Nintendo: 'Wii not a next-gen console'

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[Wii] Ninty boss Iwata outlines the company's unique place in the market

Monday 5 June 2006
Nintendo president Satoru Iwata has declared that, with Wii, the company is "not working on a next-generation console", but Sony and Microsoft are with PS3 and Xbox 360. Iwata explained that the phrase next-generation "implies that the console is an extension of previous instalments", while Wii is a completely new machine.

Iwata, talking to the Japanese news service Tec On!, revealed that Nintendo took the decision to create a completely new way of gaming as it was the only way of expanding the games market. Extending its current line with a follow-up to GameCube "could possibly even lead to smaller markets".

Iwata also talked about Wii's online service, which will be called WiiConnect24. He explained that it could be used to supply gamers with demos of upcoming titles. With Wii being online continually, "This would allow Nintendo to send monthly promotional demos for the DS during the night to the Wii consoles in each household. Users would wake up each morning, find the LED lamp on their Wii flashing and know that Nintendo has sent them something.

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