Wii-velations

Nintendo has announced the release date of their next-gen console, and in a daring move, they’re sliding the Wii in just days after the PS3. The Wii will release in the US November 19, witha  $249.99 USD price tag and a bundled game, Wii Sports. The attempt to return bundled games to currency is not lost on me — I fondly remember the days when you could actually expect that with video game systems, when being able to open the box and pull out not only hardware, but the ever-necessary software was canonical. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, which is the latest, and certainly quite intriguing, entry in the sword-and-sorcery franchise, will also see US release on the 19th, with an expected price point of $49.99, which most of us have come to expect for a new game.

Of course, more seasoned pundits than I have already sounded off on this issue repeatedly.  One particular piece of interesting journalism essentially damned Nintendo for the brazen audacity of selling the Wii console at a profit.  I fail to see how this is a bad thing, and, moreover, have to voice the obvious question: If Nintendo can sell the Wii at a profit with a price point of $249.99, what is stopping Microsoft and Sony from being able to accomplish the same feat?  The price of a fully-fitted PS3 will be more than double the Wii’s almost paltry price tag, and yet Sony’s not making a proft from its new machine? This doesn’t strike me as “having faith in your product,” as this article would espouse, but rather being incapable of making a good business decision to save your life. Why wouldn’t you be able to make a profit off a $600.00 USD price point? But no, better to make your money off software than to risk “lacking faith” and making an actual profit off the expensive and costly-to-produce hardware.

People like this are why capitalism is doomed.

So anyhow, this gives Nintendo fanbois everywhere something to hyperventilate about, and it also gives a concrete timetable to the release of, in my opinion, the strongest of the three “next-gen” platforms. Good to know.

On the subject of the blog itself, I haven’t heard much from Matt #2 as late, so until I hear otherwise I’m holdin’ out and waiting for October. I’ll try to keep you all updated with the occasional newspost when I have time.

Your safeguard against the hype,

Matt #1