What's in a Name?

"We want to thank everybody who said good things about it the day you heard it," Reggie announced at E3 2006, fully aware of the fact few of the gaming press had said anything remotely positive about the name "Wii" at it's announcement.

Kate Hudson, US Actress once said something that could apply to this situation. She said "Never worry about bad press: All that maters is they spell your name right."

Perhaps this can be applied to the Wii. With it's direct focus on games as opposed to image, the Wii wants to attract people with it's innovative controller and interesting, different software as opposed to having the image of a cool, slick console with a technical sounding name.

When I first heard the name Wii, I didn't know what to think -- if I remember correctly, my final feelings after the announcement were "It's left a bad taste in my mouth." However, like Reggie said it would, it grew on me. I soon came to accept it as I did names as I did with the likes of Yahoo and Google before it. But I'm ranting already, and this article is about the public. We headed out onto the streets of the UK and asked UK gamers what they think of the name being Wii.

Some of you may know Zak from the Network Radio that we do -- he co-presents from time to time on the show and he's mainly a PC gamer, into RTS and Strategy games. He's also played a lot of Final Fantasy and other RPGs in his time. When we told him about the name it was live on air and he was blind drunk. At the time, his simple only comment was "Stupid, sounds like piss." After he'd sobered up a little, I asked him again. "It does sound a bit stupid," he said "But it's what it can do that matters." Score one for Nintendo's way of thinking.

Katie is a DS owner. Her friend bought a pink DS and Nintendogs, and after playing it, she never went back. She too picked up the Pink DS/Nintendogs package, and since then has got into a few other games, from the DS version of the Sims to her current favourite, Trauma Center. She's certainly slap-bang in the middle of the audience Nintendo wants to target with the Wii. First, I ask her about the name. "That's kinda weird," she actually giggles at saying it out loud, "I mean, did they not know what it meant over here?" I explain that they did, but then explain what the console can actually do. "Oh, well... that sounds cool. It might be weird, but it's only a name, right? I guess you'd have to get used to it. DS is weird enough for me... I just call it Nintendo."

So, it appears the new type of gamer on the block -- or at least, this one -- finds the name a little strange, but is far too interested in the system itself to let it deter them.

Next up, I picked a few people that I vaguely know. Jon, Matt and Gush are definitely part of what I would call the "casual" gamer crowd. Most only own a PS2, they buy EA Sports and Wrestling games, and would more than likely view anybody who dared pick up a Mario title as "gay." Nevertheless, I decided to go and ask them about the name of Nintendo's new Console. The response wasn't exactly a huge surprise. They laughed their asses off. "I'm not going into a shop and asking where the Wii section is," one laughs, "Imagine that!" another says, rapidly becoming hysterical, "What you up to? Oh, just playing with my Wii!" This was the crescendo of their talk on the subject, and they clearly weren't interested so I retreated away to find another interviewee.

Jamie is once again another casual gamer, really into sports and action games but little else. He owns a PS2 and an Xbox, but has no interest in the Gamecube. For him, I take a different approach -- telling him about the console before I tell him the name. I ask him if he has plans for the next gen. Initially, he tells me, he was waiting for the PS2, but thanks to the high price-point and European delay, he's now going to be picking up an Xbox 360 this Christmas -- or at least, that's the plan. First off, I explain to him what the Wii can do. I use Red Steel as an example. I also do what I did for everyone here -- I show them a picture of the console and controller, talk about the Virtual Console briefly, and show them a few screens of games.

Jamie is impressed. "That sounds pretty awesome. Better than the Gamecube." Jamie, for a causal gamer, knows what he's talking about, as he then asks "Will there be more non-Nintendo games for it this time?" I tell him that it's called Third Party Support, and the Wii will be much better than the Gamecube in this sense. I also tell him about the Pack-In and that it's all for $179. He's even more impressed. Then I tell him the name. "Well, that's a bit off putting. But if it can do all those things, I'd probably ignore the name. Some people will just take the piss out of it, though..." He shrugs, unsure of how others will react. "Then again," he adds, "I think Gamecube, Xbox and Playstation are all pretty stupid names."

Jamie is taking the view Nintendo wants us all to take -- it's about the games and the way you play them, not the name. Next up, I talk to some retail workers to find their thoughts and experiences so far with the name.

Tim and John both work in two separate videogame stores in my home town. I ask them if they'd mind talking for a bit for this article and we head to Starbucks so I've got a table to write on. Over coffee, I ask them their own thoughts. "Good name, Accessible, Simple, Easy to Remember. No technical crap, No Numbers in the name... it works for me." Tim is blunt and to the point. He's been working in that shop for a long time now, and has come to be fairly simple minded when it comes to opinions on games.

John actually bought an Xbox 360 on Launch Day, and couldn't resist the incredible profits to be yielded on ebay over Christmas, so sold it. Since then, he hasn't felt inclined to purchase a new console, and is considering getting the cheaper Wii. "The name is strange, but at the end of the day they've all been strange or different in one way or another. Think about it - Mega Drive, Dreamcast, Playstation, Gamecube... They're hardly normal. It'll just take some getting used to. It's just Wii has a double meaning, that's all. They'll get over it."

Tim chips in once more, "At least we can safely say we're away from the days of boring names like 'Nintendo Entertainment System.' To me, that's a sign of the industry growing up." So, we can safely assume these two won't be stopped by the name? " Certainly not," says Tim, "I work in a game shop. Owning something called the Wii won't geek me out any further."

Then I ask them how people in store have taken the name in. "Mostly good," they both agree. "I think once we properly explain what the console can do, people get over the name right away because they're curious and want to play it." says Tim, "You could call Guitar Hero cock and ball, and it'd still sell because it's different and interesting," laughs John.

So, all is well for Nintendo, thanks to their innovative and original controls. Or is it?

"One person at my store actually cancelled," Tim reveals, "They registered their interest, which means when preorders are available they're first on the list. One day he came into the store, and I told him the final name had been announced and what it was. There and then he cancelled his registered interest."

That raised my eyebrows, but I think people like Mr. Cancellation are one in a million. Strange name or not, I think it'll grow on people, and I think Nintendo will do just fine.