Ce-Oh no he didn't, part XXXIII - Microsoft's just waiting for Wii fanboys to grow up

Never let it be said that a console war doesn't benefit the consumer -- for the goldmine of quotes, if nothing else. This latest one is from John Rodman, group product manager for the Xbox platform and Xbox Live, who was talking up the Xbox 360 in a New York Times article of all places. "We don't feel like the Wii customer and the Xbox customer are the same thing," he said. "We think that as soon as the Wii customer turns 14 they want something else." Oh snap! Finally the truth comes out. We were getting a bit tired of all those backhanded praises Sony and Microsoft have been showering on the Wii, since it's not the "competition." Seems like it's worth Rodman's time to pay it such a diss (not that we have anything against sub-14 year olds, but let's be honest here) and there's no doubt the Wii is more of a threat to Sony and Microsoft than they'll ever admit.

[Thanks, David B]

[John Branca @ Mar 28th 2007 10:19AM]

Anyone else think these "CEO" things are just childish and stupid?

[akintz @ Mar 28th 2007 10:23AM]

Nope.

I think they're great.

[CowboyGA @ Mar 28th 2007 10:22AM]

I actually see the Wii as more of the casual adult-gamer console and the XBox360/PS3 as the teenager/early 20s hardcore gamer machine.

Obviously these demographics blur together, but I think this view of the Wii being bought for kids is off by a longshot.

[Otsego @ Mar 28th 2007 12:52PM]

I enjoy my Wii, but i do feel it is quite childish/cutesy. I'm over the excitement of motion sensors, and the best game ive played so far is Wii sports (ive tried wii play, warioware, ssx blur, zelda & excite truck). Lets wait to evaluate everything until a year from now when there are plenty of Wiis on the shelves and the "i gotta have it cos they're hard to get, and it looks pretty fun..." is over with. Then the Wii will be put to the test.

[Kev50027 @ Mar 28th 2007 3:50PM]

You're kidding, right?

The Wii is for children. Nintendo has so few violent games for the Wii, they're all cutesy and childish. While games on the 360 or PS3 focus on global war, first person shooters and that kinda stuff (that would interest older teens and adults), the Wii sports Mario games that have traditionally been for young children.

[nd @ Mar 28th 2007 10:25AM]

I'm 29, currently own a PS2 and an XBOX. I don't have time to play role playing games and such for days on end. I'm not really looking to buy a new console yet, but when I do it will be a wii. i want something unique, fun, fun for a group of people, and has games that I can sit and play for 30 minutes here and there when I want to unwind. The wii totally has the others beat in those areas, and I'm older than 2 sub 14-year-olds put together!

[EdgeOne @ Mar 28th 2007 10:28AM]

Whad the f? I'm a loyal 360 fan and just picked up a Wii and it is a BLAST! Best of all my four year old loves bowling and everyone who looks at my 360 controller and goes "um, no thanks" has NO problem pickng up the Wiimote and swinging away. IMO they are a great compliment for one another and you can get BOTH for the price of a PS3! C'mon MS, embrace the WiiBox and don't start getting all Sony on us... sheesh.

[Ben @ Mar 28th 2007 10:30AM]

Actually, they are quite interesting. You have to remember the trickle down management style. It's best to know comments CEOs make, cause they ultimatly reflect through the whole company.

[Mike @ Mar 28th 2007 10:36AM]

The Wii backlash WILL happen, there is no way they can sustain the current level of hype and hysteria with the hardware they have. Sooner or later, the cross platform games will arrive, and the wii owners will see the 360 and PS3 versions and cry "why does mine not look like that", or "why can't I have Grand Theft Auto 4"....

[Drew @ Mar 28th 2007 11:41AM]

Wii owners, or at least this one, don't care about graphics, and they don't want GTA4. That's why we bought a Wii.

[mr.mike_l @ Mar 28th 2007 11:19AM]

youre right, noone is buying the DS and everyone hates on it. its not like it still sells or has tons of great games and dev support.

and sooner or later the multiplats will arrive, and many wii owners will be saying: im glad I dont have to invest in an HD tv to get the most out of this game(the most being a marginal increase in clarity)
and will instead ignore the "terribly huge" graphical difference, and go play some games like no more heroes, smash bros, metroid prime, and possibly sadness (if nibris can ever prove that the game exists and gets it out.) and why cant we have gta? we can, but why would we want one of the most overrated game series of all time?

[Geoffrey Sperl @ Mar 28th 2007 11:39AM]

@mike: No, they won't. If I want GTA4, I'll pick up a PS3 or a 360. If I want Zelda I'll pick up a Wii. If I want both, I'll pick up both.

The competition is between the PS3 and the 360. Let them fight it out.

[kingofwale @ Mar 28th 2007 10:44AM]

Instead of focusing on Wii's lack of graphic power.

Microsoft Manager is calling Wii users "immature"??

Niiice.

[Daniel D @ Mar 28th 2007 10:52AM]

rofl thats hilarious it really really is.

It is a funny stereotype that all Wii users are

[Rev. Matt oxley @ Mar 28th 2007 10:53AM]

wii>360

m$ losers

[David @ Mar 28th 2007 10:55AM]

hey hey.. I made a post :)

[Derek @ Mar 28th 2007 11:04AM]

well i am 24 and i think that the wii is a verygood console it controler is freekin awsome compaired to the xbox 360 and if the xbox is built for the older gamers, why did they have to change the controler design becuase the first ones were to big?

I already have 2 computers why on earth would i want a freekin 360?

[your left nut @ Mar 28th 2007 11:06AM]

Sadly, Microsoft is missing the point. I grew up with videogames, my family owned Pong and I got the Atari 2600 for my birthday when I was in 4th grade. Now that I own a home, have kids and a career, I don't have a lot of time for games, but still like to play. The Wii offers a lot of "stupid" fun in short bursts, especially when we have friends over. The games are easy and fun so we can include our kids in the games as well. It makes for a good time all around. Do I like playing games online against a bunch of foul-mouthed, cheating 13 year olds? No. Microsoft can think what they want, but the fact is, all of my friends and colleagues want a Wii because the whole family can enjoy it. Hell, even my mom, who sat beside me playing games on all of the various consoles, wants a Wii. If Nintendo can supply more systems, I think they will have the 360 outsold by the end of the year.

[Brendan @ Mar 28th 2007 11:08AM]

I'm 30 years old and I own a Wii, but not a PS3 or Xbox 360. When will I turn 14? These jerks badmouthing me aren't endearing themselves to me or encouraging me to give them my hard earned money.

[andy @ Mar 28th 2007 11:09AM]

Funny how I'm 24 and have a Wii and no intentions on purchasing a 360 or PS3. It was when I was a kid, up until say 16, that I always wanted the best console out. I had everything and then just got bored with it all. The Wii is the only console since PS1 that introduced something that I found fun and new in gaming.

[Chris @ Mar 28th 2007 11:10AM]

I don't know anyone under 20 that has a wii

[kingofwale @ Mar 28th 2007 11:15AM]

The guy should get fired for this. very unprofessional and just ignorant.

here's what he SHOULD'VE said.

"Wii Fad will fade", because Wii is currently targeting toward non-gamers who buy it for its uniqueness, but will those people go out every month and get the hottest game? No, PS and Xbox have learn how to make 100 million dollars from a game BY a third party. Where's the incentive for third party to make a Wii only game if their own audience won't show up at launch?

Therefore, Buy a Xbox, because Wii won't last forever, even if Nintendo tries to hold off supply to prolong this hype. (Gamestop exe reports)

[John B @ Mar 28th 2007 11:23AM]

Wow. Just ... wow.

I'm 37 and have been playing video games since I was a teenager. My wife is 33. We play Wii all of the time. Many nights we and our 6-year-old spend a few hours playing Wii Sports bowling. I think Tiger Woods Golf is a great game, and using the Wii controller adds an extra dimension to it. I've also convinced my 47-year-old sister who has seven daughters, the *youngest* of whom is 13, to get a Wii.

And how many articles have there been recently about the Wii gaining a ton of popularity in retirement homes?

"...as soon as the Wii customer turns 14..." John Rodman is a f**king moron and needs to be fired for such an arrogant and immature statement.

[Luke @ Apr 2nd 2007 12:30PM]

Microsoft has some research to do because many gamers have multiple systems. I have 360 and the Wii and love them both. I prefer Nintendo and find I play it more than I do the 360. For the record it's been a decade since I turned 14.

[ItGuy @ Mar 28th 2007 11:24AM]

"The Wii backlash WILL happen, there is no way they can sustain the current level of hype and hysteria with the hardware they have."

Replace Wii with iPod. That has been said since 2002 and guess what? The iPod franchise is as strong as ever.

That being said I'm MS's target (grown up) and got the Wii and am loving it. If I want more, I'll go PS3 as I don't want to give MS any of my money for their POS console.

[HenryJonesJr @ Mar 28th 2007 11:25AM]

Derek, are you sure you're not under 14? That would at least provide some explanation as to your extremely poor spelling and grammar. If you really are 24, please go back and finish school. If nothing else, do society a favor and refrain from posting publicly ever again. You're certainly not shining a positive light on the Wii's fanbase. Thank you.

[SuperChuck @ Mar 28th 2007 11:35AM]

I'd love to see some demographic information for the Wii. It seems that the target market for Wii is older people (30+) who don't have a lot of time for games, aren't that interested in flashy graphics, and want a non-traditional experience.

[Will @ Mar 28th 2007 11:38AM]

Im a 360 owner and I like the Wii and all but its safe to say that its selling point is its inovation. But something can only be innovative for so long. When that happens its no more than a gimmicky Xbox or a PS2.

[hunchbak @ Mar 28th 2007 11:46AM]

Thats funny.... I'm 36 and own/play both. Stuff a cork in your mouth homie..

[arsewipe @ Mar 28th 2007 11:52AM]

The CEO-series is good when you are quoting things that CEOs say. This guy is not a CEO, not even close. John Rodman's not even a VP or anything. Are you now applying CEO-series titles to anything anybody from the rank and file says?

[FrankTheCrank @ Mar 28th 2007 12:03PM]

People need to remember that these "games" are exactly that, games.

Games are played when you have time to play them.

People who play Wii don't want to spend allot of money on a 360 or PS3. They just want something that's simple, inexpensive and fun. The Wii is all three. The 360 needs to offer more than just HD games. PS3 is a Bluray player and has games.

It's PSWii for me.

[Jason @ Mar 28th 2007 12:11PM]

I'm 18 and so far, the Wii is the most appealing to me, always has been. Bought one two weeks after launch and I haven't grown tired of it. True, the game library isn't the largest at the moment, but the fact that I can quickly access news reports from all over the world through the News Channel is great; grabbing the globe and spinning it to read news on the War or what's going on France is just amazing and intuitive. The Forecast channel is always useful; I recently went on a trip to Pismo and fired up the Forecast channel to check the weather. Not to mention the Virtual Console which let's me easily play older games like the original Legend of Zelda or Mean Bean Machine.

Most of my friends are the non-gamer crowd that Nintendo is advertising to and they love the console for two reasons: Miis and Wii Sports. It doesn't matter that the Miis aren't even close to life-like, they're fun to just sit around and make little caricatures of anyone you'd like. Then Wii Sports is amazing in it's own right; playing a 4 player tennis match with my friends, represented on screen by Hitler & Kim Jong Il vs. Bush and Clinton was amazing.

So to write off the Wii to a small population of under 14 year old's is ignorant, the Wii has elements that appeal to everyone. Sure, if you want your games to look more like Saving Private Ryan than Frank Miller's 300, then go ahead and get a 360 or a PS3. If watching blood and cars fly across the screen as realisticly as possible is your thing, then buy those other two consoles. But if you want a highly intuitive method of interaction and a better overall "fun" value, then get a Wii.

[scottus @ Mar 28th 2007 12:12PM]

first of all, the wii is not a threat to m$oft or sony, any more than the ps2 was a threat to the 360. The wii will sell to the people who want that particular type of experience, and the 360 will sell to the people who want that particular experience. People who want both will get both.

second - check out the list of games coming out for the wii this year. I hope wii sports is enough lasting fun to get you through till the holidays, because until then, you've got nothing.

[Jess @ Mar 28th 2007 12:21PM]

HA! I'm 26 and the Wii is the first console I've ever purchased. MS is pretty clueless if they think younger-than-14-year-olds are the main target demographic for the Wii.

[Amiga Man @ Mar 28th 2007 12:22PM]

Ahhhh. For once I agree with a statement by Microsoft.

The Wii doesn't have HD, and is therefor doomed to niche status in the long run. To those who don't see the point now, they will in 2 years with the Wii looks horribly dated and the only games they bought came with the system.

[tlewis @ Mar 28th 2007 12:22PM]

My twins are 7, we have a Wii for the family. It is a blast. For "post 14 year old" games I have the PC. With this combination why would you need a PS3 or 360. The Wii is in the family room where anyone can play. The PC is in an office so kids don't see gibs fly. I have never understood why someone would want to play an FPS on a console.

[Potatomasher @ Mar 28th 2007 12:24PM]

Common... ! The guy's right ! You have to admit that most of the games that are out for the Wii are a little childish.

[Droo @ Mar 28th 2007 12:29PM]

It should be Wii+360 vs PS3 really. Wii has fantastic first-party titles and a simple yet challenging console. Meanwhile, the 360 has the heavy hitters (Halo, GoW, etc). Wii aims for a different market (casual gaming, first time gamers AND the younger crowd) and Microsoft should (and DID at one point) have more respect for that.

It's all about the software. I think Sony forgot that. PS3 is an expensive gamble when the software doesn't justify the expensive price. We pretty much know what we're going to get with Nintendo for software and obviously Microsoft has given good reason to own a 360.

[tr @ Mar 28th 2007 12:31PM]

forget about wii and 360 and ceo's and ages of users...let's focus on the big stuff.

is it just me, or is it weird that there's a Hostess label on that box of Zingers? to me, Zingers will always be made by Dolly Madison.

[R. Cabell @ Mar 28th 2007 12:45PM]

My wife and I recently bought a Wii and love it. Neither of us have bought a game console since childhood (a SNES for her, and a Genesis for me), so when we've played friends' PS2s and Xbox's the controllers have been awkward and the gameplay confusing. Not so with the Wii -- it was immediately intuitive and fun and the games are great even if the graphics are a little cheesey. Everyone who has seen WarioWare: Smooth Moves or Wii Sports has commented on how weird and unique and fun they are.

Ironically, though, we've been playing more GameCube games on it -- the $9.99 dig-through-the-bargain-bin is more appealing than $50 locked-in-the-glass-case Wii games.

[UpIrons @ Mar 28th 2007 12:50PM]

And then when they turn 74 they want the Wii again, or at least that's what CNN seems to think...

Truthfully though, I am 34 and I bought the Wii. I just couldn't justify spending $400 or more on a console, though I play PC games more anyway.

[arman @ Mar 28th 2007 1:03PM]

Kinda have to agree. Had my Xbox360 for 8 months before I got bored and sold it. Have had my Wii for about 2 months and I'm bored with it. Maybe PS3 would be next but don't really feel like forking over half my mortgage payment for a month. I'm 29yo by the way.

[Fatass of Kickassness @ Mar 28th 2007 1:17PM]

Are you serious? I could understand getting bored of a system, but selling it because you're 'bored with it', especially after such a short amount of time, is just moronic. It would be smarter just to be patient and wait until more games that appeal to you come out before you sell a system.

[Waitupasec @ Mar 28th 2007 1:09PM]

Its funny that people always call the wii a gimmick and just a gamecube with a new controller. WHAT THE HELL ARE 360'S AND PS3'S BESIDES THE OLDER GENERATION WITH BETTER GRAPHICS. How is that less of a gimmick.

[JT @ Mar 28th 2007 1:11PM]

If the only thing that will hold the Wii back in the long run is HD, what would stop Nintendo from coming out with its own Wii-elite version in 2 years? The comments by MS and Sony show that they are now scared of the Wii. I hope they keep them up, because they are hilarious.

[Todd @ Mar 28th 2007 1:49PM]

Target markets:

360/PS3 - Gamers

Wii - Everyone

Nintendo isn't just taking a slice of the pie, it's making the pie bigger.

That alone should scare MS/Sony...

[Mathew @ Mar 28th 2007 1:57PM]

I wish Microsoft would see the light instead of thinking they've got it all figured out. They just announced the "Elite" 360, with HDMI, a connector I wish my existing 360 has. Long story short, I won't be buying an elite to get something they should've included in the first place.

Back to the Wii, and MS seeing the light - If they had any brains in their collective heads, they'd be making a motion-controller like Wii's for the 360 because it would sell like crazy! I'd love one, think it's a GREAT enhancement to gaming, and I will eventually buy a Wii JUST for that feature.

Oh, and dear Microsoft, I'm 35, work with your crap software on a daily basis, and spent 2 weeks waiting for you to update your own drivers for your own mouse, so it would work with your own Vista operating system. You do shabby work in all facets of your development cycle.

Now get your R&D to work on that motion controller, or else continue losing xbox revenue to Wii buyers, the majority of whom I assure you are over 14.

[Josh @ Mar 28th 2007 2:01PM]

Err, I love my Wii. And I'm almost 40. But I may just have the intelligence of a 12-year-old.

[Troy @ Mar 28th 2007 2:04PM]

Dear Microsoft,

Read this: ooOoo

[hibiscusroto @ Mar 28th 2007 2:09PM]

If John Rodman is going for some free publicity for saying something ignorant, then he's achieved his goal. If he actually believes what he's saying, then he is demonstrating just how little he understands the competition.