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Editorial: Nintendo Wii - An Exercise in Misdirection?A little TOO "out there"? That could very well be.By Jeremy LaMont - 04-27-06 |
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When was the last time you saw the whole internet in agreement over any one thing? It takes a pretty conscious effort to come close to the universal confusion, derision, and out-and-out rancor inspired by the bombshell announcement that Nintendo laid on us earlier today. It's almost surreal to stop for a moment, stick your head up from the herd and just have a look around. Maybe surreal is a little too accurate, in fact. While the rest of the gamer-centric internet bellowed, snorted, continued grazing, or got downright mad-and-frothy about today's announcement, we thought we'd let cooler heads prevail for just a moment and have a closer look at some things. The Mark of Wii Submitted for your approval, the USPTO, a.k.a. "the IP boneyard". The United States Patent and Trademark Office. Companies wanting to secure valuable intellectual rights to names, designs, concepts, and other endeavors tend to file those things with the U.S. Government up front. It's a fairly well-known (if questionable) practice to get the jump on media companies by checking for new registered or pending marks. Fans seeking spoilers and instant gratification from companies like Lucasfilm, Apple, or yes, Nintendo have become rather adept at searching for registered marks. Typically these marks and patents will appear weeks (or months) in advance, as companies cannot take chances with their branding. In fact, companies are often known to register trademarks or web domains that may not be used at all, just to try throwing nosey searchers off the trail. The point? Sure, you guessed it. The term "Wii" does not appear to be registered by Nintendo in the United States or Japan. In fact, the only term we (in tandem with IP professionals) can find that even comes close is "WII" as in W2... and that deals with shaving razors and was canceled in 1993. Nintendo is listed as the owner of 631 "live" and "dead" marks which range from the relevant ("Nintendo DS", "Triforce") to the forgotten ("BB BROWNIE BROWN", "GAME GIRL") to the enigmatic ("DOSHIN THE GIANT", "J"). But "Wii" is not to be found. Anywhere. Maybe it was registered yesterday on the spur of the moment and just doesn't show up yet... we'll have to wait and see. The Adventure of Link It may just be a question of timeframes, but it seems like a company that is ready to throw everything it has into claiming mindshare from new branding would be a little more... well, thorough. The company directs us to http://revolution.nintendo.com/ for news about "Wii". No redirections, no real webspace of any kind committing to the name in any form other than simple text and arguably-simple rendered animation. No new registered domains. Wii.com is silent. We didn't try WiiWii.com though... The "First to Play" contest still uses "Revolution", and the VP of AOL was allowed to state "Revolution" by name in that announcement, even while the contest is still running. Obviously Nintendo must have known of their own plans to unveil "Wii" in the midst of their contest, right? Couldn't they have at least told the guy to use fewer proper nouns in his remarks? It would have been only fair. As of the time of this writing, the word "REVOLUTION" still appears on the navigation bar at Nintendo.com, sandwiched neatly between "NINTENDO DS" and "WI-FI". Maybe they're still working on it. Maybe they're waiting for E3 to really bust it all loose. Maybe. The only other indication that "Wii" is sticking is the inclusion of the name in the System Release Dates area of the Nintendo Press Room. You'll have to take our word on that one. Other than that, it just seems like the break away from "Revolution" is not happening all that cleanly. Poor execution? Perhaps. Insert Tongue (A) into Cheek (B) Lastly, perhaps we need to look at what has come from Nintendo apart from their pre-packaged material. The usual bland comments from company officers such as "we are very excited about the re-branding of Wii..." or "Wii represents Nintendo's bold new direction in the next generation of gaming..." or "'Wii. Say it with me now,' said Nintendo President Satoru Iwata, 'Wiiiiii...'" are strangely absent. In fact, Nintendo's announcement lacks many of the standards of your garden-variety press release. Perhaps Wii is just that much of a break from traditional thinking. Nintendo sure likes to break away from the pack. Perhaps. The only other comment to be found on the announcement comes from Nintendo Vice President of Marketing, Perrin Kaplan, speaking with CNN: "A lot of thought went into the name," she says. This is likely. "There's a whole host of unusual names that have become a part of everyday conversation and I think they're viewed now as unique," she pleads. Most assuredly. "We want people to understand our approach before we get to E3," she explains. "[Also], it's really noisy at E3 and I don't think we would have had the chance to explain how we came to the name." Aside from the obvious questions raised by her first two comments, it's really that last one that raises some eyebrows. Allegedly the public will be able to churn and roil about the name before the system's games are unveiled at E3, when those will be the focus and not the new name. It seems a very tongue-in-cheek thing to say, considering that a company like Nintendo gets all the ears it wants at E3 no matter what they're presenting. With a team of marketing-oriented officers the likes of Reginald Fils-Aime, George Harrison, and even Perrin Kaplan, something just seems wrong about the approach. They're not stupid people, whatever you think of them. Sure, it could be a de-hyping technique for a name that would impact poorly with nearly the entire English-speaking world. Perhaps the international flavor of "Wii" is just something that everyone needs to chill out and get used to. Possibly. To KISS, or Not To KISS So just what is going on here, exactly? Nintendo assures us that "Wii" is not about you or me, "Wii" is about us. "Wii" symbolizes gamers, gathering to play. "Wii" is this and that and the other. But it's no Revolution. Nintendo, though, does purport to know about gaming and gamers. Nintendo knows, according to Ms. Kaplan, that you will gripe and complain about "Wii"... which brings us back to square one: in a gaming industry that is divided squarely into hardcore camps of fanboys, can you ever remember a time when every single person agreed on the same thing to such a degree? Suppose, just suppose for a moment, that Nintendo is yanking our collective chain. With such a unification of opinion about "Wii" everywhere you go, Nintendo really has gathered us together as they promised... into one giant bitch session. Suppose "Wii" is replaced by something a little less bold, a little more palettable, or even a little more popular? Who among us would mourn the loss of "Wii"? Even the most devout followers of the Cult of Nintendo, those apologists who defend "Wii" even now, would not shed a tear if "Wii" were a colossal hoax. Vitriolic fans squarely in the Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo camps could at last agree on at least a couple of things: "At least the console has a decent name," and "Boy, the joke was sure on us." Perhaps "Wii" is a wake-up call to gamers to get over ourselves. Maybe a knowing wink and nod from Nintendo (along with a sharp jab in the ribs) is their way of telling us that branding is what we make of it and it's time to focus on gaming again. Perhaps we just need to blow off a little steam in order to regain some much-needed focus. Maybe "Wii" really will change everything. |
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