Kaplan on Wii launch: So much going on, it’s awesome
Perrin Kaplan (that’s Ms. Kaplan if you’re not a Wii fan), Vice President of Marketing and Corporate Affairs of Nintendo of America, doesn’t beat around the bush during interviews. And when the topic happens to be the upcoming launch of Wii she doesn’t mince words either.
She called the anticipated Wii launch the “most fantastic” since the Nintendo 64 console back in 1996.
Celebrities want their Wii. The Wii is so hot, she name-dropped people who called up to make sure they get their Wii from day one. You know, people like P. Diddy and Uma Thurman.
And it’s not just celebrities hungry for Nintendo’s next-gen console. Business Week, News Week, The Wallstreet Journal, Yahoo, and Cartman of South Park want their Wii pronto!
Awesome. “There’s just so much going on, it’s awesome,” says Kaplan. “Wii is going to change the direction of the game industry for good.” Part of that “so much going on” scenario includes a lot of games at launch plus upcoming third-party and Virtual Console games between the console’s launching and the end of 2006. “Yeah, we’re doing a whole bunch of different things,” she says. Like kiosks in 35 different malls.
Completely different. It has been reported that since Wii doesn’t measure up to the Xbox 360 and PS3 in terms of muscle, Nintendo is not even in the running. What’s her take on the three-way next-gen gaming console war with Sony and MS? “Microsoft’s watching Sony, Sony’s watching Microsoft… we do realize they’re watching us but they’re really watching each other. They’re really focused on the same thing. We are focused on something completely different.”
Shortage? Despite the global Wiifrenzy and predicted shortage, Kaplan says they are sticking to the original four million units by the end of the year. The news about upping production to 9 million by year’s end according to Kaplan is “purely a rumor.” That means unless you secured your pre-order, chances are you have to prepare yourself to wait a little bit longer than P. Diddy’s kids.
Is it too late to get adopted by Madonna or Angelina Jolie?
Perrin Kaplan (that’s Ms. Kaplan if you’re not a Wii fan), Vice President of Marketing and Corporate Affairs of Nintendo of America, doesn’t beat around the bush during interviews. And when the topic happens to be the upcoming launch of Wii she doesn’t mince words either.
She called the anticipated Wii launch the “most fantastic” since the Nintendo 64 console back in 1996.
Celebrities want their Wii. The Wii is so hot, she name-dropped people who called up to make sure they get their Wii from day one. You know, people like P. Diddy and Uma Thurman.
And it’s not just celebrities hungry for Nintendo’s next-gen console. Business Week, News Week, The Wallstreet Journal, Yahoo, and Cartman of South Park want their Wii pronto!
Awesome. “There’s just so much going on, it’s awesome,” says Kaplan. “Wii is going to change the direction of the game industry for good.” Part of that “so much going on” scenario includes a lot of games at launch plus upcoming third-party and Virtual Console games between the console’s launching and the end of 2006. “Yeah, we’re doing a whole bunch of different things,” she says. Like kiosks in 35 different malls.
Completely different. It has been reported that since Wii doesn’t measure up to the Xbox 360 and PS3 in terms of muscle, Nintendo is not even in the running. What’s her take on the three-way next-gen gaming console war with Sony and MS? “Microsoft’s watching Sony, Sony’s watching Microsoft… we do realize they’re watching us but they’re really watching each other. They’re really focused on the same thing. We are focused on something completely different.”
Shortage? Despite the global Wiifrenzy and predicted shortage, Kaplan says they are sticking to the original four million units by the end of the year. The news about upping production to 9 million by year’s end according to Kaplan is “purely a rumor.” That means unless you secured your pre-order, chances are you have to prepare yourself to wait a little bit longer than P. Diddy’s kids.
Is it too late to get adopted by Madonna or Angelina Jolie?