The Wii is Nintendo's fifth home console, the direct successor to the
Nintendo GameCube, and able to play all official GameCube games. 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.
[9] At
E3 2006, the console won the first of several awards.
[10] By December 8, 2006, it had completed
its launch in four key markets.
Wii
|
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Wii console with Wii Remote |
| Developer | Nintendo |
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| Manufacturer | Foxconn |
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| Type | Video game console |
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| Generation | Seventh generation |
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| Release date | |
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| Retail availability | November 19, 2006 (details) |
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| Units shipped | Worldwide: 73.97 million (as of June 30, 2010) (details) |
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| Media | 12 cm Wii Optical Disc
8 cm Nintendo GameCube Game Disc |
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| CPU | IBM PowerPC-based[1] "Broadway" |
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| Storage capacity | 512 MB Internal flash memory
SD card, SDHC card
Nintendo GameCube Memory Card |
|---|
| Graphics | ATI "Hollywood" |
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| Controller input | Wii Remote, Wii Balance Board,Nintendo GameCube controller,Nintendo DS[2] |
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| Connectivity | Wi-Fi
Bluetooth
2 × USB 2.0[3]
LAN Adapter (via USB) |
|---|
| Online services | Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection,WiiConnect24, Wii Shop Channel |
|---|
| Best-selling game | Wii Sports (pack-in, except in Japan and South Korea) 60.69 million (as of December 31, 2009)[4]
Wii Play, 26.71 million (as of December 31, 2009)[4] |
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Backward
compatibility | Nintendo GameCube |
|---|
| Predecessor | Nintendo GameCube |
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History
The console was conceived in 2001, as the
Nintendo GameCube 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
dinosaurs. They might fight and hasten their own extinction."
[11]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."
[11] Nintendo president
Satoru Iwata later unveiled and demonstrated the
Wii Remote at the September Tokyo Game Show.
[9]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."
[11]The console was known by the code name of "
Revolution" until April 27, 2006, immediately prior to
E3.
[12] 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
pluralization of the console, Nintendo has stated that the official plural form is "Wii systems" or "Wii consoles."
[13] 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.
[14] The company has given many reasons for this choice of name since the announcement; however, the best known is:
| “ | Wii sounds like 'we', which emphasizes that the console is for everyone. Wii can easily be remembered by people around the world, no matter what language they speak. No confusion. No need to abbreviate. Just Wii.[14] | ” |
Despite Nintendo's justification for the name, some
video game developers and members of the press reacted negatively towards the change. They preferred "Revolution" over "Wii"
[15] and
Forbes expressed fear "that the name would convey a continued sense of 'kidiness' [
sic] to the console."
[16] 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.
[17] Nintendo of America's president
Reggie Fils-Aime acknowledged the initial reaction and further explained the change:
| “ | Revolution as a name is not ideal; it's long, and in some cultures, it's hard to pronounce. So we wanted something that was short, to the point, easy to pronounce, and distinctive. That's how 'Wii,' as a console name, was created.[18] | ” |
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."
[19]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.
[20] The Wii was launched in the United States on November 19, 2006 at $249.99.
[21] It was later launched in the United Kingdom on December 8, 2006 at £179.
[22] 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.
[23] The Wii was launched in
South Korea on April 26, 2008 and in
Taiwan on July 12, 2008.
[24][25][edit]System sales
Life-to-date number of units shipped, millions
| Date | Japan | Americas | Other | Worldwide |
|---|
| 2006-12-31[26] | 1.14 | 1.25 | 0.80 | 3.19 |
|---|
| 2007-03-31[27] | 2.00 | 2.37 | 1.47 | 5.84 |
|---|
| 2007-06-30[28] | 2.95 | 3.81 | 2.51 | 9.27 |
|---|
| 2007-09-30[29] | 3.67 | 5.46 | 4.04 | 13.17 |
|---|
| 2007-12-31[30] | 4.99 | 8.85 | 6.30 | 20.13 |
|---|
| 2008-03-31[31] | 5.90 | 10.61 | 7.94 | 24.45 |
|---|
| 2008-06-30[32] | 6.43 | 13.11 | 10.08 | 29.62 |
|---|
| 2008-09-30[33] | 6.91 | 15.19 | 12.45 | 34.55 |
|---|
| 2008-12-31[34] | 7.80 | 20.40 | 16.76 | 44.96 |
|---|
| 2009-03-31[35] | 7.96 | 23.54 | 18.89 | 50.39 |
|---|
| 2009-06-30[36] | 8.17 | 24.42 | 20.03 | 52.62 |
|---|
| 2009-09-30[6] | 8.68 | 25.99 | 21.48 | 56.14 |
|---|
| 2009-12-31[37] | 9.72 | 32.02 | 25.71 | 67.45 |
|---|
| 2010-03-31[38] | 10.34 | 33.40 | 27.19 | 70.93 |
|---|
| 2010-06-30[39] | 10.52 | 35.20 | 28.24 | 73.97 |
|---|
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.
[40] 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
[41] to 6:1
[42] nearly every week from launch until November 2007.
[43] In Australia, the Wii exceeded the record set by the
Xbox 360 to become the fastest-selling game console in Australian history.
[44]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.
[45] This was the first time a Nintendo console had led its generation in sales since the
Super Nintendo Entertainment System.
[45]On July 11, 2007, Nintendo warned that the Wii would remain in short supply throughout that calendar year.
[46] In December 2007,
Reggie Fils-Aimé revealed that Nintendo was producing approximately 1.8 million Wii consoles each month.
[47] Some UK stores still had a shortage of consoles as of March 2007,
[48] demand still outpaced supply in the United States as of June 2007,
[49]and the console "selling out almost as quickly as it hits retail shelves" in Canada as of April 2008.
[50][51] 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,
[52] while producing 2.4 million Wii units a month worldwide, compared to 1.6 million per month in 2007.
[53]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.
[54][55][56][57][58] 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.
[59][60] In Europe, the Wii sold 0.7 million units
in 2006 and 4.8 million in 2007 according to estimates by
Electronic Arts.
[61][62] In 2008, the Wii was the best-selling home console in Japan with 2,908,342 units sold, according to the Enterbrain.
[58][63][64] 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.
[65] 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.
[66][67][68] 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.
[69] In Japan, the Wii had surpassed the number of
Nintendo GameCube units sold by January 2008;
[56] the Wii had sold 7,526,821 units as of December 28, 2008, according to Enterbrain.
[63][70]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.
[50][51] 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.
[71] 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.
[72] 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.
[73][74] On March 25, 2009, at the
Game Developers Conference,
Satoru Iwata said that worldwide shipments of Wii had reached 50 million.
[75]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.
[76] 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.
[77] On December 2, 2008,
Forbes reported that Nintendo makes a $6 operating profit per Wii unit sold.
[78]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.
[79] 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 an 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.
[79]On September 23, 2009, Nintendo announced its first price drops for the console. In the United States, the price was reduced by $50 resulting in a new MSRP of $199.99, effective September 27, 2009.
[80] For Japan, the price dropped from ¥25,000 to ¥20,000, effective October 1, 2009.
[81] In Europe (with the exception of the United Kingdom), the price of a Wii console dropped to €199 from €249.
[82] 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.
[83][84] 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.
[37] As of March 31, according to Nintendo, the Wii has sold 70.93 million units worldwide,
[38] selling 20.53 million units within 2009-2010 fiscal year.
[edit]Demographic
This is reflected in Nintendo's series of
television advertisements 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.
[86] 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.
[87] The marketing campaign has proved to be successful:
pensioners as old as 103 have been reported to be playing the Wii in the United Kingdom.
[88] A report by the British newspaper
The People also stated that
Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom has played using the console.
[89][edit]Successor
A few years after the Wii was released, speculations were raised about Nintendo's eighth-generation home console. Initial beliefs were that the new console would be an enhanced version of the Wii, named the "Wii HD" and would have
high-definition videooutput along with a
Blu-ray Disc drive built in with a release in 2011.
[90] However,
Satoru Iwata later stated that he sees "no significant reason" to include HD for the current Wii console, and that such an addition would be better suited for a successor.
[91]Shigeru Miyamoto also expressed Nintendo's interest in working with HD graphics, but clarified that the company is primarily focused on the gameplay experience.
[92] Reggie Fils-Aime commented that he felt "confident the Wii home entertainment console has a very long life in front of it" and declared that a successor would not be launched in the near future.
[93]At the
E3 2010 presentation, Iwata revealed to the
BBC that they would begin announcing a new console once Nintendo ran "out of ideas with the current hardware and cannot give users any more meaningful surprises with the technology [they] have."
[94]Later, at an investors meeting, he disclosed that they were "of course studying and developing the next console to Wii", but they were simultaneously keeping its concepts secret because it was "really important for [his] business to positively surprise people."
[95][edit]Hardware
The Wii (top) compared in size to the
GCN,
N64, North American
SNES and
NESThe 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),
[96] 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".
[97]The console also features a recurring design theme: the console itself,
SD cards, 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 both 12 cm
Wii Optical Discs and 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 connectors, 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 or
DVD-Audio discs. A 2006 announcement had stated a new version of the Wii capable of DVD-Video playback would be released in 2007;
[98] however Nintendo delayed its release to focus on producing the original console to meet demand.
[99] 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.
[98] Despite this assertion, third parties have used
Wii homebrew to add DVD playback to the original unmodified Wii units.
[100] The Wii also can be
hacked to enable an owner to use the console for other activities than those intended by Nintendo.
[101] Several brands of
modchips 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,
[102][103] 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,
[104][105] in Europe in November, 2009,
[106] and in North America on May 9, 2010.
[107] A red Wii system bundle will be made available in Japan on November 11, 2010 commemorating the 25th anniversary of
Super Mario Bros.[108] The UK version of the limited edition red Wii will be released on October 29, 2010 preloaded with the original
Donkey Kong game. It will also feature the Wii Remote Plus, which is a new version of the controller with integrated Wii Motion Plus technology.
[109][edit]Wii Remote
The Wii Remote is the primary
controller for the console. It uses a combination of built-in
accelerometers 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.
[edit]Memory storage
The Wii console contains 512
megabytes 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.
[111] 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.
[112] 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.
[113][edit]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 GameCube architecture. More specifically, the reported analyses state that the Wii is roughly 1.5 to 2 times as powerful as its predecessor.
[1][114] Based on the leaked specifications, the Wii is the least powerful of the major home consoles in its generation.
Processors: Memory: Ports and peripheral capabilities: - Up to 16 Wii Remote controllers (10 in Standard Mode, 6 in One Time Mode,[120] connected wirelessly via Bluetooth)
- Nintendo GameCube controller ports (4)
- Nintendo GameCube Memory Card slots (2)
- SD 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)[121]
- Mitsumi DWM-W004 WiFi 802.11b/g wireless module[122]
- Compatible with optional USB 2.0 to Ethernet LAN adaptor
- 'AV Multi Out' port (See 'Video' section right)
Built-in content ratings systems: | Storage: - 512 MB built-in NAND flash memory
- Expanded storage via SD 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 ROM by Macronix[123]
Video: Audio: Power consumption: |
[edit]Technical issues
The first
Wii system software 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.
[131]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 a free repair for owners who experience this issue.
[132][133]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.
[134][edit]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.
[135] Law firm Green Welling LLP filed a
class action lawsuit against Nintendo for its "defective wrist straps".
[136] A Texas-based company called Lonestar Inventions has also sued Nintendo, claiming that the company copied one of Lonestar's patented
capacitordesigns and used it in the Wii console.
[137] Anascape Ltd, a
Texas-based firm, also filed a lawsuit against Nintendo for patent infringements regarding Nintendo's controllers.
[138] 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.
[139] On Thursday, April 22, 2010, the Federal Circuit reversed the verdict that Nintendo had infringed Anascape's patented controller.
[140]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.,
[141] but on August 24, 2009, Nintendo and Hillcrest reached a settlement, though the terms have not been publicly disclosed.
[142]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.
[143][edit]Features
The console contains a number of internal features made available from its hardware and
firmware 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 channels. 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. 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.
[edit]Backward compatibility
The Wii console is
backward compatible 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.
[1] 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.
[144]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 Controllerfunctions 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.
Additional backward compatibility can be achieved via software modifications, referred to as a
soft-mod.
Wii homebrew allows users to install video game console
emulators ported over from a personal computer, thus potentially adding the game library of those consoles to the Wii.
[edit]Nintendo DS connectivity
The Wii system supports wireless connectivity with the
Nintendo DS 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.
[2] 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 demos or additional data to their Nintendo DS in a process similar to that of a
DS Download Station.
[145] The console is also able to expand Nintendo DS games.
[2][edit]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 Connection service.
[1] Wireless encryption by
WEP,
WPA (TKIP/RC4) and
WPA2 (CCMP/AES) are supported.
[146] AOSS support was discreetly added in System Menu version 3.0.
[147] Just as for the Nintendo DS, Nintendo does not charge fees for playing via the service
[5][148] 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.
[148][149] This system also implements console-based software including the Wii Message Board. One can also connect to the internet with third-party devices.
[150]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,
[152][153] which is free to download from the
Wii Shop Channel.
[154] 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.
[155][156][edit]Parental controls
The console features
parental controls, 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,
[157] whereas North American units use the
ESRB rating system.
[158] The Wii unit supports the native rating systems of many countries, including
CERO in Japan, the
USK in Germany, both the
PEGIand
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.
[159][edit]Software library
Retail copies of games are supplied on proprietary,
DVD-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.
[160]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.
[161] Nintendo also launched the
New Play Control! line, a selection of enhanced GameCube games for the Wii featuring updated controls.
[162]The game development suite
Unity can be used to create official Wii games.
[165] 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.
[37] The most successful game is
Wii Sports, which comes bundled with the console in most regions, and sold 60.69 million copies worldwide as of December 2009,
[166] and surpassed
Super Mario Bros. as the best-selling game of all time.
[167] The best-selling unbundled game is
Wii Play, with 26.71 million units.
[4][edit]Reception
The system was well received after its exhibition at
E3 2006. At the event, Nintendo's console won the
Game Critics Awards for Best of Show and Best Hardware.
[10] In the December 2006 issue of
Popular Science, the console was awarded with the Grand Award Winner in Home Entertainment.
[168] Spike TV's Video Games Award also granted the console the award in breakthrough technology.
[169] GameSpot chose the console as the Best Hardware on their Best and Worst 2006 awards show.
[170] The system was also chosen as one of
PC World magazine's 20 Most Innovative Products of the Year.
[171] The console received a Golden Joystick for Innovation of the Year 2007 at the
Golden Joystick Awards.
[172] 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.
[173]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.
[174] Take-Two Interactive, who released few games for the
Nintendo GameCube, changed its stance on Nintendo by placing a higher priority on the Wii.
[175]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,
[176] while
Factor 5President Julian Eggebrecht criticized the hardware audio as being substandard for a console of its generation.
[177] 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.
[178] 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.
[179]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.
[180] 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."
[181]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."
[182]Using the Wii is often seen as being more physically demanding than other game consoles.
[183] Some Wii players have occasionally experienced a form of
tennis elbow referred to as "Wiiitis."
[184] 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.
[185] 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.
[186] 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.
[187][188]In 2009,
IGN named the Wii the 10th greatest console of all time, in a field of 25.
