http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/nintendo_wii

Nintendo launches Wii, challenging Sony

By PETER SVENSSON, AP Technology Writer Sun Nov 19, 6:28 AM ET

NEW YORK - More than a thousand fans lined up in Times Square for the Sunday launch of Nintendo's entry into the holiday season's field of competing video game consoles, the cheap but innovative Wii.

Despite the throngs, the midnight launch event went smoothly. That contrasted with the launch of Sony Corp (NYSE:SNE - news).'s PlayStation 3 console just two days earlier, which forced police to disperse crowds at some stores around the country.

The first buyer, Isaiah Triforce Johnson, had been waiting in line outside the store for more than a week. He wore a Nintendo Power Glove, a wearable controller that came out in 1989, while shaking hands with Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime after buying the first Wii. Johnson said he had legally changed his middle name to a reference in Nintendo's "Zelda" series of games.

Launching right after the much-vaunted and technically sophisticated PlayStation 3 is a brave move for Nintendo, which is playing catch-up after losing dominance of the home console market to Sony in the mid-90s.

The Wii itself is a daring design: It eschews the high-definition graphics that are the main selling points of the PlayStation 3 and Microsoft Corp.'s
Xbox 360, which came out a year ago. Instead, Nintendo hopes to attract a new generation of fans by changing the way games are played. The console comes with a motion-sensitive controller that acts as a tennis racket, baseball bat, steering wheel, gun or sword depending on the game.

Fils-Aime said the company made "some very tough choices" in designing the Wii.

"Tough choices about not including a DVD player at the start, tough choices about not including high-definition capability at the start. That's because we wanted a mass-market price, and we believe the market will validate those decisions come launch day on this Sunday," he said.

The Wii costs $250 and includes one game. The two PlayStation 3 models cost $500 and $600, with no included game. The two Xbox 360 models cost $300 and $400, with no game. Online, the prices are steeper: PlayStation 3s were selling for around $2,500 on eBay Saturday, while Wiis (listed by sellers who had pre-ordered from retailers and expected to get the units Sunday) were listed at around $500.

Sony had about 400,000 PlayStation 3s in North American stores on Friday. Nintendo has said it would have "five to ten" times as many Wiis available at launch, and will have shipped 4 million units by the end of the year. It still expects consoles to sell out in stores.

The relative abundance of units, and a smaller fan base, should make Sunday a calmer shopping day than Friday. On Saturday evening, people were lining up at stores more to show their devotion to Nintendo and celebrate the occasion than because they were afraid of not getting a Wii.

At the Nintendo World store in Manhattan's Rockefeller Center, 86 people were lined up for the morning opening. Anthony Eaton, dressed in green as the character Link from the "Zelda" series, looked chagrined when passing girls called him "Peter Pan."

Eaton, 18, didn't really need to be in line, since his friend had pre-ordered a Wii for him that would be available for pickup the next morning.

"It's all in the spirit of gaming. Wiis only get launched once, and we gotta do this right," said Eaton, who had traveled from Washington to go to the only U.S. store bearing the Nintendo name.

A few blocks away, there was no one in line at a Best Buy store that would start selling the console Sunday morning.

In the Los Angeles area, more than 500 people waited in line at the Game Stop at Universal City Walk. The store handed out numbered wristbands to avoid the crushes that were common at the PlayStation 3 openings.

The first to buy the system at midnight was Jonathan Mann, 24, who was dressed in red overalls and a cap like the Mario character from "Super Mario Bros."

"I'm a little delirious. I've been up for about 40 hours straight. But I've got it in my hands now and it feels good," said Mann, adding that he has written more than 40 songs about the console for his gaming Web site, gamejew.com. His song titles include "Wii Means You and Me" and "The Wind Whispers Wii."

In a somewhat unusual move for a Japanese company, the Wii was scheduled to go on sale in Japan two weeks after the U.S. launch, the opposite of Sony's launch order. Nintendo said it made the decision to get in on U.S. holiday shopping, which starts earlier than shopping in Japan.

Analyst John Broady at gaming Web site GameSpot.com sees the timing as David taunting Goliath.

"They obviously are confident that they can go head-to-head with Sony," Broady said. "It was a very, very gutsy move."

Broady said that judging by the gaming enthusiasts who visit GameSpot, the Wii has as much buzz behind it as the PlayStation 3. It's been well reviewed, and it's helped by interest in a new installment in the Zelda series, "Twilight Princess."

"The big question is, when you get past this set of people who are really into games, how deep does this buzz go in the general population?" Broady asked. "I think everybody in America yesterday knew that the PlayStation 3 was launching and knew what it was. In most homes around the country, I think most people wouldn't know what a Nintendo Wii was at this particular moment."

Nintendo's stated goal is to hook people with the lure of the wireless controllers, low price and a small, cute main unit that will fit easily in most entertainment centers.

Explaining to a mass audience the appeal of the controllers and what makes the console different is a challenge for the company, but one that will get easier, Broady predicted.

"I think as the Wii gets out in the marketplace, and people start seeing it, I think it will make a huge difference," he said.



____________________________________________________________

see, i'm so e-l337 i got that HD hard drive
i bring max pain and elicit a far cry
thrown competition.. they be coppin the wheeze
i think outside the x-box, 360 degrees


http://www.myspace.co

http://news.yahoo.com/photos/ss/events/tc/111606nintendowii/im:/061119/ids_photos_en/r287003683.jpg

Here's a better one with the power glove visible

http://news.yahoo.com/photos/ss/events/tc/111606nintendowii/im:/061119/ids_photos_en/r2035648719.jpg

I would have never guessed that
_____________________
gt: Dope Skill
ms: http://www.myspace.com/chief_cornbread

come on now

first line...."Isiah 'Triforce' Johnson (L)"

>first line...."Isiah 'Triforce' Johnson (L)"


-----------------

www.scholarballer.org

.

_____________________
gt: Dope Skill
ms: http://www.myspace.com/chief_cornbread

Has a crew of pro gamers called the Empire in Harlem.
Oh and dude is married

Added:
Yep it's him.

http://www.mtv.com/overdrive/?name=features&id=1545629#/overdrive/?id=1545629&name=features


We are all dreamers...

In Honor of the PS3 launch, overheard at the Sony Store:

So which games are you getting?
"Gears of War"
GOW? That's on the 360
"Oh well I guess I'm getting a 360 then..."

i give him props for taking it there BUT legally changing your name to Triforce is still scary.

>The first buyer, Isaiah Triforce Johnson, had been waiting in
>line outside the store for more than a week. He wore a
>Nintendo Power Glove, a wearable controller that came out in
>1989, while shaking hands with Nintendo of America president
>Reggie Fils-Aime after buying the first Wii. Johnson said he
>had legally changed his middle name to a reference in
>Nintendo's "Zelda" series of games.

L



>At the Nintendo World store in Manhattan's Rockefeller Center,
>86 people were lined up for the morning opening. Anthony
>Eaton, dressed in green as the character Link from the "Zelda"
>series, looked chagrined when passing girls called him "Peter
>Pan."

L

>Eaton, 18, didn't really need to be in line, since his friend
>had pre-ordered a Wii for him that would be available for
>pickup the next morning.

Make that two.

>"It's all in the spirit of gaming. Wiis only get launched
>once, and we gotta do this right," said Eaton, who had
>traveled from Washington to go to the only U.S. store bearing
>the Nintendo name.
>
>A few blocks away, there was no one in line at a Best Buy
>store that would start selling the console Sunday morning.

Make that three.

>In the Los Angeles area, more than 500 people waited in line
>at the Game Stop at Universal City Walk. The store handed out
>numbered wristbands to avoid the crushes that were common at
>the PlayStation 3 openings.

LA doesn't have Best Buys? Is the only story selling Wiis in LA?

500 L's

>The first to buy the system at midnight was Jonathan Mann, 24,
>who was dressed in red overalls and a cap like the Mario
>character from "Super Mario Bros."

L

>"I'm a little delirious. I've been up for about 40 hours
>straight. But I've got it in my hands now and it feels good,"

L

>said Mann, adding that he has written more than 40 songs about
>the console for his gaming Web site,

LLLL

gamejew.com.

LLLLLLLLL

His song
>titles include "Wii Means You and Me" and "The Wind Whispers
>Wii."

These are ok.




-----------------

www.scholarballer.org

>
> His song
>>titles include "Wii Means You and Me" and "The Wind Whispers
>>Wii."
>
>These are ok.

universal city walk got 600 units, hence the 500 person line

words cannot explain.

There's seriously something wrong with people. Someone cue Gnarls Barkley.

it's apples and oranges, pedophiles and fanboys

you can't seriously believe fanboys are more frightening..

.

http://content.imagesocket.com/images/nintendololfc2.jpg

--
"if my calculations are correct SLINKY + ESCULATOR = EVERLASTING FUN"

edit:

except for the president, hah.

--
"if my calculations are correct SLINKY + ESCULATOR = EVERLASTING FUN"

similar to what he did for the star wars campers.

that would be hilarious.

but dude is a middle-aged man with a fucking dog sock puppet

everyone loses

Fuck... who do I pants first...?

Far too many targets, man.

--Maurice

http://www.davesdaily.com/pictures/454-nintendogirl.htm

NB prob not work-safe

Oh God. What a cool bunch. LOL.

Anyone notice the tag in the bottom right corner?

nintendo fanboys are something else

>Anthony
>Eaton, dressed in green as the character Link from the "Zelda"
>series, looked chagrined when passing girls called him "Peter
>Pan."

lol @ looked chagrined

he's 29!

shit's scary. i'm all for 'doing you' but....

I think he's the leader of Empire Arcadia, a gaming click in NY. They have probably the best players in the country in many games. All they do is go to gaming tourney's and win all the money.

yea him and his crew were on mtv last week during their gaming week thing they had going on

We are all dreamers...

In Honor of the PS3 launch, overheard at the Sony Store:

So which games are you getting?
"Gears of War"
GOW? That's on the 360
"Oh well I guess I'm getting a 360 then..."