Is Nintendo's
Wii U delivering the right value to consumers? The company's chief operating officer Reggie Fils-Aime certainly thinks so.
Speaking to GamesIndustry.biz in an interview published today, Fils-Aime said that the Wii U Basic Set, which will retail for $299 when it goes on sale on November 18 in the U.S., "is a really strong value, and it's a value that's going to be strong for a long time."
Nintendo announced details of the Wii U at a press event yesterday in New York City. The device comes in two sets -- the $299 basic edition and a $349 deluxe offering. The basic set comes with the console, a single GamePad, sensor bar, and 8GB of onboard storage. The deluxe set adds a charging stand and the Nintendo Land game disc, and jumps to 32GB of storage.
In addition, the console will support a new, in-home entertainment feature, called Nintendo TVii, that will allow users to tap into live programming and streaming video from the GamePad for viewing on a television. Users will also be able to record live programming from the controller.
Despite all that, value isn't determined by companies; it's arrived at by consumers. And whether Nintendo customers will want to buy a new console for at least $299 remains to be seen.
So far, opinions are mixed on the quality of Nintendo's offering. Some say that the GamePad is an ideal addition, and the now-HD games are welcome. Others aren't so impressed by the graphics in the Wii U titles shown off so far, and wonder how the device might stack up against the long-expected Xbox 720 and PlayStation 4.
But Nintendo has time on its side. The company is the first to jump into the next generation, and with a mid-November launch, it'll be able to take advantage of the busy holiday shopping season. Its future competitors aren't expected to hit store shelves for about another year.
So far, that, along with the device's features, appear to be helping the Wii U out.
"In the end, the consumers are going to decide [the Wii U's value]," Fils-Aime told GamesIndustry.biz. "So I'll share this data with you. We've announced the price and we have a number of retailers taking pre-orders and the feedback that I'm getting from retailers is extremely strong in terms of pre-sales and consumer excitement at the store."
Speaking to GamesIndustry.biz in an interview published today, Fils-Aime said that the Wii U Basic Set, which will retail for $299 when it goes on sale on November 18 in the U.S., "is a really strong value, and it's a value that's going to be strong for a long time."
Nintendo announced details of the Wii U at a press event yesterday in New York City. The device comes in two sets -- the $299 basic edition and a $349 deluxe offering. The basic set comes with the console, a single GamePad, sensor bar, and 8GB of onboard storage. The deluxe set adds a charging stand and the Nintendo Land game disc, and jumps to 32GB of storage.
In addition, the console will support a new, in-home entertainment feature, called Nintendo TVii, that will allow users to tap into live programming and streaming video from the GamePad for viewing on a television. Users will also be able to record live programming from the controller.
Despite all that, value isn't determined by companies; it's arrived at by consumers. And whether Nintendo customers will want to buy a new console for at least $299 remains to be seen.
So far, opinions are mixed on the quality of Nintendo's offering. Some say that the GamePad is an ideal addition, and the now-HD games are welcome. Others aren't so impressed by the graphics in the Wii U titles shown off so far, and wonder how the device might stack up against the long-expected Xbox 720 and PlayStation 4.
But Nintendo has time on its side. The company is the first to jump into the next generation, and with a mid-November launch, it'll be able to take advantage of the busy holiday shopping season. Its future competitors aren't expected to hit store shelves for about another year.
So far, that, along with the device's features, appear to be helping the Wii U out.
"In the end, the consumers are going to decide [the Wii U's value]," Fils-Aime told GamesIndustry.biz. "So I'll share this data with you. We've announced the price and we have a number of retailers taking pre-orders and the feedback that I'm getting from retailers is extremely strong in terms of pre-sales and consumer excitement at the store."
