The Wii60 Goes Mainstream

This isn’t going to be news to anyone likely to read this site, but Slate just posted an article by their resident “Gaming” writer, Chris Suellentrop, about the joys of casual gaming.  He owns a Wii and 360 and has apparently been playing more Texas Hold ‘Em than is traditionally considered healthy.

Interestingly, he comments that the 360 is actually the console he turns to when he wants a casual gaming fix, while the Wii is primarily a party console.  I suspect that this might be due to the current software selection available for each: Wii software that might interest the casual gamer at this point is primarily of the Raving Rabbids variety.  Games like Cooking Mama haven’t really hit the collective mainstream yet (and are unlikely to in the future without some serious marketing support).

That said, the article brings up an interesting take on the different online strategies adopted by Microsoft and Nintendo.  Although the Wii has been marketed as a console for the casual gamer, it’s really trying to bridge the gap between traditional gamers and the mothers playing Freecell… by getting the mothers to play something a bit more complex.  Its Virtual Console is, as Suellentrop notes, targeted more towards the traditional gamer nostalgic for an old NES title, and most of those games are far to obscure and difficult for anyone used to Mah-Jong.  The Xbox, on the other hand, is not nearly as mainstream in initial pitch, but offers far more through Live that appeals to the typical casual gamer.  The fact that the Live interface is so much more intuitive than the Wii’s can’t help either.

Should Microsoft be focusing more on the casual audience in its marketing efforts?  Should Nintendo be including more casual/original offerings in its VC line-up?  I think the answer to the former question is “yes” and the latter, “YES!”