It's been a disappointing and underwhelming year for me and the Wii. The only reason I still have it is because I got it modded. The revolution Nintendo suggested didn't happen, and I question whether most of the games could be done on the GC, as well as the wiimote not providing said revolution or innovating the way we play games.
Best example of Wiimote controls was probably Warioware, but it seems a lot of people hated the game, and it only lasted an hour (I actually enjoyed it).
Zelda Twilight Princess was such a woeful game, with gc graphics and tacked on wiimote controls. It was a fan service game, and one of the worst Zelda games I played.
I felt underwhelmed with SMG too, and Metroid was downright dull, even though I enjoyed the first two games, it was just more of the same with Metroid 3 and it just felt old.
The best game to come out on the Wii for me is Zack & Wiki, and it was a brilliant supporting title from Capcom. It proved that third party developers can provide an enjoyable experience.
The Wii was over hyped and under delivered on it's promises. I was excited to see the show reel of how the wiimote would be used in different types of games, and that got me pumped up for a new, involving experience making gaming fun again. It hasn't been the case, and 2008 will probably be the year that the Wii struggles.
The VC is cool, but it's too expensive, you can pick up the same titles in a used games shop for less, and probably buy the hardware for cheap too. It does add some longevity to the system though.
The support of friend's codes and a crippled online service also is a mega disappointment. Nintendo doesn't have confidence or belief that it's players can make an informed decision as to how they choose their opponents, treating gamers like idiots as "daddy knows best".
Still you can't fault Nintendo for opening up new demographics and bringing in players that otherwise wouldn't play on a console, from the young to the aged, it's been a party console for them all.
Without many big new titles in 2008, and with seemingly little quality third party support, 2008 is going to be the year where the novelty of the Wii and it's new controller may fizzle out.
My hope is the above does not happen, because I paid for the damn thing, and hope that more developers follow Cpacom's example of providing quality games. Allowing companies like conspiracy entertainment to make games is seriously a detriment to the popularity of the Wii. Nintendo's "seal of quality" is a running joke these days, especially when it comes to Wii titles.
My Wii gathers dust pretty well, it's become professional and doing so. I sometimes dust it off to play a game or two, but on the whole I hardly touch it these days. I still haven't seen or played many quality titles on the Wii, unlike on the 360 (let's talk about the PS3 in another year or so) where it's AAA titles don't seem to stop coming.
Nintendo needs to remember it's hardcore fanbase, that have bought their consoles even when they failed, and even in the face of losing third party support where only Nintendo developed games ruled the roost. They've been largely ignored with a handful of titles to satisfy them.
Nintendo needs to improve in a lot of areas, if it's to provide any long term enjoyment from it's new console. And it needs to support third parties much better
