Well, it looks like Sony doesn’t get either the Long Tail of gaming, nor even the head of gaming. From a story I just seeded on Newsvine (as well as my comment):
Sony Computer Entertainment of America spokesperson Dave Karraker says Wii should not be directly compared to PS3. Interviewed by The New York Times today he said, “Wii could be considered an impulse buy more than anything else.”
A very short article, but so much to talk about. First of all, and only anecdotally, the only person I know who owns a PS3 said he bought it as an impulse buy (his exact words) where as everyone I know who has a Wii has had to literally camp out for one, myself included. If there’s a place in the states that Sony is aware of that has some Wii’s lying around waiting for people to just pick one up, they should be keeping it a secret because they’ll sell out in a matter of minutes. The PS3? I’d be willing to bet there’s a couple sitting at your nearest Best Buy right now, waiting for you to think long and hard about spending $500–600 for (unlike my friend, apparently).
Also, this gem:
Sony believes Wii is currently selling to casual gamers rather than committed gamers, who are likely to buy more games in the years ahead.
What does Sony not get? Nintendo turned a profit on the Wii console so they aren’t entirely betting the farm on selling more games down the road (to recoup lost money on licensing fees, like Sony or Microsoft do). Also, of course Nintendo is marketing a system to the casual gamers. What Sony clearly doesn’t get is just how huge an untapped market that is. Hardcore gamers are, by definition almost, a niche market. The casual gamers vastly outnumber them. That’s why you can’t find a Wii console hardly anywhere while the PS3 is sitting on the store shelf. Lastly, the most recent sales data I’ve seen is that the Wii has a much higher attach rate for games and peripherals than the PS3, kind of negating Sony’s complaint anyway.
hahahahaha!
I don’t know what’s given me the bigger laugh, Sony’s elitism and Wii bashing, or your taking offense to Sony’s elitism and Wii bashing and coming to the defense of poor, helpless, passive Wii. in the short time I’ve known you, I’ve never seen you get annoyed over anything.
good points about the hardcore gaming niche. is that the D&D of current generations?
Huh? I get annoyed with stuff all the time. Often, with electronic devices I own (regardless of manufacturer, it seems).
Anyway, I didn’t mean to sound angry or anything. I did intend for it to be a harsh critique of Sony, though. They continue to disappoint me and I was once a pretty loyal customer of theirs.