RUMOR: Wii price drop coming in ’07?

If this keeps up any longer, I’m going to lose all credibility because of all the Wii rumors I’ve been posting lately. While I do try and pick out the more juicy and probable ones, in the end they’re still rumors, and pretty soon, you guys are going to start comparing me to one of those blonde, giggly gossip-mongers from your highschool days. That said, this is something I’ve been wanting to post for the last day or two, but managed to resist the temptation … until now.

DPAD have a post up on their website claiming that they managed to squeeze a few details about a Wii price drop in ’07 out of a talkative Toys-R-Us manager. Instead of trying to explain it all, I’m just going to quote them here:

As he would soon explain, Nintendo will be “relaunching” the Wii console sometime before or at the beginning of Spring 2007. The launch, which is said to see many different colors for the Wii system (as seen at E3), will also be accompanied by a hefty price drop from $250 to $200. For those that believe such a drop would be too radical, keep in mind Miyamoto’s own statements that the original plan was to develop a system under $100. Also note that it is undetermined if the “better system” statement includes technical upgrades to the Wii, as recent rumors have suggested.

Now, while it would be nothing short of incredible if this were true, do keep in mind that everything said above came from the mouth of a chatty TRU manager. However, there are numerous facts that would serve to support this rumor:

Miyamoto stated very clearly that Nintendo wanted to release the Wii at much lower than $250. The only reason they couldn’t do so was because major retail chains complained the system would have a “low basket value”. While there’s absolutely no way the system would be cheaper than $100, Nintendo’s tradition of pricing their consoles at $199 may yet continue.

The PS3 launches in Europe sometime in March. A properly-timed Wii price drop would definitely put a dent in Sony’s sales at launch. Also, the Wii would have a considerable number of games in its library by then, and would look more appealing from that perspective. There’s also that little matter of the numerous colors we saw the Wii in, back at E3…

Wii Sports would be available as a separate title by then, and though it would be a stupid thing to do, Nintendo could easily put Wiis on shelves without the game included. Then again, the primary reason Wii Sports was included with the system was because it would give people a rough idea of what developers could do with the Wiimote. By the time Spring ’07 arrives, we won’t need Wii Sports to show us the remote’s potential any more.

Once again, everyone … this is pure speculation, and though this rumored price drop is likely, don’t get your hopes too high.