The GameCube, whether deservedly or not, developed a reputation as a "kiddie system." This is probably due to Nintendo's pedigree of family friendly titles and cartoon-ish stable of characters. Despite this perception, the GCN had exclusive, mature titles including Resident Evil (aka REmake), Resident Evil 0 and Eternal Darkness.

Now, the Wii so far seems to be on something of a similar path, with many successful family titles (Wii Sports, Wii Play, WarioWare Smooth Moves, Super Paper Mario and Mario Party 8 among them). However, certain mature titles, such as Red Steel, have actually sold well on the system. Resident Evil 4 Wii Edition continues this trend, demonstrating that the Wii fan base is both wide and deep.

We spoke with Jack Symon, director of brand marketing at Capcom Entertainment about why his company's two-year-old game still holds up so well.

Many apparently willing to buy the game twice
According to the NPD, Resident Evil 4 Wii Edition, helped by the game's budget price of $29, was the ninth best selling title in June overall. It was also the fourth best selling title on the Wii, despite (or is it because?) the fact that the game originally released on GCN and PS2 roughly two years ago.

"We were expecting a strong reaction from players, based on the game's previous success on both GameCube and PS2, but sales have been above even our initial projections," detailed Symon. "We've also been very excited by the reviews, which have been universally positive. Currently, RE 4 Wii Edition has a 91 ranking on Metacritic, with a 9.1 score from the user community there. Considering that this is the third console system that RE4 has landed on since its initial release over 2 years ago, Capcom is pleased to see that both players and media alike are still blown away by the title."

"It's too early to compare results to the earlier releases, but the pacing on sales of the title is very strong and we continue to receive reorders from retail," he added. "Interestingly, anecdotal reporting from some retailers in the first two weeks indicated that more than 50% of the players purchasing RE4 Wii Edition had purchased one of the previous versions."

Play it again with waggle controls!
Resident Evil 4 Wii Edition is, fundamentally, the same game as the PS2 release of the title. However, the game is significantly changed with the addition of motion sensitive controls using the Wii Remote and Nunchuk. No where is this more evident than when aiming your gun, using the Wii Remote to target the screen and pinpoint certain parts of your enemies.

"In IGN's review of the game (9.0, by the way), they said, '...ultimately, the new Wii controls are superior,' followed by 'It's an undeniable improvement in control and one that helps you play better.' The single largest difference between the GameCube and PS2 versions and the Wii edition are the updated controls," described Symon. "We're hearing from players on Capcom-Unity.com that it's more natural to interact with the game using the Wii Remote and Nunchuck. Ultimately, the Wii Remote has made a great game even better."

Capcom probably could have stopped with the Wii Remote aiming and many would have been satisfied. To their credit, however, they went for a full conversion of the game to the Wii. As such, using the knife is done by slashing with the Wii Remote and context sensitive controls rely on the motion sensing, making some of the most tense parts of the game even more tense and immersive.

"Slashing the controller through the air in a horizontal movement will cause the main character, Leon, to use his knife on the nearest enemy. This attack is now much easier to use in combat, allowing players to switch up their tactics and play the game in a different way," said Symon. "Similarly, the 'action sequences' in the game are much more fun to play. There's an extended boss fight towards the end of the game which is both incredible to watch and very entertaining to play, thanks to the motion controls."

Wii want more blood
Resident Evil 4 Wii Edition had something of a muted advertising campaign in the U.S. One of key components, however, was the game's first trailer. It pays particular notice to the way that the motion sensing controls change the game, appealing to both Resident Evil 4 veterans and "newbies" to the franchise who love the Wii's motion sensing controls.

"The core of the advertising campaign focused on delivering a very simple message: 'Resident Evil 4 Wii Edition delivers a new way to interact with the world's top action/horror franchise.' The campaign itself targeted both core fans and the Wii's newer gamers. We focused the majority of our spend online - no surprise there - and ran several programs through our community site, Capcom-Unity.com. Overall, we were very successful in reaching brand new players as well as those core gamers who had previously been exposed to the game."

It's hard to say if the Wii will attract mature games in the long run, but for now, the system has shown that its audience likes a variety of titles and not just the "kiddie" variety. When asked if the success of Resident Evil 4 Wii Edition demonstrates that consumers want more "mature" and "core" titles on Wii, Symon responded, "That is our belief, and I believe [it's] Nintendo's belief as well. People usually describe the Wii as a 'family' system, which can lead to impressions that it's a 'kiddie' system. The GameCube had a very similar perception, and the Resident Evil series did very well on that platform as well. Realistically, 'family' means everyone in the house, not just kids under 17. The Wii market can definitely support titles that cover a wide variety of genres and ratings."