Microsoft Thinks That You Should Grow Up And Ditch The Wii
I love a bit of inane trash talking amongst video game corporations. The whole act reminds me of the pre-fight weigh-in for a boxing match with the pugilists grunting and showcasing only their ability to sound tough.
Setting up the pre-E3 bout is Microsoft's director of product management for the Xbox 360 and Xbox Live, Aaron Greenberg. The one-sided rivalry between Microsoft and Nintendo over market superiority is old news, but Greenberg's following assertions do less to belittle Nintendo and work more to demean the gamers that have adopted the waggling wonder.
I think that there's a difference in the type of customer that is buying the Wii. When you think about it, there's a difference between trying to be the number one console with nine year old gamers, and being the console that offers the most experiences from 13 to 33.
You see they're not buying games on it, right? They're buying it, it's like something they break out when people come over, and it's maybe a fun thing, but it's almost like the same people that buy a karaoke machine, you know? They're not really buying it for games, they're just buying it as a novelty.
With the Wii's sales already moving past the Xbox 360's installation base, and a peaked fervor for Wii Fit, does Nintendo really need to concern itself with being number one in any demographic market?
In-Depth: Greenberg Talks The State Of Xbox 360 [Gamasutra]
[via: ShackNews]
Noun
Posted to Hot Stuff, Miscellany, Video Games on 7 July 2008
· Comments (19)
Other stuff like this: Aaron Greenberg, Microsoft, Name Calling, Nintendo Wii, Sad, Xbox 360, Xbox Live
yawn. i think he got his numbers wrong, anyway. there's no love lost between me and the xbox - full disclosure: i don't own one and don't really plan on it, because the only xbox exclusive games that interest me are lost odyssey and... lost odyssey (now that eternal sonata is coming for the ps3), and that's mostly because i just don't like fps games - i find them boring and hateful. not to mention online pvp play, which i find slightly less boring and way more hateful (lvl 70 on my blood elf rogue without a single battleground, baby!).
anyway, as i was saying, he got his numbers wrong. the xbox may well be a console for the 13 to 33 crowd (let's maybe pull that upper register down a bit, though...), but the wii is not for nine year olds. it's for *everybody*, which is a market that the xbox just doesn't seem to be interested in, for some reason. i mean, i think nintendo might actually be on to something by making a console (and let's not forget the money-printing machine called the ds) that appeals, in different ways, to gamers and neo-gamers of many different demographies.
people play the wii when they have people over and it's a fun thing to do? gasp! how could they? how silly of nintendo to make a product that people enjoy! oh, i'm sorry... the wii doesn't have the latest beat a dead horse halo iteration on it, so it's not a real console. hardcore indeed.
he makes a fairly good point about the primary competition being the ps3, though i'm a bit miffed that "seventh generation" to him simply means "let's put the graphics in hd and somehow that'll automatically make the gaming experience better." i do not think, however, that the relative success of the 360 over the ps3 has all that much to do with microsoft being awesome. rather, it seems to have much more to do with the complete blunder sony has made since launch (and continues to make (like, for example, not really caring about reasonable backwards compatibility despite the fact that there are, like, four games worth playing on the ps3 (only one or two of which you can't get on the 360) and the "rumble is so last generation" debacle) to this day).
i really like nested parentheses. you can tell i'm an academic.
He's got a point.
We own a Wii and it just sits on our entertainment center gathering dust.
With the exception of a few first party titles that have excelled...the rest of the Wii catalog is full of dumpsterware titles that I wouldn't have played on a Commodore 64.
Nintendo SHOULD concern itself with this phenomenon because they are going to eventually reach market saturation with console sales...and what are they going to be left selling? More crappy games that marginally take advantage of the Wii Balance Board?
Let me respond by saying this. *Flips finger* F you. I play and enjoy mine, and apparently, there are alot of people who do as well.
If you bought a Wii and it is just gathering dust, that probably says as much about you as it does about the Nintendo Wii.
Maybe you buy more toys than you have time to play with, eh? Give it or sell it to somebody appreciative, as it is still difficult to find.
And just so everyone knows, just to make sure, I was responding to the article, not to anyone replying in this thread.
Microsoft, oi.
Nintendo does need to concern themselves with the impulse games, but this is just clear wishful trash talk from Microsoft. I own all three systems and have an interest in all of them for some reason or another.
But Microsoft... Ugh. They're making an invalid argument against a system they have clearly been insulted by. They almost make a knock at the consumer with these comments. Oh well, it just goes to show that the fanboy stink isn't limited to the fanboys.
what ever happened to xbox wanting people to own an xbox360 and a nintendo wii... wasn't it called something like... wii60 or whatever... i have both a 360 and a wii and i play both equally. i just think its sad when one company has to trash talk another company... the only thing it shows is the fear that xbox has right now knowing they are getting their ass kicked by nintendo and wishing they had thought of it first
360 is on the ropes and they know it,by this time next year 360 will be in 3rd place.i own all 3,but my 360 which as red ring twice is collecting dust waiting for fable 2,then i will trade them both in.i've been gaming for over 20yrs and never had a console break,but 2 have 2 360 break in 1 year is ****** up.sorry for the rant x
I've had the exact opposite problem with the Wii: No one wants to play it when they come over. The novelty is dead; no one cares about making a Mii or pretending to swing a bat or racket or club anymore. I have some fun with it on my own, but out of three friends that have the system, none of us has any good multiplayer games for it.
I hate the Smash Brothers series, I'm not interested in a dead-end copy of GH or Rock Band, and I don't have Mario Kart yet, but none of that is Wii stuff anyway; it's Gamecube and 360 stuff. Where are the original Wii games that are fun to play as a group, and aren't just novelty shovelware or pass-the-controller half-assed efforts? The most fun I've had playing a Wii game as a group was with Harvey Birdman. Maybe they should think about coming up with a new game where it's still fun if everyone has a controller.
If the Wii is on, and there are people over, there's a Gamecube game in it.
/rant
If he wants to resort to elementary school yard tantrums: Saw a picture of Greenberg on WiiFanboy, perhaps he's upset that he cannot get his hands on the Wii Fit - he surely looks like he could spend some serious time with it.
I love my Wii but my boyfriend is much more tepid towards it, only engaging in Mario Galaxy. He does not see a point in getting up and moving around a-la WarioWare or WiiFit. Kind of odd since I'm the one with physical limitations but love to psuedo dance to Raving Rabbids or jam at Guitar Hero.
I do see how the Wii can cater to some people. A gamer friend of mine adores Metroid Prime 3, but despised Zak and Wiki. My sister has the opposite feelings.
It is all about finding the right game to appeal to you. No console will have games which please everyone. There will be shining beacons and massive duds for any hardware. Do I regret buying ManHunt2? Oh yeah, but it was kinda cool to move the controllers violently. Was I ridiculed by gamer friends for buying the Wii-make of Trauma Center and Okami? Somewhat, but the experiences on both games feel much better than their original forms.
One thing I do like about the Wii is that it makes people take a chance on new gameplay methods. Some will difficult to stomach (Chicken Shoot), awsome concepts (Boom Blox), sucky first attempt (Knights and Sonic), very weird (WarioWare, Rabbids), or stellar (Galaxy).
You are just gonna have to take a chance and try something new instead of being jaded. Is it better to buy a so-so sequel of an established franchise or to take a risk and try a new concept from a programmer?
I think he made a valid point, an arrogant one, but a point none the less. I think it is a novelty that has a crappy game library. But it does have a few things that are inspired, and I salute that. Unfortunately, with the WiiFit having a weight limit of 330lbs, I am not tempeted to get this system. I know they increased the weight limit for the US consumer because we're all a bunch of fat asses. But God damn it, some of us have REALLY fat asses.
Does it have that crap a library? I was surprise the other day when I realised how many games I owned for the system, and would still play. I suppose the majority of games out there I wouldn't buy, but I have already got to the stage where I have too many games and not enough time to complete them. Isn't this like the PS2 and the DS?
People keep forgetting that this is a first attempt at motion gaming, but I'm sure it will get better and that publishers out there will get it right at some point. Just don't always expect it to be the traditional kind.
Someone is right to point out that the 360 is losing steam. Now that Blurray has won, I will probably get the PS3 instead. What stopped me from buying one earlier? (too many FPS as AAA titles, high failure rate etc). To be honest, if HD-DVD had won, I would have probably bought the 360 over the PS3, it's too bad Microsoft didn't give that much support to it.
i love how 'game library' is used as a reason why its a crappy system and no one looks at the numbers.
14 3rd party games that are million sellers. I think another dozen Nintendo games that are million sellers.
This is not crappy.
sure compared to how many Wiis are out there, perhaps more games should be sold, but when it comes down to it, its about choice and the Wii library is already pretty expansive in its choices. It appeals to more than the FPS and Fight crowd.
Hating on other systems just reeks of jealousy. If you don't like it, don't buy it.
i really only play Smash Brawl and Mario Kart with friends. I played (past tense) Super Paper Mario, Mario Galaxy, Twilight Princess, and maybe a few others. The console does need better games.
The system is amazing and such a wonderful machine, but developers need to come out with amazing 1-player games, and not just remakes (resident evil 4) and other such games to "satisfy" the single-player Wii owner.
he's got a very valid point (even if he's a dick about it) Take for example the fact that retirement homes everywhere are buying Wii's for the elderly. While I'm sure they love their copy of Wii Sports, I doubt very much they are purchasing SSBB, or Mario Galaxy....you get the point.
For a lot of people the Wii is a fad, something fun to show off to their friends when they come over. Those people are not buying games. I personally just put my Wii on ebay, sadly. But it's been sitting collecting dust for almost 6 months and I see no games coming out for it that interest me. While it's a great system, I just don't think it's for me anymore.
I agree with those who wondered why Xbox pleebs are trash talking Nintendo. There is ample room for multiple systems in the gaming market. The Wii has revitalized the entire industry and Microsoft profits from this.
I happen to kinda agree with him, actually. The Wii is kinda nifty and fun when people are over, but otherwise I play PC and 360 and PS3 games. There's simply too many crappy shovelware minigame collections and PS2 ports with crappy motion controls tacked on in the Wii's library. Outside of Mario Galaxy, Super Paper Mario and Smash Bros. Brawl, I can't really name any other "must own" games for the system.
Wii is the most popular system this gen, but the library is almost entirely made up of "lowest common denominator" games. Carnival Games, anyone? Or the decidedly subpar Spiderman 3 game? Or any of the other dozen bad "PS2 version with waggle" ports that spring to mind?
And please, try to remember that sales do not equal quality. If it did, that would make McDonald's the best food you could possibly buy, and if you think it is, please kill yourself.
Honestly, the man has a valid point, whether you agree or not.
I would never encourage my family to buy an Xbox for their kids. I wouldn't want them to be exposed to the most homophobic, racist, bigotry community on the entire net.
Perhaps Microsoft should concern itself with its own very tainted image rather then worry about what type of people buy a Wii.