Wii not getting a price drop -- is that news?
Mama always told us that if everyone else is jumping off a bridge we should do it too. And so we give you the "news" that retirement-bound Nintendo marketing VP George Harrision told Reuters that the Wii is staying at $249. Harrison says that the Wii is still selling out everywhere and there's no need to drop the price at this point. The man is absolutely right.
Oh heck, while we're reporting the obvious: The PS3 is still too expensive (hopefully not for long), Microsoft won't port Halo 3 to PS3 -- ever, the PS3 will not be getting rid of Blu-ray and the Wiimote eats batteries like a fat kid at a buffet. We're sure there's more obvious news we can stumble upon today, but we're pretty sure saying the Wii won't get a price drop is definitely in the top three.
Oh heck, while we're reporting the obvious: The PS3 is still too expensive (hopefully not for long), Microsoft won't port Halo 3 to PS3 -- ever, the PS3 will not be getting rid of Blu-ray and the Wiimote eats batteries like a fat kid at a buffet. We're sure there's more obvious news we can stumble upon today, but we're pretty sure saying the Wii won't get a price drop is definitely in the top three.











Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
phattie @ Oct 12th 2007 10:05AM
I guess everywhere includes Japan? lol... the hypetrain is derailing.. that mega games list yesterday is the start.. even the hardcore NDF have to admit that this hyping of shortages is silly now
Crono (NDF - French Taunting from Holy Grail Ring) @ Oct 12th 2007 10:09AM
You're Jack of No Trades, aren't you.
Crono (NDF - French Taunting from Holy Grail Ring) @ Oct 12th 2007 10:10AM
You're Jack of No Trades, aren't you!
phattie @ Oct 12th 2007 10:17AM
im waiting for the next smash post, so i can rim you guys on the no motion control again.. seems like hit a nerve there.. (lol @ fernando)
megaStryke @ Oct 12th 2007 10:22AM
Fatass, you aren't old enough to sit at the big boys' table yet. When you can learn to stop throwing up over every single thing, maybe we'll welcome you.
Actually, no, keep throwing up. Maybe bulimia may be just the spark you need to get your weight under the Shamu limit.
T3H WICKERMAN (FDF) @ Oct 12th 2007 10:38AM
every nintendo post will feature phattie flamming. this is law in the outlands!
GRANTED @ Oct 12th 2007 10:38AM
if you actually ate mcd's every day and were fat, would you really post a pic of yourself (or of someone else that's fat) and call yourself phattie?
of course not. by calling phattie "fat", you are going along with his joke. HE is the one that is mocking/parodying fat people. the fact that the best comeback you have to him is "haha you are fat" just makes you look retarded.
ssuk @ Oct 12th 2007 12:30PM
Fanboys, the only people on the planet who can instantly forget how flawed each others consoles are to attack other consoles for the same thing.
Hey sony boys, how's those SIXAXIS games going? I don't really see much motion sensing going on...
sheppy2.0 @ Oct 12th 2007 1:20PM
Jesus B. Christ, phattie!
Look, I am a Sony fan. Actually a fan of most systems but I have a slight biase towards Sony products. Anyway, I come here and find people like you being every bit as annoying as Fernando but from the other side. It's ridiculous, just stop. Because, somehow, your behavior gets linked to me. Guilt by association I guess. But regardless, just stop. Stop flaming the Wii. I have one and while it's not exactly my top system, it's still decent enough not to decry it. If you want to bitch about systems, here's a list. Tear into them all you want.
CDi
3DO
Odyssey II
Jaguar
Track those down and witchhunt them. They sucked.
Rubang B (NDF - Heart) @ Oct 12th 2007 2:13PM
Hahaha, phattie just admitted that he's waiting for the next Smash post so he can attack us. What a turd.
Here phattie: "Having more control options does not necessitate the use of all options at once." You think if Nintendo doesn't make a game that uses the remote, the nunchuck, the classic controller, the balance board, the WaveBird, and a Zapper all at once it's a failure?
Don't answer it, please.
Lemmiwinks @ Oct 12th 2007 6:35PM
Only *you* could interpret a report that the Wii doesn't need a price-drop to continue selling well as bad news for Nintendo.
Congratulations. You have all the intelligence of a chicken mcnugget.
hvnlysoldr @ Oct 12th 2007 9:08PM
PK FIRE!
Warlord @ Oct 12th 2007 10:06AM
Is cutting the console's price seen as a desparate move by the console maker? If so, then it's good that they DON'T lower the price.
How come lowering the price is not considered an act of kindnedd by the console maker? Why aren't we overjoyed that the console maker decided to get less profit, just for us?
GRANTED @ Oct 12th 2007 10:10AM
companies don't do anything for charity. a private company doesn't need morality or kindness, they are only accountable to shareholder and the board. dropping the price is a way of increasing profits, not decreasing them. so when a company drops a product's price, it is an attempt to increase market share.
Warlord @ Oct 12th 2007 11:03AM
Yeah, but companies aren't supposed to come out and be so OBVIOUS that all they want is your dirty, dirty money. :D
Yeah, lowering the price would not help the Wii sell more, as I hear it's STILL gone the same day as it comes in, even now.
Though, lowering the price now would help make sure that the Wii STAYS sold out for longer, which is a better thing than the Wii becoming available, and once the glamor of a sold-out system is gone, and people see it's list of playable games is STILL in the single digits (basically).
Right now, the Wii is popular, because it's popular. Once that wears off, they better have many games out.
Jake @ Oct 12th 2007 12:08PM
Dropping prices is done to increase profit by selling more total systems. It is too simplistic to look at the strategy of price dropping from the "well, the thing is/isn't selling great so I won't/will drop the price".
With the Wii, it is a matter of the Wii keeping up to their underpar manufacturing output, so why drop the price? It would only make sense if they actually increased manufacturing at the same time.
And really, it is possible to have a great selling product and choose to drop the price. If the Wii had better manufacturing output, they could very well drop to $200 if it meant enough increase in console sales.
With, say the PS3, the price drop is basically an acknowledgement that the thing can't be sold at its current price. There is a reason people freaked out when they first announced the price, and now we are seeing that come to fruitition.
I may have mispelled that last word. Deal with it.
Psaakyrn @ Oct 12th 2007 7:44PM
Then again, this is "Free-Wiimote-Covers-For-Everyone" Nintendo. Who knows, they may drop prices to boost public image..... when people forget about the free Wiimote covers.
Mark C @ Oct 12th 2007 10:07AM
"and the Wiimote eats batteries like a fat kid at a buffet."
...fat kids eat batteries?
Crono (NDF - French Taunting from Holy Grail Ring) @ Oct 12th 2007 10:12AM
I dunno, ask phattie.
Fernando Rocker (NDF - Water Ring) @ Oct 12th 2007 10:14AM
Nahh... he is busy eating his "nutritive" McDonald's breakfeast.
phattie @ Oct 12th 2007 10:15AM
its a met-a-four ... can you say, met-a-four? .. otherwise, stay in skool
Zertoss @ Oct 12th 2007 10:20AM
I met a four once. I figured I could do better and ditched her.
Mark C @ Oct 12th 2007 10:34AM
"its a met-a-four ... can you say, met-a-four? .. otherwise, stay in skool"
Actually, it's a simile seeing as how it made use of 'like' or 'as'.
And if it wanted to make sense, it would have read something like:
"and the Wiimote eats batteries like a fat kid [EATS A TYPE OF FOOD] at a buffet"
Well...was just making a joke, I guess it got lost in your stupidity.
You were trying to be a smart-ass. You also failed.
Henry @ Oct 12th 2007 11:13AM
Also Phattie, it's spelled metaphor.
Fail x2.
Go to school.
Anticrawl @ Oct 12th 2007 11:15AM
I clicked on this post to comment on that very thing. I never knew fat kids ate batteries at buffets.
Mark C is correct on his response, " 'and the Wiimote eats batteries like a fat kid [EATS A TYPE OF FOOD] at a buffet' ."
I personally would have gone with macaroni and/or fried chicken skin.
JodyAnthony @ Oct 12th 2007 11:24AM
hahaha @ 'fried chicken skin'
+1 for Anticrawl
brad77 @ Oct 12th 2007 11:57AM
I was just about to ask the same question. Now that would be news!
brad77 @ Oct 12th 2007 11:59AM
"its a met-a-four ... can you say, met-a-four?"
More like a met-a-three. It's missing something.
Brandon @ Oct 12th 2007 10:07AM
Why lower it when you are already cheaper than the competition, despite actually not being worth anywhere near 250 in components.
Mr Khan @ Oct 12th 2007 4:29PM
I say that, at launch, there was $200 worth of stuff in the North American package
but that's just dead reckoning, i have no data to back that up
Brandon @ Oct 12th 2007 10:08AM
Why lower it when you are already cheaper than the competition, despite actually not being worth anywhere near 250 in components.
DaiMac79 @ Oct 12th 2007 10:10AM
Heh, maybe all of your WiiMotes eat batteries, mine are fed by a continuous cycle of rechargeable Energizers, which has worked great for me. In fact, I have more problems with batteries in my 360 controllers, not because I play it more but because its much harder to remove the batteries from them when its time to change.
James @ Oct 12th 2007 10:28AM
I'm always surprised at people who don't know that rechargeable batteries exist.
My 2400mAh rechargeables have last me, well, since I bought them. Get weeks of play off them then throw them into the 30 minute charger.
Wii still the best console out.
Crono (NDF - French Taunting from Holy Grail Ring) @ Oct 12th 2007 10:36AM
Ditto.
vinny @ Oct 12th 2007 11:00AM
i wouldn't say its the best but it comes in a decent 2nd in my opinion, i picked up excite truck last night and god damn that game rocks, its actually pretty deep for a racer, much better then motorstorm i might add, but as far as games go, the 360 remains king
sheppy2.0 @ Oct 12th 2007 1:34PM
Ummm, Vinny? I really hate to do this to you but seriously... do you even KNOW the stuff you talk about?
Excitetruck = Depth? What? When was this EVER the case? It certainly wasn't when the game was called Hydro Thunder and Midway made it. Basically, as you unlock vehicles, it's all a subtle stat balance and that's about it. But it's never a regressive balance. In other words, you ALWAYS unlock better cars, never adding to the choices presented to you to clear races, merely pushing you up a linear path towards faster speeds. Kinda like leveling in an RPG. "Welcome to Lv2, now you hit hard."
Also, the tracks lack any real interesting attributes to them. In other arcade racers like Hydro Thunder, Ridge Racer, Sega Rally Revo, and even Full Auto, the environments are busy, things going on. It's a staple of the genre, in all honesty. In Excitetruck, the only things that maintain interest in the environments are the changes you make yourself via the modifier powerups. I would be much more enthralled with the huge jumps if there was something to look at. Maybe a busy logging encampment or a highway off in the distance. Not to mention all the possibilities for ski lodging or helicopters in several of the environments. So for an arcade racer, the excitement in the environments themselves fell flat.
ExciteTruck is not a bad game per se. It's just an arcade racer than exists in a valley of giants. Hopefully majority of these issues will be fixed for the sequel including the all important noticable missing feature, four player splitscreen. To call it deep though is quite funny.
But better than Motorstorm? Well, I guess it's all opinion but there is a hell of a lot more depth to Motorstorm than Excitetruck. But it falters on many other aspects such as being online multiplayer only or not being able to create your own single player races. Gotta find that event ticket...
But of the two, both are pretty readily stomped by other arcade racers such as Sega Rally Revo and Ridge Racer 7. Sad, but true.
Fernando Rocker (NDF - Water Ring) @ Oct 12th 2007 10:10AM
Nintendo doesnt need a price cut, 'cause still they are going to sell all the units.
They are not as desperate as Sony.
GRANTED @ Oct 12th 2007 10:20AM
since these comments are probably the only social interactions that you enjoy in your life, i'm going to let this one slide.
Fernando Rocker (NDF - Water Ring) @ Oct 12th 2007 10:23AM
Well Granted... you spend your time here as much as I do.
Brandon @ Oct 12th 2007 10:31AM
Sometimes I wonder, do you troll on other websites. Because seriously, I doubt you would make it past your first "Ban-Hammer Monday" at Kotaku.
But anyway back on topic. If any place needs a drop its Japan, its the only territory where the sales are sluggish.
Sorry for the double post earlier (once again, edit/delete button FTW).
Crono (NDF - French Taunting from Holy Grail Ring) @ Oct 12th 2007 10:37AM
Thats because kotaku sucks.
samfish (MSDF- Nurse Outfit!) @ Oct 12th 2007 10:40AM
I like Kotaku.
Crono (NDF - French Taunting from Holy Grail Ring) @ Oct 12th 2007 10:46AM
Yeah, I take that back. Kotaku isn't bad...
...FOR ME TO POOP ON!!!
vinny @ Oct 12th 2007 11:02AM
ill read destructoid over kotaku any day
JodyAnthony @ Oct 12th 2007 11:25AM
I think we all know the best site is http://www.4colorrebellion.com
Word of the street(IDF-Digital Ruler). @ Oct 12th 2007 12:12PM
Kotaku sucks; it’s full of failure and AIDS.
Really Kotaku feels like a fascist extension of /b/ there is furry, hentai, racism etc but don’t you dare to do it yourself or else, also Kotaku posters suck and the stupid idea of let posters ban other posters is plain retarded you only let gangs take over the place and make the minority which would be PSP,Ps3 and some XB360 supporters suffer but then again if you are a hardcore gamer what the eff are you doing in kotaku they only cover sh*t unless you consider news about a new Japanese pedophile game something important
So basically Kotaku sucks because is unfriendly to new posters, their news section suck they only cover hentai figures and dog crap that looks like Mario and their editors are furf*gs, seriously they do have an obsession for furry in kotaku.
samfish (MSDF- Nurse Outfit!) @ Oct 12th 2007 12:51PM
Ooooooh, I know SOMEONE got the Kotaku Banhammer dropped on his ass!
But seriously...after the clusterfuck of all the Nintendo/Wii flame-fests yesterday, it becomes hard to deny the merits of a walled community sometimes.
(Not that I'm always a saint, either, mind you...)
hvnlysoldr @ Oct 12th 2007 9:30PM
JodyAnthony is correct. I love 4colorrebellion that I check that gaming site first.
waynski1457 @ Oct 12th 2007 10:16AM
hell, with the way its been selling, wouldn't them raising the price a little even not be news but just ecomnomics?
NATO_Duke @ Oct 12th 2007 10:24AM
You generally don't raise the price on a consumer electronic item like that at the factory/manufacturer level, unless the shortages are caused by increased costs to manufacture and such. In a case of simple high demand, the cost usually goes up through retailers getting greedy. So, no, that would be a bad move economically, as the purchasers would feel slighted and could cause the bottom to fall out.
Thats my 2 cents - not worth much more.