Dug back up from the graveyard of N-Europe's features section, here comes the Staff Roundtable! Every fortnight our staffers will come together to discuss the latest gaming topics, and give their opinions. This week's topic has been overshadowed by the recent Wii launch information, but before that it was all the internet was talking about. Faced with poor factory outputs, Sony was forced to scrap their worldwide launch plans and delay the European release until March next year. Nintendo fans were, unsurprisingly, delighted. But was all the fuss worth it?

Is the delay of the PlayStation 3 in Europe really going to work in Nintendo's favour as much as some predict? Just what are the implications of the news?

Moria:

The delay of the PS3 in Europe is definitely a good thing for Nintendo. However, I feel that Nintendo may relax on releasing the Wii in Europe now, we all know that PAL territories generally get game consoles anything up to 2 years (NES) after NTSC and Japan and the fact that they wont have competition from Sony until March may make them want to delay the launch to perfect the launch lineup, and translate games. Do all Sony's bases belong to us?

If Nintendo can get the Wii out in Europe before Christmas then we (Nintendo) will have a massive headstart on the PS3, as shown by the DS/PSP, the headstart will count, and the PS3 may never recover from it. It's never nice to see a console die, but delaying the launch in Europe may make that happen, people are going to want a new console for Christmas, they got the 360 last year, and they will now get the Wii this year.

Franklin:

Assuming Nintendo don't think that because of the PS3 delay they can hold off the PAL Wii a little bit too, we will be fine. I'm hoping it'll be like the DS where the PSP was delayed by six months but Nintendo still got the DS on time and made a massive pre-emptive strike.

With the Christmas season coming and the rush for the latest in new technologies that people of all ages will want as gifts, Nintendo would be stupid to not take advantage of the oppurtunity a PS3-less Christmas season could hold.

Justin:

Overall, the delay of the PS3 could work highly in Nintendo's favour. Rather than the European market wasting their money on over-expensive Playstation products, they could put that good money to use... on a Wii.

This, if anything, should grab a large number of those edged gamers. These are the ones that might get a PS3, or might go ahead and get the Wii. Rather than waiting for the PS3 to arrive to the European market, they shall go and buy a Wii.

RedShell:

Well I certainly don't think that Nintendo will follow suit and delay Wii in Europe, we all know how insane that would be so I'm sure Nintendo do too, plus from what I can gather as far as production goes they really have no need for a delay anyway.

As for Sony's delay working in Nintendo's favour, well initially there's no doubt it'll help Wii to sell better, the question in my mind now is how much of an adverse affect will the PS3 launch have on Wii sales in March, will Nintendo have built up enough momentum by then to be able to hold the lead? I suppose if they were to have a few first-rate titles up their sleeve they could mute the PS3 release somewhat - I'm thinking Super Mario Galaxy or Smash Bros.

Tom:

Despite all the Big N's words that the Wii isn't a direct competitor to the 360 and PS3, we all know that come this Christmas season the competition between the big three companies will never have been so fierce. Except one of them just got taken out of the equation. For sure, some people will hold off buying a console altogether if they're set on getting a PS3, but obviously there'll be some people who don't want to have to wait months for a piece of the next-gen action.

And in my opinion it is here that Nintendo will really do well out of this. Consider: some gamers will go for the closest thing - the Xbox 360 - but thinking about it, how many will I'm just not sure. Having been out a year and with still nothing amazingly new and enticing, I believe the 360 won't be the big draw. Besides, those who prefer the best graphics and sound - the 360's core audience - are likely to wait for the bigger and better beast that is the PS3 anyway.

Gamers who want something different to keep them occupied until the PS3, gamers who can't be bothered to shell out for a 360 when a Wii will be less, gamers who are just damn intrigued by what Nintendo has been cooking up which got all those journos acting like schoolchildren at E3... These are the people who'll buy the Wii (along with the Nintendo fans who were going to buy it anyway).

It seems to me that Sony just gave Nintendo a Christmas present real early.

Fierce_LiNk:

The delay has given Nintendo a bit of a dilemma. Do they stick with their plans, or do they back off slightly and take their time to 'perfect' things, such as their games or production of their console?

If they do go ahead and release the Wii before Christmas in Europe, it will give them at least a good 3 month headstart over Sony. Nintendo needs all the help it can get with its console, so they cannot afford to just sit back. They need to take a good hard look at what they're doing or what their plans are and choose the best course of action. They really need to get the Wii onto the market as soon as they possibly can (without any production fiascos or faults) and they need to advertise the damn thing! Of course, this is easier said than done, but Nintendo are really in a strong position right now.

Iun:

Hmm. There's something to be said for "Getting the drop" on your opponents, but also something to be said for cautious timing and making sure you have the resource to mount a sustained offensive against a rival faction. Ten-hut!

In this case, the earlier launch of the Wii in the PAL territory could easily mean a big shift in sales of the Nintendo console. Coupled with a reasonable price tag, the cards are stacked in the company's favour.

However - and this is a very big "however", Sony have proven time and again that they can charge what they like for their console and people will still buy it in their thousands. Remember that the PS2 never made a major sub-�100 dip until recently and the consumer still bought it. It's one part pester power and one part brand power, with the Playstation brand name alone having a great deal of mileage in persuading the consumer to part with their cash.

One has only to look at launches of the N64, XBox 360 and original Playstation to know that the games buying public will pay virtually any price to get what they want. Sony knows this as well: if they bring out the PS3 and have the supply lines tightened up, then there is no doubt in my mind that they could sell a million on the weekend of release.

The Wii, on the other hand, is an unknown quantity. With early tests showing a few minor bugs in control and the obvious disparity in the quality of graphics -the first bite is the eye, remember, a pre-emptive strike against the PS3 may only see short-term gains at the expense of a long-term victory.

That said, I am coming to believe in the Wii more and more as I see new and more innovative ways of playing games. I will certainly be among the first in the queues to purchase a Wii, thequestion is: will everyone else follow my lead?

Mike:

The PS3 delay is going to have a big affect on undecided gamers. The wii will create such a buzz that people who were interested in the PS3 will re-evaluate their decision. Example: "Okay, what will the PS3 have to offer me?" Blue-ray... do you really care? High-definition... do I have an HDTV... do I want to buy one after spending $600? 1080p... will games be made in that resolution and do I need it?

The conclusion most will arrive at is your paying a lot for features you will never see.

As for christmas... with only a Wii and 360 in stores, kids and parents will get drawn to the Wii being new and with the hype..(FUN and CHEAP) even potential PS3 buyers. What is christmas without video games? I bet kids that wanted a PS3 are going to be getting a Wii for christmas... especially if it's the parents' choice.

Bottomline, this only helps the Wii.

Nick White:

I believe the delay of the PS3 has worked in Nintendo's favour, but not us, or any particular audience Nintendo is trying to reach with the Wii.

Delaying the PS3 really took the heat off of Nintendo to drive this console early, and most importantly, cheaply. The cost of the console has almost certainly grown from what Nintendo had initially planned to launch the thing at, as well as the date being pushed back. However, cost conscious parents will love the console for Christmas because of their lack of knowledge on the machine's capabilities in comparison to the 360.

However, by making the machine just that little bit more expensive, Nintendo may have pushed away potentially interested customers, customers who now see the core 360 as a valid choice, providing more bang for their hard earned cash. However, taking the PS3 out of the equation means that consumers have to pick out of two rather than three, and that's definitely a positive. There will be those that will wait, but they will be few and far a part.

A knock on effect that will be a strong positive for Nintendo for time to come will be the fact that Nintendo will have pulled off the closest thing to a real worldwide launch, with less than three weeks between launches in North America, Japan, Europe and Oceania. Microsoft may have pulled off a fortnightly release in the Northern Hemisphere, but it was not a worldwide launch, the 360 didn't get to Australia and New Zealand till March of this year. And Sony, well, shall be seen as bungling promises and being unable to deliver on their word. Hardly surprising, but they will always be criticised for that.

Conor:

Although I do think that Nintendo will benefit in Europe (that much is obvious), I do think some of the reaction has been over-the-top. Faced with a really finite number of units they could get from the factories, delaying somewhere was something they had to do. Blu-ray is a new technology, and that it's having problems is hardly surprising.

What I think is more interesting than the delay is the allocation of shipment units to the remaining territories: most especially the miniscule 100,000 units in Japan. Even the 400,000 for America. The fact is that those consoles will sell out in minutes - leaving lots of Wiis, and lots of gamers with money in their pockets and itchy trigger fingers. I have little doubt that Sony will recover from this, but for the moment, their competitors will benefit immensely.

Cheers for reading folks, check back in a fortnight for the next edition! For more opinion action, look out for a special Wii launch one-off coming tomorrow. Is the price tag too high? Do we actually care about it? These topics, and more, tomorrow! As ever, if you've got some of those opinion things we've been hearing about you can reply in the Roundtable thread on boards - it's all the rage, you know.