Nintendo Steps up Manufacturing and Claim Strong Game Line Up

[Momma Bear]

Company has stepped up manufacturing, touts strong game lineup




A little over a year ago, many inside the games industry thought the [Only registered users can see links. ] would be a flop.

Nintendo’s console was graphically weaker than the competition. It had a newfangled — some said gimmicky — controller. And don’t get us started on the name.


Fast-forward a year. The Nintendo Wii — graphically weaker, funny controller, funnier name — was a smash hit right from the get-go. As of September, Nintendo has sold 13.2 million of the $250 console, within spitting distance of the year-older Xbox 360’s overall worldwide sales.



So what did Nintendo know that the rest of the industry didn’t?“First, we knew that many consumers had been turned off of video games because they were too complex,” says Reggie Fils-Aime, president of Nintendo USA. “We knew consumers valued innovation, and wanted something fresh and different.”


Fils-Aime says the Wii also had something that no other console can claim: truly immersive gameplay. Using the motion-sensing controller, gamers can slice a forehand, rip a fastball, pull and turn levers in “Metroid.” And that all-consuming gaming experience would help the company sell not only hardware, but its first-party software too.


Nintendo’s success with the Wii has been curtailed primarily by its inability to keep the consoles in stores. Almost as soon as the machines arrive, they’re quickly snapped up by consumers. Fils-Aime says the company has drastically stepped up its manufacturing to meet projected holiday demand, but many shoppers still report seeing empty shelves.

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I thought they weren't making any steps to make more Wiis in a timely fashion