Nintendo Wii now the #1 selling console in the world

Brian Ambrozy 13 Sep, 2007 at 2:04am ET Article published in Tech

According to the latest numbers from Financial Times, sales of the Nintendo Wii have now outpaced that of the previous best selling Microsoft Xbox 360, despite having been on the market almost a full year less.

At the end of July, people had purchased over 9 million Nintendo Wii consoles, versus 8.9 million 360s and 3.7 million Sony Playstation 3s.

Nintendo’s strategy of innovate and reinvigorate rather than improve and flex seems to be paying off. Sure, the “3” systems have many processors and super mega high end graphics, but the Nintendo is completely different and, frankly, just lots of fun.

Oh, and it’s only $249.

Perhaps I’m wrong – maybe the only factor is price. Either way, Nintendo seems well on their way to winning this round.

Fanboys in 3….2…1….

Comments

13 Sep 2007 ~ 2:14am shwaip olol kidtendo gamecube1.5
13 Sep 2007 ~ 8:05am Medlock The Wii IS fun...when there's new games around to enjoy.

At this point, I kinda regret not having a 360. I'd like to be able to actually play with other people... Nintendo's WFC is seriously lacking atm.
13 Sep 2007 ~ 10:04am Sledgehammer70 Wii is a good console for group games... but the 360 and PS3 offer a different in-depth gaming experience you can't get with the Wii.
13 Sep 2007 ~ 10:09am GHoosdum I think you're just limiting yourself to the graphics side of the equation, Sledge. Play Twilight Princess, Metroid Prime Corruption, heck, even Super Paper Mario and try to claim that the Wii doesn't offer an in-depth gaming experience. You'd be laughed off the internets!

I honestly don't think that the eight hours of eye candy in Heavenly Sword stand up to the kind of in-depth gaming that the Wii can offer with its immersive and intuitive controls, coupled with the gameplay of the games I mentioned above.
13 Sep 2007 ~ 10:13am primesuspect I don't know if "in-depth" is a term that even applies here. Describe "in-depth", because I have gotten in deep with Twilight Princess and especially Metroid Prime 3. I have also gotten in deep with Viva Pinata on the 360. What's the difference?

//edit: simultaneous posting with ghoosdum!
13 Sep 2007 ~ 10:44am Sledgehammer70 When I say in depth I mean in depth games like Gears of War, Call of Duty, Assassins Creed, Army of Two, Mass Effect, Bio Shock...the list goes on etc

The games above are in a whole different league than any game on the Wii console offering a more in depth gaming experience, via graphics, content, and overall game play. While I have played many games on the Wii none of them can compare to a full night binge of God of War or a game like that. I’ll take your HS comment as a direct punch to the gut & at Sony… as I never said that was a more in depth game over MPC or TP…

The controller while intuitive is not a selling point to me… I just find it hard to game with… I blame the PC for that.
13 Sep 2007 ~ 10:55am Cyclonite I think your logic may be slightly flawed. If the PC causes you to dislike the Wii controller, why would it be any different for the PS3/XBox 360 controller? They're nothing like mouse and keyboard.

As for in-depth, are you saying that if Metroid and Twilight Princess were on the Ps3 or 360, they'd feel more "in-depth?"

Like prime said, I think we still need a definition of your "in-depth."
13 Sep 2007 ~ 10:59am primesuspect Plus, remember that the 360 has been out over a year longer than the Wii. In the 360's year one, there weren't as many of those types of games either - Gears of War wasn't out yet, Assassins Creed (still not out yet) , Army of Two (not yet), Mass Effect (nope) , Bio Shock (just came out). Give the Wii another year, see Umbrella Chronicles, etc.

Call of Duty is out for the Wii as well - is it less "in-depth" because the graphics aren't as shiny?
13 Sep 2007 ~ 11:01am Sledgehammer70

Cyclonite wrote:

I think your logic may be slightly flawed. If the PC causes you to dislike the Wii controller, why would it be any different for the PS3/XBox 360 controller? They're nothing like mouse and keyboard.

As for in-depth, are you saying that if Metroid and Twilight Princess were on the Ps3 or 360, they'd feel more "in-depth?"

Like prime said, I think we still need a definition of your "in-depth."

I am able to use a mouse and keyboard on a PS3 and 360...

Maybe in depth isn't the word I should use than... lets see here how can I put this?

MPC & TP are good games, but are really the only 2 great single player games on the Wii (this isn't a debate... but a matter of opinion)
13 Sep 2007 ~ 11:02am GHoosdum Perhaps you could say, "I don't like the Wii as much because the Wii games are not as Nintendoless as those for the 360 and PS3, and the graphics aren't as shiny."
13 Sep 2007 ~ 11:03am primesuspect You know I loves me a sledgehammer, you're my friend, bud.... But I really think what it is with you is you like teh shiney

Admit it man! You're a GRAPHICS WHORE - to you, graphics are the measure of quality!
13 Sep 2007 ~ 11:05am BuddyJ Sledge, I'm gonna agree with GH on this one. The limit to the Wii is its sub-par graphics compared to the 360 or PS3 and lack of good online multiplayer support. But in terms of gameplay, it offers the same addictive, immersing experience. Twilight Princess, Metroid, and even Resident Evil 4 will all suck you in.

The only gameplay element the Wii can't do is online multi-player, something even the powerhouse systems have a hard time doing compared to a PC.
13 Sep 2007 ~ 11:06am Sledgehammer70

primesuspect wrote:

Call of Duty is out for the Wii as well - is it less "in-depth" because the graphics aren't as shiny?

It lacks realism yes... making the game kind of a cheesy approch. Yes I am a graphics whore, but I just can't see FPS being a draw on the Wii.

I am a graphic artist what do you expect?

Along with that, I have played Metro Prime, TP and neither of thsoe games draw me in, crap i would rather play Wii bowling

I don't buy console games for online play... hence why I own a nice Laptop

Other things I dislike about the Wii is it lacks games like Dirt & Motostorm... those games are so much fun... who said blowing up realistic trucks, RV's, busses, and quads couldn't be fun...
13 Sep 2007 ~ 12:09pm Cyclonite I'm in agreement to some extent in the graphics department. I'll admit I've said "I'd love to see Metroid on the 360." However, if I let that deter me, I'd miss out on a lot of games.

It's definitely more fun to blow up a realistic looking red Viper for instance than it is to blow up a sort-of-looks-like-a-brick Viper.
13 Sep 2007 ~ 1:21pm Your-Amish-Daddy Ultra long opinion post!

I have a Wii. I've had a 360 for awhile. I like the wii. Granted the 360's got better graphical capabilities, it lacks something that's been gone from corporate products for decades. Naivety. It lacks innocence. I look at the 360 and I can almost smell the blood and gore from Gears of War, even though I like the game. I like Saint's Row, not because of it's beefed up vice city graphics, I like it because I can be a fat gangster and still get street cred. I like Chromehounds because honestly, who doesn't like blowing stuff up with a giant robot?!

Graphically speaking, the Wii is on par with the original Xbox I think. But when you look at the console's abilities, the Wii surpasses the 360 and the PS3. Yes, both can play their past games, except the PS3 I think, since it's got Blu-Ray, and the 360 needs the hard drive to play xbox games. The wii however, has reminded people that obsolescence is a position of perspective. Yes, I have a bunch of games on my VC for my wii. I play them just like I used to. Sitting in the dark, with an unlit cigar dried to my lip, lost in a world that I vaguely remember. It's good therapy for someone like me. Remembering days past when all you cared about was beating level four, and how much you hated your English teacher. No work, no cares. The 360 and PS3 lack that. They lack symmetry I'll call it. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Zelda 2, Ocarina of Time, Super Mario 2...I remember them all from my past, the good and the bad.

The wii also has built in wireless functions, however it may be only 802.11b, and I think the PS3 has g, it's all the wii needs. The 360 needs an 80+ dollar device just to catch up. I haven't sat at a PS3, so I'm going by press and what little I know.

Overall, I like the wii more just because I can go back in time, and play games I grew up on. Just wished I could watch Sailor Moon on it without breaking my butt to convert it. I don't know why Nintendo couldn'tve went with a more popular format instead of Quicktime or whatever it is. That's my story and I'm stickin' to it.
13 Sep 2007 ~ 2:57pm Sledgehammer70

Your Amish Daddy wrote:

Ultra long opinion post!

I have a Wii. I've had a 360 for awhile. I like the wii. Granted the 360's got better graphical capabilities, it lacks something that's been gone from corporate products for decades. Naivety. It lacks innocence. I look at the 360 and I can almost smell the blood and gore from Gears of War, even though I like the game. I like Saint's Row, not because of it's beefed up vice city graphics, I like it because I can be a fat gangster and still get street cred. I like Chromehounds because honestly, who doesn't like blowing stuff up with a giant robot?!

Graphically speaking, the Wii is on par with the original Xbox I think. But when you look at the console's abilities, the Wii surpasses the 360 and the PS3. Yes, both can play their past games, except the PS3 I think, since it's got Blu-Ray, and the 360 needs the hard drive to play xbox games. The wii however, has reminded people that obsolescence is a position of perspective. Yes, I have a bunch of games on my VC for my wii. I play them just like I used to. Sitting in the dark, with an unlit cigar dried to my lip, lost in a world that I vaguely remember. It's good therapy for someone like me. Remembering days past when all you cared about was beating level four, and how much you hated your English teacher. No work, no cares. The 360 and PS3 lack that. They lack symmetry I'll call it. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Zelda 2, Ocarina of Time, Super Mario 2...I remember them all from my past, the good and the bad.

The wii also has built in wireless functions, however it may be only 802.11b, and I think the PS3 has g, it's all the wii needs. The 360 needs an 80+ dollar device just to catch up. I haven't sat at a PS3, so I'm going by press and what little I know.

Overall, I like the wii more just because I can go back in time, and play games I grew up on. Just wished I could watch Sailor Moon on it without breaking my butt to convert it. I don't know why Nintendo couldn'tve went with a more popular format instead of Quicktime or whatever it is. That's my story and I'm stickin' to it.

Or you could save $200 and buy a old nintendo system with all the games and re live your past
13 Sep 2007 ~ 3:16pm GHoosdum Actually, you'd have to buy a NES, SNES, Sega Genesis, TurboGrafx-16, N64, and GameCube to relive all the old gaming available on the Wii.

So I don't think you'd end up saving 200 bucks.
13 Sep 2007 ~ 3:22pm primesuspect And Neo Geo
13 Sep 2007 ~ 3:34pm BuddyJ And as we all know, NeoGeo systems are crazy expensive unless you spring for the obscure yet cool NeoGeo Color Pocket.
13 Sep 2007 ~ 4:24pm Sledgehammer70 from the sounds of it he was talking about games on a NES or Super NES...

which can both be had with tons of games fun under $25 each at local pawn shops
13 Sep 2007 ~ 5:09pm GnomeWizardd The Wii is a console my wife would like, I had a Xbox and I cant spend 250 for a console with the same graphics that my last gen console had, I wanna move forward! thatws why we upgrade our GPU's in our pc's. BUT the controlers are pretty sweet. I own a 360 and all I gotta says is Halo 3 And Ninja Gaiden II and the main reason i own one. ( not to mention I got a 360 with the HD player for 200 bucks ) PS 3 eh its shiny and all but dang its alot. I would own a Wii over of a PS3 But I OWN a Xbox .
17 Sep 2007 ~ 8:44am SuperSaiyan4 @ Your Amish Daddy

The Wii is on par with the original Xbox? I think you need to clean your glasses mate.

There is NO game on the Wii that is on par with the original Xbox, what is more funny is that some Cube games are better looking than Wii games!

HALO 1 looks better than ANY Wii game.

HALO 2, Fable, PGR1 &2 etc

ALL Xbox 1 games out do the Wii graphically.

I had a Wii and sold it, sure it looks very nice and if you have a friend over that is into a novelty that is the Wii or you have a few friends or you are all drunk then yeah get stuck in.

The Wii is aiming at a different market of gamers, the 360 is for the serious gamers out there (I aint putting the PS3 into the category even though I own one as the PS3 itself doesnt know what the hell it is).

If you want visuals, online, standard pad that is very good not that sensor stuff and you want content and something to build on get an Xbox 360.
17 Sep 2007 ~ 8:47am SuperSaiyan4

primesuspect wrote:

According to the latest numbers from Financial Times, sales of the Nintendo Wii have now outpaced that of the previous best selling Microsoft Xbox 360, despite having been on the market almost a full year less.

At the end of July, people had purchased over 9 million Nintendo Wii consoles, versus 8.9 million 360s and 3.7 million Sony Playstation 3s.

Nintendo's strategy of innovate and reinvigorate rather than improve and flex seems to be paying off. Sure, the "3" systems have many processors and super mega high end graphics, but the Nintendo is completely different and, frankly, just lots of fun.

Oh, and it's only $249.

Perhaps I'm wrong - maybe the only factor is price. Either way, Nintendo seems well on their way to winning this round.

Fanboys in 3....2...1....

I just want to add that those figures are wrong, Microsoft has already said they have sold around 11million consoles when they mentioned it at E3 (something about missing their target slightly) and I know for a fact that its nowhere near 8.9million sold its 11 and yes at around the time of JULY.

So I aint got a clue how they got those figures, and yes however the Wii has taken the lead slightly.
17 Sep 2007 ~ 9:27am primesuspect

primesuspect wrote:

Fanboys in 3....2...1....

SuperSaiyan4 wrote:

HALO 1 looks better than ANY Wii game.

SuperSaiyan4 wrote:

I just want to add that those figures are wrong
17 Sep 2007 ~ 9:44am Cyclonite It took longer than I expected.
17 Sep 2007 ~ 10:11am Sledgehammer70

SuperSaiyan4 wrote:

I just want to add that those figures are wrong, Microsoft has already said they have sold around 11million consoles when they mentioned it at E3 (something about missing their target slightly) and I know for a fact that its nowhere near 8.9million sold its 11 and yes at around the time of JULY.

So I aint got a clue how they got those figures, and yes however the Wii has taken the lead slightly.

I think they used USA numbers only for the PS3 and 360... as the PS3 has almost 5 million sold also...