It's no secret that the Wii isn't the scarce object of lust that once it was, now freely available to purchase and no longer selling out everywhere in the world. Nintendo, of course, does not like this and boss man Satoru Iwata has voiced his dismay, along with a determination to reignite the waggle box's fire.
"As you probably know, the current situation of Wii cannot be defined as healthy," explains Iwata, talking about the system's Japanese sales performance. "The price cut seems to have the least impact here than other parts of the world. It is our urgent mission to recover the momentum of Wii during the holidays utilizing Nintendo’s strength."
While I respect the humility on Iwata's part, let us not forget that the Wii has had a ludicrously popular few years and a drop like this should be expected. I dare say that nearly everybody who ever wanted a Wii has one by now. It's not like Nintendo can keep the same sales figures consistently until the end of time.
This seems to be a rather cunning way for Nintendo to show off, acting like the Wii has set such high standards in the past that even selling thousands of systems a week is some sort of failure. Iwata, you cheeky scamp, I'm onto your tricks!
Jim Sterling serves as reviews editor for Destructoid.com, head of the Podtoid podcast, and produces a number of news stories, original features, one-of-a-kind videos. With his passionate argumentative style, controversial opinions, harsh delivery, and dedication to brutal honesty Sterling is a name that you can't help but recognize.
Likes
PS2, iPod Touch, Silent Hill 2, Metal Gear Solid, Dynasty Warriors 3
Meet the rest of the team
| BBcode help |
| [b]Bold text[/b] |
Bold text |
| [i]Italic text[/i] |
Italic text |
| [url]http://www.dtoid.com/[/url] |
http://www.dtoid.com |
| [url=http://www.dtoid.com/]Web link[/url] |
Web link |
|
| [img]http://www.example.com/robot.jpg[/img] |
 |
Post a comment! You can also post a photo below:
Comment with Facebook
Click connect and comment instantly!
|
Comment with Dtoid
New? SIGN UP - it takes 5 seconds
|
62 comments | showing # 1 to 50
|
Comment with Facebook
Click connect and comment instantly!
|
Comment with Dtoid
New? SIGN UP - it takes 5 seconds
|
Comments policy
Destructoid is an open discussion community. You don't need to "audition" to post a comment - just speak your mind. We respect differing opinions on the site, so have at it. Be smart, funny, insightful, clueless, or cute -- but back it up with substance. Keep your cool, keep it fun. We only ask that you act respectfully and above all: don't be a troll and ruin it for everyone else. Don't bring down gamers or we'll, you know, gently shoot you in the face and stuff you into a flaming mailbox. Each comment is your opportuntity to make this community awesomer. Is that even a word?
Avoiding the banhammer only requires common sense: spamming, trolling, racism, NSFW stuff, and other forms of sucking will not be tolerated. If anyone is griefing please report abuse. Be good. Don't suck!
Contest:
2:00 PM on 11.03.2009
| 
Maybe Nintendo will start making games again.
also, what HEL105 said. Regarding new gamers.
You guys are the best.
@manasteel88
Nintendo didn't "shun" the more experienced gamers. They alot of these types of games for Wii. If Nintendo had simply released an HD Gamecube, they wouldn't have survived. It's true that they've set their sites on another target audience, but making Games more mainstream by targeting people other than the ones you already have is good for the industry. Third-Parties who shoveled their wares onto the Wii are to blame for any shunning. A good console, even with the best 1st party support, can't truely shine without good 3rd party support. They are the ones who shunned the Wii. Unless you consider Motion controls and non-HD graphics shunning.
360 and PS3 on the other hand, install base has grown slower, but man don't some of us lay down some serious bank on games and extras for our systems. Unless of course there is some new hardware refresh the Wii isn't going to have a good 2010.
I wish I could sell my Wii, but the damn thing makes me so angry I can't even think about it without smashing something.
I wish my wallet was "unhealthy" like that.
Some of us have one and still don't KNOW why....oh, right, My wife wanted it and has played it like 6 times since last Christmas.
If you keep releasing cheese peripherals (ie vitality sensor), you are going to watch your market share disappear. oh, and a belated #4: Get rid of EVERYONE at NOA. They're doing a horrible job for you.
If not for the House of The Dead collections, I'd have shot the Wii with a real gun already.
What if nintendo... start to release games... i mean, like GOOD games?
I know it may sound crazy but maybe, just maybe, that could make the wii regain strenght?
Why make less money when they can make MOAR MUNNIEZ???
IWATA: IS THE DS LL OUT YET? NO WELL MAKE ANOTHER ITERATION AND THIS TIME INCORPORATE A HEARTBEAT SENSOR. WHAT WE ALREADY ARE DOING THAT? MAKE IT COMPATIBLE WITH WHAT WE ARE DOING.
WHAT? THE WII IS NOT SELLING? LUDICROUS. I CHOPPED OFF LIKE 50 BUCKS FROM THE PRICE. WHAT THE HELLS WRONG. I NEED A NEW DIAMOND OFFICE CHAIR WHEEL THIS ONE IS DIRTY. MIYAMOTO.
MIYAMOTO: Yes sir?
IWATA: ACTIVATE THE MARIO RAPE MACHINE.
MIYAMOTO: But.... sir he cannot take much more. We have extracted everything, all he has left is a waining will to live.
IWATA: PROFITS ARE DOWN. UNLESS YOU WANT TO SEE YOUR NINTENDOG AGAIN YOU WILL DO AS I COMMAND
MIYAMOTO: Not Wesley!, I'm sorry Mario. *click*
*Nintendo announces new mario game, AND ITZ NOT GALAXY 2! will be revealed at e3*
@E3: Wii would like to take everyone in and keep it fresh for todays changing industry. Which is why we have a familiar face, with a new concept. ladies and gentleman. behold.
Future Mario revealed. There are laser guns and rockets boots.
...
It's going to happen.
PC: 1915 games
Xbox 360: 668 games
Wii: 418
PS3: 404
Don't forget new Pikmin.
when Nintendo decided to put money into development of Wii Music, that was a waste of time and money that could have been spent on any number of games that the single greatest developer, Shigeru Miyamoto, could have spent on something more important. When they decided to put it as the focus point of a large presentation for the gaming press at e3, that was an embarrassment for the gaming industry. All the money they put into the marketing and production of the game across 3 continents was a waste. All because they tried to capitalize on the music market by making a casual version of a game in a genre that was starting to show signs of over saturation by the mainstream.
Thats one example. Not publishing Mother 3 over here is another. No localized Wii no Ma, Disaster Day of Crisis, Fatal Frame 4, the pizza ordering channel for the Wii. Nothing. Not even one new channel to bolster attention to the wii (like MS with NXE). And this is just complaints from a North American Nintendo consumer.
The fact that they haven't produced or helped publish an original ip in 3 years when they have had a dramatic upsurge in revenue is a big issue. When Japanese publishers are complaining about stagnation and you have a Japanese company that has a completely revolutionary concept on game design, that's a big issue. Nintendo is the top company in the Japanese game industry with the wii and they can't bolster 3rd party support while everyone is developing DS games, that's an issue.
They can do all this and still produce games that can't compete with Microsoft or Sony is a big issue. I haven't seen one game that Nintendo has made better with motion controls. I'm still waiting for a AAA RTS which seems like an obvious choice with a wiimote (especially since the 360 has like 7 or 8), but since Nintendo hasn't fostered the concept to hardcore game developers we're stuck with Wii Motion Plus.
Nintendo has put their money into creating games for people who purchase on a whim. That is a current problem.
Also, statistically speaking the consoles that are most remembered during any given generation are the ones with the best RPGs. I can count plenty on both HD consoles, but I can't think of more than a handful of them on the wii.
Game creation might be a problem passed onto 3rd parties, but if I was going to push a console out, I'd have decent representation from some developers who can make games in genres that I don't make.
We haven't seen Nintendo do anything since launch (outside of last e3) to make a dent in the software sales slump. If you want to put that on the lack of developer support thats fine, but if I had companies that didn't want to make games for my system and I'm starting to see month over month sales drops, I'd try to get some support to bolster sales.
Nintendo has had it all to win this console generation, but my attachment rate of games is 4 to 1 for 360 to wii games and 5 to 0 representing these past few months.
All of the above can be fixed by Nintendo. Too bad Nintendo isn't going to fix any of them.
Point is, Jim, could you (and the rest of the Destructoid editors (bear in mind, I love the site and find most of the writing to be informative and/or entertaining)) at least try to analyze why the Wii lost its momentum over simply tossing out the "common knowledge" remark that a system "has" to lose its momentum over time when you guys do one of these blog posts on Nintendo's waning sales?
It's funny how the excuse that everyone has one now is the reasoning for the slump. It's true that there has been a lack of good games consistently being released. The first two years had plenty of titles, this past year has been paltry to be sure.
So the Wii doesn't or won't have the games you want, fine, enjoy your 360 or your PS3, heck both if you got 'em.
Side note. I honestly play my 360 and my Wii about the same amount. I need a PS3 and Uncharted 2 though. I mean need. There isn't a Wii game that I want to play as badly.
boo hoo.
poor nintendo.
they tried oh so hard and look what happened.
they need a whamburger with those cries.
oh pity nintendo, just a dam pity.
maybe he'll have to use the regular bathrooms now.
such a shame.
But once again, what can they do? I honestly laugh and die a bit on the inside whenever I hear gamers talking about how Nintendo, "sold-out" or "betrayed" core gamers. You know why they did that? Because instead of supporting the good games on their core gamer-aimed consoles like the N64 and Gamecube, you simply gave them the finger and called them, "kiddy crap." Now we have the Wii, which has sold amazingly well, despite having little to no core support.
Nintendo can't win either way. Their console releases amazing games like Eternal Darkness, Animal Crossing, Wind Waker, Pikmin, Killer 7, and Baten Kaitos (and obviously much more, but those come to mind right now) and most gamers just say things along the lines of, "LOL, KIDDY GAMES ARE TEH FAIL" Then they try to go in the exact opposite direction, trying to appeal to a different market, and then you same guys say, "WTF!? NINTENDO BETRAYED US!!!11!" No matter what Nintendo does, they'll always be the company that recieves the most flak and criticism.
But whatever, I just hope Iwata realizes this and gets the company to start focusing on creating some core games that not only grab gamers' attentions, but also keep them.