Understanding the Wii:
My family had the Wii. My next door neighbor had the Wii and their neighbor’s neighbor had the Wii. It was the gaming console of choice for families, and Nintendo didn’t design that by accident. When the Wii originally released in 2006 Sony had already released its PlayStation 3 and Microsoft’s Xbox 360 was already over a year old. Sony’s and Microsoft’s consoles were competing for power, creating the ability for better graphics, higher framerate, and more complex games for gamers. Yet Nintendo would manage to outsell both consoles with something substantially less powerful. But just how did Nintendo do so?
Reasons for the Nintendo’s Wii success:
Hardware:
First, Nintendo wouldn’t use advanced hardware for high-definition graphics, which was Microsoft’s and Sony’s main selling points for their consoles at the time. Peter Svensson for NBC News writes that because of Nintendo’s absence of high power hardware, their hopes were to “attract a new generation of fans by changing the way games are played.”
Wii Remote:
Nintendo’s Wii remote would be the simplest gaming controller released to the market at the time. The remote was wireless, had 12 buttons, one of which was the power button to the console, came with an additional attachment named the Nunchuck to easily extend the controller’s ability, and, most importantly, the Wii remote would have motion control, opening a new era of games to the world.
Targeted Audience:
The Wii targeted to all age groups: grandparents and children alike. Nintendo’s goal in this was to bring in a new untapped market of gamers. A choice Microsoft and Sony would mistakenly overlook. To accommodate all age ranges, the Wii’s software and firmware was easy to understand and use. Because of this, Nintendo would market the Wii as the family console of choice.
Game Library:
Considered one of the greatest gaming libraries of any console, the Wii featured titles such as Wii Sports, Mario Kart Wii, Donkey Kong Country Returns, Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga, New Super Mario Bros., Wii, Wipeout: Create and Crash, and Skylanders. These high quality games and others brought excitement to gamers and something worth playing.
Overlook:
Because of the Wii’s unseen technological approach to gaming, its ease to use and abundance of great titles, it easily outsold all competitors at the time.
For Mii:
I believe the Wii is the greatest home console of the early 2000s.
Reasoning:
The Games:
Madden NFL 09 All-Play is my top pick for my Wii games. The reason for this being my top pick is its 5-On-5 game mode. In this game mode, you have five players on either side of the team who have five downs to get a touchdown before a turnover. Your characters are little bobble heads in this mini game, and it’s really fun to play with friends.
Wii Fit, although an exercising game, gets the second top pick stamp of approval from me. I love to keep track of my friends on the game’s stats whenever they come over and play the Wii. You are able to weigh yourself and do countless games that have to do with balance and working out. This is all possible because of the Wii Balance Board, designed like a standard scale that instead has sensors placed throughout it. The game and use of the Balance Board makes it amazing fun with friends and by myself.
We Ski, another game that utilizes the Wii Balance Board, is all about skiing. You ride the slopes and practice leisure skiing or professional skiing all while never having to take a step outside. The capability to go from day skiing to night skiing is my favorite. Overall a great fun game.
Blazing Angles is a game based off of WWII, where you fly as part of a fighter squadron. I love the game because it’s about history and brings me right back to history class. I love the game mechanics and the dogfight’s.
Honorable mentions are: Wipeout: The Game, Wipeout: Create & Crash, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10, Donkey Kong Country Returns, MX vs. ATV Untamed, Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga, Family Feud 2010 Edition, and Lego Harry Potter: Years 1-4.
Wifi Free:
Because the Wii’s game library is practically 100% offline, you never have to worry about internet connectivity. It is very simple to just load up the game you want to play, and that’s it; you can play with no internet connection. This lets me skip the hassle of connecting to the internet and having to deal with everything that comes with that.
Simple Gameplay:
The Wii because of its limited power makes it great for playing simple undemanding games. The Wii games are much more fun and enjoyable to play when their graphics and speed are not the biggest concern. Just allows me to sit back and enjoy the beauty of the game.
Friendly with friends:
The Wii is a great console to play with friends. Most games on the Wii support two or four players making it perfect for parties and hang outs. The Wii is a great console to play with friends.
Nostalgia:
The Wii is so old now that I feel nostalgic playing it. I just got my first gray hairs last week. Nostalgia from the Wii brings me back to a great time in my life with my brother and friends. Because of the nostalgia, I get to enjoy my favorite games and reminisce about the past. Hopefully one day I can feel nostalgic for the time I spend playing the Wii these days.
Sources:
Svensson, Peter . “Nintendo’s Wii Launch Goes Smoothly.” NBC News, 19 Nov. 2006, www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna15802977.
Nintendo’s Wii launch goes smoothly
Wikipedia Contributors. “Wii.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 25 Apr. 2019, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wii.
Wii – Wikipedia
