2007: Nintendo Wii
Honeymoon’s over, now what?
Nintendo will have to provethe Wii ain’t a one-trick pony.
People love Nintendo. Thus, people love the Nintendo Wii. Take it from us, there are few other products that inspire as much passion as this little white system. For those who own it, and others who want to, it seems to invoke mother-like defenses otherwise found only in the animal kingdom.
We’re not sure exactly why this is, since so few players actually invested in a Gamecube. The Nintendo 64, for that matter, lost out large when stacked against Sony’s original PlayStation. Thus, it might be the fact that some closet Nintendo fans finally sense a resurrection of the name, and will defend that until someone knocks them unconscious with a flying Wiimote.
Everyone loves Miyamoto,Nintendo, Wii and shirts.
“Wii Elbow”: No pain, no gain
Late 2006 was a frenzied period for the Wii. Overshadowed throughout most of the year by PlayStation 3 hype, it benefited greatly from Sony’s inability to satisfy gamer appetites. However, when November 19, the Wii’s launch day, struck midnight the console arrived without much buzz. Only dedicated Nintendo fans were willing to bear the freezing cold and ruin their Saturday evening.
It was the post-launch week that propelled the Wii into “must-have” status. At first, the buzz stemmed from satisfied customers and glowing website reviews. Few could have expected that the impromptu marketing scheme that would make Wii the 2006 edition of “Tickle Me Elmo” would be violence. That’s just not Nintendo’s style.
OOPS!And, in fact, they didn’t mean for their prime ad campaign to be injuries and broken property via airborne Wiimotes. However, once senseless individuals began complaining of muscle sprains, black eyes, and busted HDTVs, the madness began. All of a sudden the perception was that Wii provides one helluva workout, and thus, something no other console ever has.
To some extent, that’s true. However, for most titles the Wii doesn’t challenge much more than a favored wrist. It was enough to make Nintendo the holiday sales winner, but we’re not sure it will last. Of course, that depends on games, a weakness for the company’s last few consoles. Looking ahead to 2007, the Wii continues Nintendo’s trend of quality over quantity, with just a few titles. Those five, however, could topple a Microsoft mountain. Let’s take a closer look.