Wii Named "Official Gaming Console of Six Flags"

[GAcoaster]

Press Release From Six Flags:

 

Six Flags and Nintendo Announce Strategic Marketing Alliance

Tuesday January 23, 8:30 am ET

Nintendo's Wii Video Game System Will Be the Official Gaming Console of Six Flags; Wii Gaming Stations at Six Flags Parks Will Offer Complimentary Game-Playing

 

NEW YORK, Jan. 23 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Six Flags (NYSE: SIX - News) and Nintendo of America today announced a sponsorship and marketing agreement under which the Wii video game system will be the Official Gaming Console of Six Flags parks and Six Flags will offer complimentary game-playing at Wii Gaming Stations throughout select Six Flags-branded theme parks. In addition, the companies will collaborate on marketing initiatives, including a national sweepstakes promotion for Six Flags on Nintendo.com.

 

Nintendo's new Wii system became one of the hottest gifts this holiday. Consumers purchased more than a million Wii consoles in just the 44 days between U.S. launch and year end -- which represented every Wii console available at retail. As its popularity reflects, Nintendo's unique system brings gaming to the masses by providing something for everyone, from the most seasoned gamer to those experiencing video games for the first time.

 

"This agreement with Nintendo enables us to partner with a company, and a product, that has major relevance in the lives of today's families. When this audience is not in our parks, more often than not they are at home playing video games -- and now they can do both in one place as we continue to build Six Flags into a supermarket of entertainment," said Mark Shapiro, Six Flags President and CEO. "This alliance further illustrates our intent to partner with trusted and valued consumer brands that will increase our touch points and expand our reach."

 

"We look forward to continuing to build the Wii's leadership position in video gaming by making the system available to millions of guests who visit Six Flags every year," said Perrin Kaplan of Nintendo America. "The Wii system is dedicated to reaching a broad audience, and we look forward to sharing the ultimate gaming system with Six Flags guests beginning in 2007."

 

Six Flags, Inc., founded in 1961, is the world's largest regional theme park company. Six Flags, Inc. is a publicly-traded corporation (NYSE: SIX - News) headquartered in New York City.

 

The worldwide innovator in the creation of interactive entertainment, Nintendo Co., Ltd., of Kyoto, Japan, manufactures and markets hardware and software for its Wii, Nintendo DS, Game Boy® Advance and Nintendo GameCube systems. Since 1983, Nintendo has sold nearly 2.2 billion video games and more than 387 million hardware units globally, and has created industry icons like Mario, Donkey Kong®, Metroid®, Zelda and Pokemon®. A wholly owned subsidiary, Nintendo of America Inc., based in Redmond, Wash., serves as headquarters for Nintendo's operations in the Western Hemisphere. For more information about Nintendo, visit the company's Web site at www.nintendo.com.

 

Smart move on Shapiro's part since obviously people who like Theme Parks also seem to like Wii.

[CoasterFanatic]

Shapiro would have setup PONG stations at every park if they gave him more money.

[Scaparri]

This is a brilliant move in my opinion. With the Wii being as hugely popular as it is, this is one really good way to get your name thrown out there again. I think these cross-marketing plans they are doing, especially this one and the deal with Cold Stone, could do wonders for the park.

 

Look at Nascar. They took a boring product, got it endorsed with "the official blah blah blah of Nascar" for every product known to man, and now it's wildly successful. Getting a bunch of big name companies to endorse your product can turn around anything.

[OFortuna]

People don't watch NASCAR because its sponsored by major corporations anymore than people watch American Idol for the Pepsi commercials.

 

That said, its extra money in Six Flags' pocket, and they can rip out stuff that didn't make money like benches and put Wiis everywhere. Which will be great, until half of them don't work. Perhaps Wii will become a new QBot attraction?

[BeemerBoy]

and Six Flags will offer complimentary game-playing at Wii Gaming Stations throughout select Six Flags-branded theme parks.

AKA, the new Six Flags employee break rooms/hangout spots.

[SharkTums]

I think my Wii just shed a tear.

 

Seriously, I don't think this is really that big of a deal. Over the summer they always would have game systems setup and demoing stuff. Just another way to advertise and bring money in!

[PKI Jizzman]

Wow, thats pretty cool. The Wii along with other new game systems are extremely popular...I think this is a good move by Six Flags.....it's...smart!

[arrowfanman]

I was hoping for a Wario Ware dark ride or something, but this is alright.

 

 

 

-Jahan "A man can dream you know!" Makanvand

[Scaparri]

People don't watch NASCAR because its sponsored by major corporations anymore than people watch American Idol for the Pepsi commercials.

.

 

You obviously missed my point.

 

American Idol has always been popular. Nascar wasn't, much like how Six Flags isn't so popular at the moment to certain crowds. Cross-Marketing means exposure to different markets. Enough exposure tends to cause interest.

[tinflowers]

Press Release From Six Flags:

 

Smart move on Shapiro's part since obviously people who like Theme Parks also seem to like Wii.

 

Of course.

[OFortuna]

American Idol has always been popular. Nascar wasn't, much like how Six Flags isn't so popular at the moment to certain crowds. Cross-Marketing means exposure to different markets. Enough exposure tends to cause interest.

 

Six Flags is already a national brand, whereas NASCAR was a regional sport attempting to expand. That's probably the biggest difference in comparing the two right there. Not only that, you'd be hard pressed to find people in the 18-34 demographic in this country who live near a Six Flags and are not aware of its existence, but would go only if there were Wii's set up.

 

Back to NASCAR: the fact that they offered advertising space for an array of items didn't in and of itself make them more popular in the US. People aren't going to watch NASCAR merely because Jeff Gordon was in Pepsi commercials. NASCAR used the expansion of TV and the additional time given to them by cable networks to build their brand up on a national basis, and once they did that, they had the cache to make more demands, have more races, and so on. That they offered to have the names of their races be bid on much like most professional team stadiums wasn't a factor, as they had been doing that already since the 1960s.

 

edit: To put it all in a better sense, Six Flags is not anticipating seeing an increase in attendance from having stations featuring Wiis on display. They are anticipating the same attendance based on their other rides and so on, but additonal money coming in from Nintendo thanks to using other wise poorly used space or space that was not providing income and putting it in use as marketing space for Nintendo (who pays them for the property they use). It has nothing to do with building new market share.

[Homer]

WTF?

 

I figured Bill Gates would be outraged... then again some of the Microsoft folk are all "But a Wii and a 360, its a lot better than a PS3 ."

 

Shapiro, you should have done Super Mario World instead of "Wiggles World."

 

...

[Primogen18]

I think this could work well as advertisement for Nintendo, and its not a surprise that Shapiro chose the Wii over other systems, being that it's very popular and also mostly geared towards families. Juts kind of funny how I was comparing Nintendo to SF back when they released the system. Gamestop employees saying how much of a hassle PS3's launch was with the company always changing the order numbers or how the numbers were wrong and how many people have a problem with their customer service, kinda pissed some people off (so I compared them to SF). He went on about how Nintendo is very good with customer service and the Wii launch went very smoothly. It's interesting how Nintendo and SF are now *together* so to speak. The old SF probly would have went with Playstation or Xbox IMO, seeing as how they are the more powerful systems popular with teens.

[waterviper]

Shapiro would have setup PONG stations at every park if they gave him more money.

 

I would rather see PONG stations then Wii stations!!!

 

Now there is going to be many lawsuits that will come out of this due to the flying Wii controllers flying out of peoples hands and hitting people in the head due to the straps not being strong enough!

[BDG]

They could make a Six Flags theme park game for the Wii, featuring all the typical theme park / funfair games like whack-a-mole, the little ducks to catch/fish, the hammer hitting game, tin can alley, ring-toss, horse races, skeeball, shooting galleries, etc.

[ginzo]

Nintendo doesn't need better marketing of the Wii. They need to make more units!!! I still don't have one. I find their inability to make enough units of 5-year-old technology kinda pathetic.

[Primogen18]

^its not their inability, its the insane demand. I hope you weren't one of those people (and there were plenty) who said Nintendo was crazy for shipping over 4,000,000 units before the end of 2006. They not only did that, but sold them as well. There are shipments, you just have to BE there for them, because even months after, they are still in such high demand unlike another system out there. Wiis were on the shelf once and a while around here, but even those are becoming rare as I guess hype started up again and now they get rid of them as soon as they open. I wouldn't call it pathetic in any way. If I'd call any company pathetic, it's Sony for what they did with PS3. They shipped less thinking they hype would create more demand, well, walk into any Gamestop and they are proven wrong with that one.

[ginzo]

^its not their inability, its the insane demand. I hope you weren't one of those people (and there were plenty) who said Nintendo was crazy for shipping over 4,000,000 units before the end of 2006. They not only did that, but sold them as well. There are shipments, you just have to BE there for them, because even months after, they are still in such high demand unlike another system out there. Wiis were on the shelf once and a while around here, but even those are becoming rare as I guess hype started up again and now they get rid of them as soon as they open. I wouldn't call it pathetic in any way. If I'd call any company pathetic, it's Sony for what they did with PS3. They shipped less thinking they hype would create more demand, well, walk into any Gamestop and they are proven wrong with that one.

 

They should be able to easily meet the demand. The hardware isn't very different from the Gamecube, which came out in 2001 in Japan. The technology is half a decade old, and the manufacturing should consequently be trivial. I understand that the demand far exceeded their projections, but shouldn't they have built some sort of contingency plan in case the thing wildly succeeded?

[Primogen18]

They are being shipped, you CAN find them, its NOT impossible, you just have to be there early. Around here, you can find them once and a while on the shelves, 2 or 3. They sell the day they get them. The console is very popular, and only a couple months old, and its worth what little work you have to go through.

[robbalvey]

^ Yeah, he's right. It's not really a supply issue because the stores do get them almost every day. It's more of a demand issue. And while yes, some of the tech is old, some of it is not. Pretty much everything under the hood has been "updated." It's NOT just a "Gamecube with a funky remote" as I've seen some people claim. And those remotes are arguabley as complex to put together as some consoles.

 

Keep in mind that Wii also shipped in multiple world territories at the same time, so their manufacturing is supplying stores all over the world, PS3 does not ship in Europe until March.

 

I wish I could release the software sales number I see at work, but all I can say is that from what I've seen, Wii certainly is the clear winner of the two systems.

 

--Robb "Saw about 20 PS3's sitting in my local Target last time I went." Alvey

[lapseofreason]

WTF?

 

I figured Bill Gates would be outraged... then again some of the Microsoft folk are all "But a Wii and a 360, its a lot better than a PS3 ."

 

Shapiro, you should have done Super Mario World instead of "Wiggles World."

 

...

 

OMFG, Super Mario World would ROCK!!! Think of the possibilities...

[DATman]

^But by Six Flags?!

 

I mean, if Universal or Disney did it, it would be amazing. Just not Six Flags.

[obeygiant]

Theme parks AND Wii...

Can it get any better???

(even if it is Six Flags!)

[Masked_Maverick]

Hmmm how about Cedar Fair and XBOX 360? Or Paramount and PS3...oh wait

 

But seriously this may be soemthing to actually jump start an interest in for me visiting a Six Flags park again. A very horrible experiance at one of their parks (Worlds of Adventure thankfully now owned by Cedar Fair) caused me to have a very bad impression of the chain but over time I have realized that it was only one park and I would be willing to give other parks a chance i.e. Great America,Magic Mountain etc.

[Angry_Gumball]

Hmmm how about Cedar Fair and XBOX 360? Or Paramount and PS3...oh wait

 

Forget Cedar Fair...put it in Disney parks...Install Gears of War/Halo stations at Disney parks for all the kiddies to play...that would be an unforgetable experience. Include a limited edition Disney park map as a playable map. I'm sure parents would fully approve of Disney for doing such things like that.