Topic: Email Nintendo and tell them you HATE the name!

[eljefe]

yeah I told 'em to keep it
and continue THE DISRUPT

wii is fresh

[Kairon]

The only ones who will get Nintendo to change the name are third parties.

~Carmine M. Red
Kairon@aol.com

[Smash_Brother]

First of all, your praise weighed against the river of hate they must be receiving is a whisper on a scream.

Second, the ONLY way Nintendo can succeed with this name is if they market the ever-loving F*CK out of it.

I mean every 10th ad I see on TV had better be for the Wii and I don't think I'm even exaggerating.

If Nintendo can basically push the name so far into the American mindset that people will overlook how silly it is, then it'll probably succeed.

HOWEVER, if history has shown us anything, it's that Nintendo just doesn't advertise its products enough to get the concept across. Do we REALLY expect them to pony up enough of a marketing budget to see to it that Wii becomes the household name it needs to become?

I admit I'm less angry now, but I'm still very much CONCERNED. I hope I'm wrong, but unless they GET THE WORD OUT, Wii will just be another failed marketing concept like "OK Soda" (anyone else remember it?).

[Dasmos]

Mod: Personal insults are against the forum rules and can result in your account being banned.  This is your only warning.

I'm sorry.

[odilon]

"You (and Bill) are defending a lost cause, the name is horrible and thats really all there is to it."

"Im also not dismissing anyone's opinions..."

Hm.  

Personally, I have no problems with the name.  I think it has a certain charm to it.
This needless bickering is already getting old, though.

[mantidor]

I really dont like the attitude of "keep the name because everyone hates it" , and yeah really after all we are hardly a factor, Nintendo was supposedly going after people who dont play games, and a name like "Wii" isnt going to turn their heads and make them think that maybe gaming is a good thing. They will try the controller if Nintendo is smart enough to make everyone out there to try it and they will buy it, they will still think is a silly/stupid/empty/"wtf?" name though.

 

[Michael8983]

"For years now every time something negative comes up regarding Nintendo the same people defend it and say it won't matter. Yet the Cube was a failure. Compared to what Nintendo was aiming for the Cube was a complete disaster and the Rev will be a disaster if it suffers the same fate. So stop saying we'll all get used to this or this won't matter because all those things that supposedly didn't matter with the Cube DID"

Says who?
We don't know that the Gamecube would have sold any better with a realistic Zelda - or online titles and a more generic design and color for that matter. It's easy to blame the console's limited success on what you perceive as mistakes Nintendo made but there's no way of knowing they really made much of a difference. Honestly, they probably did hurt sales but I doubt we're talking millions of units and the difference between second and third-place.
The only really obvious thing that hurt the Gamecube in a major way was the lack of third-party support. Especially exclusives. The Wii already seems to be doing much better in that regard. It's getting exclusive titles and even exclusive versions of games as opposed to the lame often inferior ports the Gamecube was always stuck with. The shift of third-party support to Sony a couple of generations ago is what cost Nintendo it's title as leader in the industry. If it can win back that support which it seems to be doing, the "wii" will be Nintendo's most successful console in a decade regardless of what people think of the name.

[Infernal Monkey]

Hey guys I am complaining on the internet about the name of a video game machine because I will feel very insecure about saying 'wee' out loud. Please agree with how awkward this is for me okay. We can send some emails and everything.

[31 Flavas]

Quote
Originally posted by: mantidor
Dreamcast is an awesome game!

Also, is lovely how Kaplan treats Nintendo's fanbase "deal with it"? seriously is that her response? I know that boy-cotting the rev is just silly but I might do it because I f!king hate that arrogant attitude "you will by anything we give you even if we name it like crap". Thats just disgusting, the name is irrelevant afterall but you never should treat your customers that way. Stupid woman.

Edit: ok I read the whole interview and I took it out of context thanks in part to bill's commentary sorry bill it wasnt that bad and I retire my criticism. Ill call it rev or revolution anyway Kaplan but thanks for the suggestion.

Honestly though, is it any different then Nintendo has treated you before?

Kaplan is just telling you to take a chill pill dude. Stop acting like video games have to be such a serious thing.  

[Smash_Brother]

Quote
Originally posted by: Michael8983
Says who?
We don't know that the Gamecube would have sold any better with a realistic Zelda - or online titles and a more generic design and color for that matter.

I will bet organs that TP will outsell WW. Organs.

[Smash_Brother]

Quote
Originally posted by: Infernal Monkey
Hey guys I am complaining on the internet about the name of a video game machine because I will feel very insecure about saying 'wee' out loud. Please agree with how awkward this is for me okay. We can send some emails and everything.

I'm complaining on the internet because the last Nintendo home console I bought is still gathering dust right now because it didn't follow through with good 3rd party support through its life span and I don't want the next console to suffer the same fate.

It's one thing to make a console which doesn't aim at hardcore gamers. It's another entirely to try to intentionally alienate them with a god-awful name. It's like Nintendo actually must have said, "We don't need their money."

It's bullsh*t: Nintendo DOES need their money, especially if they can't pull the non-gamer numbers that they're hoping to pull, and I don't see how slapping a ridiculous pun for a name on a console is going to suddenly make it appeal to non-gamers.

The Revolution was a sound concept which I think could have sold JUST fine as the "Revolution". It didn't need to give potential buyers yet ONE more reason to not buy it. There's already a long list of reasons the average gamer won't buy a Nintendo console and I don't think that banking on non-gamers when we've never seen if they'll ACTUALLY pick up a console is a horrible idea.

I know the blue ocean strategy is supposed to do this, but having a fallback net of GAMERS who like what you're selling is just common sense.

It just seems like one gamble too many. "Wii" doesn't mean anything to anyone and unless Nintendo is willing to drop the BIIIIG bucks on an advertising campaign, then it never will.

[mantidor]

Im sure that NoE's marketing department must be at the point of suicide. In the Uk the name is... well, its obvious, in France its confusing, in German they wont even pronounce it right, not to mention how it heavily resembles WWII and the connotations that has for european countries.

Id like to see what KDR thinks though and would love to be proved wrong about the future of the console in Europe.

[Smash_Brother]

Yeah, I saw the WWII connection as well and wondered about that.

Most unknowing people who read it (ie non-gamers. ie Nintendo's alleged target market) might think of it in that direction.

[jasonditz]

Quote
Originally posted by: Smash_Brother

Quote
Originally posted by: Michael8983
Says who?
We don't know that the Gamecube would have sold any better with a realistic Zelda - or online titles and a more generic design and color for that matter.

I will bet organs that TP will outsell WW. Organs.

I might take that bet at this point, but I don't need any organs.

TP would've sold better, and moved more Cubes, if it had been released when WW was... It would've outsold it if we'd seen it for Xmas of 2005. By the time we see it, frankly, I think the Cube's going to be the last thing on most peoples' minds. Even Nintendo fans have stopped caring about the Cube. TP is going to face the same obstacle that MM did: it's so late in the system's life it feels like an afterthought.

[BigJim]

Nintendo wants to make the Nike, Amazon, Virgin, and iPod comparisons... well that's fine. But surely they must be aware that none of those unique brands took off right away. The same can easily happen to Wii.

iPod was on the market for almost 2 years before it's "boom" in the 2004 holiday season, and 3 years until the Shuffle came out and took them to new heights.  They need to start brand and product awareness NOW if they want to accomplish what they claim. And I don't mean just plugging it on the interwebs to us and in magazines... but POP awareness, and mainstream awareness. And advertising it like the freaking dickins *everywhere*.

This is going to be a hellacious year for their marketing dept. if they have a plan that even remotely does it right. Otherwise their best hope is a fly-by-night brand that drops out of popular consciousness just as quickly as it came. And in 5 years, they can't just drop it once they start it rolling. The next console will have to be the "Super Wii" or whatever.

I haven't seen any good marketing out of them in years, so consider me concerned. They can brand it whatever stupid name they want, but if they don't have a plan to make it stick, they're done before they began.    

[nemo_83]

I've slept on it, the name ran through my head all morning, and now I hate it worse than I did yesterday just because it interupted my sleep.  

[zakkiel]

Quote
Originally posted by: mantidor
Im sure that NoE's marketing department must be at the point of suicide. In the Uk the name is... well, its obvious, in France its confusing, in German they wont even pronounce it right, not to mention how it heavily resembles WWII and the connotations that has for european countries.

Id like to see what KDR thinks though and would love to be proved wrong about the future of the console in Europe.

Actually, I think Germany has it the best. "Vii," while still bad, beats the crap out of "Wii."

[the1st_fret]

When i heard the name this morning, I thought what the hell? And I rushed to nintendo.com for answers. And you know what? the second I saw the logo, I was won over and I took back everything I'd thought negative about wii instantly. Just take a look at that logo. I didnt need to, but seems alot of people really need to go back and stare at it. I saw the logo 'Wii' and it just felt right. It looked like the sort of logo you'd see on a phone or some futuristic gadget that everyone 'has to have' And the description underneath offered even more comfort. Wii feels like its short for something, even though its not.

I think people are afraid of the name because its very unusual. But this was what excited me. It was unusual, it scared me, just like the controller did when I first saw it. But it wasn't a negative fear. It was a really exciting, rush, kind of fear.

What do you feel when you get on a rollercoaster?, you are "SCARED TO DEATH",

I think Nintendo have made the right choice with the name and the logo, its beautiful.

so what are people gonna say about wii? :

Man 1 : I hear Nintendo's new machine is called wii.
Man 2 : Really? that sounds weird.

And i reckon that will be the extent of it worldwide. How can the name bring Nintendo negative attention whe they get hardly any attention anyway. It will make people remember that Nintendo are still here and maybe they have something Very special, its new, its out of this world and its gonna be huge.

Trust me, when you see the logo in the shops, it will all make sence.


EDIT: I'd just like to say since when has a new console name ever sounded good when it was first launched??? I remember thinking the name dreamcast was daft, I remember thinking N64 was daft, hell, I remember even thinkin playstation sounded daft!!! I just found myself going back to nintendo.com and every time I watch that little flash intro, wii feels ever more familiar. The more you see it, the more it'll make sence. Go back and try it for yourself. Oh and one last thing...

But now Nintendo needs you. Because its not really about you or me, its about Wii. And together, Wii will change everything.

[Ian Sane]

"Perrin says 'Hey'...What are you haters going to do? Not buy the system because of the name? Have fun with that"

I probably won't.  I don't think the Wii has a chance in hell of succeeding in North America so there's no point in buying it.  By Christmas 2007 I'll be able to pick it up cheap in a bargain bin.  No point buying a console I know has no future.  I don't care about a name but I think a lot of people will. So why waste my money on a console that I think is going to bomb?

My prediction is Nintendo will call it the Wii and initially it will sell out because of hardcore Nintendo fans.  However after the initial launch period the sales will drop like a rock.  Nintendo will then rename the thing and "relaunch" in North America with a new ad campaign and it will sell much better.  "Wii" will remain the name in Japan, something else will be used in North America, and in Europe it will have never been called "Wii" because they'll see how grossly unpopular it is in North America and wisely rename it prior to the European launch.

[mantidor]

DreamCast is awesome! why do I have to repeat that? Its an awesome name for an entertainment product.

And I love the name GameCube, I loved it more when the logo was revealed, because the GC logo is just genius.

So I dont know what you are talking about, "Wii" sounds and will sound bad forever in my head, I cant even tolerate it anymore T_T.

[Mario]

Quote
Originally posted by: Ian Sane
"Perrin says 'Hey'...What are you haters going to do? Not buy the system because of the name? Have fun with that"

I probably won't.  I don't think the Wii has a chance in hell of succeeding in North America so there's no point in buying it.  By Christmas 2007 I'll be able to pick it up cheap in a bargain bin.  No point buying a console I know has no future.  I don't care about a name but I think a lot of people will. So why waste my money on a console that I think is going to bomb?

My prediction is Nintendo will call it the Wii and initially it will sell out because of hardcore Nintendo fans.  However after the initial launch period the sales will drop like a rock.  Nintendo will then rename the thing and "relaunch" in North America with a new ad campaign and it will sell much better.  "Wii" will remain the name in Japan, something else will be used in North America, and in Europe it will have never been called "Wii" because they'll see how grossly unpopular it is in North America and wisely rename it prior to the European launch.

Thank you, that's the funniest thing i've ever read in my entire life.

[Caliban]

<sarcasm> We've got a Nostradamus in the forum! </sarcasm>

[PaLaDiN]

Okay Ian, have fun avoiding a console whose name you "don't care about" because of its name... and what your no doubt extensive marketing experience tells you other people will think about it. Because after all, market success is more important than having fun. Your dollars shouldn't go towards buying things to have fun with, they should go toward guaranteeing you belong in a group that will get fun things later.

I'm with Deguello. Enough with the immaturity... one day was all right, I assumed you all weren't that serious. Now it's just... kind of sad.

[Smash_Brother]

Quote
Originally posted by: BigJim I haven't seen any good marketing out of them in years, so consider me concerned. They can brand it whatever stupid name they want, but if they don't have a plan to make it stick, they're done before they began.

This is my concern exactly: the iPod is advertised everywhere, all the damn time, all over the damn place. You can't go through any city without seeing an iPod ad.

Unless the "wee" gets that kind of advertising coverage, I don't see it doing well either.

[31 Flavas]

Quote
Originally posted by: Ian Sane

My prediction is Nintendo will call it the Wii and initially it will sell out because of hardcore Nintendo fans.  However after the initial launch period the sales will drop like a rock.

Hm... where have we heard this "absolutely true" prediction before.... Oh yea, with the DS. So much for that prediction, the PSP crushing GBA and DS, and the Nintendo is doomed stuff all being true.