Nintendo Wii to launch November 19th at $249.99

[Fuyukaze]

Ever heard of the word "value"? Apparently not. Something could cost $100, and have more value than a similar item priced at $10.

Actualy I do know of this odd little word called "value". It's a term often subject to the biased opinions of the one using it in an effort to overlook actual prices. Something could have thousands worth of hardware in it for half the cost, and yet still be more expensive then comparable items. Considering it to have more value is realy up to the consumer though because if they cant afford it, the cheaper will always look to have the most "value" to it. Realy, it's all in the eye of the beholder on this one.

The people that are saying the Wii is super cheap compared to the 360 and PS3 are totally missing the point.

249.99 vs 299.99/399.99 vs 499.99/599.99. Those prices are a point I'm not missing. Perhaps you and your gifted "math" skills could help point out where pricing differences dont matter any?

The Wii can't be compared to those systems. The Wii is a souped up version of the 5 year old GameCube.You can't compare that directly with true next-gen technology. Comparing the Wii against those other 2 consoles is pretty pointless.

This is getting old. The only comparison between the three is the one thing that matters most to the casual gamer. Price. Dispite the general feeling on this and a number of other gaming boards, we are still the minority when it comes to gaming purchases. That's right. We are a minority. It may not have the proccesors of the PS3, it may not even have the same as 360. Its got a great price and that gives it a better start then either of the other two.

Also, you, like some of the others in this thread, seem to think I hate Nintendo. Considering the Super Nintendo is my favorite video game system of all time, that's kinda strange. The SNES is my favorite system of all time, (primarily because of Nintendo's own games!) yet I hate Nintendo. Yeah...right.

This is a bit off as I never exactly said you hated Nintendo but said "If you hate Nintendo....". I never realy thought of you as someone who hates a particular gaming company or one who loves a particular company either. Honestly I've always thought of you more as a gaming parasite. Someone who's actualy more of a parasite then a gamer. By your own admision you only rent unless the title's been heavly discounted. That kinda makes you a parasite by definition. Also I'm surprised you'd list the SNES as a favorite. I consider it one of the best systems if not the best Nintendo has ever released. Perhaps you could let me know the online rental place you use that still has SNES games for rental?

Now, please don't twist my words up, and think that I'm saying the 360 or PS3 has more "value" than the Wii, because I didn't say that. What I did say is that there is a word called "value" that you seem to be forgetting. It's not just about the price of the system. It's about what you are getting for the price. Also, please understand that while I think Nintendo is overcharging for the Wii, I totally understand why they are doing it, and I also believe that they aren't overcharging by that huge a margin. This really isn't that big a deal.

Sure, I would prefer the Wii to be $199.99 with or without a pack in, and I would prefer the extra Wii-motes and nunchucks to be a little bit more affordable, but this isn't that big a freaking deal. Get over it! It's a minor gripe for me, and nothing more, why are you trying to blow this thing way out of proportion? Since when did it become illegal to make any complaints against Nintendo? I was pissed off last year about the 360 having two versions, one without a hard drive and one with, yet nobody got on my ass about that. x_x

I could almost believe you except you've done great to damage your arguments as well as your defense. Within almost every thread concerning the Wii you've brought up the price and your value mathmatics over how expensive the Wii is. I'd perfer everything to be more affordable. I'd like it if games could be affordable. Systems could be affordable. You know what I wish for more, afordable rent. It's not become illegal to make complaints about any game company. In fact, it's often incouraged exspecialy when the arguments for or against are valid. You come off as being bitchy and whiny though because you leave the impresion of that's all you do. You've been here long enough. Isnt it time you stop looking at everything with your rose colored glasses? For the record, I personaly think the Wii will fail on the simple ground that everything about it shouts out Dreamcast. Great games, new inovation, and a nice price. Everything most modern gamers want. Just missing the 4 letters some want on their system.

Again, I'm going to be in line on November 17th, with $350+ in hand to get my Nintendo Wii, and a extra Wii-mote and Nunchuck. If I really hated Nintendo or the Wii, why the hell would I spend $350 of my hard earned cash on it?

Who was it that said their plans was to pick one up, never open it, and then sell it on E-bay? Profit makes one hell of a motivation for buying stuff you normaly wouldnt. People do it all the time. Baseball cards, comics, beanie babies, tickle me elmo dolls and so much more are good examples. Realy, this is funny.

useless adition:
Oh, and some recent polls are even claiming the gender break down of those buying games puts women at over 40 percent.

[Fuyukaze]

Ever heard of the word "value"? Apparently not. Something could cost $100, and have more value than a similar item priced at $10.

Actualy I do know of this odd little word called "value". It's a term often subject to the biased opinions of the one using it in an effort to overlook actual prices. Something could have thousands worth of hardware in it for half the cost, and yet still be more expensive then comparable items. Considering it to have more value is realy up to the consumer though because if they cant afford it, the cheaper will always look to have the most "value" to it. Realy, it's all in the eye of the beholder on this one.

The people that are saying the Wii is super cheap compared to the 360 and PS3 are totally missing the point.

249.99 vs 299.99/399.99 vs 499.99/599.99. Those prices are a point I'm not missing. Perhaps you and your gifted "math" skills could help point out where pricing differences dont matter any?

The Wii can't be compared to those systems. The Wii is a souped up version of the 5 year old GameCube.You can't compare that directly with true next-gen technology. Comparing the Wii against those other 2 consoles is pretty pointless.

This is getting old. The only comparison between the three is the one thing that matters most to the casual gamer. Price. Dispite the general feeling on this and a number of other gaming boards, we are still the minority when it comes to gaming purchases. That's right. We are a minority. It may not have the proccesors of the PS3, it may not even have the same as 360. Its got a great price and that gives it a better start then either of the other two.

Also, you, like some of the others in this thread, seem to think I hate Nintendo. Considering the Super Nintendo is my favorite video game system of all time, that's kinda strange. The SNES is my favorite system of all time, (primarily because of Nintendo's own games!) yet I hate Nintendo. Yeah...right.

This is a bit off as I never exactly said you hated Nintendo but said "If you hate Nintendo....". I never realy thought of you as someone who hates a particular gaming company or one who loves a particular company either. Honestly I've always thought of you more as a gaming parasite. Someone who's actualy more of a parasite then a gamer. By your own admision you only rent unless the title's been heavly discounted. That kinda makes you a parasite by definition. Also I'm surprised you'd list the SNES as a favorite. I consider it one of the best systems if not the best Nintendo has ever released. Perhaps you could let me know the online rental place you use that still has SNES games for rental?

Now, please don't twist my words up, and think that I'm saying the 360 or PS3 has more "value" than the Wii, because I didn't say that. What I did say is that there is a word called "value" that you seem to be forgetting. It's not just about the price of the system. It's about what you are getting for the price. Also, please understand that while I think Nintendo is overcharging for the Wii, I totally understand why they are doing it, and I also believe that they aren't overcharging by that huge a margin. This really isn't that big a deal.

Sure, I would prefer the Wii to be $199.99 with or without a pack in, and I would prefer the extra Wii-motes and nunchucks to be a little bit more affordable, but this isn't that big a freaking deal. Get over it! It's a minor gripe for me, and nothing more, why are you trying to blow this thing way out of proportion? Since when did it become illegal to make any complaints against Nintendo? I was pissed off last year about the 360 having two versions, one without a hard drive and one with, yet nobody got on my ass about that. x_x

I could almost believe you except you've done great to damage your arguments as well as your defense. Within almost every thread concerning the Wii you've brought up the price and your value mathmatics over how expensive the Wii is. I'd perfer everything to be more affordable. I'd like it if games could be affordable. Systems could be affordable. You know what I wish for more, afordable rent. It's not become illegal to make complaints about any game company. In fact, it's often incouraged exspecialy when the arguments for or against are valid. You come off as being bitchy and whiny though because you leave the impresion of that's all you do. You've been here long enough. Isnt it time you stop looking at everything with your rose colored glasses? For the record, I personaly think the Wii will fail on the simple ground that everything about it shouts out Dreamcast. Great games, new inovation, and a nice price. Everything most modern gamers want. Just missing the 4 letters some want on their system.

Again, I'm going to be in line on November 17th, with $350+ in hand to get my Nintendo Wii, and a extra Wii-mote and Nunchuck. If I really hated Nintendo or the Wii, why the hell would I spend $350 of my hard earned cash on it?

Who was it that said their plans was to pick one up, never open it, and then sell it on E-bay? Profit makes one hell of a motivation for buying stuff you normaly wouldnt. People do it all the time. Baseball cards, comics, beanie babies, tickle me elmo dolls and so much more are good examples. Realy, this is funny.

useless adition:
Oh, and some recent polls are even claiming the gender break down of those buying games puts women at over 40 percent.

[Garry Silljo]

Ever heard of the word "value"? Apparently not. Something could cost $100, and have more value than a similar item priced at $10. The people that are saying the Wii is super cheap compared to the 360 and PS3 are totally missing the point. The Wii can't be compared to those systems. The Wii is a souped up version of the 5 year old GameCube. You can't compare that directly with true next-gen technology. Comparing the Wii against those other 2 consoles is pretty pointless.

You keep saying the systems can't be compared, and we've all heard your souped up Gamecube line about 100 times now. Here's a fact. I can compare anything I want. I can compare the PS3 to a lint roller if I want. It will not be a good comparison, but it CAN be done, so don't tell people "The Wii can't be compared to those systems." Second, you seem to constantly confuse disagreement with a lack of understanding. People disagree with theories or statements of yours and you post the exact same reply 100 times in a row, assuming they don't understand what you are saying. They understand, they just don't agree. Bring something new.

Lastly, to Fuyukaze. Trust me. You can actually yell at a brickwall until it crumbles from the force of your words before Anthony sees a point that is not his own. You should learn from my mistake and just walk away now. I'm going to try that again right now actually....

[Anthony1]

[quote="Fuyukaze"] By your own admision you only rent unless the title's been heavly discounted. That kinda makes you a parasite by definition. Also I'm surprised you'd list the SNES as a favorite. I consider it one of the best systems if not the best Nintendo has ever released. Perhaps you could let me know the online rental place you use that still has SNES games for rental?
[quote]



Ok, so I'm a parasite because I rent games? I see. You do understand that if people didn't rent games, then GameFly and Blockbuster and Hollywood Video, etc, etc, wouldn't be "buying" games to then rent to people. The more people that rent, means more games that have to be bought to be able to be rented. Video game companies loose more from the "resale" market than the "rental" market.


As for renting SNES games, well, my rental only policy is more oriented towards post Dreamcast consoles. There are some high dollar Neo-Geo AES games I would love to rent though, but I don't know any place that offers them up for rent.

[Anthony1]

You should learn from my mistake and just walk away now

How can he learn anything from you, when you keep showing up in this thread trying to discredit my takes with nonsense

[studvicious]

Ever heard of the word "value"? Apparently not. Something could cost $100, and have more value than a similar item priced at $10. The people that are saying the Wii is super cheap compared to the 360 and PS3 are totally missing the point. The Wii can't be compared to those systems. The Wii is a souped up version of the 5 year old GameCube. You can't compare that directly with true next-gen technology. Comparing the Wii against those other 2 consoles is pretty pointless.

Actually, if we really want to get down to it The Wii is a little bit more powerful than the Xbox. The Xbox retails at $179.00 - that's about a $70 difference to the Wii. So you have to ask yourself.. "is a new gameplay experience worth $70???" Of course it is!!! That my friend, is value.

[Anthony1]

we've all heard your souped up Gamecube line about 100 times now

Actually I can't take credit for the phase "souped up GameCube". It comes from the October 2006 issue of EGM. On page 26 and 27 of that issue, EGM does a little interview with Randy Pitchford, president of Gearbox Software. Here are some excerprts from that interview:



EGM: We know you're working on Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway for the PS3, so tell us: How much more powerfull is the PS3 than the Wii?

Randy Pitchford: From a pure computational power point of view, it's not really fair to compare the PS3 to the Wii. The PS3 is built for speed. The Wii is built for it's unique controller interface. You're going to be able to stretch the limits of next-generation rendering capability on the PS3 over it's life cycle. From a graphics point of view, the Wii will just edge out the best of what was possible in the last generation. From a computing power point of view, the PS3 is a generational leap. The Wii is not.

EGM: Let's be honest...is the Wii merely a souped-up GameCube, at least in terms of graphics?

Randy Pitchford: If we're being honest, then yes....I wouldn't use the word "merely", however. I think the Wii is awesome! It is just that what makes it awesome isn't about computing power - it's about interface, accessibility, usability, and how we think about playing games and interacting with them.




Now, those are just two little excerpts from a longer interview, but EGM was the one that actually coined the phase, "souped up GameCube". Although I do admit that I've heard that phrased used on many a different podcast, as well. Randy Pitchford basically admitted that if you want to get right down to it, the Wii really is nothing more than a somewhat enhanced GameCube. But he also said that the Wii is awesome, and that it's capable of some amazing things. I also agree with this, and that is why I'm buying one on day 1. I know that the Wii is going to have by far the worse graphics of the three systems, and it will probably have the least special effects and razzle dazzle, but I also know that the Wii-Mote and nunchuck are going to provide some radically different gameplay experiences, and I'm really looking forward to that. I'll get plenty of incredible graphics and special effects from the 360 and PS3, but the Wii is going to give me something entirely different and new, and exciting and fresh!



Still, I'm not going to try to convince myself that the Wii is anything other than a souped up GameCube, cause it's not, but that doesn't mean it isn't going to provide it's own unique and special flavor of gaming joy, because it will. I've come to accept that the Wii's graphics are going to be about as good as the best Xbox 1 games, and not much better than that, but that's fine. If the Wii was my only new console, that might be an issue for me, but I've got a 360 and I hope to get a PS3 as well, so I'll be fully covered in the graphics department. I don't need all 3 systems to be graphical powerhouses.

[Fuyukaze]

Ok, so I'm a parasite because I rent games? O_O I see. You do understand that if people didn't rent games, then GameFly and Blockbuster and Hollywood Video, etc, etc, wouldn't be "buying" games to then rent to people. The more people that rent, means more games that have to be bought to be able to be rented. Video game companies loose more from the "resale" market than the "rental" market.


As for renting SNES games, well, my rental only policy is more oriented towards post Dreamcast consoles. There are some high dollar Neo-Geo AES games I would love to rent though, but I don't know any place that offers them up for rent. :D

A store buys 5 copies of a single title, rents it out to 50 people in its rental life span. Of those 50 people who rent it, 20% of them buy the game. 50 people rented the game, 10 people bought the game, and only 15 copies of the game generated any profit for the original company.

Someone buys a game, trades it in at a game store. Someone comes in behind, buys it. One copy was bought, one was traded in, and one was sold used. Only one copy generated profit for the original company. It's true that the second person to buy it at a used price could in turn sell it or trade it in further generating more used buyers but in the intent of avoiding a pointless argument lets keep it simple.

Using these two basic examples, we can see that in the rental more people are able to play the game and pass on picking it up where as in the second, it's done on a unit by unit basis. Yes, two people played the same game in the used. The catch is, of the two only one did not pay full price. You fail to impress on me any sense of a valid argument. Please try again.

[jajaja]

Fuyukaze: Do i understand you correctly that you say that people who dont buy games within the first month for full price sux? Shouldnt they be allowed to try out the game first instead of buying it or wait for pricedrop? Is that what you're saying or am i missunderstanding something?

[Anthony1]

The only reason that $59.99 games even exist, is because publishers know they can get away with it. There have been many people in the video game industry that have been saying for a very long time, that if video games were priced like CD's and DVD's and other mainstream media, then consumers would buy many more games and the industry would be better off as a whole.


My rental only strategy has 100 percent to do with simple logic. My logic states that when I can rent a game for $3.50 per month, (that includes Xbox 360, PS3 and Nintendo Wii as well), it isn't logical to even "consider" buying a game that is priced above $29.99. Why is it not logical? Because $29.99 translates to $32.31 (with tax where I live) and if you divide $32.31 by $3.50, you can see that I could rent that game for a little over 9 months for the same amount of money. The fact is, I rarely play a game continuously for 9 months. In fact, if I'm really honest with myself, I typically play them for about 3 or 4 months tops. 3 or 4 months X $3.50 = $10.50 or $14. It's more logical for me to spend $10.50 or $14 on a game than $32.31, and that's assuming the game only cost $29.99, which is much more the exception than the rule. So logic for me dictates this:



above $29.99 = Don't even consider purchasing, unless it is a rare breed game that I will play virtually every day for a year. (last game that met that criteria was NFL2K3 for Xbox 1)

$29.99 = I can actually consider buying this game, but only if I know I'm going to be dedicated to it for at least 5 or 6 months straight, and then as soon as I'm done with it, I must immediately craigslist it.

$24.99 = I can actually consider buying this game, but only if I know I'm going to be dedicated to it for at least 4 or 5 months straight, and then as soon as I'm done with it, I must immediately craigslist it.

$19.99 = This is actually the price were I really truly start to consider a purchase over a long term rental. But there is a scenario in which even a $19.99 doesn't make sense to purchase. That scenario is the scenario in which I play a game heavily for about 2 1/2 months, to never revisit it again. In that scenario, it would cost me $8.75 to rent it for 2 1/2 months, and that would actually be the smarter play. But if I know I'm going to spend at least 4 months playing it, then it's smarter to buy it, and immediately craigslist it as soon as I'm done with it.

$14.99 = Ok, now we are starting to get into the compelling price point where it is more likely intelligent to buy this game then rent it. Even though it only costs me $3.50 per month to rent, $14.99 is a good price, because even when I'm done with it, I could still likely sell it for $5, which means I'm only spending 10 snaps on it. If I play it for less than 3 months, then it might not be the best decision, but at $14.99 I can live dangerously


$9.99 = At $9.99 I enter the land of impulse buy. If this is a game I actually have any real interest in, it's probably better to buy then rent. Sure, I can rent it for only $3.50 for a month, so technically I better play this game more than 2 months, but I'm sure I could sell it to somebody else for like $3.50 when I'm done with it.


Less than $9.99 = Almost always smarter to buy then rent when it's less than $9.99. Only time this isn't the case is if it's a game I just want to try for like 2 weeks. Lego Star Wars II: The Original Triliogy for Xbox 360 is a perfect example. I've had this game almost two weeks and I've blown through most of it, and I'm about ready to send it back. It was a really fun game, but I'm pretty much done with it. Thanks for the memories. That one cost me $1.75 for two weeks worth of play. Paying $1.75 is better than $9.99 or whatever, and it will be well over a year before you can get the 360 version for $9.99 or less anyways.



Also, understand that there are tons of games that I would never even consider buying. These are short term rental games. I check them out for a day or two and then return them to the store. Games like Godfather for the Xbox 360. I'm not really that interested in it, but I just want to check it out real quick and get a first hand impression of it. Play it for a few days, and then return it. So it doesn't really make sense to buy it at any price, unless I'm trying to buy it used for cheap and sell it for more on craigslist or something.


That's pretty much by policy. If this policy is killing the games industry then so be it. The industry should DIE Honeslty though, if the industry wised up and adopted the price points of CD's and DVD's, I would have never even considered a rental only policy.

[FantasiaWHT]

Anthony why do you obsess over assigning a lesser value to the Wii than the 360 and PS3 purely by comparing processing power and fail to fail to notice that you are assigning it a greater value by your pledge to buy it for other reasons?

You base your argument on the ratio of price to value, then define value based on processing power, but then use terms other than processing power to define why YOU want to buy one on day one (giving it a personal value to your own thinking)

You are arguing against yourself there.

[Garry Silljo]

How can he learn anything from you, when you keep showing up in this thread trying to discredit my takes with nonsense

Hey, thanks for the help in proving the point of my post! Any opinion that is not Anthony's or agree with Anthony's is nonsense... so sayeth Anthony. This is type of reply is exactly what I wanted Fuyukaze to see to illustrate my warning. Thanks for being predictable, I knew I could count on you.

Anyway, that's all I had to add, I'm curious to see how you relpy to FantasiaWHT. That post pretty much nailed it. Of course maybe I just got it cause I speak so much CRAZY!?!?!

[Garry Silljo]

Ever heard of the word "value"? Apparently not. Something could cost $100, and have more value than a similar item priced at $10. The people that are saying the Wii is super cheap compared to the 360 and PS3 are totally missing the point. The Wii can't be compared to those systems. The Wii is a souped up version of the 5 year old GameCube. You can't compare that directly with true next-gen technology. Comparing the Wii against those other 2 consoles is pretty pointless.

Actually, if we really want to get down to it The Wii is a little bit more powerful than the Xbox. The Xbox retails at $179.00 - that's about a $70 difference to the Wii. So you have to ask yourself.. "is a new gameplay experience worth $70???" Of course it is!!! That my friend, is value.

I wonder why Anthony ignored this very valid point? Oh, must be more nonsense, since it doesn't support any of his value rantings.

To Studvicious, don't forget the 179.00 Xbox has no Packin, making the Value of the Wii even closer to that figure.

[SkiDragon]

If we are including a pack in game in the price of the console, it shouldn't be called a pack in game. It should be called a forced bundle. I'm sure the PS3 will offer plenty of pack in games at some stores when it comes out.

[Garry Silljo]

If we are including a pack in game in the price of the console, it shouldn't be called a pack in game. It should be called a forced bundle. I'm sure the PS3 will offer plenty of pack in games at some stores when it comes out.

I call it a pack in game because the bundles for PS3 will probably be the idea or policy of the retailer and not Sony itself. However, call it which ever you want, the value of the game should count for something when comparing it to systems that have no included game. I don't care how it's said as long as the point is understood.

[Kid Ice]

My logic states that when I can rent a game for $3.50 per month, (that includes Xbox 360, PS3 and Nintendo Wii as well), it isn't logical to even "consider" buying a game that is priced above $29.99.

Wondering...where do you rent games for $3.50 a month?

[slip81]

My logic states that when I can rent a game for $3.50 per month, (that includes Xbox 360, PS3 and Nintendo Wii as well), it isn't logical to even "consider" buying a game that is priced above $29.99.

Wondering...where do you rent games for $3.50 a month?

With his gamesnflix account, each slot works out to $3.50 a month.

[Kid Ice]

My logic states that when I can rent a game for $3.50 per month, (that includes Xbox 360, PS3 and Nintendo Wii as well), it isn't logical to even "consider" buying a game that is priced above $29.99.

Wondering...where do you rent games for $3.50 a month?

With his gamesnflix account, each slot works out to $3.50 a month.

I'm looking at that site...I see $16.99 for three items (about 6 bucks a month) and $249 a year for 6 out at a time. That's about $21 a month which would indeed be abot 3.50 a month. Heh. I guess that's pretty good if you're willing to invest that much in gamesnflix's service. In other words yes, you're getting a good value, but it must hurt to hand over 250 smackers to "gamesnflix".

[Anthony1]

Ever heard of the word "value"? Apparently not. Something could cost $100, and have more value than a similar item priced at $10. The people that are saying the Wii is super cheap compared to the 360 and PS3 are totally missing the point. The Wii can't be compared to those systems. The Wii is a souped up version of the 5 year old GameCube. You can't compare that directly with true next-gen technology. Comparing the Wii against those other 2 consoles is pretty pointless.

Actually, if we really want to get down to it The Wii is a little bit more powerful than the Xbox. The Xbox retails at $179.00 - that's about a $70 difference to the Wii. So you have to ask yourself.. "is a new gameplay experience worth $70???" Of course it is!!! That my friend, is value.

I wonder why Anthony ignored this very valid point? Oh, must be more nonsense, since it doesn't support any of his value rantings.

To Studvicious, don't forget the 179.00 Xbox has no Packin, making the Value of the Wii even closer to that figure.

Ok, if you want me to break this one down I will. Only reason I didn't reply to this take is because I can't reply to every single thing that's thrown out there, but if you are interested in my take on it, then I'll go ahead and oblige you.


1. Since when is the Xbox $179.99? Last time I was at a Wal-Mart or whatever it was $149.99. Unless I was high or something and was seeing things. I thought that the PS2 was $129.99 and the Xbox was $149.99. Now maybe the standard $149.99 Xbox package isn't available anymore, but I'm pretty sure it was. I see them selling Xbox 1's at Fry's with a couple of games for $179.99, but I don't see a price for the orignal $149.99 Xbox that doesn't come with a game.

2. The Wii is based on GameCube technology, not Xbox technology. Any comparison to Xbox 1 in terms of price is not a valid comparison, primarly because Microsoft made the blunder of using parts that can't be consolidated for reduced manufacturing costs. The Xbox was a strange animal in terms of the fact that it uses primarily off the shelf PC parts. The Nintendo Wii doesn't have a hard drive bulit inside it to my knowledge. A better comparison would be the GameCube itself. Since the Wii is basically a turbo-charged GameCube, we should look at the GameCube itself. The Cube sells for $79.99 and Nintendo is actually even making a profit selling it at $79.99.


In one of my previous posts, I already estimated that Nintendo probably can make a GameCube for $60 or less, much likely less, and the extra hardware that was added to the Cube to make the Wii "might" have come close to doubling it's cost, which would then make the Wii about $120 to manufacture. It's possible they are cranking those puppies out for even less than that. As for the cost of the controller, nunchuck, Wii sports and the rest of the packaging, a big overestimation on those items would be $60. That brings the total to $180. I honesly believe that it costs about $180 for Nintendo to bring the Wii launch package to retail shelves. The extra $70 is profit that Nintendo and the retailer sees, with Nintendo seeing about 80 percent of that or even more.


Again, all of this is splitting hairs, and it's really not that huge an issue in the first place. It's not like I'm devastated because the Wii is $249.99. It's not that big a deal. Sure, I would love to pay less for it, but who the hell wouldn't?

[zerohero]

I read somewhere that the american price was not officialy released, and that 249 was the price for Japan.