Wii Sports Densetsu

Wii Sports was a masterstroke for Nintendo.

It had been several generations since any console shipped with a pack in title, most companies to that date had abandoned the practice to cut upfront costs to the consumer, letting them choose what their first game would be.   Looking back, it would have seemed quaint for jaded gamers at that time to "have" to get Wii Sports with their system, but the move wasn't aimed at jaded gamers.  It was part of a very carefully orchestrated marketing plan aimed at generating a new consumer base, just like Sony did with the PlayStation two generations earlier.  I'll bet most people reading this can think of at least one family gathering where a non-gaming elder broke a vase or something while playing Wii, and they probably had a great time doing it

I've touched on this before, but the Wii really was a revolution.  Not only was the controller unique, it was approachable in ways that the XBOX controller and the Dual Shock 2 just weren't.  The commercials showed families in white clothes and white living rooms playing with what looked like a white TV remote.  It was a far cry from the social construct of the anti-social gamer of the past or even the dark and edgy "mature" gamer we liked to see ourselves as.  It was pure, simple fun, and anyone could play it.

Consider the nature of most AAA or "hardcore" games.  Generally, the activities are outside the realm of everyday interaction.   You're saving the world or a princess, or whatever, and usually killing a lot of people to do so.  Maybe you're becoming the King of the Iron Fist, or colonizing an alien planet, or fighting off zombies. My point is, the activities are pretty abstracted from what most people would do, and that's why gamers like them.  The escapism is a huge draw.  But the downside is that, like the controller, these gameplay types aren't approachable.

Conversely, Wii Sports was welcoming to new players because everyone knows baseball, golf, tennis, boxing and bowling.  Swinging a bat or racquet are familiar motions.  Nintendo was smart enough to simplify the games to the point where there was only one basic interaction with the game.  Swing, roll, or punch.  That's all.   Familiar, intuitive and SO fun. 

Combined with the marketing campaign and a sort of viral evangelism among players to "convert" their non-playing family, and you had the best selling console of last generation and a lot of those sales were made to first time console buyers.

Now, those people play Candy Crush or Kim Kardashian: Hollywood while their Wiis collect dust in the attic.  Well... at least they're gaming.