Nintendo Wii..... (1 Viewer)

[Chris]

Rayman is great. Haven't played paper mario yet (is it even released?) Elebits is great fun, and probably one of those titles that teaches you the most about how the Wiimote & Numchuk could be used. I'd recommend you look at Wario Smooth Moves.

 

[David Williams]

Super Paper Mario will be released on 4/9 according to the amusing press release Nintendo put out announcing the marriage of Princess Peach and Bowser.

 

[Patrick Sun]

Went to a get-together cookout with some old friends, and a Wii party broke out. Most of my friends seem to have a good time with their first taste of Wii Sports.

Before the guys got their chance, many of their children were in attendance and they had a lot of fun with bowling. I spaced and didn't take any photos of the kids bowling. Doh! The kids really were interested in one another's success at the bowling alley.

 

[Steve Y]

Bump...

Amazing that almost a year after its release, people are still lining up before the stores open. I tried my hand this morning at Toys R Us (before the store opened) but was turned away because their supply only made it to the first part of the line (people had lawn chairs and everything). Apparently dozens of people were lining up all around town. I think it is a combination of short supply and reseller "buy-ups" creating a mad shortage and hype which shows no signs of stopping. The console itself is perhaps not worthy of this amount of hype; I just want a chance to play Super Mario Galaxy before 2009! I may just have to depend on friends for that pleasure.

Update: I live in an area where it is only possible to "pick up and buy" this system with a lot of luck, or a lot of patience. I had to settle for patience; I waited in line for three hours this weekend (finally got one) but saw many, many people turned away (even people who showed up an hour before). I asked some of the people in line, and reports from around the valley indicated that all shipments were sold out by 10 am at every B&M. Expensive bundles are popping up online, but demand is still high. It's good news that Nintendo will ship 2+ million more units than initially forecast this year.

 

[Todd H]

I'm about ready to give up trying to find one. Since I work and have a newborn, I can't wait in line like many others can. And I'm definitely not paying inflated eBay prices. Oh well.

 

[Matt^Brown]

I am shocked by how hard it is to find a Wii as well. I lucked out and got one from CC last year for my kids before Christmas. I figured with in 2 months they would be everywhere. Well I guess I was correct since they are everywhere I look but that happens to be in everyone's living room. Heck my best friends mom bought one. She is 58 years old!! I don't know what is going with this thing.

P.S. -- I still like the 360 just a little better but that Wii sure is fun.

 

[jim lupi]

If you keep your eye out you can pick one up on ebay for about $30-$40 over retail w shipping. not really bad if theres no taxes

 

[Doug Miller]

I was at Target yesterday and they had a case full of them. I've also been seeing them pretty often at the local Fred Meyers. I believe Tuesday is their shipment days. Don't give up, there are a lot of them out there.

Doug

 

[Bob_L]

They even had a shipment at my local Costco about 10 days ago!! Although the shipment they received in the morning was almost gone by mid-afternoon.

Still, if you have just a little patience these days, I don't think there is any need to pay an eBay premium now to get a Wii.

 

[drobbins]

We have had our Wii since last Christmas and have used it some but not excessively. We just purchased Metroid Prime 3 and I have noticed that the unit is very loud. Almost to the point of having to turn up the TV to drown it out. Is anyone else having this issue?

 

[Aaron Silverman]

I was in Toys R Us today and even they had one left. (Almost pulled the trigger just for the hell of it, but I *just* got the PS3 and don't even have a TV yet.)

I think the Wii supply is finally starting to catch up to demand. Should be gettable for the holidays.

 

[Jeremy Little]

My Best Buy location has 150 in stock, shortage over. At least for another month and a half.

 

[Aaron Silverman]

Thassa lotta Wii!!!

 

[Steve Y]

Nice to hear that they're showing up all around the country. In my area it's still statistically unlikely that any consumer can "walk in and pick up", but major online retailers had them for sale (not even the bundles!) for more than an hour the other day, and Costco and Target have both experienced large shipments as well.

Demand still outpaces supply (expect them to become more unavailable again as the holidays approach), but that's nothing unexpected. For the time being "the impossible" has become "the plausible".

I don't have a lot of time in front of the TV nowadays, but the various Wii channels and Virtual Console games are very enjoyable for a "casual game" like me. And Super Mario Galaxy can't come quickly enough - that game looks incredible.

 

[TonyTone]

This probably should go under the category of "A day late and a dollar short", but FWIW--some Southern California (Orange County area) Marshall's stores apparently received a shipment of Wii consoles--brand-new, BTW--and were selling them for $199.99 yesterday--no BS, no catch! Most of these stores are undoubtedly OOS by now, but I read that some stores might get some more in at a later (undetermined) date. Why was this post newsworthy? One--the fact that these units (brand-new) were being sold for $200; two--that they were being sold by Marshall's; for those of you who may be unfamiliar w/ the Marshall's store chain--they are a discount store chain, similar to Ross or Big Lots...IOW--Marshall's is neither an electronics store in the same vein as Best Buy or Circuit City, nor is it a store chain similar to the Targets and Walmarts of the world.

 

[DaveF]

I'll pre-apologize for asking what I could figure out on my own...

I could use a summary of what is needed for an initial Wii purchase for two players. And are there any games with 2p coop mode, like Lego Star Wars?

We're thinking about a Fall or Holiday purchase and I'd like to tally up the cost to see if it fits in our budget.

 

[Jeff Jacobson]

In addition to the Wii, you'll need another Wii remote. (There is a game called WiiPlay that comes with a remote that costs $10 more than buying a remote separately.) The Wii Sports game that comes with the Wii has some two player games. In the tennis game you can either play against the other player or you can both play against the computer. (Or you can get more remotes and you can both play against other humans.)

 

[ChristopherG]

I was able to order one off the Toys R Us website for retail price and had it delivered in less than a week. They do seem much more "available" at the moment.

I purchased this as a Christmas gift for the family and I only have a 30 day window to return it - do you guys think I should unpackage it and fire it up to be sure?

 

[DaveF]

It makes sense to test it to make sure it's functional -- but once you do will it get repackaged?

For a Wii set, are additional controller add-ons required: the "nunchuks"? Or is that part of the controller provided with the Wii and with the WiiPay kit?

 

[DaveF]

Predictions are difficult, especially about the future... Is there any news or solid speculation on Wii availability for this Christmas season? I have no interest in playing scavenger hunt to buy a Wii; nor can I comprehend why Nintendo would sacrifice profit on intentionally limited supplies. But a year later and the Wii is still hard to find. If it's going to be difficult to find, I'd rather not make plans on getting one. Any thoughts?