RSSNintendo: Wii Only Console for Family
By Ed Oswald | Published November 13, 2006, 2:11 PM
Nintendo announced its marketing plans for the next-generation Wii console Monday, saying it would focus on the console's wide cross-generational appeal in its advertising. Nintendo aims to position the Wii as the only new game system that all members of a household can enjoy.
"Wii introduces new ways to play to expand both the appeal of games and the audience of gamers, and our marketing campaign is central to that," remarked Nintendo America marking vice president George Harrison.
The company has a three-prong marketing strategy to promote the console. The first would involve hands on experiences, including in-mall kiosks, a concert tour, and hosted events with urban influencers in fashion, music, and media.
Buzz for the console would be built up using the company's Wii MySpace page, and through countdown events to be held at Toys "R" Us in New York's Times Square and at GameStop at Universal CityWalk in Los Angeles.
The company has forged partnerships with 7-Eleven, Pringles, and Comedy Central. 7-Eleven and Pringles would give away 711 and 100 consoles, respectively, through contests involving Slurpee and Pringles Snack Stack products. Both would promote the console through promotional materials.
Also, Comedy Central will give away one Wii every hour Thursday through Sunday during Thanksgiving weekend, and the console will be featured in network-produced viginettes of reality TV show spoofs. A grand prize of a Scion made to look like a Wii will be given away at the end of the weekend.
In other Wii news, Sonic Solutions announced that Nintendo had selected it to provide the DVD software to allow for viewing of the discs in a future version of the console. Such functionality is expected to appear in the second half of 2007.
Wii really has a chance of a becoming a very successful console.
Cheapest newest console. Has all arcade style games. Which is Very appealing to kids. Good value...I myself will play some games which nintendo has becouse they are simply fun.
Lots of potential.
Score: 0
|Kiddie Games, and weird Japanese games that nobody understands, that where Nintendo excels...
Score: 0
|kiddie is subjective...it is more like "innocent". Innocent and fun games with less emphasis in trying to allow a sad person a false pretense at manliness.
I for example am a pretty man, who is more manly than most males...yet I have no machismo factor and never try to feign any. (I am supremely confident though, not conceited :D)
I am straight but never try to boast about any conquests or seek to demean women in anyway.
I grew up in a ghetto but don't think it's cool to sound like a moron, try to intimidate others...or just think doing crime makes me more "legit".
So let's see...I'm a guy who came from a war torn communist ran country and ended up growing up in a real ghetto surrounded by militant racists. I speak "proper" english, love kids and animals...I'm a vegetarian. I wear pink and mint green s***s.
I don't use curse words or watch porn. I've never done any drugs except for things like aspirin, advil...vitamins and health supplements.
I like nice wholesome games...kiddie? Maybe not...weird? More like quirky.
I like Nintendo, but I have no brand loyalty perse. It is more a track record of types of games and quality control. I think the Wii is a nice piece of hardware with a great potential as any of its competition.
I don't believe they'll be successful with their target audience and/or marketing for this console. In the sense that, I think they'll do modestly well...but you will just not sell a game to a non gamer...you can only provide the games the gamers want.
Ma and Pa kettle will not buy the Wii just because it has a "fly fishing" or "milk the cow" adventure. And even if you think you've made the perfect game for them...experience for anyone out there, whether consumer or salesperson knows...1 title will not justify a system purchase.
I might go for a "corn shucking" simulator with the Wii's controller...NOT!
I hope their judgement is right though. Hopefully they won't fade like Sega and it's "just enough" hardware motto.
Score: 0
|Save your money, buy a Gamecube then.
WII is maginally more powerfull than a GameCube, with a new controller. When you talk in those terms, it's quite pricey....
Score: 0
|trust me...I have a gamecube already...and because I know it's marginally better...it makes it so much harder to purchase.
However, if it can play my gamecube games, then it's a good purchase for if/when my gamecube dies. Much like better to buy a new TV for $200 than to fix it for $150.
Score: 0
|Family and kiddie are used to loosely. Disney does not make kids movies, they make family movies. It is the same with Nintendo and it has ALWAYS been the same with Nintendo. It is good for Nintendo to be that way as it assures them a solid market and it usually assures us quality products. Despite completely getting there socks rocked by SONY and Microsoft for well over the past decade they are still around and still have a loyal market while SEGA is long dead. They must be doing something right.
Nintendo gamer since 1985
SONY gamer since 1995
side note: Resident Evil 4 sucks. Had that game been released on anything but the Game Cube it's many flaws would have been called to attention. Way to many blind spots in that game. How the hell can you play a 3rd person shooter when you cant see yer feet and when the left side of the screen is always crowded? Leon needs to get the hell off the camera once in a while. Zero and the RE1 remake are far better games.
Resident Evil fan since 1996
Score: 0
|"Gamecube really didn't offer anything worthwhile for me"
Don't forget >Game Of The Year: Resident Evil 4
Score: 0
|I never played it and that doesn't bother me one bit.
Sure, there will be games from time to time, but I prefer to play on a console where the majority of games are games I'd want to play.
Score: 0
|I've always viewed Nintendo consoles as being more for kids. It will be interesting to see how many games they have that I'd actually consider playing. Last Nintendo console I owned was N64. Gamecube really didn't offer anything worthwhile for me.
Score: 0
|Oh really? Mario is not a family game? Super Smash Bros. is even a family game lol.
Score: 0
|At least it looks like it was designed by Fisher-Price.
Score: 0
|MARIO PARTY!!!
Score: 0
|Unlucky for you to never have got into Nintendo's games. I find they're the most addictive, fun games available on console - when we've got the three consoles in front of us, it's the GameCube that always gets the action. Only Tekken gets the PS2 doing some work! :) The rest is Smash Bros, Bomberman, Mario Kart variants, etc, etc. :)
If I want serious games, I get to a serious platform: PC. For fun games, Nintendo is the shizz!
Score: 0
|It looks like to me they are at least somewhat attempting to bring back what they used for the original NES - attracting families. The NES was based on family entertainment - and so is the Wii. Being that the Wii can also play old school games from NES to Sega Genesis and SNES, it further makes this machine a family machine.
Yes, I want a $600 PS3. Can I make sense of spending $700 ... the console, component cables, a few games... no way. I can see spending $250 for the Wii and $50 on Zelda.
New Zelda + Wii... what more convincing do you want? Plus the controller looks a like a hell of a lot of fun to use. I can't wait!
Score: 0
|