The latest battleground in the console wars, to hear Microsoft and Sony tell it, is community.
Both companies are making major pushes this year to get players to interact beyond the game. While Sony readies "Home," which gives PlayStation 3 owners a "Second Life"-like world in which to explore and interact with each other, Microsoft is relaunching the Xbox 360's dashboard with a large initial emphasis on gathering with friends and more updates on the way.
Nintendo, however, has been pretty quiet on the matter of community so far--a curious stance, given the Wii's significantly larger installed base of customers. That silence might be coming to an end soon, hints Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime.
"Nintendo has always had a vision on community," he says. "The issue is that we define community differently than our competitors. ... Our consumers do want a sense of community, and we're going to deliver that--but in a way that is unique to Nintendo."
Fils-Aime declined to specify when the company might elaborate on its plans, but next year's E3 conference is a prime candidate.
It's unlikely that the slow move toward community will have any dramatic impact on Wii sales. While most CEOs are getting mighty nervous about the holiday season, Fils-Aime is relaxed.
The big fear, in fact, is that for the third year in a row, the company won't be able to meet consumer demand. Nintendo has been steadily ramping up production of Wii consoles--and while it can't guarantee you'll be able to find one this year, it's less concerned than in years past. For shoppers trying to get their hands on the popular "Wii Fit" game, though, that's another story.
"With Wii hardware, I think we've got a good shot at meeting demand during the holidays," Fils-Aime says. "With 'Wii Fit,' I know we'll fall short. That's a product we have consumers lining up for each morning outside of our Nintendo World store [in New York City]."
"Wii Fit" has become something of a phenomenon. Nearly one-third of all Wii owners have bought a copy--and demand has not let up. That's particularly impressive given the product's $90 price tag. Some retailers, hoping to take advantage of the overwhelming demand, are only selling "Wii Fit" in bundles (at notably higher prices), a practice that's typically reserved for console launches.
Another thing you won't be able to find at retail this holiday season is the Nintendo DSi. The revised handheld gaming device, which includes larger screens, a built-in digital camera, a memory card slot and built-in browser, is on sale in Japan but has not yet been launched in the U.S. market.
Blame the ongoing success of the DS for that.
"The DSi in Japan was critical to that market," says Fils-Aime. "Momentum [for the DS] there was slowing. Conversely, our DS business in 2007 was a record year. In 2008, we're running 19% above those 2007 numbers. So, for us, the strategic need for the DSi will happen later in 2009."
While the Wii's popularity continues to build, most third-party publishers haven't been able to capitalize on the new audience. To be fair, there has been a lot of shovel-ware for the Wii--awful games churned out in a blatant attempt to court the "casual" audience--and consumers have quickly learned to sniff out quality. But some of the more thoughtful efforts, such as Electronic Arts' "All Play" sports games, aren't connecting either.
Fils-Aime says this is because third-party publishers still don't quite understand the Wii audience. Tweaking the game-play mechanics is only part of the equation. This audience, he believes, is just as interested in games that do well on other systems--but, to date, publishers have been reticent to bring those to the Wii.
"I will be able to say our licensees 'get it' when their very best content is on our platform," he says. "And with very few exceptions today, that's not the case."
That might even mean games that wouldn't seem to translate well to the Wii's more casual audience, such as Take-Two's "Grand Theft Auto" or EA's "Spore" (a Wii version of that game is currently in development).
Of course, what gamers would love to see from Nintendo is a Wii price cut. Given that the company still can't keep hardware on store shelves, though, it doesn't take an economist to figure out that such an action is far from imminent.
"At some point, it will be time to adjust the [price]," notes Fils-Aime, "but we're nowhere near that point now."
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Leatherhat on July 6th, 2012 3pm. Vita sales:"3 mil for COD 2 mil for AC. Maybe more. " thehusbo on July 6th, 2012 5pm. Vita sales:"5 mil for COD 2.2 mil for AC."
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