By using this site, you agree to our Privacy Policy and our Terms of Use. Close

Forums - Gaming Discussion - Who thinks the Wii is directly competing with 360/PS3 and why ?

cleveland124 on 12 May 2008
TheRealMafoo said:Ford and Chevy are competing for your money. As proof is if you needed something to drive, you would buy only one. They are so close to each other, that you would have no need for one of each. You own both a Wii and a PS3 because you happen to fit both demographics. But for people like you, you will probably get both consoles. One will not replace the other.

And a very large % of Wii owners are first time console owners. I am not talking about fanboys, I am talking about 40-50 year olds that never gamed before.

If you look at HD gaming, it is on par with last gen (aside from Japan). If the Wii was competing, those sales would be way down, as so many people bought the Wii. They are not down, because the Wii has been primarily purchased buy people who never bought a console before.

I am not bashing the Wii. I own one. I am just saying the reason I own one could never be replaced by the PS3 or 360, and the reason I own both the PS3 and 360 could never be replaced by the Wii. 

Not everybody would only buy one car.  The more expensive the toys, the more impracticle it is to own multiple toys.  But several actors have stashes or 100+ cars, and I actually have three vehicles currently.  Your passion is video games so you know the slight little differences that could create slightly different ways to look at the market.  Cars are the same way.  Every one is different in there own little way and they can serve seperate needs.  I mean come on the Wii and PS3 is different but all Chevy's and Ford's are the same?

 What is the percentage of Wii owners that are first time buyers?  Until you can convince me that its significant, we really have no where else to go down this path.  I'm sure some 40-50 yr olds who never had any interest in a gaming console will buy one.  But they are far from the majority.  If they were the majority the Wii would have a pitiful tie ratio because those are the people that are only going to get Wii sports, Wii fit, and Guitar Hero.  But the Wii has a tie ratio that is better than the PS3 and worse than the 360, otherwise right in the middle of the market.  The same argument could be made for someone to get a PS3 just for blu ray and have no interest in gaming whatsoever. 

 I'm not saying you are bashing the Wii.  I just don't know why people are so adament about excluding the Wii.  There are different ways to look at the market.  You can come to a meaningful analysis by excluding the Wii.  But you can definately come to a meaningful analysis by including the Wii.

 



Around the Network
TheRealMafoo on 12 May 2008
cleveland124 said:

There are different ways to look at the market.  You can come to a meaningful analysis by excluding the Wii.  But you can definately come to a meaningful analysis by including the Wii.

 


I agree, and it all depends on scope, and where someone draws the line for there analysis. The argument is "directly" competing. The PSP and the DS compete against the 360, PS3, and Wii.

Most people would not say directly. Some might as the all devises with the primary function of playing games, thus compete directly.

Where I draw my conclusions leads me to believe the Wii does not directly compete with the HD consoles. You have a different opinion. If it was a clear answer, we would not be on page three of this thread :)



misterd on 12 May 2008
Renar said:

Overall, yes.  As you break the gaming market down into various sections, no, not as much. 

To me, the best analogy is trucks versus cars.   If you are mostly interested in what a truck can do for you, then you buy a truck.  Or perhaps if you can afford it, a truck and a car.   Cars can do somewhat the same things as a truck.  They can carry a bit of a load, can drive off-road if the terrain isn't too bad, etc.  Yet more cars sell than trucks, because they are easier to handle, and do a few things better than trucks do.

 

 

To carry this analogy further....

For some people, only a truck will satisfy their needs. Cars do not compete for them.

For others, they have no need or want of a truck, and so here again we have no competition.

But for a significant number of people, trucks and cars offer different advantages (space, safety vs convenience, mileage). Here, direct competition is occuring. For most of the 90s and early 00s, trucks and SUVs ate up a huge portion of the auto market, but that seems to have been diminishing in recent months as gas prices have become more important.

 So - on the extreme ends of the market, no competion, but in the vast middle, very much so.

 



misterd on 12 May 2008
cleveland124 said:
TheRealMafoo said:
cleveland124 said:
senatorpjt said:
I don't think the Wii is "directly" competing with the 360/PS3, at least in the sense that it's not as direct as the competition between the 360 and the PS3. I have a PS3 and a Wii. The question "Should I buy the PS3 or the Wii?" doesn't seem as common as "Should I buy a PS3 or a 360?"

I also have a PS3 and a Wii.  And they definately compete for my $$.  When I have $50 or $60 and I go to gaming store to buy a game I'm walking out with either a PS3 or a Wii game, not with both(unless I have more $$ :) ). 

Here's the thing.  Thing is a stupid argument.  There are benefits to looking at the market in different slices.  An example is that you can ask yourself how well the HD console market is doing and exclude the Wii.  You can look at the young age group or fitness products and maybe you'll group the Wii in with other products and not the PS3 or the 360.  Or you can look at the traditional video games market and have the Wii, PS3, or 360 against each other.  All come up with useful looks at the various markets and can let you know how each different product is competing.  There is no end all comparison.  You can't just say that PS3 and Wii don't compete and exclude any argument that does, much like you can't say that that the HD market is suffering because the Wii is selling rediculously well. 


no one is saying they don't compete. We are just saying they don't directly compete. You are a great example as you own both a PS3 and a Wii. If they directly competed, you would probably own only one of them.

I bet if you counted all the two "this gen" console owners up, over 50% of them would have a Wii+HD console. Very few would have a PS3 and a 360 with no Wii.

Think about why that is. 


I actually think I'm an example of why they do compete.  I love video games and I can't stand to miss good ones.  That's why I grabbed both.  But both of them compete for my monthly gaming budget, so I see them in very direct competition although I support both of them.


And more importantly, it is those gaming dollars that matter the most. Remember, simply buying a PS3 loses Sony money. They only make money from you if you buy... what was it? 6 games? While I imagine many people on this site will easily break that total, other gamers may not own more than a dozen games in a generation. If the sales are then split between 2 or 3 consoles, Sony is not making the sort of money off of you that they could have if you had only one. So, as you say, direct competition.



misterd on 12 May 2008
TheRealMafoo said:
cleveland124 said:

There are different ways to look at the market.  You can come to a meaningful analysis by excluding the Wii.  But you can definately come to a meaningful analysis by including the Wii.

 


I agree, and it all depends on scope, and where someone draws the line for there analysis. The argument is "directly" competing. The PSP and the DS compete against the 360, PS3, and Wii.

Most people would not say directly. Some might as the all devises with the primary function of playing games, thus compete directly.

Where I draw my conclusions leads me to believe the Wii does not directly compete with the HD consoles. You have a different opinion. If it was a clear answer, we would not be on page three of this thread :)


But this is not an opinion question. This is factual - either they are competing, or they are not.

The real question is what are they competing for? Nintendo is not competing with Sony over people who want BluRay players, and Sony is not competing with Nintendo for middle aged women trying to lose weight, and neither is competing with MacDonald's or Victoria's Secret.

But, as has been repeatedly demonstrated in this thread, they are directly competing for:

1) resources from game developers

2) dollars from shared consumers

3) retail space and marketing

The only real question here is just how many gamers can be considered "shared consumers" - ie gamers who either own both the Wii and a PS360, or have to choose between the two. In this regard, the overlap of shared consumers is almost certainly higher between the PS3 and 360, and thus the competition in that arena will be fiercer between those two companies, but in the other two arenas - developers and retailers - the competition between all three is pretty much even (though the results are not likely to be).



Around the Network
Kasz216 on 12 May 2008
TheRealMafoo said:
cleveland124 said:
senatorpjt said:
I don't think the Wii is "directly" competing with the 360/PS3, at least in the sense that it's not as direct as the competition between the 360 and the PS3. I have a PS3 and a Wii. The question "Should I buy the PS3 or the Wii?" doesn't seem as common as "Should I buy a PS3 or a 360?"

I also have a PS3 and a Wii. And they definately compete for my $$. When I have $50 or $60 and I go to gaming store to buy a game I'm walking out with either a PS3 or a Wii game, not with both(unless I have more $$ :) ).

Here's the thing. Thing is a stupid argument. There are benefits to looking at the market in different slices. An example is that you can ask yourself how well the HD console market is doing and exclude the Wii. You can look at the young age group or fitness products and maybe you'll group the Wii in with other products and not the PS3 or the 360. Or you can look at the traditional video games market and have the Wii, PS3, or 360 against each other. All come up with useful looks at the various markets and can let you know how each different product is competing. There is no end all comparison. You can't just say that PS3 and Wii don't compete and exclude any argument that does, much like you can't say that that the HD market is suffering because the Wii is selling rediculously well.


no one is saying they don't compete. We are just saying they don't directly compete. You are a great example as you own both a PS3 and a Wii. If they directly competed, you would probably own only one of them.

I bet if you counted all the two "this gen" console owners up, over 50% of them would have a Wii+HD console. Very few would have a PS3 and a 360 with no Wii.

Think about why that is.


Do you think over 50% of last gen dual console owners didn't own a PS2?

Most people will have Wii+HD, the same reason most people had PS2+ one of the loser consoles.

Why? The PS2 had a lot more games the Cube and Xbox didn't have. Which is basically the same reason people will get the Wii. Games 360 and PS3 don't have.

There really isn't any difference other then the different controller.  Had Wii not been such a sales success and things went as they were supposed to with the PS3 winning... don't you think over 50% of dual console owners would have PS3s?



Dragon007 on 12 May 2008

I agree with the OP.

An 80 year old granny buying the Wii for Wii Sports doesn't consider the PS360 at all

They are competing but to a very minor extent.



iron_megalith on 12 May 2008

uh...

People... What is your view of the market?

For me the console market is divided by two different definitions

--1--

All consoles are competing with one another. be at Wii PS3 or 360.

--2--

Companies with HD consoles competing against one another are only MS and Sony.



ok what's your view of the market?



eatrice on 12 May 2008

This whole not competition argument came about when "video game" snobs realized that their systems weren't selling well...so as apposed to their system losing, they opted the wii out of the competition, because A) it is underpowered and B) it attracts casuals and then they can feel better about themselves.

And they definitely do compete DIRECTLY. If I own a 360 and a Wii. I have X amount of money to spend for games/peripherals. How do I spend it? Both of them can't have all my money.

And don't tell me that Microsoft and Sony would not kill for the casual market. 360 have tried with some of their games...and Sony is trying it with Blu Ray.





Esmoreit on 12 May 2008
The Ghost of RubangB said:
Naw Viper1, it's more like this:


 

More like this, AMIRITE? http://img238.imageshack.us/my.php?image=mrkshrmf0.jpg

Also to come back to my earlier statement - I was not copying what other people said. What I said was that all media and organizations around the market of gaming consider the Wii and the PS360 all part of the same market. And after looking into this then yes, I agree with them. For all the previous reasons stated by people above me.

 



The Doctor will see you now  Promoting Lesbianism -->