Topic: Wii Makes Toys "R" Us "Hot Toy" List

[Rize]

Wii takes its place alongside 10th anniversary Tickle Me Elmo doll; Nintendo fanboys riot.

Toys "R" Us has added Wii to its list of hot toys for the 2006 holiday season.  Wii will be the first video game console to make the annual list.  Besides the obvious criterion of appealing to a younger audience, Wii will also meet the criterion of being available in sufficient quantities, something that newly launching consoles generally fail to do.    

Nintendo, with its "Donkey Kong," "Mario Brothers" and "Pokemon" game franchises, has found success with a younger audience.    

"The PlayStation 3 is really geared to a savvy gaming enthusiast," said Kathleen Waugh, a spokeswoman for Toys "R" Us, of the decision to add the Wii to the list. "The Wii system appeals to young kids as well as adults."    

...    

Waugh said one of Toys "R" Us' criteria of adding an item to its hot list is knowing it will have sufficient stock of the item for the holiday season, and she said that Toys "R" Us was able to ensure that by "taking a leadership position on the launch of Wii."    

Other items on the list include a 10th anniversary Tickle Me Elmo doll and a Fisher-Price digital camera.    

Special thanks to retired staffer Max D. Lake for the tip!

[Acefondu]

Nintendo will never relieve itself from the perceived "kid" image by the masses. As far as Toys R Us goes I've always loved their stores and I wouldn't mind buying my Wii there. Heck, it may be the place to be to avoid long lines at popular outlets like Gamestop and Best Buy.

[WindyMan]

Quote
Originally posted by: Acefondu
Nintendo will never relieve itself from the perceived "kid" image by the masses. As far as Toys R Us goes I've always loved their stores and I wouldn't mind buying my Wii there. Heck, it may be the place to be to avoid long lines at popular outlets like Gamestop and Best Buy.

There are going to be long lines everywhere.  Don't kid yourself.

[Rize]

I agree with Windy.  Desparate moms and Nintendo fans will hunt down every last Wii until there are none left.  Better get yourself a preorder!

[Neodymium]

Man, am I sick of the perception PS3 is for game enthusiasts.

It's for softcore morons. (The beauty of PGC is my ability to say that.)

[NinGurl69 *huggles]

Quote
Originally posted by: Neodymium
Man, am I sick of the perception PS3 is for game enthusiasts.

It's for softcore morons. (The beauty of PGC is my ability to say that.)

AHAHAHAHAAHHAHAHAH

Bravo

[Rize]

Quote
Originally posted by: Neodymium
Man, am I sick of the perception PS3 is for game enthusiasts.

It's for softcore morons. (The beauty of PGC is my ability to say that.)

I guess we don't have enough PS3 fanboys here to worry about that turning into a flamefest.  

Although I somewhat disagree.  A truly avid gamer will probably have to get a PS3 eventually.  Just as the PS2 had a few truly great exclusives like SotC and Ico (among others), the PS3 will have them as well.  And those are just 1st party.  There's no particular reason why the wonderful Dragon Quest VIII couldn't have appeared on other platforms, but that doesn't change the fact that a PS2 is the only way to play it.  And so it will be with the PS3.  

That said, I'm not touching the PS3 launch with a ten foot pole.

[WindyMan]

Quote
Originally posted by: Rize

Quote
Originally posted by: Neodymium
Man, am I sick of the perception PS3 is for game enthusiasts.

It's for softcore morons. (The beauty of PGC is my ability to say that.)

I guess we don't have enough PS3 fanboys here to worry about that turning into a flamefest.  

Although I somewhat disagree.  A truly avid gamer will probably have to get a PS3 eventually.  Just as the PS2 had a few truly great exclusives like SotC and Ico (among others), the PS3 will have them as well.  And those are just 1st party.  There's no particular reason why the wonderful Dragon Quest VIII couldn't have appeared on other platforms, but that doesn't change the fact that a PS2 is the only way to play it.  And so it will be with the PS3.  

That said, I'm not touching the PS3 launch with a ten foot pole.

Thank god the PS3 is so expensive.  It's easy to convince myself to not get it right away because of it.  (I wasn't so lucky with the 360, though. :| )  I want it eventually, however.

[Rize]

haha, same here Windy.  At least gears of war is coming in November (unless they pushed that back too) for the 360.  Hopefully they had enough time to finish it and make it good.  If not... well, there's always next year.  Hope my 360 lasts that long.

[trip1eX]

OOOH TRU taking a leadership position on the Wii.  Way to go Tru.

[Ceric]

If Sony keeps shooting themselves in the foot, the 360 might replace them outright.  But the space on that disc means means the ps3 will keep FF with ultra realistic cutscenes.  Which will happen every other move. ;P

[KDR_11k]

Although I somewhat disagree. A truly avid gamer will probably have to get a PS3 eventually.

You could say the same about the Neo Geo. Having a good game or two does not make a console a must-buy, especially a 600€ console. Of course it's a console for the gotta-buy-all-consoles-at-launch gamers, who else would buy that thing?

[couchmonkey]

PS3 is the greatest, shut up!

Nintendo will always be TEH I LOVE HALO 2, but that's what I like about it.  It's the Yin to PS3's Yang.  I need BOTH to survive!

[Rize]

Quote
Originally posted by: KDR_11k
Although I somewhat disagree. A truly avid gamer will probably have to get a PS3 eventually.

You could say the same about the Neo Geo. Having a good game or two does not make a console a must-buy, especially a 600€ console. Of course it's a console for the gotta-buy-all-consoles-at-launch gamers, who else would buy that thing?

That is misleading.  There will be a 500 dollar version (with HDMI no less) and of course the price will eventually drop.  I definitely wouldn't recommend a PS3 at launch, of course.

[Neodymium]

Quote
Originally posted by: KDR_11k
Although I somewhat disagree. A truly avid gamer will probably have to get a PS3 eventually.

You could say the same about the Neo Geo. Having a good game or two does not make a console a must-buy, especially a 600€ console. Of course it's a console for the gotta-buy-all-consoles-at-launch gamers, who else would buy that thing?

Yeah, but Neo had good games that were arcade-perfect at a time when arcade was *the* experience.

PS3 has giant enemy crabs and a dead-end movie format.

[Rize]

A dead end movie format?  I see nothing indicating that either HD format will be the victor yet.  And don't stick your head in the sand.  A 500 dollar launch PS3 with HDMI and a ton of movie studio's on board is very tempting to early adopters.  The Microsoft 200 dollar add on solution has very distinct lack of HDMI problems (which means lack of proper 1080p).

[Ceric]

HDMI was the best thing to happen to the low-end PS3 and makes it a viable and maybe even attractive option for those who want a Blu-ray player first and a game console second.

[KDR_11k]

From what I see stores only take preorders for the 600€ version and from what I heard Sony ships more 600€ systems by a 4:1 ratio.