Wii Gets More Goodies
Nintendo's Iwata suggests the Wii will offer original casual games and DS demos.
by David Adams



June 5, 2006 - In a recent interview with Tech-On!, Nintendo CEO Satoru Iwata offered more perspective on not only the company's unique strategy with the Wii, but how that approach integrates with the already-proven Nintendo DS. For instance, Iwata suggested that the Wii's always-on connectivity will allow Nintendo to distribute promotional demos not only for the Wii, but for the Nintendo DS.


"Let's say your Wii is connected to the internet in a mode that allows activation on a 24-hour basis," he said. "This would allow Nintendo to send monthly promotional demos for the DS, during the night, to the Wii consoles in each household. Users would wake up each morning, find the LED lamp on their Wii flashing, and know that Nintendo has sent them something."

Of course, Nintendo hopes to offer more than just demos. Iwata also implied that in addition to offering a library of classic titles, the Wii will also let users download original casual games similar to what is offered by Microsofts Xbox Live Arcade, opening up an industry which may be too focused on full-budget titles.

"When creating a packaged game to be priced at 5,000 yen, developers tend to feel the need to create a rich game," Iwata commented. "Yet it is possible to create a reasonably entertaining game in 2 months with a team of three. Offering such games for 500 yen over a network could lead to a reasonable number of people purchasing it."

Not surprisingly, Iwata again emphasized the lateral direction of the Wii, which is not intended to be a "next-generation" console; Nintendo is not trying to beat Sony and Microsoft in the high-technology race, nor is it intending to offer a mere successor to the GameCube. Iwata hopes a unique interface will ignite the Wii as it has the Nintendo DS.

"When Nintendo opted for the dual screens for the DS, more people were shaking their heads and wondering what we were thinking, than commending us for the decision. Yet the market turned out favorable to the DS," he said.

"Nintendo once was the champion in the console market, yet is now the challenger. Challengers have a hard time getting the market to listen to them. Our intent was to revolutionize the user interface in the portable games market, where Nintendo is the reigning champion, and follow that up with the Wii's success in the console market. We have earned support for our user interface innovation much faster than I had expected, and this should help propel the Wii forward."

Thanks IGN

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