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February 26, 2007
GAMING
Wii Sales Continue to Beat PlayStation 3 Daily Orange Syracuse
(U-WIRE) SYRACUSE, N.Y. - For the past several months Sony and Nintendo, two of the world’s most popular game makers, have battled over a pool of consumers that could ultimately make or break each company’s short-term success. Sony, which released the new PlayStation 3 late last year, fell short of expectations when put up against Nintendo’s latest model, the Wii. In the third quarter of this fiscal year, which ran from Oct. 1 to Dec. 31, Sony reported a 5.3 percent drop in net income compared to the same period last year. Meanwhile, Nintendo’s net income exceeded last year’s by 43.1 percent. The majority of revenue that Sony reports still comes from its other consoles, the PSP and PS2, rather than the newly-released PS3. Likewise, although their new console has
been outperforming Sony’s, Nintendo’s profit generally comes from products other than the Wii. “Nintendo DS hardware has been the fastest rising game platform ever in the Japan market, and in addition, has sold well in overseas markets,” according to a consolidated financial report published by Nintendo. “In the console business, Wii hardware (launched at the end of last year) got off to a favorable start, and Wii software titles such as ‘The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess’ enjoyed brisk sales as well.” John Falcone, a senior editor at cnet.com, a technology review Web site, pinned the Wii’s success on its originality. “Because the Wii is focused on game play with a unique motion sensor controller, people have embraced it,” he said. The PS3, even with its improved graphics and multimedia capabilities, is not as inviting as the Wii, he said. For example, while the PS3 has a photo viewer and can play CDs,
DVDs and Blu-ray discs in addi“There’s a ‘what next?’ factor after tion to playing video games, the Wii the novelty wears off,” he said. “And looks so different that people quickly in some regard, Wii may be too inforget about the PS3. novative for its own good.” More people may be more likely From a more strategic standpoint, to buying the Wii for a more obvi- Nintendo won its bid as an indusous reason than its try superpower belook – its price. cause, unlike Sony, Currently the it has employed Wii retails at Instead of competing its resources to tap $249.99 while the head on with Sony or into a “blue ocean PS3, sold in two Microsoft ... Wii has market.” different models, Blue ocean marcan be bought for created a new playing kets are those in $499 or $599. field for video games. which competition With the PS3, – Minet Schindehutte does not exist and the consumer must Syracuse business professor the potential for pay for the extra demand is great, features. whereas other marDespite the Wii’s kets become “red popularity, Falcone oceans” as competidoes not see the console staying in tors kill each other off to earn a larger the limelight for as long as some part of the consumer population. think. “Instead of competing head on It lacks a diverse supply of games with Sony or Microsoft by improvand its requirement for physical ac- ing the video game itself, Wii has tivity could discourage traditional created a new playing field for video gamers, he said. games by focusing on the console,
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By Daniel Longo
not the video game,” said Minet Schindehutte, associate professor of entrepreneurship and emerging enterprises at Syracuse University. “Wii effectively owns this new market space in which it makes the rules. It is one in which neither Sony nor Microsoft can play the game and one in which the leaders’ competitive advantages have been wiped out.” Moreover, Nintendo’s new console offers the consumer a better experience as opposed to a better product, she said. Because of the emphasis on the gaming experience, the Wii created a blue-ocean strategy that effectively put it in a class of its own. The PS3 is an improvement upon its predecessor, but it falls short in delighting the gamer with something unexpected, said Schindehutte. Some of the Wii’s success could also come from the audience to which it is advertising. Nintendo is trying to capitalize on the “casual gamer phenomenon,” Falcone said, appealing to people
who play less frequently than hardcore gamers. The PS3 targets its classic audience of young adult males. “This round would end with Sony taking a hit in the short term,” he said. Some people, like Brian Fuller, would disagree. Fuller, a game adviser at EB Games in New Hartford, N.Y., said customers ask him about the Wii on a daily basis. “They’re wildly popular,” he said. “Every time we get them, they’re sold in minutes.” Fuller said the store receives shipments about every two weeks. Given the way consumers have embraced the Wii, experts doubt the hype will fade. “This is every marketer’s dream,” Schindehutte said. “The buzz created around this must-have item has propelled Wii into a different orbit in customers’ perception of its desirability. This will give the Wii a halo effect that will linger until the next new thing in the video game industry comes along.”
Xbox Live Gives Players Their Game Fix Any Time, Place The Internet may not be Vegas, but it sure plays a World Series poker game By Shaelan Bowers
Daily Titan Staff Writer maneditor@dailytitan.com
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oday’s poker craze is said to have begun with Chris Moneymaker’s win at the 2003 World Series of Poker. Since then the number of participants at the annual tournament have almost doubled each year, and more and more poker enthusiasts are mak-
ing their way to Las Vegas or other casino cities in hopes of becoming the next world champ of poker. Some of those players who aren’t flooding their local casinos and trying to make a name for themselves are creating large home games in an attempt to recreate the feeling of playing in a high-stakes Las Vegastype game. Unfortunately Vegas isn’t all that close and home games are kind of hard to come by since most people don’t have the time to play. But those who can’t go more than a couple days without feeling the high of playing poker can get their fix in an online game.
Thankfully Xbox’s “World Series of Poker: Tournament of Champions” fills that void with its Xbox Live support. Live is Microsoft’s network for Xbox games. All of the elements are there: the trash talk, the bluffing and most importantly the competition. All without having to pony up thousands of dollars and breathe second-hand smoke for hours at a time in a smoke-filled casino. “It’s about the closest thing to real poker you can get,” said Jeff Luna, a frequent online player. “And I really like getting to play just lounging around the house.” It isn’t only the convenience but
the competition that keeps people coming back for more. The better they play the higher rank they get – and that high rank can bring them closer to an online celebrity status. “For me it’s not about the money, even though winning money is nice, it is more about playing against other great players and knowing that you are the best,” said Josh Buckley, another Xbox Live poker player. And with over 50,000 players with different ranks playing each other over the Xbox engine, the competition can be even more fierce and intense than it would be in an actual casino.
“I still like to go to Vegas and play, I really don’t think there is a substitute for that experience, but just for fun and to work on my game Xbox is great,” said Keavin Simmons. “The more you play, and the better players you go against, the better your game is going to get,” Simmons said. Players can also talk to one another over the console’s headset and work on another very important aspect of the game – reading the other players. “Table talking and getting a read on the other players is what can make a good player a great player and on [Xbox] you can practice it,”
Luna said. One of the aspects that add realism to the online games is being able to create a character that can resemble the actual player. With the right equipment, that character can have the actual face of the player. It is just another aspect in creating the most realistic experience possible, which can also make it a very addicting experience. “I guess you could say that I’m a bit addicted to it, I almost have to be to get to the level that I’m at right now,” Buckley said. “I’m not losing any money playing, and I have a lot of fun with it so why not.”