Opinion: What If Nintendo Never Launched the Wii?

Awesome article James and I agree on just everything you said. It's funny that in the beginning of this console cycle some were comparing the 360 to the Dreamcast, but those comparisons have since been proven completely untrue. Furthermore, I think it's safe to say that the Wiifit balance board is the most successful peripheral in video game history.

What I'm wondering is what will Nintendo do for the next gen. Will they keep it simple with motion controls and SD graphics or will they finally move into the high definition world of graphics? I think they should do both: motion controls, HD graphics and an actual hard drive this time.

Thank you THE 1 2 P. I think Nintendo will do what you said, keep motion, add HD graphics and more storage (hard drive). The pattern for Nintendo has always been to "lag behind" with certain features until those features are more readily adopted by the masses.

They always said online gaming just wasn't popular enough and that broadband wasn't prevalent, then they finally gave in with the Wii to make online a bigger component (although still pretty horrible compared to 360/PS3). The same goes for HD graphics - they said that HDTV penetration just wasn't high enough, but now HDTV prices have plummeted and a lot of people would like higher res visuals to match their TV, so there's no way the next console won't be AT LEAST 720p.

This was a wonderful article and proof enough to make me register to spend some time here to offer my thoughts on why the wii sticking to SD format was smart.

Video game consoles since the Nintendo had probably the best marketing department in history. When we think about the technology in video game consoles and compare that with computers available to consumers the result is that the consumer thinks that every video game console has been the representative of the highest technology when in reality video game consoles just take advantage of what was already mainstream.

It is this single console generation where the two titans took the leap and pushed their consoles to actually match or be better than computers. With this leap came the biggest mountain our of a molehill I see fellow gamers rant about, "HD" graphics. While most people who consider themselves gamers have their HD big screen televisions the main consumer base of those young, old, and poor don't own a HD television. Could you imagine as a parent getting a console for your child and then finding out you have to buy a really expensive television just because of the connection cables? It is here where we gamers do not look at the big picture.

Consoles have never been state of the art of technology until now and the only reason they can stand is not because of the consumer supporting the console but the companies supporting the technology that goes with the console. Sony and Microsoft are in uncharted territory as they have made their consoles even closer to computers in terms of power and hardware and I question how long they will be able to support future consoles financially before dropping them altogether.

Great article. Hope to see more.

James, great post as always. It got me thinking about another "what if" that might have changed Wii's prospects...what if Wii Sports had not been the pack-in title with Wii for the North American launch. As part of the Wii launch team, I can tell you that even this critical decision was in doubt within several months of launch. Anyway, I wanted to let you know that your story inspired me to write a blog post about this other "what if" moment. You can find that post at Gamasutra and on my own blog at scottpelland.com. Thanks again for the fun post and the inspiration!

@Tenmar, thanks. You make a good point about the financial side of these high-end consoles. Sony really took a beating thanks to PS3, and MS had to cough up a billion on its warranty plan thanks to RROD. The difference of course is MS is well M$, so it doesn't hurt them that much. Sony on the other hand has been facing severe competition in electronics from Samsung, Panasonic, etc, so they can't afford many missteps at SCE. I think we'll only have one more round of disc-based hardware, and then it'll be mostly or all digital. I'm very curious to see how OnLive, Gaikai and other cloud based systems pan out.

@Scott, thank you also. I just checked out your post about Wii Play. You're absolutely right. Wii Play would have been a nightmare. Wii Sports is what sold the Wii to everyone. As soon as they played it, they "got" what Wii was all about. Microsoft would be very wise to pack in something equally compelling and easy to pick up and play with Natal.

Great article!

I first read Scott Pelland "What if" and from there I was linked to yours.
It is really hard not to agree with your ten statements. As a Nintendo loyalist, I wish they keep making the right decisions and prove the those who say Nintendo has gone Casual they are wrong.

"I wish they keep making the right decisions and prove the those who say Nintendo has gone Casual they are wrong."

This sentence is confusing. Are you somehow implying that Nintendo hasn't been trying to appeal to the more casual audience?

This article was spot on. It's interesting to see what new information can be gleaned from hindsight. I am disappointed to hear about Nintendo supposedly getting arrogant again though. Is it just in regards to public comments about sales or is it difficult to get them to comment on anything? As far back as I can remember they've always been stingy about providing preview time with upcoming software, so that wouldn't be anything new.

It's something of a misnomer to say Nintendo has become arrogant because they've been very arrogant for a while now, but it's gotten worse since the Wii released. They're pretty puffed up on their own success and getting any sort of comment from them is like pulling teeth.