are legendary and always fun no matter what the age group. But what then? What has Capcom, Akklaim, Eidos, EA, what have these companies contributed? A port of Resident Evil and some week Sims games. I want the Wii to continue to be great as much as the next long time fan of Nintendo, but come on. Something's got to give.

[permutated]

Casual gamers, Super Mario, Super Smash Bros, Zelda, Metroid, innovative control scheme, cheapest console, Wii Sports, lonely old people.

Lol, at the last one I mean.