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Breaking: Wii for $250 on November 19
Nintendo has revealed to the New York Times and Seattle Post-Intelligencer that its Wii console will make its much anticipated debut on November 19 for the retail price of $250. The price may be $50 more than some were expecting, but Nintendo is including Wii Sports as a pack-in title. [Update: Nintendo confirms info, adds detail]
[UPDATE 4] The official Wii site in the U.S. is now live and has some interesting videos showcasing the Wii Channel Menu. Check it out. Also be sure to check out Nintendo President Satoru Iwata's interview with the Wii designers.
[UPDATE 3] Nintendo has revealed that additional Wii Remote controllers can be purchased for $39.99 each, while the Nunchuk has been assigned an MSRP of $19.99.
Additionally, while Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess will be a launch title for Wii, Nintendo has pushed back the release of the GameCube version until December 11. Also officially moved, sadly for fans of Samus, is Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, which is now slated for a 2007 release with no exact date given. While it's been known for some time that the Wii does not support HD resolutions, Nintendo noted that all first-party titles (and probably many third-party titles as well) would be designed for widescreen (16:9) displays.
[UPDATE 2] More details are coming in. Nintendo said that the Wii will be in "one configuration, one color," meaning that there will be no "core" pack without Wii Sports and it will only come in white, at least initially (it's likely that somewhere down the road Nintendo will introduce other colors). Nintendo said that they will ship the console to 25,000 retail locations, and while the company will ship 4 million worldwide through the end of this year Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime noted that the majority of the consoles shipped will be coming to North America.
Nintendo also appears to be following Microsoft's direction in terms of online pricing. Similar to Microsoft Points that are used on Xbox Live, Nintendo has just revealed that users can purchase Wii Points. A 2000 Wii points card will cost $20. In terms of Virtual Console pricing NES titles will go for 500 points, SNES games will cost 800 points and N64 titles will be the most expensive at 1000 points ($10).
[UPDATE 1] Following the breaking news last night, Nintendo has indeed confirmed that the Wii will launch on November 19 for the exact MSRP of $249.99. The console will hit Japan on December 2 for the price of 25,000 yen. Nintendo also noted that European launch details are being saved for the London press event tomorrow.
As mentioned in the original story below, every console will come with Wii Sports, which features five different sports activities, "which anyone can play using simple physical movements, experienced or not." Nintendo also confirmed that the system will come with just one Wii Remote controller and one Nunchuk controller. As for pricing on the "robust lineup of 30 software titles" to become available between launch and December 31, Nintendo said that all first-party games will be $49.99, but "publishers are free to set their own prices for games."
"I believe the Wii will attract new and casual gamers to the world of interactive entertainment," commented Larry Probst, Chairman and CEO, Electronic Arts. "It's a fun, easy and economical system that will become a bridge to gaming for mainstream audiences. At EA, we are putting more support behind the Wii than any Nintendo hardware launch since the Super NES."
Nintendo also shared some more detail on the Wii Channel Menu, which apparently will serve as a "dashboard" of sorts for the console. The Channel Menu will be the starting point whenever a user turns on the Wii. From there, the user can pick a game to play, get news or weather, upload and send photos or create playable caricatures of themselves to use in actual games. "The variety of options available through the Wii Channel Menu motivates both gamers and non-gamers to turn on Wii's power every day," said Nintendo.
Nintendo has not yet confirmed the Virtual Console pricing mentioned below, only stating, "Additional information about the list of Virtual Console games and the pricing structure will be revealed in the coming weeks."
We'll continue to update this story with any new information today.
Original Story:
Although the official announcement has not yet hit the wire, Seth Schiesel of The New York Times has apparently broken the news that Nintendo's Wii console will launch in North and South America on November 19 for the price of $250 (probably $249.99 to be exact). The report, which first appeared on the Seattle Post-Intelligencer website, notes that more than 25 titles will be available this year and that Nintendo plans to ship 4 million Wii consoles worldwide in 2006. Nintendo has repeatedly said that the Wii would retail for no more than $250, but some in the industry thought they might dip a bit lower than that.
Interestingly, though, Nintendo will also include the Wii Sports compilation (which features baseball, tennis and golf) with every console. Some had speculated that Nintendo might do this, and it's nice to see a console with a pack-in game again. It's not clear if two Wii-mote controllers will be packed in as well, but it sure would be helpful for a game like tennis.
Wii games, according to the report, will retail for $50 each, which is $10 less than the typical Xbox 360 game (and likely the typical PS3 game as well).
"Our goal is to bring gaming back to the masses," Reggie Fils-Aime, president and chief operating officer of Nintendo of America, told the Times. "You see that in our pricing, you see that in the number of units we plan to make available this year and you see that in how we are positioning the Wii to appeal to every member of the household, including but not limited to the hard-core gamer."
As for Nintendo's online plans, the Wii's Virtual Console will offer a back catalog of titles to download for $5 to $10 each. There will be about 30 titles available initially. Nintendo also introduced some other unique online functions for the Wii, "including various media channels meant to appeal to and draw in people who do not consider themselves gamers," according to the report. Users will be able to post photos on a photo channel to display digital photographs on television and the Wii will provide an interactive news channel and weather channel along with its Web browsing capabilities.
"We are including all of these capabilities as part of our overall strategy to expand the gaming market," Fils-Aime said. "Broadening the market is important because it will breathe new life into this business. Otherwise, this industry is moving down a path of being more and more limited to the hard-core gamer."
We'll bring you more Wii news and details as they become available, starting with the New York City press event first thing in the morning.
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Now after I read this po I am going to have a very hard time to decide what to get Nintendo Wii or PS3 ill do some research on both.
