3 reasons why Wii price cut won’t spur sales
The rumors have matriculated into reality: Nintendo has confirmed it will trim the price of its Wii console by $50 starting this weekend, reducing the system’s overall cost to $199.99.
Speculation about the cut has lasted weeks following recent price reductions on Microsoft’s Xbox 360 and Sony’s older PlayStation 3 consoles. Those cuts were meant to spur flagging sales due to the economic downturn that was slow to hit the gaming market.
While the Wii price cut is a nice gesture on Nintendo’s part, it’s one that probably won’t have much impact on Wii or the marketplace, for these reasons:
* Demand for the Wii has subsided. The apparent shortage of Wiis until this year was partly responsible for high interest in the console — people badly wanted something they couldn’t have, and Nintendo stoked that interest by not flooding the market with consoles. Now, retailers have no problem keeping Wiis on inventory and haven’t since before the economy started biting into game sales.
So, it appears the people who want Wiis already have them, and the ones who don’t … well, they’re waiting for a big-name game to push them forward. Which brings us to …
* No new ideas coming on the gaming front. Nintendo plans to release an upgrade for “Wii Fit” next month and a new Mario title, “New Super Mario Bros. Wii” in November just ahead of the holiday shopping season. However, the changes to “Wii Fit” are expected to be moderate, while Mario is starting to show a little gray around the temples. After all, what else is there for these guys to jump over?
Besides, the basic Wii package will remain the same: it includes a free copy of “Wii Sports,” now approaching its third birthday. USA Today asked Nintendo of America chief Reggie Fils-Aime why not include the new “Wii Sports Resort” instead; he said basically the company wants to continue supplementing its Wii profits by selling the Wii MotionPlus remote expansion separately, and you can’t play “Sports Resort” without MotionPlus.
* Wii is still no competition for Xbox or PlayStation. Face it, Wii is a gaming console only; the novelty of the motion controller was what drove consumer interest. But people who prefer high-definition gaming and a richer online gaming experience must turn to systems with more horsepower such as Xbox and PS3. Those systems were designed to be the centerpiece of an entire entertainment center — a one-stop shop for gaming, movies and video, television and the Internet — and not just gaming platforms.
Maybe in 2011, when Wii HD is expected to debut, Xbox and PS3 will face real competition. Right now though, all they’re up against is a slightly cheaper Wii.
“Maybe in 2001, when Wii HD is expected to debut” ??? 2001 was 8 years ago.
*Please* edit. The article refers to Sony when it clearly means Nintendo (paragraph 4) and the last paragraph refers to a “future” release that, according to the article happened 8 years ago. {sigh} The joys of internet journalism…
This whole article is pretty much trash. “Wii is still no competition for Xbox or PlayStation” this is why the Wii has outsold the other consoles almost 2 to 1?! Listen I understand the Wii cannot stand up to the Xbox or PS3 in graphical power alone but when you start saying things like its not “Real Competition” it is just absurd! The Wii is just plain fun and thats all it is trying to do. Get your fanboy-ness out of this article and write something that actually is factual.
LOL @ fanboy
Thanks to you all who pointed out the incorrect date. My bad.
It’s true, the Wii isn’t competition for the 360 or PS3, but not for the reason you propose. The Wii created the market that it currently inhabits, and has been extremely successful in that market. The vast majority of “hardcore gamers” that wanted to move into the “next-gen” have already done it: they already have the system they want and don’t need another. It’s more likely that those hardcore gamers that don’t have a Wii yet will now buy one. That, or parents that have heard about the Wii for years now will be able to find one this Christmas (finally…this will be the first Christmas that it isn’t supply constrained) and for $50 less than the last few years.
The Wii will still sell more this holiday season than the PS3 or 360, although not as much more than in previous years. Plenty of great games on all three systems, and the Wii is no different. Personally, New Super Mario Bros. Wii is a day one purchase for me.
@ t-dog, you may want to re read the article because it says 2011 and not 2001….
@ tomika…see David Sheets’ comment in this list. It said 2001 and the author corrected it.
The Wii is a rubbish piece of joke. Seriously, it’s hard to tell if it’s made by Nintendo or Fisher Price or Playskool. It’s for soccer moms, grandmas and 4 year olds with ADD. If you want to play real games, buy a 360. The PS3 STILL lacks good games compared to the Xbox. Too bad the Xbox has the lifespan of a bacterium. Buying a video game system these days is like choosing between a giant douche, a turd sandwich, and a bleeding ulcer.