Wii: A Threat to Gaming?

[Vampyr]

I think I've been too hard on my Wii in the past. I literally didn't turn it on for like, a year...but in the past month it is all I have played - I haven't touched my Xbox except for Netflix.

The virtual console is amazing...there are -so- many fantastic titles from the SNES era that I never played, and it's great to get to explore those without using a computer emulator. I can set on my couch and use the Classic controller.

I also just got Wii Sports Resort, which has been a ton of fun. Even though most people seem to think it's only fun at parties, I think some games are more fun by yourself, like golf.

I've also been playing Majora's Mask on the virtual console, and Mario Galaxy is looking to be a fantastic game (I'm finally starting it).

The wii does suffer from third party support, though. But that has been the case with Nintendo since the Gamecube, really.

There are some aspects of the Wii that only appeal to casual gamers. But there are some aspects that do not. It's this great variety that has made it so successful. Also, it has a ton of things that help make it a friendly console towards kids, with parental controls and "kid" games. Several of the guys I know at work bought one because they have kids, but they actually play it very often.

When I read the concerns that BaB posted in this topic, it brings me back to something said at E3 a few years ago. I think it was a microsoft representative who said "People are going to have two systems in their home - an Xbox 360 and a Nintendo Wii."

This has proven to be true for me and everyone else who doesn't want a glorified blu ray player. I think it will continue to be true in the future. I can already say I will buy the next Nintendo console and the next Microsoft console. You have the 360 for multimedia purposes (movies, online interaction, netflix, demos, etc) as well as for those third party "gamer games".

And you'll have the Wii for a different breed of games. There will be the shallow but fun "party" games like Wii sports, but there are also games for the hardcore gamer, like Mario and Zelda, that are still really different than the hardcore gamer games for the other consoles.

The PS3 price drop isn't "doom" for the Wii. The people who bought a Wii and are still enjoying it probably don't even want a PS3, unless they want a blu ray player.