Nintendo confirms Wii price cut

By Mike Bantick
Thursday, 24 September 2009 09:37

Entertainment

It was a strong rumour going into the Tokyo Game Show and now Nintendo have confirmed a significant price cut to the very popular Wii video game console.  Nintendo also announced release dates for Wii-Fit Plus and New Super Mario Bros.

Nintendo today announced a price cut for the Wii video console.  In the North America the recommended retail price will drop by US$50 to US$199,99.

“Our research shows there are 50 million Americans thinking about becoming gamers, and this more affordable price point and our vast array of new software mean many of them can now make the leap and find experiences that appeal to them," said Cammie Dunaway, Nintendo of America's executive vice president of sales & marketing, in a statement late Wednesday.

The Wii will continue to be packaged as it is today, with one Wii-mote controller, Nunchuk add on and a copy of Wii Sports.

In recent times both Nintendo rivals, Microsoft and Sony have engaged in a renewed price war with the Xbox 360 and PS3 consoles.

New bundles, increased hard drive space, new features and in the case of the Sony PlayStation 3, a whole new console form factor have all formed part of the war, along with all important price cuts.

All this time Nintendo have remained at the top of the sales tree, with a console selling for the same price as it did when it was released in late 2007.

“Wii has reached more video game players than any game system before because it attracts everyone, both men and women, and people of all ages," Dunaway said. 

But this appeal had waned recently, with the Wii feeling pressure from a revitalised Sony PS3 and a repackaged Microsoft Xbox 360 in many regions of the world.  The Xbox 360 Arcade in particular, now the same price as the Wii, was doing well as a high-definition gaming alternative to Nintendo's less technologically next-generation console.

At the time of writing Nintendo has announced price cuts for both Japan and the United States, with no information about the rest of the world.  In Japan, the price will come down by 5,000 yen (55 dollars) to 20,000 yen from October 1. In the United States the price will be lowered by 50 dollars to 199.99 dollars from this Sunday.

Nintendo has also announced the release date for the follow-up to the chart topping Wii-Fit exercise software and balance board.  October 4th will see Wii-Fit Plus hitting stores, whilst New Super Mario Bros-Wii will be on shelves from November 15th.

New Super Mario Bros-Wii features four player cooperative game-play in the classic 2D world of Mario.