More Wii-bashing from incompetent journalists - Times Online article

[Viper1]

JUG said:

http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/technology/article6733956.ece

 

With Mario in a galaxy far away, Wii sales slide at gloomy Nintendo

The combination of a global downturn and a drought of blockbuster games has dealt a body blow to the Nintendo Wii, the world’s fastest-selling console, with sales down by 57 per cent.

With nothing on the immediate horizon to match the success of hardware-shifting titles such as Wii Fit and Wii Mario Kart, 1.  the Japanese company’s hopes now rest on the prospects in America and Europe of Wii Sports Resort — a game which, among other attractions, simulates throwing a frisbee for a dog. 2.

Other potentially lucrative games in the Nintendo pipeline, such as Super Mario Galaxy 2, are not expected to appear before the end of this business year. 3.  Analysts believe that the greatest driving force behind Wii sales, its appeal to a broader range of age groups, may be on the wane as families struggle to justify the $250 price (£150 or more in Britain).

Sony’s PlayStation3 machine also fell victim to the collapse of consumer appetite in the April-to-June quarter. The machine’s year-on-year sales collapse of 31 per cent has caused some analysts to speculate that economic strife may have dealt a severe structural blow to the video games industry.

There is rising concern over whether the games studios have the ability profitably to produce 4. must-have titles of the sort that can drive hardware sales when households are struggling under the downturn.

Also contentious, particularly for electronics retailers and software makers, has been the apparent refusal of either Nintendo or Sony to lower their prices in the short term. In Sony’s case, such a move would be financially difficult since it makes a loss on every unit it sells. Sony said yesterday that it would end the 2009 year about Y110 billion (£700 million) in the red. 5.

The change of fortunes for Nintendo, which is among the most abrupt in console history, has raised the stakes for next month’s Tokyo Game Show — the last important showcase event for the video games industry before stores begin stocking up for Christmas. The trade fair was always going to be critical but, with console sales in such sharp decline, announcements of game delays will be badly received.

Nevertheless, Nintendo and others have managed in the past to use the September game show to great advantage, issuing surprise previews and alluring demonstrations, which, at the least, keep the faithful going through the dry season. Sony said yesterday that sales would pick up as the pre-Christmas stream of new titles began to flow and the company is expected to use the event to give gamers a closer look at the new version of its hand-held PSP console.

Nintendo, once the darling of investors, but now languishing with its shares 60 per cent below their peak, said that Wii sales more than halved in the April-to-June quarter compared with a year ago. Revenues also dropped 40 per cent, which was below market consensus.

That comparison — between sales of a console that was then early in its cycle and one now struggling to attract buyers 6.  in a consumer slump — was always doomed to be unflattering. Analysts believed it would have taken a miracle for Wii sales to have remained as buoyant as they were in 2008, particularly now that the pipeline of games is looking so anaemic. 7.

Hopes that growth might be driven by Wii Music 8. — the brainchild of Shigeru Miyamoto, Nintendo’s leading game designer — were dashed. The musical instrument simulator was too simplistic, drew the scorn of critics and badly damaged Mr Miyamoto’s reputation for infallibility.

End of article

 

1. Wii Fit Plus and New Super Mario Bros Wii say, "Hello!"

2. Unless the dog was originally supposed to throw the frisbee, the sentence makes no sense.  "For a dog," should be written, "to a dog".

3. See Point 1.  Super Mario Galaxy rests at number 6 on the Wii sales charts with a sequal to number 1 having just been released and a sequel to number 2 coming up. As well as a Wii iteration of number 2 on the DS best seller list.  No title having sold less than 19 million units.

4. Poor syntax.  Should be written as, "ability to profitably produce...."   One syntax type error per article is forgivable but 2 errors from a prestigious media outlet is grounds for an adminsitrative reprimand.

5. So which is it?  110 billion Yen or 700 million Pounds?  Fact and currency conversion checking are admirable qualities in a writer of which this author apparently has neither.

6. It is not struggling to attract buyers.  Struggling would suggest difficulties in achieving sales.  While it may not be as high as it were for the record breaking 1st quarter last year, it is still much higher than any console in history.   If the average speed of a race is highway speeds (75 MPH) and a very fast car travels 250 MPH at one point, it doesn't mean when it moves at 125 MPH that it is now struggling.

7. Compare the games line up for end of year 2008 with end of year 2009.  This year looks substantially meatier than last year.  Anemic is not something that would best describe the up coming games pipeline.

8. I don't recall any expectations that Wii Music would sustain sales at their Q1 2008 levels.

 

Poorly written, poorly researched and poorly edited.