Wii

Gaming
May 18, 2011
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Spy-cam catches Nintendo’s Wii 2 on video

By on May 18, 2011 at 4:01 PM.

Spy-cam catches Nintendo’s Wii 2 on video

Listen up gaming fanatics. It looks like Nintendo’s Project Café, otherwise known as the Wii 2, has been caught on video thanks to a sneaky developer and their utter disregard of non-disclosure agreements. Aside from slides that showcase the “Screen Stream“ controllers, we see the Wii 2 console projected and lurking in the background as well. There appears to be a docking accessory — most likely for controller recharging — shown on the screen towards the end of the clip, although it is hard to tell as an audience member’s head obfuscates our view. The Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) is scheduled for next month from June 7th to 9th; don’t be surprised if the Wii 2 gets a lengthy preview from the folks at Nintendo. The video is waiting for you after the break.

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Gaming
May 13, 2011
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Video game sales elude April showers, grow 20%

By on May 13, 2011 at 7:31 AM.

Video game sales elude April showers, grow 20%

Consumer electronics tracker NPD Group on Thursday released its tallies for the U.S. gaming industry, revealing continued console sales growth and rebounding software sales. Last month, sales of video game software dipped to $735.4 million from $875.3 million in March 2010. While sales shrank sequentially, as they do in April in many industries, gaming software jumped 26% from $398.5 million in April 2010 to $503.2 million last month. Microsoft’s Xbox 360 was the best-selling console in April, having climbed 60% year-over-year to 297,000 units. Sales of Sony’s PlayStation 3 grew 13% to 204,000 units and Nintendo sold 174,000 Wii consoles, a 37% decline compared to April 2010. Mortal Kombat 2011 was the best-selling software title in April, having sold over 1 million units including standard games and special editions. Portal 2, Lego Star Wars III, Call of Duty: Black Ops, and Tiger Woods PGA Tour 12: The Masters rounded out the top five titles. More →

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Gaming
May 4, 2011
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Nintendo Wii falls to $150 this month, includes Mario Kart for free

By on May 4, 2011 at 10:12 PM.

Nintendo Wii falls to $150 this month, includes Mario Kart for free

Nintendo has just announced that the Nintendo Wii retail price will drop to $149.99 beginning May 15th, and it will include a free copy of Mario Kart and the Wii Wheel accessory as well. This bundle replaces the bundled Wii Sports game that used to come with the system, and we have to admit, this is an amazing deal and a great way to help revitalize sales of the Wii system and games. Nintendo also lets us know that it is into color coordination, because the steering wheel and the Wii Remote and Nunchuk controllers match the color console you purchase — white or black. Not bad, Nintendo, not bad. Hit the break for the full press release. More →

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Gaming
April 25, 2011
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Nintendo Wii 2 confirmed amid Wii sales slump

By on April 25, 2011 at 9:22 AM.

Nintendo Wii 2 confirmed amid Wii sales slump

On Monday, Nintendo released a statement confirming that it will reveal the successor to the original Wii during the E3 Expo tradeshow in Los Angeles — which takes place June 7-9, 2011. The new console, currently codenamed “Project Cafe,” may feature a new “Screen Stream” controller option that will provide each individual gamer with their own touchscreen display, although Nintendo did not disclose any of the console’s new features in its statement. The Japanese gaming firm also announced its earnings for the fiscal year ending March, 2011. Net sales of ¥1,014 billion ($12.35 billion) were down 29.3% year-over-year and Nintendo’s net income fell 66.1% to ¥77.62 million ($946,110). Hardware and software sales for the United States, Nintendo’s largest market, also fell year-over-year. Nintendo sold 15.08 million Nintendo Wii units, 3.61 million of its new Nintendo 3DS devices, and 17.52 million of its Nintendo DS portable gaming consoles in the States. By contrast, the firm sold 20.5 million Wii units in the U.S. last year. Globally, the firm sold 171.26 million Wii units, 120.98 million DS devices, and 9.43 million Nintendo 3DS units. Hit the jump for Nintendo’s earnings release, as well as its official statement on E3. More →

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Gaming
April 20, 2011
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New Microsoft and Sony gaming consoles may not land until 2014

By on April 20, 2011 at 10:58 PM.

New Microsoft and Sony gaming consoles may not land until 2014

According to Kotaku, neither Microsoft nor Sony will launch new gaming consoles before 2014. “Both [Microsoft] and Sony are telegraphing to each other that they’re delaying, to milk the current [generation] and fill in previous craters better,” one source told Kotaku. By contrast, Nintendo’s next generation gaming console is expected to land sometime next year. Microsoft and Sony may decide to build onto the current systems, however; for example, Microsoft may release a “Kinect-upgraded” Xbox 360 in 2013. “Sony definitely isn’t launching a successor before 2014 and could stand to benefit by having Microsoft launch first as PS3 builds in North America and builds a strong position in Europe,” said Billy Pidgeon, an analyst with M2 Research. Microsoft has gone on the record saying that it will offer support for the Xbox 360 through 2015, but we’re curious how it will hold consumer interest in a system that made its debut in 2005. More →

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Gaming
April 13, 2011
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Nintendo may drop Wii to $150 on May 15th

By on April 13, 2011 at 4:52 PM.

Nintendo may drop Wii to $150 on May 15th

Nintendo may drop the price of its Nintendo Wii game console from $200 to $150 on May 15th, Engadget is reporting.  The new price will likely help Nintendo compete better against Microsoft and its Xbox 360 4GB console —which currently retails for $199.99. According to recent figures from NPD Group, Nintendo sold 454,000 Wii consoles during the month of February, far behind Microsoft’s 535,000 Xbox 360 sales figure. Similarly, Nintendo reported weaker hardware sales in its Q3 earnings report, so the move could help it reignite consumer interest. More →

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Gaming
April 13, 2011
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Tiger Woods PGA Tour 12: The Masters sells 225k in first week, beats records

By on April 13, 2011 at 6:50 AM.

Tiger Woods PGA Tour 12: The Masters sells 225k in first week, beats records

Electronics Arts has announced that Tiger Woods PGA Tour 12: The Masters has beat all previous first-week sales records in its Tiger Woods game franchise history. According to Gamasutra, the title sold 225,000 copies during its first week, and early estimates suggest it earned twice the revenue of last year’s game. Tiger Woods PGA Tour 12: The Masters is the first game in the family to allow players to hit the links at the famous Augusta National golf club —  roughly 2 million rounds through that course have already been played. Similarly, players have already hit 182 million shots in the game, and 7 million games have been logged since the title’s launch on March 29th. Tiger Woods PGA Tour 12: The Masters, is available on all of the major gaming consoles, including the Microsoft Xbox 360, Sony PlayStation 3, and the Nintendo Wii. More →

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Gaming
March 12, 2011
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U.S. video game market jumps 3% in February

By on March 12, 2011 at 7:13 AM.

U.S. video game market jumps 3% in February

The U.S. retail video games market grew 3% in February, up from the same time period last year, to $1.36 billion, according to new figures from NPD Group. Video game hardware sales were up 10%, but software revenue fell 5% during the month. Microsoft’s Kinect controller for the Xbox 360, which Microsoft recently said passed 10 million unit sales, helped drive the 22% jump in sales of video game accessories. Microsoft’s Xbox 360 console rocked the top sales spot in the console market, with 535,000 consoles sold in February. Nintendo sold 454,000 Wii units, and Sony has not yet disclosed sales figures for the PlayStation 3. More →

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Gaming
February 18, 2011
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NPD: Video game sales slide 5% in January, hardware down 8%

By on February 18, 2011 at 9:24 PM.

NPD: Video game sales slide 5% in January, hardware down 8%

Industry watcher NPD Group says sales of video game software in the U.S. declined by 5% year-over-year in January 2011, totaling $576 million. Console sales were down 8% to $324 million. On the back of continued strong sales of the Microsoft Kinect and PlayStation Move motion-based controllers, sales of video games accessories increased 6% year-over-year to $235 million. The only console to see growth in January was Microsoft’s Xbox 360, which sold 381,000 units — a 14.1% increase year-over-year. NPD ranked January’s software title sales as follows:

  1. Call of Duty: Black Ops (Activision Blizzard) – Xbox 360, PS3, Wi, DS, PC
  2. Just Dance 2 (Ubisoft) – Wii
  3. Dead Space 2 (Electronic Arts) – Xbox 360, PS3, PC
  4. Little Big Planet 2 (Sony) – PS3
  5. Zumba Fitness: Join the Party (Majesco) – Wii, Xbox 360, PS3
  6. NBA 2K11 (Take-Two Interactive) – Xbox 360, PS3, PSP, Wii, PS2, PC
  7. Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood (Ubisoft) – Xbox 360, PS3
  8. Dance Central (MTV Games) – Xbox 360
  9. Michael Jackson The Experience (Ubisoft) – Wii, DS, PSP
  10. DC Universe Online: The Next Legend Is You (Sony) – PS3, PC

Overall, the U.S. gaming industry took in $1.14 billion excluding PC sales — a 4% slide versus the same month in 2010.

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Gaming
January 4, 2011
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Nintendo DS becomes best-selling video game system of all time in U.S.

By on January 4, 2011 at 10:40 PM.

Nintendo DS becomes best-selling video game system of all time in U.S.

Today, Nintendo announced that its popular line of DS handheld gaming systems have become “the nation’s best-selling video game system of all time.” With sales of over 47 million units since its release in 2004, the DS passes Sony’s PlayStation 2 to claim the top spot. The company also noted that its Wii console sold more than 7 million units for the third consecutive year in a row, a feat Nintendo brags has “never before been accomplished in the history of video games by a home console.”

“When we look back at 2010, we see consumers time and again turning to the value and enjoyment of our products,” said President of Nintendo America, Reggie Fils-Aime. “When we look ahead to 2011, we see new portable technology and more great Wii games that need to be seen to be believed.”

Nintendo is expected to release its 3DS portable gaming system this March. More →

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Gaming
November 29, 2010
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Nintendo boasts of 1.5 million DS, Wii units sold last week

By on November 29, 2010 at 10:13 PM.

Nintendo boasts of 1.5 million DS, Wii units sold last week

Gaming giant Nintendo recently announced that during Black Friday week, U.S. consumers purchased a combined 1.5 million DS and Wii gaming systems. Holiday shoppers scooped up nearly 900,000 DS units and over 600,000 Wii consoles during the popular shopping debacle period. “U.S. shoppers bought about 9,000 Nintendo hardware systems nonstop for every hour of every day during the week of Black Friday,” said Nintendo of America’s president. Sales of Wii consoles were up slightly while sales of the DS portable gaming system fell slightly from the same period last year. Regardless, the numbers are still very impressive. More →

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Gaming
November 17, 2010
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Video game industry takes 4% hit in October; Xbox outsells Wii and PS3 for fifth straight month

By on November 17, 2010 at 7:50 PM.

Video game industry takes 4% hit in October; Xbox outsells Wii and PS3 for fifth straight month

Ahead of the 2010 holiday season, NPD Group reports that the U.S. gaming industry took a hit in October. While software sales were up 6% and accessory sales were up 18% in the month, console sales tumbled 26% to $280 million. Overall, gaming industry sales were down 4% in October. Despite the industry’s overall hit, however, Microsoft is sitting pretty as its console sales beat Nintendo and Sony for the fifth straight month. In fact, the Xbox 360 was the only console with year-over-year growth in October. Add to that over 1 million Kinect units sold and over 4 million more Kinects expected to move before the end of the year, and you’ve got one happy gaming team over at HQ in Redmond. Hit the jump for NPD’s top-10 game titles by sales volume in the month of October. More →

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General
October 18, 2010
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Nintendo and Netflix bring disc-free streaming to the Wii

By on October 18, 2010 at 9:58 AM.

Nintendo and Netflix bring disc-free streaming to the Wii

If you’ve got a network connected Wii and a Netflix account with streaming capabilities, today is your lucky day. Via a press release, Nintendo and Netflix announced that U.S. and Canadian subscribers will be able to download and install software directly to their Wii consoles to allow Instant Queue streaming. Previously, the Wii console required a Netflix CD to be inserted in the disc drive for Instant Queue access. The software is available for free from the Wii Shop Channel on your console. The full press release is after the break. More →

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