Funny isnt it, you can go into almost any gaming store, in any region of the world, and buy an Xbox 360 and a PS3, yet you can't buy a Nintendo Will for love nor money!

After people arguing with me at one of last years members meets that the Wii was destined for failiure and the 360 and PS3 were the real contenders, its literally wiping the floor with both of them!

Some of the latest estimates are saying the official number that have been sold is above the 7 million barrier now (for instance, latest sales in Europe alone have now officially exceeded the 2 million mark). The Xbox 360 and PS3 numbers remain very questionable due to the fact the numbers are taken from shipped estimates and shipped units does not mean sold units, and they are both widely available to buy through retail channels.

It just goes to prove graphics does not make a console or a game.

IGN Report

Hmmmm, Im still confused how Mario Golf, Mario Tennis, Mario..... anything can be so appealing to people

Do you get out much Matty

It is cheap fun i suppose, that a group of normal people can play.

I am going to get one when you can get hold of them

People keep going on about the price, but to be fair, in the US its only $50 less then the 360 and only £20 less in the UK.

Its interesting to see how the new concept of playing games is enticing people to buy it.

Hey Stuy, the 3rd party developer support for the Wii has been unprecidented since the initial details of console were released. The liks of EA etc had all but dropped Nintendo after the failiure of the Gamecube (and signalled the death warrant for Nintendo's next console, much like what happened with the Dreamcast), but even before the console came out, they suggested it would be the best console to back.

The adverts for Tiger Woods especially shows that the Wii isnt just about Mario.

Plus Sega are currently co-developing a game with Nintendo that will feature both Sonic and Mario, it will be the first time ever the two gaming icons have featured together in a game.

Well, its about f'kin time

Although, if your gonna go to the trouble of swinging a controller in your living room surely you must make the effort to get your plus fours on and look a Grrr on a golf course rather then just in the comfort of your own home

TBH Im yet to actually see a Wii in action, and im ashamed to say, Im totally biased by the junk Nintendo have been chugging out over the last 15 years....

Another question id raise about its success however, is...

Is its success due to its game play ability, or the way in which society is constantly changing - ie do people really want to socialise and go out to play sports?
I know I like to be out with friends and socialise when playing sports, and I have games consoles (360 and PS2) but use them for games / entertainment that are unrealistic to mylife style - not to replace things that I could get out an do myself....

...all in the name of a good discussion

wow stuy very deep?
I'm going to have to go away and think about this one.

I thinks its success is a lot to do with the fact its just plain and simple fun, and as a bonus it does encourage people to become more active when playing games.

Its one thing making a really in depth game that goes on forever and is pretty much a simulation, but its hard to make games like this that contain a real fun element. Whilst it might keep the person playing the game engrossed for hours, maybe days, these arnt games that people will pick up and play again and again, and play with friends etc...

At the moment, Nintendo are getting a perfect balance of fun and simulation, thier new concept of controlling the game is just something that has been promised for years, but Nintendo are the first to actually deliver it.

Until Sony and Microsoft realise that games are not made solely based upon graphics, and stop bragging about how much processing power and how many teraflops and how many megapixels their machines can produce in a constant war of numbers, they will not catch up with Nintendo.

Upon the full announcement of the Wii, Microsoft themselves said that they were actually far more worried about the impact the Wii would have on the market rather then the PS3. I suppose its because the PS3 and 360 were predictable, same old same old, Sony and Microsoft at war, nothing really new except better graphics, whereas the Wii is sitting in a neutral position, offering something totally different and with far more mass appeal.

Given the power (or rather lack of) of the Nintendo Wii, I question if it should actually be considered as a seventh generation console, sure its an improvement power wise over the venerable Gamecube, but at most its only a touch more powerful then the original Xbox.

What the Wii is achieving however is the fact it is redifining gaming, in a way never seen before. In the past, every generation of consoles has been predominantly impacted upon and defined by graphics improvements over the previous generation. Nintendo have stuck a spanner in the works with the Wii, by rebelling against the trend and attempting to provide something totally different for a change.

Some people dont like it (especially Microsoft and Sony fans, even more so PS3 and 360 owners - they wont want to see a smaller, less powerful, cheaper console dominate the market), but the majority love it. And who knows, when the eighth generation comes along in 2012ish, we may find ourselves looking back at the Wii as just another games console that failed... But then again, we may also look at it as the games console that redefined gaming, and forced games consoles to move towards a different direction in development. We may just call it "the revelution" (ie. the original Nintendo product codename for the Wii from 2001 until 2006).

i not sure why but never been keen on nintendo never liked the game play or graphics

Nintendo has always released ace games, super mario, mario karts, golden eye.

Who needs good graphics when the fun factor is so high. As soon as the Wii becomes available again i am goin gto buy one.

That is so true, and I think the public are finally starting to realise it and not be fooled solely by the lure of constantly better graphics and numbers etc... Much to the dismay of Sony and Microsoft lmao.