Nintendo: Why Ask Wii? - Blue's News Comments

Nintendo: Why Ask Wii?
[Apr 27, 2006, 3:09 pm ET] – Share – Viewing Comments

Nintendo names new video game console Wii. Why Wii? Because It's pronounced "we." Why? Who knows, though CNN Money has a Q&A on the topic. Here's the announcement:

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Nintendo Co. Ltd (7974.OS) on Thursday said it has named its new video game console "Wii, which it said is pronounced "we" to emphasize that the console is for everyone.

The console up until now has been known by its code-name "Revolution."

"While the code-name Revolution expressed our direction, Wii represents the answer," spokeswoman Perrin Kaplan told Reuters.

Nintendo, best known for its Game Boy portable video players, aims to gain share in the $25 billion global video game market now dominated by Sony Corp. (6758.T)

Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq:MSFT - news) launched its next-generation Xbox 360 console late last year and Sony's new PlayStation 3 is due in November. Wii also is expected to hit store shelves later this year.

While the new consoles from Microsoft and Sony boast more power and high-definition graphics, Nintendo's goal is to roll out a machine that appeals to a broader audience than the young males who make up the traditional console gaming market.

A key feature of the Wii is its one-handed controller that looks like a television remote control and uses motion-detection sensors that allow players to control the game by wielding it like a sword, waving it like a conductor's baton, or swinging it like a baseball bat.

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82.

Re: I think instead
Apr 28, 2006, 10:18

Parallax Abstraction

82.

Re: I think instead Apr 28, 2006, 10:18

Apr 28, 2006, 10:18

Parallax Abstraction

but Nintendo turned something like $800 million in pure profit last year

Last quarter actually if you can believe it. Also, the bit about the GameCube X2 specs is highly suspect to say the least. If you are basing that information off an IGN article that came out recently, there were a number of factors such as architecture in that article that the author chose to ignore. He based his comparisons purely off Mhz numbers which as we all know from Intel/AMD, is no longer a relevant way to measure it. Will the system be nearly as powerful as Xbox 360 or PS3? I highly doubt it, but that's not what they're going for. Personally, I've always been a "graphics don't make the game" person and while I still like eye candy, if the games are superior on this system, I don't really care much if they look as good as GRAW on the 360. And I can tell you that the casual gamers/non-gamers that Nintendo is targeting with this system probably don't even know what "next-gen" system look like anyway, nor do they really care if this system has HD or not. A lot of people laughed at the Nintendo DS as well which went for changing the way people play games and it's destroying right now. This one (inspite of the stupid name) may still surprise people. I'm still half-convinced that this "Wii" thing is just a viral marketing thing to get people talking about it and that another name will be anounced at E3. Remember how Nintendo DS was also just a code-name? Then there were rumours about it changing to Nintendo Nitro and then Nintendo said they were just keeping DS. That might happena gain.

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