ButtUgly: Main_blogentry_290906

Why Wii is cool

An article over at IGN shows perfectly well, why I think Nintendo is going to be okay: They're not out there to build an entertainment centre and flex muscles over who can crank more polygons/second or who can score the latest EA gaming hit. Instead, they're beyond entertainment: they want to make their Wii console a part of the family:

Aoyama: It's not a system like e-mail, designed for constantly exchanging messages. However, we hope it will allow a relaxed style of interaction, allowing the user to feel that there are other people out there, connected to the net.

Tamaki: On top of that, with the Wii Message Board, users can exchange game data or screenshots. E-mail messages can also be exchanged between mobile phones and Wii. Sorry to keep using families for all the examples...! (laughs) But imagine the father is working late at the office. His family can send him messages via Wii from the living room. Then he could reply by sending a photo. We'd like people to think of Wii as allowing them to feel they are connected, in a loose, relaxed way, with their friends and family.

Now, I don't know whether their strategy will work (and make no mistake, Wii is going to be an excellent console, too), but the way they think intrigues me. Nintendo obviously understands a lot about people.

(Thanks to JES for the link. You were right, it is interesting.)