Unafraid to incite elitist gamer geek unrest, respected video game industry analyst Michael Pachter has supported a prediction by GigaOM that
Wii Fit will outsell
Grand Theft Auto IV this year. Yeah, you read right: the latest entry into what is arguably the biggest hardcore video game franchise around is gonna get whooped by an exercise tool -- we're not shocked, we're just laughing.
GTA4 was dominating at first, but with time interest has waned while Wii Fit and its included Balance Board peripheral have stayed hot despite
supply shortages. Nintendo's hardware-focused strategy seems to be working; the Balance Board install base is approaching 12 million, or roughly 30% of all Wii owners. You can bet it'll be put to good use in future games and
other, less mainstream applications even after folks have given up on losing weight and resigned themselves once more to lifelong loneliness.
posted Oct 21st 2008 10:34PM
Socks? Seriously?
i want a pair of those socks.....
I believe that just might be a picture of Ryan Block on the Wii Fit, back from when he was supposed to do the 30 day thing with it.
Glad to hear that a gaming device is making people healthy and that they are interested in trying.
That is just plain wrong.
that was meant for the post above........ i hate this comment system
I know I'm in the minority, but the balance board and balancing games have been a huge boon to my physical therapy; I think its rather nice to see a video game like that outsell GTA, which isn't quite as productive for those not studying up on the finer points of gang-violence. So maybe not just plain wrong.
That picture makes me dizzy.
I know what you mean, i feel like I'm gonna fall forward...which is a weird feeling to have while sitting.
oh thank god, i thought I felt the same way lol
You are totally right! OMG, you guys took the words out of my mouth!
Now would someone explain, because this is kind of freaky!
It's too early in the morning for me to see a picture like that, I was getting sick already =X
You mean to tell me something that appeals to the lowest common denominator is outselling something aimed at a specific and passionate core group? That's outrageous!
I'm glad this sort of thing doesn't happen with music, movies, cell phones, laptops, cars, food...
Remind me what part of Grand Theft Auto appeals to a small and passionate core group
> You mean to tell me something that appeals to the lowest common denominator...
If my wife and daughter read that they would break your thumbs...
"Remind me what part of Grand Theft Auto appeals to a small and passionate core group"
The part about senseless violence, sex, and drugs. I agree with Marlon. GTA isn't for everybody. Wii Fit doesn't appeal to me either, but it does to a much broader group of people (albeit not so many GTA players).
I do not have a wii and dont want one.But i know why it sold as much.It's because of that commercial with the girl doing gym in front of the camera!
doing gym? really?
I love doing gym
I am Gym
Must have been a european commercial, theyd never show a commercial with a girl doing gym on american tv.
Google "wii fit girlfriend"
I used to be a big in the rave scene and I did a lot of gym. I still have gym flashbacks to this day.
what i hate about wii fit is it convinces nintendo that there really isn't any point in pursuing there actual gaming franchises and simply pumping out shit like this, wii play, wii sports, and wii music is all they need to do.
Wii Fit and GTA IV both suck.
FALSE.
FAIL
It comes off as a knee-jerk reaction when you put it that way, but in my experience, both were disappointing games.
And as a fitness tool, Wii Fit is a useless gimmick. You can get two months at a health club for what it costs, and the health club will do you far more good.
and 2 months at a health club helps you HOW exactly once those 2 months are up? Wii Fit lasts for as long as you don't break it. Longer-term investment.
Seriously are they just making up the supply shortage now, because I was at target last night and saw about ten of them on the shelf.
"Seriously are they just making up the supply shortage now"
Like Yoda talks you do why?
@phil
yaaa last time I checked "now shortage the up making just they are seriously" doesn't sound like Yoda at all. Yea I should have put a ? at the end but really what are you talking about.
Yeah, I saw that after I posted... At first I just read it as a straight sentence and it just didn't parse right. It wasn't until after I hit "add comment" that I thought, "Phil, you boob, it was probably a question minus the punctuation." Meh. It's late. Yeah, that's my excuse....
Save your tears for when Wii Music sells twice as much as Wii Fit.
From what I read Wii Music is not selling as well as they hoped over in Japan. It sold 50k the first day which is good but compared to other games (from nintendowiifanboy) its kinda low.
Super Mario Galaxy: 130,000 on day one*
Super Smash Bros. Brawl: 500,000 on day one *
Wii Fit: 254,000 in first two days
Mario Kart Wii: 594,000 in first four days
Wii Sports: 176,167 in first two days
Wii Play: 175,297 in first two days
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess: 139,011 in first two days
Wario: Smooth Moves: 63,954 in first two days
* Source is Japanese industry blogger Sinobi, and is thus classed as rumor.
At least this shows that just because it has Wii in its name it doesnt sell like crazy.
I have a wii fit and I use it regularly. Although I probably would of stopped if it wasn't for my whole family using it too. Lots of people using it kind of encourages everyone to keep going. I would be easy to quit if I was alone.
"...would of stopped..."
The word you are looking for is "have". Would've != Would of. Would've = Would have.
Oh God, I hope not.
I don't even have a 360 or a PStriple but I'll buy three copies of GTV IV for both systems just to fix this statistic.
Prove it.
Send 'em to me.
I'm buying the pc version for sure. I don't have a console but I'll be buys a new vid card just to make sure I can get my 1920x1080 gaming on.
Because god forbid that two great games with two very different styles and audiences both have amazing sales. Yes, come to think of it, the fact that a Nintendo game sold a tonne of copies will mean that there will never be a next generation of xbox to replace my 360 because a 360 title only sold...a tonne of copies.
It's only a matter of time before Nintendo will enslave us all! They've already kidnapped Kim Jong Il and will introduce him as our new world leader in a matter of days. He'll use the Wii Fit to train us all for North Korean-style parades. Our only hope is to buy more copies of GTA4!!!
The Xbox needs a fit game.
I am not about to buy a stinking Wii just to have a fitness game.
It's called Yourself!Fitness for the original Xbox, it's backwards compatible, can probably be had used for $5, came out a million years ago and has the same metacritic score as Wii Fit.
why did he get low ranked for suggesting there be an Xbox fit game? it's not a terrrrrible idea.
DDR can provide for a good workout...Though it doesn't focus on any one area, you really look like a fool when playing it, and the music sucks more than half the time...So yeah I suppose the Xbox (PS3 as well) could use something like this!
Good good.
I'd rather have a society of young attractive fit people walking around than a bunch of mushy wanna-be incompetent car-jackers to be!
or perhaps you would like all our children to purchase the latest copy of Drug 'N Thug for Playstation over a family game...
Ya unfortunately most people I know that have Wii Fit don't use it anymore....so is it really useful if people don't use it? Its like any of the millions of exercise machines that end up being used as coat hangers....
"...hardcore video game franchise"
Hardcore? As a video game elitist I seriously doubt the GTA series as "hardcore" in the gaming sense. In content, sure it's hardcore. But Games like Madden, GTA, and Halo aren't what should eb considered "hardcore."
After reading that I was going to comment the same thing. GTA is far from hardcore gamer material.
Indeed. GTA is about as casual as you can get.
Oh GTA IV is TOTALLY casual, what with the assortment of mini-games like bowling, darts, pool, and those arcade games. Oh wait, then there's also the 40+ hours of gameplay on the average playthrough of just the main storyline, the pigeons (Hidden Packages) to rid the city of, all the stunt jumps, races, achievements/trophies that require you to log on when the developers are playing, and all the side missions...Yeah, sounds totally geared towards that casual audience to me.
There is only one way to describe this.
And that word is "atrocity".
Back in my day Hard-Core was Dr. Jeckle and Mr. Hyde, Ghosts and Gobblins and Summer Carnival Recca 98...
Games that were... HARD!
level 1 would leave you curled up in a ball, in the corner of the room, with the control pad shaking in your hands...
You speak truth. I lost a friend to Gauntlet. RIP, Lil' Pete! "Warroir needs food badly" indeed.
i remember a couple of years ago i mom wanted a dance dance revolution mat because they say it helps you lose wight
that lasted for about two weeks before ending up in a closet till this day
all im saying is this seems to be a very common thing for the wii fit as well
Yeah, interesting article...
But did anyone else get dizzy from looking at the picture?
I just threw up all over my keyboard thanks to your comment. You owe me 50$ ;-)
Mines attached to the ceiling.
One of the reasons I got a Wii was to get the Wii fit. I've been using it regularly, and it has helped me lose weight, at least. It beats paying to go to the gym, which is too far away, or getting a personal trainer. My friends have found it to be very fun, and can't get enough of it. Right now, it's got only three games (Fit, Ski, Music), and it's selling this well. What would happen if it's actually got a great game to take advantage of it?
There are people who say that they stopped using the Wii fit after just a short period. For any kind of exercise tool, it's a fad unless you stick to the regimen, and you'll be unfit/obese anyways. Think of all those ab-shapers and treadmills that gather dust in people's homes. The Wii fit is slightly different in that it provides variety and a record of your progress, and makes exercising more interesting/entertaining. But it still requires you to get off your lazy butt and use it, and if you're chronically lazy, you won't use it. I think Nintendo is doing America a favor by offering an excuse to shape up.
In other words, I'm not surprised that it's sold so well. It's just finding one to buy that's hard.
I'm with you on that. Since I started regularly using Wii Fit about 3 months ago (primarily doing the free run for 20-30 minutes each morning, plus a set of jackknife exercises, up to 50 right now), I've lost 40+ lbs. Yes, part of that is eating better and watching my caloric intake, but Wii Fit has played a motivating part in it all. Just the other day, I finally got it to stop chirping "That's obese!" at me; now it's "That's overweight!". Ultimately, I'm just happy to be below 200 lbs. for the first time in nearly a decade. And I have Nintendo to thank for that.
This makes me want to go out and get gta4 for the ps3.
My wii is collecting dust. Just got a 360...a gamers console, but my game platform of choice is still PC.
Typical gamer feet. Look for wider feet due to heavy mass and giant big toes without trimming due to always wearing low-quality sneakers. The real giveaway is using socks too small for his feet (aimed at young children) just to use the promotional products given to him as a present after booth babes perceived the foul smell of rotten Chettos™ coming from his sweatpants he got just for the event, during the presentation of said product.
Projection based on vgchartz.com numbers. That's right. Enough said.
prolly because driving is so fcking annoying in gta4...
I bought a Wii Fit for the girlfriend for her birthday in September. Since then I've used it twice and she's yet to create a profile for herself. So the buzz alone made her ask for the thing, god know if she'll ever use it. Maybe I can show her the girl hool-a-hooping in her underwear video as motivation.
Can the Wii fit even be considered in the same category as GTA IV. Can it even be considered a game? Ive never used Wii fit, nor will I ever, (I can use a real gym thank you very much) but from what I have seen on commercials it doesn't really seem like a game but more like an interactive Susan Sommers video.
Can GTA4 really be said to be a game? I've never used it, but from what I've seen in video, it doesn't really look like a game but more an interactive 50 Cent song.
;)
I own Wii Fit. I also owned all three GTA games for the PS2. But by the time I played San Andreas, I lost interest.
When I was 25 I thought I'd be playing video games forever, but as I've gotten older, I've put my childish toys away.
Say what you want about the 3 competitors in this generation of gaming consoles, but Nintendo got it right. No super-duper graphics. No hard drives. No online gaming (?). Just innovation, and appealing to a broader audience. How 'bout that.
Not surprising. A product that is even remotely popular with the general public is going to outsell something that is only popular with the niche hardcore gaming crowd. It's apples to oranges people. Even calling Wii Fit a video game is a stretch, so you really can't compare them. If you didn't need a Wii to "play" Wii Fit it would REALLY outsell GTA IV and every other game ever made.
Think about it. It's cheaper than a gym membership and comes on a system that makes a bunch of games your kids can play. Nintendo, sadly enough, has succeeded in their marketing strategy of selling systems and platforms to your mom and grandma.
Why so down on Nintendo? The gaming industry still has their 360s and PS3s for the hardcore gamers. Why should the moms and grandmas be denied modern interactive entertainment just because you have a snooty attitude towards casual gaming. If any other company put out a device like this, it wouldn't be an issue. But because Nintendo, who in the past has been strictly a video game company, decides to change their core focus, everyone gets all worked up about it. Nintendo has expanded their market and is now appealing to a larger audience. They're now an interactive entertainment company, not a video game company. If you don't like it, go back to your 360 and PS3 and be happy, that's what I did.
It's great that the Wii Fit is contributing to people wanting to be fit while playing a video game. But you can also point out to the Wii audience, mainly older boomers and young women, that for the price of a pair of sweats, sneakers and some light dumbbells they can get a superior workout.
Light dumbbells provide a superior workout? NOW who's the being the dumbbell?
Two pages of comments and still no conclusion as to where to buy those socks? I'm disappointed :P