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[Afro Republican]

My thought in short:

-The start of the modern uncompetitive, technically outdated Nintendo
-Definitely a fad that didn't last very long
-The Wiimote was rather unergonomic, and way too imprecise to be anything than a very casual oriented, superficially fun waggle device
-In the end almost no game managed to dignify the Wiimote as an actually preferable controller for dedicated gaming...
-...Except for the ir pointer, that at least helped to revive on-rail arcade style shooters for a while
-Ultimately a pretty decent post-Snes Nintendo home console, on par with Gamecube in my opinion
-But overall, worst library for a generation-leading console ever

One thing is that even after some time devs still basically used the wiimote swing as a substitute button press. Nintendo couldn't really get devs to take the controller seriously.

Also, they dropped the ball the second half. I think just some HD Wii would have at least held some of the Wii popularity instead of it crumbling to pieces. By the time the XBO/PS4 came out the 360 and PS3 were selling ahead of the wii in many of its key countries. If it wasn't for Microsoft/Sony being so iffy on dropping the prices of the 360/PS3 to $99 (or below) they both may have ended up beating the Wii.

I mean no consoles has ever had a lead that big and basically dropped the ball so bad that the competition was sniffing 1st places behind.

 

[desertdroog]

The Wii was a way for me to play Metroid trilogy in a unique way. However, Metroid is the only Nintendo IP I enjoy, so every Nintendo console turns out to essentially be that Metroid system, to me.

I enjoyed Other-M. I did not enjoy the pixel hunt or the flip the waggle stick at the screen to do one off weapon shots. I'd like to see another frenetic Metroid game in that vein, but with a proper joypad as the sole means to play.

The waggle sticks work well with the Prime type of game play, so no real complaints there.

I also bought the 3ds for Samus Returns, and only for that game.

I really like Metroid.

 

[Daniel Thomas MacInnes]

One thing is that even after some time devs still basically used the wiimote swing as a substitute button press. Nintendo couldn't really get devs to take the controller seriously.

Also, they dropped the ball the second half. I think just some HD Wii would have at least held some of the Wii popularity instead of it crumbling to pieces. By the time the XBO/PS4 came out the 360 and PS3 were selling ahead of the wii in many of its key countries. If it wasn't for Microsoft/Sony being so iffy on dropping the prices of the 360/PS3 to $99 (or below) they both may have ended up beating the Wii.

I mean no consoles has ever had a lead that big and basically dropped the ball so bad that the competition was sniffing 1st places behind.

Nintendo's biggest problem has always been their short attention span. They invent a new gadget, use it two or three times, then completely lose interest in it and wander off to invent something else. It's great that they can always innovate and conjure new, novel ideas, but they never commit to them long enough, regardless of its success.

The DS touch screen is probably the most famous example. Nintendo pioneered a terrific new way of playing videogames, but after a few years, seemed to lose interest and went back to focusing on traditional controls. Meanwhile, Apple gleefully swooped in and ran away with the technology and all those new "casual" players, and the rest is history.

As for the (mostly Western) software developers...oy vey. They just threw a collective temper tantrum for five years running over the Wii. They hated the system and its controller, and especially hated being told by their bosses that they had to make videogames for those horrible, no good, dreaded "casuals." Far too often, any Wii titles were dumped onto the "C-list" team and given minimal resources or attention, usually some cheap party game that tried to be Wii Sports but failed miserably.

These aging Comic Book Guys didn't want to create toys for children and parents. They wanted to create interactive movies for adult nerds of the Peter Pan Generation. Western videogame devs have always had this Puritanical shadow hanging over their heads ever since the beginning, so it's understandable why they're so obsessed with creating serious "art."

Besides, there's very little innovation or original thinking in this industry. Most programmers and designers only know how to create this year's version of last year's hit, a Malibu Stacy with a new hat. And these days, that usually means gun games with cinematic cut scenes that cost nine figures. Having to reinvent the wheel or appeal to a new audience is just too much to handle.

Oh, well, it's all water under the bridge now. I would certainly be happier if everybody put more effort into Wii games, but there are a million great videogames for the system and nearly all of them are dirt cheap. I'm not going to get bored anytime soon.

 

[Afro Republican]

Besides, there's very little innovation or original thinking in this industry.

This only really applies to the top like 5 companies though.

 

[JimiNutz]

I was initially really excited by the idea and enjoyed my early days with the console but the novelty very quickly wore off and I didn't stick around to even see some of the good games that came later like Mario Galaxy. Overall I think it was a disappointing console and one of Nintendo's worst.

 

[KiteGr]

I got a Wii very late (almost after) in it's circle.
Nintendo Never lowers the price of it's games, and I had no intention of suddenly buy one one day and throw 2k to get the essensial games, plus the 3rd party ones suffer and some often become hard to find.

I only got one almost by accident after my cus got one with a crappy mod chip on it and threw it on a closet without using it. I bought it from him for a symbolic price installed some proper soft modifications, so I can finally try some of those nintendo and disappearing 3rd party games.

I had to say....
... that standard definition hit me like a truck.
Besides the controllers, I also had to go out and buy a component cable, just to make it easier on the eyes.

There was a decent library that I was missing, but I had to wake my retro self to play games that essentially came a couple of years ago.
The motion controls where mostly a gimmick. Nintendo made some good use of them, but the rest had few good examples, so releasing their games on Wii served only to pass last gen games as current ones.

 

[Afro Republican]

For those that played Mario Party 8, that game might b the most bladed jaggy game on the wii, it's like it cuts your eyes. I can't think of any other wii game, even the bottom shovelware, that looks that bad and have that much jag presence.

I'm not sure how they managed to do that over at Hudson, especially since Nintendo supported them on the project.

 

[Chittagong]

While back in the day it felt like a cheap, SD cop out in a new HD era, in retrospect, Wii was an absolute genius move from Nintendo in so many ways. They were against much richer competitors, yet they were resourceful:

1 - Genius decision to take a GameCube accessory project and make it THE core marketing concept of the new console => immediate differentiation

2 - Reusing GameCube architecture almost 1:1 => immediate developer familiarity and tool maturity

3 - Apple-esque white, glossy, compact design => physically next gen feeling compared to other consoles

4 - Channels UI with always on wifi, pulsating light disc slot => next gen UX experience

5 - Iconic, brave name and branding => immediate mindshare

6 - Superb marketing assets showing people playing, not the games => instant desirability

7 - Power efficiency narrative to explain lack of graphics performance => mitigating the downsides of SD graphics

8 - Virtual Console => leveraging the unique legacy, while establishing the idea of DLC

9 - Iconic Wii Games series with Wii Sports, Wii Fit, Wii Music, Wii Play => instant killer apps

Incredibly, Wii also had many amazing games. I loved Super Mario Galaxys, New Super Mario Bros, the two Metroid games, Donkey Kong Country Returns, Mario Kart, Wario Land... and novel new games like Another Code, Endless Ocean, Disaster, Project Zero.

All this, from conjured around this accessory:

 

[hououinkyouma00]

None of the poll options really fit for me.

I think it’s a underrated console. People remember waggle, and wii sports but ignore stuff like Fragile Dream, Fatal Frame 2/4, Galaxy 1/2.

 

[yesrushdt]

I'm in the "one of the greatest console experiences I've ever had" camp. The Wii along with the consoles that came before it (and even the WiiU) had a great lineup of games. The same can't be said about the SwitchPort nearly 2 years into the life of that system.

 

[AeonGaidenRaiden]

It was a great party/crowd game with friends getting drunk or high but I never took it seriously, it looked cheap, aimed at parents and grand parents and their underage kids. I know it was super successful but I think its just because it reached this unreachable demographic of older people that felt like they are playing an Atari Pong again. Once again, the consoles didnt mean killing and violence but instead was family fun. Worked on that front but for a hardcore gamer, it was...lame.

 

[DonJimbo]

It was great to play cod on or all the great nintendo masterpieces
Great experience but a fad sadly

 

[zwiggelbig]

I recently had a lan party. We also had a switch but we had the most fun playing Wii sports resorts all night lol

 

[kyussman]

It was a hell of a bold move to drop out of the console arms race and say we are gonna go in the opposite direction and make a console for people who don't usually play video games......so kudos for that.

I've never had an interest in NIntendo games so the Wii didn't change that but I appreciate their willingness to innovate in the medium it's very important......of course it came back to bite them in the ass with the WiiU but that's another story.