Is the Wii Just a Fad?
Oct 15th, 2007 by Rob
In an interesting analysis, Gadget blog Crave asks the seemingly unlikely question, is the Nintendo Wii just a fad? It’s hard to imagine, given that it’s been the best-selling console worldwide this generation, and it’s still difficult to find one in stores almost a year after its release. However, according to an article in The Nikkei Business Daily, third-party developers are concerned about the poor sales of their titles. The vast majority of popular games for the Wii have been developed in-house, and the head of one unnamed design firm even went so far as to say “…the bubble is about to burst.” The Business Daily also points out that sales of the Wii have been slowing in Japan.
The Wii is great fun at first, and it’s $250 price tag makes it an easy purchase for buyers to justify, but does it have staying power? Will people keep shelling out money for new games, or will it be relegated to the backs of closets once the novelty wears off? Ultimately, it may not matter for Nintendo, considering the Wii is the only next-generation console whose hardware is actually profitable. But given the amount of hype surrounding the Wii, it will be interesting to see if it maintains it’s popularity, the way Sony’s Playstation 2 has over the 7 years since it’s release.
What do you think?
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No, it’s too different and appeals to a much wider audience. That’s what made me pick one up, the last one was 15 years ago.
You can still play it traditionally, but the untraditional play is the magic. I view it as a mixture of gaming and exercise, more interesting than exercise on its own, and you can really work up a sweat. I’m looking forward to the new Mario Bros. game – if it’s great, it could get the console raves, but what I really want is Wii Fit – hopefully a snowboarding game will be in the first round of games for it.
I don’t think it’s a fad so much as it’s a novelty.
It’s not your hardcore gaming system. I think Nintendo intended to position the Wii as a complimentary console to your PS3 or XBox 360.
And that’s the genius, isn’t it? I will choose EITHER a PS3 or an XBox 360, but I will happily buy a Wii alongside either one. So while PS3 and XBox have to split the sales, Wii gets everyone.
The reason that the Nintendo brand games are better than the 3rd party ones is because the 3rd parties have yet to drink the kool-aid. They don’t understand the concept of what Nintendo’s vision is and thus are producing games that don’t take advantage of the Wii the way Nintendo can.
The Wii will be around a long time, but it will always be clocking less hours than my PS3 or XBox 360. But that’s okay. Because I want something different, the Wii is there for me. And that’s exactly where it should be for maximum profitability and longevity.
No, I dont think its a fad. Its a different system. Its more cartoony games and you can play the games passively; thats the type of system/game I like. I also love playing old NES/SNES games. I think its a great system.
>It’s not your hardcore gaming system. I think Nintendo intended to position the Wii as a complimentary console to your PS3 or XBox 360.
wow you completely didn’t learn the lessons WII taught the marketplace about hardcore gaming systems vs. one that’s more accessible to the whole public.