Pigeonholing Wii as a console only for casual gamers is a mistake, says Sega president Simon Jeffery. Though after Sonic & Mario sold five million, we're not going to blame Sega for forgetting them.

"I do think going forward there is very much a place for the hardcore gamers on the Wii and there's a big opportunity for publishers to take advantage of that because we've seen the success of Resident Evil on Nintendo platforms," the Sega boss proclaimed.

"But I do also believe that a lot of Western publishers are only looking at the Wii for casual and family gaming, and I think that's a mistake - I think there's a lot more opportunity there on the Wii. The Wii isn't just about Wii Tennis and Mario & Sonic; it's about so much more."

Grasshopper's No More Heroes has racked up decent sales in the US (and is expected to do well in Europe), while Metroid Prime 3 has received the pennies of the traditional Nintendo fanbase.

But with casual games Wii Sports and Mario & Sonic making astronomical numbers on the sales sheets, is it even worth investing the time and effort on "hardcore" Wii games? Jeffery sees no reason why they should be ignored...

"The Wii as a platform has way much more to offer than [Wii Tennis and Mario & Sonic], and hardcore gamers traditionally love Nintendo as well. There's no reason why they should be excluded or excommunicated from the Nintendo world."

We wish Sega would follow its own advice.

Courtesy of CVG.

Mar 6, 2008