You Scream, I Scream, We All Scream For Nintendo Wii

It is official, I am not addicted to Nintendo Wii. Even though I have only actually played one once, all it takes is one try. Here is an article on the sale of the Xbox360 and the Nintendo Wii. The article is Wii Hits Xbox at the Tills, written by Asher Mosses. Here is the link to the original article.

"It took the Nintendo Wii just three weeks to surpass the Xbox 360's sales in Australia for the entire fourth quarter of 2006, figures from market watcher GfK show. The quarterly figures, released by games analyst Daniel Morse, show Nintendo sold 51,744 Wiis, whereas Microsoft sold 45,036 Xbox 360s. However, since the Wii only went on sale from December 8, its figures relate only to the three weeks to December 31, whereas the Xbox 360 numbers pertain to the entire three-month quarter. But the aging PlayStation 2, which has been on sale for seven years, remains the console king with 122,639 units sold. The figures are not surprising when one considers the differing price points. PS2, nearing the end of its life cycle, can be had for $199, while the Xbox 360 and Wii sell for about $600 and $399 respectively. Microsoft is quick to argue that, despite its lower sales figure, the higher price of the Xbox 360 means that it doesn't have to sell as many units to derive the same revenue. But most retailers interviewed said the Wii was selling as fast as Nintendo could supply them. Steve Wilson, managing director of EB Games, said: "Every retailer just sold what they had. "The Wii was constrained by inventory. We couldn't get all the stock we wanted," he said. But the Wii's results were not totally unexpected, he said. "The product only launched on [midnight] December 7, so it's not unusual for there to be quite large demand for a new console at launch, and you add to that that it was Christmas." A Nintendo spokesman, Vispi Bhopti, said the Wii shortage occurred because Nintendo insisted on a simultaneous global launch, and it produced as many consoles as possible before the launch date. "We made a commitment to our fans that we would release this within a short, global timeframe," he said. "Had there been more stock available to us we certainly would have been able to fulfil more of the demand. "But, regardless, we see this as a long-term product and we don't measure our success entirely on day one, week one, month one." Sony's next console, the PlayStation 3, has been available overseas for some time, but its Australian launch is scheduled for March. Recent reports suggest that it could be delayed even further, and its price of close to $1000 - largely the result of the included Blu-ray disc drive - is expected to initially limit its installation base."

I am not surprised that the Wii and the Xbox360 out sold the Playstation 3. However, I must say that I am shocked at how much the Wii out sold the Xbox360, about 5,000. However, the article does point out that the Wii's release date was closer to the holiday season than that of the Xbox360. Sure the $399 for a Wii is almost half that for the other systems but that is still a lot of money. Setting a global release date was a original idea on Nintendo's part, but they severely underestimated the demand for their product. Sure the graphics are not as life like as those of the PS3, but I personally find it more enjoyable to play. It seems that Ms.Cao has done her part and convinced everyone to purchase a Nintendo Wii. Well I am off to save my money so that I may join the party, I shall return $399 plus tax later.

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess with music from Pirates of the Caribbean.