Special Edition: Points of Wii-nterest
- GameSpot gives their gut reactions for Nintendo in 2006, now that the event has happened.
Reaction seems generally positive, though this part kinda gets me:
“So the main thing that still troubles me about the system is that it won’t support high-definition displays. I understand and respect Nintendo’s stance about not getting caught up in an “arms race” with Sony and Microsoft about overall system power, but HD-quality visuals seem like they’ll be a necessity in a couple of years if they aren’t a necessity already. But hey, we all know that Nintendo has a way of getting people to buy their new hardware, then getting people to buy an upgraded model, right? Ask yourself, how many portable Nintendo systems do you own? So maybe an HD-capable Wii isn’t outside the realm of possibility for the future. If there are technical constraints preventing the Wii remote from working as well in HD as it does in standard definition, I’m sure some very smart people at Nintendo are all over that problem already.”
Frankly, the way I saw it was that Nintendo knew that HD-TV wasn’t widespread enough among consumers to warrant that. And let’s face it, SD-TV owners have been getting the screws from XBox on some big titles(Dead Rising and King Kong). So I figure it’s less a case of can’t and more a case of won’t.
I bet most people who’d be shelling out $600 for a PS3 are probably the same people who would have an HD-TV, anyway, so that niche sort of clicks, but Wii is a bit more general audience.
- IGN takes a look at some other aspects of Wii, including “what other publishers think about the console that’s just crazy enough to work.”
- Following up on the news that Link would be right-handed on the Wii, IGN and Shigeru Miyamoto clarify things a little bit.
Basically, he will remain left handed on the GameCube, but act right-handed on the Wii, as that’s how most players will be swinging.
- And yet more words from the men behind the N, as Satoru Iwata and Shigeru Miyamoto field questions from the press.
Of note is Miyamoto addressing the lack of colors at launch:
On the availability of color variations, Miyamoto said, “Not at launch. Until Spring, we’ll have a supply limitation, so we want to avoid the situation where people don’t buy because their favorite color isn’t available. We’ll provide new colors after that. Our aim is a design that’s not scary.
- With yesterday’s announcement of the Wii sporting a pack-in game(no pun intended), Next-Gen takes an analytical look at what that may mean for the industry.
- Wired covers the Wii event, and picks up some tidbits where some developers aren’t so happy about the Wii’s pack-in game.
Frankly, if their stuff is any good, then it should be no problem. EA has the right idea. Wii Sports seems more like an ice-breaker than the deal-maker.
- While I’m all about choice, I’m not sure a plan like this would work.
For starters, the Classic plugs into the remote, so straightaway, the $170 “Retro” bundle there at the top is worthless. The other point is that quite a bit of money no doubt goes into the packaging and shipping of the extras, so plucking items off the shelf is probably a bit impractical, especially for a holiday rush.
Something like the “Hardcore,” with a Zapper added and Wii Sports is what I have said would be my ideal $250 system, or even a bit more.
- NO ONE IS IMMUNE.
Joystiq decides to take a look at the tales of the Wii, both then and now.
And this is probably why Nintendo doesn’t disclose many details.
Iwata’s suggestion becomes relegated to something Nintendo “could” explore in the future. This “future” place we keep hearing about sounds fantastic.
…I admit it. I laughed. You probably at least smirked.
- Skeptical Gaming throws a few darts at the Wii board as they criticize the launch details of Nintendo’s new golden child.
Some good points are made. Even I’ll admit, all the details aren’t what I’d like them to be, BUT, there is still time for change, and I don’t think it’s anything too offsetting, save for controller prices.
- Sigh, I wish I could’ve gotten one of these.
LBD “Nytetrayn”
September 17th, 2006 at 11:02 pm
(1) — It’s not whether or not Wii takes advantage of HD or not. I think the problem is that if you have an HDTV you can’t use Wii on it. You would have to recede the Wii to another room, or dust off an sdtv, or worst case re-buy one. You would say that Wii is going for the majority, but more significantly, they are shutting out the percentage of people who are not in that majority, many of which probably don’t want to bother with Wii for that reason.
And I am annoyed (just a wee bit) when people say that 360/PS3 owners automatically can afford an HDTV. WTF is with that. The different between PS3 and Xbox in price is 100-200 dollars. PS3 is only 100-200 dollars more expensive but people are outraged at the price. And yet, people also say that $500 or more is just a hop and skip away from anyone who buys it. That doesn’t make any sense. I got an Xbox 360, but I can’t afford an HDTV in the forseeable future.
That said, all my Xbox 360 games look fine on my TV, except for PGR3. (and considering how I never heard of there being any problems with PGR3 on ANY type of tv, I can’t know if it looks better on HDTV, or if it’s even related to the problems Dead Rising has)
And just one last thing. Out of the two ‘big’ titles you mentioned, one of them is King Kong… show me someone who sincerely considers buying King Kong.
(2) — “I believe the Wii will attract new and casual gamers to the world of interactive entertainment. It’s a fun, easy and economical system that will become a bridge to gaming for mainstream audiences. At EA, we are putting more support behind the Wii than any Nintendo hardware launch since the Super NES.”
- Larry Probst, Chairman and CEO, Electronic Arts
Show me Command & Conquer 3 you brown-tongued greasebag.
(5) — The Wii Sports pack-in is pro, even though most of us wouldn’t consider it a “real” game.
(6) — Developers forget that Wii Sports isn’t a real game. lol
(7) — That ‘stripped-down’ idea doesn’t work. The Wii is about catering to nongamers and those who aren’t tech-savvy but just want to play videogames. Therefore you don’t force people to have to think and choose what should go with their Wii. The very idea of letting people buy the console and come home to realize they didn’t get enough stuff to begin using it is totally idiotic. Like you said, LBD, the classic controller doesn’t work without a wiimote, so imagine how many people can come without with a classic but without a wiimote because they didn’t know. After all, the author didn’t even know.
(8) — lol. I laughed, but only after I read it in context. X)
(9) — $250 price: I agree, $250 is getting a little too close for Xbox 360 and very much like an “actual system” even when it’s debatable by gamers if Wii is much more than a novelty. So much for “first in second”, or the Wii60 plan (which was a ridiculous idea to begin with) .. Wii is competing directly with PS3 and 360 among regular gamers. Nintendo must be very confident in their new strategy.
Cost of controller: Well it makes sense if you think about it, because the Wii is nothing without the controller. NOTHING. The controller is the most advanced part of the Wii, the console itself is second-rate. Although for this reason, the $250 price tag of the console to begin with now bites even more when you consider the ‘extra’ charge of the expensive second controllers. Although, for comparison, Xbox wireless controller costs $40, with a battery/recharger kit costing $20. Batteries by themselves cost around $10 I think.
Virtual console pricing: $5 does seem like a lot for an NES game now that they mention it. After all, many Xbox Live Arcade games, which are far more advanced and elaborate, and couldn’t run on a Playstation 1, range from about 5-9 dollars.
(10) — uuuhh… OH LOOK new Ridge Racer screens!
http://www.1up.com/do/media?cId=3149815
September 18th, 2006 at 4:30 pm
1) I’m pretty sure that Nintendo’s said before that Wii will work on HDTVs, you’re just not going to get the HD quality treatment out of it…
2) Ew.
5&6) I definitely think it leans closer to Duck Hunt than to Super Mario Bros. Which is cool, I love Duck Hunt and all, but no way I’d take it over something else.
9) Maybe that’s the idea, that it is an actual system, but still costs less?
As far as VC pricing goes, I’m not worried. Something like this, I think market will dictate cost. If people don’t buy NES games at $5 a pop, expect some drops. Nintendo will want to make a return on whatever they invest in this, and without anything hard coming off of it, they can effectively afford to do adjust.
LBD “Nytetrayn”
September 18th, 2006 at 4:31 pm
Oh, and about King Kong? I imagine the market was there more at launch than it is now.
LBD “Nytetrayn”
September 18th, 2006 at 8:11 pm
(1) — oh, in that case I stand corrected