Forbes: Will Grand Theft Auto 4 threaten Wii?

We haven’t run out of Grand Theft Auto 4 (Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3) reports as of late (with recent freezing problems and banning in other countries). This only goes to show that as far as popularity goes, GTA IV is on top of the list. But business publication Forbes wants to know if this hype will be enough to give the Nintendo Wii a run for its money. More at the full article.

Rockstar North‘s Grand Theft Auto 4 (Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3) has made quite a splash by breaking sales records in the UK – not to mention a few controversies here, there and almost everywhere. Now, it’s not a stretch to say that GTA IV has breathed new life to the two HD gaming consoles. But business publication Forbes wants to know: will Grand Theft Auto 4‘s effect on the Xbox 360 and the PS3 be enough to spell doom for the next-gen race leader, the Nintendo Wii?

Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter has this to say about GTA 4: “It’s one of a series of good games that will each convince consumers that there is a lot of good content on the other two boxes.”

The “other two boxes” being the Sony PlayStation 3 and the Microsoft Xbox 360. Despite having top-of-the-line graphics and a superior online experience, the PS3 and the Xbox 360 are still inferior to the Nintendo Wii as far as sales are concerned. For the past fiscal year, Nintendo had profits of 115.6%.

However, the popularity of GTA IV may have the chance to balance the next-gen equation. Nintendo is not selling the sandbox action-adventure game and Forbes notes that it’s hard to recreate Grand Theft Auto 4 on the Wii given its graphics shortcomings.

Moreover, Microsoft and Sony are in a premium position to maximize the benefits it can reap from GTA 4. Microsoft has already secured exclusive online content from Rockstar Games while Sony has just won the format wars.

Now that Grand Theft Auto 4 is here to kickstart the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3, will the Wii start to fade?

Buy: [ GTA IV (PS3) ]
Buy: [ GTA IV (Xbox 360) ]