Innovation and Mii

I had a recent discussion with people about innovation, specifically in regards to the Nintendo Wii. The most recent is with Brenden over at FalconTwin.com. Some think the Wii is not innovative and that it is just a rip-off of other technologies paired with a less than stellar console.

OK...let's look at innovation for a second:

Main Entry: in·no·va·tion
Pronunciation: "i-n&-'vA-sh&n
Function: noun
1 : the introduction of something new
2 : a new idea, method, or device : NOVELTY

(source Merriam-Webster)

I know, I know…its takes more than a dictionary definition to get a point across.

Does anyone remember who Karl Jatho is...anyone...anyone? No, you really wouldn't. Does anyone know who Orville and Wilbur Wright are? You should...if you don't, please, please make sure you go back to school or for the love of gawd read a book on flight history. They're credited to be the first to sustain controlled, heavy than air flight. They are the ones remembered as the innovators of flight because they were able to take an idea, improve upon it (from the failure and successes of others...and themselves) and make it commercially viable tot he world.

See, innovation does not mean make something completely new. It also means taking an existing idea and making it better. Now, granted, the Wii console is not much better than the Gamecube...granted. The Wii games, are currently not much better than the Gamecube...granted. However, the way the player interacts the games they play is where the innovation of the Wii sets in. Yes, we've seen Nintendo do this with the PowerGlove in the 1980's...it didn't work out so good for Nintendo. Only two games where published with that functionality (Super Glove Ball and Bad Street Brawler)...both, crappy games as I recall. The PowerGlove is nowhere near the Wii controller...different technology and implemetation.

Now..Nintendo did not create something as historical as flight, nor am I saying that. What they have done is changed the way in which people interact with their games. They have taken an already existing idea, made it better and they were able to make it available to people’s living rooms. That, my friends, is innovative. I'll be very surprised, very, if Nintendo does not come out on top of the console wars just because of this.