Tech Review

This story has the Wii beating th other two consoles. Some of my friends bought the Nintendo Wii as soon as it came out and I thought then that it would be the most successful (honest). The reason was simple: The Nintendo Wii was the most fun of the three. Not only was it the most fun, but it allowed a whole new group of gamers to play.

Let me explain. I, and I assume millions around the world, lack whatever necessary finger dexterity is necessary to play quick reaction, twitchy games (first-person shooters) competitively. The Nintendo Wii's legitimately revolutionary gyro-motion control divorced game play from finger control, allowing you to use your whole body in natural movements (Not to be sexist, but I get the feeling that the better half of the population would fall into the group that prefers the whole-body approach). When you think about it, how ridiculous was it that your gaming success depended on one physical trait, finger control?

That one feature counted more than Playstation three and X-Box's higher resolution, faster processors, next generation movie playback (HD-DVD and Blu-Ray), and even greater game selection. The one other feature Nintendo couldn't compromise on was online play and they didn't; the features are pretty much the same across all three platforms.

Indeed, it was as if the folks at Nintendo decided, "you know what? let's just make a game system that's fun" (the name makes sense now, doesn't it?). Let me go over the wisdom of that decision:

1. Only super-squids (let's say maybe 10% of the gaming population) care about the high end features. Most people just want to turn it on and play Super Mario or Dragon Quest. Complication can actually hinder fun as anybody who's ever used technology knows.

2. People don't care about playing movies on their game console. Most people have stand-alone DVD players or can get one for the cost of the special at Domino's if they don't already use their computer. Blu-Ray and HD-DVD aren't compelling technologies either. People are happy with DVD.

3. Music on game consoles? Please. Consumers have about 23 things they can play Mp3 on already.

4. High resolution is nice, but it requires a high resolution screen. They're getting more popular, but still make up only 20% of U.S. households. Think about that. Eighty percent of people, even if they cared about high resolution gaming, wouldn't even be able to enjoy it. Besides, many kids play console games on the second or third family TV, which are much less likely to be HD.

5. Game selection is an advantage when there's one game that everyone has to have. Today, games are pretty much the same. Most gamers don't need to have Brother's in Arms especially. They just need a WWII shooter.

To sum up, the Nintendo people made a wise decision in focusing on game play. They not only allowed a whole new segment of the population to enjoy video games, but made lots of money. Good for them.

By the way, would I allow either three in the Guirado household? No.

This site has a detailed comparison of the different consoles.

Playstation 3

Wii players. Notice women like to play too. Smart.

Yeah, right.

Below is an advertisement for the Wii which illustrates Nintendo's marketing approach. It's a little racy, and I know some of my readers would get offended. Don't watch if girls in tight shorts offend you. I'm serious.

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