My take on this:
I think in the case of the Wii we're seeing a tripple interlinked phenomenon. Lol crazy huh?
1. The Wiis adoption rate has been skyhigh up until now and many of the normal 2nd, 3rd, 4th year sales have been bought forward because the Wii was so damn compelling right now.
2. The Wiis killer combinations are reaching a point of saturation. The Mario Kart + Wii Sports + Wii Play for $350 or Wii Fit + Wii for $340 ever green software have each used up a lot of their potential market. There are only so many people compelled by Wii Fit or Mario Kart or Wii Sports and the people whom value them the most have more likely bought a console than not. So either they need to lower the cost of entry to spur sales with either bundles or lower prices or they need to find a new killer game to reach untapped markets.
3. The recession as whole doesn't make people close their wallets, however it does make them more fiscally conservative. This means that someone is more likely to take a risk on a cheaper Wii than a more expensive Wii because a lot of the Wiis market is treading into territory which is unfamiliar with consoles. Its a double edged sword, they have nothing holding them back from buying a console but they may be more hesitant in moving forward with buying a console as they have never done so before. Lowering the price makes it a less risky choice for people and may help people who are on the fence otherwise its got to be software that engages non owners with owners (NSMB) so the people can try before they buy.
Tease.
