Wii
Encyclopedia
The Wii is a home video game console
released by Nintendo
on November 19, 2006. As a seventh-generation
console, the Wii primarily competes with Microsoft
's Xbox 360
and Sony
's PlayStation 3
. Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic
than that of the two others. As of , the Wii leads the generation over the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in worldwide sales, and in December 2009 broke the record for best-selling console in a single month in the United States
.
A distinguishing feature of the console is its wireless controller
, the Wii Remote
, which can be used as a handheld pointing device
and detects movement
in three dimensions
. Another distinctive feature of the console is WiiConnect24
, which enables it to receive messages and updates over the Internet while in standby mode
.
The Wii is Nintendo's fifth home console and the direct successor of the Nintendo GameCube
, being fully backwardly compatible
with all GameCube games and most accessories. Nintendo first spoke of the console at the 2004 E3 press conference
and later unveiled the system at the 2005 E3. Nintendo CEO Satoru Iwata
revealed a prototype of the controller at the September 2005 Tokyo Game Show
. At E3 2006, the console won the first of several awards. By December 8, 2006, it had completed its launch
in four key markets.
In late 2011, Nintendo released a reconfigured model known as the "Wii Family Edition" which removed Nintendo GameCube compatibility.
was first seeing release. According to an interview with Nintendo's game designer Shigeru Miyamoto
, the concept involved focusing on a new form of player interaction. "The consensus was that power isn't everything for a console. Too many powerful consoles can't coexist. It's like having only ferocious dinosaur
s. They might fight and hasten their own extinction."
Two years later, engineers
and designers were brought together to develop the concept further. By 2005, the controller interface had taken form, but a public showing at that year's Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) was withdrawn. Miyamoto stated that, "[W]e had some troubleshooting to do. So we decided not to reveal the controller and instead we displayed just the console." Nintendo president Satoru Iwata
later unveiled and demonstrated the Wii Remote
at the September Tokyo Game Show.
The Nintendo DS
is said to have influenced the Wii design. Designer Ken'ichiro Ashida noted, "We had the DS on our minds as we worked on the Wii. We thought about copying the DS's touch-panel interface and even came up with a prototype." The idea was eventually rejected, with the notion that the two gaming systems would be identical. Miyamoto also expressed that, "[...] if the DS had flopped, we might have taken the Wii back to the drawing board."
In June 2011, Nintendo unveiled the prototype of its successor to the Wii, to be known as Wii U.
ization of the console, Nintendo has stated that the official plural form is "Wii systems" or "Wii consoles." Nintendo's spelling of "Wii" with two lower-case "i" characters is meant to resemble two people standing side by side, representing players gathering together, as well as to represent the Wii Remote and Nunchuk. The company has given many reasons for this choice of name since the announcement; however, the best known is:
Despite Nintendo's justification for the name, some video game developer
s and members of the press reacted negatively towards the change. They preferred "Revolution" over "Wii" and Forbes
expressed fear "that the name would convey a continued sense of 'kidiness' to the console." The BBC
reported the day after the name was announced that "a long list of puerile jokes, based on the name," had appeared on the Internet. Nintendo of America's president Reggie Fils-Aime acknowledged the initial reaction and further explained the change:
Nintendo of America's then-Vice President of Corporate Affairs Perrin Kaplan defended its choice of "Wii" over "Revolution" and responded to critics of the name by stating, "Live with it, sleep with it, eat with it, move along with it and hopefully they'll arrive at the same place."
On September 14, 2006, Nintendo announced release information for Japan, North
and South America
, Australasia
(Oceania), Asia
and Europe
, including dates, prices, and projected unit distribution numbers. It was announced that the majority of the 2006 shipments would be allotted to the Americas, and that 33 titles would be available in the 2006 launch window. The Wii was launched in the United States on November 19, 2006 at $249.99. It was later launched in the United Kingdom on December 8, 2006 at £179. The UK suffered a widespread shortage of console units as many high-street and online stores were unable to fulfill all pre-orders when it was released. The Wii was launched in South Korea
on April 26, 2008 and in Taiwan
on July 12, 2008.
Since its launch, the monthly sales numbers of the console have been higher than its competitors across the globe. According to the NPD Group
, the Wii sold more units in the United States than the Xbox 360
and PlayStation 3
combined in the first half of 2007. This lead is even larger in the Japanese market, where it currently leads in total sales, having outsold both consoles by factors of 2:1 to 6:1 nearly every week from launch until November 2007. In Australia, the Wii exceeded the record set by the Xbox 360
to become the fastest-selling game console in Australian history.
On September 12, 2007, it was reported by the Financial Times
that the Wii had surpassed the Xbox 360, which was released one year previously, and had become the market leader in home console sales for the current generation, based on sales figures from Enterbrain
, NPD Group, and GfK
. This was the first time a Nintendo console had led its generation in sales since the Super Nintendo Entertainment System
.
On July 11, 2007, Nintendo warned that the Wii would remain in short supply throughout that calendar year. In December 2007, Reggie Fils-Aimé revealed that Nintendo was producing approximately 1.8 million Wii consoles each month. Some UK stores still had a shortage of consoles as of March 2007, demand still outpaced supply in the United States as of June 2007, and the console "selling out almost as quickly as it hits retail shelves" in Canada as of April 2008. In October 2008, Nintendo announced that between October and December 2008 the Wii would have its North American supplies increased considerably from 2007’s levels, while producing 2.4 million Wii units a month worldwide, compared to 1.6 million per month in 2007.
In 2007, the Wii was the second best-selling game console (behind the Nintendo DS) in the US and Japan with 6.29 million and 3,629,361 units sold respectively, according to the NPD Group and Enterbrain. During the same year, the Wii had outsold the PlayStation 3 by 3:1 in Japan, while the Xbox 360 had sold 257,841 units in that region that year, according to Enterbrain. In Europe, the Wii sold 0.7 million units in 2006 and 4.8 million in 2007 according to estimates by Electronic Arts
. In 2008, the Wii was the best-selling home console in Japan with 2,908,342 units sold, according to the Enterbrain. Prior to the release of the NPD Group's video game statistics for January 2008, the Wii had been ahead of the Xbox 360 and PS3 in US sales in most months since the Wii and PS3 were released, according to data by the NPD Group. In the United States, the Wii had sold 10.9 million units by July 1, 2008, making it the leader in current-generation home console sales, according to the NPD Group, surpassing the Xbox 360 which was released a year prior to the Wii. As of November 1, 2008, the Wii had sold 13.4 million units in the US, almost two million more than Xbox 360 and over twice the number of PlayStation 3 units sold, according to the NPD Group.
In Japan, the Wii had surpassed the number of Nintendo GameCube
units sold by January 2008; the Wii had sold 7,526,821 units as of December 28, 2008, according to Enterbrain. According to the NPD Group, the Wii surpassed the Xbox 360 to become the best-selling "next generation" home video game console in Canada with 813,000 units sold by April 1, 2008, and had been the best-selling home console for 13 of the previous 17 months. In the first six months of 2008, the Wii had sold 318,000 units in Canada, outselling its nearest competitor, the PlayStation 3, almost 2:1. According to the NPD Group, the Wii had sold a total of 1,060,000 units in Canada as of August 1, 2008, making it the first current generation home console to surpass the million unit mark in that country. In the first seven months of 2008, the Wii outsold the PS3 and the Xbox 360 combined with 376,000 units sold in Canada. In the United Kingdom, the Wii leads in current generation home console sales with 4.9 million units sold as of January 3, 2009, according to GfK Chart-Track
. On March 25, 2009, at the Game Developers Conference
, Satoru Iwata
said that worldwide shipments of Wii had reached 50 million.
While Microsoft and Sony have experienced losses producing their consoles in the hopes of making a long-term profit on software sales, Nintendo reportedly has optimized production costs to obtain a significant profit margin with each Wii unit sold. On September 17, 2007, the Financial Times reported that this direct profit per Wii sold may vary from $13 in Japan to $49 in the United States and $79 in Europe. On December 2, 2008, Forbes
reported that Nintendo makes a $6 operating profit per Wii unit sold.
Nintendo reported on May 7, 2009 increases in operating profits for its fiscal year (April 1, 2008 – March 31, 2009), and a rise in sales—setting record earnings compared to the previous year. Kenji Hall of BusinessWeek
called the company "a bright spot in an otherwise dismal Japanese tech sector" citing the unique qualities of the Wii and DSi. However, Nintendo's financial forecasts until March 2010 had investors and analysts questioning if the company cannot keep its streak from ending. The Japanese market, which tends to serve as a leading indicator for global markets, saw Wii sales drop by 47% when comparing Nintendo's fiscal year of 2008—2009, to the previous year. While analysts predicted that game console sales in general will fall in 2009, Hall argued "Nintendo's big advantages are disappearing" amid price reductions of the Xbox 360 and rumors of Sony unveiling a motion-sensing wireless controller.
On September 23, 2009, Nintendo announced its first price drops for the console. In Japan, the price dropped from ¥25,000 to ¥20,000, effective October 1, 2009. In the United States, the price was reduced by $50 resulting in a new MSRP of $199.99, effective September 27, 2009. In Europe (excepting non-eurozone nations), the price of a Wii console dropped to €199 from €249. Nintendo sold more than three million Wii consoles in the U.S. in December 2009, setting a regional record for the month and ending 9 months of declining sales, as a result of the price cut and software releases such as New Super Mario Bros. Wii
. As of the end of that month, the Wii is the best selling home video game console produced by Nintendo with sales of over 67 million units, surpassing that of the original Nintendo Entertainment System
. As of March 31, according to Nintendo, the Wii has sold 70.93 million units worldwide, selling 20.53 million units within 2009-2010 fiscal year. As of September 30, 2011, Nintendo has sold 89.36 million Wii consoles.. Nintendo reported that on Black Friday 2011 over 500,000 Wii consoles were sold making it the biggest Black Friday for the company.
a wider demographic
with its console than that of others in the seventh generation
. At a press conference for the then-upcoming Nintendo DS
game Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies in December 2006, Satoru Iwata
insisted "We're not thinking about fighting Sony
, but about how many people we can get to play games. The thing we're thinking about most is not portable systems, consoles, and so forth, but that we want to get new people playing games."
This is reflected in Nintendo's series of television advertisement
s in North America, directed by Academy Award winner Stephen Gaghan
, as well as Internet ads. The ad slogans are "Wii would like to play" and "Experience a new way to play." These ads ran starting November 15, 2006 and had a total budget of over US$
200 million throughout the year. The productions are Nintendo's first broad-based advertising strategy and include a two-minute video clip
showing a varied assortment of people enjoying the Wii system, such as urban apartment-dwellers, country ranchers, grandparents, and parents with their children. The music in the ads is from the song "Kodo (Inside the Sun Remix)" by the Yoshida Brothers
. The marketing campaign has proved to be successful: pensioner
s as old as 103 have been reported to be playing the Wii in the United Kingdom. A report by the British newspaper The People
also stated that Queen Elizabeth II
of the United Kingdom has played using the console.
. The Wii U will feature a controller with an embedded touch screen, output 1080p
high-definition
graphics, and be fully backwards compatible with Wii games and peripherals for the Wii. The Wii Remote and Nunchuk controller, and the Wii Balance Board, will be compatible with Wii U games that include support for them.
games or accessories. It was announced on August 17, 2011.
The "Wii Family Edition" is to be made available in Europe as part of a Christmas bundle with a Wii Remote Plus, Wii Party
and Wii Sports
. On October 10, 2011, Nintendo UK announced a blue Wii Family Edition would be released to coincide with the release of Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games
to release on November 18, 2011. In the same press release they hinted additional colors to be available in late 2011. On October 11, 2011, Nintendo of America announced a black Wii family edition which was be released on October 23, 2011 and would come bundled with New Super Mario Bros Wii and the official soundtrack CD of Super Mario Galaxy
.
Unlike the PlayStation 3 Slim and Xbox 360 S which were released in 2009 and 2010, respectively, and replaced all older models, the Wii Family Edition did not. The original Wii is still sold as normal.
The Wii is Nintendo's smallest home console to date; it measures 44 mm
(1.73 in
) wide, 157 mm (6.18 in) tall and 215.4 mm (8.48 in) deep in its vertical orientation, slightly larger than three DVD cases
stacked together. The included stand measures 55.4 mm (2.18 in) wide, 44 mm (1.73 in) tall and 225.6 mm (8.88 in) deep. The system weighs 1.2 kg
(2.7 lb
), which makes it the lightest of the three major seventh generation
consoles. The console can be placed either horizontally or vertically. The prefix for the numbering scheme of the system and its parts and accessories is "RVL-" after its code name
of "Revolution". The console also features a recurring design theme: the console itself, the power supply and all the sockets have one of their corners chipped off in a triangular fashion.
The front of the console features an illuminated slot-loading optical media drive that accepts only 12 cm Wii Optical Discs and 8 cm Nintendo GameCube Game Discs. The blue light in the disc slot illuminates briefly when the console is turned on and pulsates when new data is received through WiiConnect24
. After the update that includes System Menu 3.0, the disc slot light activates whenever a Wii disc is inserted or ejected. When there is no WiiConnect24 information, the light stays off. The disc slot light remains off during gameplay or when using other features. Two USB
ports are located at its rear. An SD card slot hides behind the cover on the front of the console.
The Wii launch
package includes the console, a stand to allow the console to be placed vertically, a circular clear stabilizer for the main stand, one Wii Remote
, one Nunchuk attachment, one Sensor Bar, a removable stand for the bar, one external main power adapter
, two AA batteries
, one composite AV cable
with RCA connector
s, a SCART
adapter in European countries (component video
and other types of cables are available separately), operation documentation, and, in all regions except Japan and South Korea, a copy of the game Wii Sports
.
The disc reader of the Wii does not play DVD-Video
, DVD-Audio
, or compact disc
s. A 2006 announcement had stated a new version of the Wii capable of DVD-Video playback would be released in 2007; however Nintendo delayed its release to focus on producing the original console to meet demand. Nintendo's initial announcement stated that it "requires more than a firmware upgrade" to implement and that the functionality could not be made available as an upgrade option for the existing Wii model. Despite this assertion, third parties have used Wii homebrew to add DVD playback to the original unmodified Wii units. The Wii also can be hacked to enable an owner to use the console for other activities than those intended by Nintendo. Several brands of modchip
s are available for the Wii.
Although Nintendo showed the console and the Wii Remote in white, black, silver, lime green, and red before it was released, it had only been available in white for its first two and a half years of sales. Black systems were made available in Japan in August 2009, in Europe in November 2009, and in North America on May 9, 2010. A red Wii system bundle was made available in Japan on November 11, 2010, commemorating the 25th anniversary of Super Mario Bros.
The UK version of the limited edition red Wii was released on October 29, 2010, preloaded with the original Donkey Kong
game. It also featured the Wii Remote Plus, which is a new version of the controller with integrated Wii Motion Plus technology. The red Wii bundle was released in North America on November 7, 2010 bundled with New Super Mario Bros. Wii
and the Wii Remote Plus.
On July 11, 2007, Nintendo revealed the Wii Balance Board
at E3 2007 along with Wii Fit
. It is a wireless balance board
accessory for the Wii that contains multiple pressure sensors used to measure the user's center of balance
. Namco Bandai
produced a mat controller, a simpler less sophisticated competitor to the balance board, that connects to the GameCube controller port.
for the console. It uses a combination of built-in accelerometer
s and infrared
detection to sense its position in 3D
space when pointed at the LEDs
within the Sensor Bar. This design allows users to control the game using physical gestures as well as traditional button presses. The controller connects to the console using Bluetooth
and features rumble as well as an internal speaker. The Wii Remote can connect to expansion devices through a proprietary
port at the base of the controller. The device bundled with the Wii retail package is the Nunchuk unit, which features an accelerometer and a traditional analog stick
with two trigger buttons. In addition, an attachable wrist strap can be used to prevent the player from unintentionally dropping or throwing the Wii Remote. Nintendo has also since offered a stronger strap and the Wii Remote Jacket to provide extra grip and protection. The Wii MotionPlus
was announced as a device that connects to the Wii Remote to supplement the accelerometer and Sensor Bar capabilities and enable actions to be rendered identically on the screen in real time. Nintendo also revealed the Wii Vitality Sensor, a fingertip pulse oximeter
sensor that connects through the Wii Remote.
s of internal flash memory
and features an SD card slot for external storage. An SD card can be used for uploading photos as well as backing up saved game
data and downloaded Virtual Console
and WiiWare
games. To use the SD slot for transferring game saves, an update
must be installed. An installation can be initiated from the Wii options menu through an Internet connection, or by inserting a game disc containing the update. Virtual Console data cannot be restored to any system except the unit of origin. An SD card can also be used to create customized in-game music from stored MP3
files, as first shown in Excite Truck
, as well as music for the slideshow
feature of the Photo Channel. Version 1.1 of the Photo Channel removed MP3 playback in favor of AAC
support.
At the Nintendo Fall Press Conference in October 2008, Satoru Iwata announced that Wii owners would have the option to download WiiWare and Virtual Console content directly onto an SD card. The option would offer an alternative to "address the console's insufficient memory storage". The announcement stated that it would be available in Japan in the spring of 2009. Nintendo made the update available on March 25, 2009. In addition to the previously announced functionality, it lets the player load Virtual Console and WiiWare games directly from the SD card. The update allows the use of SDHC cards, increasing the limit on SD card size from 2 GB to 32 GB.
architecture. More specifically, the reported analyses state that the Wii is roughly 1.5 to 2 times as powerful as its predecessor. Based on the leaked specifications, the Wii is the least powerful of the major home consoles in its generation.
Processors:
None of the clock rate
s have been confirmed by Nintendo
, IBM
or ATI
.
Memory:
Ports and peripheral capabilities:
Built-in content ratings systems:
Storage:
Video:
Audio:
Power consumption:
update via WiiConnect24 caused a very small portion of launch units to become completely unusable
. This forced users to either send their units to Nintendo
for repairs (if they wished to retain their saved data) or exchange it for a free replacement.
With the release of dual-layer Wii Optical Discs, Nintendo of America has stated that some Wii systems may have difficulty reading the high-density software due to a contaminated laser lens. Nintendo is offering retail lens cleaning kits and free console repairs for owners who experience this issue.
The Wii Remote can lose track of the Wii system that it has been set to, requiring that it be reset and resynchronized. Nintendo's support website provides instructions for this process, and to troubleshoot related issues.
lawsuit against Nintendo for its "defective wrist straps". A Texas-based company called Lonestar Inventions has also sued Nintendo, claiming that the company copied one of Lonestar's patented capacitor
designs and used it in the Wii console.
Anascape Ltd, a Texas
-based firm, also filed a lawsuit against Nintendo for patent infringements regarding Nintendo's controllers. A July 2008 verdict found that a ban would be issued preventing Nintendo from selling the Classic Controller
in the United States. Nintendo is free to continue selling the Classic Controller pending an appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
. On Thursday, April 22, 2010, the Federal Circuit ruled in Nintendo's favor.
On August 19, 2008, Hillcrest Laboratories Inc. filed a complaint against Nintendo with the U.S International Trade Commission
. The complaint alleges that the Wii Remote infringes on three of its patents. A fourth Hillcrest patent for graphical interfaces displayed on television screens is also alleged to have been violated. Hillcrest therefore sought a ban on Wii consoles imported to the U.S., but on August 24, 2009, Nintendo and Hillcrest reached a settlement, though the terms have not been publicly disclosed.
The trademark application for "Wii Remote" was given an initial rejection by the United States Patent and Trademark Office
. The USPTO claimed that the word remote is commonly used and therefore should not be trademarked. The USPTO will accept Nintendo's trademark filing if the company disclaims exclusive rights to the word remote in the term.
components. The hardware allows for extendibility through expansion ports while the firmware and some other pieces of software can receive periodic updates via the WiiConnect24
service.
The Wii Menu interface is designed around the concept of television channel
s. Separate channels are graphically displayed in a grid and are navigated using the pointer capability of the Wii Remote
. Except for the Disc Channel, it is possible to change the arrangement by holding down the A and B buttons to grab channels and move them around. There are six primary channels: the Disc Channel, Mii Channel, Photo Channel, Wii Shop Channel, Forecast Channel, and News Channel. The latter two were initially unavailable at launch, but activated through updates. The Wii + Internet Video Channel was installed with consoles manufactured in October 2008 or later. Additional channels are available for download from the Wii Shop Channel
through WiiWare
and also appear with each Virtual Console
title. These include the Everybody Votes Channel
, Internet Channel, Check Mii Out Channel
, and the Nintendo Channel. As of October 18, 2010 Wii owners can download the Netflix
Channel from the Wii shop Channel.
with all official Nintendo GameCube
software, as well as Nintendo GameCube Memory Cards and controllers. Compatibility with software is achieved with the slot-loading drive's ability to accept Nintendo GameCube Game Discs. The console supports progressive-scan output in 480p-enabled GameCube titles. Peripherals can be connected via a set of four GameCube controller ports and two Memory Card slots concealed by removable flip-open panels. The console therefore retains connectivity with the Game Boy Advance
and e-Reader through the Game Boy Advance Cable, which is used in the same manner as it was used with the GameCube. This feature can only be accessed on those select GameCube titles that previously utilized it. The Wii for release in South Korea lacks GameCube backward compatibility.
A Wii console running a GameCube disc is restricted to GameCube functionality. As such, a GameCube controller is required to play GameCube titles, as neither the Wii Remote
nor the Classic Controller
functions in this capacity. A Nintendo GameCube Memory Card is also necessary to save game progress and content, as the Wii internal flash memory will not save GameCube games.
Backward compatibility is limited in some areas. Online and LAN-enabled features for Nintendo GameCube titles are unavailable on the Wii, as the console lacks serial ports for the Nintendo GameCube Broadband Adapter and Modem Adapter. The console uses a proprietary port for video output and is therefore incompatible with all Nintendo GameCube audio/video cables (composite video
, S-Video
, component video
and RGB SCART
). The console also lacks the GameCube footprint and high-speed port needed for Game Boy Player
support.
The reconfigured "Wii Family Edition", released in 2011, removed Nintendo GameCube backward compatibility.
without any additional accessories. This connectivity allows the player to use the Nintendo DS microphone and touchscreen
as inputs for Wii games. The first example Nintendo has given of a game using Nintendo DS-Wii connectivity is that of Pokémon Battle Revolution
. Players with either the Pokémon Diamond or Pearl
Nintendo DS games are able to play battles using their Nintendo DS as a controller. Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of Time
, released on both the Nintendo DS and Wii, features connectivity in which the two games can advance simultaneously. Nintendo later released the Nintendo Channel, which allows Wii owners to download game demo
s or additional data to their Nintendo DS in a process similar to that of a DS Download Station
. The console is also able to expand Nintendo DS games.
service. Wireless encryption by WEP
, WPA
(TKIP/RC4) and WPA2
(CCMP/AES) are supported. AOSS
support was discreetly added in System Menu version 3.0.
Just as for the Nintendo DS, Nintendo does not charge fees for playing via the service and the 12 digit Friend Code system controls how players connect to one another. Each Wii also has its own unique 16 digit Wii Code for use with Wii's non-game features. This system also implements console-based software including the Wii Message Board. One can also connect to the internet with third-party devices.
The service has several features for the console including the Virtual Console
, WiiConnect24
, Internet Channel, Forecast Channel, Everybody Votes Channel
, News Channel and the Check Mii Out Channel
. The console can also communicate and connect with other Wii systems through a self-generated wireless LAN
, enabling local wireless multiplayer on different television sets. Battalion Wars 2
first demonstrated this feature for non-split screen multiplayer between two or more televisions.
On April 9, 2008, the BBC announced that its online BBC iPlayer
would be available on the Wii via the Internet Channel browser; however, some users experienced difficulties with the service. On November 18, 2009, BBC iPlayer
on the Wii was relaunched as the BBC iPlayer Channel, which is free to download from the Wii Shop Channel
. The service is only available to people in the United Kingdom.
On December 26, 2008, Nintendo announced that it will launch a new video channel for the Wii.
As of October 18, 2010, American and Canadian Wii owners can watch Netflix
instantly as a channel without requiring a disc.
, which can be used to prohibit younger users from playing games with content that would be considered unsuitable for their age level. When one attempts to play a Wii or Virtual Console
game, it reads the content rating encoded in the game data; if this rating is greater than the system's set age level the game will not load without a correct override password. The parental controls can also restrict Internet access, which blocks the Internet Channel and system update features. Since the console is restricted to Nintendo GameCube
functionality when playing Nintendo GameCube Game Discs, GameCube software is unaffected by Wii parental control settings.
European units mainly use the PEGI
rating system, whereas North American units use the ESRB
rating system. The Wii unit supports the native rating systems of many countries, including CERO
in Japan, the USK
in Germany, both the PEGI
and BBFC
in the United Kingdom, the ACB
in Australia and the OFLC
in New Zealand.
Homebrew developers have reverse-engineered the function that Nintendo uses to recover lost parental control passwords and created a simple script to obtain parental control reset codes.
-like Wii Optical Discs packaged in a keep case
along with instruction information. On European releases, these retail boxes have a triangle printed at the bottom corner of the paper insert sleeve side. The hue of the triangle can be used to identify which region the particular title is intended for and which manual languages are included. The console supports regional lockout
, which means that software purchased in one region can be only played on the hardware of the same region.
New games representing Nintendo's flagship franchises, including The Legend of Zelda, Super Mario
, Pokémon, and Metroid, have been released, or are in development for Wii, in addition to many original titles and third party developed games. Nintendo has received strong third party support from prominent companies like Ubisoft
, Sega
, Square Enix
, Activision Blizzard
, Electronic Arts
, and Capcom
, with more games being developed exclusively for Wii than for the PlayStation 3 or Xbox 360. Nintendo also launched the New Play Control!
line, a selection of enhanced GameCube games for the Wii featuring updated controls.
The Virtual Console
service allows Wii owners to play games originally released for the Nintendo Entertainment System
, Super Nintendo Entertainment System
and Nintendo 64
, as well as Sega
's Mega Drive/Genesis and SG-1000 Mark III/Sega Master System
, NEC
's TurboGrafx-16/PC Engine
, SNK
's Neo Geo console
, the Commodore 64
, and a selection of arcade game
s. Virtual Console games are distributed over broadband Internet via the Wii Shop Channel
, and are saved to the Wii internal flash memory or to a removable SD card
. Once downloaded, Virtual Console games can be accessed from the Wii Menu as individual channels, or directly from an SD card via the SD Card Menu. There is also a Wii homebrew community dedicated to creating and playing content that does not receive Nintendo endorsement.
The game development suite Unity
can be used to create official Wii games. The developer must however be authorized by Nintendo to develop games for the console. Games must also be submitted to and accepted by Nintendo in order to be sold.
Over 509.66 million Wii games were sold worldwide as of December 2009, with 54 titles surpassing the million-unit mark. The most successful game is Wii Sports
, which comes bundled with the console in most regions, and has sold 67.71 million copies worldwide as of September 30, 2010, and surpassed Super Mario Bros.
as the best-selling game of all time. The best-selling unbundled game is Wii Play
, with 26.71 million units.
for Best of Show and Best Hardware. In the December 2006 issue of Popular Science
, the console was awarded with the Grand Award Winner in Home Entertainment. Spike TV's Video Games Award also granted the console the award in breakthrough technology. GameSpot
chose the console as the Best Hardware on their Best and Worst 2006 awards show. The system was also chosen as one of PC World
magazine's 20 Most Innovative Products of the Year. The console received a Golden Joystick for Innovation of the Year 2007 at the Golden Joystick Awards. In the category of Engineering & Technology for Creation and Implementation of Video Games and Platforms, Nintendo was awarded an Emmy for Game Controller Innovation by The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.
The worldwide success of the Wii has caught third party developers by surprise, leading to some apologizing for the quality of their early games. In an interview with German news magazine Der Spiegel
, Ubisoft
's Yves Guillemot and Alain Corre admitted that they had made a mistake in rushing out their launch titles, promising to take future projects more seriously. Take-Two Interactive
, who released few games for the Nintendo GameCube
, changed its stance on Nintendo by placing a higher priority on the Wii.
At the same time, criticism of the Wii Remote and the Wii hardware specifications has surfaced. Former GameSpot editor and Giantbomb.com founder Jeff Gerstmann
stated that the controller's speaker produces low-quality sound, while Factor 5
President Julian Eggebrecht criticized the hardware audio as being substandard for a console of its generation. U.K.-based developer Free Radical Design stated that the Wii hardware lacks the power necessary to run the software it had scheduled for release on other seventh generation consoles. The online connectivity of the Wii was subject to criticism, as Matt Casamassina
of IGN
compared it to the "entirely unintuitive" service provided for the Nintendo DS
.
An executive for Frontline Studios expressed that major publishers are wary of releasing exclusive titles for the console due to the perception that third-party companies are not strongly supported by consumers. In his blog
, 1UP.com
editor Jeremy Parish stated that Nintendo was the biggest disappointment for him in 2007. Commenting on the lack of quality third-party support, he stated that "the Wii landscape is bleak. Worse than it was on N64. Worse than on GameCube...the resulting third-party content is overwhelmingly bargain-bin trash."
Game designer and The Sims
creator Will Wright shared his thoughts on the Wii within the context of the current console generation: "The only next gen system I've seen is the Wii – the PS3 and the Xbox 360 feel like better versions of the last, but pretty much the same game with incremental improvement. But the Wii feels like a major jump – not that the graphics are more powerful, but that it hits a completely different demographic."
Using the Wii is often seen as being more physically demanding than other game consoles.
Some Wii players have occasionally experienced a form of tennis elbow
referred to as "Wiiitis." A study published in the British Medical Journal
states that Wii players use more energy than they do playing sedentary computer games. It is, however, indicated that while this energy increase may be beneficial to weight management, it is not an adequate replacement for regular exercise. A case study published in the American Physical Therapy Association’s journal Physical Therapy focused on use of the Wii for rehabilitation of a teen with cerebral palsy
. It is believed to be the first published research showing the physical therapy benefits resulting from use of the gaming system. Researchers say the gaming system complements traditional techniques. In May 2010 the American Heart Association
(AHA) endorsed the Wii to encourage sedentary people to take the first step toward fitness. The AHA heart icon covers the console itself along with two of its more active games, Wii Fit Plus
and Wii Sports Resort
.
In 2009, IGN
named the Wii the 10th greatest console of all time, in a field of 25.
Video game console
A video game console is an interactive entertainment computer or customized computer system that produces a video display signal which can be used with a display device to display a video game...
released by Nintendo
Nintendo
is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
on November 19, 2006. As a seventh-generation
History of video game consoles (seventh generation)
In the history of video games, the seventh generation of consoles is the current generation , and includes consoles released since late by Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony...
console, the Wii primarily competes with Microsoft
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
's Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
and Sony
Sony
, commonly referred to as Sony, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan and the world's fifth largest media conglomerate measured by revenues....
's PlayStation 3
PlayStation 3
The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
. Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic
Demographics
Demographics are the most recent statistical characteristics of a population. These types of data are used widely in sociology , public policy, and marketing. Commonly examined demographics include gender, race, age, disabilities, mobility, home ownership, employment status, and even location...
than that of the two others. As of , the Wii leads the generation over the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in worldwide sales, and in December 2009 broke the record for best-selling console in a single month in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
A distinguishing feature of the console is its wireless controller
Game controller
A game controller is a device used with games or entertainment systems used to control a playable character or object, or otherwise provide input in a computer game. A controller is typically connected to a game console or computer by means of a wire, cord or nowadays, by means of wireless connection...
, the Wii Remote
Wii Remote
The , also known as the Wiimote, is the primary controller for Nintendo's Wii console. A main feature of the Wii Remote is its motion sensing capability, which allows the user to interact with and manipulate items on screen via gesture recognition and pointing through the use of accelerometer and...
, which can be used as a handheld pointing device
Pointing device
A pointing device is an input interface that allows a user to input spatial data to a computer...
and detects movement
Accelerometer
An accelerometer is a device that measures proper acceleration, also called the four-acceleration. This is not necessarily the same as the coordinate acceleration , but is rather the type of acceleration associated with the phenomenon of weight experienced by a test mass that resides in the frame...
in three dimensions
Three-dimensional space
Three-dimensional space is a geometric 3-parameters model of the physical universe in which we live. These three dimensions are commonly called length, width, and depth , although any three directions can be chosen, provided that they do not lie in the same plane.In physics and mathematics, a...
. Another distinctive feature of the console is WiiConnect24
WiiConnect24
WiiConnect24 is a feature of the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection for the Wii console. It was first announced at E3 2006 by Nintendo. It enables the user to remain connected to the Internet while the console is on standby...
, which enables it to receive messages and updates over the Internet while in standby mode
Sleep mode
Sleep mode refers to a low power mode for electronic devices such as computers, televisions, and remote controlled devices. These modes save significant electrical consumption compared to leaving a device fully on and idle, but allow the user to avoid having to reset programming codes or wait for a...
.
The Wii is Nintendo's fifth home console and the direct successor of the Nintendo GameCube
Nintendo GameCube
The , officially abbreviated to NGC in Japan and GCN in other regions, is a sixth generation video game console released by Nintendo on September 15, 2001 in Japan, November 18, 2001 in North America, May 3, 2002 in Europe, and May 17, 2002 in Australia...
, being fully backwardly compatible
Backward compatibility
In the context of telecommunications and computing, a device or technology is said to be backward or downward compatible if it can work with input generated by an older device...
with all GameCube games and most accessories. Nintendo first spoke of the console at the 2004 E3 press conference
News conference
A news conference or press conference is a media event in which newsmakers invite journalists to hear them speak and, most often, ask questions. A joint press conference instead is held between two or more talking sides.-Practice:...
and later unveiled the system at the 2005 E3. Nintendo CEO Satoru Iwata
Satoru Iwata
is the fourth president of Nintendo, succeeding the long-standing previous president of the company, Hiroshi Yamauchi in 2002. He was responsible in great part for defining Nintendo's strategy both before and during the release of its Nintendo GameCube video game console in 2001, a vision which...
revealed a prototype of the controller at the September 2005 Tokyo Game Show
Tokyo Game Show
The , commonly known as TGS, is a video game expo / convention held annually in the Makuhari Messe, in Chiba, Japan. It is presented by the Computer Entertainment Supplier's Association and the Nikkei Business Publications, Inc...
. At E3 2006, the console won the first of several awards. By December 8, 2006, it had completed its launch
Wii launch
The Wii launch was the release of Nintendo's seventh generation video game console. This successor to the Nintendo GameCube was released in most territories in November and December 2006...
in four key markets.
In late 2011, Nintendo released a reconfigured model known as the "Wii Family Edition" which removed Nintendo GameCube compatibility.
History
The console was conceived in 2001, as the Nintendo GameCubeNintendo GameCube
The , officially abbreviated to NGC in Japan and GCN in other regions, is a sixth generation video game console released by Nintendo on September 15, 2001 in Japan, November 18, 2001 in North America, May 3, 2002 in Europe, and May 17, 2002 in Australia...
was first seeing release. According to an interview with Nintendo's game designer Shigeru Miyamoto
Shigeru Miyamoto
is a Japanese video game designer and producer. Miyamoto was born and raised in Kyoto Prefecture; the natural surroundings of Kyoto inspired much of Miyamoto's later work....
, the concept involved focusing on a new form of player interaction. "The consensus was that power isn't everything for a console. Too many powerful consoles can't coexist. It's like having only ferocious dinosaur
Dinosaur
Dinosaurs are a diverse group of animals of the clade and superorder Dinosauria. They were the dominant terrestrial vertebrates for over 160 million years, from the late Triassic period until the end of the Cretaceous , when the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event led to the extinction of...
s. They might fight and hasten their own extinction."
Two years later, engineers
Game engine
A game engine is a system designed for the creation and development of video games. There are many game engines that are designed to work on video game consoles and personal computers...
and designers were brought together to develop the concept further. By 2005, the controller interface had taken form, but a public showing at that year's Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) was withdrawn. Miyamoto stated that, "[W]e had some troubleshooting to do. So we decided not to reveal the controller and instead we displayed just the console." Nintendo president Satoru Iwata
Satoru Iwata
is the fourth president of Nintendo, succeeding the long-standing previous president of the company, Hiroshi Yamauchi in 2002. He was responsible in great part for defining Nintendo's strategy both before and during the release of its Nintendo GameCube video game console in 2001, a vision which...
later unveiled and demonstrated the Wii Remote
Wii Remote
The , also known as the Wiimote, is the primary controller for Nintendo's Wii console. A main feature of the Wii Remote is its motion sensing capability, which allows the user to interact with and manipulate items on screen via gesture recognition and pointing through the use of accelerometer and...
at the September Tokyo Game Show.
The Nintendo DS
Nintendo DS
The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP...
is said to have influenced the Wii design. Designer Ken'ichiro Ashida noted, "We had the DS on our minds as we worked on the Wii. We thought about copying the DS's touch-panel interface and even came up with a prototype." The idea was eventually rejected, with the notion that the two gaming systems would be identical. Miyamoto also expressed that, "[...] if the DS had flopped, we might have taken the Wii back to the drawing board."
In June 2011, Nintendo unveiled the prototype of its successor to the Wii, to be known as Wii U.
Name
The console was known by the code name of "Revolution" until April 27, 2006, immediately prior to E3. The Nintendo Style Guide refers to the console as "simply Wii, not Nintendo Wii", making it the first home console Nintendo has marketed outside of Japan without the company name featured in its trademark. While "Wiis" is a commonly used pluralPlural
In linguistics, plurality or [a] plural is a concept of quantity representing a value of more-than-one. Typically applied to nouns, a plural word or marker is used to distinguish a value other than the default quantity of a noun, which is typically one...
ization of the console, Nintendo has stated that the official plural form is "Wii systems" or "Wii consoles." Nintendo's spelling of "Wii" with two lower-case "i" characters is meant to resemble two people standing side by side, representing players gathering together, as well as to represent the Wii Remote and Nunchuk. The company has given many reasons for this choice of name since the announcement; however, the best known is:
Despite Nintendo's justification for the name, some video game developer
Video game developer
A video game developer is a software developer that creates video games. A developer may specialize in a certain video game console, such as Nintendo's Wii, Microsoft's Xbox 360, Sony's PlayStation 3, or may develop for a variety of systems, including personal computers.Most developers also...
s and members of the press reacted negatively towards the change. They preferred "Revolution" over "Wii" and Forbes
Forbes
Forbes is an American publishing and media company. Its flagship publication, the Forbes magazine, is published biweekly. Its primary competitors in the national business magazine category are Fortune, which is also published biweekly, and Business Week...
expressed fear "that the name would convey a continued sense of 'kidiness' to the console." The BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
reported the day after the name was announced that "a long list of puerile jokes, based on the name," had appeared on the Internet. Nintendo of America's president Reggie Fils-Aime acknowledged the initial reaction and further explained the change:
Nintendo of America's then-Vice President of Corporate Affairs Perrin Kaplan defended its choice of "Wii" over "Revolution" and responded to critics of the name by stating, "Live with it, sleep with it, eat with it, move along with it and hopefully they'll arrive at the same place."
Launch
On September 14, 2006, Nintendo announced release information for Japan, North
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
and South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
, Australasia
Australasia
Australasia is a region of Oceania comprising Australia, New Zealand, the island of New Guinea, and neighbouring islands in the Pacific Ocean. The term was coined by Charles de Brosses in Histoire des navigations aux terres australes...
(Oceania), Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
and Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, including dates, prices, and projected unit distribution numbers. It was announced that the majority of the 2006 shipments would be allotted to the Americas, and that 33 titles would be available in the 2006 launch window. The Wii was launched in the United States on November 19, 2006 at $249.99. It was later launched in the United Kingdom on December 8, 2006 at £179. The UK suffered a widespread shortage of console units as many high-street and online stores were unable to fulfill all pre-orders when it was released. The Wii was launched in South Korea
South Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
on April 26, 2008 and in Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
on July 12, 2008.
System sales
| Date | Japan | Americas | Other | Worldwide |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006-12-31 | 1.14 | 1.25 | 0.80 | 3.19 |
| 2007-03-31 | 2.00 | 2.37 | 1.47 | 5.84 |
| 2007-06-30 | 2.95 | 3.81 | 2.51 | 9.27 |
| 2007-09-30 | 3.67 | 5.46 | 4.04 | 13.17 |
| 2007-12-31 | 4.99 | 8.85 | 6.30 | 20.13 |
| 2008-03-31 | 5.90 | 10.61 | 7.94 | 24.45 |
| 2008-06-30 | 6.43 | 13.11 | 10.08 | 29.62 |
| 2008-09-30 | 6.91 | 15.19 | 12.45 | 34.55 |
| 2008-12-31 | 7.80 | 20.40 | 16.76 | 44.96 |
| 2009-03-31 | 7.96 | 23.54 | 18.89 | 50.39 |
| 2009-06-30 | 8.17 | 24.42 | 20.03 | 52.62 |
| 2009-09-30 | 8.68 | 25.99 | 21.48 | 56.14 |
| 2009-12-31 | 9.72 | 32.02 | 25.71 | 67.45 |
| 2010-03-31 | 10.34 | 33.40 | 27.19 | 70.93 |
| 2010-06-30 | 10.52 | 35.20 | 28.24 | 73.97 |
| 2010-09-30 | 10.79 | 35.91 | 29.20 | 75.90 |
| 2010-12-31 | 11.45 | 40.53 | 32.67 | 84.64 |
| 2011-03-31 | 11.59 | 41.18 | 33.24 | 86.01 |
| 2011-06-30 | 11.71 | 41.71 | 34.16 | 87.57 |
| 2011-09-30 | 11.91 | 42.44 | 35.01 | 89.36 |
Since its launch, the monthly sales numbers of the console have been higher than its competitors across the globe. According to the NPD Group
NPD Group
The NPD Group, Inc. is a leading North American market research company. The NPD Group consistently ranks among the top 25 market research companies in the independent Honomichl Top 50 report, which the media and the research industry acknowledge as a credible source of information on the market...
, the Wii sold more units in the United States than the Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
and PlayStation 3
PlayStation 3
The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
combined in the first half of 2007. This lead is even larger in the Japanese market, where it currently leads in total sales, having outsold both consoles by factors of 2:1 to 6:1 nearly every week from launch until November 2007. In Australia, the Wii exceeded the record set by the Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
to become the fastest-selling game console in Australian history.
On September 12, 2007, it was reported by the Financial Times
Financial Times
The Financial Times is an international business newspaper. It is a morning daily newspaper published in London and printed in 24 cities around the world. Its primary rival is the Wall Street Journal, published in New York City....
that the Wii had surpassed the Xbox 360, which was released one year previously, and had become the market leader in home console sales for the current generation, based on sales figures from Enterbrain
Enterbrain
is a Japanese magazine publisher established on April 1, 2000. Enterbrain magazines are generally focused on video games and computer entertainment as well as video game and strategy guides. In addition, the company publishes a small selection of anime artbooks. Enterbrain is based in Tokyo, Japan...
, NPD Group, and GfK
GfK
The GfK Group, established in 1934 as Gesellschaft für Konsumforschung is Germany's largest market research institute, and the fourth largest market research organisation in the world, after Nielsen Company, Kantar Group, and IMS Health...
. This was the first time a Nintendo console had led its generation in sales since the Super Nintendo Entertainment System
Super Nintendo Entertainment System
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System is a 16-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America, Europe, Australasia , and South America between 1990 and 1993. In Japan and Southeast Asia, the system is called the , or SFC for short...
.
On July 11, 2007, Nintendo warned that the Wii would remain in short supply throughout that calendar year. In December 2007, Reggie Fils-Aimé revealed that Nintendo was producing approximately 1.8 million Wii consoles each month. Some UK stores still had a shortage of consoles as of March 2007, demand still outpaced supply in the United States as of June 2007, and the console "selling out almost as quickly as it hits retail shelves" in Canada as of April 2008. In October 2008, Nintendo announced that between October and December 2008 the Wii would have its North American supplies increased considerably from 2007’s levels, while producing 2.4 million Wii units a month worldwide, compared to 1.6 million per month in 2007.
In 2007, the Wii was the second best-selling game console (behind the Nintendo DS) in the US and Japan with 6.29 million and 3,629,361 units sold respectively, according to the NPD Group and Enterbrain. During the same year, the Wii had outsold the PlayStation 3 by 3:1 in Japan, while the Xbox 360 had sold 257,841 units in that region that year, according to Enterbrain. In Europe, the Wii sold 0.7 million units in 2006 and 4.8 million in 2007 according to estimates by Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts, Inc. is a major American developer, marketer, publisher and distributor of video games. Founded and incorporated on May 28, 1982 by Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer games industry and was notable for promoting the designers and programmers...
. In 2008, the Wii was the best-selling home console in Japan with 2,908,342 units sold, according to the Enterbrain. Prior to the release of the NPD Group's video game statistics for January 2008, the Wii had been ahead of the Xbox 360 and PS3 in US sales in most months since the Wii and PS3 were released, according to data by the NPD Group. In the United States, the Wii had sold 10.9 million units by July 1, 2008, making it the leader in current-generation home console sales, according to the NPD Group, surpassing the Xbox 360 which was released a year prior to the Wii. As of November 1, 2008, the Wii had sold 13.4 million units in the US, almost two million more than Xbox 360 and over twice the number of PlayStation 3 units sold, according to the NPD Group.
In Japan, the Wii had surpassed the number of Nintendo GameCube
Nintendo GameCube
The , officially abbreviated to NGC in Japan and GCN in other regions, is a sixth generation video game console released by Nintendo on September 15, 2001 in Japan, November 18, 2001 in North America, May 3, 2002 in Europe, and May 17, 2002 in Australia...
units sold by January 2008; the Wii had sold 7,526,821 units as of December 28, 2008, according to Enterbrain. According to the NPD Group, the Wii surpassed the Xbox 360 to become the best-selling "next generation" home video game console in Canada with 813,000 units sold by April 1, 2008, and had been the best-selling home console for 13 of the previous 17 months. In the first six months of 2008, the Wii had sold 318,000 units in Canada, outselling its nearest competitor, the PlayStation 3, almost 2:1. According to the NPD Group, the Wii had sold a total of 1,060,000 units in Canada as of August 1, 2008, making it the first current generation home console to surpass the million unit mark in that country. In the first seven months of 2008, the Wii outsold the PS3 and the Xbox 360 combined with 376,000 units sold in Canada. In the United Kingdom, the Wii leads in current generation home console sales with 4.9 million units sold as of January 3, 2009, according to GfK Chart-Track
Chart-Track
Chart-Track is a market research company that monitors music, videos and software sales in the United Kingdom, Ireland and Denmark and was formed in 1996. In July 2008 GfK took a majority stake in the company....
. On March 25, 2009, at the Game Developers Conference
Game Developers Conference
The Game Developers Conference is the largest annual gathering of professional video game developers, focusing on learning, inspiration, and networking...
, Satoru Iwata
Satoru Iwata
is the fourth president of Nintendo, succeeding the long-standing previous president of the company, Hiroshi Yamauchi in 2002. He was responsible in great part for defining Nintendo's strategy both before and during the release of its Nintendo GameCube video game console in 2001, a vision which...
said that worldwide shipments of Wii had reached 50 million.
While Microsoft and Sony have experienced losses producing their consoles in the hopes of making a long-term profit on software sales, Nintendo reportedly has optimized production costs to obtain a significant profit margin with each Wii unit sold. On September 17, 2007, the Financial Times reported that this direct profit per Wii sold may vary from $13 in Japan to $49 in the United States and $79 in Europe. On December 2, 2008, Forbes
Forbes
Forbes is an American publishing and media company. Its flagship publication, the Forbes magazine, is published biweekly. Its primary competitors in the national business magazine category are Fortune, which is also published biweekly, and Business Week...
reported that Nintendo makes a $6 operating profit per Wii unit sold.
Nintendo reported on May 7, 2009 increases in operating profits for its fiscal year (April 1, 2008 – March 31, 2009), and a rise in sales—setting record earnings compared to the previous year. Kenji Hall of BusinessWeek
BusinessWeek
Bloomberg Businessweek, commonly and formerly known as BusinessWeek, is a weekly business magazine published by Bloomberg L.P. It is currently headquartered in New York City.- History :...
called the company "a bright spot in an otherwise dismal Japanese tech sector" citing the unique qualities of the Wii and DSi. However, Nintendo's financial forecasts until March 2010 had investors and analysts questioning if the company cannot keep its streak from ending. The Japanese market, which tends to serve as a leading indicator for global markets, saw Wii sales drop by 47% when comparing Nintendo's fiscal year of 2008—2009, to the previous year. While analysts predicted that game console sales in general will fall in 2009, Hall argued "Nintendo's big advantages are disappearing" amid price reductions of the Xbox 360 and rumors of Sony unveiling a motion-sensing wireless controller.
On September 23, 2009, Nintendo announced its first price drops for the console. In Japan, the price dropped from ¥25,000 to ¥20,000, effective October 1, 2009. In the United States, the price was reduced by $50 resulting in a new MSRP of $199.99, effective September 27, 2009. In Europe (excepting non-eurozone nations), the price of a Wii console dropped to €199 from €249. Nintendo sold more than three million Wii consoles in the U.S. in December 2009, setting a regional record for the month and ending 9 months of declining sales, as a result of the price cut and software releases such as New Super Mario Bros. Wii
New Super Mario Bros. Wii
is a 2009 side-scrolling platform video game published and developed by Nintendo for the Wii video game console. The game was released on November 12, 2009 in Australia, November 15, 2009 in North America, November 20, 2009 in Europe and December 3, 2009 in Japan...
. As of the end of that month, the Wii is the best selling home video game console produced by Nintendo with sales of over 67 million units, surpassing that of the original Nintendo Entertainment System
Nintendo Entertainment System
The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...
. As of March 31, according to Nintendo, the Wii has sold 70.93 million units worldwide, selling 20.53 million units within 2009-2010 fiscal year. As of September 30, 2011, Nintendo has sold 89.36 million Wii consoles.. Nintendo reported that on Black Friday 2011 over 500,000 Wii consoles were sold making it the biggest Black Friday for the company.
Demographic
Nintendo hopes to targetTarget market
A target market is a group of customers that the business has decided to aim its marketing efforts and ultimately its merchandise. A well-defined target market is the first element to a marketing strategy...
a wider demographic
Demographic profile
A demographic or demographic profile is a term used in marketing and broadcasting, to describe a demographic grouping or a market segment...
with its console than that of others in the seventh generation
History of video game consoles (seventh generation)
In the history of video games, the seventh generation of consoles is the current generation , and includes consoles released since late by Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony...
. At a press conference for the then-upcoming Nintendo DS
Nintendo DS
The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP...
game Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies in December 2006, Satoru Iwata
Satoru Iwata
is the fourth president of Nintendo, succeeding the long-standing previous president of the company, Hiroshi Yamauchi in 2002. He was responsible in great part for defining Nintendo's strategy both before and during the release of its Nintendo GameCube video game console in 2001, a vision which...
insisted "We're not thinking about fighting Sony
Sony
, commonly referred to as Sony, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan and the world's fifth largest media conglomerate measured by revenues....
, but about how many people we can get to play games. The thing we're thinking about most is not portable systems, consoles, and so forth, but that we want to get new people playing games."
This is reflected in Nintendo's series of television advertisement
Television advertisement
A television advertisement or television commercial, often just commercial, advert, ad, or ad-film – is a span of television programming produced and paid for by an organization that conveys a message, typically one intended to market a product...
s in North America, directed by Academy Award winner Stephen Gaghan
Stephen Gaghan
Stephen Gaghan is an American screenwriter and director. He is noted for writing the screenplay for Steven Soderbergh's film Traffic, based on a Channel 4 series, for which he won the Academy Award, as well as Syriana which he wrote and directed.-Childhood and education:Born in either Louisville,...
, as well as Internet ads. The ad slogans are "Wii would like to play" and "Experience a new way to play." These ads ran starting November 15, 2006 and had a total budget of over US$
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
200 million throughout the year. The productions are Nintendo's first broad-based advertising strategy and include a two-minute video clip
Video clip
Video clips are short clips of video, usually part of a longer recording. The term is also more loosely used to mean any short video less than the length of a traditional television program.- On the Internet :...
showing a varied assortment of people enjoying the Wii system, such as urban apartment-dwellers, country ranchers, grandparents, and parents with their children. The music in the ads is from the song "Kodo (Inside the Sun Remix)" by the Yoshida Brothers
Yoshida Brothers
The Yoshida Kyōdai are Japanese musicians and have released several albums under the Domo Records internationally as the Yoshida Brothers....
. The marketing campaign has proved to be successful: pensioner
Pensioner
In common parlance, a pensioner is a person who has retired, and now collects a pension. This is a term typically used in the United Kingdom and Australia where someone of pensionable age may also be referred to as an 'old age pensioner', or OAP. In the United States, the term retiree is more...
s as old as 103 have been reported to be playing the Wii in the United Kingdom. A report by the British newspaper The People
The People
The People, previously known as the Sunday People, is a British tabloid Sunday-only newspaper. The paper was founded on 16 October 1881.It is published by the Trinity Mirror Group.In July 2011 it had an average daily circulation of 806,544....
also stated that Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
of the United Kingdom has played using the console.
Successor
Nintendo announced the successor to the Wii, called Wii U, at the Electronic Entertainment Expo 2011Electronic Entertainment Expo 2011
The Electronic Entertainment Expo 2011, commonly known as E3 2011, was the 15th Electronic Entertainment Expo held. E3 is an annual trade show for the computer and video games industry presented by the Entertainment Software Association . The event took place June 7–9, 2011 at the Los Angeles...
. The Wii U will feature a controller with an embedded touch screen, output 1080p
1080p
1080p is the shorthand identification for a set of HDTV high-definition video modes that are characterized by 1080 horizontal lines of resolution and progressive scan, meaning the image is not interlaced as is the case with the 1080i display standard....
high-definition
High-definition video
High-definition video or HD video refers to any video system of higher resolution than standard-definition video, and most commonly involves display resolutions of 1,280×720 pixels or 1,920×1,080 pixels...
graphics, and be fully backwards compatible with Wii games and peripherals for the Wii. The Wii Remote and Nunchuk controller, and the Wii Balance Board, will be compatible with Wii U games that include support for them.
Wii Family Edition
The Wii Family Edition is a revised Wii model, released on October 10, 2011, which, while being the same dimensions as the original model, is designed to sit horizontally instead, and is not compatibile with Nintendo GameCubeNintendo GameCube
The , officially abbreviated to NGC in Japan and GCN in other regions, is a sixth generation video game console released by Nintendo on September 15, 2001 in Japan, November 18, 2001 in North America, May 3, 2002 in Europe, and May 17, 2002 in Australia...
games or accessories. It was announced on August 17, 2011.
The "Wii Family Edition" is to be made available in Europe as part of a Christmas bundle with a Wii Remote Plus, Wii Party
Wii Party
is a party video game developed and published by Nintendo for the Wii video game console. The game heavily borrows game play elements from the Mario Party series, another Nintendo franchise. It is also the first game in the Wii series that Shigeru Miyamoto did not produce...
and Wii Sports
Wii Sports
is a sports game developed and published by Nintendo as a launch title for the Wii video game console , and part of the Touch! Generations. The game was first released in North America along with the Wii on November 19, 2006, and was released in Japan, Australia, and Europe the following month...
. On October 10, 2011, Nintendo UK announced a blue Wii Family Edition would be released to coincide with the release of Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games
Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games
is a 2011 sports video game developed by Sega Japan. It was published by Nintendo for Japan and by Sega for North America, Europe, and all other regions. The game is officially licensed by the International Olympic Committee through exclusive licensee International Sports Multimedia...
to release on November 18, 2011. In the same press release they hinted additional colors to be available in late 2011. On October 11, 2011, Nintendo of America announced a black Wii family edition which was be released on October 23, 2011 and would come bundled with New Super Mario Bros Wii and the official soundtrack CD of Super Mario Galaxy
Super Mario Galaxy
is a 3D platform game developed by Nintendo EAD Tokyo and published by Nintendo for the Wii. It was released in most regions in November 2007, and is the third 3D original platformer in the Mario series, after Super Mario 64 and Super Mario Sunshine. The game follows the protagonist, Mario, on a...
.
Unlike the PlayStation 3 Slim and Xbox 360 S which were released in 2009 and 2010, respectively, and replaced all older models, the Wii Family Edition did not. The original Wii is still sold as normal.
Hardware
Millimetre
The millimetre is a unit of length in the metric system, equal to one thousandth of a metre, which is the SI base unit of length....
(1.73 in
Inch
An inch is the name of a unit of length in a number of different systems, including Imperial units, and United States customary units. There are 36 inches in a yard and 12 inches in a foot...
) wide, 157 mm (6.18 in) tall and 215.4 mm (8.48 in) deep in its vertical orientation, slightly larger than three DVD cases
Keep case
A keep case or poly-box is a type of DVD packaging. From the well-known brand Amaray, this type of case is often called Amaray case, creating a genericized trademark and ambiguities about the real manufacturer of the case....
stacked together. The included stand measures 55.4 mm (2.18 in) wide, 44 mm (1.73 in) tall and 225.6 mm (8.88 in) deep. The system weighs 1.2 kg
Kilogram
The kilogram or kilogramme , also known as the kilo, is the base unit of mass in the International System of Units and is defined as being equal to the mass of the International Prototype Kilogram , which is almost exactly equal to the mass of one liter of water...
(2.7 lb
Pound (mass)
The pound or pound-mass is a unit of mass used in the Imperial, United States customary and other systems of measurement...
), which makes it the lightest of the three major seventh generation
History of video game consoles (seventh generation)
In the history of video games, the seventh generation of consoles is the current generation , and includes consoles released since late by Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony...
consoles. The console can be placed either horizontally or vertically. The prefix for the numbering scheme of the system and its parts and accessories is "RVL-" after its code name
Code name
A code name or cryptonym is a word or name used clandestinely to refer to another name or word. Code names are often used for military purposes, or in espionage...
of "Revolution". The console also features a recurring design theme: the console itself, the power supply and all the sockets have one of their corners chipped off in a triangular fashion.
The front of the console features an illuminated slot-loading optical media drive that accepts only 12 cm Wii Optical Discs and 8 cm Nintendo GameCube Game Discs. The blue light in the disc slot illuminates briefly when the console is turned on and pulsates when new data is received through WiiConnect24
WiiConnect24
WiiConnect24 is a feature of the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection for the Wii console. It was first announced at E3 2006 by Nintendo. It enables the user to remain connected to the Internet while the console is on standby...
. After the update that includes System Menu 3.0, the disc slot light activates whenever a Wii disc is inserted or ejected. When there is no WiiConnect24 information, the light stays off. The disc slot light remains off during gameplay or when using other features. Two USB
Universal Serial Bus
USB is an industry standard developed in the mid-1990s that defines the cables, connectors and protocols used in a bus for connection, communication and power supply between computers and electronic devices....
ports are located at its rear. An SD card slot hides behind the cover on the front of the console.
The Wii launch
Wii launch
The Wii launch was the release of Nintendo's seventh generation video game console. This successor to the Nintendo GameCube was released in most territories in November and December 2006...
package includes the console, a stand to allow the console to be placed vertically, a circular clear stabilizer for the main stand, one Wii Remote
Wii Remote
The , also known as the Wiimote, is the primary controller for Nintendo's Wii console. A main feature of the Wii Remote is its motion sensing capability, which allows the user to interact with and manipulate items on screen via gesture recognition and pointing through the use of accelerometer and...
, one Nunchuk attachment, one Sensor Bar, a removable stand for the bar, one external main power adapter
Power supply
A power supply is a device that supplies electrical energy to one or more electric loads. The term is most commonly applied to devices that convert one form of electrical energy to another, though it may also refer to devices that convert another form of energy to electrical energy...
, two AA batteries
AA battery
An AA battery is a standard size of battery. Batteries of this size are the most commonly used type of in portable electronic devices. An AA battery is composed of a single electrochemical cell...
, one composite AV cable
Composite video
Composite video is the format of an analog television signal before it is combined with a sound signal and modulated onto an RF carrier. In contrast to component video it contains all required video information, including colors in a single line-level signal...
with RCA connector
RCA connector
An RCA connector, sometimes called a phono connector or cinch connector, is a type of electrical connector commonly used to carry audio and video signals...
s, a SCART
SCART
SCART is a French-originated standard and associated 21-pin connector for connecting audio-visual equipment together...
adapter in European countries (component video
Component video
Component video is a video signal that has been split into two or more component channels. In popular use, it refers to a type of component analog video information that is transmitted or stored as three separate signals...
and other types of cables are available separately), operation documentation, and, in all regions except Japan and South Korea, a copy of the game Wii Sports
Wii Sports
is a sports game developed and published by Nintendo as a launch title for the Wii video game console , and part of the Touch! Generations. The game was first released in North America along with the Wii on November 19, 2006, and was released in Japan, Australia, and Europe the following month...
.
The disc reader of the Wii does not play DVD-Video
DVD-Video
DVD-Video is a consumer video format used to store digital video on DVD discs, and is currently the dominant consumer video format in Asia, North America, Europe, and Australia. Discs using the DVD-Video specification require a DVD drive and a MPEG-2 decoder...
, DVD-Audio
DVD-Audio
DVD-Audio is a digital format for delivering high-fidelity audio content on a DVD. DVD-Audio is not intended to be a video delivery format and is not the same as video DVDs containing concert films or music videos....
, or compact disc
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
s. A 2006 announcement had stated a new version of the Wii capable of DVD-Video playback would be released in 2007; however Nintendo delayed its release to focus on producing the original console to meet demand. Nintendo's initial announcement stated that it "requires more than a firmware upgrade" to implement and that the functionality could not be made available as an upgrade option for the existing Wii model. Despite this assertion, third parties have used Wii homebrew to add DVD playback to the original unmodified Wii units. The Wii also can be hacked to enable an owner to use the console for other activities than those intended by Nintendo. Several brands of modchip
Modchip
A modchip is a small electronic device used to modify or disable built-in restrictions and limitations of computers, specifically videogame consoles...
s are available for the Wii.
Although Nintendo showed the console and the Wii Remote in white, black, silver, lime green, and red before it was released, it had only been available in white for its first two and a half years of sales. Black systems were made available in Japan in August 2009, in Europe in November 2009, and in North America on May 9, 2010. A red Wii system bundle was made available in Japan on November 11, 2010, commemorating the 25th anniversary of Super Mario Bros.
Super Mario Bros.
is a 1985 platform video game developed by Nintendo, published for the Nintendo Entertainment System as a sequel to the 1983 game Mario Bros. In Super Mario Bros., the player controls Mario as he travels through the Mushroom Kingdom in order to rescue Princess Toadstool from the antagonist...
The UK version of the limited edition red Wii was released on October 29, 2010, preloaded with the original Donkey Kong
Donkey Kong (video game)
is an arcade game released by Nintendo in 1981. It is an early example of the platform game genre, as the gameplay focuses on maneuvering the main character across a series of platforms while dodging and jumping over obstacles. In the game, Jumpman must rescue a damsel in distress, Lady, from a...
game. It also featured the Wii Remote Plus, which is a new version of the controller with integrated Wii Motion Plus technology. The red Wii bundle was released in North America on November 7, 2010 bundled with New Super Mario Bros. Wii
New Super Mario Bros. Wii
is a 2009 side-scrolling platform video game published and developed by Nintendo for the Wii video game console. The game was released on November 12, 2009 in Australia, November 15, 2009 in North America, November 20, 2009 in Europe and December 3, 2009 in Japan...
and the Wii Remote Plus.
On July 11, 2007, Nintendo revealed the Wii Balance Board
Wii Balance Board
The Wii Balance Board is a balance board accessory for the Nintendo Wii video game console. Along with Wii Fit, it was introduced on July 11, 2007 at the Electronic Entertainment Expo...
at E3 2007 along with Wii Fit
Wii Fit
is a video game developed by Nintendo for the company's home video game console, Wii, designed by Hiroshi Matsunaga. It is an exercise game consisting of activities using the Wii Balance Board peripheral...
. It is a wireless balance board
Balance board
A balance board is a device used for recreation, balance training, athletic training, brain development, therapy, musical training and other kinds of personal development....
accessory for the Wii that contains multiple pressure sensors used to measure the user's center of balance
Center of mass
In physics, the center of mass or barycenter of a system is the average location of all of its mass. In the case of a rigid body, the position of the center of mass is fixed in relation to the body...
. Namco Bandai
Namco Bandai Games
is an arcade, mobile and home video game developer and publisher based in Japan which is the product of a merger between the video game development divisions of Bandai and Namco. Namco Bandai Games is a wholly owned subsidiary of Namco Bandai Holdings and specializes in production and sales of...
produced a mat controller, a simpler less sophisticated competitor to the balance board, that connects to the GameCube controller port.
Wii Remote
The Wii Remote is the primary controllerGame controller
A game controller is a device used with games or entertainment systems used to control a playable character or object, or otherwise provide input in a computer game. A controller is typically connected to a game console or computer by means of a wire, cord or nowadays, by means of wireless connection...
for the console. It uses a combination of built-in accelerometer
Accelerometer
An accelerometer is a device that measures proper acceleration, also called the four-acceleration. This is not necessarily the same as the coordinate acceleration , but is rather the type of acceleration associated with the phenomenon of weight experienced by a test mass that resides in the frame...
s and infrared
Infrared
Infrared light is electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength longer than that of visible light, measured from the nominal edge of visible red light at 0.74 micrometres , and extending conventionally to 300 µm...
detection to sense its position in 3D
Three-dimensional space
Three-dimensional space is a geometric 3-parameters model of the physical universe in which we live. These three dimensions are commonly called length, width, and depth , although any three directions can be chosen, provided that they do not lie in the same plane.In physics and mathematics, a...
space when pointed at the LEDs
Light-emitting diode
A light-emitting diode is a semiconductor light source. LEDs are used as indicator lamps in many devices and are increasingly used for other lighting...
within the Sensor Bar. This design allows users to control the game using physical gestures as well as traditional button presses. The controller connects to the console using Bluetooth
Bluetooth
Bluetooth is a proprietary open wireless technology standard for exchanging data over short distances from fixed and mobile devices, creating personal area networks with high levels of security...
and features rumble as well as an internal speaker. The Wii Remote can connect to expansion devices through a proprietary
Proprietary software
Proprietary software is computer software licensed under exclusive legal right of the copyright holder. The licensee is given the right to use the software under certain conditions, while restricted from other uses, such as modification, further distribution, or reverse engineering.Complementary...
port at the base of the controller. The device bundled with the Wii retail package is the Nunchuk unit, which features an accelerometer and a traditional analog stick
Analog stick
An analog stick, sometimes called a control stick or thumbstick, is an input device for a controller that is used for two-dimensional input. An analog stick is a variation of a joystick, consisting of a protrusion from the controller; input is based on the position of this protrusion in relation...
with two trigger buttons. In addition, an attachable wrist strap can be used to prevent the player from unintentionally dropping or throwing the Wii Remote. Nintendo has also since offered a stronger strap and the Wii Remote Jacket to provide extra grip and protection. The Wii MotionPlus
Wii MotionPlus
The is an expansion device for the Wii Remote video game controller for the Wii that allows it to more accurately capture complex motion. According to Nintendo, the sensor in the device supplements the accelerometer and Sensor Bar capabilities of the Wii Remote to enable actions to be rendered...
was announced as a device that connects to the Wii Remote to supplement the accelerometer and Sensor Bar capabilities and enable actions to be rendered identically on the screen in real time. Nintendo also revealed the Wii Vitality Sensor, a fingertip pulse oximeter
Pulse oximeter
A pulse oximeter is a medical device that indirectly monitors the oxygen saturation of a patient's blood and changes in blood volume in the skin, producing a photoplethysmograph. It is often attached to a medical monitor so staff can see a patient's oxygenation at all times...
sensor that connects through the Wii Remote.
Memory storage
The Wii console contains 512 megabyteMegabyte
The megabyte is a multiple of the unit byte for digital information storage or transmission with two different values depending on context: bytes generally for computer memory; and one million bytes generally for computer storage. The IEEE Standards Board has decided that "Mega will mean 1 000...
s of internal flash memory
Flash memory
Flash memory is a non-volatile computer storage chip that can be electrically erased and reprogrammed. It was developed from EEPROM and must be erased in fairly large blocks before these can be rewritten with new data...
and features an SD card slot for external storage. An SD card can be used for uploading photos as well as backing up saved game
Saved game
A saved game is a piece of digitally stored information about the progress of a player in a video game. This saved game can be reloaded later, so the player can continue where he or she had stopped...
data and downloaded Virtual Console
Virtual console
A virtual console – also known as a virtual terminal – is a conceptual combination of the keyboard and display for a computer user interface. It is a feature of some operating systems such as UnixWare, Linux, and BSD, in which the system console of the computer can be used to switch between...
and WiiWare
WiiWare
WiiWare is a service that allows Wii users to download games and applications specifically designed and developed for the Wii video game console made by Nintendo. These games and applications can only be purchased and downloaded from the Wii Shop Channel under the WiiWare section...
games. To use the SD slot for transferring game saves, an update
Patch (computing)
A patch is a piece of software designed to fix problems with, or update a computer program or its supporting data. This includes fixing security vulnerabilities and other bugs, and improving the usability or performance...
must be installed. An installation can be initiated from the Wii options menu through an Internet connection, or by inserting a game disc containing the update. Virtual Console data cannot be restored to any system except the unit of origin. An SD card can also be used to create customized in-game music from stored MP3
MP3
MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III, more commonly referred to as MP3, is a patented digital audio encoding format using a form of lossy data compression...
files, as first shown in Excite Truck
Excite Truck
is a video game published by Nintendo and developed by Monster Games for the Wii video game system. It features malleable environments and tilt-based controls. The game was one of the Wii launch titles in North America. It is a spiritual successor to the Excitebike series...
, as well as music for the slideshow
Slideshow
A slide show is a display of a series of chosen information or pictures, done for artistic or instructional purposes. Slide shows are conducted by a presenter using an apparatus, such as a carousel slide projector, an overhead projector or in more recent years, a computer running presentation...
feature of the Photo Channel. Version 1.1 of the Photo Channel removed MP3 playback in favor of AAC
Advanced Audio Coding
Advanced Audio Coding is a standardized, lossy compression and encoding scheme for digital audio. Designed to be the successor of the MP3 format, AAC generally achieves better sound quality than MP3 at similar bit rates....
support.
At the Nintendo Fall Press Conference in October 2008, Satoru Iwata announced that Wii owners would have the option to download WiiWare and Virtual Console content directly onto an SD card. The option would offer an alternative to "address the console's insufficient memory storage". The announcement stated that it would be available in Japan in the spring of 2009. Nintendo made the update available on March 25, 2009. In addition to the previously announced functionality, it lets the player load Virtual Console and WiiWare games directly from the SD card. The update allows the use of SDHC cards, increasing the limit on SD card size from 2 GB to 32 GB.
Technical specifications
Nintendo has released few technical details regarding the Wii system, but some key facts have leaked through the press. Though none of these reports has been officially confirmed, they generally point to the console as being an extension or advancement of the Nintendo GameCubeNintendo GameCube
The , officially abbreviated to NGC in Japan and GCN in other regions, is a sixth generation video game console released by Nintendo on September 15, 2001 in Japan, November 18, 2001 in North America, May 3, 2002 in Europe, and May 17, 2002 in Australia...
architecture. More specifically, the reported analyses state that the Wii is roughly 1.5 to 2 times as powerful as its predecessor. Based on the leaked specifications, the Wii is the least powerful of the major home consoles in its generation.
Processors:
- CPUCentral processing unitThe central processing unit is the portion of a computer system that carries out the instructions of a computer program, to perform the basic arithmetical, logical, and input/output operations of the system. The CPU plays a role somewhat analogous to the brain in the computer. The term has been in...
: PowerPCPowerPCPowerPC is a RISC architecture created by the 1991 Apple–IBM–Motorola alliance, known as AIM...
-based "Broadway"Broadway (microprocessor)Broadway is the codename of the 32-bit Central Processing Unit used in Nintendo's Wii video game console. It was designed by IBM, and is currently being produced using a 90 nm SOI process....
processor, made with a 90 nm90 nanometerThe 90 nm process refers to the level of CMOS process technology that was reached in the 2002–2003 timeframe, by most leading semiconductor companies, like Intel, AMD, Infineon, Texas Instruments, IBM, and TSMC....
SOISilicon on insulatorSilicon on insulator technology refers to the use of a layered silicon-insulator-silicon substrate in place of conventional silicon substrates in semiconductor manufacturing, especially microelectronics, to reduce parasitic device capacitance and thereby improving performance...
CMOSCMOSComplementary metal–oxide–semiconductor is a technology for constructing integrated circuits. CMOS technology is used in microprocessors, microcontrollers, static RAM, and other digital logic circuits...
process, reportedly clocked at 729 MHzHertzThe hertz is the SI unit of frequency defined as the number of cycles per second of a periodic phenomenon. One of its most common uses is the description of the sine wave, particularly those used in radio and audio applications.... - GPUGraphics processing unitA graphics processing unit or GPU is a specialized circuit designed to rapidly manipulate and alter memory in such a way so as to accelerate the building of images in a frame buffer intended for output to a display...
: ATIATI TechnologiesATI Technologies Inc. was a semiconductor technology corporation based in Markham, Ontario, Canada, that specialized in the development of graphics processing units and chipsets. Founded in 1985 as Array Technologies Inc., the company was listed publicly in 1993 and was acquired by Advanced Micro...
"Hollywood" GPUHollywood (graphics chip)Hollywood is the name of the graphics processing unit used in Nintendo's Wii video game console. It was designed by AMD's graphics product division and is manufactured using the same 90 nm CMOS process as the "Broadway" processor. Very few official details have been released to the public by...
made with a 90 nm CMOS process, reportedly clocked at 243 MHzHertzThe hertz is the SI unit of frequency defined as the number of cycles per second of a periodic phenomenon. One of its most common uses is the description of the sine wave, particularly those used in radio and audio applications....
None of the clock rate
Clock rate
The clock rate typically refers to the frequency that a CPU is running at.For example, a crystal oscillator frequency reference typically is synonymous with a fixed sinusoidal waveform, a clock rate is that frequency reference translated by electronic circuitry into a corresponding square wave...
s have been confirmed by Nintendo
Nintendo
is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
, IBM
IBM
International Business Machines Corporation or IBM is an American multinational technology and consulting corporation headquartered in Armonk, New York, United States. IBM manufactures and sells computer hardware and software, and it offers infrastructure, hosting and consulting services in areas...
or ATI
ATI Technologies
ATI Technologies Inc. was a semiconductor technology corporation based in Markham, Ontario, Canada, that specialized in the development of graphics processing units and chipsets. Founded in 1985 as Array Technologies Inc., the company was listed publicly in 1993 and was acquired by Advanced Micro...
.
Memory:
- 88 MBMegabyteThe megabyte is a multiple of the unit byte for digital information storage or transmission with two different values depending on context: bytes generally for computer memory; and one million bytes generally for computer storage. The IEEE Standards Board has decided that "Mega will mean 1 000...
main memory (24 MB "internal" 1T-SRAM1T-SRAM1T-SRAM is a pseudostatic random-access memory technology introduced by MoSys, Inc., which offers a high-density alternative to traditional static random access memory in embedded memory applications...
integrated into graphics package, 64 MB "external" GDDR3GDDR3Graphics Double Data Rate 3 is a graphics card-specific memory technology, designed by ATI Technologies with the collaboration of JEDEC.It has much the same technological base as DDR2, but the power and heat dispersal requirements have been reduced somewhat, allowing for higher performance memory...
SDRAM) - 3 MB embedded GPU texture memoryTexture MemoryTexture memory is a type of digital storage that makes texture data readily available to video rendering processors , typically 3D graphics hardware...
and framebufferFramebufferA framebuffer is a video output device that drives a video display from a memory buffer containing a complete frame of data.The information in the memory buffer typically consists of color values for every pixel on the screen...
.
Ports and peripheral capabilities:
- Up to 16 Wii Remote controllers (10 in Standard Mode, 6 in One Time Mode, connected wirelessly via BluetoothBluetoothBluetooth is a proprietary open wireless technology standard for exchanging data over short distances from fixed and mobile devices, creating personal area networks with high levels of security...
) - Nintendo GameCube controller ports (4)
- Nintendo GameCube Memory Card slots (2)
- SDSecure Digital cardSecure Digital is a non-volatile memory card format developed by the SD Card Association for use in portable devices. The SD technology is used by more than 400 brands across dozens of product categories and more than 8,000 models, and is considered the de-facto industry standard.Secure Digital...
memory card slot (supports SDHC cards as of System Menu 4.0) - USB 2.0 ports (2)
- Sensor Bar power port
- Accessory port on bottom of Wii Remote
- Optional USB keyboard input in message board, Wii Shop Channel, and the Internet Channel (as of 3.0 and 3.1 firmware update)
- MitsumiMitsumiis a Japanese manufacturer of consumer electronic components, founded in 1954.-Products:One of the company's most noticeable product lines are video game console controllers...
DWM-W004 WiFi 802.11b/g wireless module - Compatible with optional USB 2.0 to EthernetEthernetEthernet is a family of computer networking technologies for local area networks commercially introduced in 1980. Standardized in IEEE 802.3, Ethernet has largely replaced competing wired LAN technologies....
LANLocal area networkA local area network is a computer network that interconnects computers in a limited area such as a home, school, computer laboratory, or office building...
adapter - "AV Multi Out" port (See "Video" section right)
Built-in content ratings systems:
- BBFCBritish Board of Film ClassificationThe British Board of Film Classification , originally British Board of Film Censors, is a non-governmental organisation, funded by the film industry and responsible for the national classification of films within the United Kingdom...
, CEROComputer Entertainment Rating OrganizationThe is a Japanese entertainment rating organization based in Tokyo. rating video game content in console games with levels of rating that informs the customer of the nature of the product and for what age group it is suitable...
, ESRBEntertainment Software Rating BoardThe Entertainment Software Rating Board is a self-regulatory organization that assigns age and content ratings, enforces industry-adopted advertising guidelines, and ensures responsible online privacy principles for computer and video games as well as entertainment software in Canada, Mexico and...
, ACBAustralian Classification BoardThe Australian Classification Board is a statutory classification body formed by the Australian Government which classifies films, video games and publications for exhibition, sale or hire in Australia since its establishment in 1970. The Australian Classification Board was originally incorporated...
, OFLC (NZ)Office of Film and Literature Classification (New Zealand)The Office of Film and Literature Classification is the government agency in New Zealand that is responsible for classification of all films, videos, publications, and some video games in New Zealand...
, PEGIPan European Game InformationPan European Game Information is a European video game content rating system established to help European parents make informed decisions on buying computer games with logos on games boxes. It was developed by the Interactive Software Federation of Europe and came into use in April 2003; it...
, USKUnterhaltungssoftware SelbstkontrolleUnterhaltungssoftware Selbstkontrolle is the organization responsible for computer game ratings in Germany.- Ratings :...
- 512 MB built-in NAND flash memoryFlash memoryFlash memory is a non-volatile computer storage chip that can be electrically erased and reprogrammed. It was developed from EEPROM and must be erased in fairly large blocks before these can be rewritten with new data...
- Expanded storage via SDSecure Digital cardSecure Digital is a non-volatile memory card format developed by the SD Card Association for use in portable devices. The SD technology is used by more than 400 brands across dozens of product categories and more than 8,000 models, and is considered the de-facto industry standard.Secure Digital...
and SDHC card memory (up to 32 GB) - Nintendo GameCube Memory Card (required for GameCube game saves)
- Slot-loading disc drive compatible with 8 cm Nintendo GameCube Game Disc and 12 cm Wii Optical Disc
- Mask ROMMask ROMMask ROM is a type of read-only memory whose contents are programmed by the integrated circuit manufacturer...
by Macronix
Video:
- Custom "AV Multi Out" port supporting composite videoComposite videoComposite video is the format of an analog television signal before it is combined with a sound signal and modulated onto an RF carrier. In contrast to component video it contains all required video information, including colors in a single line-level signal...
, YPBPRYPbPr' is a color space used in video electronics, in particular in reference to component video cables. is the analog version of the YCBCR color space; the two are numerically equivalent, but YPBPR is designed for use in analog systems whereas YCBCR is intended for digital video. cables are also...
component videoComponent videoComponent video is a video signal that has been split into two or more component channels. In popular use, it refers to a type of component analog video information that is transmitted or stored as three separate signals...
, S-VideoS-VideoSeparate Video, more commonly known as S-Video and Y/C, is often referred to by JVC as both an S-VHS connector and as Super Video. It is an analog video transmission scheme, in which video information is encoded on two channels: luma and chroma...
(NTSCNTSCNTSC, named for the National Television System Committee, is the analog television system that is used in most of North America, most of South America , Burma, South Korea, Taiwan, Japan, the Philippines, and some Pacific island nations and territories .Most countries using the NTSC standard, as...
consoles only) and RGB SCARTSCARTSCART is a French-originated standard and associated 21-pin connector for connecting audio-visual equipment together...
(PALPALPAL, short for Phase Alternating Line, is an analogue television colour encoding system used in broadcast television systems in many countries. Other common analogue television systems are NTSC and SECAM. This page primarily discusses the PAL colour encoding system...
consoles only) - 480p480p480p is the shorthand name for a video display resolution. The p stands for progressive scan, i.e. non-interlaced. The 480 denotes a vertical resolution of 480 pixel high vertically scanning lines, usually with a horizontal resolution of 640 pixels and 4:3 aspect ratio or a horizontal resolution of...
(PALPALPAL, short for Phase Alternating Line, is an analogue television colour encoding system used in broadcast television systems in many countries. Other common analogue television systems are NTSC and SECAM. This page primarily discusses the PAL colour encoding system...
/NTSCNTSCNTSC, named for the National Television System Committee, is the analog television system that is used in most of North America, most of South America , Burma, South Korea, Taiwan, Japan, the Philippines, and some Pacific island nations and territories .Most countries using the NTSC standard, as...
), 480i480i480i is the shorthand name for a video mode, namely the US NTSC television system or digital television systems with the same characteristics. The i, which is sometimes uppercase, stands for interlaced, the 480 for a vertical frame resolution of 480 lines containing picture information; while NTSC...
(PAL/NTSC) or 576i576i576i is a standard-definition video mode used in PAL and SECAM countries. In digital applications it is usually referred to as "576i", in analogue contexts it is often quoted as "625 lines"...
(PAL/SECAMSECAMSECAM, also written SÉCAM , is an analog color television system first used in France....
), standard 4:3 and 16:9Aspect ratio (image)The aspect ratio of an image is the ratio of the width of the image to its height, expressed as two numbers separated by a colon. That is, for an x:y aspect ratio, no matter how big or small the image is, if the width is divided into x units of equal length and the height is measured using this...
anamorphic widescreenAnamorphic widescreenAnamorphic widescreen, when applied to DVD manufacture, is a video process that horizontally squeezes a widescreen image so that it can be stored in a standard 4:3 aspect ratio DVD image frame. Compatible playback equipment can then re-expand the horizontal dimension to show the original widescreen...
Audio:
- Main: Stereo – Dolby Pro Logic II-capable
- Controller: Built-in speaker
Power consumption:
- 18 WWattThe watt is a derived unit of power in the International System of Units , named after the Scottish engineer James Watt . The unit, defined as one joule per second, measures the rate of energy conversion.-Definition:...
when switched on - 9.6 W in standby with WiiConnect24WiiConnect24WiiConnect24 is a feature of the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection for the Wii console. It was first announced at E3 2006 by Nintendo. It enables the user to remain connected to the Internet while the console is on standby...
standby connection - 1.3 W in standby
Technical issues
The first Wii system softwareWii System Software
Wii system software is a set of updatable firmware versions, and a software frontend on the Wii video game console. Updates, which are downloaded via the system's Internet connection , allow Nintendo to add additional features and software...
update via WiiConnect24 caused a very small portion of launch units to become completely unusable
Brick (electronics)
When used in reference to consumer electronics, "brick" describes a device that cannot function in any capacity . This usage derives from the fact that some electronic devices are vaguely brick-shaped, and so those which do not function are useful only as actual bricks. The term can also be used...
. This forced users to either send their units to Nintendo
Nintendo
is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
for repairs (if they wished to retain their saved data) or exchange it for a free replacement.
With the release of dual-layer Wii Optical Discs, Nintendo of America has stated that some Wii systems may have difficulty reading the high-density software due to a contaminated laser lens. Nintendo is offering retail lens cleaning kits and free console repairs for owners who experience this issue.
The Wii Remote can lose track of the Wii system that it has been set to, requiring that it be reset and resynchronized. Nintendo's support website provides instructions for this process, and to troubleshoot related issues.
Legal issues
Interlink Electronics filed a patent-infringement lawsuit against Nintendo over the pointing functionalities of the Wii Remote, claiming "loss of reasonable royalties, reduced sales and/or lost profits as a result of the infringing activities" of Nintendo. Law firm Green Welling LLP filed a class actionClass action
In law, a class action, a class suit, or a representative action is a form of lawsuit in which a large group of people collectively bring a claim to court and/or in which a class of defendants is being sued...
lawsuit against Nintendo for its "defective wrist straps". A Texas-based company called Lonestar Inventions has also sued Nintendo, claiming that the company copied one of Lonestar's patented capacitor
Capacitor
A capacitor is a passive two-terminal electrical component used to store energy in an electric field. The forms of practical capacitors vary widely, but all contain at least two electrical conductors separated by a dielectric ; for example, one common construction consists of metal foils separated...
designs and used it in the Wii console.
Anascape Ltd, a Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
-based firm, also filed a lawsuit against Nintendo for patent infringements regarding Nintendo's controllers. A July 2008 verdict found that a ban would be issued preventing Nintendo from selling the Classic Controller
Classic Controller
The is a video game controller produced by Nintendo. It is used to play games on the Nintendo Wii video game console.-Classic Controller:The Classic Controller is plugged into the Wii Remote in order to be used. It features two analog sticks, a D-pad, face buttons labeled "a", "b", "x" and "y",...
in the United States. Nintendo is free to continue selling the Classic Controller pending an appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
-Vacancies and pending nominations:-List of former judges:-Chief judges:Notwithstanding the foregoing, when the court was initially created, Congress had to resolve which chief judge of the predecessor courts would become the first chief judge...
. On Thursday, April 22, 2010, the Federal Circuit ruled in Nintendo's favor.
On August 19, 2008, Hillcrest Laboratories Inc. filed a complaint against Nintendo with the U.S International Trade Commission
United States International Trade Commission
The United States International Trade Commission is an independent, bi-partisan, quasi-judicial, federal agency of the United States that provides trade expertise to both the legislative and executive branches. Further, the agency determines the impact of imports on U.S...
. The complaint alleges that the Wii Remote infringes on three of its patents. A fourth Hillcrest patent for graphical interfaces displayed on television screens is also alleged to have been violated. Hillcrest therefore sought a ban on Wii consoles imported to the U.S., but on August 24, 2009, Nintendo and Hillcrest reached a settlement, though the terms have not been publicly disclosed.
The trademark application for "Wii Remote" was given an initial rejection by the United States Patent and Trademark Office
United States Patent and Trademark Office
The United States Patent and Trademark Office is an agency in the United States Department of Commerce that issues patents to inventors and businesses for their inventions, and trademark registration for product and intellectual property identification.The USPTO is based in Alexandria, Virginia,...
. The USPTO claimed that the word remote is commonly used and therefore should not be trademarked. The USPTO will accept Nintendo's trademark filing if the company disclaims exclusive rights to the word remote in the term.
Features
The console contains a number of internal features made available from its hardware and firmwareFirmware
In electronic systems and computing, firmware is a term often used to denote the fixed, usually rather small, programs and/or data structures that internally control various electronic devices...
components. The hardware allows for extendibility through expansion ports while the firmware and some other pieces of software can receive periodic updates via the WiiConnect24
WiiConnect24
WiiConnect24 is a feature of the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection for the Wii console. It was first announced at E3 2006 by Nintendo. It enables the user to remain connected to the Internet while the console is on standby...
service.
Wii Menu
Television channel
A television channel is a physical or virtual channel over which a television station or television network is distributed. For example, in North America, "channel 2" refers to the broadcast or cable band of 54 to 60 MHz, with carrier frequencies of 55.25 MHz for NTSC analog video and...
s. Separate channels are graphically displayed in a grid and are navigated using the pointer capability of the Wii Remote
Wii Remote
The , also known as the Wiimote, is the primary controller for Nintendo's Wii console. A main feature of the Wii Remote is its motion sensing capability, which allows the user to interact with and manipulate items on screen via gesture recognition and pointing through the use of accelerometer and...
. Except for the Disc Channel, it is possible to change the arrangement by holding down the A and B buttons to grab channels and move them around. There are six primary channels: the Disc Channel, Mii Channel, Photo Channel, Wii Shop Channel, Forecast Channel, and News Channel. The latter two were initially unavailable at launch, but activated through updates. The Wii + Internet Video Channel was installed with consoles manufactured in October 2008 or later. Additional channels are available for download from the Wii Shop Channel
Wii Shop Channel
The Wii Shop Channel is an online shop for the Wii video game console that allows users to download Virtual Console and WiiWare games, and new channels. Downloading may require redeeming Wii Points. The channel launched with Wii on November 19, 2006...
through WiiWare
WiiWare
WiiWare is a service that allows Wii users to download games and applications specifically designed and developed for the Wii video game console made by Nintendo. These games and applications can only be purchased and downloaded from the Wii Shop Channel under the WiiWare section...
and also appear with each Virtual Console
Virtual console
A virtual console – also known as a virtual terminal – is a conceptual combination of the keyboard and display for a computer user interface. It is a feature of some operating systems such as UnixWare, Linux, and BSD, in which the system console of the computer can be used to switch between...
title. These include the Everybody Votes Channel
Everybody Votes Channel
The Everybody Votes Channel is the Wii Menu channel that allows users to vote in simple opinion polls and compare and contrast opinions with those of friends, family and voters across the globe....
, Internet Channel, Check Mii Out Channel
Mii
A is a digital avatar used in Nintendo's Wii and Nintendo 3DS gaming consoles. They allow users to capture a likeness of themselves and others. After creating one using the Wii's Mii Channel or the Nintendo 3DS's Mii Maker, they can be used as playable characters in various titles for the...
, and the Nintendo Channel. As of October 18, 2010 Wii owners can download the Netflix
Netflix
Netflix, Inc., is an American provider of on-demand internet streaming media in the United States, Canada, and Latin America and flat rate DVD-by-mail in the United States. The company was established in 1997 and is headquartered in Los Gatos, California...
Channel from the Wii shop Channel.
Backward compatibility
The Wii console is backward compatibleBackward compatibility
In the context of telecommunications and computing, a device or technology is said to be backward or downward compatible if it can work with input generated by an older device...
with all official Nintendo GameCube
Nintendo GameCube
The , officially abbreviated to NGC in Japan and GCN in other regions, is a sixth generation video game console released by Nintendo on September 15, 2001 in Japan, November 18, 2001 in North America, May 3, 2002 in Europe, and May 17, 2002 in Australia...
software, as well as Nintendo GameCube Memory Cards and controllers. Compatibility with software is achieved with the slot-loading drive's ability to accept Nintendo GameCube Game Discs. The console supports progressive-scan output in 480p-enabled GameCube titles. Peripherals can be connected via a set of four GameCube controller ports and two Memory Card slots concealed by removable flip-open panels. The console therefore retains connectivity with the Game Boy Advance
Game Boy Advance
The is a 32-bit handheld video game console developed, manufactured, and marketed by Nintendo. It is the successor to the Game Boy Color. It was released in Japan on March 21, 2001; in North America on June 11, 2001; in Australia and Europe on June 22, 2001; and in the People's Republic of China...
and e-Reader through the Game Boy Advance Cable, which is used in the same manner as it was used with the GameCube. This feature can only be accessed on those select GameCube titles that previously utilized it. The Wii for release in South Korea lacks GameCube backward compatibility.
A Wii console running a GameCube disc is restricted to GameCube functionality. As such, a GameCube controller is required to play GameCube titles, as neither the Wii Remote
Wii Remote
The , also known as the Wiimote, is the primary controller for Nintendo's Wii console. A main feature of the Wii Remote is its motion sensing capability, which allows the user to interact with and manipulate items on screen via gesture recognition and pointing through the use of accelerometer and...
nor the Classic Controller
Classic Controller
The is a video game controller produced by Nintendo. It is used to play games on the Nintendo Wii video game console.-Classic Controller:The Classic Controller is plugged into the Wii Remote in order to be used. It features two analog sticks, a D-pad, face buttons labeled "a", "b", "x" and "y",...
functions in this capacity. A Nintendo GameCube Memory Card is also necessary to save game progress and content, as the Wii internal flash memory will not save GameCube games.
Backward compatibility is limited in some areas. Online and LAN-enabled features for Nintendo GameCube titles are unavailable on the Wii, as the console lacks serial ports for the Nintendo GameCube Broadband Adapter and Modem Adapter. The console uses a proprietary port for video output and is therefore incompatible with all Nintendo GameCube audio/video cables (composite video
Composite video
Composite video is the format of an analog television signal before it is combined with a sound signal and modulated onto an RF carrier. In contrast to component video it contains all required video information, including colors in a single line-level signal...
, S-Video
S-Video
Separate Video, more commonly known as S-Video and Y/C, is often referred to by JVC as both an S-VHS connector and as Super Video. It is an analog video transmission scheme, in which video information is encoded on two channels: luma and chroma...
, component video
Component video
Component video is a video signal that has been split into two or more component channels. In popular use, it refers to a type of component analog video information that is transmitted or stored as three separate signals...
and RGB SCART
SCART
SCART is a French-originated standard and associated 21-pin connector for connecting audio-visual equipment together...
). The console also lacks the GameCube footprint and high-speed port needed for Game Boy Player
Game Boy Player
The is a device made by Nintendo for the Nintendo GameCube which enables Game Boy , Game Boy Color, or Game Boy Advance cartridges to be played on a television. It connects via the high speed parallel port at the bottom of the GameCube and requires use of a boot disc to access the hardware...
support.
The reconfigured "Wii Family Edition", released in 2011, removed Nintendo GameCube backward compatibility.
Nintendo DS connectivity
The Wii system supports wireless connectivity with the Nintendo DSNintendo DS
The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP...
without any additional accessories. This connectivity allows the player to use the Nintendo DS microphone and touchscreen
Touchscreen
A touchscreen is an electronic visual display that can detect the presence and location of a touch within the display area. The term generally refers to touching the display of the device with a finger or hand. Touchscreens can also sense other passive objects, such as a stylus...
as inputs for Wii games. The first example Nintendo has given of a game using Nintendo DS-Wii connectivity is that of Pokémon Battle Revolution
Pokémon Battle Revolution
is the first Wii incarnation of the Pokémon video game franchise. It is also the first Wii game to use the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection in North America and Japan and the first Wii game to wirelessly interact with the Nintendo DS handheld....
. Players with either the Pokémon Diamond or Pearl
Pokémon Diamond and Pearl
are role-playing games developed by Game Freak and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo DS. With the enhanced remake Pokémon Platinum, the games comprise the fifth installment and fourth generation of the Pokémon series of RPGs...
Nintendo DS games are able to play battles using their Nintendo DS as a controller. Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of Time
Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of Time
is a Wii and Nintendo DS action role-playing game in the Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles series developed by Square Enix.The game was released in Japan on January 29, 2009. The North American version was released on March 24, 2009 and the European version was released on March 27, 2009...
, released on both the Nintendo DS and Wii, features connectivity in which the two games can advance simultaneously. Nintendo later released the Nintendo Channel, which allows Wii owners to download game demo
Game demo
A game demo is a freely distributed demonstration or preview of an upcoming or recently released video game. Demos are typically released by the game's publisher to help consumers get a feel of the game before deciding whether to buy the full version....
s or additional data to their Nintendo DS in a process similar to that of a DS Download Station
DS Download Station
DS Download Station is an in-store demo service launched by Nintendo in early 2006. As the name implies, these are stations that can be used to download game demos and trailers to a Nintendo DS. The range of a Nintendo DS Download Station is approximately 65 feet...
. The console is also able to expand Nintendo DS games.
Online connectivity
The Wii console is able to connect to the Internet through its built-in 802.11b/g Wi-Fi or through a USB-to-Ethernet adapter, with both methods allowing players to access the established Nintendo Wi-Fi ConnectionNintendo Wi-Fi Connection
The is an online multiplayer gaming service run by Nintendo to provide free online play in compatible Nintendo DS, Nintendo 3DS and Wii games. The service includes the company's Wii Shop Channel, DSi Shop, and Nintendo eShop game download services...
service. Wireless encryption by WEP
Wired Equivalent Privacy
Wired Equivalent Privacy is a weak security algorithm for IEEE 802.11 wireless networks. Introduced as part of the original 802.11 standard ratified in September 1999, its intention was to provide data confidentiality comparable to that of a traditional wired network...
, WPA
Wi-Fi Protected Access
Wi-Fi Protected Access and Wi-Fi Protected Access II are two security protocols and security certification programs developed by the Wi-Fi Alliance to secure wireless computer networks...
(TKIP/RC4) and WPA2
IEEE 802.11i-2004
IEEE 802.11i-2004 or 802.11i, implemented as WPA2, is an amendment to the original IEEE 802.11. The draft standard was ratified on 24 June 2004. This standard specifies security mechanisms for wireless networks. It replaced the short Authentication and privacy clause of the original standard with...
(CCMP/AES) are supported. AOSS
AOSS
AOSS is a system by Buffalo Technology which allows a secure wireless connection to be set up with the push of a button. Recent AirStation residential gateways incorporate a button on the unit to let the user initiate this procedure...
support was discreetly added in System Menu version 3.0.
Just as for the Nintendo DS, Nintendo does not charge fees for playing via the service and the 12 digit Friend Code system controls how players connect to one another. Each Wii also has its own unique 16 digit Wii Code for use with Wii's non-game features. This system also implements console-based software including the Wii Message Board. One can also connect to the internet with third-party devices.
The service has several features for the console including the Virtual Console
Virtual console
A virtual console – also known as a virtual terminal – is a conceptual combination of the keyboard and display for a computer user interface. It is a feature of some operating systems such as UnixWare, Linux, and BSD, in which the system console of the computer can be used to switch between...
, WiiConnect24
WiiConnect24
WiiConnect24 is a feature of the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection for the Wii console. It was first announced at E3 2006 by Nintendo. It enables the user to remain connected to the Internet while the console is on standby...
, Internet Channel, Forecast Channel, Everybody Votes Channel
Everybody Votes Channel
The Everybody Votes Channel is the Wii Menu channel that allows users to vote in simple opinion polls and compare and contrast opinions with those of friends, family and voters across the globe....
, News Channel and the Check Mii Out Channel
Mii
A is a digital avatar used in Nintendo's Wii and Nintendo 3DS gaming consoles. They allow users to capture a likeness of themselves and others. After creating one using the Wii's Mii Channel or the Nintendo 3DS's Mii Maker, they can be used as playable characters in various titles for the...
. The console can also communicate and connect with other Wii systems through a self-generated wireless LAN
Local area network
A local area network is a computer network that interconnects computers in a limited area such as a home, school, computer laboratory, or office building...
, enabling local wireless multiplayer on different television sets. Battalion Wars 2
Battalion Wars 2
Battalion Wars 2 is a video game for the Wii console. It is a sequel to the Nintendo GameCube title Battalion Wars. The game was officially announced August 23, 2006 at the Leipzig Games Convention. It was developed by Kuju Entertainment, which also developed the GameCube predecessor, and was...
first demonstrated this feature for non-split screen multiplayer between two or more televisions.
On April 9, 2008, the BBC announced that its online BBC iPlayer
BBC iPlayer
BBC iPlayer, commonly shortened to iPlayer, is an internet television and radio service, developed by the BBC to extend its former RealPlayer-based and other streamed video clip content to include whole TV shows....
would be available on the Wii via the Internet Channel browser; however, some users experienced difficulties with the service. On November 18, 2009, BBC iPlayer
BBC iPlayer
BBC iPlayer, commonly shortened to iPlayer, is an internet television and radio service, developed by the BBC to extend its former RealPlayer-based and other streamed video clip content to include whole TV shows....
on the Wii was relaunched as the BBC iPlayer Channel, which is free to download from the Wii Shop Channel
Wii Shop Channel
The Wii Shop Channel is an online shop for the Wii video game console that allows users to download Virtual Console and WiiWare games, and new channels. Downloading may require redeeming Wii Points. The channel launched with Wii on November 19, 2006...
. The service is only available to people in the United Kingdom.
On December 26, 2008, Nintendo announced that it will launch a new video channel for the Wii.
As of October 18, 2010, American and Canadian Wii owners can watch Netflix
Netflix
Netflix, Inc., is an American provider of on-demand internet streaming media in the United States, Canada, and Latin America and flat rate DVD-by-mail in the United States. The company was established in 1997 and is headquartered in Los Gatos, California...
instantly as a channel without requiring a disc.
Parental controls
The console features parental controlsParental controls
Parental controls are features which may be included in digital television services, computer and video games, mobile phones and computer software...
, which can be used to prohibit younger users from playing games with content that would be considered unsuitable for their age level. When one attempts to play a Wii or Virtual Console
Virtual console
A virtual console – also known as a virtual terminal – is a conceptual combination of the keyboard and display for a computer user interface. It is a feature of some operating systems such as UnixWare, Linux, and BSD, in which the system console of the computer can be used to switch between...
game, it reads the content rating encoded in the game data; if this rating is greater than the system's set age level the game will not load without a correct override password. The parental controls can also restrict Internet access, which blocks the Internet Channel and system update features. Since the console is restricted to Nintendo GameCube
Nintendo GameCube
The , officially abbreviated to NGC in Japan and GCN in other regions, is a sixth generation video game console released by Nintendo on September 15, 2001 in Japan, November 18, 2001 in North America, May 3, 2002 in Europe, and May 17, 2002 in Australia...
functionality when playing Nintendo GameCube Game Discs, GameCube software is unaffected by Wii parental control settings.
European units mainly use the PEGI
Pan European Game Information
Pan European Game Information is a European video game content rating system established to help European parents make informed decisions on buying computer games with logos on games boxes. It was developed by the Interactive Software Federation of Europe and came into use in April 2003; it...
rating system, whereas North American units use the ESRB
Entertainment Software Rating Board
The Entertainment Software Rating Board is a self-regulatory organization that assigns age and content ratings, enforces industry-adopted advertising guidelines, and ensures responsible online privacy principles for computer and video games as well as entertainment software in Canada, Mexico and...
rating system. The Wii unit supports the native rating systems of many countries, including CERO
Computer Entertainment Rating Organization
The is a Japanese entertainment rating organization based in Tokyo. rating video game content in console games with levels of rating that informs the customer of the nature of the product and for what age group it is suitable...
in Japan, the USK
Unterhaltungssoftware Selbstkontrolle
Unterhaltungssoftware Selbstkontrolle is the organization responsible for computer game ratings in Germany.- Ratings :...
in Germany, both the PEGI
Pan European Game Information
Pan European Game Information is a European video game content rating system established to help European parents make informed decisions on buying computer games with logos on games boxes. It was developed by the Interactive Software Federation of Europe and came into use in April 2003; it...
and BBFC
British Board of Film Classification
The British Board of Film Classification , originally British Board of Film Censors, is a non-governmental organisation, funded by the film industry and responsible for the national classification of films within the United Kingdom...
in the United Kingdom, the ACB
Australian Classification Board
The Australian Classification Board is a statutory classification body formed by the Australian Government which classifies films, video games and publications for exhibition, sale or hire in Australia since its establishment in 1970. The Australian Classification Board was originally incorporated...
in Australia and the OFLC
Office of Film and Literature Classification (New Zealand)
The Office of Film and Literature Classification is the government agency in New Zealand that is responsible for classification of all films, videos, publications, and some video games in New Zealand...
in New Zealand.
Homebrew developers have reverse-engineered the function that Nintendo uses to recover lost parental control passwords and created a simple script to obtain parental control reset codes.
Software library
Retail copies of games are supplied on proprietary, DVDDVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
-like Wii Optical Discs packaged in a keep case
Keep case
A keep case or poly-box is a type of DVD packaging. From the well-known brand Amaray, this type of case is often called Amaray case, creating a genericized trademark and ambiguities about the real manufacturer of the case....
along with instruction information. On European releases, these retail boxes have a triangle printed at the bottom corner of the paper insert sleeve side. The hue of the triangle can be used to identify which region the particular title is intended for and which manual languages are included. The console supports regional lockout
Regional lockout
Regional lockout is the programming practice, code, chip, or physical barrier used to prevent the playing of media designed for a device from the country where it is marketed on the version of the same device marketed in another country.-Video games:...
, which means that software purchased in one region can be only played on the hardware of the same region.
New games representing Nintendo's flagship franchises, including The Legend of Zelda, Super Mario
Mario (series)
The video game series, alternatively called the series or simply the series, is a series of highly popular and critically acclaimed video games by Nintendo, featuring Nintendo's mascot Mario and, in many games, his brother Luigi. Gameplay in the series often centers around jumping on and...
, Pokémon, and Metroid, have been released, or are in development for Wii, in addition to many original titles and third party developed games. Nintendo has received strong third party support from prominent companies like Ubisoft
Ubisoft
Ubisoft Entertainment S.A. is a major French video game publisher and developer, with headquarters in Montreuil, France. The company has a worldwide presence with 25 studios in 17 countries and subsidiaries in 26 countries....
, Sega
Sega
, usually styled as SEGA, is a multinational video game software developer and an arcade software and hardware development company headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan, with various offices around the world...
, Square Enix
Square Enix
is a Japanese video game and publishing company best known for its console role-playing game franchises, which include the Final Fantasy series, the Dragon Quest series, and the action-RPG Kingdom Hearts series...
, Activision Blizzard
Activision Blizzard
Activision Blizzard, Inc., formerly Activision, Inc. is the American holding company for Activision and Blizzard Entertainment. The company is majority owned by French conglomerate Vivendi SA and was created through the merger of Activision and Vivendi Games, announced on December 2, 2007, in a...
, Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts, Inc. is a major American developer, marketer, publisher and distributor of video games. Founded and incorporated on May 28, 1982 by Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer games industry and was notable for promoting the designers and programmers...
, and Capcom
Capcom
is a Japanese developer and publisher of video games, known for creating multi-million-selling franchises such as Devil May Cry, Chaos Legion, Street Fighter, Mega Man and Resident Evil. Capcom developed and published Bionic Commando, Lost Planet and Dark Void too, but they are less known. Its...
, with more games being developed exclusively for Wii than for the PlayStation 3 or Xbox 360. Nintendo also launched the New Play Control!
New Play Control!
The New Play Control! series, known in Japan as is a program by Nintendo to upgrade several GameCube games for release on the Wii. These re-releases incorporate graphical improvements, which include 16:9 widescreen support. They also feature reconfigured controls to fit the Wii Remote...
line, a selection of enhanced GameCube games for the Wii featuring updated controls.
The Virtual Console
Virtual console
A virtual console – also known as a virtual terminal – is a conceptual combination of the keyboard and display for a computer user interface. It is a feature of some operating systems such as UnixWare, Linux, and BSD, in which the system console of the computer can be used to switch between...
service allows Wii owners to play games originally released for the Nintendo Entertainment System
Nintendo Entertainment System
The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...
, Super Nintendo Entertainment System
Super Nintendo Entertainment System
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System is a 16-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America, Europe, Australasia , and South America between 1990 and 1993. In Japan and Southeast Asia, the system is called the , or SFC for short...
and Nintendo 64
Nintendo 64
The , often referred to as N64, was Nintendo′s third home video game console for the international market. Named for its 64-bit CPU, it was released in June 1996 in Japan, September 1996 in North America, March 1997 in Europe and Australia, September 1997 in France and December 1997 in Brazil...
, as well as Sega
Sega
, usually styled as SEGA, is a multinational video game software developer and an arcade software and hardware development company headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan, with various offices around the world...
's Mega Drive/Genesis and SG-1000 Mark III/Sega Master System
Sega Master System
The is a third-generation video game console that was manufactured and released by Sega in 1985 in Japan , 1986 in North America and 1987 in Europe....
, NEC
NEC
, a Japanese multinational IT company, has its headquarters in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. NEC, part of the Sumitomo Group, provides information technology and network solutions to business enterprises, communications services providers and government....
's TurboGrafx-16/PC Engine
TurboGrafx-16
TurboGrafx-16, fully titled as TurboGrafx-16 Entertainment SuperSystem and known in Japan as the , is a video game console developed by Hudson Soft and NEC, released in Japan on October 30, 1987, and in North America on August 29, 1989....
, SNK
SNK Playmore
SNK Playmore Corporation is a Japanese video game hardware and software company. SNK is an acronym of , which was SNK's original name. The company's legal and trading name became SNK in 1986....
's Neo Geo console
Neo Geo (console)
The is a cartridge-based arcade and home video game system released on July 1, 1991 by Japanese game company SNK. Being in the Fourth generation of Gaming, it was the first console in the former Neo Geo family, which only lived through the 1990s...
, the Commodore 64
Commodore 64
The Commodore 64 is an 8-bit home computer introduced by Commodore International in January 1982.Volume production started in the spring of 1982, with machines being released on to the market in August at a price of US$595...
, and a selection of arcade game
Arcade game
An arcade game is a coin-operated entertainment machine, usually installed in public businesses such as restaurants, bars, and amusement arcades. Most arcade games are video games, pinball machines, electro-mechanical games, redemption games, and merchandisers...
s. Virtual Console games are distributed over broadband Internet via the Wii Shop Channel
Wii Shop Channel
The Wii Shop Channel is an online shop for the Wii video game console that allows users to download Virtual Console and WiiWare games, and new channels. Downloading may require redeeming Wii Points. The channel launched with Wii on November 19, 2006...
, and are saved to the Wii internal flash memory or to a removable SD card
Secure Digital card
Secure Digital is a non-volatile memory card format developed by the SD Card Association for use in portable devices. The SD technology is used by more than 400 brands across dozens of product categories and more than 8,000 models, and is considered the de-facto industry standard.Secure Digital...
. Once downloaded, Virtual Console games can be accessed from the Wii Menu as individual channels, or directly from an SD card via the SD Card Menu. There is also a Wii homebrew community dedicated to creating and playing content that does not receive Nintendo endorsement.
The game development suite Unity
Unity (game engine)
Unity is an integrated authoring tool for creating 3D video games or other interactive content such as architectural visualizations or real-time 3D animations. Unity's development environment runs on Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X, and the games it produces can be run on Windows, Mac, Xbox 360,...
can be used to create official Wii games. The developer must however be authorized by Nintendo to develop games for the console. Games must also be submitted to and accepted by Nintendo in order to be sold.
Over 509.66 million Wii games were sold worldwide as of December 2009, with 54 titles surpassing the million-unit mark. The most successful game is Wii Sports
Wii Sports
is a sports game developed and published by Nintendo as a launch title for the Wii video game console , and part of the Touch! Generations. The game was first released in North America along with the Wii on November 19, 2006, and was released in Japan, Australia, and Europe the following month...
, which comes bundled with the console in most regions, and has sold 67.71 million copies worldwide as of September 30, 2010, and surpassed Super Mario Bros.
Super Mario Bros.
is a 1985 platform video game developed by Nintendo, published for the Nintendo Entertainment System as a sequel to the 1983 game Mario Bros. In Super Mario Bros., the player controls Mario as he travels through the Mushroom Kingdom in order to rescue Princess Toadstool from the antagonist...
as the best-selling game of all time. The best-selling unbundled game is Wii Play
Wii Play
Wii Play, released as in Japan, is a party video game for the Wii console. It is a counterpart to the games Wii Sports, Wii Music and Wii Fit. It features minigames that use characters from the Mii Channel. Several of the games featured are from E3 2006 demos such as the Duck Hunt-styled shooting...
, with 26.71 million units.
Reception
The system was well received after its exhibition at E3 2006. At the event, Nintendo's console won the Game Critics AwardsGame Critics Awards
The Game Critics Awards are a set of annual awards held after the E3 video game conference since 1998. The awards are given to products displayed at E3 with the title Best of E3 of their category. The nominees and winners of the awards are chosen by individual judges representing 35 major North...
for Best of Show and Best Hardware. In the December 2006 issue of Popular Science
Popular Science
Popular Science is an American monthly magazine founded in 1872 carrying articles for the general reader on science and technology subjects. Popular Science has won over 58 awards, including the ASME awards for its journalistic excellence in both 2003 and 2004...
, the console was awarded with the Grand Award Winner in Home Entertainment. Spike TV's Video Games Award also granted the console the award in breakthrough technology. GameSpot
GameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
chose the console as the Best Hardware on their Best and Worst 2006 awards show. The system was also chosen as one of PC World
PC World (magazine)
PC World is a global computer magazine published monthly by IDG. It offers advice on various aspects of PCs and related items, the Internet, and other personal-technology products and services...
magazine's 20 Most Innovative Products of the Year. The console received a Golden Joystick for Innovation of the Year 2007 at the Golden Joystick Awards. In the category of Engineering & Technology for Creation and Implementation of Video Games and Platforms, Nintendo was awarded an Emmy for Game Controller Innovation by The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.
The worldwide success of the Wii has caught third party developers by surprise, leading to some apologizing for the quality of their early games. In an interview with German news magazine Der Spiegel
Der Spiegel
Der Spiegel is a German weekly news magazine published in Hamburg. It is one of Europe's largest publications of its kind, with a weekly circulation of more than one million.-Overview:...
, Ubisoft
Ubisoft
Ubisoft Entertainment S.A. is a major French video game publisher and developer, with headquarters in Montreuil, France. The company has a worldwide presence with 25 studios in 17 countries and subsidiaries in 26 countries....
's Yves Guillemot and Alain Corre admitted that they had made a mistake in rushing out their launch titles, promising to take future projects more seriously. Take-Two Interactive
Take-Two Interactive
Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. is a major American publisher, developer, and distributor of video games and video game peripherals. Take-Two wholly owns 2K Games and Rockstar Games. The company's headquarters are in New York City, with international headquarters in Windsor, United Kingdom...
, who released few games for the Nintendo GameCube
Nintendo GameCube
The , officially abbreviated to NGC in Japan and GCN in other regions, is a sixth generation video game console released by Nintendo on September 15, 2001 in Japan, November 18, 2001 in North America, May 3, 2002 in Europe, and May 17, 2002 in Australia...
, changed its stance on Nintendo by placing a higher priority on the Wii.
At the same time, criticism of the Wii Remote and the Wii hardware specifications has surfaced. Former GameSpot editor and Giantbomb.com founder Jeff Gerstmann
Jeff Gerstmann
Jeff Gerstmann is an American video game journalist and former editorial director of the gaming website GameSpot and the founder of the gaming website Giant Bomb. He began working at GameSpot in the fall of 1996, around the launch of VideoGameSpot when GameSpot separated PC and console games into...
stated that the controller's speaker produces low-quality sound, while Factor 5
Factor 5
Factor 5 GmbH is an independent software and video game developer. The company was originally co-founded by five former Rainbow Arts employees in 1987 in Cologne, Germany, which served as the inspiration behind the studio's name....
President Julian Eggebrecht criticized the hardware audio as being substandard for a console of its generation. U.K.-based developer Free Radical Design stated that the Wii hardware lacks the power necessary to run the software it had scheduled for release on other seventh generation consoles. The online connectivity of the Wii was subject to criticism, as Matt Casamassina
Matt Casamassina
Matt Casamassina is a video game journalist who worked for IGN until April 23, 2010. In his time at the site, he was the author of many reviews and previews of Nintendo games. He resides in Los Angeles, California, is married and has two daughters, Zoe and Fiona Jade, and a son named Rocco Archer...
of IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
compared it to the "entirely unintuitive" service provided for the Nintendo DS
Nintendo DS
The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP...
.
An executive for Frontline Studios expressed that major publishers are wary of releasing exclusive titles for the console due to the perception that third-party companies are not strongly supported by consumers. In his blog
Blog
A blog is a type of website or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in...
, 1UP.com
1UP.com
1UP.com is a video game website owned by IGN Entertainment, a division of News Corporation. Previously, the site was owned by Ziff Davis before being sold to UGO Entertainment in 2009....
editor Jeremy Parish stated that Nintendo was the biggest disappointment for him in 2007. Commenting on the lack of quality third-party support, he stated that "the Wii landscape is bleak. Worse than it was on N64. Worse than on GameCube...the resulting third-party content is overwhelmingly bargain-bin trash."
Game designer and The Sims
The Sims
The Sims is a strategic life-simulation computer game developed by Maxis and published by Electronic Arts. Its development was led by game designer Will Wright, also known for developing SimCity...
creator Will Wright shared his thoughts on the Wii within the context of the current console generation: "The only next gen system I've seen is the Wii – the PS3 and the Xbox 360 feel like better versions of the last, but pretty much the same game with incremental improvement. But the Wii feels like a major jump – not that the graphics are more powerful, but that it hits a completely different demographic."
Using the Wii is often seen as being more physically demanding than other game consoles.
Some Wii players have occasionally experienced a form of tennis elbow
Tennis elbow
Lateral epicondylitis or lateral epicondylalgia, also known as tennis elbow, shooter's elbow and archer's elbow, is a condition where the outer part of the elbow becomes sore and tender...
referred to as "Wiiitis." A study published in the British Medical Journal
BMJ
BMJ is a partially open-access peer-reviewed medical journal. Originally called the British Medical Journal, the title was officially shortened to BMJ in 1988. The journal is published by the BMJ Group, a wholly owned subsidiary of the British Medical Association...
states that Wii players use more energy than they do playing sedentary computer games. It is, however, indicated that while this energy increase may be beneficial to weight management, it is not an adequate replacement for regular exercise. A case study published in the American Physical Therapy Association’s journal Physical Therapy focused on use of the Wii for rehabilitation of a teen with cerebral palsy
Cerebral palsy
Cerebral palsy is an umbrella term encompassing a group of non-progressive, non-contagious motor conditions that cause physical disability in human development, chiefly in the various areas of body movement....
. It is believed to be the first published research showing the physical therapy benefits resulting from use of the gaming system. Researchers say the gaming system complements traditional techniques. In May 2010 the American Heart Association
American Heart Association
The American Heart Association is a non-profit organization in the United States that fosters appropriate cardiac care in an effort to reduce disability and deaths caused by cardiovascular disease and stroke. It is headquartered in Dallas, Texas...
(AHA) endorsed the Wii to encourage sedentary people to take the first step toward fitness. The AHA heart icon covers the console itself along with two of its more active games, Wii Fit Plus
Wii Fit Plus
is a fitness video game by Nintendo for the Wii console. The game is an enhanced version of Wii Fit and was announced at Nintendo's E3 2009 media briefing on June 2, 2009. The game was released in Japan on October 1, 2009 and in North America three days later on October 4. It was released in South...
and Wii Sports Resort
Wii Sports Resort
Wii Sports Resort has received generally favorable reviews, with an average score on Metacritic of 80%. IGN gave it a 7.7 out of 10, citing the impressive fidelity of the controls and how the graphics, as compared to the majority of Wii games, were superb. GameTrailers gave an 8.6 out of 10....
.
In 2009, IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
named the Wii the 10th greatest console of all time, in a field of 25.