Nintendo goes Wii

It's official. On November 19 Nintendo will finally launch their contribution to another generation of game play: Wii.

The goal, according to Amber McCollum, senior manager, public relations for Redmond, Wash.-based Nintendo of America, is to have 4 million units available by the end of the year and 2 million more by March 31, when most or all of the approximately 43 console games, as well as additional indie-designed, downloadable games, will be available. “After seeing reaction by members of the media and consumers, retailers have been enthusiastic about the coming launch of Wii,” McCollum tells Playthings. “And because we aim to have a huge, steady inventory for the holiday shopping season, they know that we'll put their shelf space to good use.”

The Wii system will also give players access, via download, to 20 years of Nintendo game play, with classics originally released for Nintendo 64, the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) and the original Nintendo Entertainment System (NES). The Virtual Console will also feature a “best of” selection from Sega Genesis titles and games from the TURBO GRAFX16 console.

“Wii has several things going for it,” says McCollum. “First, the remarkable Wii remote looks like a TV remote control and lets players manipulate the action on the screen through the motion of the controller itself. Playing a tennis game? Just swing the Wii remote like a racket. Hitting a baseball? Swing it like a bat. It does more fun and exciting things for an affordable, mass-market price.”

Both mass and smaller toy and game retailers who are carrying the units in stores may even see a wider range of customers in terms of age. From grandparents to parents to aunts and uncles, a console for ages 7 to 100 is not a far from-the-truth description of Wii. McCollum believes that the Wii remote is so simple that anyone can understand it at first glance, or touch, even if they've never played Donkey Kong or Metroid. “Wii will have something for hard-core gamers as well as newcomers,” she says, “and making video games for baby boomers and seniors is not as far-fetched as you might think. We've had great success among the older crowd with our brain-training games for Nintendo DS.”

Some new titles that should be out between November 2006 and March 2007 include Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam (Activision), Madden NFL 07 (EA), Avatar: The Last Airbender (THQ) and Prince of Persia (Ubisoft).

At Nintendo, designing something they believe to be innovative is just part of the job, McCollum says. “[Players] will remember Wii as the console that struck out on its own in a different direction from the rest of the industry and made video games fun again for everyone,” she says. “Many of our control innovations of the past have become standards in today's video games, so it wouldn't be surprising if the Wii remote spawned generations of motion-controlled video game controllers. And people will remember Wii as the console that not only provided something fun and unique for every member of the family, but also had experiences that everyone could enjoy together.”