The Nintendo Wii - A Review

[TJ]

Actually, this is more of a summary than a review, but all the same... As some know I was able to pick up a Wii a short while back so I figured I'd give my opinion on it.

First of all, I have been a longtime Nintendo fan. My first console was the best console evar which I still love and play ocassionally to this day. I bought an N64 (well, my parents did) after it released and a gamecube as well.

Overall the gamecube was somewhat of a failure with it's lack of third party support.

The Wii follows it suit but in a different way. Third party support is there but it's CRAP. All these developers are jumping on the Wii (and it's mainstream success) and making shovelware crap that looks like it belongs on the N64.

Suda 51's No More Heroes, Capcom's Zack and Wiki, as well as Capcom's Resident Evil Umberlla Chronicles are a few of the... well, very few decent third party games out there for the Wii. As expected Nintendo has put out some AAA titles for the Wii including Super Mario Galaxy, Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, Zelda:TP, and the soon to be released in North America, the highly anticipated Super Smash Bros Brawl. Nintendo proves that quality games can be made for the Wii. Unfortunately it doesn't seem like any third parties are following their example (or even trying at all for that matter). And with a lack of quality control from Nintendo it seems there won't be an end to it anytime soon.

The Wii is a mixed bag. Nintendo still caters to it's longtime, "hardcore" fans while also looking to bring gaming to people who had never picked up a controller in their life.

Despite my gripes with it, it's a great console. Virtual Console is pretty awesome with the ability to purchase NES, SNES, N64, Turbo Graphix, Sega Genesis, etc. games at a low price. The backwards compatibility with gamecube games is also of course nice.

As a hardcore gamer I can say that I thuroughly enjoy the Wii for what it is. It's inexpensive, it's a load of fun to play at parties when your drunk, it's the only console my girlfriend will really play with me for long periods at a time and all in all it makes a great secondary console for someone like me. For a casual gamer this console will probably be perfect for you. But for me it just doesn't fully satisfy my gaming needs. I have my PC and within the next 6 months I will probably have decided whether I will put my money in a 360 or a PS3. For now, though, I got my little Wii.

[superSean™]

Great summary. You should purchase a 360. It'll fulfill everything you're hearts ever desired.

[Mandril]

There is absolutely alot of room for improvement when it comes to games, but I think the Wii has a bright future to look forward to.

In terms of console sales the Nintendo Wii is currently leading the pack, and the demand doesn't seem to be falling anytime soon either.
With such success, alot of stockholders of game developers worldwide are pushing for games to be made for the Wii. It's a simple cash-in opportunity and alot of games with lacking quality will continue to be released. The casual gamer generally buys on impulse and not after scrolling through various reviews and previews online.

That being said, there will undoubtedly be quality games coming out that keep anyone's Wii from gathering dust.

It will be interesting to see where Japanese developers settle themselves.
Some have already stated that they wish to focus more on the western regions (KOEI specifically)
Will the Wii be overloaded with third party J-RPGs as the PS2 was before it, or will the PS3 be deemed worthy by the Japanese market after all?

[NeoNMD]

My sisters boyfriend has a Wii and my sister LOVES the Wii but he always comes over to my house to play on the 360 with me.
Says it all really...

Wii games are great novelties and due to the controller the novelty changes with every game made (till people run out of ideas)
I enjoyed playing Zelda:TP , Mario Galaxy and Metroid but I completed all of them in a day (SMG with all stars past the end of the story too.)

Its a good sweet console with tricks but its simply not difficult or long enough for a more hardcore gamer.

[sk]

biggest waste of my money ever

[TJ]

Originally Posted by NeoNMD

My sisters boyfriend has a Wii and my sister LOVES the Wii but he always comes over to my house to play on the 360 with me.
Says it all really...

Wii games are great novelties and due to the controller the novelty changes with every game made (till people run out of ideas)
I enjoyed playing Zelda:TP , Mario Galaxy and Metroid but I completed all of them in a day (SMG with all stars past the end of the story too.)

Its a good sweet console with tricks but its simply not difficult or long enough for a more hardcore gamer.

There is no way you could have beat Zelda:TP in one day unless you played for 20 hours straight and skipped all the heart collecting, cave of ordeals, etc.

What about other games? CoD4, Bioshock, Heavenly Sword, etc. All real quick to beat. This is the same for games on all consoles, excluding RPG's.

There is no reason you can't have more than one console. Like I said, Wii is a great secondary console.

Originally Posted by brad

biggest waste of my money ever

Keep it up and you'll be banned faster than you can say "what the fuck for?".

[Payne IV]

Good shit TJ.

I'm not a big Wii fan myself, but it's a good little system.

[NeoNMD]

Maybe I over exaggerated beating it in a day when I was trying to prove my difficulty point, well I played zelda for a day and then got bored with the game although I met no obstacle other than the sheer size of the map.

I'll be honest it is a very good idea of Nintendo to have the Virtual Console on the Wii because to be able to buy all my much loved SNES RPG's will be a delight as soon as Lewis gets round to putting the internet channel on his Wii. I will probably enjoy that more than the Wii games because I just happen to be that type of geek

[Payne IV]

I just remembered, Bram has a Wii. I'll make him buy Super Mario Galaxy so I can play it.

[TJ]

(Make him buy Smash Bros Brawl)