I believe the Wii will attract new and casual gamers to the world of interactive entertainment.
Larry Probst, Chairman and CEO, Electronic Arts

Nintendo announced the launch of its Wii™ (pronounced "we") video game console. Wii will ship to North America Nov. 19 at an MSRP of just $249.99. The price includes one wireless Wii Remote controller, one Nunchuk™ controller and five Wii Sports games on one disc.

Every Wii console includes a series of on-screen “channels” that make up the Wii Channel Menu. The Wii Channel Menu is the starting point for all of the console’s functions. The “channels” offer a gateway to a variety of entertainment options. When connected to a TV, the Wii Channel Menu offers an interface, letting users pick games to play, get news or weather, view and send photos or create playable caricatures of themselves to use in actual games. Additional functions allow users to redeem Wii Points and download classic games to Wii’s Virtual Console™.

Wii's controller position can be detected in a 3-D space. The new controller allows users to pinpoint targets in games or move through the Wii Channel Menu. For example, in the Wii Sports tennis game, players swing the Wii Remote like a racket to hit the ball, as in real life. They can add topspin or slice the ball by angling their hands and wrist like they would in a real match.

“Wii reinvents games for the devoted player,” says Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime. “But more importantly, Wii breaks the wall separating players from non-players by delivering the best game experiences for the most affordable price.”

Fils-Aime made his remarks in New York, shortly after Nintendo executives in Japan announced Wii will launch there on Dec. 2.

Nintendo launch titles include Wii Sports, a compilation of tennis, baseball, golf, bowling and boxing; The Legend of Zelda®: Twilight Princess; and EXCITE TRUCK™. While publishers are free to set their own prices for games, first-party Nintendo titles will have an MSRP of $49.99. Wii’s self-loading media bay also can play the entire library of more than 530 Nintendo GameCube™ titles from day one.

“I believe the Wii will attract new and casual gamers to the world of interactive entertainment,” says Larry Probst, Chairman and CEO, Electronic Arts. “It’s a fun, easy and economical system that will become a bridge to gaming for mainstream audiences. At EA, we are putting more support behind the Wii than any Nintendo hardware launch since the Super NES.”