Mario Galaxy Video Review

It really is amazing the fascination people are havin with this wii thing, i was watching on the news, that these clowns that are waitin\' for discount stores(best buy, toys r us, walmart) to open on black friday, mind you these idiots are standing out in the cold and even camping out in sub-freezing temperatures, that when these stores finally opened, some opened as early as 5:AM, that most customers went straight to the electronics section and practically snatched up all of the wii consoles.

I just don\'t see it,...maybe the wii has a bunch of get together type party games for adults who don\'t know s**t about games and are just people getting into games for the first time, oh well i guess i\'m the minority cause when i think of wii i still think of kiddie console....the wand is a gimmick, and this thing is just slightly better graphically than the gamecube and hardly any 3rd party support, much respect to nintendo tho, people apparently are diggin\' it, it\'s just not for me.

Good games typically sell. Nintendo makes great games, so that alone can sell Wii\'s. Not to mention, what you may consider a "gimmick", has people wanting to play it.  I know a ton of people at work who want a Wii, but have no interest in other gaming.

Should also be noted, a few years ago music games were considered a gimmick and now look at Rock Band.

http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=176244

I just don\'t see it,...maybe the wii has a bunch of get together type party games for adults who don\'t know s**t about games and are just people getting into games for the first time, oh well i guess i\'m the minority cause when i think of wii i still think of kiddie console....the wand is a gimmick, and this thing is just slightly better graphically than the gamecube and hardly any 3rd party support, much respect to nintendo tho, people apparently are diggin\' it, it\'s just not for me.

Thats exactly what happens actually. Wii is the perfect example that shows that mediocre games can sell by the millions and boost hardware sales if sold under the right content and idea.

The console lacks a lot in terms of quality compared to the 360 or probably even the PS3. The HW sales arent explained by the quality. It is the gaming context that Wii markets.

360 offers more quality than Wii, it just that these quality games do not appeal to the inexperienced gamers. Especially those that dont have time to play games. They may find more fun a simple mediocre game that lacks depth than a game that demands dedication.

And it is not only adults. Kids and the female demographics have more chances playing a crap game that uses the wand than sit with Gears of War or Uncharted. Even spongebob may be more appealing to them. A kid is going crazy for it. Parents are searching for the perfect gift. It is sold mainly as a toy for anyone to play and toys sell faster and more than dedicated devices.

Nintendo played their cards well in their effort to exploit a niche market. Nintendo had a certain amount of constant userbase since the N64. The majority of these were bound to continue on the next gen Nintendo consoles as well. But they were few. Nintendo was incompetent in the market Sony and MS existed. None of their efforts seemed to help no matter how many "mario" or "zelda" games they made. They were ignored by the masses of the particular market. Nobody cared and the appeal was scarce. They had no chance competing Sony\'s or MS\'s more powerful megahit titles. So how could Nintendo increase their market share?

Shift somewhere that the competition doesnt exist. Make games for the less demanding crowd. Games for non-gamers. Wii doesnt necessarilly have better games but it offers a different experiene. Imagine how many sales Nintendo can make when they are the only ones that target the specific market.

I think what the wii demonstrates is that the casual market is far greater than the hardcore gamer market and that its not necessarily a bad thing.  Hell, look at the little time waster flash games like bejeweled and whatnot, those people make a shit ton of money off of games like that.  They\'re easy to pick up, people can play them for as little or as long as they\'d like, and the key, they\'re fun and this is exactly what the wii is tapping into.  Add in the relatively cheap price and the brand name and you\'ve got a phenomenon.  Gimmick or no,  people seem to love the thing.

However, with that said, most people I\'ve talked to that are really into games get completely bored with it after a couple of months.  Maybe if the third party development picks up people will think differently but right now, its a great little toy to have around for parties.  (I still really want to play mario though damnit).

I think what the wii demonstrates is that the casual market is far greater than the hardcore gamer market and that its not necessarily a bad thing.  Hell, look at the little time waster flash games like bejeweled and whatnot, those people make a shit ton of money off of games like that.  They\'re easy to pick up, people can play them for as little or as long as they\'d like, and the key, they\'re fun and this is exactly what the wii is tapping into.  Add in the relatively cheap price and the brand name and you\'ve got a phenomenon.  Gimmick or no,  people seem to love the thing.

Exactly

However, with that said, most people I\'ve talked to that are really into games get completely bored with it after a couple of months. Maybe if the third party development picks up people will think differently but right now, its a great little toy to have around for parties. (I still really want to play mario though damnit).

Also true but I am not that sure if third party support will pick up anytime soon. Since the majority of Wii buyers are the kind of casuals you mentioned, they already see what kind of games sell and by how much and they will adjust to that most likely than develop games hoping that more serious gamers will join in.

There could be other things involved as well. I get the impression that for some reason developers prefer sticking to develop for more complex and more demanding games on 360 or PS3 than trying to put the same effort on Wii which is "simpler", or atleast develop high quality games on it that appeal to casuals.

There are probably some other kind of "benefits" related to technological advancements that the devs arent willing to sacrifice despite that in case they develop a cheaper but very good game aimed for casuals might seem financially a wiser decision

I disagree with the fact you\'re calling them mediocre games though.  Nintendo has put a few stellar games on its system and for the most part, thats what people are buying.

Depends on which games you are refering to. Which ones are you?

Don\'t be an idiot douche. It is obvious what games he is referring too, when he said "Nintendo has put a few stellar games". What do you think he is talking about? Third party? No! He is obviously talking about first and second party titles.

As for the whole debate on the system, want to know why it sells? Price tag and it offers something that people aren\'t use too. Nintendo really nailed this one when they priced it a lot cheaper than what the other companies are offering. This makes the Wii seem like a bargain to the casual shopper.

[GmanJoe]

Superman64?

Don\'t be an idiot douche. It is obvious what games he is referring too, when he said "Nintendo has put a few stellar games". What do you think he is talking about? Third party? No! He is obviously talking about first and second party titles.

As for the whole debate on the system, want to know why it sells? Price tag and it offers something that people aren\'t use too. Nintendo really nailed this one when they priced it a lot cheaper than what the other companies are offering. This makes the Wii seem like a bargain to the casual shopper.

I have better things to do than waste my time with you. Oh and thanks for rephrasing what was already stated. :yawn:

Why can\'t we all just get along...

[GmanJoe]

Antidote for the gayness that sammie brings here.

[Titan]

Those boobies look like they\'re ready for a milking

Jesus, I can\'t even browse the console discussion threads safely at work these days.  What is the world coming to.

And yes, LIC nailed it, almost every first and second party title that has come out on the wii that I\'ve played has been extremely fun.

Jesus, I can\'t even browse the console discussion threads safely at work these days.  What is the world coming to.

And yes, LIC nailed it, almost every first and second party title that has come out on the wii that I\'ve played has been extremely fun.

Yeah but you are not a casual (assuming that you own a Wii). Also extremely fun under what criteria and most importantly for how long. Tetris and Bejeweled can also be extremely fun. That doesnt mean that they are "stellar"

Many of these titles\' initial excitement wore off after you get used to the idea of the controls.

If you are refering to games such as Mario Galaxy or Metroid Prime I couldnt agree more. But such good titles are few and far between and arent necessarilly the games that sell the Wii to the casuals or the target consumer if you like.

The Wii is characterized mostly by quick and fun to play on the spot games not by AAA titles and this is what sells. Actually Wii has the fewest number of  high rated games in Metacritic of all the three consoles.

They are worth the value for what they offer but in general it is not the very few best and "stellar" titles that make casuals run for a Wii. Mario Galaxy for example although sold very well it didnt icrease HW sales as much as expected if at all. Thats because people are attracted to quick and fun play and experience in general bundled with a low price and Wii Sports.