The news broke out yesterday evening that everybody will be able to get their hands on Nintendo’s Wii on November 19th in exchange of $250. The date is a bit later than could have been — it’s 2 days after the release of the PS3 — but the price is exactly what Nintendo said they wouldn’t go over. It’s also much cheaper than either the Xbox 360 ($300 or $400) or the PS3 ($500 or $600).
Yet, general reaction is a bit negative among fans, based on reading a few forums. Lots of people believed that the price would be much lower — $200, or $150, even some mentionned $99! — because Nintendo said it would be “under $250″. Of course, it was a bit naive to believe that a company would mean anything other than $249.99 with that line.
Still, this belief indicates a potential problem for the Wii: overhype. Nintendo was able to get a lot of very enthusiastic fanboys for their new platform. Hearing them, you’d believe that the Wii’s graphics would be as good as the PS3, the controls of every game would be absolutely intuitive and infinitely improved by the wiimote, and that every game will be incredibly fun and highly innovative.
Problem is, it’s not going to be the case. Even if the Wii is a very good platform — and it looks like it is — it will fall short of fanboys expectations. The hype is just too high at this point. This overhype may bring lots of sales on day 1, but it could cause a backlash afterward. If early adopters are let down by the Wii’s capabilities, it could make others reconsider their purchase.
Just look at the Segway for another example of overhype. It was supposed to be a revolution, but when people realised it was just a really cool scooter, the backlash made sales fall. Likewise, the Wii is supposed to be a Revolution, but when people realise it’s still just a really cool console, there may be a backlash.
One thing is certain, it will be interesting to see how this whole console war plays out this fall…
September 14th, 2006 at 11:38 am
What will make or break the console in the end is whether the gaming experience is enjoyable. I agree there might be a backlash, but it will be lethal only if Wii fails to be good where it was supposed to be great.
How are the graphics supposed to compared to the competitors?
brem
September 14th, 2006 at 11:48 am
The Wii’s graphic are comparable to an Xbox (not 360) with more RAM and it’s also not in HD. In terms of graphical power, the Wii isn’t really next generation, which is why it could sell for a lower price than the 2 others.
To give you a better idea, the new Zelda game will be released at the same time on Gamecube and Wii, and both versions have the same graphics as far as I can tell.
September 14th, 2006 at 11:54 am
Honestly, being a “casual” gamer, the xbox 360 and ps3 have very prohibitive prices to me. The Wii albeit a little expansive is much closer to my ideal price than the two others.
After 6 months, or a year, we have to expect a price drop. The Wii will probably go down to 200$, then to 150$, then to 100$ in 2-3 years. This will make for average income parents buying the Wii for their kids at Christmas because it’s the most affordable new console. In my opinion, Nintendo is not about to lose money on this one. It will make a profit. The question is whether or not it will pull up Nintendo from 3rd place console gaming developer. In terms of number of consoles sold, it remains to be seen, but xbox 360 has already a head start over the wii and ps3. The biggest loser in all of this might well be Sony and the Ps3.
brem