Wii Launch At Universal Citywalk

November 19th, 2006, 21:54 Posted By: gunntims0103

news via kotaku

Nintendo held their Los Angeles based midnight launch at Universal Citywalk, which, on a Saturday night, is already filled to near capacity. Add an extra thousand gamers and you get a maddening crowd.

After $20 worth of "preferred" parking, we made the journey through the thick soup of teenagers and families to the far end of the strip. Basking in the tacky neon glow illuminating everything around us, I finally see the sign: EBgames! I'd never been so thrilled to see one.

After witnessing what looked like a surprisingly short (and sparse) line, we learned that the line had been split up into segments, wrapping around the Hard Rock Cafe and far beyond. With gamers stacked several hundred deep, I knew there was no way I'd sneak my way into nabbing a last minute Wii for myself.

The line had started to form early Friday for Saturday night's Wii launch. Staying cool in nothing but red overalls, Jonathan Mann was first in line. He was going to have his Wii handed to him by Nitnendo's very own George Harrison at 12:01.

To keep the Wii faithful entertained while waiting in line—despite the fact the virtually everyone was armed with a DS or DS lite—Nintendo had off-road Segways with widescreen monitors cruising through the crowd.

For line gawkers and passersby, about a dozen Wii demo stations (as well as a handful of DS kiosks) were installed. Gamers lined up to play Excite Truck, Wii Sports, Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess and Red Steel. Hundreds of onlookers got their first exposure to the Wii that night and the buzz seemed positive.

The night kicked off with an interview with Nintendo's George Harrison, who was as excited about the Wii launch as a Senior Vice President of Marketing and Corporate Communications is allowed to get. In addition to thrilling executive interviews, the crowd was also kept entertained by DJ Rap and the acrobatic group Antigravity. (We were kept entertained by the Rum Runners and Pink Sunsets from the Hard Rock.)

As midnight approached, dozens of Wii retail boxes were pulled from the stock room and stacked on the now empty EBgames register countertops. Following a rousing DJ Rap lead countdown, Mr. Mann entered the store at 12:01 AM.

After picking up his Wii, he read his Nintendo themed poem (seriously) to the gathered media. The first Wii owner exited, booty held aloft, and the patient crowd was allowed entrance. Media were quickly booted out to give the staff some breathing room.

Having engaged in midnight launches myself, I knew that the last person in line wouldn't receive his or her Wii until very, very late that night.

Sleepy from our night of heavy Mexican food, overly sweet adult beverages, we headed back to the lot. Sans pre-order and spot in line, we then set off to find our own Wii. Will we find one?

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