You want to know why? One word: ONLINE

This is all personally my opinion but it's pretty substantial and reasonable:

HD movies will eventually be released online over online distribution networks as downloads. Disks will no longer be used as a medium. Eventually there will be a new medium (tapes to disk to harddrives to ?) Disks will eventually be replaced, they take up space, scratch, and have to use equipment to read them. Other alternatives will eventually take over.

-HD movies are already being streamed or downloaded online and will continue to evolve and grow
-Music and video services such as ITunes are already allowing consumers to directly pay and download movies over the net
-HD movies provided by Cable TV providers such as DirectTV go directly to a harddrive or stored temporarily
-HD movies are already being recorded by camcorders capable of storing video to harddrives and not discs
-As higher (and smaller) memory formats are developed capable beyond the limit of bluray and hd-dvd memory capability, bluray and the disks they use will become phased out

Don't take this following example as being equal to the HD-DVD and bluray situation! It does however represent one present example of the disk format failing...

-UMD's on the PSP failed because they were too expensive and you could just download the videos off the net and put them on memory sticks. The UMD disks weren't needed.

Heck, the movie industry is already on such a slide with such terrible films coming out that I'm not even sure if people are interested in movies. I haven't been to a movie theater in like two months. I've downloaded (legally) the majority of the movies I've seen in the past year.

**READ BEFORE POSTING**
Blu-ray and HD-DVD's memory will serve well for GAMES. Soon enough though, games will begin to run off other forms of medium as witnessed by XBLA or even the Virtual Console. So all you people fighting over which format is going to win or what not, you're window of opportunity is limited because the transition is already in motion and don't get pissed when you've purchased a HD disk player to find it useless in a couple years.

     There simply is no single definition as to why the Legend of Zelda is considered the greatest series of all time. To me, Zelda is about the experience and the emotions felt by the player of the game. You just can't get that Zelda experience from any other game. The feelings evoked from the "discovery" sound bit. The feeling of accomplishment of defeating a boss after utilizing a newfound ability or tool. The emotions felt from figuring out that difficult puzzle on your own by thinking outside of the box. I could go on and on...but it can't be denied the feelings elicited from such a game like Zelda. So to all the haters, don't be so quick to judge.

Any other Zelda fans who have their own opinions and reservations please feel free to share...

What system would a nongamer be most impressed with?
 vs.
What system would a nongamer most likely purchase?

What do you think? Though impressed, will a nongamer even be interested in buying that system? Here's my take:


I believe the playstation 3 will impress the nongamer the most due to it's abundance of technology. When a nongamer sees the amazing graphics being produced along with the ability of playing high-definition movies on one console, the ps3 has the ability to turn heads...

However, I also believe that the console most likely purchased by a nongamer is the Wii. If Nintendo can succeed in making owning a console indifferent to owning...say an Ipod or even a computer, then Nintendo has the potential they are seeking to find in the Wii. This depends on a couple factors...

1. Price - $250 is alot to ask for a nongamer to jump into something they are not familiar with. If $250 can be translated into an affordable price for a game console just as it is in purchasing a mp3 player, then the masses will follow. I believe $250 is a good price for the established gamers, but I truly feel that the $199 mark is the price to draw potential nongamers.

2. Accessibility - Zelda:TP is not going to be the game to draw nongamers. In my opinion, the ps3 and xbox360 along with their respective prices are too advanced and intimidating to draw the new nongamer crowd. The Wii is the only console that has this window of opportunity because it can cater to this new demographic with it's games and simplicity. If Nintendo can develop and market similar games to the Wii that are on the DS such as Big Brain Academy, Brain Age, Nintendogs, or even Clubhouse Games, the Wii has the ability to produce games that are incredibly simple to play but enjoyable at the same time.

3. THE SHIFT - This factor is mostly going to depend on forces that Nintendo can't control. The Wii desperately needs to become a household name. Society needs to accept the Wii as the "it" thing. The Wii needs to be as populous and as regular as a 60 year old man playing his DS on a Japanese subway train. It needs to become accepted norm by everyone. Gaming needs to break out of it's shell. Word of mouth will also be a strong dictator to the Wii's success.

It is in my opinion, that these factors need to be addressed in order for Nintendo's "strategy" to be fully realized. Nintendo is going to live and die by these decisions and factors. Book it. Personally, I can't wait to find out the result after the dust settles. As I asked before, what do you think?

wii-mote - 1
sixaxis - 2
360 controller (wireless) - 3

power/menu button -
1 2 3
rumble functionality -
1 3
bluetooth tech -
1 2
tilt functionality -
1 2
player icon light -
1 2 3
dual analog sticks -
   2 3
motion sensing -
1
pointer functionality -
1
volume +/- buttons -
1
built in speaker -
1
internal memory -
1

wii-mote: $40
six-axis: $50
360 (wireless): $50

**I know cows and lems are gonna argue the point of games requiring the nunchuk. Personally, I would gladly pay $10 bucks more for all the functions the wii-mote and nunchuk (motion sensing and analog control) include.

I'll let the posts speak for themselves.

http://www.gamespot.com/pages/forums/show_msgs.php?topic_id=25078738

I fell asleep in the middle of the sixth page and didn't feel like bumping a thread that still never had the answer I was looking for.

I know companies in the real world often do whatever it takes to get a competitive advantage, but I've never heard of a company acting like as much of a fanboy as Sony. From releasing *pricing fact sheets*, saying the other consoles are "pricy" when your product is the most costliest, coming out and releasing the most stupid quotes I've ever heard (Kutaragi, Hirai, and Ephraim), and never actually admitting to any mistakes and instead just side-stepping some real obvious issues...does anyone else get the feeling that Sony is just trying to establish this invincible aura about them thinking that the Sony loyalists will automatically stick with them no matter what? Its gotta be obvious that Sony knows about their chances and mistakes so do you believe that they feel they are on top of the world no matter what, or do all these crazy defense tactics show that they are scared?

http://us.wii.com/experience_gallery.jsp

Looks like I'm finally gonna be able to get my wife into gaming.

The elderly japanese couple is my favorite. I can't remember the last time I've seen people have so much fun on a game console.

A couple posts from my topic: (my replies are in bold)

EmperorMetalman wrote:
They managed to do the same with Brain Age, and will repeat their sucess

AcydRaine wrote:
But from who I hang out with 90% of the people that I'm around into VG's dislike the pick up and play for ten minutes method. No, we don't have hours and hours of play time but we like a long and challenging game. For Ninty this "Pick up and Play" could be good for some gamers but also they will alienate some gamers such as myself.

n_ii_nty wrote:
There will be games to satisfy the core gamers such as yourself. LoZ:TP is enough to show Nintendo isn't alienating this crowd. However, I do believe Nintendo is targeting a demographic that may not have hours upon hours to waste getting involved in a game which includes learning difficult controls. If Zelda isn't enough in terms of deep gameplay, you might want to look to other alternatives. In my current situation, I don't have much time to be involved in a game, I'd much rather opt for the quick "escape from reality" that games like Wii Sports offers.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Ninten007 wrote:
When will Nintendo fanboys learn? Handheld success does not equate to console success. The GBA and the GC are traditional gaming platforms with not much innovation, see what happened? GBA sales were like what 60 million to the GC's 20 million.

n_ii_nty wrote:
The point of this thread was to prove that the wii-mote is easily accesible to any demographic. Read the topic again. I could easily be part of a long argument about the Wii's success but I'd rather leave that up to the future.

Corvin wrote:
Using a controller or a mouse on a PC is easily accesible ot any demographic, too. If anything, people who need easily accessible controllers would be more at home with a classic NES or Game Boy than a Wii, or any more modern console system.

n_ii_nty wrote:
You're right. But you fail to realize that there is a huge population who play (soft)core games such as solitaire, minesweeper, and other small pop cap games. Wii is extremely intuitive and based on movements in the real world. It's common sense to know to swing a bat at a ball. These PC players have difficulty mapping buttons to different actions. The Wii will eliminate this difficulty (not all games mind you).

Corvin wrote:
No, I didn't fail to realize anything, I know tons of those people that only play (soft)core games. They don't seem to have any problem clicking and dragging a card, or using certain keys on the keyboard. I see no extra difficulty for these people to press a button on an NES controller to swing a bat compared to having to actually swing a little remote. Does the Wiimote not have buttons that must also be learned, more than even a GB or an original NES? Then don't even get me started on the possibility of these people ever using the nunchuck if they can't handle complex controls. All I am saying is that the average non-gamer isn't stupid, incapable of gaming (mapping buttons), they just simply game as a quick amusing thing that they probably won't spend $250, or any money on, at all. Solitare and Mindsweeper are free on a PC, no one buys a PC just for those little novelty games. Non-gamers don't play games because they just don't get into interactive entertainment. Of course the Wii will have some cases of bringing in new gamers, but thats true of every system, even if temporary. When my Dad saw Ridge Racer on the PS1 he started playing games again, shortly, then quit again, because he just doesn't get into games a whole lot. I don't see how Wii will outright change people's personalities in such ways.

n_ii_nty wrote:
Nothing is for certain until it happens. Who's to say that the Wii will bring anyone into gaming? It is my opinion, however, that the wii-mote allows for the possibility of having genuine "fun" by providing a form of entertainment that anyone can enjoy. The videos prove the fact that gaming does not have to be intimidating. When, and if, people hear about the Wii and are interested in it...there is not that initial fear of any complex controls. Of course there will be games that involve controls that are more difficult to learn. But, these games that Nintendo is providing such as Wii sports or Brain Age are easy to "get into" and enjoy. By having these types of games availble, Nintendo's strategy will hopefully direct previous non-gamers to turn an ear towards this type of interactive entertainment.

Arguing aside, the main point is playing = believing.

i'm bored. wii will win. book it.

- n_ii_nty