[Spiwak]

I dunno, I haven't found it that terrible. Wii actually isn't that bad of a name compared to, say, Gizmondo. Or Neo-Geo. Or Gameboy.

Just face it, consoles have bad names.

[bigjko]

Originally Posted by Cathy1

..then I seen the controller. Then I said forget it. I'm old school. If it ain't broke don't fix it. IMO.

They're just offering another solution to next generation gaming. Game graphics aren't broke either. Why fix them, then? Your XBox isn't broke. Why buy another one? I could go on, but I think you got my point. And this thread is about bitching about the name, anyway, so I'm just straying off-topic.

[Rayvielle]

Well, since the focus seems to be on why the name 'Wii' is poor, why not's let focus on the competition.

I mean really, is Sony calling their system Playstation 3, all that brilliant?

Didn't they just do that with the Playstation 2?

It is what it is, and nothing more.

The name 'Wii' is interesting because it's so freakin' out of the box, so radical, that it has everybody talking. The gaming World has been set alight by it's fans, it's haters, it's even piqued the interest of those who before, have probably never given a damn!

It's certainly served it's purpose.

Bottom line, people are gonna have their attention on Nintendo at E3, either because they 'get it' or they wanna see how much deeper they bury their own grave!

The name 'Wii' does not have much love over the english speaking internet, that's blatantly obvious.

But the fact is, it's drawn more attention toward Nintendo.

It hasn't made me want the console any less, and it hasn't dampened my enthusiasm for E3.

I'm just as excited as I was 24 hours ago. .

[Lucien21]

Your right of course.

It's still the same console and the controller is just as revolutionary as before.


I'm sure we will all be playing with our Wii sticks for hours of fun.

[sethsez]

Originally Posted by Rayvielle

Well, since the focus seems to be on why the name 'Wii' is poor, why not's let focus on the competition.

I mean really, is Sony calling their system Playstation 3, all that brilliant?

Didn't they just do that with the Playstation 2?

It's an identifiable brand that everyone already knows and trusts. Not brilliant, but effective.

The name 'Wii' is interesting because it's so freakin' out of the box, so radical, that it has everybody talking. The gaming World has been set alight by it's fans, it's haters, it's even piqued the interest of those who before, have probably never given a damn!

It's certainly served it's purpose.

The Segway got a lot of people talking too. It was a punchline for a good while, in fact. Any publicity is not always good publicity.

And again, the issue isn't with the concept of the name (though I think it's massively over-thought and full of bullshit marketing philosophy), it's with the name itself. Linguistically, "Wii" is a mess for a product name. And since Nintendo's stated purpose has been to get more non-gamers playing this generation, a childish name isn't going to do them any favors.

Could they survive the name and thrive despite it? Of course. But they shouldn't have to survive the product's name, it should be helping them.

[Karmillo]

Originally Posted by sethsez

And again, the issue isn't with the concept of the name (though I think it's massively over-thought and full of bullshit marketing philosophy), it's with the name itself. Linguistically, "Wii" is a mess for a product name. And since Nintendo's stated purpose has been to get more non-gamers playing this generation, a childish name isn't going to do them any favors.

How the hell is Wii over though?

[RLacey]

Originally Posted by sethsez

And again, the issue isn't with the concept of the name (though I think it's massively over-thought and full of bullshit marketing philosophy), it's with the name itself. Linguistically, "Wii" is a mess for a product name. And since Nintendo's stated purpose has been to get more non-gamers playing this generation, a childish name isn't going to do them any favors.

Could they survive the name and thrive despite it? Of course. But they shouldn't have to survive the product's name, it should be helping them.

Yes. The point isn't that we think it's a vaguely comical name, and are going to laugh at it and then go and buy the thing; the issue is that the very non-gamers that the product is setting out to reach may well be put off by the juvenile name. I'm sure that Nintendo have reasons for changing the name - they've given some of them - and it makes me no less likely to buy the console. But when they already had a name that made sense, identified the machine, was simple and meant something great, it strikes me as just a tad silly to rename it to something as stupid as this, particularly as at best it won't harm the product.

[Karmillo]

Come to think of it I keep thinking of French when I hear Wii...

[Stoofa]

Originally Posted by RLacey

Yes. The point isn't that we think it's a vaguely comical name, and are going to laugh at it and then go and buy the thing; the issue is that the very non-gamers that the product is setting out to reach may well be put off by the juvenile name. I'm sure that Nintendo have reasons for changing the name - they've given some of them - and it makes me no less likely to buy the console. But when they already had a name that made sense, identified the machine, was simple and meant something great, it strikes me as just a tad silly to rename it to something as stupid as this, particularly as at best it won't harm the product.

Right, it sounds like a toddler toy. Might as well have called it "bap" or "sneed" or "caca."

[insane_cobra]

What are you people talking about? It's not called Wee, it's Wii and as such can be also interpreted as "we" or just plain "v". Nothing childish about it, nothing childish about its design, nothing childish about its functionality.

[Dasilva]

How is this bad publicity? Please, if you can't trust nintendo after all these decades, who can you trust. Nintendo was there way before Sony or Microsoft, they have many, many consoles in their life time, and Nintendo knows more about the industry than Microsft & Sony, because they've been making amazing and legendary games over the years. The gamecube wasen't a major success, but it still did well, and who could live without Metroid? Zelda or dare I say Mario? And all the other great games over the many years. Specially now that SEGA is working closely with Nintendo.

I think you guys should be more worried about the Play Station 3, not setting a firm release date, not telling us the cost, giving us fake tech trailers. So far Nintendo and Microsoft are looking better. I can't imagine how much the PS3 will cost, if its very low price to compete with the 360 then Sony will go bankrupt, specially over loses loads of profit from their PS2 & PSP success going towards the PS3.

[sethsez]

Originally Posted by insane_cobra

What are you people talking about? It's not called Wee, it's Wii and as such can be also interpreted as "we" or just plain "v". Nothing childish about it, nothing childish about its design, nothing childish about its functionality.

"Wee," by itself, sounds like baby talk to many english speakers (and yes, I know how it's spelled, but that doesn't mean anything when you have to pronounce it). The fact that many people have come to this conclusion says as much.

I've asked non-gamers what they think of the name. They think it's ridiculous. I asked my parents what they think of the name. They think it sounds vaguely childish.

I mean, you can scream that it's a great name and nobody will interpret it that way, but the fact that many people are interpreting it that way right now kind of takes the wind out of that argument's sails.

Does anyone else find it a little ironic that they say "it's about Wii" yet they're straying as far away from online aspects as possible? The tagline "It's About Wii" makes me think that the whole thing is about the gaming community getting together over this thing, but obviously that's not the case.

[sethsez]

Originally Posted by SamNMax

Does anyone else find it a little ironic that they say "it's about Wii" yet they're straying as far away from online aspects as possible? The tagline "It's About Wii" makes me think that the whole thing is about the gaming community getting together over this thing, but obviously that's not the case.

The thing is going to have Wifi out of the box and they've begun to really push their online service with the DS. I have no doubt that this name was chosen at least partially to push their online gaming service.

Maybe, but that's never been and not going to be their main focus. Just seems a little weird to me.

[Karmillo]

I dont know, Im kinda glad that they arn't making much of a deal about online gaming...

Althought wouldnt the online gaming kinda be similar to how the DS works?

[sethsez]

Originally Posted by SamNMax

Maybe, but that's never been and not going to be their main focus.

The very first thing announced about the Revolution, before we saw the case or the controller, was that it was going to be online and would let us download games.

Since then, they've been pushing the "innovation" angle for a while, and now they're pushing the "togetherness" angle. Yeah, I'd say it's a huge focus for them this gen, if not their main focus, and the name only solidifies this.

And saying it's "never" been their focus is a bit odd. Console gaming has only been online in any real way for a single decade, which they mostly missed out on. They're getting in a bit late, but it's not as if they're decades behind the rest. And it won't even be their first big online system... that's the DS.

[Rayvielle]

Well, I think the reason Nintendo hasn't focused so much on net gaming in the past is because the previous president of the company basically said..."who the hell wants to play games on the internet?".

Well now there is a new guy at the reigns, and as is evidenced by the sneak in appearence of net play on the DS, Nintendo will certainly be focusing on it in the future. Look at the titles that are taking advantage of Wi-fi...Mario Kart, Animal Crossing, Metroid Prime Hunters, Tetris -- all HUGE Nintendo licenses. If they're gonna put that sort of attention on a handheld, then it's pretty much a certainty, that their living room hub, will get the same, if not better treatment.

(Also, with the virtual console being a heavily promoted addition to the system, that also is a good nudge in the right direction).

As for how the name will affect sales...*shrug*...none of us will know that till launch day. Right now, we can just speculate and say Nintendo have pissed this generation away (ha ha). *rolls eyes*.

[Intrepid Homoludens]

<-- "My dear, I invite you back to my home so that we may Playstation3 together. Would you like that?"

<-- "Aww, I do like you. You're sweet. I have champagne and oysters at my place, and we can have some nice hot X....box360 with it. Shall we?"

<-- "Hey baby! How 'bout you and me go back to my place and I'll show you my Wii?"

[SCRUGAtes13]

this has been a great thread to read, very funny. but the facts are simple and should not be forgotten:

'Wii' is the most stupid name for a console that could have ever been made. That simple.