Why is the Wii for Casual Only gamers?

[WorldCritic]

It's pretty depressing really, but ever since the Wii came out people have made a bigger deal about hardcore vs. casual gamers than ever before.

 

[squid5580]

So you have just restated everything in the original post. Good job. So now do you want to explain why the Wii is touted as a casual gamers wet dream by the makers as well as the internet? That is the question afterall.

Show me some kind of video or article where Nintendo has said something along those lines, or even said the word 'casual' please.

P.S. Remember how many 'casual' shovelware games the PS2 had? No? Interesting...

Do the words "a casual gaming experience" ring any bells?

 

[Nazulu]

It's not ONLY for casual gamers but most games released for it are mainly targeted towards a casual audience. I'm sure there are some difficult games on it that would please people looking for a challenge.

It's pretty depressing really, but ever since the Wii came out people have made a bigger deal about hardcore vs. casual gamers than ever before.

I reckon thats a mistake. They just haven't released enough GOOD games and alot of the core games turned out to be shit, so those people want them to pump out more of what they call HARDCORE games and I just tell them to play F-Zero cause I can't play that game it's sooo hard.

 

[Chipperz]

OK, I just looked up "Hardcore Gamer" in the encyclopaedia and found this;

Hadcore Gamer - someone who lives to play games. It doesn't matter to the hardcore gamer if they are good or bad at the games they play, only that they play them. The typical Hardcore Gamer will own (at the very least) all three current consoles and a gaming PC - the only reason a Hardcore gamer has for nothaving them all is monetary constraints. Graphics are not an issue to a Hardcore gamer, as they will still happily play 16-bit side scrollers with the same intensity other gamers reserve for the most current titles.

A true hardcore gamer plays only to have fun, and will not declare themselves as "hardcore" because they feel it is an elitist term, and one that takes away from the simple enjoyment they get from games.

It's in S. I have no idea why.

 

[Aura Guardian]

It's pretty depressing really, but ever since the Wii came out people have made a bigger deal about hardcore vs. casual gamers than ever before.

It really is. Make's me sad to be a gamer after this and all the other thread/gossip about the hardcore vs casual.

As for me. I've had the Wii since launch and I love it. Not a day goes by regretting that purchase. Oh and to those who think the Wii's online is crap,(Remember, WiiConnect 24 is not a community) how can you not have fun online in titles like Mariokart Wii or Super Smash Bros Brawl?

 

[megapenguinx]

OK, I just looked up "Hardcore Gamer" in the encyclopaedia and found this;

Hadcore Gamer - someone who lives to play games. It doesn't matter to the hardcore gamer if they are good or bad at the games they play, only that they play them. The typical Hardcore Gamer will own (at the very least) all three current consoles and a gaming PC - the only reason a Hardcore gamer has for nothaving them all is monetary constraints. Graphics are not an issue to a Hardcore gamer, as they will still happily play 16-bit side scrollers with the same intensity other gamers reserve for the most current titles.

A true hardcore gamer plays only to have fun, and will not declare themselves as "hardcore" because they feel it is an elitist term, and one that takes away from the simple enjoyment they get from games.

It's in S. I have no idea why.

And that strangely placed encyclopedia entry is how I feel about this entire stupid argument. Seriously, I'm starting to take away gamer licenses.

 

[squid5580]

Anyways... One thing I really forgot to mention, but is obvious now, is the Wii's incredibly sub-par online system. Honestly, who the hell thought Friend Codes were a good idea after XBL had been out for several years? Did they not see how ridiculously annoying Friend Codes would be, or am I just missing something here?

I know. That was another thing I had against the Wii. Is it such a hard problem to simply type a name and request they be your friend? When did we have to type out the entire numerical system just to send a friend invite?

Damn perverts ruined the Wii's online experience.

 

[JediMB]

I'm afraid I'll have to disagree. I just can't get used to the Wii as a gaming machine. Yes, it's a decent machine nonetheless, but I want some old games that push difficulty and at least try to push graphical limitations. I don't care if it alienates the casual gamers. They can go to hell for all I care. When they shifted their games to be piss easy and nothing but Mario remakes and Wii Sports, they stopped interesting me and lost all the zeal they used to have.

You're missing the point. It's not about "casual" gamers. It's about getting new gamers, to prevent the stagnation of the video game market in general. And if you claim that all of Nintendo's games have suddenly become easy because of their Blue Ocean strategy, then you're either delusional or a liar.

Imagine if every movie produced somehow required that you already had experience from watching previous movies in order to be able to comprehend or enjoy them. That's where the video game industry's been going. Then imagine yourself referring to someone as a "casual movie-watcher".

...Additionally, Zelda games have always been given unusually long development cycles. Ocarina of Time was released a whole 7 years after A Link to the Past, Majora's Mask came out quickly because it reused the assets from OoT, and Wind Waker and Twilight Princess did little more than improve on what was already there as far as gameplay goes. With the new Wii game Nintendo are looking to reinvent Zelda in the same fashion as when they went from ALttP to OoT.

 

[JediMB]

Madworld and the Conduit look like nothing more than attempts to make Nintendo extreme (especially after Nintendo fans complained that First person shooters and violent gory games weren't real games. Now they suddenly like the genres. Hypocrits)

That's funny, because I've been a Nintendo fan since roughly 1988, and a FPS fan since 1993.

Also, GoldenEye 007 was the third best-selling game for the Nintendo 64.

 

[JediMB]

Nicely thought out, I hadn't considered the Nintendo approach in quite that manner. While I think you might be crediting them a little too much in suggesting that this approach was a pre-planned, deliberate set of actions, it certainly does explain part of the popularity of the Wii and the quite reasonable attach rate. However, thinking about it in this way suggests that one of the future steps is to get the mass-market used to the idea of upgrading regularly. How do you convince the mass-market to buy the next Wii? After all, for most people so long as their appliance still works, tehre's not much reason to buy a new one. So, introducing -- motion plus. Wii Play and Wii Fit introduced new full hardware, thus preparing the audience for the idea that "Yeah, there's more than just games you can buy for this" and now the motion plus moves us toward "And you can upgrade what you already have.."

So yeah.. thanks for this.. good stuff to think on.

You're welcome.

Really, contrary to what gaming journalism wants us to think, Nintendo has put a lot on emphasis on serving new gamers, former gamers and "core" gamers ever since the nature of the Wii was first announced. They never said they were trying to attract "casual" gamers, but rather that they were trying to appeal to as big a market as possible.

 

[Pendragon9]

Madworld and the Conduit look like nothing more than attempts to make Nintendo extreme (especially after Nintendo fans complained that First person shooters and violent gory games weren't real games. Now they suddenly like the genres. Hypocrits)

That's funny, because I've been a Nintendo fan since roughly 1988, and a FPS fan since 1993.

Also, GoldenEye 007 was the third best-selling game for the Nintendo 64.

Hey, don't look at me. Nintendo fans all over hated Halo, so they naturally forgot their FPS roots to say how un-videogame like it is to have an FPS.

 

[squid5580]

Madworld and the Conduit look like nothing more than attempts to make Nintendo extreme (especially after Nintendo fans complained that First person shooters and violent gory games weren't real games. Now they suddenly like the genres. Hypocrits)

That's funny, because I've been a Nintendo fan since roughly 1988, and a FPS fan since 1993.

Also, GoldenEye 007 was the third best-selling game for the Nintendo 64.

Hey, don't look at me. Nintendo fans all over hated Halo, so they naturally forgot their FPS roots to say how un-videogame like it is to have an FPS.

Are you sure it was hate and not more of a jealousy thing? It seems to me whenever an exclusive for whatever console comes out these days and all the haters start crying it sucks they are just trying to make themselves feel better by trying to convince themselves they aren't missing much.

 

[Pendragon9]

Madworld and the Conduit look like nothing more than attempts to make Nintendo extreme (especially after Nintendo fans complained that First person shooters and violent gory games weren't real games. Now they suddenly like the genres. Hypocrits)

That's funny, because I've been a Nintendo fan since roughly 1988, and a FPS fan since 1993.

Also, GoldenEye 007 was the third best-selling game for the Nintendo 64.

Hey, don't look at me. Nintendo fans all over hated Halo, so they naturally forgot their FPS roots to say how un-videogame like it is to have an FPS.

Are you sure it was hate and not more of a jealousy thing? It seems to me whenever an exclusive for whatever console comes out these days and all the haters start crying it sucks they are just trying to make themselves feel better by trying to convince themselves they aren't missing much.

To be honest, I'm not really that sure. All I got is vivid images of Mario sticking knives in Master Chief's helmet, ala people who probably were jealous, but turned it into blind rage.

 

[squid5580]

Madworld and the Conduit look like nothing more than attempts to make Nintendo extreme (especially after Nintendo fans complained that First person shooters and violent gory games weren't real games. Now they suddenly like the genres. Hypocrits)

That's funny, because I've been a Nintendo fan since roughly 1988, and a FPS fan since 1993.

Also, GoldenEye 007 was the third best-selling game for the Nintendo 64.

Hey, don't look at me. Nintendo fans all over hated Halo, so they naturally forgot their FPS roots to say how un-videogame like it is to have an FPS.

Are you sure it was hate and not more of a jealousy thing? It seems to me whenever an exclusive for whatever console comes out these days and all the haters start crying it sucks they are just trying to make themselves feel better by trying to convince themselves they aren't missing much.

To be honest, I'm not really that sure. All I got is vivid images of Mario sticking knives in Master Chief's helmet, ala people who probably were jealous, but turned it into blind rage.

I didn't expect a definitive answer. I was just trying to offer up another theory. I am sure if we could read all thier thoughts we would find a mix of both. Although it wouldn't be fair unless they had actually played the damn things before forming opinions.

 

[JediMB]

Madworld and the Conduit look like nothing more than attempts to make Nintendo extreme (especially after Nintendo fans complained that First person shooters and violent gory games weren't real games. Now they suddenly like the genres. Hypocrits)

That's funny, because I've been a Nintendo fan since roughly 1988, and a FPS fan since 1993.

Also, GoldenEye 007 was the third best-selling game for the Nintendo 64.

Hey, don't look at me. Nintendo fans all over hated Halo, so they naturally forgot their FPS roots to say how un-videogame like it is to have an FPS.

Personally I find it's my love for the genre that makes me dislike Halo.

Plus, I'm biased in favor of games with good level design.

 

[GuerrillaClock]

Hey, don't look at me. Nintendo fans all over hated Halo, so they naturally forgot their FPS roots to say how un-videogame like it is to have an FPS.

Really? I'm a Nintendo fan, and I love Halo, and the same applies to most of my friends. I don't really remember any major outpouring of rage towards Halo from any Nintendo fans, really.

I always thought it was primarily Sony fanboys who flamed Halo, especially since Killzone 2 came out.

Because, y'know, God forbid they should both be good games.

 

[squid5580]

So without using the whole graphics are terrible excuse or all they make is kiddie games can someone explain to me why the Wii is for casual gamers. When a "hardcore" (god I hate using that term) gamer couldn't pick up and play the damn thing?

Yeah people will be surprised that there are a lot of really hard and fun games that would easily satisfy the "hardcore". However I think the raving fanboys or people who make that non-biased claim by stating "I own a wii and it is collecting dust for X many months" really don't know why they aren't playing games or getting games for the wii and it is for two reasons.

1.Games do not match my demographic

2.I am afraid of playing a console that doesn't have the appearance of "hardcore" and I'm too lazy to look for those "hardcore" titles.

Now the former is easily forgiven. After all not every teenage boy wants to play the Imagine series, but that series was not meant for them in the first place.

The latter however is more afraid of the PR image that is associated with playing the nintendo wii. The first thing that pops into a hardcore gamer's mind when they hear wii is children's games. So the hardcore would not like to associate themselves with the children's games or the controllers. The sad part is that they are missing some really good games for the console.

In the end it is about consumer awareness and it is hard to find good games when nintendo and other developers market to other demographics. There are good games but people just don't want to spend the time looking when most see the wii as a casual system but they are missing one thing. Nintendo is still the only console that truly offers a wide variety that will let those "casuals" become hardcore. Essentially the "crawl before you walk" or "walk before you run" method. People who look at video games from the outside and I'm sure there are a lot of you here that were part of this before FF7 or Halo:CE came out that could not make heads or tails of what video games are about.

Well done good sir (or Ma'am since Tenmar could go either way). That is pretty much the answer I was searching for. Thank you.

 

[Vanguard_Ex]

because you cant play games like prototype, halo, infamous (and all other normal action games) with the motion controler for more then 20 mins.
and WII games are for beginers

haha
you made me laugh.
Especially since you are talking about one of the original companies that are still around. If anything, the "Beginners" would be microsoft, yet the junoirs in high school that think they are hot shit because they can play halo call the wii kiddy as some superiority complexity.
I grew up on the Gameboys, nintendo and sony consoles, along with the all mighty PC master race. None of them is better than the other (except for PC OBVIOUSLY) but if I want a shooter I play PC, if I want to be the god damned highlander and cut people, I play the Wii.

That doesn't mean they can't build a console aimed towards beginners.

 

[Pendragon9]

Hey, don't look at me. Nintendo fans all over hated Halo, so they naturally forgot their FPS roots to say how un-videogame like it is to have an FPS.

Really? I'm a Nintendo fan, and I love Halo, and the same applies to most of my friends. I don't really remember any major outpouring of rage towards Halo from any Nintendo fans, really.

I always thought it was primarily Sony fanboys who flamed Halo, especially since Killzone 2 came out.

Because, y'know, God forbid they should both be good games.

I think there was a good populous of Killzone 2 fans who flamed Halo too, which makes me worry about the level of hate that will erupt from Conduit fans.