Wow Wii

#1 I have to agree. I own a Wii and it is by far the most fun I have had with a game in years. It is bringing back that old feeling you use to have playing games, the kind of fun that has been lost as of late, but luckily Nintendo gambled, but won the hearts of many.

#2 I am planning to get a Wii after the New Year. From what I hear and as Anthony just said, it seems Nintendo's gamble of gameplay over graphics has succeeded which I think is excellent.

#3 I have to disagree. I have not been impressed with the Revolution (I refuse to call it by its official name). The system really doesn't offer anything new in terms of game designs. We are seeing the same games with a new interface. I don't find the new controller a big addition to the overall experience. Then there are the system specs that are sub par and barely improved over the Gamecube. You are essentially buying an over priced peripheral that does not bring much new to the table. The game lineup is disappointing as well. Both the released games and the upcoming games that have been announced.

#4 Yeah the Wii is great. I was most suprised with Wii Sports. I figured it would just be a pack of a few games to show off the Wii's features and that once I got 'real' games it would collect dust. Though I still see myself playing Wii Tennis...

Also, check on eBay for the Wii. If you get lucky and watch it for a few days, you can get one for only $25-$50 more then retail($250).

#5 Alex have you seen the reports on the games at all? All most every well know site and show has given the luanch titles for the Wii an average of 4 out of 5 stars while PS3 is was around 2. As far as not bringing anything new to the table uh... the controller is the new part. Nintendo never said it wanted to rule the world graphically, they just wanted to include your mom dad and sister in the game play experience. You should really just give the Wii a try. It's a lot better than what you think.

#6 Agreed Donald. Anyone I have seen play it has loved it. It is obviously not as powerful graphic wise as its competitors, but it is not that far behind either. You may think of the controller as the xtra you are paying for, but really, when the 20th comes up and the Nintendo internet experience is unleashed, there will be much more fun to be had. Not to metion, as opposed to teh XB360 and PS3, internet gameplay will be free.

Also, as far as future games, it is possible we will see most games (popular) ported to the Wii. The next GTA will very likely be released for the Nintendo Wii (Take Two and Nintendo have been talking for a while now, it is speculated that since Nintendo has decided to release M rated games for the Wii, and judging by their talks with TT as of late, GTA4 will be released on Wii sometime after initial launch).

I am in no way downplaying any of the other systems, I have a 360 as well, and have played the PS3. Both are great, I just believe along with many others, that the Wii is just more fun all around.

Not to mention the Dev license for Nintendo is only $2,000...

#7 Donald,

Yea, yea, wee wee sports, a new controller, blah blah blah, where are the GAMES? Show me one non-kiddie exclusive game besides Zelda that is worth buying. And I'm not even talking games that are out now, I'm talking for the first half of 2007 as well.

http://www.ebgames.com/comingsoon.asp?platform=34&sortby=eta&imageFlag=show

The first appealing exclusive game that Nintendo comes out with, I'll buy a wee wee, but it looks like it's gonna be a *long* time before that happens (I've never been a Zelda fan, and don't care for anime). When Nintendo was successful before, they had Capcom and Konomi pumping out exclusive titles for them. Now those guys are in the other camps. It's going to take a lot more than a gimmic controller for Nintendo to become a "contenda" imo.

#8 @Arthur
Well, the newest Resident Evil. Red Steel. And there are quite a few others. Remember - there will now be Mature games on Nintendo platforms, and since the Wii is targeting ALL audiences it is assumed that there will be your GTAs.

And really, the controller isn't a gimmick. Infact, it has made 'clone' games like Madden and Virtua Tennis original.

It seems that you are either one of those people who think graphics are the only thing that matters, or you just have some problem with Nintendo. But please correct me if I am wrong.

#9 I think the Wii is a cool idea, but its definitely not in a place where it would be the only console I own. Its a retooled Gamecube with a new controller.. which I am convinced was a gimmick to sell another system made of old Gamecube stock packed with more RAM and a slightly faster processor. I bought the Gamecube on launch day when it came out and an Xbox a year later.. I BARELY ever played my GC after I got an Xbox. This is another reason why I havent bought the Wii yet.. the GC disappointed.

BTW.. the reviews for the high-profile Wii games actually havent been that great aside from Zelda. On Gamespot:

Rapala Fishing - 4.5/10
Red Steel - 5.5/10
Excite Truck - 6.8/10

I am waiting to get one when Super Smash Bros and Mario comes out.. although Mario Galaxy looks odd (another Mario Sunshine?). So far, I am not getting caught up in the Wii-Fever :\

#10 Well said Anthony.

I'd like to bring Twilight Princess to the table. Though there is still no doubt that games like Gears of War and Resistance surpass Twilight outrageously in the graphical department, there is something to be said about it. It doesn't take a high poly count, high resolution textures, and bump maps on every nook and cranny for a game to look beautiful. I've never seen such atmosphere in a game. This game oozes detail; one room in Twilight is prettier than a lot of next-gen titles.

#11 I struggle to see how anyone can claim the Wii brings nothing new to the table, if not bringing a whole new interface and way of playing to the table is nothing new then what is? I seriously hope there's no suggestion that the PS3 or 360 brought something new to the table as they were even less innovative again. Comparing what the Wii has done in relation to other consoles over the past few years it's hard to beleive that anything is bringing something new to the table if bringing a whole new way of playing isn't. Also, suggesting that the Wii is overpriced is particularly confusing when it's the cheapest next-gen console out there, it's extremely reasonably priced and that's coming from someone in Europe who gets ripped off even more than most people do! What's more, the games are even cheaper on the Wii also with UK prices being around

#12 Good or Bad, the Wii is not selling very well in the Silicon Valley area - all the stores are well stocked with them and they don't seem to be selling that well (in our area at least). I'm glad to see some new innovations by Nintendo and having some guts to try something different. I even like the shape of the console. But in the end, I think the name is really hurting them. It might work for the Asian market, but in North America, it just ends up being joked about and not taken seriously. It just goes to show that even a great product can be hurt by bad naming.

#13 @John
On the selling, I'm not sure about your area(except by what you said), but they are all out in most of Michigan.

#14 and most of Florida as well.

#15 >It seems that you are either one of those people who think graphics are the only thing that matters, or you >just have some problem with Nintendo. But please correct me if I am wrong.


Okashira,

BIAS! BIAS! I don't see a reason to own a Wee yet so I must be BIASED!!

Sheesh, actually nothing could be further from the truth. To me when I decide to buy a system one thing, and one thing alone matters: what games are coming out on it? Period. Atari, NEC, Sega, Nintendo, Microsoft, Sony, I don't care. I really don't. I've owned systems by all of those at various times and I have just about zero brand loyalty when it comes to systems. Because ultimately the fact that a game is coming out on a Wee or a 360 or a PS3 doesn't make the game good or bad. It's the opposite. It's the fact that a game is coming out on a system that makes the *system* good or bad. So seriously, take a look at the games that are out now, and are coming out in the next 6 months or so, and I dare someone to tell me that the Wee's lineup is better (or even competitive). I dare you. There's just no way to say that with a straight face (imho), unless you are buying for very young children, or are an anime fanatic or something. If the pricetag is the main factor, then cool, understandable, and the Wee is a good value. But at least know why you are buying it. And I wish Nintendo well, because I like the fact that there are 3 systems competing with one another. That's good for us consumers.

These things change though. A month from now Nintendo may sign up some great developers and get some great exclusive content, then cool, I'll be first in line to buy a Wee Wee.

#16 @Arthur Dent
Exclusive titles does not make a console a hit. It does help but its not the only thing. At the end of the day its how many consoles sold and how many games are sold. This 'gimmick' is reaching a larger audience and with the availability of the hardware it has a greater chance.

@Luke
Agree poly count aint everything... I mean hey aren't we always trying to lower it??

@John K.
Two things. Can you get me 3 Wii units if I send you the money?
Secondly - If Wii is joked about that just means that again everyone and their mom knows about it. The jokes are not bad press and they have a lot more buzz going for it than the PS3. Just like Wiihaveaproblem.com still press.. not favorable but press indeed.

#17 @Arthur
First of all - please relax. I, as an owner of the Wii, personally think there are quite alot of non-kiddie and non-"anime fanatic" games for the Wii that are good games(sidenote - the playstation has always had a superior amount of anime-style games, especially rpgs). Especially some of the up and coming titles(the new Resident Evil, Vitrua Tennis, and many more).

But then again, I, as a Wii owner, would probably be considered biased towards the Wii. But then again, aren't we really all biased in some way?

So, let's not act like kids and argue "My console is better then yours'!". Let's leave that for the rant forums. Can't we all just be friends?

:P

#18 Here are just SOME examples of some more mature Wii EXCLUSIVE games-
Darkness - Vampire fun
Disaster - Described as Nintendo's first-party attempt at moving away from a family-values, kid-friendly game
Far Cry Vengance - We all know about Far Cry and it's filthy mouth...
Metroid Prime 3 : Corruption - The sequal to the series described by some as having "better gameplay and graphics then Halo and Halo 2"
No More Heroes - Awesome looking Killer7-style game
Project Hammer - Violent, cybord fun!
Red Steel - Everybody knows about this!
Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles - Speaks for itself. Not to be confused with Resident Evil 5 for the PS3 and 360.
Sengoku Musou Wave - Bloody, Dynasty Warriors-style game

All of those listed above can be looked up on Wikipedia.com, and most(if not all) can also be looked up on IGN.

EDIT : List of announced Wii games - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Wii_games

#19 Donald,

Well, let's just say there is a direct corellation between exclusive content, a systems popularity to the public, and ultimately it's profitability and survival. Agreed? Which is the cause and which is the effect is arguable, but there is certainly a direct corellation. No console has ever thrived simply by being the lowest common denominator before and I don't see that happening now.


Okashira,

I'm calm :) But your characterization of me as only interested in fluff or based on some grudge was hitting below the belt and had no basis. That's all. If those games you list come out and turn out to be excellent games, then cool! I look forward to playing them. But most of that stuff you list is either:

a) more-or-less a cross platform game (Farcry, Darkness)
b) cleary an inferior game relative to what other platforms have (Red Steel = 5.5 on GameSpot, relative to games like Halo 3, Gears of War, or Resistance Fall of Man)
c) completely off the radar as far as release info

So I dunno. '07 looks extremely lean to me for the Wee. I just don't know what it is that I'd be playing on a Wee 6 months from now if I were to buy one.

#20 Just to clear anything up - I wasn't trying to attack. If you read my post you will see that you seemed that way, in my opinion. But to correct me if I am wrong. (sidenote - I am used to the whiney kids on most other game dev forums that just support a system because that is the one their parents bought for them).

Oh, and Darkness(Though there is a game called THE Darkness, which is based on a comic book and is on the PS3 and 360) and that particular Farcry(though they are all really similar) are exclusive to the Wii.

So, no hard feelings.

See ya,
Okashira