Wii Price-Drop for Christmas?

Gameplayer examines the need for a Wii price-drop before Christmas if Nintendo wants to maintain its sales and stay number one. This follows the recent price-drop of the X360, and the announcement of a new, cheaper PS3 SKU.

"At $399, the core Xbox 360 is now the same price as a Nintendo Wii. So, you can now buy a technological superiority machine with a DVD and CD player, a rich and exponentially growing software catalogue, and the ability to upgrade down-the-track to a proven and respected online service for the same price."

[Douchebaggery]

they can't even meet the demand why the hell would they drop the price

[cooke15]

maybe to increase the demand even more? :)

[BrianC6234]

Whoever wrote that needs to think. Why would the Wii need a price drop? Nintendo's way of not dropping the price is to limit the number of Wii's they put out. I'm sure they could double the number if they want to. But then everyone could buy one and they'd have to drop the price. There's nothing in the Wii that is high tech and tough to manufacture so these shortages are Nintendo's way of keeping demand up and not dropping their price. Of course, I still don't know a single person who has or wants a Wii. Who are all these people buying it anyway?

[MarioFromTexas]

60 percent of wii's were being sold in Japan. Wii sales have gotten down to 23,000 per week, when 2 months ago they were 75,000 per week. The wii demand was created by NES not by consumers. If M$ could ship 10 million high tech consoles out in one year 2006, why not NES with it's gamecube1.5 and it's history of developing consoles. I think now that the PS3 is dropping to $400 it's going to be selling just as much or more than the wii.

[JCDenton]

I don't think Wii needs a price drop because Wii and X360 are not in the same category (casual and hardcore). But, if Nintendo drops Wii's price to, say, 179$ and/or announce some sort of WiiSports 2 (for example), then it could easily take the spotlight from both M$ and Sony.

[cooke15]

Ok.. I know MANY casual gamers who bought a 360 for Halo 3. Listen, Wii is just as casual as it is hardcore. It has something called VARIETY. I am a hardcore gamer and I love the Wii, i just dont buy the casual games for it. Try it sometime.

[JCDenton]

I never said "hardcore" gamers don't play Wii or anything similar. I don't own any of the "next-gen" consoles. I'm a PC gamer (like I said multiple times in different posts). So, I'm not a "HC gamer", and the most appealing console this generation to me is - Wii, just because it offers variety and different experience.

[cooke15]

You said Wii was casual :| Im saying its not casual, it just appeals to casual gamers. But it appeals to hardcore gamers too.

[JCDenton]

I actually said that Wii is in that "double category" - "casual and hardcore". I just didn't made myself clear on this. So, I agree with you. ;)

[Imalwaysright]

HAHAHAH wii hardcore HAHAHAH I tell you very few hardcore gamers would choose a wii over 360/ps3 in fact every hardcore gamer that i know hates the wii. Hardcore gamers always want more and wii isnt giving any more than Ps2/xbox did.

[ItsDubC]

I think Nintendo could RAISE the price of the Wii to at least $299.99 this holiday season and still sell every Wii on the shelves.

[Ashira]

I just have to agree with all comments... The article is flawed. So what if it's least technological, so what if it has a wiimote? I like Metroid Prime 3 and that's all that matters to me--that the games I play are fun.
Nintendo should have no trouble selling their machine at christmas.

[PimpHandHappy]

that they have tapped into a causal market in a big way. I wont say i will never have one but in two years after its launch if its like 150bucks i will get it. Its not about the money but more about the list of games they will have by then.

plus i dont think the Wii will have the legs to last more then a couple years..

[BrianC6234]

I'm sure the Wii will stick around like the Gamecube did. Nintendo will bring out a few big games every year for it. Most real gamers though will also own a PS3 or 360 because the Wii won't end up having much third party support. I don't know a single person who owns or wants a Wii. I work with one person who has a friend with a Wii. For a while they played the Wii at parties and everyone had fun. But then it got boring and nobody cared anymore. I think casual gamers just won't buy enough games to make third parties be happy with Wii sales. Casual gamers don't buy many games. They're too cheap to. Gaming isn't a hobby for them. Hard core gamers support consoles. Casual gamers are fine on the PC and Mac. Consoles need hard core gamers to keep third party developers in business.

[ItsDubC]

Why do I laugh every time I see the term "real gamers" used in that context?

[BrianC6234]

"Why do I laugh every time I see the term "real gamers" used in that context?"

I see casual gamers as not being real gamers. They'll buy a game here and there. But they aren't real gamers. Real gamers want most of the big games. Real gamers are the ones who keep the gaming industry alive. Casual gamers won't do much for gaming. It's mostly just a fad for them. After a while their Wii will end up packed away in a closet.

[Rooftrellen]

I love seeing the whole "Wii owners don't buy games" argument. If Wii doesn't sell games because casual gamers buy it, what does that say about the "real gamers" that buy the PS3, while the PS3 has a lower attach rate than the Wii?

Let's not even mention that, though the talk has died down, not everyone is happy with how high the attach rate of the 360 is (so high that it looks like a console at the end of its cycle).

The Wii has both the "real gamers" and the actual gamers, and game sells and attach rate, in spite of explosive sales, show that.

[BrianC6234]

"The Wii has both the "real gamers" and the actual gamers, and game sells and attach rate, in spite of explosive sales, show that."

The Wii has real gamers who like Nintendo games. But there are plenty of gamers who don't like kiddy games. I don't. Their games are mostly just more of the same. If you don't like Nintendo games the Wii isn't a console for you. It just won't have great third party support. The third party support it does get will be for the low end games and party games. I really don't care for those types of games.

[MarioFromTexas]

Look at how fast the numbers are dropping, especially in Japan where 60 percent of wii's were being sold. It went from selling 300,000 to just 100,000 in one month and now the PS3 is selling 60,000 a month in Japan. I think when the $400 PS3 drops it's going to cause a big sales boom especially for the christmas holidays

[Vizion26]

Why would Nintendo drop the price of the Wii when it is selling out? Nintendo will eventually lower the price when demand is lower than supply. Until then, Nintendo will not lower the price considering the core principle of every business is to maximize profits.

Microsoft and Sony are lower the price on their consoles but they are losing even more money on every console sold unlike Nintendo which is making $20 - $100 on every console sold. It's a horrible business model. Sony and Microsoft still haven't made a profit on their "next gen" consoles. It's all good and gravy for consumers to have lower priced consoles, but will Microsoft and Sony continue to be in the console business if they can't make a profit?

[JosefTor]

Because the moment that supply does meet consumer demand... the magic of the Wii is gone (in my opinion). I got my Wii because I thought the Wii must be the best thing on earth.... I was wrong.

[Rooftrellen]

There had to be some Wii magic to sell out the Wii for weeks on end, people staying up all night in front of stores to get the Wii, before the ideas of that happening came up.

The Wii was sold out for a good month solid before the Wii magic you spoke of appeared.

[sirjonofun2]

I was just wondering how at 399 the xbox 360 is the same price as a 250 dollar nintendo wii.

[Prismo_Fillusion]

was going to say that, but you beat me to it

[quantass]

The article makes some glaring errors and actually misses some important issues:

1. The Wii does not sell for $399! In the U.S. it sells for $249 while in Canada it sells for $289 (technically, you can get it for $249 in Canada since the CAN dollar is stronger than the American)

2. By saying that the general public would understand the "technical" differences between an XBOX and a PS3 and a Wii is such an oversight. Sure the X360 and the PS3 are technically more powerful but as far as the general public goes, they buy based on fun factor....HDMI, 120GB HD, cell processor, high bandwidth bus connectors means notihng to the public.

3. The Wii will NEVER drop its price while they are experienced such high demand. It is virtually ALWAYS sold out across every store in Canada and the US for an entire year. I hear people talk about the Wii all the time but are frustrated they cannot buy one. So if anything a smarter move by Nintendo would be to increase the price to $399 officially so as to lower the demand so people can get their hands on it...this would increase profits considerably at newer insane heights.

[SlappingOysters]

Are you a tard?

1.) The article is Australian - not everyone is a yank - and in Australia the Wii is $399 and the X360 is $399

2.) The article states that the comsumer will see the difference in store on displays - the technical superiority is obvious with your eyes, not your know-how

3.) See answer 1 you arrogant fool, the world does not revolve around the states. And the Wii selling well thing is prior to their competitors price drop.

You should learn to read properly so you don't make glaring errors.