gimmicks are things people don't like or are not on their console of choice :P

Only if they get in the way of the fun

Gimmick = whatever prominent feature the other consoles have that your console of choice does not.

wii motion controls - was a good gimmick

wiiu gamepad - not a good gimmick

Whether or not its good? It can be debated, guitar hero sold alot of video games with plastic instruments and I would call that a gimmick, but not as a put down. I dont see the word gimmick as bad, but I can see why some do. It depends on the context I guess. You cant put anything past a fanboy war.

A gimmick is something that has little to no real-world usefulness. A gimmick isn't defined by the object itself, but rather, what uses it has. Anything labeled as a "gimmick" at one point in time, could become a fundamentally important feature later on, depending on how it's used.

Let's take Sixaxis as an example. On the face of it, it seems pretty useless: You can tilt the controller to do things. How is this useful? What's wrong with analog sticks or buttons? However, there is one very useful thing that I have used for Sixaxis for in games: Aiming.

Gravity Rush, Uncharted GA, and Killzone Mercenary (along with some others) on the Vita give you the option to use Sixaxis for aiming. I've actually found myself using the motion sensor almost exclusively for aiming in these games, as it's far faster and more accurate than using the analog stick.

I don't think gimmicks are bad, as long as they don't add a significant additional cost to the item (Kinect says Hi). People will usually find something useful to do with it.

Gimmicks are things without lasting appeal and are built on a very temporary idea or demand. It's used as a selling point, but you're unable to flesh anything out past that.

There isn't anything wrong with trying new things or even "new gimmicks". There's nothing good or bad about it, it's ultimately up to the consumer as to whether or not they want to accept something, a company can make all the gimmicks they want it doesn't mean the consumer has to buy it.

However, I would say the companies that base their business around gimmicks are prone to high highs and extreme lows. 

We're seeing that with Nintendo now.

Live by the sword, die by the sword.

Gimmicks are not really a sustainable form of business because eventually the novelty wears off, unless you can keep coming up with new gimmicks to replace the ones that are fading out. 

Which is hard, it's like asking Psy to come up with a new Gangam Style hit every year ... that was a one time phenomenon that took off on the internet and it was a catchy tune, but likely he'll never be able to replicate that. 

I just want to say that Wiimote + Nunchuck is not a gimmick. Awesome, extremely versatile controller. Neither is the Gamepad.

I agree, gimmic should be a term reserved for things that don't advance gameplay or open up new gameplay possiblities. The term, as used in gaming, is frequntly just the thing fanboys say to dismiss the features of rival systems.

When applied to hardware like the Wii U gamepad it just seems ridiculous to me. I understand some might not like the gamepad but to pretend you can't see how such a feature can advance gameplay or open up new gameplay possiblilties seems willfully dumb.