I salute you Nintendo

ChipLdr

Nintendo has in my opinion done something that no console manufacturer has ever achieved and has released a console that appeals to all ages. With the release of the XBOX 360 and the PS3 looming, Nintendo knew that they needed to up their game and instead of competing head to head with graphics and processing power they opted for the more simple yet brilliant concept...universal usability.

I bought my Wii yesterday after playing it in friends houses and one thing that struck me is how it has taken this long to produce something so simple its astonishing.

My parents who have never once picked up a joypad in their lives were still playing the Wii at 2am this morning and considering i've pretty much had every console since the commodore 64, this is nothing short of incredible.

Watching my mother shadow box the TV and then try and whip a warthog in Rayman left me in tears. This is simply the best multiplayer console ever released because ANYBODY can play.

Although people will disagree and say how the graphics are bad and the titles are ****, well then go buy a PS3 and stop whining!!! The Wii is aimed at a multiplayer audience but even if you dont have friends you can still find some through its simplistic Wireless service.

Its amazing how many consoles have tried to appeal to everybody and have failed time and time again because they just aren't..simple.

Mitch Connor

erm - the ps1 was the first console to really appeal to all demographics.

Before Sony made gaming "cool" it was considered a past-time for kids and nerds.

Don't get me wrong, i loved my mega-drive and snes, gameboy and master system, but i think it is incorrect to say the Wii has broken new ground - it has simply (but brilliantly) expanded on what Sony started.

Darnell13

My Dad hated ps1 (and every other console). Refused to play it.

He's thinking about buying a Wii.

I salute Nintendo too.

mickith

i agree with ya op. its fun for all the family. got the wii just before christmas and over the holidays there was great fun to be had in my house as everyone was playin the wii. maw and paw play tennis so they love to play that, and the bowling is popular with them too. its great for everyone.
my ma even managed to get the top score on bowling :eek:

Vegeta

Tauren wrote:

erm - the ps1 was the first console to really appeal to all demographics.

Before Sony made gaming "cool" it was considered a past-time for kids and nerds.

Don't get me wrong, i loved my mega-drive and snes, gameboy and master system, but i think it is incorrect to say the Wii has broken new ground - it has simply (but brilliantly) expanded on what Sony started.

No I completely disagree here. My parents or my friends parents have never played a playstation in their lives. Yes they know what a playstation is but have they used one, no.

My whole family plays the Wii and my friends 60 year old mother bought herself a DS for christmas.

Sony has never penetrated so many demographics as Nintendo currently is.

Paulj

Have to agree with the OP....i also had my mother playing the Wii along with the rest of the family. NO WAY would this happen with any other console. Nintendo have broken some incredible new ground here, lets just hope that they can keep it going and get some more quality games out.

ChipLdr

in fairness my mother played a few games of buzz on the ps2 so i agree that in a way sony has paved the way.

However Sony didnt make it as easy as they could've with having to purchase multitaps and the like. What I forgot to add in my OP is that Nintendo took a huge risk in replacing a standard wired controller with a Wii Remote but it has payed off possibly even more than they anticipated.

Sorry i'm just loving my Wii right now. I've never ever played Rayman in my life and bought it yesterday and its one of the funniest games i've ever played.

Blub2k4

I think the OP is correct, over Xmas my 60 year old aunt ( also a nun) decided she was buying one after playing tennis for a few minutes on it.

To Tauren, you're talking about something completely different, it's different ground that's being broken, totally, but Sony would no doubt salute your loyalty, well done.

peepingtom

my girlfriend refused to play games before i got a wii ....... well done nintendo, you have taken away my mii time

Setun

Tauren wrote:

erm - the ps1 was the first console to really appeal to all demographics.

Before Sony made gaming "cool" it was considered a past-time for kids and nerds.

Don't get me wrong, i loved my mega-drive and snes, gameboy and master system, but i think it is incorrect to say the Wii has broken new ground - it has simply (but brilliantly) expanded on what Sony started.

Sony may have made gaming cool, but i disagree that they created an all-demographic console with the ps1. That console had a strong late teen/ adult game catologue on the whole.

Nintendo have always tried to put the emphasis on a kind of family console, and where with their other machines they may have failed (they were often blamed for being too safe and cutesy by adult gamers), I think they have most definitely succeeded with the Wii. It's a brilliant console, and as soon as more of a selection of games come out it'll get a hell of a lot better. Three cheers for Nintendo.

Biro

All Sony did that was new was to market the Playstation to the point where it became a household name. They had the financial clout to do that, the idea of marketing wasn't new, they just used their billions to take over the gaming industry. The PS1 was the same graphic capabilities as the Sega saturn, which preceeded it by what, 2 years? They did nothing new.
The one lesson Nintendo learned was to invest in marketing. They missed that boat with the gamecube, but regained it with the Wii. Even microsoft gave the gaming world something new by bringing hard disks and on-line gaming to a new light.

Mitch Connor

Blub2k4 wrote:

I think the OP is correct, over Xmas my 60 year old aunt ( also a nun) decided she was buying one after playing tennis for a few minutes on it.

To Tauren, you're talking about something completely different, it's different ground that's being broken, totally, but Sony would no doubt salute your loyalty, well done.

my loyalty to sony.....lol.

As for Sony not making things easy with multi-taps - i find the price of the WiiMote to be very high, and then to add the nun-chuch in on top the price is laughable.

Pablo-El-Vagabu

Tauren wrote:

i find the price of the WiiMote to be very high, and then to add the nun-chuch in on top the price is laughable.

It is dear at the moment, agreed. But i think the price will fall by next christmas.

It is guaranteed that people are shagged with regard to launch prices. But for the remote I think that the production costs for the remote are high. They will fall and nintendo will drop prices.

grahamo

ChipLdr wrote:

Nintendo has in my opinion done something that no console manufacturer has ever achieved and has released a console that appeals to all ages. With the release of the XBOX 360 and the PS3 looming, Nintendo knew that they needed to up their game and instead of competing head to head with graphics and processing power they opted for the more simple yet brilliant concept...universal usability.

I bought my Wii yesterday after playing it in friends houses and one thing that struck me is how it has taken this long to produce something so simple its astonishing.

My parents who have never once picked up a joypad in their lives were still playing the Wii at 2am this morning and considering i've pretty much had every console since the commodore 64, this is nothing short of incredible.

Watching my mother shadow box the TV and then try and whip a warthog in Rayman left me in tears. This is simply the best multiplayer console ever released because ANYBODY can play.

Although people will disagree and say how the graphics are bad and the titles are ****, well then go buy a PS3 and stop whining!!! The Wii is aimed at a multiplayer audience but even if you dont have friends you can still find some through its simplistic Wireless service.

Its amazing how many consoles have tried to appeal to everybody and have failed time and time again because they just aren't..simple.

Agreed. Me little boy got one for xmas and everybody in the house loves it. Every visitor we had over xmas, young and old played the Wii and loved it!
My son is now the most popular kid in the area and nintendo have kicked Sony and Microsoft's ass with their original thinking and innovation!

ambro25

Tauren wrote:

i find the price of the WiiMote to be very high, and then to add the nun-chuch in on top the price is laughable.

Care to comment on PS3 pricing, then?

... ambro25's running a mile

EDIT:Pleease don't reply to/quote that one, it's only a joke!

Biro wrote:

All Sony did that was new was to market the Playstation to the point where it became a household name. They had the financial clout to do that, the idea of marketing wasn't new, they just used their billions to take over the gaming industry. The PS1 was the same graphic capabilities as the Sega saturn, which preceeded it by what, 2 years? They did nothing new.

Wrong, wrong and wrong...

[rewind:

Sony marketed the PS1 mostly to the kidult market (18-24), had the insight to invade the pop/dance culture in clubs and commission early games with kidult tracks (e.g. Prodigy for Wipeout). They did not need to market it to sub-18s as much, because that market was already well aware *through specialist press and the like* of what it could do, relative to the competition (3DO, Jag, Saturn). Incidentally, PS1 and Saturn never had the same graphic capabilites: the Saturn always had the edge on PS1 in 2D, the PS1 always had the edge on Saturn in 3D, all down to hardware architecture - but the gaming world and its mother was moving away from 2D, so there ya have it, Saturn was doomed.

"Playstation" did not become a household name (as in: 'understood by the entire family') for a good few years into it's life.

end rewind]

Biro wrote:

The one lesson Nintendo learned was to invest in marketing. They missed that boat with the gamecube, but regained it with the Wii.

... but bang on right!

EDIT:Forgot to mention, of course I'm in full agreement with OP, through personal experience over Xmas similar to posted throughout thread

(my dad... :eek: playing Wii golf...quadruple-:eek: ...when for 20 years or so he's been consistently calling my bro & I nerds, about gaming :rolleyes: ).

Oh! and btw, age-wise, it works the other way too: my 2½-year old is getting to be a dab hand at bowling, at the WiiPlay DuckHunt clone & the "Mii-shape-orientation-matching" thingymajig!

FutureGuy

If someone told me a year ago that myself, my gf, and my 60-something parents would be playing 5-hours solid on a console in a years time, I would have that person they were nuts. Likewise if they said that my parents would have bought a console and would be better than me in some games...:eek:

Now my parents have a Wii...my dad bowls 240 on bowling and is a pro at tennis. My mum bowls a 220 and is very handy at golf.

I totally agree with OP, well done Nintendo!

Rew

My older brother is begging to borrow my Wii for his poker night, and all his makes are dying to play it. My dad played a round of Golf with us the the other night, my 6yr old niece palys it, people in work her me talk about it and want one and my mother dosnt rubish it on sight as she would with other "computer games". Its appeal is far greater then any other console to date.

Sleepy

The biggest thing I've noticed is how many girls who wouldn't normally touch a console and would think of gaming as 'nerdy' are all over the thing whenever I have people over. From whining if we even mentioned a game of Pro Evo to hogging the Wiimotes all night in one quick move.

sofireland

heh, yeah thats very true, my gf is definitely not a gamer.
now she's hooked...
master stroke by nintendo if you ask me

Shred

Yup, have to agree with the OP. Everyone that's played the Wii in my house has absolutely adored it and nearly everyone of them (inlcuding my parents in law who are in their 60s) has said they have to get one as soon as they're widely available. Even now my missus (who, as many have already said, wasn't a 'gamer' before Wii) is downstairs playing Wii Play! She absolutely loves the fishing and the Mii games and the two of us had such a laugh playing Rayman last week too. It really is a great machine, there's no doubt. Can't wait 'til there's a decent library of games for it (towards the end of the year).

adox

I think its a bit early to be coming to conclusive judgements.

The Wii could just as easily become passe in the coming months,a fad if you like,that saturated the market for a short time.Everybody wanted it.Everybody played it.The control system was great.Instant hit.

Longevity on the other hand is another matter altogether.Theres only so much of party games that will keep the public amused.

CiDeRmAn

I thought that the Wii would be the machine that finally gets my game hating spouse to play, but to no avail, all she does is get up at 2 in the morning to tell me to turn the volume on the Wii-mote down!?!?
Honestly though I have seen other folks who i hooked up with a Wii getting lots of fun out of it, time will tell if Ninty can keep the momentum up with titles to appeal to both gamers, Metroid Prime 3, and non-gamers, Cooking Mama, Tiger Woods, more mini game collection like Wii Music.
Nintendo need to get the stocks into the shops on the run up to March through the summer and into Christmas 07, and have a healthy release schedule to boot.
If they could drop the consoles price further, perhaps to €199, by Christmas I think they'll have it in the bag.
As for the Wii being the first machine to break into the broader demographic, this gen certainly, the PS never got beyond young men and football games really, aside from younger girls playing Spice World and Beatmania.
We will indeed have to wait and see what the PS3 does in March, it'll sell out alright at launch but the noises I'm hearing from parents, the prospective buyers of said machines come Christmas, is that it's too damn expensive, by the time you've bought one, a couple of games and an extra controller you've a grand gone down the swanny, and these parents still see the machine as a glorified toy, with little interest or need for all the extended multimedia gubbins, If MS play their cards right and drop the price of the 360 for Christmas they, like Nintendo, could well run away with it this gen, in Europe and the US certainly.

But to get back to the topic of the thread, I too salute you Nintendo, nice to see you have finally pulled your thumb out and created a home console whose ownership won't consign school pupils to be pointed and laughed at in the schoolyard and street!

dr.bollocko

I reckon that the Wii will be as dead as the DS in a few months. Its a good start, but they have to keep re-inventing how they use the hardware to keep it interesting. I dont see how they are going to do this. Also playing wise, its still shunty and awkward to control, and there are only so many times we can re-invent Pong before people get bored silly.
Sure its great fun, its something completely new, but just like the eye-toy did for the PS2, it is seen as the greatest thing ever when it comes out, but as soon as people get bored, you need something new to keep them hooked.
I like the way nintendo have gone with this new type of controller, and have taken the focus off of relentlessly trying to improve graphics, game-speed, trying to rival PC format etc. but I think that they will get out of it what they invested, it will be a short-term hit totally eclipsed by the 360 and PS3.
And I would never buy a console that my grandparents think is cool.

cognos

dr.bollocko wrote:

I reckon that the Wii will be as dead as the DS in a few months. Its a good start, but they have to keep re-inventing how they use the hardware to keep it interesting. I dont see how they are going to do this. Also playing wise, its still shunty and awkward to control, and there are only so many times we can re-invent Pong before people get bored silly.
Sure its great fun, its something completely new, but just like the eye-toy did for the PS2, it is seen as the greatest thing ever when it comes out, but as soon as people get bored, you need something new to keep them hooked.
I like the way nintendo have gone with this new type of controller, and have taken the focus off of relentlessly trying to improve graphics, game-speed, trying to rival PC format etc. but I think that they will get out of it what they invested, it will be a short-term hit totally eclipsed by the 360 and PS3.
And I would never buy a console that my grandparents think is cool.

Since when has the ds been dead?? And your comparison with the eye-toy is way way off - the eye toy is very limited in how you can control a game unlike the wii remote. As for not buying something because your grandparents might like it, well thats just immature and foolish!

dr.bollocko

The DS is dead man. Left for 14 year olds on long car journeys.
The shunty style of the controller, the problems with the sensor on the tv are reminiscent of the eye-toy.
And I was joking about the grandparents thing, pedant.

Retr0gamer

dr.bollocko wrote:

The DS is dead man. Left for 14 year olds on long car journeys.
The shunty style of the controller, the problems with the sensor on the tv are reminiscent of the eye-toy.
And I was joking about the grandparents thing, pedant.

You obviously haven't seen the sales figures for the DS. It's selling phenomenally well, far more than the PSP. Also I think most people will agree that there are for more and far better games on the ds.

dr.bollocko

Handheld gaming isnt gaming.

Star Lord

dr.bollocko wrote:

Handheld gaming isnt gaming.

Nice contradiction there.

Of course handheld gaming is still gaming, that's a ridiculous comment. Next you'll tell us that handheld gaming is gaming on the psp but not on the ds? The DS is outselling every other gaming platform, consistently, so I don't know how you see it as being "dead".

dr.bollocko

Oh look whatever man. I didnt want to insult your precious goddamn DS but for most of the rest of the world it's just a distraction in between using real hardware.

Star Lord

Lol! You wake up on the wrong side or what?

dr.bollocko

Its a saturday.
Im at work!
2+2 = pissed off doctor.

Riesen_Meal

Wii has appealed to everyone in my family, Xmas morning was some craic I tell ya, I remeber my mam twisting the controllers years ago playing mario kart on xmas mornin 92 (I think) trying to get the car to move (on snes) and now she can pick up the wiimote and just twist the car and it will move....

That and the fact I sat there all day watchin southpark on my wii yesterday was gift!

In regards to the DS I dont have one but I read in Edge recently that they outsell the PSP 10 to 1 in Japan, thats some figures, id say its the opposite over in Europe so that shows how different out demographics are...

Its gas they wouldnt touch the 360 at all, thats for the real "nerds". . . .

Setun

dr.bollocko wrote:

The DS is dead man. Left for 14 year olds on long car journeys.
The shunty style of the controller, the problems with the sensor on the tv are reminiscent of the eye-toy.
And I was joking about the grandparents thing, pedant.

I just bought a DS, I am not a 14 year old and nor am I on a long car journey. It's great imo, can't wait to get more games for it.
As for the wii, teh wiimote's potential is only beginning to be unveiled. Another few months and controls will be smoother, more intuitive and complex, and most importantly, I think it will be a hell of a lot more fun.

iwincosimcool

ChipLdr wrote:

Watching my mother shadow box the TV and then try and whip a warthog in Rayman left me in tears.

****, that's the cheesiest thing Ive heard in months

Biro

dr.bollocko wrote:

Oh look whatever man. I didnt want to insult your precious goddamn DS but for most of the rest of the world it's just a distraction in between using real hardware.

What "real hardware" have you got in mind? The DS is outselling every other console. The PSP is a joke if you ask me. All that money just to play PS2 games on the move... and you have to buy them all over again anyway! What a laugh. And don't bother with the running linux on it crap, there are better media players on the market for that money with a lot more storage. Anyway, if you're interested in a handheld PC then you should look for a palm. Much better value for money!
As for criticising the Wii saying it's a fad... What's the PS3? "Oh look - we've put a good PC together and are charging PC prices for it - just so we can make the same old hat games look better!"
An X-box 360 and a Wii is all that is needed in todays gaming world to get the best of everything. And both together costs roughly the same as a PS3. Project gotham racing has killed off Gran tourismo, so GT5 would want to be seriously good. I've a feeling it'll only look good though. Sony and their propriatory ways need a good kicking.

CiDeRmAn

Hard to argue with sales figures and review scores aside from personal preferences. The DS Lite addressed all the styling failings of the original and the software, aside from the lazy muck, has had some true classics, Castlevania, Advance Wars DS, Mario Kart, Nintendogs and of course New Super Mario Bros.
What the gentleman may be expecting from his gaming is the next gen glitter and sheen of graphical finesse and the awesome experiences of the likes of Gears of War or Lost Planet, but then everymachine hosts games that play on their strengths, hard to see Brain Training working on a PS3 or Trauma Centre playing as well without a stylus on the 360 isn't it.
Their are and will always be those who dislike handheld gaming, perhaps the PSP is for them if they really must, but dismissing the consoles and all games, both past and future as childrens playthings and a distraction from real gaming, thats just plain wrong, simply put. Pity though, there's some cracking stuff you're going to miss, get a DS with Mario Kart, a GBA with Wario Ware or even a PSP with Ridge Racer, Lumines or Wipeout, each better than their PS2 conterparts by a mile I might add.

Biro

CiDeRmAn wrote:

Hard to argue with sales figures and review scores aside from personal preferences. The DS Lite addressed all the styling failings of the original and the software, aside from the lazy muck, has had some true classics, Castlevania, Advance Wars DS, Mario Kart, Nintendogs and of course New Super Mario Bros.
What the gentleman may be expecting from his gaming is the next gen glitter and sheen of graphical finesse and the awesome experiences of the likes of Gears of War or Lost Planet, but then everymachine hosts games that play on their strengths, hard to see Brain Training working on a PS3 or Trauma Centre playing as well without a stylus on the 360 isn't it.
Their are and will always be those who dislike handheld gaming, perhaps the PSP is for them if they really must, but dismissing the consoles and all games, both past and future as childrens playthings and a distraction from real gaming, thats just plain wrong, simply put. Pity though, there's some cracking stuff you're going to miss, get a DS with Mario Kart, a GBA with Wario Ware or even a PSP with Ridge Racer, Lumines or Wipeout, each better than their PS2 conterparts by a mile I might add.

Good post there!

as_seen_on

I think what nintendo have done is stop gaming from going down an ever-narrowing path, can you imagine your parents caring about the amazing tech specs of the PS3 an xbox 360 or admiring the awesome visuals of Gears of war. I dont think so.

Thats why they can pick up the wii remote and play something simple like Wii sports, or for the more hardcore gamer, Zelda or Red Steel. They