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[dyls]

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Nothing terribly exciting, but at least it's a break from the almost total silence from Nintendo since the Wii launch.

GamePro: Where would you say the Wii stands now? Did it meet your expectations or exceed them?

Fils-Aime: I'll be honest with you -- I'm blown away. We knew we would sell every piece of hardware put into the market, but we did not expect all the buzz and the advocacy...especially from non-gamers. I can't tell you how many people I have talked to or read about who played Wii Sports during the holidays and were suddenly surrounded by relatives who wanted to give it a shot. Everyone, from kids up to grandma and grandpa.

We knew Wii was a system for the masses, and yes, we were confident that was going to happen-but this fast? Personally, I'm just blown away.

on the PS3's troubles

GP: Sony appears to be having difficulties moving a large number of PS3s. What, if anything, do you think is to blame for this? A high price? A lack of must-have games?

Fils-Aime: Happily, that's a question you'll have to put to Sony.

Comparisons with Apple

GP: Apple and Nintendo are commonly compared. Do you see any similarities between the strategies of the two companies?

Fils-Aime: Although we're in different businesses, I think both companies are driven by a relentless vision that's frequently at odds with the "conventional wisdom" in our respective industries. We both aggressively pursue innovation, and I think much of that innovation centers on software and the interface between user and device, rather than pure horsepower which receives a disproportionate amount of attention.

Wii60 takes another blow.

The Wii and Xbox 360 are very different consoles, but both have found enormous success and are powering a kind of "new renaissance" in the gaming industry. Is there any common denominator?

Fils-Aime: Wii has clearly met the early expectations we had for it. Obviously, in pure numbers, it's by far the best launch in this generation of systems, and this was done in what I believe was the first truly simultaneous worldwide launch. But I think it's safe to say we have a very different vision of the nature and future of gaming than Microsoft does.

 

[Smiles and Cries]

meh... should have hit him with where the hell are your shipments!

 

[GhaleonEB]

GamePro: Where would you say the Wii stands now? Did it meet your expectations or exceed them?

Fils-Aime: I'll be honest with you -- I'm blown away. We knew we would sell every piece of hardware put into the market, but we did not expect all the buzz and the advocacy...especially from non-gamers. I can't tell you how many people I have talked to or read about who played Wii Sports during the holidays and were suddenly surrounded by relatives who wanted to give it a shot. Everyone, from kids up to grandma and grandpa.

We knew Wii was a system for the masses, and yes, we were confident that was going to happen-but this fast? Personally, I'm just blown away.

I don't think they meant his personal expectations. :lol

 

[Blackace]

GP: Sony appears to be having difficulties moving a large number of PS3s. What, if anything, do you think is to blame for this? A high price? A lack of must-have games?

Fils-Aime: Happily, that's a question you'll have to put to Sony.

-100 respect points for no trash talking..

 

[Agent Icebeezy]

-100 respect points for no trash talking..

They should put these questions to Yamauchi for real answers. Iwata would have deferred like Reggie did as well.

 

[R-User!]

must. post. in. thread.

 

[dyls]

must. post. in. thread.

should we call you a doctor?

 

[ryutaro's mama]

-100 respect points for no trash talking..

Aww..c'mon...Reggie can't take the high road?:lol

 

[R-User!]

should we call you a doctor?

naaaaah.

 

[Blackace]

Aww..c'mon...Reggie can't take the high road?:lol

there is no high road...

 

[Kafel]

GP: There have been some complaints that certain third-party launch titles haven't made good use of the Wii Remote. Is this an ongoing concern for Nintendo?

Fils-Aime: Not at all. In fact, I think the early titles have been terrific. Look at what Rayman does...Madden does...Trauma Center does...Elebits does. Remember that these are just the first generation of games using the new controller, and the results are amazing. What title for any other new system can match their control innovation? This is just the start.

Third parties are excited to a degree they haven't been for a long time. And that's because of Wii. Look...a new control system...the real chance to invent entirely new genres...and all at a fraction of what development costs on other consoles? It's a no-brainer. We have an incredibly talented group of game partners.

GP: Will Nintendo work with third-party developers to help them maximize their use of the Wii Remote functions?

Fils-Aime: Absolutely. We love our third party partners, we support them, we ardently want them to succeed. Make no mistake. A vibrant pipeline of third-party titles for Wii-and for DS, for that matter-is a very good thing for Nintendo.

Good.

 

[Rancid Mildew]

Even though he's little more than a PR robot, Reggie is definitely a very efficient and respectable guy. Nintendo is lucky to have such a focused representative.

 

[Tim the Wiz]

Even though he's little more than a PR robot, Reggie is definitely a very efficient and respectable guy. Nintendo is lucky to have such a focused representative.

I thought he was the President of NoA now?

 

[Pureauthor]

So not unecessarily slamming the competition nets you a loss of respect points now?

Oh, well. Guess I'd better get on the ball if I want to keep my reputation up.

 

[Smiles and Cries]

-100 respect points for no trash talking..

Nah, he is faced with major shortages of Wiis he can't really start bashing Sony or people will just point out that Wii is shipping by canoe with turtles manning the paddles

I thought he was the President of NoA now?

and you would be right

 

[Haunted]

Nice interview. I like Reggie.

 

[Lobster]

Some questions...

 

[AniHawk]

and you would be right

I forgot about that. He's so... PR...ish.

 

[Smiles and Cries]

GP: Is there any update on multi-colored Wiis? How exactly does that strategy fit into Nintendo's larger vision?

Fils-Aime: Maybe that question will have more relevance once we've managed to meet the overwhelming worldwide demand for our current color!

Good Answer... Good Answer.
*clapping like they do on Family Feud*

 

[Pud]

I can't believe no one pointed this one out:

GP: In the future, is Nintendo looking into a way to serve customers with HD content?

Fils-Aime: I just saw a survey from the Center for Media Research that showed only 17 percent of U.S. households have a TV set capable of high definition. Flip that number around, and that means that a full 83 percent of households do not have the means to produce the kinds of visuals that high definition devices require. Of course, we're intensely interested in better technology, but sometimes our definition of the right technology is different from other people's.

Holy hell, is HD penetration really that low in the US?

 

[Eteric Rice]

I can't believe no one pointed this one out:


Holy hell, is HD penetration really that low in the US?

Then consider how many people actually have it set up for HD...

 

[CorwinB]

I can't believe no one pointed this one out:


Holy hell, is HD penetration really that low in the US?

IIRC current HD penetration is low, but it's growing very fast.

 

[Smiles and Cries]

Then consider how many people actually have it set up for HD...

:lol blinking VCR clock all over again?

 

[May16]

Fils-Aime: Happily, that's a question you'll have to put to Sony.

I was hoping for some classic "not my problem" action after that question. Disappointed total.

 

[Haunted]

I can't believe no one pointed this one out:


Holy hell, is HD penetration really that low in the US?

The US have by far the highest HD penetration rate of the three major markets.

 

[TheGreatDave]

Having a HDTV doesn't mean you watch HD TV. That % is only going to get lower the more research you do. I have a HDTV, but all our TV comes through SCART just because HD TV through Sky here in the UK is too expensive. To many people, they're buying flat LCD TVs, and don't necessarily know much about HD.

 

[Lapsed]

GamePro: Where would you say the Wii stands now? Did it meet your expectations or exceed them?

Fils-Aime: I'll be honest with you -- I'm blown away. We knew we would sell every piece of hardware put into the market, but we did not expect all the buzz and the advocacy...especially from non-gamers. I can't tell you how many people I have talked to or read about who played Wii Sports during the holidays and were suddenly surrounded by relatives who wanted to give it a shot. Everyone, from kids up to grandma and grandpa.

We knew Wii was a system for the masses, and yes, we were confident that was going to happen-but this fast? Personally, I'm just blown away.

A better question would have been 'what were your original expectations for the Wii?' A disruptive product is not supposed to sell gangbusters at first. There is a good early adopter rate, but as the product finds its way it suddenly shoots upward in sales. Disruptor products like the Ipod, Amazon.com, Blackberry, and even the DS followed that trend. I expected Wii to confuse most mainstream gamers like the DS did (and it has with some).

Disruption products tend not to skyrocket at first because they haven't exactly found their exact use. In Innovater's Dillema, Christenson used the small diskette example that first took hold with laptops for a while before completely disrupting the larger 5 inch diskettes on main computers. The disruptor product must be put on an 'island' so it can grow (like the diskettes with the laptops). Nintendo referred to this island as the 'third pillar'. The big launch title for DS was Mario 64 DS which did not fully utilize DS's disruptive properties (not like Nintendogs or Brain Age would).

The difference with Wii was Nintendo was able to put out proper software that illustrates the disruptive nature of the system (Wii Sports). If there was no Wii Sports, we'd still be scratching our heads over what the system is about. Twilight Princess is great, but like Mario 64 DS, it doesn't show what the Wii can do.

 

[Mr_Moogle]

Give me my black Wii Reggie!

 

[sharkie]

:lol @ the people how took the -100 respect points seriously.

Most of the people I know who have HDTV's in UK have no idea what it is and are blissfully happy that there tv's are so thin, so most people here are upgrading to HDTV's purely for aesthetic purposes.

 

[Roi]

-100 respect points for no trash talking..

 

[PhoenixDark]

I can't believe no one pointed this one out:


Holy hell, is HD penetration really that low in the US?

lolz

But I've seen studies that suggest the penetration will increase rapidly in 2009. By that time the PS3 and Xbox 360 will be duking it out, and the Blu Ray/HD-DVD debate might actually matter. If that does indeed happen, the Wii will look even more outdated, and Nintendo will look less visionary that they're seen now

 

[Xrenity]

Good.

Hmm, why doesn't he mention Red Steel?
Really weird. It wasn't that good, but it was the third party title, or at least they wanted us to think so.

 

[Jenga]

-100 respect points for no trash talking..

Has Yamauchi been interviewed lately? I want to see what he has to say about Sony doing badly.

 

[Pureauthor]

lolz

But I've seen studies that suggest the penetration will increase rapidly in 2009. By that time the PS3 and Xbox 360 will be duking it out, and the Blu Ray/HD-DVD debate might actually matter. If that does indeed happen, the Wii will look even more outdated, and Nintendo will look less visionary that they're seen now

The problem would be that the 'winner' should be clearly decided by 2009, as such, the little HD-DVD vs. BluRay war is going to be useless to us regardless.

And your avatar creeps me out.

 

[fresquito]

What a lame interview. Why didn't they ask him about the shipped figures? They haven't meet them.

 

[jwj442]

Boring interview. Too many softball questions.

 

[farnham]

where is the january announcement you promised reggie..?

what happened with the 4 million world wide shipment till the end of year.. it seems like you barely managed 3 million..

do you think the graphical capabilities of the Wii will hurt the system in the long run.. and if it does.. do you think there will be WIIHD..?

or questions along this line would have been better

 

[DeaconKnowledge]

Boring interview. Too many softball questions.

I have to agree. Although Gamepro isn't really known for anything but being being milquetoast anyway.

 

[Magicpaint]

What a lame interview. Why didn't they ask him about the shipped figures? They haven't meet them.

Exactly.

They're asking him questions about PS3's shipment difficulties but failed to ask him about Nintendo's own difficulty in shipping out the damn Wii systems.

 

[robor]

A better question would have been 'what were your original expectations for the Wii?' A disruptive product is not supposed to sell gangbusters at first. There is a good early adopter rate, but as the product finds its way it suddenly shoots upward in sales. Disruptor products like the Ipod, Amazon.com, Blackberry, and even the DS followed that trend. I expected Wii to confuse most mainstream gamers like the DS did (and it has with some).

Disruption products tend not to skyrocket at first because they haven't exactly found their exact use. In Innovater's Dillema, Christenson used the small diskette example that first took hold with laptops for a while before completely disrupting the larger 5 inch diskettes on main computers. The disruptor product must be put on an 'island' so it can grow (like the diskettes with the laptops). Nintendo referred to this island as the 'third pillar'. The big launch title for DS was Mario 64 DS which did not fully utilize DS's disruptive properties (not like Nintendogs or Brain Age would).

The difference with Wii was Nintendo was able to put out proper software that illustrates the disruptive nature of the system (Wii Sports). If there was no Wii Sports, we'd still be scratching our heads over what the system is about. Twilight Princess is great, but like Mario 64 DS, it doesn't show what the Wii can do.

Incredible, and it's so obvious, right there in our faces, unable to see, until Lapsed comes along and presents us with a portrait of Nintendo's future. Awsome.

 

[Olivier]

Boring interview. Too many softball questions.

Indeed. Somebody needs to ask why Nintendo can't produce more units, and why they (apparently) couldn't ship 4 million in 2006.

 

[tigeroreilly]

its not hard to sell so many units when ur $150-250 cheaper than everyone else. Anyone know what the attach rate is for the Wii? I imagine its still pretty low.

 

[Kilrogg]

A better question would have been 'what were your original expectations for the Wii?' A disruptive product is not supposed to sell gangbusters at first. There is a good early adopter rate, but as the product finds its way it suddenly shoots upward in sales. Disruptor products like the Ipod, Amazon.com, Blackberry, and even the DS followed that trend. I expected Wii to confuse most mainstream gamers like the DS did (and it has with some).

Disruption products tend not to skyrocket at first because they haven't exactly found their exact use. In Innovater's Dillema, Christenson used the small diskette example that first took hold with laptops for a while before completely disrupting the larger 5 inch diskettes on main computers. The disruptor product must be put on an 'island' so it can grow (like the diskettes with the laptops). Nintendo referred to this island as the 'third pillar'. The big launch title for DS was Mario 64 DS which did not fully utilize DS's disruptive properties (not like Nintendogs or Brain Age would).

The difference with Wii was Nintendo was able to put out proper software that illustrates the disruptive nature of the system (Wii Sports). If there was no Wii Sports, we'd still be scratching our heads over what the system is about. Twilight Princess is great, but like Mario 64 DS, it doesn't show what the Wii can do.

My guess is that they have had success from launch onwards because, unlike the DS which is more a GBA with a a touchscreen and a second screen and was touted as a "third pillar" as you said, the Wii as been entirely designed around disruption and innovation. The DS was a sort of first sketch, if you will, whereas the Wii is the definitive product.

Furthermore, it is launched at a time when the competition performs rather poorly. Sony's E3 had been underwhelming, the PSP is almost a failure and the 360, while alone on the market, doesn't perform better than the first XBox. When the DS was launched, there was this new PSP with a huge bright screen and an incredible power for a handheld, complete with a sleek design (vs. the DS Phat, which I like nonetheless ).

Also :

-100 respect points for no trash talking..

You fool! Reggie's sheer presence humiliates its competitors. The Wii doesn't have any success, REGGIE is successful. The Sixaxis does not "copy" the Wiimote, it copies REGGIE.

Let's pray, my brothers.

[EDIT] Lapsed, I forgot something : do you have any example of disruptive products that performed very well right from the beginning of their lives? The comparison between such a product and the Wii could be interesting, you know .

 

[Tieno]

Exactly.

They're asking him questions about PS3's shipment difficulties but failed to ask him about Nintendo's own difficulty in shipping out the damn Wii systems.

So true! Nintendo shouldn't have had any problems meeting their dates.

 

[maxmars]

You fool! Reggie's sheer presence humiliate its competitors. The Wii doesn't have any success, REGGIE is successful. The Sixaxis does not "copy" the Wiimote, it copies REGGIE.

Let's pray, my brothers.

You must be from Netherlands, I mean, it's the only place I know of where drugs aren't illegal.

 

[the thoroughbred]

What is all this about Wii not meeting 4 million. I am pretty sure everyone by the first week of January was counting them up, and saying they actually met it.

And even if they didn't by a small amount, its obviously because of the strap replacement. Plus they have 2 million to last till March. Which means to keep momentum they will have to pace themselves.

 

[andthebeatgoeson]

The problem would be that the 'winner' should be clearly decided by 2009, as such, the little HD-DVD vs. BluRay war is going to be useless to us regardless.

And your avatar creeps me out.

Tis true. The winner should be decided around 2008 or even this Christmas. All the big games will be on tap and that should determine the winner (IE if 360 can't sell like gangbusters with Halo and GTA, then it never will). I posted a survey from some company about there being a 30% penetration rate but <20% is crazy. I don't see why Sony and MS pushed so much for it. It can't be less than 20%. That's impossible.

 

[Segata Sanshiro]

Yeah, anyone that's still sitting out on purchasing a console by 2009 isn't sitting out because of HD.

Also, to all the folks complaining about the softball questions...I know it has been said, but this *is* Gamepro. They probably still use names like "Brother Mother" and "Hippie Hamster" for their writers.

 

[Burnst]

I wish they'd unlock 720p for the Wii opera browser, but in my heart I nooooose Nintendo won't do it.

 

[chriskzoo]

Anyone else not understand why Nintendo keeps rolling Reggie out? The guy might be a great behind the scenes marketer but he just doesn't have the panache of a Peter Moore or Steve jobs when presenting - even Kaz does a better job. Certainly Nintendo has some great products, but Reggie always seems like this blockhead frat boy saying "You WILL like this or ELSE!"