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It is without a doubt that the current console war is being dominated by Nintendo. They have been able to successfully separate themselves from the Xbox 360 and PS3 and define a category of their own. For a lot of core gamers the decision of buying the Wii is mutually exclusive to the choice of buying either a PS3 or an Xbox 360. Only a decade ago, playing video games was a little taboo. Gaming was seen as a large waste of time and gamers were seen as people that needed to grow up and ‘act’ their age. Such was its acceptance in society that gamers felt as if they were in some cult. However unlike most cults, gamers have always been inviting and wanted a greater amount of people to experience gaming. If not only to gain acceptance but to also prove that playing games can be as serious a medium as movies and plain out fun regardless of age. I believe that the Wii has been that perfect product that gamers had been waiting for to reach out to non-gamers. Husbands and children that were criticized on the amount of time they spent gaming convinced their wives and parents respectively to give the Wii a shot. For a large part, the Wii has been marketed by the people, but it started with high recommendations from the core gamers. This year a lot of core gamers felt let down by the Wii due to the lack of hardcore games released compared to the large amounts for the PS3 and Xbox 360. I think that Nintendo will realize, if they have not already, that they need the support of these core gamers if they want to generate game sales and for their next generation console. Although our parents and other family members enjoy playing the Wii they are not aware of the latest gaming news and new video game releases. For a large part casual gamers still rely on the core gamers for their recommendations. Just as in any industry it is defined by trend setters. The average consumers look for professional opinions in the industry to aid them in their purchases. The core gamers are these trend setters and those with credible professional opinions in this industry. If Nintendo decides they no longer need to cater to the hardcore gamer, I doubt they will be successful. If Nintendo does not cater to its hardcore audience this generation then the hard core gamers will become sceptical and return the favour when Nintendo releases their next console. After all everyone expects Sony and Microsoft to catch up to the Wii’s revolutionary motion sensors. Game developers have less legroom and can not afford to leave the core gamers in the dark because a console lasts a lot longer than games and each game needs to get its own approval.
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