The Wii has had a remarkable record of producing "evergreen" titles.  These titles keep selling like clockwork.  I am curious if the Wii NOT competing on graphics has been a reason why this is so.  With the PS3 and 360, it is like an arms race of supposedly one upping one another in the graphics front.  This means that the next version of a game has to do outdo the last, particularly in graphics.  The buyers are supposed to want next gen, so these systems have franchises with multiple updated versions selling annually, and topping the last.  Also included are flagship exclusives that have to top the last.  The end result is the latest = hottest, and old stuff getting ignored, and a big burst of early sales.

Now contrast that with Mario Kart, or Wii Fit, or Super Mario Bros. Wii.  I am not sure anyone who has a Wii expects that some other game would come out and have better graphics, or you are blown away later by better graphics.  What you have is a game that would likely be at the top of its game in looks.  I would likely say also Super Mario Galaxy 2 would likely add more features at most, and not really be that much better than the original Super Mario Galaxy.

Anyone else have any thoughts on this?  Does the Wii competing on other things besides "better looks" help it get longer sales out of its franchise titles?

Is this a revelation or stating the obvious?

Well it's funny becuase it's by no means obvious. Analysts were constantly of the opinion that BECUASE of the Wii graphical limitations games wouldn't sell because they would be compared to the HD systems. That was there evidence for a Wii sales decline.

It's hard to say for sure but it is an interesting observation.

Really, the people that buy wii, can't care about the graphics that much. Because if they did care about graphics the most it is the worst console to buy. (Best would be PC)

That said I own a wii. It's always game first for me, but I would much rather have SMG2 on ps3 but that obviously isn't gonna happen. I would rather have the last story and xenoblade on a wii (it ain't gonna happen). Sometimes the limitations I think could cause the developers to be more creative with the style than making it just look pretty polygon wise. (But some of my favorite stylized games like Valkyria chronicles is still on PS3)

The wii tries to make games for everyone. So they produce a game that is not only a big title but appeals to lots of people. They release one game so they can focus on anthor new type of game. That's why wii sold so well . Its for everyone. Its a mainstream system. It tries to appeal to everybody

It's interesting to see titles that continue to sell extremely well even after months (or years) on the market. But even as great as the Wii is at having some crazy selling evergreen titles, I have to give a nod to the DS with these two titles:

New Super Mario Bros. - 206 weeks (Almost four years old) and has sold 845,835 units this year.

Mario Kart DS - 232 weeks (More than four years old) and has sold 605,348 units this year.

Simply amazing sales.

How many of those evergreen titles have actual story lines? -_^ These are games that everybody can just sit down and enjoy without having to play catch up. Games with actual stories will have to end eventually before people start calling bullshit, but Mario never has to end, just go save the bitch and bang her afterward. Wii Fit is not a video game btw, I'll never acknowledge that as a video game, it's for people who want to work out.

Not really graphics related imo, its about new/unique game designs which don't have any competition.

Edit: well, that and Mario of course...

The reason games on the Wii sell better over time (and consistently) is a combination of its higher userbase (70 million) and the fact that gamers on the Wii don't buy into 'hype'.

Whether its a game like Mario Galaxy or Blom Blox, the only people going out there 'day one' to buy the game are hardcore gamers or people like us, who know when games come out first day (usually, they're one and the same). However, its obvious that the vast majority of Wii owners are either not hardcore gamers or own Wii as a secondary console. So they aren't rushing out there day 1 to buy Monster Hunter Tri, Punch Out!! or Muramasa: The Demon Blade. But...they do eventually.

This 'I'll get the Wii game eventually' mentality causes a lot of Wii games to look like they have really good legs.  While in effect, they're just making up for the fact that they didn't sell 2-6 million on day one like their major HD counterparts who put tons of hype and advertising into each game.