Are Video Games Art?

If it's $500, analysts don't expect great sales

(AP) - The upcoming Wii U, part tablet computer, part game machine, could help Nintendo surpass its rivals once again. But not until we know how much it will set us back—investors so far are skeptical of that and other unknowns, and the company's stock has fallen 10% since the Wii U's unveiling this week. Expectations for the new machine have been high following the original Wii's roaring success. Wii U, which will go on sale next year, features a motion-sensing controller with a tablet-like touch screen and high-definition graphics. Only the tablet screen feature will be unique to the Wii U. More»

Lack of hit games hits sales

(NEWSER) - With hit games few and far between, consumers aren’t exactly fighting in the aisles to get their hands on a Wii anymore. Nintendo slashed its full year sales forecast for Wii hardware 23% yesterday, the Wall Street Journal reports, and offered little hope of a swift turnaround. “Right now, the mood is not one where people feel like they have to rush out and buy a Wii,” Nintendo president Satoru Iwata told analysts. “We need a little time for things to pick up.” More»

Console maker slashes price at opening of Tokyo Game Show

(NEWSER) - Nintendo is slashing the price of its Wii console by 20% worldwide, bringing the US price to $200—a cut announced just as Sony was beginning its presentation at the annual Tokyo Game Show. The prices of Sony's Playstation and Microsoft's Xbox were both dropped to $300 lately as the video game market endures its worst period in years. Nintendo's new price goes into effect on Sunday. More»

(NEWSER) - Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out!!, on the original Nintendo Entertainment System, was a “perfect combination of addictive gameplay and technological impressiveness,” Chris Kohler writes in Wired. In a new version for Wii, happily, the company has figured out "what made the original so compelling” and recreated it “in spades.” Sometimes, Kohler writes, “they do make ’em like they used to.” More»

Nintendo hopes Frisbee, fencing will boost flagging console sales

(NEWSER) - Get ready to pull a muscle as Wii expands its offering of audience participation sports to Frisbee (with a dog), fencing and jetskiing, reports Reuters. Sports Resort is scheduled to be released in June, said Nintendo executives. The company hopes the new activities will boost flagging sales of Wii game consoles. Wii console sales far outstrip XBox and Playstation 3 globally. But Playstation 3 recently pulled ahead of Wii in Japan with the introduction of new games. More»