Wii-mote creates Wii-motions?

Um, maybe you heard the Playstation 3 launches today. I know the local news was all over the “story.” On my TV I saw hundreds of young men standing in line all night in the rain to probably not get the console, since Sony is shipping an underwhelming 400,000 to North America.

I doubt the Nintendo Wii, which launches on Sunday, will generate the same sorts of scenes. The Wii will have 1,000,000 units available at launch, with maybe 1.4 million through the end of the year.

Still, I have to admit those sexy PS3 graphics have had me lusting after the rarer machine, even though I’m a big Nintendo fan and I’m looking forward to the Wii-mote. Friends like Jeff have been coveting a Wii for a little while, but for me I didn’t really start to get cravings until I read this unusual essay by Jonah Lehrer on Seed about the increased emotional resonance from Wii games. (This is the first Wii review I have read that quotes William James.) I knew the Wii was supposed to increase immersion, but I had mainly thought of this to mean plain-old excitement, simple stimulation. But now, as I ponder whether a Wii will really create more emotional gaming, I find I want one a lot more. Oh, and it also costs less than half of what the PS3 costs. Goddamn Sony.