
This week's question: Where does Nintendo stand after E3 2006?
Reggie Fils-Aime, president and chief operating officer, Nintendo of America: I think it will come as no surprise to you or your readers that the buzz Wii generated at E3 is continuing. Both the gaming press and the mainstream media got the message that it's completely different from any other videogaming system -- ever. More importantly, people got to try it out and see for themselves whether it would stand up to the scrutiny of some of the industry's toughest critics. And we're pleased to say, it did. As we said, playing is believing. And I think we created thousands of new believers during E3.
The other guys can speak for themselves, but for us E3 was more about giving people hands-on time to get impressions of how the console and games felt. And on that point, we scored big time. One writer said it clicked for him when he saw a prim, middle-aged woman smiling and laughing like a kid while she played WarioWare: Smooth Moves on Wii. For others it was seeing the video of the crowd rushing in on Friday morning and flocking -- or should I say stampeding -- to our booth to get in line to play Wii. For me, I think it was hearing that Wii generated the longest line in the history of E3.
How will we market Wii against competitors? We won't -- because Wii doesn't have any competitors. In the broadest terms, three videogame consoles will be available for the holidays. But realistically, only Wii introduces a completely new way to play. Only Wii is easy enough that people can start playing immediately, even if they have no videogame experience. Only Wii brings a disruptive element to the industry and forces developers and players out of their comfort zones and into a place where everything is fresh and new again.
On top of that, the Wii console's price will be no more than $250. That's an attractive proposition at a time of year when everyone will be trying to decide how to maximize their gift-giving budgets. We think it'll be an easy choice for consumers, and we're looking forward to letting the public get their hands on it in Q4. Expect to hear a lot more about Wii between now and launch. We're just getting started.