I believe System Wars seems to have a special problem with the Wii. Their hatred for the system seems to transcend any dislike or indifference they might have for any of the other consoles, and the trouble is, I have no idea exactly why System Wars hates the Wii so much.
I've been here for over a year now, and in that period, I've picked up quite a few of the 'reasons' System Wars hates the Wii. I shall now attempt to demonstrate now not only all those reasons are invalid, but also the result of needless preconceived notions and prejudice:
1)THE WII DOES NOT HAVE GOOD GRAPHICS/DOES NOT HAVE ENOUGH PROCESSING POWER/IS JUST A RESOUPED GAMECUBE:
This is absolutely incorrect, on all three counts. As I am assuming everybody here knows by now, the Wii is 2 times as powerful as the original Xbox, which, in turn was the most powerful system last generation. This not only lends the Wii with adequate processing power- surely we don't need the raw, supercomputer strength that the 360 and the PS3 bring to the table as a necessity, do we? I mean, we did have excellent looking games before the advent of the HD era as well, didn't we?- but also means that the Wii is capable of churning out beautiful visuals, if only developers would work on it. Cases in point: Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, Super Smash Bros Brawl, Dead Space Extraction and Resident Evil Darkside Chronicles. While the graphics are certainly nowhere near as good as they are on the HD consoles, they certainly are more than good enough to go along with.
That many games do not look good can be attributed to two reasons: that most of the 'games' System Wars picks as examples are usually hastily put together minigame compilations or movie tie ins: the very definition of 'shovelware.' Using the worst title a system has as an example of what the system is capable of is certainly not a good idea now, is it?
2) THE WII DOES NOT HAVE GOOD GAMES/ITS LIBRARY IS ONLY SHOVELWARE
While this point becomes a bit harder to defend objectively, due to the subjective nature of opinions that enters the equation whenever statements pertaining to choice or taste in anything arise, I believe that the general misconception that the Wii has no good games to speak of, or very few to care about, should be immediately dispelled.
The Wii not only has a lot to offer to the 'core' gamer accustomed to mainstream titles, it also has the support of Nintendo's first party support- indisputably the best first party backing, which I am sure all cows and lemming will also agree to- with classic franchises like Zelda and Mario. To add to all that, the Wii has loads of niche titles, like Muramasa and Little King's Story, and it also has the Virtual COnsole and WiiWare, two online gaming services loaded to the brim with old school and addictive titles. In other words, every true hardcore gamer's wildest fantasy.
To add to the above mentioned, the Wii also has great party titles (Wii Play and Wii Sports Resort spring to mind) as well as a lot of 'alternative' games, like Wii Fit, which offer new ways of interaction and interfacing within the medium.
Playing the Wii is a scintillating experience, if only gamers would be willing to offer it the chance.
It is true, the Wii has a LOT of shovelware, mote than any platform should have, but it also has a great many excellent titles, if people would only bother to look.
3) THE WII IS KIDDY/NINTENDO IS KIDDY
This one is actually the worst of the tlo, because not only is it absolutely unfounded on any basis, it also smacks of ignorance, insecurity and narrow mindedness on the accuser's part.
The reason that is usually quoted for calling the Wii 'kiddy' is the presence of Nintendo games like Mario on the platform, which are always bright, with a colorful palette, and a quirky storyline. The perception is also rooted in the early '90's period, when Nintendo was reluctant to admit really 'mature' games on the platform.
Now, while Nintendo and their games may be 'kiddy-' I do not deny that, whatever it is supposed to mean- my question is, what does it matter? So what if we play a game with a ridiculous storyline, or a happy theme for once, instead of the usual dreary and depressing fare that modern games have now become? What does it even matter if the game is good? A game's fundamental premise is its gameplay, and as long as that is sound, it does not matter at all.
But for those who insist on having a mature game, well then, on the Wii, you are spoilt for choice. Great games like Resident Evil 4, Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles, Resident Evil: Darkside Chronicles, Dead Space Extraction, Silent Hill Shattered Memories, House of the Dead: Overkill, MadWorld, Manhunt 2, No More Heroes, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Reflex, The Godfather: Blackhand Edition and Call of Duty: World at War, to name a few, should really be enough 'mature experiences' to satiate anybody.
It's time we all learn to be a bit more broad minded, and a bit more willing to let go of our initial prejudices, if only to avoid stupid accusations like these.
4) THE WII IS DUMB BECAUSE IT DOES NOT HAVE GOOD ONLINE
I accept unconditionally that the Wii's online leaves a lot to be desired (though Mario Kart Wii totally nailed it in that department). However, why does that imply that the console sucks? Or that a game sucks? Or that the game has no multiplayer modes to speak of?
Addressing the first two points (and the third, in part), I would like to say that great games and consoles existed even before online, if anybody cares to remember. Those that don't are most probably those who started gaming this generation, and so are unaware that games were usually better back then- the single player mode was longer, meatier and more fulfilling, instead of being rushed to accommodate an online mode that is usually the same in all games of the genre (primarily happens in shooters, where the online mode of one shooter game is equivalent to the online mode of all shooter games). The fact that the Wii games do not have an online mode, or that if they do, it isn't as good as the HD consoles', is a bummer, yes. But gamers would do well to acknowledge the Wii games' own strengths then- they're usually long, and have a fulfilling and compelling single player mode (instead of the single player mode lasting barely five hours. You all know which game I speak of).
As for the third, ALL Wii games still have excellent multiplayer. Don't forget, that it was Nintendo after all who introduced us all to meaningful multiplayer gaming in the first place. Wii games usually have an excellent local multiplayer component, and perhaps it would be the best for today's increasingly cynical and disillusioned society to actually take the time to spend some time (playing games) with their family and friends, as opposed to playing with some nameless person at the opposite end of the world.
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That's it, really. That's all I have to say, for the moment.
I do not for an instance believe that the Wii is perfect- in my opinion, no console is- however, I believe that it gets a lot of unwarranted and undeserved hate, here in System Wars, when the HD fanboys usually gang up on it? Why? Because it dared to do something different? Or because its leading in sales? As I've already explained above,most of the reasons cited for the Wii being a 'failure' as a system are invaild. You are, of course, free to your own personal opinion.
I don't think my post shall make much of a difference- but hey, at least I can try, and I can claim nowthat I've done my bit to reason with everybody.
Before I sign off, I'd like to state that I own all three consoles, and love them equally. It's just that, I can;t stand it when what is so obviously a wonderful console gets so much hate that usually stems from narrow minded prejudices.
Please chip in with your thoughts, I look forward to hearing your points of view.
EDIT: I edited this topic on 3rd December 2009 to correct some minor grammar errors, and to change the topic title.
charizard1605
1. In comparison to every single other console this gen yes the wii does have terrible graphics. ANd yes it is practicallyjsut a reworked gamcube, I was under the impression that it shared similar hardware to gamecube but just clocked at higher settings. (who knows, I may be wrong.
2. while its library is not ONLY shovelware, the shovelware to good game ratio on the wii si BY FAR much higher then it is on the other consoles, so truthfuly when shopping for wii games, yes shovelware is going bot be a LOT more common, however this is not only nintendos fault, this is more just due to the fact that the wqii is the best selling system this gen, the PS2 was also clogged with shovelware last gen.
3/ this one is based on opinion, I mean if you consider games like Mario Zelda and Mario Kart kiddy, then yes it is. If you dont, then no it isnt. Simple as that.
4. true that this is not the ONLY factor in determining whether or not a console is good, but this added in with all the other negatives of the wii sis what make fanboys say that it is not a good system.
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