“Wii're Here for a Good Time”: The Sneaky Rhetoric of Wii‐Themed Parties

Abstract

In 2006, the Nintendo corporation introduced its video game console in the United States, and it quickly became the most popular video game system in the country. Two major features of the gaming system drove its popularity: It introduced motion-controlled gaming into the mainstream and also introduced video game personalization to many people through the customization of miis, the avatars that represent video game players. Together, these features represent Nintendo's ongoing quest to revolutionize video gaming and create a family-friendly social gaming experience that anyone can enjoy. The corporation claims, Wii is not just a gaming console, it's a reason to get together with your friends and family and play today's hottest (What Is Wii?). Nintendo's is therefore constructed as more than a machine upon which one plays games; it is a means to play games with other people and an excuse to be social. As part of the marketing of the console as an opportunity to get friends and family together, Nintendo created the phenomenon of the Wii party. What better vehicle to demonstrate the social gaming philosophy of the corporation and the sociality of Nintendo's gaming experience than a party? These are not only opportunities for entertainment; they also are opportunities for outlets of self-expression as party throwers and party goers alike can become the nice neighbor or good parent or fun friend by hosting, attending, and participating at such festivities. However, have an additional ulterior- or sneaky - function that extends beyond providing people with tools for fun and self-realization. deploy the narratives of a commodity in order to allow party participants to craft their own personal narratives. In this context, the Wii becomes very important. Ultimately, are significant not simply because they are themed around a brand but because people's performances at such become constitutive of the brand. In order to explain one must first establish what a party is and how theming a party on a video game helps establish a narrative frame for such events. One must then document the character of Wii-themed and connect the experience that is to be had at to the idea of Nintendo's brand. What Makes a Gathering of Gamers into a Party? Wii can be understood as deliberately planned entertaining social gatherings (or parties for short) whose social capital and capacity to produce pleasure depend on the presence (and reputation) of the Nintendo corporation's gaming platform. The theme of the party/ gathering depends upon the (just as Oscar and Superbowl depend upon their respective entertainment spectacles). The premise of a party is that one invites others to mark some occasion by playing the and that the occasion will be made that much more memorable (and social) because of Wii-styled gameplay. Justification for this belief comes from the video game console itself. The console radically altered the way people played video games through the introduction of the Wii-remote (or Wii-mote). Nintendo integrated motion sensors into the Wii's remote controls in order to reproduce one's real world movements in the virtual world of the video game. Instead of memorizing and pressing a combination of buttons in order to do something in the game such as swinging a golf club, one literally swung the Wii-mote and saw the corresponding results on screen. The Wii-mote was made so simple and intuitive in order to allow anyone to play, which also made the experience of playing that much more fun. One would never confuse Wii-styled movements with the activity required to do the corresponding real-world actions, but one would also never confuse the sometimes frenzied physical activity of gameplay with the drowsy couch potato existence enabled by its competition (Cogburn and Silcox 18-19). …