Wii Feel Xboxed

No one can find a Wii to buy - and for me, that might be a good thing.

So, before Xmas and after the first of the year, I worked a truckload of overtime. At one point (thus, the lack of posts to this blog!). My wife sought to reward me for being a very good boy and killing myself for a job I'm not entirely in love with. She said I should buy myself something really nice. I had gotten some great stuff for Xmas. I was really tired. Between those two facts I couldn't really think of anything I wanted.

My wife, the sworn non-gamer, says to me: "Why don't you buy yourself a Wii?"

Ding!

This was a great idea. I had long been looking at the Nintendo Wii. The Wii is less expensive than the other systems, it's backwards compatible - able to play Game Cube games and the philosophy behind the controller and the system is much more casual, group oriented and - let's face it - fun!

I started doing a little research. It's not just backwards compatible to the Game Cube, you can also download lots of games from older systems. That's very cool. And, I didn't realize how many Star Wars themed games I had missed - that was very cool. There are also two new games I was very interested in: MySims - a Sims game aimed at kids and Star Trek: Conquest - wow! Awesome looking game. I was impressed.

Of course, I have been trying to find a Wii at normal price. They sold out at Xmas and no one has had one since - at least not any I have been able to find.

While I'm looking for a Wii, another brilliant fact comes to light. Now, since I have never owned a console, I usually don't pay attention to what console is getting what game and when. I also just figure that I won't buy a game until it has been out for more than a year - because I refuse to pay $60 for a game. Remember, I'm terribly cheap.

However, I have been very excited by a game project that has been in the news for quite a while. And, then I saw that indeed this game was going to be released for the Wii. That's right, Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, will be released for the Wii! For the first time in my life, I was ready to plunk down full price for a pre-order! Totally new feeling for me!

Then the bad news.

One of the reasons that the Wii is smaller in size and less expensive is that it isn't as capable as the Xbox 360 and PS2. Have a look at this Vanity Fair article for system details and details on why Force Unleashed is such an awesome game. The executive summary: the game will be released on the Wii, but in a modified, not nearly as cool form.

This I'm used to. For years, even when they released games for the Mac, they were not as good. That doesn't happen as much these days. The only real console I've ever owned is the Game Boy. They often release games for Game Boy with the same names that are way less capable or cool - no shock as this is a hand-held system.

Do I want to spend $250 for a pre-crippled system? Do I want to spend nearly $500 dollars for a "normal" game system? I mean, I just bought a new laptop for $499. I can't bring myself to spend that much money for just a console. I can't bring myself to buy a system that's less capable than others on the market. I mean, seriously, I can buy a brand new Game Cube for $100 if I want a lesser system. I can upgrade my Game Boy from an SP to a DS for less than the price of a Wii.

I just can't do it.

So, I'll be waiting for the Mac version of the Force Unleashed … but I won't be holding my breath.