Wii warriors fill streets of Manhattan

  • By Tim Surette, Brendan Sinclair, GameSpot
  • Posted Nov 18, 2006 4:31 pm PT

Anticipation for launch nears apex as hundreds gather outside Times Square Toys "R" Us, nearby Nintendo World Store.

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Tim Surette talks to those first in line at the Nintendo World Store, just hours before the launch.

NEW YORK--Yesterday, when the gaming world was still reeling in the wake of the PlayStation 3 launch, the Times Square Toys "R" Us, official site of the Nintendo Wii's 12:01 a.m. Sunday launch, had yet to see a single soul lined up for it. At the nearby Nintendo World Store in Rockefeller Plaza, the scene wasn't much bigger, with a mere handful of faithful fans camped out for the system.

What a difference a day makes. Saturday afternoon, hundreds of people had lined up at the two stores to be among the first in the world to buy a Wii at retail. While the gaming giant is releasing its next-gen system tomorrow in the US, gamers in its home country will have to wait until the December 2 Japanese launch to get their hands on it.

All lined up and no where to go: the Wii line outside Toy "R" Us.

While both stores had respectable lines of people forming, the difference between these crowds and those attending the PS3 launch was like night and day. The Toys "R" Us crowd existed in an orderly line snaking along the block, rather than the massed clump of those waiting for the PS3. Early on, a member of the line had started a sign-up sheet to keep the order straight, and the line itself was self-policing, for the most part.

And while the 50 or so campers outside of the Nintendo World store weren't terribly organized, they seemed much more at ease and laid back than the PS3 crowd, with its own distinct kind of buddy-buddy camaraderie.

Those waiting for a Wii were far mellower than those who picked up a PS3 on Friday.

"It's cool waiting here at Nintendo World," said Joe Lopez, who arrived at the store around noon on Friday. "If I get bored, my buddies will just hold my place in line while I go inside and play the Wii [on one of the store's demo kiosks]."

One observer noted that the crowds waiting for the Wii were decidedly "less gangsta" than those who camped out for the PS3.

The scene was still hectic at Toys "R" Us, where the hustle and bustle of everyday foot traffic in the heart of the Big Apple is only amplified by having to share the sidewalks with a crowd of gamers. Many passersby expressed an interest in the line, although the most common question they asked of those waiting seemed to be, "Is this the line for the PS3?"

One gamer expresses his willingness to talk to reporters.

Those sorts of questions likely became less frequent this afternoon after the store hung giant banners advertising the Wii along its exterior and began promoting the official launch events on a huge LCD screen outside the store. About a dozen police officers arrived on the scene as well, closing down 44th Street to set up a stage for this evening's launch festivities.

Inside Toys "R" Us, Nintendo had finally set up Wii demo kiosks. Wii Sports, Rayman, Zelda, and Excite Truck were all available for play, and a Nintendo representative was on hand to help walk gamers through the system. An interactive monitor with Mario was also there, with a man, through a webcam, voicing the iconic plumber and chatting up passersby.

It's all smiles as those in the Times Square line wait it out until midnight tonight.

While most of the commotion for the Wii so far seems to be coming from the core gamer crowd that Nintendo has always courted, it appeared that Nintendo's strategy of bringing in the nongaming crowd with an intuitive and inexpensive console is working, at least for one family. Just after checking out the Wii in the Nintendo World store, a family of tourists expressed their interest in the machine.

"How much is it," asked one child's mother, to which the father replied "$249." Surprised, she merely noted, "$249? That's not expensive at all!"

Check back later tonight for more GameSpot coverage of the Wii launch.

246 Comments

  • gametester1424

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 12:11 pm PT

    After going through hell trying to get a 360 only to have it break just days after getting Gears, I'm looking forward to an orderly launch. Unfortunately, my little dog slipped a disc in her back and now I have to pay for her surgery. I will wait patiently for the time that I can get a Wii and maybe next fall I will get a Playstation 3. I hope that everyone that got a console this fall has fun playing what they want. Happy (early) Holidays.

  • DonMicallef

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 12:02 pm PT

    Here's what i notice. All the ratings and reviews for the Wii games show that the controller is really good, but the games aren't that great, excluding Zelda. But even there, Zelda only has an 8.8 which isn't that high. Most Wii games are getting a pathetic 5._ which is jus sad. So basically I am gettting TP as soon as possible for my GAMECUBE, and then i probably won't get a Wii or any other Wii games.

  • cjcr_alexandru

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 11:46 am PT

    If Sony had 1 million PS3s at launch...

  • bluedragon99

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 10:37 am PT

    I dont know if i can wait! my soul is slowley deteriating because of my lack of fun! I need Wii! well ill just be [twitch] ok for [twitch] a couple of days [twitch]. ill just deal with Super Smash Bros. Melee for a while [twitch]. Im going insane!

  • pwnr

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 9:34 am PT

    I should try that out sometime... Gotta love them caffeine pills!

  • GrimoireMyst

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 9:17 am PT

    This is how people should wait for a game. lol When I get the money i'm definetly getting the Wii.

  • bobreturns

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 9:14 am PT

    lol casual gamers i wouldnt expect to line up for days at a time to get a console they will wait till its been out awhile

  • kenesu96

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 8:44 am PT

    i do the same as godofwar2k6 buying 3-4 years behind the times is the way to go. games are ALWAYS better in the fninal generation of a systems life as its power is maxed out. look at kirby on NES/FC gunstar heroes or ristar of genesis/mega drive. or FF IX on PS1

    i bought a PS2 mainly to take advantage of the discount bin of PS1 games, i didnt even get a PS2 game until about a year later!

    but for Wii i cant wait. Virtual console is too strong of a lure. but since i never bought a gamecube. its time for me to buy a few dozen games for it! i just need to wait until 12/2!

  • toby_mac_freek

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 8:33 am PT

    1) Quit all thw Wii bashing. If you dont like it, we dont need to hear it.

    2) Holy crap. In Winnipeg Manitoba, every single goddamned Wii is gone. The all sold out on the first day. And the population of Winnipeg is only 600,000.
    Staples and Bestbuy stocked TONS of Wii's and they were all gone the first day
    Now I gotta wait. And ever Zelda The Twighlight Princess copy was sold in a little under 5 hours. Geesh :\ Now I gotta wait....AGAIN! OH NOES!

  • chicken008

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 7:43 am PT

    I didn't get Wii..I got Zelda though..

  • Karribuhater115

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 7:39 am PT

    I'll be going to pick up my Wii on the 8th after work, i'd get it before but I only get half an hour lunch break and that isn't enough time to go up to Gamestation and collect it. I'm happy that Wii had a far tamer launch day that the PS3 but I suppose most of that was caused by greedy morons who wanted to sell the system on ebay whilst lets face it, the Wii isn't going to fetch as much because it's region locked and in better supply. (not to mention that the major countries are getting it pretty much within a few weeks of each other rather than Europe having to wait till March 2007 for the PS3)

  • johnlucas1

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 7:38 am PT

    Well the Wii story in MY neck of the woods is bleaker.
    I live near Hinesville, Ga. AKA the 'civilian half' of adjacent Ft. Stewart, Ga. of Iraq War fame. It's a town in SE Ga. roundabout the Savannah area.

    Whew. The only places to get new games is the big Wal-Mart Supercenter & the Rhino's Video Game store located in the same plaza.
    Big Wal-Mart's your "general" vidgame store & little Rhino's is your "specialty" game store. Long ago there was a Big K--K-Mart here but they been gone for a few years now (dammit!).

    The Wal-Mart only had 28 units & the Rhino's only had 18 units. Since I never bought a system at launch before I learned some tough lessons last night LOL!
    As soon as I got off of my night job Saturday morning at 6AM I shoulda been trying to get into line that day. I didn't feel like waiting in line & thought since this is a small town area I could get by acting all casual.
    Me & my friend were just gonna STROLL in there like nothing get in a little line & get the system, no big whoop. HA!

    Fools fools!!! Hahahahahaha!
    That line was sealed in the afternoon at MOST!
    The Rhino's line was TOTALLY locked early on.
    We got up there like 20 minutes before midnight.
    I thought it was cool because I didn't immediately see the line.
    It was on the other side of the building D'oh!

    Now we're waiting for next shipment which no one knows when it will come. Rhino's said maybe up to 3 weeks!
    Please Nintendo! Get next shipment as soon as you can!
    I SEE why people preorder now.
    AND why they camp.

    John Lucas

  • godofwar2k6

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 7:32 am PT

    I'm the type of gamer who waits until the nigh-end of a console cycle to purchase consoles. Why? Because the systems and their respective games are drastically cheaper, and the console libraries expansion allows for a plethora of choices. I have an X-box, Cube, PS2, Dreamcast, 64, PS1, and GBA. I got my X-box for $100.00 (not black market + taxes included), GCN for $72.83, and PS2 for $129.99. I bought Halo 1 and 2 for $40.00 (both) and Resident Evil 1-4 for $45.00! Does anyone else do this sort of thing or do you buy systems immedialtely after they launch?

  • ChoadS

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 7:30 am PT

    I got my Wii!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  • MSE369

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 7:08 am PT

    hahaha the reason theyre behaing themselves is because there are so many available theres no point to panic

  • blackthegame

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 6:58 am PT

    cool pics

  • HOMIE_G64

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 6:55 am PT

    LOL the people who were going to buy PS3 were too use to DeathMatch games on their PS2s.

  • freakykidd

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 6:00 am PT

    Glad to hear the US Nintendo fans are behaving themselves - unlike the near deathmatch-like state of the PS3 lines...

  • Cobalt_Strike

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 5:39 am PT

    Good to hear their launch is going smoothly.

  • robzan

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 5:06 am PT

    MOHAHAHAHAH!!! >

  • Maquis_UK

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 4:55 am PT

    Wii already killing ps3 dead. DEAD!!!!

  • hanjo

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 3:55 am PT

    just woke up here in good old europe and wondered about how the wii launch in the us went - glad to see it was a great party instead of the ps3 street fighting thing.

    i will still have to wait almost 3 weeks until i can get my hands on a wii - my shop is having a midnight launch party, too, but i am still not sure to get it cozily by mail in the morning or fetch it right at midnight.

    for the ps3 riots, i suppose it's not really about the device, but for the profit you can possibly make of it on ebay - let's face it, the ps3 might have some reasons to buy sometime later, but for now, i don't see any essential reasons for buying that device, killer-apps as ff xiii or mgs4 won't be released soon, and by the time they will be available, there will most possibly be a couple more ps3s available to buy. people who are desperate to play resistance might settle for gods of war and have just as much - if not more - fun with their xbox 360.

    oh and there's something more i want to say to halomastaman's
    "wow! wii graphics are ALMOST as good as xbox and ps2! good to see that nintendo is now only one generation behind!"

    you might get something wrong here: even the gamecube was technically superior to the ps2 - and wii is technically stronger than the xbox - it's clearly not as powerful as an xbox360 or a ps3, but nintendo openly admits this, have you ever thought that games should be fun in the first place and not eye-candy? possibly in a few years we will see that sony and microsoft were one generation behind with their controls.

  • The_Prince92

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 3:49 am PT

    I want a Wii !!!!

  • sinceps1

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 2:49 am PT

    "halomastaman
    wow! wii graphics are ALMOST as good as xbox and ps2! good to see that nintendo is now only one generation behind!"


    Lol. Good to hear that fanboys are right on the line!
    and not sarcastic.... Bleh, my wii doubles as a gamecube I'm good for the extra hundred-50

  • sVebbe

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 2:44 am PT

    Had to get up at 4.30AM to see it live (from sweden) but it was worth it my pulse raised to the roof and now I want a Wii more then ever

  • VladimirCrow

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 2:33 am PT

    ha ha ha ha
    are these people serious?

  • Dante565

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 2:04 am PT

    Nintendo has once again made the world a happier place. I cant wait to see how all the systems do now that they all made their debut. I have discarded all bias towards the systems and now go just for the games. Each company has their own way of presenting games and i respect that. If i could i would own all 3 but for now i will wait to see how the next year fairs for our brand new contenders in the next gen world the PS3 and the Wii are officially here.

  • peterles

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 1:54 am PT

    mine was a sad story. i waited outside wal mart for 2 days, they said they'd have 27 avalible. i was 21st on the list. hours before midnight saturday night they said that they'd have only 20. eh. the only bad part was that wal mart cut the power on us. but i guess the guitar hero 2 demo they had inside made up for it.

  • kamuixtv

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 1:33 am PT

    Wii solds out coz its cheap and novelty games, PS3 solds out coz of its exclusive (FFXIII, where the FF fanboys/gals/gays?) games and multimedia hardware, 360 for online games.

  • lord-philip

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 1:28 am PT

    i wish that they done a world launch meaning that its avalible 4 the hole world at the same time. (12.00 in the morn.) im in adelade now and have to wait another 2-3 weeks

    -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Power to the spirits, let them rise from the graves and let there power be of use to the world.

  • Cloud737

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 1:07 am PT

    Wow, this is turning out to be a cool launch. Wish I were in the US to line-up for the launch, just because it`s fun (unlike the ps3 were you get stomped on).
    Nintendo really knows how to make good publicity, unlike Sony were their motto is: "Any publicity is good publicity". I`m now more convinced of buying a Wii since 2 days ago, while the ps3 launch hasn`t helped me decide at all,except in a bad way.

  • jeszac

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 12:40 am PT

    To Ardus:
    Wii=cheap, fun for everyone
    X360=expensive, powerfull and fun for core gamers
    Ps3=most expensive, not innovative, over hyped (as of now)

    clearer?
    =-)

  • Ardus

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 12:27 am PT

    That guy in the 3rd picture isn't just a Nintendo warrior...he's a Nintendo SOLDIER!
    And can anyone translate jeszacs ramblings for me
    '

  • AL13NK1LL3R

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 12:17 am PT

    wii!!!! awesome system and it more calm more then ps3 crazy day

  • rikardo10

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 12:11 am PT

    wii!!

  • jeszac

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 12:08 am PT

    mr_montoya85
    You nintendo fans must be hippies, make peace not war. The hell with the games, im sure you guys will get all triped out with just the controller. Waving it side to side while being high.

    Damn right dude, we should all follow your lead and be soldiers than kill every other soldiers until everybody's dead....that would be like so cool...ggggyeah!

  • GaMerfan23

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 12:04 am PT

    I was here it was some much fun very nice people and had a great time i just got my wii. The line was crazi & longer then da ps3 believe it.

  • slipped69

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 12:02 am PT

    CRAZY CRAZY! Hopefully we can have a success. Good luck Nintendo.

  • DattebayosEpPo

    Posted Nov 19, 2006 12:01 am PT

    LLLLAUCH!!!

  • jeszac

    Posted Nov 18, 2006 11:54 pm PT

    Let's be honnest here, the playstation 3 and the x360 are both way better performance-wise than the Wii. Ps 3 being possibly the best (but I still have to have that proven to me since the screenshots and reviews where not that impressive so far) but that doesn't change anything with Nintendo being the most down to earth, people friendly console this gen.

    To me, the core gamers should get an xbox360, everyone should get a Wii, and we should wait till next year to see if the ps3 is worth getting a second mortgage to own. If the ps3 can pull out what a chipped xbox can do with way better grafics, then I'll gladly get it once it reach a regular pricepoint but untill then, I'm still down with current gen...and maybe a Wii early next year.

    p.s. I can't believe some people are actually proud to be gangsta and are laughing at people because they are scared to fight...something has gone terribly wrong with humanity.

  • WPack911

    Posted Nov 18, 2006 11:36 pm PT

    I like that word to describe PS Fanboys "Gangsta". I am proud to not be a gangsta. I am getting me Wii from my GameStop in the morning, I have it Pre-ordered. Get ready to lose both the Handheld and Console war Sony, as I saw one person on the boards put it, "This is Nintendo's Gen".

  • grandmarules

    Posted Nov 18, 2006 11:25 pm PT

    gaming isnt all about graphics, bro well said 540kick

  • jp_sithlord

    Posted Nov 18, 2006 11:23 pm PT

    "How much is it," asked one child's mother, to which the father replied "$249." Surprised, she merely noted, "$249? That's not expensive at all!" thats good, very good

  • crimsontimson

    Posted Nov 18, 2006 11:15 pm PT

    We also had a person start a signup list. It worked very well and I think that stores should start doing launches in that manner.

  • orangeviking65

    Posted Nov 18, 2006 11:14 pm PT

    how can they call the wii next-gen it is barely on the same level as the xbox and ps2

  • Sacif

    Posted Nov 18, 2006 11:06 pm PT

    Grand Theft Auto: The Fanboy shootouts. "only on Playstation launch days"

  • 540kick

    Posted Nov 18, 2006 11:01 pm PT

    halomastaman
    wow! wii graphics are ALMOST as good as xbox and ps2! good to see that nintendo is now only one generation behind!

    gaming isnt all about graphics, bro

  • jaken33

    Posted Nov 18, 2006 10:54 pm PT

    i will be getting my wii as soon as gamestop opens. (i would have waited till 12 but my parents had to work -.-

  • Hell-Fire21

    Posted Nov 18, 2006 10:51 pm PT

    I'm happy the Wii isn't hyped and juiced like the PS3 and 360, with me being predominantly sony guy. It gives other people a chance to experience gaming at a different pace, hell it may give your grandparents a go or two at it. More family related than the FPS based PS3 and 360. So yeah it puts a smile on my face that people are not being mugged or shot twice or trampled over and they all can actually enjoy what they waited for at a fair price for the common person interested in gaming. Now like I said i'm a sony-guy and I NEED THAT DAMN PS3...but i'm happy there are choices for everyone else. Rock on Nintendo.

  • Fafnir233

    Posted Nov 18, 2006 10:43 pm PT

    Quote :
    "s0ldier69
    wii...because we all love those 5.5 rated flagship titles!"
    PS3...because we all love 3.9 rated flagship titles!

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