Will Games like Smash Bros, Metroid and Mario Galaxy have that much of an effect?

[dannbrownn]

Hello, a semi-interesting thought has entered my head!

 

Wii sales are incredibly high and we didn't expect them, the reason for these high sales is (as i am sure you know) the wii appeals to people outside of the usual gaming circles.

 

The wii's casual and new gamer market and potential audience don't know as much about games as us.

 

So who is making the new mario, smash bros, and metroid such eagerly awaited releases?

 

The answer is us, the hardcore fans...

 

But we already have the console, sure there will be people waiting for these games to come out to get a wii, but they already intended on getting one, whereas a casual or uneducated new gamer will simply see these games as just another title on the wii...

 

... However look at something such as wiifit, and here it is a different story, it is the hardcore who don't have a great deal of love for this 'game' but the potential audience of all ages, both genders and all types of people who will find some benefit from a keep fit game is incredible.

 

I am not sure if i have communicated that idea very well, but do you see what i mean?

 

The hardcore are the ones who make triple A titles anticipated in the first place and we already have or intend to buy a wii, leaving only the non hardcore gamers to be targeted by the adverts and so on, these games may well be brialliant, but have they got anything to offer the new market when they see them on a shelf?

 

Any thoughts?

[DiemetriX]

Thats is s good point dannbrownn and there's a lot of truth in what you say.

And Could the Wii really be selling better than it already is?

But I'm sure that some "hardcore" games Will make a massive inpact. Mario for example will definitively ensure that the Wii stays on top this holiday season.

Lets face it, there aren't many great games out there for the casual gamer and games like Mario and Brawl are great games that even fills that gap between casual and hardcore.

 

Great games will always sell console. Halo3 and MGS4 are other hardcore games that is system sellers. We just happen to get the Games that target the largest group of people

[Gaijin von Snikbah]

Im not sure those games will appeal to the casual gamers. Maybe the commercials will. Mario Galaxy looks sexy on any screen.

[killer kirby]

It won't won't be as such a big hit as let's say......Wii fit

[The-chosen-one]

i think smash bros will be the biggest hit

then wii fit , wii fit will appeal to non-gamers like say men / women who are overwheight and think mmh maybe i can use that to lose some

 

wii's are even used in hospitals Nintendo has even more sales couse i cant remember having a console in hospitals? they say by playing a Game you forget about the pain you have you get more focused on playing

[Zechs Merquise]

I definetely see where you're coming from here. In fact it's a great topic, and it's made me think. Personally I think that Metroid Prime 3 will sell better than any of the other Prime games, but Idon;t think we'll see a significant rise in console sales due to it.

 

I think Mario and Smash Bros will be a different story though. I think Jap console sales will go through the roof again, maybe even beating the DS for the week when Smash Bros debuts. After all, you'd think every house in Japan would have at least 5 DSs by now, but when a major title comes out you still see a huge surge in sales.

 

I reckon Mario Galaxy will cause sales to rise all over the world. I think people who played Mario as a kid and who have lost touch with Nintendo over the years with reconnect with Mario through this title and you will see Wii sales rocket almost everythwere, especially if the reviews match the buzz for it. Remember this will be the first true Mario game for a dominant Nintendo since the SNES days!

 

I think this generation we'll see new and interesting casual franchises outselling traditional games, the first Brain Training game on the DS has sold over 10 million copies worldwide. And Wii Sports has performed spectacularly well. I think when Wii Fit debuts, with Nintendo's very classy 'white adverts' everyone will go nuts.

[Mike]

All the way through the GameCube's lifespan, people were predicting that certain games would be the next big 'system seller', but none of them were. I know things have changed since then, but I really can't see any of those three reaching out to many people who don't already own a Wii (although no doubt they'll sell well to those who already have one).

 

Wii Fit, though, will almost certainly shift a load more systems.

[Maiky-NiSuTe]

answer: yes!

[MrRon]

Erm... they don't just release games to sell hardware. They also release games to make money from the games themselves!

[Mike]

Erm... they don't just release games to sell hardware. They also release games to make money from the games themselves!

 

Of course, but the more games they release that persuade people to buy the hardware, the more potential games sales they'll have!

[Zechs Merquise]

All the way through the GameCube's lifespan, people were predicting that certain games would be the next big 'system seller', but none of them were. I know things have changed since then, but I really can't see any of those three reaching out to many people who don't already own a Wii (although no doubt they'll sell well to those who already have one).

 

Wii Fit, though, will almost certainly shift a load more systems.

 

This is where you are very wrong. Firstly comparing the Wii and the Gamecube in that way is pointless. The Wii is a completely different system, is the market leader and is well advertised and is very mainstream, everything the GC never achieved.

 

Also, so suggest that everyone who wants a Wii for this kind of game has already got one is a non starter. As I said earlier, just look at Japan, you'd think every household had 5 DSs at the rate they've been selling, but the next time a Dragon Quest game comes out for it, watch sales sky rocket!

 

These games will drive system sales, some more, some less. Just watch the Japanese weekely charts when Smash Bros. arrives!

[dannbrownn]

I am glad to see that other people are also finding this an interesting debate, the idea of people reconnecting with Mario that Zechs mentions is indeed an important point, the nostalgia value is immense, look how many people have turned away from nintendo or even games altogether over the N64 and GC era, now there is a console aimed straight at the people who may have thought that they had 'grown out of games' and it just happens to be made by the only company still producing hardware from when they were growing up, i suppose that there is no better opportunity for them to get back into gaming than with the wii and an old favourite such as mario.

 

Also Diemetrix's point about Galaxy and Brawl filling the gap between hardcore and casual players is a good thing to ponder. Smash bro's in particular is a pick up and play title, but also is a 'real game' whereas the pick up and play titles aimed at getting people to play the wii (titles like wiisports) are simply made to be pick up and play rather than drawn out gaming experiences.

Galaxy and Brawl are both what i call 'True Nintendo Games' (or TNG's if i start using that term more frequently!) What makes a TNG? In my book it is a game that is designed to be fun! Which is what games are all about isn't it?!

 

Building on diemetrix's point, and even though i am now starting to argue against my own beginning post! i can put it like this:

 

When someone comes to your house and plays wiisports they normally love it and get infected with the wii bug, then buys the console. Will galaxy, brawl or prime have that effect... i suppose the answer is yes, but the people who are interested in coming to your house and playing those games are going to be different people than the ones who you show wiisports. The people who want to play galaxy prime and brawl must already know about them and are therefore likely to be into gaming anyway, but if they haven't got a wii already it is unlikely that galaxy alone will convince them to get one the way that wiisports can convince a non gamer to.

 

Right then, i hope that that last paragraph made sense, and i am now no longer certain of what i think about the impact these games will have on console sales!

[Hero-of-Time]

I think the Wii sales would spike with these titles if they could get more of the machines on the shelves. Its a great testament to how popular the machine is when its still selling like crazy nearly a year since launch.

 

I think we will definetly see a big jump in American sales this Christmas period with Smash Bros finally arriving as that game is HUGE over in yankee land, and rightfully so.

[Cube]

New Super Mario Bros. still gets in the top 10 multiplatform charts in both the UK and Japan every now and then. Which bodes well for the success of Galaxy.

 

New Super Mario Bros. is the best selling single DS game - the only other two 10 million sellers are Nintendogs (the number includes all 5 games) and Pokémon Diamond/Pearl.

[Columnar]

I was thinking about this arguement the other day. I'm not sure if Mario, Brawl or Metroid will persuade that many 'hardcore' gamers to the Wii. In the UK I think Halo and GTA will always sway people to the other consoles rather than Nintendo's consoles.

 

Having said that I do think Mario Galaxy will be picked up by a lot of the casual audience because it looks fun and will appeal to a broader market than maybe any other Mario game before it.

 

I think we also need to bear in mind that Nintendo have never been the market leader for home consoles in Britain so a lot of people will never have owned a Nintendo console before the Wii and so will be discovering these franchises for the first time. Take me for example, before GameCube I had NEVER owned a piece of Nintendo hardware - the characters and games did not appeal to me. I was a Dreamcast owner and the only reasons I opted for a Cube was because the DC died and Resident Evil was going exclusively to GC. The only Mario game I've played is Sunshine and I've never played Smash Bros in my life but since crossing over to Nintendo I've seen what an amazing company they are and I hope everyone who has picked up a Wii as their first Nintendo/ever console see that too.

[Kurtle Squad]

answer: yes!

Haha...good answer.

 

EVERYONE loves Smash Bros. so, yeah, I think it will shift consoles.

 

Oh yeah...and have you seen the sales on New Super Mario Bros.?!...That's been doing really well, and that's on a system aimed at all markets.

 

Also, the more quality, well known of series there are on a console, the more likely someone is going to buy it.

[JabberWocky]

But still, I do think that games like Mario Galaxy, MP3:Corruption or SSBB will make those people who are hardcore gamers and are in doubt about getting a Wi buy it! Maybe they are waiting one year from the console lauch and waiting for the reviews of this titles.

 

To the casual gamer, I think that as someone said on this topic, games like Wii fit will make them buy the console. Maybe Mario too...

 

In my case, one thing that also made buy a Wii was the virtual console! I just love to play old games that I grew with. I think that many people on their 20/30 that grew playing Mario, Sonic and other classics but then lost track of games would buy a Wii too if they knew more about the VC wich is not advertised.

[jammy2211]

I think the real challenge for Nintendo is to make software which both casuals and dedicated gamers can enjoy, with no loss to one or the anothers enjoyment. They've pulled it off on the Ds with some of the best selling games, and I think Super Mario Galaxy will show everyone how to do it in the home console world.

 

MArio Galaxy just has it all, an appealing art style, multiplayer co-op, simple controls but a depth in gameplay, and just that Mario appeal, not to mention no doubt a huge market campaign to follow it. I think Metroid and Smash Bro's will be much more aimed at only the hardcore market, but they'll still rack up a huge amount of sales as there are alot of hardcore gamers who will buy a Wii to go with their 360/ps3 just cause they can afford it.

 

I think there are some third party games which will be able to cross-over appeal too (RE:UC, Zack and Wiki, NiGHTS are a few) and if Nintendo can build up a library of these sorts of games then hardcores will have a hard time turning away the console.

[Aimless]

A quick perusal of non-Nintendo forums will show that there are a fair few gamers who will buy a Wii come the end of the year to play the likes of Galaxy and Corruption, and these people will more than likely pick up one or two other games at the same time so I wouldn't be surprised to see Twilight Princess bumped up the charts a few places.

 

Of course the real question is what the 'casual' response will be to these titles. Whilst primarily they are all "gamers' games", the expanded market share of the console basically guarantees more sales.

 

I'm not saying that every Wii Sports player will make the leap to triple-jumping as Mario, but for those that have young children and a Wii I think Galaxy would seem the perfect Christmas present. The parent might not think of picking the controller up themselves, but perhaps they have a go at helping their child using the co-op mode and find themselves having more fun then they thought they might. It might seem negligible but there's still an association building there: Mario = quality family time. A few months later they see an advert for Mario Kart on the TV and, hey, that looks like something they could play with their children too. And so it builds.

 

On the more adult side of things you have the relapsed gamers. Maybe they used to be hardcore NES fans before their career really started and they gradually grew apart from gaming. Suddenly everyone's talking about this new Nintendo system which is really fun, and then they see Mario Galaxy which tweaks a few memories. So they buy the console and have a few laughs, and then one day they discover the Virtual Console where they can relive all those games they used to play! Never underestimate nostalgia; it basically keeps Sega in business.

 

I know these are both rosy hypotheticals, but the point I was trying to get across is that the true success of Wii games isn't as dependant on day-one sales as titles on other consoles. In the past gaming has very much been a hit-driven affair, with publishers risking their game sinking into obscurity for the mere chance of securing precious Christmas sales. If you look to the DS, where titles like New Super Mario Bros. and Brain Training are still selling strongly, I think its software sales show that as the market expands it also matures. As new gamers enter the fold — migrating from their first foray into Wii Sports through the various gateway experiences of WiiFit and family-inclusive co-op — I hope that we will see sustained software sales rather than the make-or-break climate that has caused so many developers and publishers to close their doors over recent years.

 

To be honest I think Nintendo's success is practically assured, it's the third-parties that need to pull their fingers out or risk being eclipsed by the Kyoto giant. But it's early days yet and the tide is certainly turning: Nintendo won't be the only victor this generation.

[dannbrownn]

A quick perusal of non-Nintendo forums will show that there are a fair few gamers who will buy a Wii come the end of the year to play the likes of Galaxy and Corruption, and these people will more than likely pick up one or two other games at the same time so I wouldn't be surprised to see Twilight Princess bumped up the charts a few places.

 

Of course the real question is what the 'casual' response will be to these titles. Whilst primarily they are all "gamers' games", the expanded market share of the console basically guarantees more sales.

 

I'm not saying that every Wii Sports player will make the leap to triple-jumping as Mario, but for those that have young children and a Wii I think Galaxy would seem the perfect Christmas present. The parent might not think of picking the controller up themselves, but perhaps they have a go at helping their child using the co-op mode and find themselves having more fun then they thought they might. It might seem negligible but there's still an association building there: Mario = quality family time. A few months later they see an advert for Mario Kart on the TV and, hey, that looks like something they could play with their children too. And so it builds.

 

On the more adult side of things you have the relapsed gamers. Maybe they used to be hardcore NES fans before their career really started and they gradually grew apart from gaming. Suddenly everyone's talking about this new Nintendo system which is really fun, and then they see Mario Galaxy which tweaks a few memories. So they buy the console and have a few laughs, and then one day they discover the Virtual Console where they can relive all those games they used to play! Never underestimate nostalgia; it basically keeps Sega in business.

 

I know these are both rosy hypotheticals, but the point I was trying to get across is that the true success of Wii games isn't as dependant on day-one sales as titles on other consoles. In the past gaming has very much been a hit-driven affair, with publishers risking their game sinking into obscurity for the mere chance of securing precious Christmas sales. If you look to the DS, where titles like New Super Mario Bros. and Brain Training are still selling strongly, I think its software sales show that as the market expands it also matures. As new gamers enter the fold — migrating from their first foray into Wii Sports through the various gateway experiences of WiiFit and family-inclusive co-op — I hope that we will see sustained software sales rather than the make-or-break climate that has caused so many developers and publishers to close their doors over recent years.

 

To be honest I think Nintendo's success is practically assured, it's the third-parties that need to pull their fingers out or risk being eclipsed by the Kyoto giant. But it's early days yet and the tide is certainly turning: Nintendo won't be the only victor this generation.

 

A series of absolutely brilliant points there, i especially like the mario = quality family time idea, i bought a few games like mario golf because i knew that me and my dad would both find enjoyment in playing it together (except for the fact that i didn't enjoy it because he was far to good at it and always beat me!)

 

This certainly is a very interesting time to be following the games industry, who knows what limits to wii's success has and also who knows if Sony or MS have something awesome up their sleeves that might become the next pokemon!

[Falcon_BlizZACK]

If Nintendo Europe advertise the games you mentioned well, then they will have that impact.

 

Problem on the GC was too many great games were silently released. That is kind of like releasing a movie with no bilboard/trailer advertisement...Can't be expecting a big impact on lots of people when the people outside of our circle are unaware of it.

[DCK]

I think Mario will make an impact for the reasons mentioned by Aimless; it won't give the Wii a huge boost but it should cause more Wii sales. Brawl might also shift a few more systems as there are hardcore gamers waiting for it. Metroid will probably have no effect, as the series' fans probably have a Wii already and it doesn't appeal to the general audience much.

 

The way it seems now the Wii is not selling for games, or any other game than Wii Sports. There haven't been many top-class games on it but it still sells as if there's no tomorrow.

[dannbrownn]

The way it seems now the Wii is not selling for games, or any other game than Wii Sports. There haven't been many top-class games on it but it still sells as if there's no tomorrow.

 

Indeed, and i wonder if rather than boost sales the big hitters from Ninty will simply just act to 'maintain the momentum'

[Speedfreak]

If they have any effect there's still no way we'll be able to see it. The system still sells out month after month as soon as any shipment come in and these games will sell like hotcakes.

[theguyfromspark]

The PS2 sold amazingly well without being for the new "Casual" audience so i think there's plenty of space for the Wii to move into in the non casual market.