Feature: 'The State Of Korea: Console Games'

Author: by Staff

Following his earlier look at the bustling South Korean PC gaming market, in today's Gamasutra feature, journalist Nick Rumas turns his attention to the country's console prospects, revealing exclusive data on the burgeoning nation's Sony past and... Nintendo future? In this excerpt, Rumas turns his attention to Nintendo's prospects for the Wii in the region, which still has yet to launch, predicting a new burgeoning market for the company, should it capitalize on lessons learned in its handheld success: "Looking to the future, we have Nintendo and its Wii, which is expected to launch in Korea sometime toward the end of 2007. As of right now, it’s just about the hottest grey market import item around, and the buzz surrounding it is growing every day. Ask anyone within the Korean games industry what they think of Wii’s prospects in Korea, and you’ll always get a response that goes something like this: If Wii follows in the footsteps of DS with the right price and a dedicated onslaught of mainstream advertising, Nintendo could have a seriously massive hit on its hands. That’s a fact. Every single Korean I know who’s tried Wii Sports or Wii Play is dead set on purchasing one, and that can only mean good things for Nintendo. It’ll be interesting to see how this all plays out over the next few years. While Microsoft seems like it’s going to stay right where it is for the time being – in a solid position catering to the hardcore crowd – the real question at this time hovers around Sony and whether or not it’s going to be able to repeat the success it had last generation with PS2. In the meantime, the newly formed Nintendo of Korea is riding high on the success of DS, and this is a streak it looks poised to continue with Wii." You can now read the complete feature, with more from Rumas on how Nintendo of Korea changed its DS fortunes, and what Microsoft and Sony have done to capture the region's attention (no registration required, please feel free to link to this feature from external websites).