It’s all coming together for Nintendo with the Wii, after a dismal era starring the Gamecube. But not just for Nintendo – the Boston Celtics of the NBA (pro basketball, for all of you who sit on the couch and play video games all day long) are doing something quite similar to Nintendo.
Boston had the 2nd worst record in the league last year, but they’re bringing in some all-star players to get better. They’ve had Paul Pierce for years, and have recently brought in Ray Allen and one of my favorite athletes, Kevin Garnett. But how are these guys similar to the pieces of the puzzle Nintendo has put together?
Ray Allen is a suave player – he hits three-pointers from long distance, and his shots look nice… just like Nintendo realized they needed to create a sleek, sexy system, which they most certainly have done with the Wii. The Wii’s good looks might not be the main reason it’s selling so well, but it is surely helping.
Then there’s Paul Pierce – he drives down the lan, swerving around opponents to get the 2 points. Every single night, he goes out there ready to drop 20 points. This is exactly like Nintendo’s marketing approach – keep telling everyone why the Wii is the best, and never give up. This bombardment of Wii promotion has been a key to the amazing Wii sales.
And finally there’s Kevin Garnett, the “Big Ticket” – he gets the job done. Period. He’s averages 20 points a game, 10 rebounds a game, and 4 assists a game for 9 straight seasons – something no one else in the history of the NBA has even come close to doing. The Celtics had to trade quite a bit to get him, just like Nintendo had to give up on some gamers (the ones who are convinced the Wii is not high-quality) in order to gain a ton of new supporters. KG gets the job done, just like Nintendo is doing right now.
Nintendo has put the pieces of the puzzle together, allowing them to lead the console market in sales week in and week out, and the Celtics have put together the pieces of their puzzle, hopefully leading them to a championship.
