Did it ever occur to you? With half the processing power and not even near the graphics quality of the two HD-powerhouses, Xbox 360 and PS3, how did the Wii become such a tremendous success? It isn't exactly next-generation so why does it keep outselling the PS3 and the Xbox 360? A blog article nails down the topic once and for all.
a 'next-gen' console at mass market price with a recognized brand name that is popular amongst kids, combined with its white ceramic looks and 'innovative' controller Nintendo were able to get things right and beat the other two consoles to the spot where mass market adoption starts.
My only worry is that the next generation will copy Nintendo's formula and only offer a minimal technological improvement over the previous generation, that would be very disappointing
I have a PS3 (had a 360 but sold it) and I've played on the Wii, out of all 3 consoles the Wii is more of a games console than all of the others. What people fail to realize is that the 360 and PS3 (to some extent) are just becoming cheap PCs, shooters are the only games which score high despite most of them being totally void of innovation and creativity.
On the Wii you get to play games similar to the ones you used to play on the SNES, Genesis/Megadrive etc, I have a beastly gaming PC and sure I'll be enjoying crysis and CoD4 when they're out on that but when I sit down on the sofa I don't want to be playing a tacky version of what I can already play on my PC.
I want some GAMES to play which actually implement the controller properly, if you're gonna make shooters release a mouse and keyboard and stop scoring them so ridiculously high when they took no brain power to actually design unlike some of the great games which get knocked by the so-called "hardcore" gamers.
The wii tapped to something other consoles could not get in too, a larger demografic. Games have changed a lot since the old days, people miss those ''pick up and play'' games. While every generation there has always been about upgrading the grafics, the wii kinda goes the easy way out.
Also the games out are very simple kinda games witch you can play with anyone. Thats the smart thing about it, anyone can do it. This means grannies,granpas,uncles ect can play along.
While this is a healty evolution, i can't understand people (read ''hardcore'') hating on it. They more people get into gaming the more they explore whats out there on the market. Hardcore games will never die, but they will always be made for the hardcore people.
What's really funny is that the Wii is really a runaway success in one departmant, and that department happens to only be hardware.
The most purchased games going for the Wii is actually the same old song and dance for every other Nintendo console since the SNES. First. Party. Titles.
That's it. 3rd party titles lose out on the Wii and I think that's why Reggie makes those claims that he wants flagship titles that belong on other consoles on his own. The casual gamers that have gobbled up the Wii just aren't buying any of the software except for the Wii Sports and Wii play and that fact is actually hurting them, but just not in a way that people are able to see just yet.
Sure, developers could probably devote the time to making a bunch of casual games to keep people entertained for a while, but the fact of the matter is you will not see games like Resistance, Bioshock, Halo, little Big Planet, Devil May Cry, Dead Rising, Uncharted, Ratchet and Clank, Haze, Assassin's Creed, etc etc etc.....on the Wii console. Ever.
So, congratulations Nintendo for tapping in to a demographic of people who previously had never played video games. Perhaps their gaming revolution will persuade people to join in to the more "hardcore" aspects of gaming, but if they do? It will just be Microsoft's and Sony's gain in the end.
" how did the Wii become such a tremendous success?"
Marketing, the path to succes.