It's been obvious from the very beginning that Nintendo thinks of Japan first, the outside world second. In Japan 'Wii' means something. I haven't actually seen any reporting from the Japanese point of view but somehow I doubt it's as universally negative as we've seen in the English speaking world.
Granted they could have put a little more thought into how the West would look at Wii.. but then, why should they? Nintendo have always made the main proportion of their profit in Japan. That's something that will probably never change. The culture clash is, obviously, still too strong.
Our problem is that we've been spoilt. Consoles of late have been named in English, even the ones from across the world, so somehow we've come to the conclusion that this is the way it's meant to be. But the Wii is a Japanese product and, by all the gods in heaven, it appears to have a Japanese name.
And for all who posture and preen about the 'childish' here's one more pearl of wisdom to carry home.
Gaming. Is. Childish.
It always has been. It always will be. We will always be playing with toys - for that's all a game is - and no amount of gore, guns or girls will alter that one jot. This isn't something that will change with time, public opinion has no bearing on this fact. Be it the simple joy of Mario, the adrenaline that runs through twitching fingers in Halo or the excited terror of the Haunted House that is Silent Hill. We are playing with toys - complicated, interesting, diverse toys.
To quote one Nintendo rep: "Deal with it."
