Tell me this is a joke.

[Esrever]

I think the problem with the name "Revolution" was that it was the exact opposite kind of name you would want for a console aimed at the broader, nongamer market. It sounds like Che Guevera in your living room, man. Your grandmother doesn't want that!

The blurb on the Nintendo website explaining what "Wii" means totally reminds me of the pretentious, insulting marketing style used by Mac. I'm sure that was an intentional similarity. But even though it's awkward and kind of cheesy, I'm pretty sure the "We" message is that "this is a console for everyone," not "this is a console where you have to play with everyone." I don't think it's meant to make a statement about singleplayer/multiplayer games.

[Senbei]

Wii sounds too much like Mario's pronunciation of the word "winner."

Now that I've had my shot, I seriously want to say that this name is uncomfortable. It's not inarticulate like Xbox 360, which clumsily blunders through the mouth, but the combination of its briefness and the cliffhanger vowels makes me want to add at least one consonant if not two or three to finish it. Saying “Nintendo Wiiâ€￾ almost works, but still isn’t as satisfying as Playstation 3, probably because W is too gentle a sound.

Still, the name isn’t nearly as bad as the concept behind it. An attempt to bring Nintendo’s quirkiness to "everyone" is, I think, futile. Much as I adore them for their originality, I know that the majority of hobbyist gamers aren’t going to be attracted by this name. In the end, Wii looks and sounds weird, and I have been more and more annoyed by the vast intolerance of weirdness that people have. Of course, this is coming from a guy in New Hampshire. We’re not exactly culturally open up here.

[Locit]

I think once the puns stop and everyone settles down the name might actually help appeal to a wider audience than either of the other next gen consoles' names. Both Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 imply some sort of continuity, which might help to keep out prospective gamers who already feel they can't catch up to the pace of gaming nowadays. "Wii" is short and simple. It also helps draw attention to how small the thing is. It's tiny!

[Kishi]

Still, the name isn’t nearly as bad as the concept behind it. An attempt to bring Nintendo’s quirkiness to "everyone" is, I think, futile. Much as I adore them for their originality, I know that the majority of hobbyist gamers aren’t going to be attracted by this name.

Nintendo isn't particularly after hobbyist gamers. They're aiming to draw in non-gamers and make gaming truly accessible and mainstream, which they've already accomplished to a great extent with the DS.

[Segaholic2]

I don't know, I thought "PlayStation" implied an incredibly strong brand name with over 200,000,000 units moved.

[Esrever]

Yeah, but what is Nintendo going to do? Call it the Gamecube 2? They don't have a strong home console brand like that to build on. They definitely had to come up with something completely original.

Wii is kind of a stupid name. But it's short and memorable and its already generating a lot of press. I guess the imporant thing is to get people talking about it. The constant piss jokes are kind of aggrevating, but people will get over that once its been around for awhile. When was the last time anyone told a shit joke about Winnie the Pooh?

[Senbei]

Still, the name isn’t nearly as bad as the concept behind it. An attempt to bring Nintendo’s quirkiness to "everyone" is, I think, futile. Much as I adore them for their originality, I know that the majority of hobbyist gamers aren’t going to be attracted by this name.

Nintendo isn't particularly after hobbyist gamers. They're aiming to draw in non-gamers and make gaming truly accessible and mainstream, which they've already accomplished to a great extent with the DS.

I was debating with myself whether I should specify hobbyists or non-gamers as I wrote that blurb, but I figured that anyone who is already designated as a non-gamer probably isn't going to pick up a full-sized console. The DS, maybe, because it's a handheld, but a home console feels like a commitment rather than a simple pleasure.

[One Classy Bloke]

If they wanted a name that represents their desire to spread gaming to other generations, why didn't they call it "Union"? Bringing generations of people and games together to play.

It occurred to me that i do not really care for console gaming anymore, so i will now observe from afar with a mild titter.

[aaroNiGHTS]

Im likening it to an iPod. To me, iPod still sounds like something you put in your garden. Wii is basic. No more 'XXX1337'. Just 'Wii'. It rolls of the tounge, you know. Will Wii change everything? Hopefully. Will the name have a significance? About 0.01% of it.

[PBJClock]

GI: What did you honestly think of the name the first time you heard it?

Atwood: First time I heard it, I sat down and thought about it for a bit, and “Do I like it, Do I not?â€￾ and as I thought, “Hmm, it seems a little bit different. I don’t understand it." And then I did the same thing you guys did and watch the video, and the more I understood about the system, the more it’s made a lot of sense to me. Yeah, initially I went, "Wow, this is different." And then once I started getting more hands on with the system, and once I started to understand the concept behind the system and how the name ties in, I actually really like it. I think people will talk about it. You’re definitely seeing it on the net, and people will continue to talk about it.

What I like about it is, it’s not about abbreviating anything. There will be no abbreviation needed. There is no Nintendo Wii. It’s just Wii. It’s a very inclusive name in that respect.

http://gameinformer.com/News/Story/2006 ... .38678.htm

[Light Speed]

the association with "we", games as a social activity, is the recent trend and undermines everything I ever found appealing about the hobby.

That's pretty much what I wanted to say, but was too busy saying "wheeee" to myself and laughing to bother. I don't play games with other people. I can't stand playing games when there are other people in the room -- I don't want to talk about the game <i>while</i> I'm playing it, and no I don't <i>want</i> to go over there I'm going over here thank you very much please shut up. And I can't watch other people play because other people, invariably, suck at playing games and I want to do it for them because I do it the right way.

Heh, I'm fine with watching people that don't suck play games, but I totally agree with people watching me play. I cannot stand playing games in my living room, which is where I play them, because no matter which roommate/friend walks through, they always ask what game I am playing. They know nothing about games, nor do they care, yet at that moment they have to ask what I am playing. When I tell my roommates girlfriend I am playing Tales of Symphonia, she has no fucking clue what that is, nor does she care, but she still always asks. The worst is when they want me to explain to them what it is I am trying to do. Actually the worst is when they try to help, but don't know what you are even capable of doing so they start suggesting impossible shit.

That's enough of that rant. Anyway, I really do think the name of a console is pretty inconsequential. Nintendo isn't meaning gaming is now going to be more of a social thing. Sure they'll have online play, but most Nintendo franchises aren't multiplayer. Zelda, Mario, Metroid(ish) et cetera all shine as single player expieriences. They also have the multiplayer aspect with Mario Kart, MP:Hunters, SSBM. We don't really have to worry about them making gaming into a social thing, but gaming really already is. You can do both, or one or the other, that hasn't changed.

[Tsuyoshi-kun]

They should've just stuck with Revolution.

They should just stick to making Nintendo DS games, considering those suckers outsell the Gamecube in Japan 3 to 2 (and has become the fastest selling Nintendo console ever outside of Game Boy, both the Famicom and Super Famicom included), third-party companies have no interest in making exclusively Nintendo games anymore, and Nintendo keeps delaying their games forever and ever.

[G.Silver]

The worst is when they want me to explain to them what it is I am trying to do.

I enjoy telling people what I am trying to do in games, but I tend to set my goals pretty simply. "I am trying to climb on top of that monster and stab it in the head with my magical sword" or "I am trying to light my way through this cave by using a life-draining cigar because I forgot to pick up the nightvision goggles" or "Is it not completely obvious that I am trying to roll up an entire city into a ball and eject its population into space? What the hell is wrong with you?"

I am actually rather pleased that a person would take an interest in what I am doing. I'm kind of needy.

[James McGeachie]

third-party companies have no interest in making exclusively Nintendo games anymore

Actually, it appears that right from the beginning Wii is going to have far more in the way of exclusives than Gamecube, because there's been a good number announced so far (I'm mainly thinking from developers saying they're working on Wii specific games though, not formal announcements) and if they're built from the ground up taking advantage of the controller, there's not a chance they can be ported to the other systems later on.

I was actually thinking beforehand there was a slight chance if Nintendo's gamble with the Wii paid off it could perhaps even let them accomplish the near impossible task of retaking first place in the market. Now I really can't see that happening ever unless they do something magical with the advertising campaign that's beyond my imagination. I think I'm starting to get used to the name now, but I'm still finding it hard to picture a title that gathers so many negative first impressions from everyone ever really bringing success.

[Esrever]

So, maybe Wii IS a joke.

http://www.snarkhunting.com/2006/04/nin ... /#comments

That sounds like some pretty wishful thinking to me. But on the other hand, why DID they wait until a couple of days ago to register nintendowii.com? And why isn't Wii a registered trademark? Is Nintendo actually that stupid?

[Double-S-]

I should rush out and trademark Wii.

[Esrever]

More confusion.

The domain name nintendowii.com was registered by Nintnedo yesterday through a domain seller called Tucows Inc (http://www.tucowsinc.com). The nameserver is an official Nintendo one, and the URL just redirects to Nintendo's main site.

That same day, http://www.playwithyourwii.com was ALSO registered through Tucows Inc. This URL points to a website hosted by Retrix.com, and the owners of Retrix are credited as the registrars.

Retrix is one of those webhosting companies that sells you one package that includes both hosting and a domain name. In other words, they handle the registering of the domain name for the customer, and the domain is registered to the owners of the Retrix hosting service, and not the customer who bought the hosting from them. So, you can't use a WHOIS to determine who really bought the URL.

The customer could not have been some fan purposely buying through Tucows just to make it look like Nintendo was behind it. The customer had no control over what domain service was used, because Retrix registered the name for them. customer would not get to choose what domain name company Retrix registered with.

But, Nintedo may have bought the URL through Tucows to mask their ownership of the domain. It's not the first time they've done this. Google "Tucows Inc" and "Metroid Prime 2" together. Tucows is the company that all the fake websites used in the MP2 viral marketing campaign were registered through.

[Light Speed]

I doubt Wii is fake. That would just confuse people. Besides, it sounds a lot like Nintendo. It seems like causing such a stir just to change it at E3 would be a bad idea.

[Esrever]

I'm not saying Wii is fake, necessarily. I'm just saying that Nintendo themselves bought playwithyourwii.com

[Segaholic2]

I can't wait for the extreme, edgy, in-your-face marketing campaign that accompanies that URL.

[Esrever]

touchmywii.com

But this one was registered with GoDaddy... and again, registered through a third party hosting company so that the owner can't be identified. Still, the change to GoDaddy could mean this one ISN'T official. It looks like it's owned by some guy in Oregon.

[Light Speed]

I would buy a Wii solely because Nintendo registered that domain if they did. Then again, I am going to buy one anyway.

[Squirrelknight]

I'm still excited about The Revolution (I said Revolution on purpose), but I refuse to call it the Wii. The system was going to be hard enough to market to the mainstream due to the fact that it was already so different from everything else out there, and now that it has the most retarded name in the universe, it'll be even harder to get people to take it seriously.

I understand that Nintendo's trying to convert all the non-gamers out there, but the only thing they've succeeded in doing so far is alienating the people who already play games. They're trying to appeal to a market that may or may not care about games no matter how different or innovative they are, and by doing so, they're also losing their core audience. It's a big gamble that'll either pay off big for them or seal their fate, but for innovation's sake, I really hope it works out for Nintendo, cause I'm tired of generic WW2 shooters and thugged-out-I'm-so-gangsta shit that every other company seems to be forcing down our throats.

Eh... That said, Wii is still a shitty-ass name. But then again, I thought "Dreamcast", "Xbox" and "NeoGeo" were shitty-ass names when I first heard them, but I got used to it.

[masked_ferret]

I don't see how they can feel confident with the "we" meaning of the name if the first thing the majority of the world has come up with is urine jokes. If you're going to make something symbolic (I use the term loosely) you usually need to think about what else it could mean.

Also the idea that the two "i"s can look like gamers coming together is really... worrying. Not that that's what it could look like, but that it's one of the reasons for the name. The next step is saying that Nintendo itself appeals to bald people, because the "t" look like a little man in a hat.

[Green Gibbon!]

I am actually rather pleased that a person would take an interest in what I am doing. I'm kind of needy.

I actually also enjoy an occasional audience when playing, but only if I've had enough time with the game to know what I'm doing. My first couple of sittings with any new game are sacred and a highly ritualized procedure. But once I'm into the swing of it, I like being watched because I'm a nasty fuck.

But that's only when I'm in control. When it shifts to like a town or a cutscene or something, I have to be alone again, otherwise it's like somebody reading over my shoulder.