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The Wii (pronounced as the pronoun
we,
IPA:
/wiː/)
is the fifth home
video game console released by
Nintendo. The console is the direct successor to
the
Nintendo GameCube. Nintendo states that its
console targets a broader demographic than that of
Microsoft's
Xbox 360 and
Sony's
PlayStation 3,[3]
but it competes with both as part of the
seventh generation of gaming systems.
A distinguishing feature of the console is its
wireless
controller, the
Wii Remote, which can be used as a handheld
pointing device and can
detect acceleration in
three dimensions. Another is
WiiConnect24, which enables it to receive
messages and updates over the Internet while in
standby mode.[4]
Nintendo first spoke of the console at the 2004
E3
press conference and later unveiled the system
at the
2005 E3.
Satoru Iwata revealed a prototype of the
controller at the September 2005
Tokyo Game Show.[5]
At
E3 2006, the console won the first of several
awards.[6]
By
December 8,
2006, it completed
its launch in four key markets. During the week
of
September 12,
2007, the
Financial Times declared that the Wii is the
current sales leader of its generation.[7]
History
History
The console was conceived in 2001, as the
Nintendo GameCube was first seeing release.
According to an interview with Nintendo's game
designer
Shigeru Miyamoto, the concept involved focusing
on a new form of player interaction. "The consensus
was that power isn't everything for a console. Too
many powerful consoles can't coexist. It's like
having only ferocious dinosaurs. They might fight
and hasten their own extinction."[8]
Two years later,
engineers and
designers were brought together to further
develop the concept. By 2005, the controller
interface had taken form, but a public showing at
that year's
E3 was withdrawn. Miyamoto stated that, "We had
some troubleshooting to do. So, we decided not to
reveal the controller and instead we displayed just
the console."[8]
Nintendo president
Satoru Iwata later unveiled and demonstrated the
Wii Remote at the September
Tokyo Game Show.[5]
The
Nintendo DS is stated to have influenced the Wii
design. Designer Ken'ichiro Ashida noted, "We had
the DS on our minds as we worked on the Wii. We
thought about copying the DS's touch-panel interface
and even came up with a prototype." The idea was
eventually rejected, with the notion that the two
gaming systems would be identical. Miyamoto also
expressed that, "If the DS had flopped, we might
have taken the Wii back to the drawing board."[8]
Name
The console was known by the
code name of "Revolution" until
April 27,
2006, immediately prior to
E3.[9]
According to the Nintendo Style Guide, the name "is
simply Wii, not Nintendo Wii." This means it is the
first home console Nintendo has marketed outside of
Japan without the company name featured in its
trademark. While "Wiis" is a commonly used
pluralization of the console, Nintendo has
stated that the official plural form is "Wii
systems" or "Wii consoles."[10]
Nintendo spells "Wii" with two lower-case "i"
characters meant to resemble two people standing
side by side, representing players gathering
together, as well as to represent the console's
controllers.[11]
The company has given many reasons for this choice
of name since the announcement; however, the most
well known is:
|
“ |
Wii sounds like 'we', which emphasizes that the
console is for everyone. Wii can easily be
remembered by people around the world, no matter
what language they speak. No confusion. No need
to abbreviate. Just Wii.[11] |
” |
Despite Nintendo's justification for the name,
some
game developers and members of the press
initially reacted negatively towards the change.
They preferred "Revolution" over "Wii"[12]
and expressed fear "that the name would convey a
continued sense of 'kidiness'[sic]
to the console."[13]
The
BBC reported the day after the name was
announced that "a long list of puerile jokes, based
on the name," had appeared on the Internet.[14]
Nintendo of America's president
Reggie Fils-Aime acknowledged the initial
reaction and further explained the change:
|
“ |
Revolution as a name is not ideal; it's long,
and in some cultures, it's hard to pronounce. So
we wanted something that was short, to the
point, easy to pronounce, and distinctive.
That's how 'Wii,' as a console name, was
created.[15] |
” |
Nintendo defended its choice of "Wii" over
"Revolution" and responded to critics of the name by
stating: "live with it, sleep with it, eat with it,
move along with it."[16]
Launch
On
September 14,
2006, Nintendo announced release information for
Japan,
North and
South America,
Australasia (Oceania),
Asia and
Europe, including dates, prices and projected
unit distribution numbers. At an earlier policy
briefing, Nintendo revealed plans to release 6
million console units and 17 million software units
during the
fiscal year ending
March 31,
2007.[17]
This included the 4 million or more console units
they expected to ship by the end of the
2006 calendar year.[18]
It was announced that the majority of the 2006
shipments would be allotted to the Americas,[19]
and that 33 titles would be available in the 2006
launch window.[20]
As reported, the
United Kingdom suffered a large shortage of
console units as many high-street and online stores
were unable to fulfill all preorders when it was
released on
December 8,
2006.[21]
As of March 2007, some UK stores still had a
shortage of consoles,[22]
and as of June 2007, demand still outpaced supply in
the
United States.[23]
Nintendo announced that they would release their
console in
South Korea by the end of 2007.[24]
System sales
Since its launch, the monthly sales numbers of
the console have been higher than its competitors
across the globe. According to the NPD Group, the
Wii has sold more units in
North America than the Xbox 360 and PlayStation
3 combined in the first half of 2007.[26]
This lead is even larger in the Japanese market,
where it currently leads not only in total sales,
but usually outsells both consoles by 3:1 to 6:1
every week.[27]
In Australia, the Wii exceeded the
Xbox 360 to become the fastest selling games
console in Australian history.[28]
On
September 12,
2007, it was reported by the
Financial Times that the Wii had surpassed
the Xbox 360, which was released one year
previously, and had become the market leader in
worldwide home console sales for the current
generation. This is the first time a Nintendo
console has led its generation in sales since the
Super Nintendo Entertainment System.[7]
While Microsoft and Sony had experienced losses
producing their consoles in the hopes of making a
long-term profit on software sales, Nintendo claims
to have optimized production costs to obtain a
significant profit margin with each Wii unit sold.[29]
According to the Financial Times, this direct
profit per Wii sold may vary from $13 in Japan to
$49 in the United States and $79 in Europe.[30]
Demographic
Nintendo hopes to
target a wider
demographic with its console than that of others
in the
seventh generation.[3]
At a press conference for the upcoming
Nintendo DS game
Dragon Quest IX,
Satoru Iwata iterated "We're not thinking about
fighting
Sony, but about how many people we can get to
play games. The thing we're thinking about most is
not portable systems, consoles, and so-forth, but
that we want to get new people playing games."[31]
This is reflected in Nintendo's series of
television advertisements in North America,
directed by
Academy Award winner
Stephen Gaghan, as well as Internet ads. The ad
slogans are "Wii would like to play" and
"Experience a new way to play." These ads ran
starting
November 15,
2006 and had a total budget of over
US$200 million throughout the year.[32]
The productions are Nintendo's first broad-based
advertising strategy and include a two-minute
video clip showing a varied assortment of people
enjoying the Wii system, such as urban
apartment-dwellers, country ranchers, grandparents
and parents with their children. The music in the
ads is from the song "Kodo (Inside the Sun Remix)"
by the
Yoshida Brothers.[33]
The marketing campaign has proved to be successful:
pensioners as old as 103 have been reported to be
playing the Wii in the United Kingdom.[34]
Hardware
The Wii (top) compared in size to the
GCN,
N64, North American
SNES and
NES
The Wii console is Nintendo's smallest home unit
to date; it measures 44 mm
(1.73 in)
wide, 157 mm (6.18 in) tall and 215.4 mm (8.48 in)
deep in its vertical orientation, the
near-equivalent of three
DVD cases stacked together. The included stand
measures 55.4 mm (2.18 in) wide, 44 mm (1.73 in)
tall and 225.6 mm (8.88 in) deep, The system weighs
1.2 kg
(2.7 lb),[35]
which makes it the lightest of the three major
seventh generation consoles. The console can be
placed either horizontally or vertically. The prefix
for the numbering scheme of the system and its parts
and accessories is "RVL-" after its
project code name of "Revolution".[36]
The console also features a recurring theme or
design: both the console itself, as well as the
power supply and all the sockets have one of their
corners chipped off in a triangular fashion.
The front of the console features an illuminated
slot-loading optical media drive that accepts both
12 cm Wii Optical Discs and
Nintendo GameCube Game Discs. The blue light in
the disc slot illuminates briefly when the console
is turned on and pulsates when new data is received
through
WiiConnect24. After firmware update 3.0, the
disc slot light activates whenever a Wii disc is
inserted or ejected. When there is no WiiConnect24
information, the light is off. The disc slot light
remains off during
game play or when using other features. Two
USB ports are located at its rear. An
SD card slot hides behind the cover on the front
of the console. The SD card can be used for
uploading photos as well as backing up
saved game data and downloaded
Virtual Console games. To use the SD slot for
transferring game saves, an
update must be installed. An installation can be
initiated from the Wii options menu through an
Internet connection, or by inserting a game disc
containing the updated firmware. As a presently
uncircumvented system of
digital rights management, Virtual Console data
cannot be restored to any system except the unit of
origin.[37]
The SD card can also be used to create customized
in-game music from stored MP3 files, as shown in
Excite Truck, as well as music for the
slideshow feature of the
Photo Channel.
Nintendo has shown the console and the Wii Remote
in white, black, silver, lime green and red,[38][39]
but it is currently available only in white. Shigeru
Miyamoto stated that other colors would be available
after the easing of supply limitations.[40]
The
Wii launch package includes the console, a stand
to allow the console to be placed vertically, a
circular clear stabilizer for the main stand, one
Wii Remote, one
Nunchuk attachment, one
Sensor Bar, a removable stand for the bar, one
external main
power adapter, two
AA batteries, one
composite AV cable with
RCA connectors (component
video and other types of cables are available
separately), operation documentation and (in all
regions excluding Japan) a copy of
Wii Sports.
A Nintendo spokesperson has announced that the
company plans to release a version of the console
with
DVD-Video playback capabilities in 2007.[41]
Even though software will be used to enable
DVD-Video functionality, it "requires more than a
firmware upgrade" and cannot therefore be
implemented through the WiiConnect24 network.[41]
Wii Remote
From left to right:
Nintendo DS Lite,
Nunchuk,
Wii Remote and
strap
The Wii Remote is a
controller that uses a combination of
accelerometers and
infrared detection (from an array of
LEDs inside the
Sensor Bar) to sense its position in
3D space. This design allows users to control
the game using physical gestures as well as
traditional button presses. The controller connects
to the console using
Bluetooth and features
rumble as well as an internal speaker. The Wii
Remote can connect to other devices through a
proprietary port at the base of the controller.
The device bundled with the Wii retail package is
the
Nunchuk unit, which features an accelerometer
and a traditional
analog stick with two trigger buttons. In
addition, an attachable
wrist strap can be used to prevent the player
from unintentionally dropping or throwing the Wii
Remote. In response to incidences of strap failures,
Nintendo is offering a free, stronger replacement
for all straps.[42]
Technical
specifications
Nintendo has released few technical details
regarding the Wii system, but some key facts have
leaked from the press. Though none of these reports
has been officially confirmed, they generally point
to the console as being an extension or advancement
of the
Nintendo GameCube architecture. More
specifically, the reported analyses state that the
Wii is roughly 1.5 to 2 times as powerful as its
predecessor.[1][43]
†None of the
clock rates have been confirmed by
Nintendo,
IBM or
ATI.
Technical issues
The first firmware update via WiiConnect24 caused
a very small portion of units to become
completely unusable. This forced users to either
send their units to
Nintendo for repairs (if they wished to retain
their saved data) or exchange it for a free
replacement.[53]
Legal issues
Interlink Electronics filed a
patent-infringement lawsuit against Nintendo over
the pointing functionalities of the Wii Remote,
claiming, "loss of reasonable royalties, reduced
sales and/or lost profits as a result of the
infringing activities" of Nintendo.[54]
Anascape Ltd, a
Texas-based firm, also filed a lawsuit against
Nintendo for patent infringements.[55]
Green Welling LLP filed a
class action lawsuit against Nintendo for their
"defective wrist straps".[56]
A Texas-based company called Lonestar Inventions has
also sued Nintendo, claiming that the company copied
one of Lonestar's patented capacitor designs and
used it in the Wii console.[57]
Features
The console contains a number of internal
features made available from its hardware and
firmware components. The hardware allows for
extendibility through expansion ports while the
firmware can receive periodic updates via the
WiiConnect24 service.
Wii Menu
The Wii Menu
operating system interface is designed around
the concept of
television channels. Separate channels are
graphically displayed in a grid and are navigated
using the pointer capability of the
Wii Remote. It is possible to change the
arrangement of the channels by holding down the A
and B buttons. There are six primary channels: the
Disc Channel, Mii Channel, Photo Channel, Wii Shop
Channel, Forecast Channel and News Channel. The
latter two were initially unavailable at launch, but
activated through firmware updates. Additional
channels are available for download from the Wii
Shop Channel and also appear with each
Virtual Console title. These include the
Everybody Votes Channel and
Internet Channel.
In June 2007 Nintendo announced a new service
called
WiiWare. The service will allow small and large
developers to create their own games that can be
bought through the Wii Shop Channel with Wii Points.[58]
Backward compatibility
Nintendo GameCube ports on the top of the Wii
unit
The Wii console is
backward compatible with all official
Nintendo GameCube software, as well as Nintendo
GameCube Memory Cards and controllers. Compatibility
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