Appeals to a wider audience. not just "hard core" or "fan boys"

Wait until they discover porn, which the internet is made for. The sales will plummet.

Way better than running to the stores to be able to buy a game before its price gets cut if you ask me.

LOL.

I disagree with the children-explanation. There are not that much children turning into a age they start playing videogames, that it explains this. I think it is something different.

It happens mostly to games with local multiplayer (like Mario Kart or Wii Sport Resort). I think it has to do with: people that are NOT owning the game yet play it over at friends and like it and buy it themself. It possibly even making them buying the console, and they already know which games to pick up together with the system. There are two things that are needed to fulfill this: can be played together with friends not owning the system (local multiplayer) and the game has to be of a great quality, otherwise it wouldn't work.

I agree to some point with the missing competition. Third parties can manage the same legs, for games that qualify in the same area. See Just Dance sales.

I wonder why so many people in these forums simply hate Nintendo and Nintendo fans. There´s a lot of prejudice towards people who enjoy Nintendo games here. Someone mentioned here as "people who is less informed". I´d say that many, many older consumers still play Nintendo games since the 80´s and I doubt that they are less informed than the actual FPS-M-Addicted generation.

This ^^, but I'm not sure GT is the best example here, as being a game that appeals to casuals.

It depends of your concept of quality.

For some people, a quality product is the one who meets the consumer needs and expectations. For others, is a product that just have better technical specifications. In which cathegory does Angry Birds fit ?

Well, I've been gaming in the begining of the 90's and I am still 8 years old. I blame Nintendo!

It's actually not just Nintendo games. Other games do it, depending on the game.

Want to have your mind blown somewhat? Call of Duty 3 for the Wii sold more units in America in 2010 than in 2006, 2008, or 2009, and only 20% less than 2007.

And what makes you think that Zelda is absent from that pattern? Twilight Princess sold over 370,000 units in 2012. A lot of games are lucky to sell that many units in their launch year, and it's still doing it 6 years later.