Wii

[Anya 0]

I mostly do it to amuse or annoy Andrew.....

 

 

Metroid Guy is Gunpei Yokoi, a Nintendo employee who designed Metroid, Gameboy and Virtual Boy. After VB failed he left Nintendo in disgrace. He went on to design the Wondersawn but before it was released he was killed in a car wreck. A hardcore Xbox fan we know of once made cryptic accusasions that his death was actually a hit ordered by Yamauchi. This is one of the funniest talking points I've ever seen used in a console wars discussion so I bring it up any chance I get now.

[Invictus 0]

Nintendo isn't shipping as many as they should either. It's not because Wii is such a huge success, it's not like Nintendo has 2 million of them out there. 600,000 is a lot better then the PS3 debacle but they still probably will not meet the numbers they had hyped up.

 

All 3 are guilty of crappy launches. We know why there's no PS3s...but why Nintendo and MS? I suspect incompetence and shady business tactics! But just like the hit on the Metroid guy I can't actually back that up.

 

 

Most likely they ran out of orphans to fuel the fires, had to resort to less clean-burning sources like coal.

 

That, or the nuns just can't work fast enough.

[Anya 0]

Yeah I don't like Iwata. He isn't fun to hate. He is just some boring guy that used to design games. Yamuachi was awesome cause he is such a character. The mob ties, the rambling tirades, the hit on Metroid guy. It's just so funny and over the top. Even if none of it is true. I think of Reggie as the face of Nintendo now just because he is interesting.

 

Sony needs to stick with just one spokesman. Everyone there is either stupid/crazy or just boring. I don't even understand who does what. There are so many CEOs of SCE something. It's impossible to keep track. They get promoted or demoted like every month.

 

I miss J Allard. I wonder whatever happened to him. He is probably off snowboarding now.

[BUTT 0]

Allard has been working on the Zune.

 

http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/conte...9;s+top+stories

[BUTT 0]

Yamuachi was awesome cause he is such a character. The mob ties, the rambling tirades, the hit on Metroid guy. It's just so funny and over the top. Even if none of it is true.

Well the rambling tirades are definitely true. Remember when he made that comment about how RPG players are depressed people who play games in the dark or whatever the fuck he said? Would Reggie or Iwata have the balls to say that? No. Too bad his craziness stopped being good for business around the mid 90's.

[AndrewTS 0]

Warioware Smooth Moves gameplay vid:

 

The BOSS STAGE is terrific.

[devo 0]

Oh my God that's awesome. I love the way they're including scenes from Nintendo franchises in their original forms. That Wind Waker game looks really fun in particular.

[MarvinisaLunatic 0]

Some 3rd party is making connectors for NES and SNES controllers that plug into the gamecube sockets allowing play with VC games if you have an old controller sitting around and $19 for each.

[Guest NYankees]

Does everybody here agree with the prices for the Virtual Console? I believe it is 6 dollars per NES game, 8 dollars per SNES game and 10 dollars per N64 game. I can picture the hit titles being sold out but I cant picture the crappier titles being sold at all. Plus it would just be cheaper to buy a NES and get the games for a dollar each on ebay or amazon.

[World's Worst Man 0]

The prices seem rather ridiculous, truth be told. The only ones even remotely worth it would be the N64 games, and those are still a bit of a stretch. There are some long-lasting SNES games, but $8 is just too much when perfectly emulated ROMs are out there. $5-6 for NES is just completely laughable. I'm going to get a couple N64 games, but only because there's really only 2 or 3 N64 games that I don't have and would be interested in playing, so I won't end up spending a ton of money on them.

 

There are also rumours that PS3's virtual console is going to be cheaper. And, well, the PS1 library alone will smoke the shit out of anything Nintendo is offering.

[-DeN- 0]

...but $8 is just too much when perfectly emulated ROMs are out there

 

When the VC was announced, I had visions of going head to head with people over the interweb in some Tecmo Super Bowl, SF II or original Mario Kart.

 

Then I realized that I already do that (albeit w/a crap controller on a tiny screen) for free.

 

I already bought most of this shit when I was a kid/stoned teenager. If they're not adding anything or hooking up NetPlay*, the VC can suck my cock.

 

 

*Really seems like they're missing the boat here. Nintendo pisses me off sometimes...Still want the Wii though.

[Scroby 0]

Nintendo isn't shipping as many as they should either. It's not because Wii is such a huge success, it's not like Nintendo has 2 million of them out there. 600,000 is a lot better then the PS3 debacle but they still probably will not meet the numbers they had hyped up.

 

All 3 are guilty of crappy launches. We know why there's no PS3s...but why Nintendo and MS? I suspect incompetence and shady business tactics! But just like the hit on the Metroid guy I can't actually back that up.

 

Microsoft fucked up and they admit it

 

Sony are just dicks

 

Nintendo, I don't think anyone really expected the Wii to fly off store selves the way it is right now, but the system has only been out for less than two weeks, so maybe Nintendo can release a lot more soon.

[The Robfather 0]

Well, my brother bought the Wii and I bought Zelda. I give my stamp of approval.

[AndrewTS 0]

There are also rumours that PS3's virtual console is going to be cheaper. And, well, the PS1 library alone will smoke the shit out of anything Nintendo is offering.

 

You forget the (current) hidden cost of buying a PSP and a memory stick.

 

I'm sure Sony is going to working judiciously on that firmware update to get the games running on PS3. I'm sure it's just a technical bug they need to iron out, *NOT* a shameless and transparent attempt to unload PSPs.

 

Yes, for the low, low cost of $700-$800 plus tax, you can play the same PS1 games you can get at Gamestop for $5-$10 a pop. Although in Sony's credit they're going to be apparently offering import-only and rare titles, like Vib Ribbon and Silent Bomber.

 

Save for TG16, the current VC offers are as rare as dirt and they're all US region, with no announced plans for imports (which makes little sense).

[The Man in Blak 0]

The prices seem rather ridiculous, truth be told. The only ones even remotely worth it would be the N64 games, and those are still a bit of a stretch. There are some long-lasting SNES games, but $8 is just too much when perfectly emulated ROMs are out there. $5-6 for NES is just completely laughable. I'm going to get a couple N64 games, but only because there's really only 2 or 3 N64 games that I don't have and would be interested in playing, so I won't end up spending a ton of money on them.

 

There are also rumours that PS3's virtual console is going to be cheaper. And, well, the PS1 library alone will smoke the shit out of anything Nintendo is offering.

 

Andrew already mentioned the PSP 'feature' attached with the PS3 VC, but there are a couple of other of things to consider as well:

 

1. Many customers may not know of PC emulators as a free alternative.

 

2. The customers that do know of emulation, may not use it, due to the technicality that it's illegal if you don't own the games for the ROMs you keep.

 

3. Even those customers that know about emulation and use it may still prefer the ability to play games on their TV conveniently with actual controllers. Yes, there are ways around this (controller adapters for your PC, TV output), but notice the emphasis on convenience.

 

4. Customers that own multiple consoles (and, thus, would have the option of just grabbing the game and playing it) may be looking for an opportunity to clear out those "old, dusty consoles" anyway. This may especially ring true for the NES, if you consider how frustrating it is to get some games to actually work on the damn thing nowadays.

 

The Wii VC offers plenty of utility to customers and, really, it's a stroke of genius, if you ask me. Never underestimate the power of convenience - some people thought that iTunes wouldn't work because you could just download the mp3s for free, remember?

[Black Lushus 0]

some games can't be emulated anymore anyway....I can't seem to get any Super Mario Bros. games or Zelda 3 for the SNES.

 

and yeah, those NESes aren't going to last forever...quite frankly, mine constantly gives me the flashing blue screen crap.

[dubq 0]

The prices seem rather ridiculous, truth be told. The only ones even remotely worth it would be the N64 games, and those are still a bit of a stretch. There are some long-lasting SNES games, but $8 is just too much when perfectly emulated ROMs are out there. $5-6 for NES is just completely laughable. I'm going to get a couple N64 games, but only because there's really only 2 or 3 N64 games that I don't have and would be interested in playing, so I won't end up spending a ton of money on them.

 

There are also rumours that PS3's virtual console is going to be cheaper. And, well, the PS1 library alone will smoke the shit out of anything Nintendo is offering.

 

That's you, though. The target group that Nintendo is aiming at for this kind of stuff is the casual gamer group.

 

Casual gamers don't download roms.

Casual gamers, for example, don't get their systems modded and buy import games; or surf the net and constantly keep up to snuff on this sort of thing like we do.

Casual gamers (be they retro or new) just want to play for a bit and have fun, and if that means paying $5 for some nostalgia, then they'll do it.

 

Even I don't endorse roms. I don't care about if it's illegal or not, but half the time they're glitchy as hell ...and I'd rather be able to have the option to play these on my television, not my laptop.

 

ADDENDUM: After posting this, I was thinking it would be a cool idea if Nintendo offered a "trade-in" plan where you could send in your old cartridge/disc and you'd get a free download for that or another game of "equal" Wii points value. I would do that for about 99% of my Nintendo game collection - not including games that I'm "really into" since I'd like to keep the originals (ie: Resident Evil on GameCube, No Mercy on N64, etc.) for the sake of collecting.

[World's Worst Man 0]

The convenience of the VC was never the issue, it was the price. $5 for an NES game with 20 minutes of playability doesn't seem like a good deal to me. SNES games are obviously quite a bit better, but then you're looking at an $8 price-tag, which is what you can get used PS1 generation games for. Add to the fact that NES and SNES generation emulation is basically perfect, and that sours the deal even more for me. Whereas N64 era emulation is not perfect, and the games will generally have more playability, which makes it a better deal for me, even if the price is still a bit high.

 

So I think the price is too high in general, regardless if the person is a casual who doesn't play ROMs on their computer. I think a better price point might be $2 for 3rd gen, $4 for 4th, $6 for 5th. That way you're not paying as much or more than a physical game might cost, while keeping the 3rd gen games low enough to where you can buy a big chunk of games for a good price.

[The Man in Blak 0]

The convenience of the VC was never the issue, it was the price

 

One feeds into the other, though - people will pay the premium for the convenience and, apparently, market research has determined that they'll pay about $5 for a NES game.

 

That being said, I do agree with the price being too high for some of these games - you'll never catch me paying $5 to play NES Baseball or anything like that. However, with these games already developed and with core NES emulation tech already in the can, so to speak, it's unbelievably cheap for Nintendo (and other companies) to shovel out these old games. Even if nine out of ten customers take a pass, the one customer that buys it gives that company a positive financial impact for the cheap distribution.

 

Also, another thing to think about: Nintendo themselves are probably willing to take a loss on some of these lesser games, just because getting more games out there implies more variety is available on the medium and, thus, the Wii becomes more attractive to potential customers.

[dubq 0]

Chances are that $5 - $8 is nothing for the group of gamers that they're aiming at.

 

I was 8 when the NES was released in 1985. I'm 29 now. Chances are a lot of the people who have a connection with these games (emotional, nostalgia, etc) are my age or older and have steady enough incomes that they can relax about spending this amount on a little piece of their past.

 

People will pay between that for a latte at Starbucks, anyway, and for some people that's every day (or twice a day). Spending $5 - $8 for a VC game once or a few times per month certainly isn't going to break the bank unless you're assuming that every person who uses the VC is going to download every single game available, just because... because, I'll tell you - that ain't going to happen. I have no interest in NES Baseball, so you won't catch me even considering getting that. Now, if Blades of Steel is available....

[Black Lushus 0]

I would pay $5 for Gumshoe...I can't find that game anywhere!

[Black Lushus 0]

I have no interest in NES Baseball, so you won't catch me even considering getting that. Now, if Blades of Steel is available....

 

what's the scoop on this anyway? Is it just 1st party NES games or are 3rd parties also involved?

 

EDIT: nevermind, I found a list...looks like mostly 1st Party and some Sega and Turbografix games...for now anyway.

[Guest Princess Leena]

I'd assume a vast majority of 1st party, because I doubt Nintendo is going to pay for any rights to these games.

[ZGangsta 0]

I think this argument that "well teh ROMZ are free~!!" is stupid because as pointed out ROMS ARE ILLEGAL (not that I have a problem with using them) and the mainstream consumer will not download an emulator. I don't like the pricing, but if they start adding online multiplayer to classic games I am so there.

[Guest Princess Leena]

But, emulated games have to affect the pricing since a significant amount of people (most with online capabilities, which is everyone with VC, anyway) know of emulation. Along with cheaper other legal ways to obtain most of the games.

 

Now, if they added online multiplayer, that brings something new to the classic games (which some emulators do have, but they're not the most user friendly. And that's only for PC's anyway).

[Downhome 0]

NOBODY expected the Wii to boom like it has thus far.

 

You don't speak for me!

 

I still haven't been able to find a Wii, damnit.

[EricMM 0]

I've been saying it forever, if they can get the rights to release Goldeneye again, along with multiplayer support, my god.

 

Sure, it's no Gears of War killer, but how many people STILL plug that game in? A fair amount. Ditto original Smash bros.

 

I'm not even THAT big a fan of that game, PC FPS's are just hella better. But honestly even I see the marketability.

[ragingfear79 0]

I just called my local target (North Miami) and the dude told me that they are getting a shipment of Wii on sat night to put out on the floor for sunday. This confirms a rumor thats been floating around that some places are going to have it this sun. Check your local targets. Supposedly they are getting wii motes and nunchucks along with the wii clasic controler. Good luck!

[daileyxplanet 0]

Perfect Dark with online multiplayer functionality would be far better.

[EricMM 0]

That fucking gun that shot through walls ruined that game.