WiiStation 720

The new millennium arrives and Sony introduces itself with the PlayStation 2. Nintendo's old punching bag SEGA arrived before the new millennium (9/9/99 to be exact,) and suffered the consequences. SEGA had been hurt after putting up a fight for most of the last millennium with Nintendo.

When it came to fighting Sony, Sega could barely take a swing. Meanwhile Sony was still partying like rock stars as is nothing had changed. The party must have been seriously interrupted on the day Microsoft announced they were entering war for the voice of a generation.

Microsoft's entrance in the war for the crown is a sign of the future of gaming. Who better to convince the mainstream about games than a company that dominates it? Think of it this way. Whatever gaming console sells the most units is the Microsoft of its generation. (Shout out to Apple)

Back to the new millennium. A year after the PlayStation 2 exploded on the scene, Nintendo releases the GameCube and Microsoft releases the Xbox. They couldn't even come close as they both lost by about oh 100 million units or so. The PlayStation 2 could thanks its head start, and it's collection of games for that. I think Nintendo felt that the company that enters the war on Sega's behalf wouldn't stand a chance. That turned out to be wrong as the Gamecube placed last for the generation. Nintendo had lost the fight against Sony again.


With the agony of defeat fresh on their minds, Nintendo locked themselves in the lab (With Errol James baby) They probably asked themselves what made the PlayStation 2 so popular? One could say it was the appeal that Sony had to the mainstream. Sony knew that they would have to appeal more to the mainstream if they were going to beat Microsoft. What better way to appeal to the mainstream then have the largest collection of video games? The collection was so large and diverse, that casual gamers had a better chance of finding a game that appealed to them. Either that or parents had a better chance of finding the right game for their children.

They next question was probably something like "why did gamers overlook the Gamecube?" One could say that it was the audience they tried to appeal to. The Gamecube exposed Nintendo's soul. Even though they were in last place, they were still releasing fun games. It felt as though it was just about the art and nothing else.

Did the hardcore gamers turn their back on Nintendo? I doubt it.