JC Barnett Claims Super Smash Brothers Brawl Is Unfit For The Wii
By William on Sunday, January 27th, 2008 at 12:33 PM PST In Game Companies, Game Consoles, Game Platforms, Nintendo, Nintendo
Lately, we have heard only good things about Super Smash Brothers Brawl, but now a Japanese game developer who uses the alias “JC Barnett” has expressed concern for the new Nintendo Wii title. Surprisingly, I basically agree with his opinions of Super Smash Brothers Brawl and the Nintendo Wii. He believes that this game will confirm the fact that the Wii is not appealing to hard-core gamers and that future developers need to stick to casual games for the system. He also mentions that he believes that the Wii may not even be part of the current console war. I have believed that for a while, but it’s not a very popular opinion to have these days. I have always felt like the Wii had a different market than the Xbox 360 and PS3, but somehow people find that hard to believe. For whatever reason, fanboys tend to get all bent out of shape when you mention that the Wii is a “casual” system. I’m not sure why because it really is a casual gaming option.
Is the Wii the wrong system for a game such as Super Smash Brothers Brawl? I’d have to say with certainty that it probably would have been better on the Sony PS3 or Xbox 360. Considering it’s only on the Wii, it will probably sell really well though, at least for a while. I hope you fanboys out there don’t try to go off on me for this opinion. There’s nothing wrong with the Nintendo Wii, but it’s certainly just a different kind of system than what you get with the 360 and PS3.
Here’s what he had to say:
As a spurious prediction I’d say we may see a promising start with the usual drop-off over the next few months and sales figures that would make anyone proud but that are still lower than expected, a bit like Super Mario Galaxy. If Sumabura [Super Smash Bros. Brawl] doesn’t sell that well it would be proof positive that the Wii isn’t a hard-core friendly platform. I suspect already that it isn’t, but a title like this could prove it once and for all.
This also means the Wii is out of the “console war”. It has its own market distinctly different from its competitors, whom must fight amongst themselves for their own top spot. Both Microsoft and Sony are making wooing noises to the casual market but they’ll have a hard time stealing customers from the big N.
So any publisher looking to make money on the Wii must squarely look at casual and avoid hard-core at all costs.
Via VGM
Before the fanny’s go nuts, I’d have to say that I agree with you. A casual system doesn’t mean a bad system though fanboys, so don’t get your panties in a bunch please.
“he believes that the Wii may not even be part of the current console war”
I agree with that entirely. I believe the 360 and PS3 are fighting for the PlayStation’s install base while Nintendo are going off on a different track. They even admitted themselves that they couldn’t compete for the types of gamers Sony and Microsoft appeal to which is they they decided not to bother any more.
I really cant understand how anybody thinks the Wii is in competition against the PS3 or 360. On another thread I likened it to thinking the Honda Civic is in competition with the BMW 5 Series and Mercedes S Class.
Like you I have nothing against the Wii, I just dont see it as competition for the other 2 consoles.
really dont agree. For starters the gamecube was considered a kiddie console yet smash bros melee sold more than halo1. also resi4 and mario galaxy are selling on Wii so hardcore gamers must own it.
The argument its not even in the same race is also rediculous as if the Wii didnt exist id buy a PS3, Yet as i own a Wii i feel i dont need another games console the Wii serves me well.
As for the Person who thinks the PS3 and 360 are the ones fighting over the ps2 install base i disagree there too as the reason the ps2 sold well was because it was chap like the Wii and had casual games that appealed to a broader audience like the Wii does such as singstar and guitar hero.
If the PS3 wants to do well it should look at the success of the PS2 and consider maybe going the way of the 360 (expensive, overpowered and trying to do to much) is wrong as it cretes too much of a niche for the market its in.
If the Wii isn’t in the console war then how come I know people that would buy a Wii instead of and Xbox or a PS3? They are in competition but Nintendo is expanding the market. I and think in some way your Honda Civic vs a BMW or Mercedes is fine Norbit^^. But lol it is more like a Suped up Honda Civic vs a BMW or diesel Mercedes from the early 90’s lol. Where is the innovation with the XBOX 360 and PS3? I play Halo 3 all the time with my buddy but it is just Halo with better graphics, nothing new in these games. Better user interface means a step closer to virtual reality. Virtual reality a step forward or back? I think you all know the answer…
I can’t wait until Brawl sells like crazy over the next few years.
as a pretty serious gamer, i really dont want a wii. its not that i have anything against it, i just see it too much of a ‘kiddie’ console. ok i might enjoy it for a time, but soon the novelty will wear off and i’ll get really bored with it
and the name, for me anyway doesnt help it, its just that i dont want something a 5 year old girl would giggle at if i told her i had it.
as for the console war, read the page on gaming today about the wii only being as powerful as a original xbox.
People will buy a Wii instead of an Xbox or PS3 because it fits their needs. A large reason why the Wii is selling so well is that people who never purchased game systems in their entire lives before are picking up a Wii. Fitness centers and physical therapy centers are purchasing Wiis. The system has drawn an entirely new demographic to the video game scene.
There is also plenty of innovation with the Xbox 360 and PS3. I really don’t think I should rattle them all off, but they include the ability to play high definition films, the graphics are much better than the last generation on both consoles, Xbox Live has become an innovation of it’s own (despite the connection problems of late), and many of the games have new features. Downloadable content and update patches are becoming the norm. I can go on forever. There are so many innovations in all systems. I can argue that the Wii has no innovation at all. Motion sensor bars are nothing new. The games on the Wii play like last generation when it comes to the graphics and there aren’t many games on the Wii that I would call an innovation. There are some, but the library of games on the Wii is still lacking. I could also point out the fact that when a title releases for all 3 systems, it’s typically superior on the 360 and PS3 in nearly every possible way.
That may all sound like I am against the Wii, which I am not. It’s a fun system. It’s a great family console.. it’s a great casual machine.. it’s definitely a great system to have when you have a group of friends coming over. But it’s simply not competing with the PS3 and 360.
The entire belief that the Wii is in competition with the 360 and PS3 and someone has to win the war is something that fanboys came up with. Maybe one day we can get past the fanboy days and just enjoy each system for what it has to offer.
”Maybe one day we can get past the fanboy days and just enjoy each system for what it has to offer.”
Yeah, and maybe jack will come to his senses and Angels will descend from heaven and gasoline will be free and no longer pollute the air we breathe. But I digress.
Smash bros will sell similar numbers to galaxy.In fairness the wii is more of a casual system then the others.fact. But thats not to say that the wii isnt entitled to its share of hardcore games just as lets say the 360 is etitled to casual games.Nintendo cant compete convincingly for the hardcore market anymore when it comes to home systms, for proof just look at its previous two attempts.
Someone said that halo 3 is halo ce with better graphics…hows about H3 is Halo with better graphics, smarter AI, more vehicles, weapons and an almost limitless online multiplayer.All of these contribute to an overall better and more fulfilling experience than its predecessor.
Twilight princess however is Ocarina of time with eh…a different control scheme( adds a bit but not much to the gameplay) and better graphics. Dont get me wrong its a class game but hardly a significant step up from an N64 game.
The game that gets played by the whole family now is not wii sports anymore, its not even on the wii.Its scene it.Even the casusal stuff in my household is on the 360 now and not the wii as it was maybe 6 months ago. So with the likes of GTA, gears 2 and many many more killer titles it looks like the 360 will be the gamers console of choice while the wii will have a few great titles in 08 it will remain in the casual and hardcore fanboy catagory.
I actually have never played Scene It but I’m trying to talk my wife into getting on board with the game. I already have her as my drummer on Rock Band, so I may be able to get her more into gaming with Scene It.
She’s not a gamer, but I do find it interesting how she finds some games entertaining just watching me play. For whatever reason, she never minds when I play Halo 3, Call Of Duty 4 and Mass Effect. She’s finds them entertaining just to observe.
@somewhat. free gas would be nice one day. I am actually real big on the environment though, so gas prices haven’t affected me too much considering I drive an ultra low emissions vehicle that gets around 44 miles per gallon.
If we’re talking free stuff, free health care would be nice. Maybe I should move to Canada one day.
I would agree, in some aspects that the game is unfit for the Wii, but I also say it is, because it takes full advantage of four controller types (3 Wii Remote configurations and a Gamecube controller), and It adds even more fun by crossing over characters that coulda-woulda-shoulda been in Melee, but didn’t make it. My biggest plus with this game is the addition of third party franchises such as Snake and Sonic. This game is both fit and unfit for the console, but I believe it has potential as a game in terms of selling. It could boost Wii sales up drastically. The only downside to this is that people who’ve yet to get a Wii will not be able to.
This is funny ps3 and 360 fanboys like smash bros so much that they are saying its bad for the wii so they can have it for themselves
@whatup: I don’t think that’s the case. Many people like myself are not fanboys of any system.
It would be interesting to see SSBB across all platforms..
I own a Wii, and I will admit 90% of the games suck! But thats the publishers’ fault. Overall the Wii has turned into something that you play when friends are over, not something you can sit on the couch and play by yourself. But there are exceptions; I just bought No More Heroes, graphics could be better, but honestly its one of the most entertaining games I’ve ever played. I like where Nintendo went with the new system, they just need to make games where you don’t just wave the Wii mote around like a teenage kid hitting puberty.
But still you can’t just write the Wii off as a casual system and put it into your neatly shelved labels, plenty of hardcore gamers (mostly just the ones who have real life friends though ) have it and will buy hardcore games if there were any good ones. Also as far as sales figures and profits go, Nintendo is cleaning up the floor with the PS3 and Xbox360.
Recommendation: Buy No More Heroes, its amazing. Buy Team Fortress 2 for PC as cause… well it rocks
William:
“People will buy a Wii instead of an Xbox or PS3 because it fits their needs. A large reason why the Wii is selling so well is that people who never purchased game systems in their entire lives before are picking up a Wii. Fitness centers and physical therapy centers are purchasing Wiis. The system has drawn an entirely new demographic to the video game scene.”
Agreed. However, I know a significant number of people bought it for its potential, for the innovation of its controller and the possibilities it could offer; there are also many who bought it for the core Nintendo franchises, which will inevitably rock hardcore. I bought it for the former and have benefited greatly from the latter.
“I can argue that the Wii has no innovation at all.”
No, you really, really can’t. Having explored the Wii library very thoroughly, I have to say that there are some games available for the system that would be completely impossible and/or totally worthless on another platform. Elebits, for one, with its emphasis on pointer technology and twisting motions; Zack & Wiki for its one-handed gameplay and motion-based puzzle solving; Kororinpa Marble Mania, whose excellent use of the tilt functions have resulted in super-sensitive control scheme; Medal of Honor Heroes 2, the only console game to get remotely close to mouse and keyboard sensitivity; Dragon Ball Budokai Tenkaichii 2 and 3, both of whom implement two seperate control schemes that actually make those DBZ games worth playing. The list really does go on.
“I could also point out the fact that when a title releases for all 3 systems, it’s typically superior on the 360 and PS3 in nearly every possible way.”
Typically, yes, but at the same time you also see that most PS3 ports are in some way inferior to their 360 counterparts, despite the PS3 having significantly more power. This is simply the developers being unable or too lazy to take advantage of the technology inherent in the console; the same applies for the Wii, which is plagued by abysmal PS2 and PSP ports thrown about by lazy developers looking to cash in. However, there are the rare exceptions where the Wii port is actually the highest-rated one. An easy example would be the Resident Evil 4 Wii Edition, but a better one would be The Godfather: Blackhand Edition. The Wii version is the most lauded, because not only does it bring together the elements of the expansion package, it also utilizes a very well-organized and response motion-based beatdown system that makes the game feel so much better to play. Once developers realize that their quick and dirty ports aren’t raking in the cash, hopefully they’ll stop this nonsense and put some real effort into their games, and we may see more RE4s and Godfathers in the future.
“but the library of games on the Wii is still lacking.”
To say that the Wii library is lacking in great games is a mistake; its library in its first year was vastly superior to the library of both the PS3 and the 360 in their first years. What most people fail to realize is that Nintendo threw their whole back into the Wii’s first year, putting out games in practically all their major franchises. We got Zelda, Metroid, and Mario all in one year, with an everage overall rating of 9.0s and multiple Game of the Years for Galaxy. Yes, that’s right, Galaxy beat out an entire year of excellent shooters (even my precious BioShock) to nab Game of the Year, and its lifetime sales will, in the end, befit its glory. There’s a whole list of games for the hardcore player on the Wii, you just need to do your research; I’d list them all, but this paragraph is far too long as it is. XP
“That may all sound like I am against the Wii, which I am not. It’s a fun system. It’s a great family console.. it’s a great casual machine..”
The Wii *can* be a great casual machine, but most people forget that the WIi has been marketed from the get-go as the “everyone machine.” Yes, that means your mom, your grandpa, your great aunt, your little sister, and your girlfriend, but it also means *you*, the hardcore player. You can’t really put the blame on Nintendo, not when they put out hardcore software like Metroid, Zelda, and Mario. I think the media and hardcore players themselves focus too much on the new market Nintendo opened up for the industry, and failing to realize there are deep hardcore games sitting right under their noses, and that Nintendo has a big hand in pushing those hardcore games forward. I really think gamers are being far too elitist and panicky in this area.
“The entire belief that the Wii is in competition with the 360 and PS3 and someone has to win the war is something that fanboys came up with. Maybe one day we can get past the fanboy days and just enjoy each system for what it has to offer.”
This is all very true, and I’d love that day. This generation is, at least, interesting, albeit incredibly polarizing. What’s most odd is how there’s no end-all, does-everything system; each console has significant attributes that the others don’t, but *should* have to maximize the possibilities. Should be fun to see what happens. =D
I’ll agree with Matthew on all counts.
As for one of the consoles “winning” thats silly really. “Winning” is just what we call the console that sells the most units. Some folks watch football or nascar and some folks these days choose to cheer for consoles. Both are silly in the end, but thats the way it is. So, sure, 360 and PS3 are targeting a different market, but only different in that its much narrower. The Wii is targeting a different market in that its targeting everyone. We can argue on the levels of success its having with certain markets, but clearly, overall its very successful, with its weakest area being the “hardcore” gamers. I think its mostly because the “hardcore” gamers who are not happy with the Wii want edgier and more violent content. I would argue most of these gamers are actually kids who play video games that make them feel mature. Much like on the Wii, we see lots of adults playing games that make them feel like kids again. Thats fine, its all a matter of opinion.
But don’t fool yourself, there will be a “winner” this gen just like every other gen, silly or not, and that winner will be the one who was the largest install base at the end of the generation no matter what the difference in target markets. Its looking more and more like that “winner” will be the Wii.
I might just be retarded or something because I can’t understand how the Wii is not in the core demographic?
If any self repecting core gamers calls themselves so, they won’t miss a chance at playing a great game like Mario Galaxy. That is also the case with a game like bioshock or Metal gear when it comes out.
What is it that takes away the wii from the console wars? Is it that it doesn’t have processors and hd quality? I mean, if the wii is really meant as a causal play machine, shouldn’t big name games like Brawl or metroid prime not exist at all?
Also, a Civic vs. BMW 5 anology doesn’t work here. That argument is limited to the idea of performance (A honda can not out perform a BMW). With the console competition, it’s not just performance of the machine, but the quality of the games made. Factors like control of a certain game, the physics, the design of stages, move sets(that’s why lair sucked so much with the 6 axis), etc.
The wii caters to all demographics with both causal and core level gameplay. Where the PS3 and Xbox360 have plateau, the Wii have certainly climbed up a little higher.
All consoles are for casual gaming with friends/family. But they also provide hardcore arcade-style experiences. Wii gives the full spectrum of games. Hardcore console gaming = intense levels and intense arcade-style fun.
PC hardcore gaming = spending lots of $money upgrading PC for better frame rate and graphics. [PS3 & 360 are more like standardized PC platforms that do not need to be upgraded....most of their games are on PC as well.] I have a New PC , so I PS3 or 360 is not yet a must-have item.
Nintendo knows that all people like to play games. Nintendo reminds us to put the controller down and get outside for a while, but makes the games, so that we cannot wait to get back to them. I’ve played (too) many MMORPG’s and FPS PC games. The most fun I’ve ever had, has been hardcore sessions as a casual gamer with Nintendo & Sega. The Wii is perfect for SSBB. That is it’s home.
It will sell fine over the years… The Wii is a hardcore console, otherwise there would be 0 sales of Fire Emblem RD which is probably the most hardcore (and a niche one at that) title of the last few years. There is a lot of diversity on the Nintendo side and that hurts titles on a per console level, but if the console continues to sell well it won’t matter because the chance of selling games will still be high. Also we have to remember that a lot of the hardcore gamers that are coming of age now have grown up on solid RPG titles rather than action FPS and the nintendo console has a great opportunity to take advantage of that over the next few years.
the wii has potential for hardcore games, just potential that no developer (including the big N… other than arguably w/ mp3) has actually used. just imagine how much better the wii would be than the other consoles at strategy games. point and click to select units or use menus and gesture systems to command said units. people have talked for a long while how the wiimote can be used as a pointer in much the same way as a pc mouse, but no developer has seriously used this to their advantage. even a third person above head rpg in the mold of diablo would work well b/c of this.
not to mention that while i wouldn’t say that point and click games themselves are always for hardcore gamers, the wii could revitalize that genre. there are plans to port myst to the wii, but if newer point and click games of a similar ilk were developed many hardcore and casual gamers would rejoice.
i agree that the wii is not in the console race, in the sense that it can not challenge what the ps3 or sexbox do well, but it has it’s own advantages that have been ignored by every single developer.
Yes, pumpkin, Super Mario Galaxy is obviously proving this with its lackluster sales, which were just announced at 5 million copies sold worldwide since it was released about 2.5 months ago. That’s beautiful logic. Gee, I wonder what that makes Sony’s system, huh? How many “non-gamers” are buying it just as a Blu Ray player, and have no plans to ever buy a single game or it? Why don’t you do a little research on the AVS forums to see how many white men in the 30-50 range, who have a lot of disposable income are buying them and installing them into their home theater systems as a Blu Ray player. Here’s a hint, since I work in sales in that industry, and sell Middle Atlantic custom rackshelves: a lot. Now go look at the abysmal third AND first party software sales for the system to get another good picture. Idiots.
@gwelymernans You do make some good points. I have honestly always thought the Wii would be an interesting system to try out some real RTS and RPG title on, but for some reason they haven’t gone down that avenue. I think the Wii-motes are still in a very gimmicky stage right now. They haven’t really done anything that blows my mind with them yet. Of course, I’ve seen some hacked Wii-mote setups that are really sweet.
@Chris 5 million copies in 2.5 months is a great figure, yet it’s still below what they initially expected. SMG was one of the top 5 games of the year in my opinion, but it didn’t shatter any real records. Halo 3 sold 1.8 million copies during the first 8 hours. There are also plenty of white men in the 30-50 range who are playing games. This debate is already spinning completely outside the point. There is no need to compare your Wii to the other systems. It’s a completely different kind of system. The point is that the Wii will never appeal to the vast majority of hard-core gamers. I’m not sure why people take commentary on systems to heart so often. Personally, I’m happy that there are numerous platforms to play games on and each of them have their unique attractiveness.
Not to mention the advantage of purchasing a PS3 as a Blu-ray player for people who don’t even play games is kind of yesterday’s deal. You can find quality Blu-ray players for much less than a PS3 now. That may have been the case a while back though.
Regardless, there’s still really no point in comparing the Wii to the 360 and PS3. A majority of Wii customers are in an entirely different demographic than the majority of PS3 and 360 customers. Notice I said majority. Of course there will be some people outside the norm.
used_c: I’m sure that the Wii will be coined the “generation champion” at the end, but it’s really silly like you said. People act like there needs to be one system to rule them all, and that’s not wise at all. If one system would win some sort of fanboy war and knock the others out of business, we’d be looking at an extreme drop in quality and innovation. If fanboys had it their way and one system was finally announced as the only system anyone should buy, I’d bet they’d be surprised when the efforts to be unique come to an end.
i just realised, with the 360, you have a hardcore platform BUT you also have XBLA, which is full of casual games, therefor putting the wii at a further disadvantage.
although that said, the 360 doesnt have motion sensing, so it kinda depends if you want motion sensing or a platform to launch into hardcore gaming with…
so at the end of the day loads of hardcore gamers have come here, said they have plenty of hardcore games to play on Wii and prefer it to the ps3/360. That just sais to me live and let live, i like the Wii and im happy with zelda, mario, smash bros, metroid, zack and wiki, no more heroes………….
If people want to believe a console has to be plagued with fps like Halo that are primarily bought by 12 year old kids with no real skill then fine. I choose to have an open mind and try games like Zack and Wiki rather than shoehorning the Wii and coming out with stupid comments like it only has Wii sports and is for grannies.
If you love Halo great, but not everyone does, so get over it because like it or not the Wii is a games console and has a massive impact on the industry.
havoc. The thing that sucks with the Wii and I wish they would change is how you pay for Virtual Console releases (and they do have superior games to XBLA) but you can’t play multiplayer online with them. If Nintendo would put a little more work into the development of these titles for the VC, they could compete with XBLA as far as downloadable arcade style casual games.
i am a nintendo fan and agree that the wii is targeted to a more casual audience. ssbb will still do well though. metroid prime 3 and twilight princess did very well and both are targeted to a more “hardcore” audience. Mario galaxy was one of the best title for the wii and sold a ton of copies yet it is still a hardcore title. personally i think that fps aren’t really as popular with core gamers as people think. Games like halo are also very popular with casual fans who got a 360 instead of a wii or ps3. The wii still has a vst lineup of games with dragon quest swords, okami, no more heroes, disaster day of crisis, and of course ssbb. just because the wii is popular with casual gamers with its innovative constrols doesn’t mean it is a toy because of its other core titles.
instead of complaining about the cons of each system just appreciate each system for what it has. the ps3 is extremely powerful and has a ton of games coming out in the future. The xbox 360 has a large amount of great hardcore games, and the wii is attractive to long-time nintendo fans (like myself and many others ) and casual gamers who were amazed at the innovative controls. Besides all the core games the wii has now there are tons of other games coming up in 08 (hopefully Kid icarus).
YOU WANNA KNOW WHAT HARDCORE IS?!
HARDCORE IS OWNING EVERY SYSTEM AND PLAYING EVERY GAME TO FINISH!
IT’S OWNING THE BEST PC ON THE MARKET AND PLAYING THAT HORSE RACING GAME BY MICROSOFT!
THAT’S HARDCORE!
HARDCORE GAMING AT IT’S BEST!
eh. Owning the best PC isn’t a concern of mine. I have a PC just to have one, but my primary computer is my Mac. It may not be a gaming machine exactly, but it does everything else better than a PC.
@william,
“I’m sure that the Wii will be coined the “generation champion” at the end, but it’s really silly like you said.”
Totally.
“If one system would win some sort of fanboy war and knock the others out of business, we’d be looking at an extreme drop in quality and innovation.”
Agreed. To a certain extent, this happened when we lost the dreamcast, a wonderful home for quality and innovation. Thankfully, Nintendo took steps to keep it from happening to them. As I think we can all agree, the path the gamecube was on was not a wildly successful one.
All that being said, and knowing the consoles have different target markets, we also need to realize that every generation, one console tends to capture the hearts and minds (and dollars) of consumers more than the others. So far, this console has been the Wii. Historically speaking the console that achieves this goes on to great sales and huge 3rd party support. Because the Wii is not as advanced in the CPU/GPU dept as its “competitors” I think we’ve seen this happen more slowly than it would have otherwise, but considering what we’ve seen in the past couple of years, I think its safe to say this may start to happen on the Wii as well. I think it will drive the fanboys wild on both sides. And all those people who claim they are not fanboys need to think about this. Do you care which console wins? If you don’t, it means you don’t care where the great games and 3rd party support are, you’ll enjoy it just the same. If you do care who ends up in first place for whatever reason, you better reconsider if you’re a fanboy or not.
As for me, I loved my PS2, thats where the most games were and the best variety. Likewise if Wii sells the most and gets the most variety and games over time, I’ll gladly embrace it. If the 360 or PS3 end up surging, great, bring it on. I don’t care where the games come from or what platform they are born on. Like one poster said above, the industries overall choice for best game of 2007 was exclusively on the Wii. Do I care? No, if it had been a 360 or PS3 game, I would have been just as eager to play it. I can’t wait to see which console plays host to the GOTY in 2008. It could be any of the 3, just bring me more amazing games please. Thanks.
I will bet my life that Brawl will outsell Galaxy and I would guess it will outsell Halo 3. Bold prediction? We’ll see. Microsoft doesn’t even have any real material sales in Japan whereas Nintendo has massive support there. Combined, Brawl sales from Japan and the States (and wherever else) could quite reasonably surpass Halo 3.
@ William
I don’t know if you can say better, I would think different would be a better alternative.
Even then, Linux can do what Windows and Mac can.. you just have to be smart enough..
When I ran HL2 on Linux I actually had a better fps than I did in windows..
Its unfortunate that the Wii is not recognized by publishers as a system that hard Core gamers prefer. I raised myself on the xbox last generation and that system was absolutely brilliant. Now I am a Proud owner of a Wii(which I have 10 titles that range from: “here mom wanna play a game, and other titles that I can sit and spends days gettin lost in”).
However the Wii has soo much to offer to everybody, yet it seems that their target market is an audience who has never really played Video games before.
The system can sustain various titles from different genres, but i cant explain that to Publishing executives.
I have to agree with them on one end. The Wii is not going after the same crowd that the 360 has. The XBox was designed to woo PC gamers to counsels. The estimate is that there are 25 million hardcore gamers in America. This accounts for the install base of the original XBox. The Wii was designed to go after the previous install base of the NES generation that left gaming because it had gotten complicated. Considering the original NES sold about 50 million that seems like a good crowd to chase. The PS2 sold to about 120 million hard core and casual gamers. This is Nintendo Wii’s core market. Gamers don’t run on labels. I work part time at Best Buy and all of our hardcore gamers have wii’s along with there PS3 and XBox games. Why, I asked them. It was simple. They want games they can play face to face with friends. They are tired of FPS after FPS. Most already play WOW. So they wanted something that was fun without having to invest hours out of a day playing or being abused by 13 year old snot nosed kids with racist comments and obscene language. Adults want to play a system with there kids. People want fun, even if the graphics aren’t the greatest. The wii is the one system that has it all. Metroid, MOH 2, No More Heros, Galaxy, RE, Smash Bro. and a host of other hardcore games. Along with the Carnival, Wii Sports, Wii Fit for the casual crowd. Plus it can web surf, stream media, work as a news server and play classic games like no other system. It is all games for all people.
The wii isn’t a hardcore gaming platform. You shouldn’t be sneaking through the corridors in Thief or blasting the heads off of Nazis in Doom.
You should, however, be getting together with your friends and having fun; it’s a perfect platform for Rock Star or Guitar Hero; games where the play style is social and light, where you’re having fun and moving around.
Air guitar baby! Slide! Slide!
Go back to the G-cube game super mario sunshine…its sold 5.5 million copies during the whole-life time of the G-cube. Thats nearly 4 years!! But look at Super Mario Galaxy, it sold nearly the same number of copies (5.19 million) in just 3 MONTHS!! See the difference! Hardcore gaming has gone up on the Wii…not down! SSMelee sold 6 million copies during the G-cubes life time…now think of the potential sales of Super Smash Bros. Brawl in the 3 months after it comes out
Part of the problem with articles like this is that it assumes that corporations have the same concerns as their customers. For instance, that Microsoft or Sony identify with the desire to make the most technologically advanced gaming system. While this may be true on the developer level, the reality is that the developers dont run these companies. The system that has already won this generation is without question the Wii. Simply because Nintendo demonstrated that if you build a system on yesterday’s hardware you can still attract a respectable marketshare with enormous profits. I dont care what Microsoft or Sony’s marketshare will be at the end of this cycle because their shareholders will demand that they follow Nintendo’s lead for the next generation. In the case of Sony it has already happened, they sold off their chip division to Toshiba. The author of this article would do himself a lot of good if he took off his gaming cap and started considering the business end of gaming.
Where Nintendo may be screwing themselves is that they are under utilizing the real gaming innovation of the Wii, the Wii-mote. Furthermore, they have not executed on their online gaming, the Friends-Codes suck and the whole architecture needs to be reworked. Both of these factors are really critical for Nintendo to continue expanding their base. This means that Nintendo should have been allocating much more time to a follow-up of Wii Sports than games like Super Smash Bros. Brawl (SSBB), because I do agree with the article in that neither (SSBB) nor Super Mario Galaxy are really games that are appropriate for the Wii. What I would like to see from a gaming perspective is something along the lines of the Dance Dance Revolution Dancing Mat combined with Soul Calibur like Swordsmanship with the Wii-mote and a wireless nunchuk(shield). What I would also like to see is Nintendo not trying to reinvent the wheel with their online play, they should simply recreate XBox Live.
So it has to sell more then Galaxy to optain succes? Sorry but Galaxy is one of the best selling games there is, if games have to sell more then that almost every game in 2007 was a complete faliure.
Also that games like Brawl is on the Wii shows that the machine is for everyone not just casuals or hardcore but both.
Upon first glance I thought this article was at least 12 months old. I’m kind of shocked that serious editors are still writing off of generalizations like this. Honestly, I don’t understand how this writer thinks we aren’t entitled to at least a little exploration into the games or systems that get bashed. I could care less about the names involved (I’m pure PC myself), but this entry is like an extended post on a message board, not a piece of journalism.
This is a ridiculous notion for the Japanese developer and the author of this article to espouse. Nintendo will sell one to two million copies of Super Mario Galaxy in all three territories, guaranteed. It may even exceed two million in all three territories when it is all said and done (it already did that in North America in November and December). Enough with the “don’t get your panties in a bunch” drivel; you fellows wouldn’t be throwing that out there if you knew everybody rooting for the big N didn’t have some perfectly logical arguments to squash your ostrich-with-head-in-the-sand beliefs. Hardcore gamers own the Wii. Casual gamers own the Wii. Everybody owns the Wii.
I think it all boils down to the comment that this should be on the 360 or the PS3. That statement is as ludicrous as it is wishful thinking. Just hold your controller S or Sixaxis and pretend you’re playing Brawl on either system; I’d wager it would be just as much fun in your delusional world.
I think that the market is swaying in the casual direction, and this could be incredibly bad. Over the last few years games have become more and more dumb to appeal to the casual market; games have become easier; games have less dialogue, and controls are becoming simpler.
To claim that the Wii is the casual gamers console may be true, to an extent, but, i think, the whole market is becoming more and more diluted to appeal to the masses. This is not a problem that would be rectified if there was no Wii, but an inevitability that will eventually become reality that gamers will face.
I view gaming as a huge niche market, and when games stop becoming a niche, we will move on.
The reality is that neither Microsoft nor Sony are in this business because they want to make hard-core gamers happy. All they want to do is make money, and so far, hardcore gamers have been their main source of revenue.
However, they are all businesses ultimately: Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony. Now guess which gaming business is making more money? Nintendo market performance has far outpaced that of Sony and Microsoft’s and they must be kicking themseves that they didn’t have the idea of motion sensing before.
So it really doesn’t matter what people like us think. We spend our time in these blogs arguing the semantics of whether or not Wii can or cannot be called a 3rd gen machine. Well, sorry to burst your bubble, but most consumers and investors don’t give a damn about it. Consumers want fun (whether they are hardcore or not), inverstors want money (WHEREVER it comes from).
So would it be fair to say that calling the Wii a last gen console is a nice consolation for the fact that it has and continues to kick Sony and Microsoft’s ass?
Personally, I don’t give damn whether you call the Wii a last gen console or toy. And I suspect that Sony and Microsoft wouldn’t care either if their consoles brought them as much reveue as the Wii. Call it what you call it, the Wii is objectively more successful than either two machines. Nough said.
I think that there is simply a lack of mature titles for the wii. The wii caters to a greater variety of people and has a wider selection of game types.
The hardcore audience (a large proportion of) doesn’t want a Wii. Simply the other systems cater more directly towards them. A lack of hardcore games for the wii doesn’t help Nintendo break this. The hardcore audience are the ones concerned with pixel counts and have more time to play games. So what would be the real point of doing it? Would they buy a wii for a game like SSBB? or more hardcore games? Probably not unless some graphics revolution occured.
That all said just cos the hardcore audience has carried gaming previously, then that doesn’t give them the right to say “The wii isn’t a real system” or that “It doesn’t count that the wii’s winning the console war” I mean come on it sounds like a 3 year old’s argument.
Yes you dont want the system, it doesn’t cater to you, but get to grips with it is winning and also get to grips with it breaks the rules…
Do good casual games have a much longer shelf life than good hardcore games?
Are people going to want to buy a wii2 in 5,10 or 20 years?
Are PS4 and MS 1080 consoles currently being designed to capitalise on this causal audience?
Will the games lineup for the new systems reflect that and be more like the wii line-up?
Come on hardcore audience you need to accept things are changing on the gaming world and you can’t rule it forever. The winner of the console war is who sells most. That said its possible that in this generation an extra system can co-exist but I think that will be less likely in the next round, but it’ll depend on being able to pull away this casual audience to another system when they want a new system.
I think the casual market is probably more like the handheld market and systems have a longer life span, but only time will tell…
hardcore? HARDCORE?Q!?!!?!?!?HARRDFLUKKINGCOREEE!?!?!!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?
HARDCORE IS NOT OWNING SOME PUSSY PS3/XBOX360 TOY THAT ANY IDIOT CAN OPERATE AND PLAY THERE LITTLE GAMES ON. THE PS3/XBOX ARE ALL SOFTCORE/CASUAL DEVICES FOR LITTLE AMATURES THAT DONT KNOW THE WONDERS OF THE GREAT, WISE, EVER EVOLVING, EVER SUPERIOUR, MULTI PLATFORM EMULATING, MULTITASK-RUNNING, SUPER CREATIVITY INSPIREING PC!!
TEH PC AND ONLY THE PC IS HARDCORE. EVERTHING ELSE IS SOFTCORE. IF YOU ARE TRULLY HARD CORE YOU SELL YOUR HOUSE AND LIVE IN YOUR GRANDMOTHERS BASEMENT SO YOU CAN AFFORD THAT 8 CORE, QUAD SLI RIG WITH FUSION IO DRIVE AND ALIENWARE CURVED MONITOR. THAT IS HARDCORE. NOT PS3. NOT XBOX 360. THEY ARE COMPETING FOR THE AMATURE/CASUAL/NOVICE MARKET WHO DOESNT KNOW HOW TO CREAT AN NTFS PARTITION OR OPTIMISE THE IN GAME GRAPHICS ENGINE FOR A GOOD BALANCE IN FPS/PICTURE QUALITY. THEY JUST WANNA PLAY THERE LITTLE GAMES AND HAVE NO INTEREST IN THE TECH. THEREFORE XBOX360/WII/PS3 ARE ALL IN THE SAME MARKET. THIS IS WHY CRYSIS (THE MOST HARDCORE GAME KNOWN TO MAN) WILL NEVER BE ON ANY CONSOLE.
WHY?
CONSOLES ARE NOT HARDCORE!
ALSO TYPING IN CAPS IS HARDCORE
PEACE BY WITH YOU MY PC LOVING BREATHREN
AND RESPECT TO ALL THOSE WHO FOLLOW THE WAY OF THE CONSOLE, FOR
ONE DAY YOU SHALL SEE THE ERROR OF YOUR WAYS AND WHEN YOU DECIDE TO TRULLY BECOME HARD CORE, YOU SHALL ‘CROSS OVER’ TO THE WAY OF THE PC!
I say that the only problem is that has long as Nintendo makes systems SSB well never appear on a opponent counsel. Also since the gamecube didn’t sale well enough for further research and maybe better chips for the Wii thats most likely reason the Wii has bad graphics i can care less about graphics its all about game play to me. my favorite series out of all of them are Fire Emblem (tactic, Nintendo) Mario (plat former, Nintendo) and Final Fantasy (RPG, Square soft/Square Enix). The PS3 is like the N64 its to advance for its time (Graphics wise) Also the Wii has its own great games to play like Dragon Blade: wrath of fire can’t tell me thats for casual gamers. and also i will only get a PS3 for the upcoming Final Fantasy game. and maybe to be able to watch blu ray movies.
There are less “hardcore” gamers in this world than there are “casual” gamers. To call the Wii out as not being in this console war simply because it is catering to the majority of the gaming population is just ignorant.