Discuss the post Is the Wii in trouble? made within our Gaming forum; Post Snippet: From Yahoo Games.
It this all for nothing -- I mean, it's not like Guitar ...
From Yahoo Games.
It this all for nothing -- I mean, it's not like Guitar Hero's going away any time soon, is it? And how much cheaper can the PS3 and XBok 360 get?
Troubled times for the Wii?
by Ben Silverman
April 16, 2009 1:51 P.M.
In the three years since it first launched, the Nintendo Wii has sailed past competing systems from Sony and Microsoft to consistently claim the top spot in the console war.
But if a recent rash of troubling stories about the Wii is a vision of things to come, the tide might be turning for the seemingly unbeatable machine.
Wii On Top For Now, But For How Long?
Kinks in the system's shiny white armor starting showing last month. Despite steady success in Japan, the Wii fell into second place in March as the underdog Playstation 3 clambered atop the region's sales charts for the first time in 16 months. That was enough to garner some uncharacteristically somber comments from Nintendo President Satoru Iwata, who deemed the climate in Japan "unhealthy" for the Wii.
But to Cowan & Company analyst Doug Creutz, the U.S. market isn’t necessarily any healthier, at least if you're thinking of investing in a console game. In an interview with Gamasutra, Creutz called the Wii "fool's gold" for third-party game developers.
"The choice here is really between investing for the Xbox 360 and PS3 -- since their capabilities are fairly similar -- or the Wii," he said. "I would caution investors and developers that the larger installed base of the Wii is really a bit of a red herring."
Crueutz goes on to point out that while the 19 million Wiis in North America trounce competing consoles individually, combined sales of the 360 and PS3 actually top 22 million. That represents a larger chunk of the pie for game developers who can more easily port games back and forth from the two systems. Additionally, Creutz notes that Nintendo's first-party games and the Guitar Hero and Rock Band franchises account for nearly one-half of all Wii software sales, a far larger percentage than what's found on the other consoles. Comparatively, the Wii is simply a tougher nut to crack for third-party developers.
Peter Moore, president of enormous third-party game maker EA Sports, echoed Creutz's concerns while speaking at a recent conference.
"You simply can't take what you're doing on the PS3 and Xbox and port - that's a dirty word - down to the Wii," he said, insisting that instead you have to build Wii games "from the ground up."
He's not the only one at EA with issues. Earlier in the month, an EA producer confessed to having trouble incorporating Nintendo's upcoming Wii MotionPlus control attachment into its Grand Slam Tennis game, raising questions about when the tech would be ready for consumers. Nintendo answered that by officially announcing a release date only to curiously push back the release of the game they've repeatedly used to show off the new technology, surefire smash sequel Wii Sports: Resort.
Of course, it's not all doom and gloom. NPD Group reports that the Wii again led the way in March 2009, outselling both the 360 and PS3 by a wide margin. Nintendo is also enjoying strong numbers for its newly released DSi handheld, with the company reporting first-week sales of over 600,000 units in the U.S. and Europe. Mario's checking account won't run out of funds any time soon.
The question is, will gamers run out of interest? The last two major first-party Wii games, Wii Music and Animal Crossing: City Folk, failed to generate the kind of excitement (and, in turn, sales) that Nintendo is accustomed to, a fact that analyst Ed Barton of Screen Digest believes is a big reason why the Wii is struggling. While older blockbusters like Wii Fit and Mario Kart Wii are still selling well, Barton points out that the company needs new experiences to drive new sales.
Nintendo hopes to deliver exactly that with upcoming high-profile games like the aforementioned Wii Sports sequel and a remake of classic boxing game Punch Out!, but that still leaves plenty of wiggle room for the Playstation 3 and the Xbox 360 to continue closing the gap. And if Japan is any indication (and it usually is), that gap can disappear in a heartbeat.
So what do you think? Is the Wii destined for a downfall, or is this just a mid-life crisis?
I like the Wii controller concept, but so far it has been used more as a gimmick - designers aren't really sure how to use it properly, and they also don't want to make games that don't port to other systems.
It has a lot of potential, but I'm not sure if it is sustainable due to the lack of realization fo that potential.
The Motion Plus addon should do a lot to revitalize the Wii and new titles that are released for it. I think it is going through a "mid-life crisis" as you put it, but Nintendo and third party developers will begin releasing Motion Plus games this year, and I'll bet we see sales pick up once again.
Looks good - the slightly inaccurate capture is annoying sometimes. I still just worry if developers will be willing to make GOOD games for a single platform only. Also if they can figure out HOW to really incorporate the motion use into the game rather than it feeling tacked-on.
I meant mature games in general, but especially beat-em-ups and first-person shooters. I should have thought of sports games too, but I don't know any in real financial trouble.
Well, IMO, the Wii is running out of gas. While Nintendo will undoubtedly release more Mature games for its 7th gen system, there's really not a whole lot more they can do with it. We'll probably end up seeing another GTA situation, and the games will become too realistic, in the conservative parents' eyes, and will no longer be a family system. Even their signature titles seem to be losing their fan base (Super Mario Galaxy for example).
It seems like the only things keeping gamers on the system are Zelda, Mario Kart, and the Wii-mote/Nunchucks. The universal games, such as Guitar Hero, might as well be played on the other systems, where you have more incentive (Gamerpoints/Trophies). Even with the 360's terrible internal system problems (Personally, I've had 2 RRoD thus far ) and the high price of the PS3 (even though Sony is starting to mark it down, it still is more than both systems), both systems continue to release games that both hardcore and casual gamers will play for ages. Overall, I think Nintendo has been thinking short-term, and will ultimately pay the price for it.
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Disturbed don't forget super smash brothers. That has always been another large seller for them. I do agree though that their goal to be a family oriented system is not working anymore. While some parents want their kids to play nice stupid games that are released it is still a minority. Most gamers are the ones who grew up playing the games through the 80's and 90's. That generation is now wanting to play games that are more mature in content rather than E marked games and it is those fans who have been complaining to deaf ears that they are ruining the old series such as Mario. While a few games on the Wii are still fun and some M rated games such as the RE series have continued on the new consoles it will be difficult for Nintendo to keep up overall. Right now the price of the system and the fact that Guitar Hero and several other multiplatforming games have been released for the Wii added in with their console specific titles of Mario Kart, Smash Bros. Brawl, and Zelda are the only things keeping Nintendo running.
The problem with this is that most gamers try to own at least two consoles and the few games that are bought are the games released solely for the Wii and then a few that are possibly cheaper on that system vs. any other. After that kids go for the 360 or ps3 games because not only is there a larger selection of games the online play is bigger and better. I personally own just a few games for the Wii and all are restricted to that system. As much as I find the nunchuck/wii remote an interesting concept the system has a very hard time registering swings and you have to be a computer in order to get the angle correct. Rail shooters like RE Umbrella Chronicles are decent games for the Wii but the sad fact most games that really try to take the Wii controls to their max are fighting games. This falls short though when you can point your arm straight out and move the remote really fast in random directions and kick butt on any game like that.
I did it to a friend who was undefeated at the Bleach fighting game they released and won every round with only taking a few hits. No special moves, no bankai, nothing. Just random swinging and the character did a bunch of moves and constantly spun around my friend and I won. He finally broke down and did it as well and it came down to whose arm got slower first. The Wii remote is the biggest joke of them all. I personally want to see games like Umbrella Chronicles go to the PS3 and 360 where they have light guns that were built with the player in mind instead of having the A & B buttons on the front of the gun. I bet if they did Wii would be dead in the water until the next Zelda game came out.
PS3s are not even really worth owning anymore especially after Sony lost their exclusive rights to Final Fantasy. When that game hits the shelves the true test of which system people have preferred will be tested. As it has been released that the game will not be coming out on PC. Instead it is going multiplatform on the Wii, 360 and PS3. I will wait for the results but I am predicting 360 will be on top after the sales of that game dye down some.
My question is this though: Are systems failing to deliver to the gamer anymore or is it the games that are making the systems fail? I mean the 360 was the first big release of the new gen consoles and it has developed a huge fan base. The Wii and its low prices have made it a good choice as well. What makes the difference in the past though are the system exclusive games and now that barrier is being broken left and right and I am actually wondering if that is killing the market for some of these systems or not. I mean I pose this hypothetical question: If xbox didn't have the exclusive rights to Halo and it went multiplatform from the beginning would they be as big now as they are? I am going to guess no. So if it is the titles that make the system then how can we truly say what system is failing over another when companies want bigger profits and so make their games available to all systems which causes the market to spread out. If you want an accurate measure anymore of a system you actually have to look at sales of console elusive games only and in that regard I believe the 360 would be in the lead.
Is the Wii in trouble? 
Think for yourself. Question authority.
) and the high price of the PS3 (even though Sony is starting to mark it down, it still is more than both systems), both systems continue to release games that both hardcore and casual gamers will play for ages. Overall, I think Nintendo has been thinking short-term, and will ultimately pay the price for it. 
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