Has nintendo let down hardcore gamers with the Wii?

[Kev]

UK Nintendo Boss David Yarnton spoke to MCVUK today and fired back at those who suggest that Nintendo have 'lost its passion for core gamers'.

I really have to disagree. Since I was a kid I've had every nintendo system and the as far as gaming goes the Wii is the worst.

I've had the Wii for about a year but it's not been great value for money because theres a severe lack of good titles. Some of the multiplayer games like wii sports, mario and sonic at the olympics and super mario kart are great but there are just too few good one player games.

Mario Galaxy, zelda, metroid and a few others are great games but they are few and far between. There's certainly a big gulf in the number of good one player and online gaming titles compared to the 360 and the ps3. And don't get me started on the virtual console - bloody £3.50 for a commodore 64 game!!! Why would anyone pay that!

The wii is a great social system. At christmas I'll be plugging it in and I'm sure we will have a great laugh getting drunk and playing bowling and mario kart etc. However, as far as gaming on a regular basis goes, the Wii has quite a poor games catalogue and that is what great systems are remembered for. Thats why the snes was so great.

You only have to look at the number of poor scores on metacritic to see the volume of poor games on the system. On some level, this isn't really nintendos fault. A lot of kids and families bought the wii so a lot of gaming companies have churned out some shitty titles to make a quick buck (balls of fury anyone?)

I like the Wii. It's a good system and it's great having all your friends around to play the vast number of multiplayer games available. However, I do think they have really let core gamers down. There have been some good one player games but the system has been out for 2 years now and compared to the ps3 and 360 the number of good one player games is awful.

What do you think? Has nintendo forgot about hardcore gamers in the midst of their successful campaign to reach a different audience?

[localhost8080]

I suppose there arent enough high end games for the wii, but I dont think thats what the platform is all about, its all about gameplpay and fun rather than the 360 or the ps3, which are for the high end gamers (and then the PC above that) I think this is why it has done so well - it has its place, and it fills that place very well

[Sh3LL]

The problem is that while Nintendo managed to lure in the casual game market, they let them grow too strong. It's like the DS, it has some good games but every week there's a bunch of crappy games too that would only appeal to a 6 year old in my opinion. The Wii also has great potential and I hope that they eventually release some good thorough titles for it aimed at a more hardcore audience.

[Kev]

I suppose there arent enough high end games for the wii, but I dont think thats what the platform is all about, its all about gameplpay and fun rather than the 360 or the ps3, which are for the high end gamers (and then the PC above that) I think this is why it has done so well - it has its place, and it fills that place very well

Yes it does have it's place. But that doesn't change the fact that there is a severe lack of grade A titles. Nintendo has always catered towards a younger audience but even games with childish characters, eg. mario, were great games. Theres a severe lack of them on the Wii.

Compare this with the snes, n64 and to a lesser degree the gamecube, all of which had more grade A titles. Yes there is a market for the multiplayer games they are churning out but they have certainly let down a lot of loyal gamers who stuck with them.

I've owned every single nintendo system. The Wii is a good system and it does have it's place. But surely they can have things like wii fit as well as normal gaming games eg. games you can sit back and relax and play for hours...ie. more games like zelda, mario galaxy and metroid prime.

The problem is that while Nintendo managed to lure in the casual game market, they let them grow too strong. It's like the DS, it has some good games but every week there's a bunch of crappy games too that would only appeal to a 6 year old in my opinion. The Wii also has great potential and I hope that they eventually release some good thorough titles for it aimed at a more hardcore audience.

The DS has a huge back catalogue. I'd say there are actually quite a lot of good games on the DS, more than the Wii anyways. I agree there is a lot of childish games as well though.