Wii

The system was well received after its exhibition at E3 2006. At the event, Nintendo’s console won the Game Critics Awards for Best of Show and Best Hardware.In the December 2006 issue of Popular Science the console was awarded with the Grand Award Winner in Home Entertainment. Spike TV’s Video Games Award also granted the console the award in breakthrough technology.GameSpot chose the console as the Best Hardware on their Best and Worst 2006 awards show. The system was also chosen as one of PC World magazine’s 20 Most Innovative Products of the Year.The console received a Golden Joystick for Innovation of the Year 2007 at the Golden Joystick Awards. In the category of Engineering & Technology for Creation and Implementation of Video Games and Platforms, Nintendo was awarded an Emmy for Game Controller Innovation by The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.The worldwide success of the Wii has caught third party developers by surprise, leading to some apologizing for the quality of their early games. In an interview with German news magazine Der Spiegel, Ubisoft’s Yves Guillemot and Alain Corre admitted that they had made a mistake in rushing out their launch titles, promising to take future projects more seriously.Take-Two Interactive, who released few games for the Nintendo GameCube, has changed its stance on Nintendo, putting a higher priority in developing for the Wii with Manhunt 2 being one of their first releases on the system.At the same time, criticism of the Wii Remote and the Wii hardware specifications has surfaced. Former GameSpot editor Jeff Gerstmann stated that the controller’s speaker produces low-quality sound,while Factor 5 President Julian Eggebrecht criticized the hardware audio as being substandard for a console of its generation. U.K.-based developer Free Radical Design has stated that the Wii hardware lacks the power necessary to run the software they have scheduled for release on other seventh generation consoles.An executive for Frontline Studios also expressed that major publishers are wary of releasing exclusive titles for the console due to the perception that third-party companies are not strongly supported by consumers.The online connectivity of the Wii was subject to criticism, as Matt Casamassina of IGN compared it to the “entirely unintuitive” service provided for the Nintendo DS.Game designer and The Sims creator Will Wright shared his thoughts on the Wii within the context of the current console generation: “the PS3 and the Xbox 360 feel like better versions of the last, but pretty much the same game with incremental improvement. But the Wii feels like a major jump – not that the graphics are more powerful, but that it hits a completely different demographic.”Using the Wii is often seen as being more physically demanding than other game consoles,A study published in the British Medical Journal found that Wii players use significantly more energy than playing sedentary computer games, but it is seen that the energy used when playing active Wii games is not of high enough intensity to contribute towards the recommended daily amount of exercise in children.

Retail copies of games are supplied on proprietary, DVD-like Wii Optical Discs packaged in a keep case along with instruction information. On European releases, these retail boxes have a triangle printed at the bottom corner of the paper insert sleeve side. The hue of the triangle can be used to identify which region the particular title is intended for and which manual languages are included. The console supports regional lockout.
New games representing Nintendo’s flagship franchises, including The Legend of Zelda, Metroid, Mario (and spin-offs), Animal Crossing, Pokémon, Super Smash Bros., and Fire Emblem, have been released, or are in development for the Wii. Likewise, there are original titles for it as well as expected third party games.[90] Ubisoft announced eight titles for release over the launch period and have stated that they have a further six currently in development while Midway Games has announced six titles.EA has declared their ‘100%’ support for the system and has since gone on to purchase long-time partner Headgate Studios, which now develops exclusively for Nintendo’s console. Namco Bandai also announced that they are developing 37 games for the Wii for their fiscal year ending March 2008. On April 27, 2007, Satoru Iwata stated that 45 out of Nintendo’s 124 first-party games are being developed for the console; the other 79 titles are being developed for the Nintendo DS. As of July 25, 2007 the Wii has more exclusive games in development than the Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3.The Virtual Console service allows Wii owners to play games originally released for the Nintendo Entertainment System, Super Nintendo Entertainment System and Nintendo 64, as well as Sega’s Mega Drive/Genesis, NEC’s TurboGrafx-16/PC Engine,and the SNK Neo Geo console.Virtual Console games are distributed over broadband Internet via the Wii Shop Channel, and are saved to the Wii internal flash memory or to a removable SD card. Once downloaded, Virtual Console games can be accessed from the Wii Menu as individual channels.

The console features parental controls, which can be used to prohibit younger users from playing games with content considered unsuitable for their age level. When one attempts to play a Wii or Virtual Console game, it reads the content rating encoded in the game data; if this rating is greater than the system’s set age level the game will not load without a correct override password. The parental controls can also restrict Internet access, which blocks the Internet Channel and system update features. Since the console is restricted to GameCube functionality when playing Nintendo GameCube Game Discs, GameCube software is unaffected by Wii parental control settings.European units mainly use the PEGI rating system, whereas North American units use the ESRB rating system. The Wii unit supports the native rating systems of many countries, including CERO in Japan, the USK in Germany, both the PEGI and BBFC in the United Kingdom and the OFLC in Australia and New Zealand.

The Wii console is able to connect to the Internet through its built-in 802.11b/g Wi-Fi or through a USB-to-Ethernet adapter, with both methods allowing players to access the established Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection service.Wireless encryption by WEP, WPA (TKIP/RC4) and WPA2 (CCMP/AES) are supported.AOSS support was discreetly added in firmware update 3.0.Just as for the Nintendo DS, Nintendo does not charge fees for playing via the service and the 12 digit Friend Code system controls how players connect to one another. Each Wii also has its own unique 16 digit Wii Code for use with Wii’s non-game features.This system also implements console-based software including the Wii Message Board. One can also connect to the internet with third-party devices.The service has several features for the console including the Virtual Console, WiiConnect24, Internet Channel, Forecast Channel, Everybody Votes Channel, News Channel and the Check Mii Out Channel. The console can also communicate and connect with other Wii systems through a self-generated wireless LAN, enabling local wireless multiplayer on different television sets. Battalion Wars 2 first demonstrated this feature for non-split screen multiplayer between two or more televisions.

The Wii system supports wireless connectivity with the Nintendo DS without any additional accessories. This connectivity allows the player to use the Nintendo DS microphone and touchscreen as inputs for Wii games. The first example Nintendo has given of a game using Nintendo DS-Wii connectivity is that of Pokémon Battle Revolution. Players with either the Pokémon Diamond or Pearl Nintendo DS games are able to play battles using their Nintendo DS as a controller.It has also been announced that the Nintendo DS will be able to play game demos downloaded from the console, which they would receive from Nintendo, similar to a DS Download Station.The console is also able to expand Nintendo DS games.This type of connection has been released only in Japan, in the form of the Everybody’s Nintendo Channel.

The Wii console is backward compatible with all official Nintendo GameCube software, as well as Nintendo GameCube Memory Cards and controllers. Compatibility with software is achieved with the slot-loading drive’s ability to accept Nintendo GameCube Game Discs. The console supports progressive-scan output in 480p-enabled GameCube titles. Peripherals can be connected via a set of four GameCube controller ports and two Memory Card slots concealed by removable flip-open panels.The console therefore retains connectivity with the Game Boy Advance and e-Reader through the Game Boy Advance Cable, which is used in the same manner as it was used with the GameCube. This feature can only be accessed on those select GameCube titles that previously utilized it. Gamercize accessories also utilize the backward compatibility in order to support the Wii console.A Wii console running a GameCube disc is restricted to GameCube functionality. As such, a GameCube controller is required to play GameCube titles, as neither the Wii Remote nor the Classic Controller functions in this capacity. A Nintendo GameCube Memory Card is also necessary to save, as the Wii internal flash memory will not save GameCube games.Backward compatibility is limited in some areas. Online and LAN-enabled features for Nintendo GameCube titles are unavailable on the Wii, as the console lacks serial ports for the Broadband Adapter and Modem Adapter. The console uses a proprietary port for video output and is therefore incompatible with all Nintendo GameCube audio/video cables (composite video, S-Video, component video and RGB SCART). The console also lacks the GameCube footprint and high-speed port needed for Game Boy Player support. The Wii was initially compatible with the GameCube Action Replay, which would work with GameCube titles. The firmware update to 3.0 has caused restrictions to this device along with various unlicensed freeloaders, however.

The Wii can be hacked to enable an owner to use the console for activities other than those intended by Nintendo.Several brands of modchips are available for the Wii. Programmers have also used the Wii Remote to control devices unrelated to the console, such as personal computers, through a Bluetooth wireless connection.

Interlink Electronics filed a patent-infringement lawsuit against Nintendo over the pointing functionalities of the Wii Remote, claiming “loss of reasonable royalties, reduced sales and/or lost profits as a result of the infringing activities” of Nintendo.Anascape Ltd, a Texas-based firm, also filed a lawsuit against Nintendo for patent infringements.Law firm Green Welling LLP filed a class action lawsuit against Nintendo for its “defective wrist straps”.A Texas-based company called Lonestar Inventions has also sued Nintendo, claiming that the company copied one of Lonestar’s patented capacitor designs and used it in the Wii console.

The first firmware update via WiiConnect24 caused a very small portion of launch units to become completely unusable. This forced users to either send their units to Nintendo for repairs (if they wished to retain their saved data) or exchange it for a free replacement.

The Wii Remote is the primary controller for the console. It uses a combination of built-in accelerometers and infrared detection to sense its position in 3D space when pointed at the LEDs within the Sensor Bar. This design allows users to control the game using physical gestures as well as traditional button presses. The controller connects to the console using Bluetooth and features rumble as well as an internal speaker. The Wii Remote can connect to other devices through a proprietary port at the base of the controller. The device bundled with the Wii retail package is the Nunchuk unit, which features an accelerometer and a traditional analog stick with two trigger buttons. In addition, an attachable wrist strap can be used to prevent the player from unintentionally dropping or throwing the Wii Remote. In response to incidents of strap failure, Nintendo is offering a free, stronger replacement for all straps.Nintendo has also since offered the Wii Remote Jacket to provide extra grip and protection.