But, does Bob Greene refer to it as simply "the Nintendo"?

Yes! YESSS!!! Uwe Boll can make her a STAR!!

There's only one way to settle this...

What does Oprah call it?

Exactly, if you refer to the Wii as a "Nintendo" you could technically be talking about any system they've made.J_Ford

No, because if you were speaking technically, you would specify. Nintendo is a household name, applicable to a line of video game systems, period. They don't make much of anything else, so when you say "Nintendo" it's universally understood what you mean according to the context. It is very much like the example above, where you refer to the refrigerator by its generic label, or my previous example regarding automobiles. It's the way people talk in real life.

All that does is cause confusion.J_Ford

To whom?

Each system has it's own specific name, NES, SuperNintendo, Nintendo 64, Gamecube, Wii.

They're not just called "Nintendo.J_Ford

Yeah, they pretty much are "just called 'Nintendo'" in dialogue where the context refers to the system at hand. Have you ever had a real conversation with a living person, or is "txtng" the only form of communication you are familiar with?

No. It's not logical. But for cultural significance in a historical context, it is certainly true in Nintendo's case, even through to the Wii. Personally, I usually say 'Wii' just because it takes less effort to pronounce, but have heard plenty of others refer to the machine simply by its make. It's akin to the way people talk about their cars: "My Subaru gets 20 miles to a gallon, but that Dodge my wife drives gets about 22."

Still not logical, but I have also referred to various iterations of the Playstation as "the Sony", but have never called an X-Box a Microsoft, except where Microsoft is synonymous with "poo".

Also, my memory returned. The only Oprah episode I ever watched was the one where Gene Simmons was one of her guests. He made her blush, and it was epic.

Dude, it's been "the Nintendo" for 20+ years. Allow me to illustrate.

Typical phone call, 1990 - it rings, and I answer: Yo.

Bud caller: Yo, man. What're ya doin'?

Me: Playin' Nintendo. Whatchoo doin'?

Bud: Nintendo.

Me: Yo. That's rad.

Bud: Yo. What's happening tomorrow? Wanna play some Nintendo over here?

Me: Sounds cool.

Fast forward a few years...ring...ring...

Me: Yello.

Bud: What're you doin'?

Me: Playin' Nintendo.

Bud: You 'playin' it loud?'

Me: Dude, I always 'Play it loud!'

Same deal, late nineties...

Me: 'Sup?

Bud: Nothin' much - kickin' back, playin' some Nintendo, havin' a Bud. 'Sup witchoo?

Me: Not much, dude. You get that expansion pack yet?

Bud: You know it.

Me: Sweeeeeeeet. Makes Nintendo even more rad, right?

Bud: ...Dude...did...did you just say 'rad?'

The only time it was ever any different was when my one friend got a GameCube and I didn't...phone rings...I check the CallID...

Me: Duuuuude! What. Is. Up?

Bud: Not much, just playin' the 'Cube (said smugly).

Me: Yeah, I'm playin' the Nintendo, too.

Bud: Dude...still...?

I had something to say about Oprah when I started to type, but I forgot what it was. Good analogy, FWIW...

Dude, don't forget that the reason to own a Wii is the controller itself. Using the Classic controller on all games would be a crutch. Then you'd have.....just another system that does the same stuff as everything else out there. The classic controller is great and has it's uses, but don't go looking for games to use it. That defeats the purpose.

Darth-Samus

Out of curiosity, does anyone know if there's a list out there of games that do support it? I bought a used one just so I wouldn't have to waggle my way through NFS: Undercover, but I didn't even realize its use was limited to fewer games.

Wait...so there is NOT going to be a Gamecube 2...?

Golly, I guess I better go cancel my pre-order now.

During theirvarious stints as professional wrestlers, Mario worked under the name Captain Lou Albano and then later shaved his head and appeared as "Stone Cold" Steve Austin. Luigi first appeared as the Brooklyn Brawler before adopting the more popular persona as The Rock.