Nintendo Wii

Nintendo

Introduction
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Now that I actually have my Wii console I can stick to my promise of editing my review to it is a review and now just a preview. First of all lets start with the name of this console. The code name Nintendo used during production was the "revolution". its actual name is the "Nintendo Wii" (pronounced "we"). Since I bought an N64 I have been a huge Nintendo fan and so when the next generation of game consoles were announced my immediate thought was that I would be buying the Nintendo console. This thought was without really consulting any information about the console and when Microsoft began to advertise its next generation console my thoughts started to waver. It was only when Nintendo announced its plans for its next generation consoles game pad that I knew I would be buying this console. As this is the real selling point about the Nintendo Wii: the extraordinary game pad.

Availability
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With previous Nintendo consoles availability has always been a problem. There has always been a lower demand for the Nintendo consoles and hence less consoles available on the market. Hopefully this will not be the case with this one. It's plain to see by the release of the Microsoft console that demand is high when these consoles are first released and availability is extremely limited. One should be wary of extortionate prices on Internet sites such as ebay. I Pre-ordered my Wii with HMV, paying the same price as you would in the shop and there was no shipping costs. I received the console on the release date. I was in the shops on the release date and there were no consoles available.

Cost
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As with the previous Nintendo consoles once again this console will almost definitely be cheaper than its rival consuls. This may be because of better design and packaging but also could be because of lack of spending on advertising which its rivals seem to invest more thoroughly in. The general price for the Wii is £179.99- with the "Wii Sports" game bundled in. But with both x box 360 (Now down to £200 for its standard version) and playstation 3 over £300, this console will definitely be the cheapest.

Longevity
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Again we must look at the previous Nintendo consoles longevity. If this console is similar to the previous ones, its lifespan will be shorter than its rivals. Nintendo's taken a chance with its new console and it is this chance which may make or break the project.

Games
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Nintendo always has less games available for its consoles because less game produces take a risk on Nintendo. Big companies such as rare have had major success on Nintendo and then fallen out with them and been bought up by companies such as Microsoft. The big loss this time is that of Capcom which although producing games for Nintendo for the moment may well move elsewhere. Nintendo previously held all Capcom rights and all games produced by Capcom were on the Nintendo. Games such as resident evil and street fighter were only Now these games are also available on other platforms and may in the future be solely available on these platforms. I also asked the question "how many being produces will actually take into account the Nintendo's capabilities with its new game pad and use this? Will this affect games being made on the Nintendo? Of course certain games of these types only be available on the Nintendo. Adverts for this new Nintendo console show players firing with the game pad, striking an imaginary ball and even conducting music. Nintendo say that you will be able to perform such actions as putting slice and topspin on tennis games. I was just trying this today and it is true. This seems an extraordinary feat of engineering. There are a few games that will be released with the Wii and some look amazing. The ones I am looking forward to most are the new super smash brothers game (which includes new characters such as metal snake), the new legend of Zelda game and the latest metroid prime offering. Another major bonus of the Wii is the fact you can download any game from the entire history of Nintendo gaming and play them on the Wii. It has connectors for gamecube controllers and plays those games directly too. The prices for downloading work by a voucher system. You purchase a voucher for around £20 with 2000 points on it. N64 games cost 1000 points. Snes games cost 600 and nes games cost 300.

Technology
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Nintendo's new console has the least impressive specifications of the new consoles, not taking into account the futuristic game pad. Nintendo have attempted to improve the "fun factor" to reduce the price and thus the hardware isn't as leading edge. After PlayStation's huge delay, it looks as if it will have the best components and technology (and also be the most expensive). But Nintendo's console is by long way the smallest of the three consoles and in my opinion looks the best. As with the others it has an internet connection this time and seems to have taken care of all the oversights of previous consoles. There are snazzy little extra features like a photoshop, its very own unique online meeting and chatting place with uniquely created characters and weather forecasting.

Conclusion
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I have already given my opinion. I now own this console. Nintendo consoles are always extremely fun. The thought of being able to become more involved in games as you will be able to with this console is extremely exciting. Being able to play shooting games by firing the controller like a gun or slicing through things with an imaginary sword, seems like the stuff of imagination or science fiction film. The shock of the Capcom news almost threw me and as resident evil is probably my favourite game I was worried. But coupled with the new game pad this game stands to be head and shoulders above the others on different platforms. It looks sleek and beautiful, it has a number of playing levels and uses, its innovative and most of all fun. Even if you don't buy one you will be begging to try one out!